Understanding Mental Models

“We are prisoners of our own islands of thought until some foreign intruders come to our shores. Then we realize the wonder and perils of interacting with this “brave new world” outside the scope of our former mental models.”

Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”

Why do some people seem to handle conflict and form relationships with ease? Were they just born that way? The simple answer is that they have a greater understanding of mental models. Mental models are the way in which people process and understand information differently. For example, when Americans and Europeans clash over issues, it is not a matter of one side being right or wrong. It is the mindset or mental model that each side brings into a situation. Many executives have asked why Europe hasn’t been able to develop a “Silicon Valley” of their own. The reason is that risk taking, in general, is viewed negatively in Europe, while risk takers are admired in America. Silicon Valley has been the greatest money making machine the planet has seen, but the plethora of bankruptcies which came out of Silicon Valley would never come about in Europe. The reason for this, is the difference in mental models.

Having contradictory mental models on an executive team should be beneficial as long as all members understand why their colleagues think differently and how that benefits the team as a whole. This is not easy to do, and only gets more difficult with age. When faced with contradictory personalities or behaviors, we quickly classify others as “others” and don’t see them as individuals. We classify new ideas as “crazy” and don’t give them a second thought. How do you cultivate the ability to see things differently? How do you remove your own blinders and come up with new perspectives? How do you take these perspectives seriously enough to transform the way you see the world, but not so seriously that you lose touch with your past or your current reality? Begin with identifying the classic mental models and defining them in order to gain a basic understanding of them.

Classic Mental Models

Consensus: 
Flat System where each member has equal say. Popular in Scandinavia, Netherlands and Canada. Effective at limiting overly aggressive team members, but can result in deadlock too often.

Charismatic:
Dynamic Leader System where members are encouraged to contribute in a manner that is compatible with the group’s norms and behaviors. Popular in U.S., U.K. and Latin America. Effective at fostering ideas and ensuring progress, but strong institutions are essential for the success of this type of model. Another drawback is that the charisma of the leader can cause groupthink.

Patriarchical:
Great Man System where decisions and policies are delivered from the top-down. Popular in Africa, Asia and The Middle East. Effective in creating a consultative system where best practices can be established quickly and are followed. However, due to the concentration of power at the top, it can create a dictatorial system where inputs from lower levels are not encouraged or valued.

Technocratic:
Hierarchical system where decision-making is slow due to the check and balance procedures to scrutinize ideas. Popular in Germanic Countries. Effective at ensuring the soundness of policies or ideas prior to implementation. However, bureaucracy tends to cripple this process making it inoperable at times.

After examining these 4 mental models, think about employees, managers and clients from the past and present and think about how their mental model created kinship or caused animosity. Remember, each mental model believes that they’re model works best.