Fostering Connection, Managing Tension: Navigating Difficult Conversations in Organizations.

Despite the extant research highlighting the benefits of having difficult conversations, its inherent complexity – particularly due to the interdependent, multimodal, and highly contextualized nature of conversation – has impeded its empirical advancement and theoretical integration. Furthermore, previous research has assumed that having, or being able to have, difficult conversations is invariably beneficial for individuals, teams, and organizations. However, exactly how these conversations unfold and lead to positive outcomes remain a mystery. In this symposium, five presentations will explore why and how particular conversational elements within difficult contexts, such as grief, distrust, conflict, diverging goals, and advice giving and seeking, may lead to better or worse outcomes for individuals in organizational settings. In total, the symposium offers empirical and theoretical insights into the burgeoning science of conversation research, as well as practical solutions for managers, leaders, and employees who wish to create spaces where people are heard and feel connected to others. Expressions of Sympathy are Less Effective When They Focus on the Positive Author: Daniel Chiacchia; U. of Toronto, Rotman School of Management Author: Rachel Lise Ruttan; U. of Toronto Author: Katherine Ann DeCelles; U. of Toronto Author: Sora Jun; Rice U. Communicating Under Distrust Author: Laura Wallace; U. of Chicago Booth School of business Author: Yena Kim; U. of Chicago Booth School of business Author: Emma Levine; U. Of Chicago The Social Effects of Discrete Emotions on Curiosity Elicited During Conflict Author: Christina Bradley; U. of Michigan, Ross School of Business Author: Nadav Klein; INSEAD Boomerasking: Answering Your Own Questions Author: Alison Wood Brooks; Harvard U. Author: Michael Yeomans; Imperial College Business School Flattering Advice: Avoiding Disappointment as a Driver of Gender Discrimination Author: Zaidan Chen; Hong Kong U. of Science and Technology Author: David Hagmann; - [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]