Harvard University proposes a new approach to problem-solving techniques, emphasizing the importance of what we call intermittent collaboration in resolving complex conflicts.
In this sense, according to this prestigious educational institution, technology has given us the possibility of a constant connection at a very low cost, but that does not always benefit us, but argues that intermittent collaboration could be the best way to solve many problems. complex types of problems.
- “HBS Associate Professor Ethan Bernstein sees a number of workplace implications for different collaborative models.
- Including the benefits of alternating independent efforts with group work over a period of time.
- -The Harvard Gazette-.
Research by Harvard Business School Associate Professor (HBS) Ethan Bernstein and his colleagues, How Intermittent Interruptions in Interaction Improve Collective Intelligence, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS, official publication of the US National Academy of Sciences). U. S. ) On August 13, he says that being always connected can reduce the effectiveness of our actions, so intermittency would be the best way to solve problems, even the most complex ones.
The study was conducted after analyzing the resolution of complex problems encountered by groups of three people, in this way, one of the groups has never interacted with each other, managing to solve the problem in a totally isolated way. another group interacted constantly, while a third group did so only intermittently.
Because of the research, scientists hoped that those who solved problems in isolation would be more creative, but that as a group they would not achieve the same results, they also predicted that people in constant contact would have a higher average resolution quality. but I couldn’t find the best solutions as often.
However, during the process, groups interacting intermittently were found to achieve a solution quality similar to the groups that were constantly doing so, but with the advantage that the individual found the best solutions.
Most surprising of all, when interactions were intermittent collaborations, the best performers improved by learning from the weakest. Meanwhile, when high- and low-income people were constantly interacting, low-income people copied the solutions of those with high incomes and were ignored by high-income people.
Therefore, when interactions were intermittent, ideas presented by low-income people helped high-income people find better solutions.
“Bernstein and his co-authors see a number of workplace implications for these discoveries, including the benefits of alternating independent efforts with group work over a period of time. “Ethan Bernstein.
Harvard University says that’s how you traditionally work in business; in fact, people work alone, then get together and then go back to work alone; however, he points out that advances in technology have changed these cycles.
Harvard notes that researchers have observed some similarities in the way companies work today, namely teamwork implies a flash that allows the individual to work in isolation, to achieve better results.
“By replacing such intermittent cycles with always-on technologies, we could reduce our ability to solve problems well. “Ethan Bernstein.
Interaction intermittency is what produces really positive results. It also indicates that companies generally have group and individual spaces, where interaction can be interrupted for some time.
In short, the Harvard project concluded that models that allow intermittent contact, rather than constant contact, are more important for productivity and performance than previously thought.
In addition, the notion that technology and the use of digital collaboration tools should not upset intermittent isolation is incorporated, so workers could solve complex problems in less time.
“Companies known for their excellence in creativity and brainstorming, such as IDEO, generally use a process that has integrated intermittency. “- Ethan Bernstein-