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Tool box - Ladder of Inference
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Relationship Management
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從本節課中
Managing Conflict
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David Van KleeckProfessor in the Practice of Engineering Leadership
Rice Center for Engineering Leadership
Many years ago I was introduced to a concept that I think
can be very useful in helping you resolve conflicts.
It was first introduced by Chris Arjuris and later followed up by Peter Sangee
in his book, The Fifth Discipline, The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization.
It's called the Ladder of Inference.
The Ladder of Inference is a construct that relies on a hierarchy of actions that
an individual goes through to move from situational data to action.
We'll take a look at this in a little more detail.
We begin by looking at any particular situation where there's a wealth of data
out there, facts if you will, that are pertinent to a particular situation.
An individual then might selectively pick from those facts,
from the situation, to develop a data set of information that they
will use as they proceed along the Ladder of Inference.
As they look at that data they will interpret the data through their set of
lenses, through their values and
their experiences that might help them understand the data at hand.
From that they will make some assumptions, again based on their personal experiences
of what works in a particular situation or does not.
They then arrive at some conclusions about what they might wish to do,
which form the basis for their beliefs about the situation.
With all of that in hand, the individual then may take action.
The process of going from situational data to action
can occur extremely rapidly, frequently on the order of seconds.
When this occurs between two individuals that view the situation differently,
those individuals can both climb this ladder and
arrive, taking action in a situation that results in conflict.
When we arrive at that belief stage, we can actually find ourselves in a situation
where we selectively pick additional data to reinforce our position
and that data may actually be very very limited.
And may cause to be stuck in this recycled loop of beliefs and
selectively picking data that reinforce our particular position.
When this happens it becomes extremely difficult to open up
from a closed position.
If we exam this from the perspective of two people climbing the ladder,
using different sets of lenses for interpretation, arriving at conclusions,
and arriving at different beliefs, it's easy to see where they might
arrive at taking action in a situation that results in conflict.
So how then do we resolve that conflict?
One of the best ways is to figure out steps to move down
the Ladder of Inference to places on that ladder you can test mutual understanding.
Frequently, this is at the data level itself, where we can test
mutual understanding of the facts involved in the particular situation.
We use tools such as reflection, advocacy, and
inquiry to test the veracity of those facts.
The skills of each individual and using those techniques
will help determine the effectiveness of resolving the conflict.
So when is it that we know we need to move down this Ladder of Inference?
I'll suggest to you that the moment that you begin to feel the tension that
comes along with conflict, the stress that you begin to feel,
that could be a signal that you need to examine those beliefs and conclusions and
assumptions that you've made to move up the Ladder of Inference.
Using a process that's referred to as reflection, you may want to move down that
ladder by examining much more critically what those conclusions, assumptions,
interpretations had been to arrive at a better picture of what the facts are.
You can do this individually, without the other person being
particularly skilled in moving down the Ladder of Inference, and
in doing so, you can be proactive in helping to manage the conflict.
When both individuals are skilled in moving down the ladder of inference,
the use of advocacy and inquiry skills helps clarify information so
that mutual understanding is achieved.
As I said earlier, you may have to move to that data level to make sure that
you're looking at the same facts in the same way, and
then proceed to generate mutually agreeable interpretations and
assumptions and, ultimately, to arrive at mutually acceptable actions.
If you can apply the lessons of moving down the Ladder of Inference effectively
in resolving conflict, this could actually form a first step to moving
to a much more rigorous collaborative problem solving process that will
more effectively eliminate conflict situations in your environment.
If you can do this, you will be a much more effective leader.
