Analyzing Organizations:
Developing Cognitive Complexity
MPA 8002
The Structure and Theory of Human
Organization
Richard M. Jacobs, OSA, Ph.D.
Characteristics of human
organizations...

because human interactions are
fluid, changing, and in a constant
state of flux depending on
personalities and circumstances...
…one can never be quite sure exactly
how other people are going to
respond in an interaction

what one might predict will be a
logical outcome...
...is frequently just not the case

one can never be absolutely sure
that what someone says...
...is the whole truth and nothing but
the whole truth

as one looks about the organization,
what one sees...
...is not able to be identified and
classified easily
Characteristics of human
organizations...
In contrast to one’s expectations of
order and clarity, human organizations
are characterized by:
 complexity
 surprise
 deception
 ambiguity (Bolman & Deal, 2003)
Most sources of this chaos and
confusion can be attributed to...
a fundamental lack of clarity:





what the issue is
what really is happening
what we want to accomplish
the way we will accomplish it
how we will assess and
evaluate success or failure
Another source of this confusion
and chaos can be attributed to...
limitations in the organization:



scarce resources
ill-defined responsibilities
basic incompetence
This lack of clarity and
organizational limitations...
renders individuals and groups:

unclear about what the facts are
what their roles and responsibilities
are
 whether and how they will be held
accountable

Consequently, people spend their
energies dealing with...
fears
 doubts
 worries

The origins of these
irrational thoughts
and paranoia
oftentimes originate
in rumors, distorted
half-truths or, worse
yet, lies and deceit...
But, this dynamic only increases
wonderment about...
various schemes and
scenarios
 imagined alternatives
and probabilities
 grand conspiracies

And, as Weick (1977) notes,
people then start to enact this
perceived reality...
For the organizations and its
members, this dynamic increases...

confusion

uncertainty

anxiety

paranoia
And further increases the
probability of generating...

messes

mistakes

chaos

failure
In light of these factors, it is
much easier to...

fault other people

blame the bureaucracy

complain about one’s powerlessness

become an organizational “drone”
...than it is for people to...
take responsibility
 develop resolutions


overcome obstacles

lead others to a
preferred future
In plain language,
to engage in
“self-change,” the
precursor to
managing and
leading others...
Human organizations are
characterized by...

complexity

surprise

deception

ambiguity
Reflective practice
(Sergiovanni, 1986) reminds
managers and leaders that
the fundamental issue is:
The mindscapes and action
platforms of managers and
leaders—as well as most
people in organizations—
direct them to believe that
organizations should be
characterized by precision
and order.
The cognitive dissonance implicit in this
organizational reality provides a focus for the
self-change needed to...
avoid self-deception, blame-finding,
and self-protective behaviors
 overcome the impediments to
organizational improvement
 enact self-correcting behaviors

The concept...

cognitive complexity:
...the refined intellectual ability to
utilize a variety of theories of
practice to examine practice
episodes

the intellectual ability of a manager
or leader to envision the organization
from multiple and competing
perspectives so as to develop a
depth of organizational
understanding that is at least equal
to the factors impacting its
functioning

cognitive complexity enables
managers and leaders to examine
organizational phenomena from
diverse perspectives, each of which
“complicates” how managers and
leaders understand “what is.”

a tool that managers and leaders can
use in reflective practice to expand
their understanding of what is
transpiring in practice episodes
Contrasting cognitive complexity
and unitary cognition...
cognitive complexity:
unitary cognition:

focuses on alternatives

looks for quick answers

addresses fundamental
issues while dealing
with recurring problems

addresses recurring
problems

focuses on the long
term and resolutions

focuses on the short
term and solutions that
work

is proactive

is reactive

facilitates ethical
decision making

seeks easy answers to
complex issues
Metaphorically speaking...
cognitive complexity:
unitary cognition:

enables managers and
leaders, like
physicians, to “heal
the disease”

provides band-aids for
managers to “ameliorate
the symptoms” of the
disease

enables managers and
leaders, like a fire
chief, to focus on “fire
prevention”

focuses managers and
leaders on “putting out
the fires”
Contrasting cognitive complexity
and unitary cognition...
cognitive complexity
enables managers and
leaders:
unitary cognition
makes managers and
leaders:

to know what one sees

see what one knows

to envision alternatives

dictate a solution

to create the best
possible pathway
through the messes
and chaos

impose the solution

to exercise authority

use power
The critical question for
managers and leaders...
How is one to know if what one sees is
really there?
Reflective
practice
reminds
managers
and leaders
that:

subjective
“antecedents” can
obscure

“theories of practice”
can foreclose
objectivity

“practice episodes” can
obfuscate
Integrating reflective practice and
cognitive complexity...

Reflective practice and cognitive complexity
require intellectual exercise and discipline

Reflective practice focuses upon practice
episodes to ascertain how one’s beliefs and
assumptions as well as one’s background and
experiences impact organizational functioning

Cognitive complexity utilizes a wide variety of
theories of practice to support reflective practice
Cognitive complexity and
organizational analysis...
Recall Bolman and Deal’s (1997) four-frame
model identifying common theories of practice:
the structural frame
the human resources frame
the political frame
the symbolic frame
Analyzing organizations through four frames inculcates in managers and leaders
the cognitive complexity they need in order to diagnose the fundamental issues
underlying the many pesky problems emerging in human organizations.
Organizational analysis:
Bolman & Deal’s four-frame model…
the structural frame
Primary
Metaphor for
Organization:
 Factory
 Machine
Central
Concepts:






Rules
Roles
Goals
Policies
Technology
Environment
Managerial
and
Leadership
Image:
 Social
architect
 Chief
Executive
Officer
 President
Fundamental
Challenge:
 Attune
structure to
task,
technology,
environment
 Align people,
process, and
technology
the human resources frame
Primary
Metaphor for
Organization:
 Family
 Tribe
 Clan
Central
Concepts:





Relationships
Self-Interest
Needs
Feelings
Skills




Managerial
And
Leadership
Image:
Fundamental
Challenge:
Empowerment
Liberation
Fulfillment
SelfActualization
 Attune
organizational
and human
needs
the political frame
Primary
Metaphor for
Organization:
 Jungle
Central
Concepts:






Self-Interest
Power
Conflicts
Competition
Politics
Intrigue
Managerial
And
Leadership
Image:
 Advocate
 Referee
 Mediator
Fundamental
Challenge:
 Develop
agenda
 Form
coalitions and
build power
base
 Acquire good
intelligence
 Dispense
information
wisely
the symbolic frame
Primary
Metaphor for
Organization:
 Carnival
 Cathedral or
Temple
 Opera and
Theatre
Central
Concepts:







Culture
Meaning
Metaphor
Ritual
Ceremony
Stories
Heroes and
heroines
 Common
good
Managerial
And
Leadership
Image:
 High priests
and priestesses
 Tribal Chieftans
 Clan Chieftans
Fundamental
Challenge:




Inspire
Create faith
Define beauty
Identify
meaning
Cognitive complexity:
contributions of the four frames...
the structural frame
…objective
…logical
the human resources frame
…personal
…practical
the political frame
…realistic
…practical
the symbolic frame
…personal
…meaningful
Cognitive complexity:
limitations of the four frames...
the structural frame
…impersonal
…overly simplistic
…pessimistic
the human resources frame
… naïve
…optimistic
the political frame
…impersonal
…cynical
the symbolic frame
…impractical
…overly complex
Looking at the clutter and confusion...

how managers
and leaders think
using unitary
frames:

value certainty

assume rationality

emphasize control

fear ambiguity,
paradox, and “going
with the flow”

how managers
and leaders think
using cognitive
complexity:

develop creativity
take risks
approach matters
playfully
focus on right
questions
engender faith




As problems inevitably arise...


how managers
and leaders think
using unitary
frames:
limited view of
organizational
functioning
 reduce issues to
problems
 look for short-term
solutions

how managers
and leaders think
using cognitive
complexity:

utilize a holistic
framework

inquire into
fundamental issues

consider long-term
resolutions
When confronting problems...

how managers
and leaders think
using unitary
frames:

choose rational
solutions

strive for objectivity

emphasize facts, logic,
restructuring

how managers
and leaders think
using cognitive
complexity:

a palette of options

inquire into
fundamental issues

bargain, train,
celebrate, re-engineer
What people see in managers and
leaders...

who think using
cognitive
complexity:

who think using
unitary frames:

always looking for the
“one best way”

demanding the “one
right answer”
unwavering in
upholding principles

flexible when applying
principles

responsive

understanding of other
points of view


reacting to events

stunned by resistance

blaming others for
turmoil
This module has focused on...
cognitive complexity
...the refined intellectual ability to
utilize a variety of theories of
practice to examine practice
episodes
The next module will focus on...
scenario building
…and how managers and leaders use
their minds and spirit to foster
successful organizational change
efforts.
References...




Argyris, C., & Schön, D. A. (1974). Theory in
practice: Increasing professional effectiveness.
San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Bolman, L., & Deal, T. (1997). Reframing
organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(2nd edition). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Schön, D. A. (1991). Educating the reflective
practitioner. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Sergiovanni, T. J. (1986). Understanding
reflective practice. Journal of Curriculum and
Supervision, 1(4), 353-359.

Weick, K. E. (1977). Enactment processes in
organizations. In B. M. Staw & G. R. Salancik (Eds.), New
directions in organizational behavior (pp. 267-300).
Chicago, IL: St. Clair Press.