Different mindsets

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As the sun rose on 24 June 2016, and it dawned on the UK that it had voted to leave the European Union, the media scrambled to capture the nation’s shock. The terms ‘filter bubble’ and ‘echo chamber’ soon entered the common consciousness as politicians, the mainstream media and businesses realised they had failed to read the situation accurately. 

Donald Trump’s election as US president a few months later reinforced the sense that the version of reality understood by the media and the establishment was only half the picture. The filter bubble had led to a widespread lack of representation of all points of view – a cautionary tale about the impact of failing to represent a variety of perspectives, and one that reinforces the need for diversity within all industries.

Marketing has been grappling with its diversity issues for a few years, with several high-profile campaigns – including the 3% Movement, Creative Equals and Stripes – pushing for greater representation of women and people of diverse ethnic backgrounds, to more accurately reflect the British population. Moreover, several studies have indicated that greater diversity leads to better results.

Research published by McKinsey in January found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity are 21% more likely to experience higher-than-average profits than those in the bottom quartile – a figure that rose to 33% for ethnic diversity. Only recently, however, has the spotlight been turned on the issue of cognitive diversity – that is, diversity of minds.

Cognitive diversity has been defined as ‘differences in perspective or information-processing styles’, and it is not predicted by factors such as gender, ethnicity or age – the factors we can see. Businesses’ focus on diversity of thought has, so far, been centred on the area of neurodiversity, which refers to the natural range of differences in human brain functions and thinking styles, including autism, dyslexia and dyspraxia.

Companies such as Direct Line and Microsoft have launched programmes to advocate for neurodiverse people, while BT has changed the way it recruits IT candidates to promote neurodiversity.

The broader definition of cognitive diversity is difficult for businesses to consider, because, as with neurodiversity, these differences aren’t visible. Factors differentiating people’s thinking styles and perspectives aren’t as easily measured as gender and race.

As shown by research on greater diversity and inclusion more broadly, cognitive diversity leads to better business performance. A 2017 study by Alison Reynolds, of Ashridge Business School, and David Lewis, of London Business School, used the AEM cube, a tool developed by psychiatrist Peter Robertson. It measures differences in knowledge processing and perspective – determining the various ways people approach change – in teams doing a strategic execution exercise.

The best-performing teams – that is, those that completed the task in the shortest amount of time – were found to have diversity of knowledge processes and perspective, while the worst performers were less diverse.

Considering different personality types is also becoming a priority for employers; introverts, for example, are more likely to find it difficult to concentrate in open-plan office environments and find long meetings draining, while extroverted people are generally energised by being around others, as highlighted in Susan Cain’s book, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.

Getting the right balance of people is critical, says Matt Dodd, managing partner of Kantar’s analytics practice. “It’s not just recruiting people from a diverse range of backgrounds and specialisms, it’s about employing people who think differently and are a mix of personality types. That means bringing together extroverts and introverts, active communicators and more passive types, people who are good at synthesising information and those who are more questioning.”

Of course, a host of different thinking styles and perspectives can create potential for discord, posing challenges for managers. Dodd says: “Opposites don’t always attract and, while having more cognitively diverse teams can spark new ideas, there can also be clashes. Managers need to ensure that contrasting opinions result in more rounded discussions and better decision-making rather than a breakdown in social cohesion.” 

However, adds Dodd, cognitive diversity strengthens the ability of teams within the business to handle complex problems. “The main benefit we see from cognitive diversity is improved problem solving,” he says. “Diverse teams adapt quicker and better to change because they are used to having to adapt constantly to different perspectives on the same issue. They’re better at tackling complex situations. This flexibility and resilience removes reliance on one person – things can’t just break down when a team member isn’t present.”

Ian Murray, founder of house51, believes it’s vital for research companies to increase the level of cognitive diversity within their businesses to hold up a better mirror to society. “Market research is supposed to reflect the messy reality and nuanced complexity of what’s going on in the world. If you’re only looking at it with a very narrow lens, and projecting that in the kind of research you’re doing, you’re narrowing its potential at a fundamental level.”

Researchers aren’t immune to unconscious bias, he says. “We all strive for objectivity, but none of us are totally objective – we’re all products of our environment and culture.”

The problem with biases and lack of cognitive diversity is that these issues are so ingrained it can be hard for businesses to acknowledge they have a problem. Human beings, particularly in an organisational setting, tend to lean towards consensus reality and rely on received wisdoms.

One example, says Murray, is the common idea that consumers are no longer looking to spend money on material possessions and instead want experiences. That may be the reality for a research professional living and working in London – it may not necessarily be the case for others in different parts of the country or with a different background.  

House51 is working on a research project with Trinity Mirror to map cognitive diversity in the UK population, compared to that of the media and marketing industries. The study will identify the psychological and behavioural differences between those working in marketing and the general population, and explore why building a better understanding of different thinking styles is key to avoiding disconnect between advertising and the lives of real people. 

Insight organisations can begin to tackle the issue by turning the lens on themselves, says Murray. “Right now, businesses don’t even know where they stand. You can hardly move in an industry publication without somebody talking about neuroscience and behavioural economics, but very little of it is being applied to ourselves and to our own businesses.”