Limits of Conversational Structure

This 4 minute semi-animation by Jeff Conklin illustrates why sequential conversational structure is inadequate for complex issues. For more, see http://cognexus.org

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Facilitation
• Dialogue
• Mapping
• wicked
• problems

[luvtolearn]

This is great! - and to make it even better I'd love to see the same level of map but using words from a real-world (& just as simple) conversation. e.g. three people trying to decide on a restaurant or which movie to see or ???

I want to share this with my colleagues & clients and suggest we try this, but the current example is still a little abstract for people who have never seen a dialogue map.

[DrJeffConklin]

Great idea! I'm on it!

And ... it will probably take me a few weeks to pull something together. But I'll definitely take this on.

[djhouck1]

This video is especially helpful - I'd like to generalize to consider "conversation structure" as similar in many ways to the structure of a problem solving process or even a structure for tracking the ideas surrounding a question that is a complex task.

[DrJeffConklin]

That's the idea. To create a series of videos that illustrate how threaded on-line discussions and newspaper articles, for example, have a similar linear structure which just doesn't scale when you try to take on a complex issue. The linear medium makes us dumb, it seems. Thanks for the input!

[stormerc]

This seems to relate also to the Pyramid Principle - sometimes called the Minto Pyramid, used by most consulting firms to build a "logical grouping" -- essentially building a pyramid of issues relating to each other according to strict rules (MECE - mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive being maybe the most important), and with one "Governing Thought" on top of the pyramid -- similar to the root question you are referring to in your video.

[pdxjules]

Thanx. Amazing how often meetings follow this exact comment pattern. See you on the Webinar.

[happyseaurchin]

very nice...

i would hope that by using this tool

individuals get better at realising the underlying structure of conversations

and thus being to learn how to maintain a more coherent conversation

thanks!

[DenisDOBrien]

Back in the 80's I invented a meeting structure which I call Ringi ... after the Japanese word for consensus management. It was structured around 5 'prompts' which always had the same underlying structure:

A bad meeting is ...

A good meeting is ...

If I was running a meeting I would ...

We should ...

As a result of this discussion I will ...

The answers to these questions were written in silence and then read out ... actually I devised a very complex but repeatable process for the disclosure

[bioworld1]

I had prepared amapping of complex dialogues in an ecologically relevant development issue using similar approach. I hope to share it soon.

[annamcumming]

This video illustrates so well the power of presenting complex issues and conversations structurally. Jeff has built his dialogue map using Compendium; at Austhink Software we have developed another great tool for this type of mapping, called bCisive.

I've recreated Jeff's dialogue map using bCisive, and posted it online - send me a message via my user profile for the URL, as I can't post it here.

You can also use bCisive to tackle decisions and problem solving tasks.

[SprayCheesProduction]

A brilliant revelation of the distinction between sequential utterances in a meeting/conversation and the underlying structure - and the power and clarity of understanding the underlying structure.

[patsachs]

Hi Jeff,

This is a very nice way to simply contrast meeting notes with capturing underlying structure. Love it!

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