Have you ever wondered why people seem to be addicted to sources of information during times of crisis or uncertainty? Or why they continue to watch / listen to multiple news channels even when there are no real updates from one programme to the next?
Interestingly, the reason for this is the way our brains are hard-wired for survival. ‘Flight or fight’ is a well-known evolutionary response left over from the days when we used to live in more threatening times. The brain needed to react quickly to a perceived threat such as a predator, without spending time or energy on thinking through a detailed strategy to deal with the issue.
From a neuroscientific perspective* what happens when we think we are under threat is the blood flows away from our brain’s Pre-Frontal Cortex (PFC) to the areas needed to help us prepare to fight or run.
What this means for organisations in the current Covid-19 crisis, is that team members will be distracted by external circumstances that leaders and managers have little, if any, power to control or influence. However, what they can do is help address employees’ need for information.
Change and uncertainty at work is not registered any differently by the brain than a physical threat and so the natural human response is still fight or flight
Why People Need Information
The PFC is where we do a lot of our thinking and planning, and helps us to manage our emotions. In a work context, the effect of feeling threatened inevitably impacts employee performance and decision-making, reduces our ability to remember things and increases levels of anger. We can probably all think of times when we found ourselves unsure of what is happening and felt anxious at work, which results in decisions not being fully thought through and our performance being below our best.
To help the brain deal with the vast amounts of information it receives moment by moment, it develops clever shortcuts to help it make decisions faster. To facilitate this, the brain likes to be able to predict what is happening, so that it knows how to deal with the potential event, saving it energy and time. During uncertainty, when the information that we need to be able to make these shortcuts and predictions isn’t available, we will seek it out. While there seems to be an endless stream of information about the virus it is sometimes conflicting, or raises more questions than it answers – hence our continuing thirst for news reports or information via sources such as social media.
Change and uncertainty at work is not registered any differently by the brain than a physical threat and so the natural human response is still fight or flight. While working from home is a solution to the physical threat of Covid-19 it may actually increase uncertainty as we’re cut off from the reassurance of colleagues.
While working from home is a solution to the physical threat of Covid-19 it may actually increase uncertainty as we’re cut off from the reassurance of colleagues.
Practical Steps for Managers
Knowing how the brain deals with uncertain situations can help people to understand why they are feeling and reacting the way they are, and knowing that this is a natural reaction should help to reduce the threat’s perceived severity. It is known that recognising and naming an emotion you are experiencing helps to reduce its impact. Therefore, something managers and leaders can do is talk to their team and acknowledge how normal these feelings are.
In addition, leaders and managers can do as much as possible to reduce the feeling of threat, and the associated knock-on effects, by communicating with employees as clearly and as often as possible. Talking about the situation, about how the organisation is responding, and what the role employees can play will give them some sense of control. Even if full answers are not available, providing a regular, known, trusted source of information will have a positive effect.
Increased communication will also allow the organisation to control the narrative and reduce the need for employees to fill the information gap with their own interpretation of the situation. Narratives developed in an information vacuum will not be based on fact, are more likely to increase concern, and may therefore have a greater detrimental effect on performance and decision-making.
When thinking about communications, consider the following:
- Audience: People have different thinking styles so the design and content of any communication should reflect the different preferences of the audience(s).
- Channels: Use a variety of communication channels to disseminate your message and narrative around the future of the business and response to the virus. This will ensure it is seen by a wider audience and again address people’s different communication preferences.
- Communication: Ensure this is two-way by putting in place mechanisms for employees to ask and receive consistent answers to their questions. Ensuring that all employees receive the same response will increase the credibility of the information source and mitigate against rumours arising from conflicting messages.
Summary
During this period of global uncertainty the brain will seek to protect itself by developing a fight or flight response. Regularly communicating with employees and offering them a mechanism to ask questions and receive accurate information will reduce their perceived levels of threat and the resulting impact on performance.
For more information, please contact Julie Brophy or join Julie at 9am on Wed 8 April for our webinar on “Effective Communication While Working Remotely“.
*A very useful source for the science referenced in this blog comes from Hilary Scarlett’s 2019 “Neuroscience for Organizational Change” –2nd Edition Kogan Page. This really interesting and easy to read book clearly explains the latest research in this field and looks at its practical application in an organisational change context.