tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38902647.post6475607143008000326..comments2024-03-26T05:19:42.852-04:00Comments on Professor Michael Roberto's Blog: The Power of Integrative ThinkingMichael Robertohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01658740999927721412noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38902647.post-84341502506321528102007-08-17T00:55:00.000-04:002007-08-17T00:55:00.000-04:00Integrative thinking can be learned in a way that ...Integrative thinking can be learned in a way that ensures the small parts and the connections are, well, integrated.Graham Douglashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11230708717017362772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38902647.post-62293195729015316012007-07-07T01:28:00.000-04:002007-07-07T01:28:00.000-04:00I recently caught Dr. Martin's article as well and...I recently caught Dr. Martin's article as well and found his conclusions facinating. And then I read the end of the article.<BR/><BR/>It seems that Dr. Martin had identified a truly unique talent possessed by certain individuals in our society and then discounted it with an aspirational interjection - a hope that we might all one day have opposable minds. <BR/><BR/>I admit that I am neither a social scientist nor a psycologist and I may be completely wrong in my thinking that an opposable mind can be developed with time and effort. One thing I am very sure of is that I will never be an NBA superstar, no matter how much I practice or desire to be one. With a good coach and my drive to achieve, I may marginally improve my freethrow and perhaps develop better ball control or passing accuracy, but put me up against a godlike superstar like Shaq and the world will instantly know that I am a mere mortal. People with opposable minds just think differently. Their talent isn't better per se, it's just different. Admittedly however, these folks tend to be a little on the quirky side. I work with several and they are definitely unique.<BR/><BR/>With regard to your retort to Dr. Martin's point regarding breaking problems into pieces, I disagree. People who are blessed with the talent of integrative thinking don't feel a discomfort in their own mind while holding two conflicting ideas in dialectical tension and they don't break problems down. They integrate them. That's the glory of their talent and the very essence of their difference. I think Martin is right on this one. They naturally approach complexity holistically and that's why they often arrive at such creative solutions to the tension they experience between the conflicting ideas. That's what drives these folks. It's energizing to them and they do it flawlessly.<BR/><BR/>Your suggestion via reference to Weick's article to break complex problems down into smaller parts to minimize the cognitive whelming is an excellent suggestion for instances of "detail" complexity. For issues of "dynamic" complexity of the kind that Martin's article describes, I suggest the decision-maker begin a talent search to find an individual with an opposable mind. And fast.Phil Stonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02207536592898603660noreply@blogger.com