69. Interaction Drivers

Key Definitions

Managers and employees interact with each other and with the outside world on a daily basis – they talk, discuss, argue, laugh, decide, plan, check in and fight, not necessarily in that order. They interact one-on-one, but also in groups, and for a variety of reasons.

Interaction between people is so normal, that we hardly realize that every interaction is unique and is shaped by a wide range of influencing factors. Some of these interaction drivers are fixed but some can be adapted, which can significantly change the interaction dynamics.

Conceptual Model

The Interaction Drivers framework outlines the five levels of influencing factors that determine how an interaction between two people takes place. Most people will interact with each other around a particular topic (the content level), but the way they interact will be governed by some overarching circumstances (the context level). At the same time, under the surface, the interaction will be impacted by political, cognitive, and emotional factors on both sides. The framework is intended to help people understand what is driving their interactions, making them aware that they shouldn’t only focus on the content being discussed, but need to zoom out to understand how various context factors are shaping behaviors, while at the same time acknowledging the powerful influence of the undercurrent.

Key Elements

The five levels of interaction drivers are the following:

1. Content Level. This is the level of the topic itself – what people believe they are interacting about. Obviously, talking about last night’s game will be a different type of interaction than discussing the poor sales numbers, arguing about the next elections, or deciding where to place the new coffee machine. In each case, people can have different levels of information and knowledge, varying insights and evaluations, and diverging preferences and opinions.
2. Context Level. If you could hover over two people interacting, you could see how their behavior is shaped by various conditions, such as the setting (in the office or the bar, with just two people or a whole team) the timing (on Monday morning or Friday afternoon, in January or tomorrow), their roles (between colleagues or with your boss, with a problem owner or the doorman) and procedures (with or without an agenda and meeting rules).
3. Political Level. While the context factors are out in the open, the political factors shape the interaction under the surface. People will have different interests (striving for different goals and benefits, while avoiding various costs and risks), but will also have a perception of the interests driving their counterpart. At the same time, both sides will have an estimation of their own level and sources of power vis-à-vis the other.
4. Cognitive Level. Even deeper under the surface will be the divergent worldviews shaping what people say and do. Both sides will have different mental maps, formed by their unique set of experiences, educational backgrounds and cultural heritage, but also by different personalities, all contributing to a different way of interpreting what is going on. People are usually unaware of the lens they look through, assuming the way they think is “normal”.
5. Emotional Level. At the deepest level, interactions will be shaped by both sides’ emotions, such as how they feel about the other (do they like and trust the person?), their motivations (what are their needs and ambitions?) and their fears (are they worried about what might happen or being treated unfairly?). People often lack enough emotional intelligence to recognize their counterpart’s feelings, but also to recognize and understand their own.

Key Insights

• Interactions are shaped by a range of drivers. Each simple interaction between people is determined by a complex array of influencing factors, making each interaction essentially unique. Therefore, understanding why both sides of an interaction behave in the way they do, can be difficult. The Interaction Drivers framework helps with this task.
• Interactions are shaped by content factors. When people interact, it is generally around some topic or issue. The type of subject will have a huge impact on how they interact – talking about the weather will be different than deciding on a big investment. But also, people’s information, knowledge, insights, preferences and opinions will be important. All these content factors tend to be on the surface and therefore relatively easy to recognize.
• Interactions are shaped by context factors. Every content interaction is also governed by a variety of interaction conditions, such as the setting, the timing, the participants’ roles and the procedures to which they adhere. These context factors are often not directly recognizable on the surface but require the observer to zoom out to see them.
• Interactions are shaped by undercurrent factors. At the same time, there are always factors under the surface shaping people’s attitudes and thereby impacting their interactions. These undercurrents are people’s political considerations (their interests and power), their cognitive filters (their mental maps and personalities) and their emotional drivers (their feelings towards each other, motivations and fears).
• Interactions can be understood and adapted. The Interaction Drivers framework can be used afterwards to make sense of a past interaction, or during an interaction to understand what is happening. But ideally, the framework can be employed to anticipate a future interaction and to adjust one’s approach ahead of time to get the best possible outcome.