Using Collective Intelligence to Preempt Conflict and Enhance Collaboration

Using Collective Intelligence to Preempt Conflict and Enhance Collaboration

Instructor: Dacia Charlesworth, Ph.D.

Lecturer, Kelley School of Business, Indiana University Bloomington

Relevant Courses

Any course where students collaborate in teams

Rationale

Teams often rush through the initial formation phase, eager to begin task work without establishing a foundation for effective collaboration and communication. As a result, teams are forced to address team dynamics reactively, discovering communication differences through trial and error rather than exploring them during formation. Barsoux and Toegel note this conventional approach makes resetting negative impressions and restoring trust difficult. Instead, teams benefit from structured ways to reflect on and discuss different communication styles early—even when teams seem homogeneous.

This intentional slowing down engages students in metacognitive analyses of their collective intelligence, empowering them to autonomously develop team protocols. Through the Think-Pair-Share framework and peer-to-peer engagement, students develop self-awareness about communication style preferences while collaboratively establishing guidelines to preempt conflict and ensure effective interaction. By prioritizing structured reflection and autonomy during team formation, students learn to proactively transform potential communication challenges into opportunities for stronger collaboration.

Activity Description

In this scaffolded active learning activity, teams begin the forming process by engaging in meta-cognitive reflections about individual communication styles and how to use similarities and differences to enhance team performance. This activity combines cognitive empathy (i.e., the intellectual understanding of others' experiences and viewpoints) with collective intelligence (i.e., the enhanced capacity that emerges when teams effectively pool their knowledge and unique perspectives) to support effective teaming (i.e., the active process of collaborating in dynamic, interdependent situations).

Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

·      Understand how collective intelligence emerges from diverse communication styles

·      Analyze team survey data to identify communication challenges and opportunities

·      Evaluate how proactive strategies can address potential communication conflicts

·      Create effective team protocols that leverage communication differences

Implementation

Prior to Class:

Step 1. Students complete a 14-question communication styles survey.

Step 2. Instructors compile individual survey results into a shared team overview, showing how many team members Strongly Agreed, Agreed, Disagreed, or Strongly Disagreed with each question.

Class Session:

Step 1. Working individually for 10 minutes, students review their team’s survey results and generate at least one strategy to leverage both similarities and differences to strengthen collaboration (e.g., Since our team is evenly split between big picture and detail orientation, the big picture team members will lead us through a high-level discussion of goals and vision, and then the detail-oriented members will break goals down into specific tasks and requirements).

Step 2. Teams then spend 20 minutes sharing individual insights and developing 3-4 concrete protocols for effective communication, decision-making, and proactive problem-solving (e.g., establishing guidelines for offering feedback).

Step 3. One team member shares their protocols with the class, describing how they used their collective intelligence to develop these strategies.

Step 4. During the debrief, teams reflect on how understanding their collective intelligence informs the development of their upcoming team contract assignment.

This scaffolded progression—from individual reflection to team discussion to class sharing and finally team contract application—helps students build both self-awareness and teaming skills that support successful collaboration throughout the project.

Impact/Effectiveness

At the end of class, students identify at least one thing that excited, interested, or surprised them about the activity via a discussion post.

Their responses reveal how this activity enhances collaboration through early awareness of team dynamics. Students recognize both immediate and long-term benefits of discussing communication styles during team formation. As one student noted: “It was interesting that team collaboration could be advanced through the materials we learned in class. Also[,] it was interesting that every group has different values.” Students particularly value how the activity helps them proactively address potential challenges: “I was interested to learn how my group members views differed and how we will be able to overcome these differences.”

The structured peer-to-peer engagement proves especially effective. One student observed: “It surprised me just how much chemistry our team has—we were easily able to sort through the issues and discuss our possible issues.” Another highlighted the practical value: “I learned about different ways to conduct team meetings as well as how to make everyone feel comfortable.”

Most significantly, students recognize how early discussion of communication styles prevents future conflicts. One student reflected: “I was surprised that my entire group are fans of sarcasm. In a group last year, one member did not understand sarcasm at all[,] and another member was very sarcastic, so I'm happy my group got this out of the way early.”

This investment in early team formation yields measurable results: Team Contracts now include more specific, actionable guidelines for collaboration based directly on team members' survey results. For example, teams create explicit protocols for giving feedback and managing disagreements based on their identified communication styles. Most importantly, because teams collaborate using their collective intelligence during formation, they develop more sophisticated interaction strategies that serve them throughout the project.

 Google Drive Folder with Resources

Communication Style Survey

(adapted from Barsoux and Toegel’s Harvard Business Review article)

1.            I believe punctuality is very important and that there should be consequences when one is late or misses deadlines.

2.            I believe physical space is very important and prefer team members maintain a distance of at least two feet whenever possible.

3.            I believe team members should wait to be nominated or assigned tasks instead of volunteering to complete them.

4.            I believe maintaining group harmony is more important than addressing issues/concerns directly.

5.            I appreciate irony and sarcasm.

6.            I believe interruptions signal interest, not rudeness.

7.            I believe when someone is silent, they are more likely disengaged instead of reflecting on the topic.

8.            I believe dissenting views should not be aired in public and that it is best for individuals to address concerns or conflicts in private.

9.            I welcome unsolicited feedback.

10.        I view uncertainty as a threat that should be avoided instead of an opportunity.

11.        I am very tolerant when a team deviates from an agreed-upon plan.

12.        I believe the big picture is more important than the details.

13.        I believe it is unacceptable to display emotions in a business context.

14.        If I am annoyed with a teammate, I am comfortable speaking with them directly and explaining why I am annoyed.