Making Sense of Ambiguity through Dialogue and Collaborative Action
Name
Caroll_Making sense.pdf
Size
195.31 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
3f188b28833fe43daf950dfde52237f4
Author(s)
Carroll, John Stephen
Date Issued
March 2015
Journal
Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management
Publisher
Wiley Blackwell
Citation
Carroll, John S. “Making Sense of Ambiguity through Dialogue and Collaborative Action.” Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management 23, no. 2 (March 4, 2015): 59–65.
Version
Author's final manuscript
Abstract
This paper outlines the importance of ambiguity in organizations that manage hazardous operations in a rapidly changing environment. Three kinds of ambiguity are described: fundamental ambiguity in categories and labels for understanding what is happening; causal ambiguity for understanding cause–effect relationships that enable explanation, prediction, and intervention; and role ambiguity of agreeing on responsibilities. Examples of successful and unsuccessful ways that organizations deal with ambiguity are drawn from several industries. Although the most typical response is to avoid ambiguity or to seek a false clarity from confident leaders, more successful strategies engage diverse participants from inside and outside the organization to provide multiple perspectives and innovative suggestions that contribute to learning-by-doing.
MIT Department
Sloan School of Management
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5973.12075
