What is Social Cognitive Theory?
Social Cognitive Theory emphasizes three factors that shape how people respond to positive and negative feedback:
Feedback is a two-way form of communication that transmits a message about a specific topic. Positive feedback signals that a person's work is correct and good. Negative feedback indicates a person's work could be improved. Often, positive feedback is easier to accept than negative feedback. Positive feedback is encouraging while negative feedback can be seen as threatening to one's ideas, work ethic, and ego.
People tend to trust and accept positive and negative feedback from close friends, family, and authority figures. Feedback from people outside a person's social circle, such as acquaintances, neighbors, and classmates is often rejected.
Social Cognitive Theory is also about self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is the belief one has in their ability to perform an action. If a person has high self-efficacy, they will value their work and put in effort to accomplish tasks. If a person has low self-efficacy, they will not believe in their ability to do good work.
Self-efficacy levels affect how people accept or reject positive or negative feedback. High self-efficacy will help people accept positive feedback and use negative feedback to complete their work with better end results. Low self-efficacy will limit one's ability to accept positive or negative feedback.
Social Cognitive Theory emphasizes three factors that shape how people respond to positive and negative feedback:
- human behavior is affected by a person's learning experiences,
- the environment in which one lives, and
- a person's individual process (emotions, attitudes, and internal thoughts).
Feedback is a two-way form of communication that transmits a message about a specific topic. Positive feedback signals that a person's work is correct and good. Negative feedback indicates a person's work could be improved. Often, positive feedback is easier to accept than negative feedback. Positive feedback is encouraging while negative feedback can be seen as threatening to one's ideas, work ethic, and ego.
People tend to trust and accept positive and negative feedback from close friends, family, and authority figures. Feedback from people outside a person's social circle, such as acquaintances, neighbors, and classmates is often rejected.
Social Cognitive Theory is also about self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is the belief one has in their ability to perform an action. If a person has high self-efficacy, they will value their work and put in effort to accomplish tasks. If a person has low self-efficacy, they will not believe in their ability to do good work.
Self-efficacy levels affect how people accept or reject positive or negative feedback. High self-efficacy will help people accept positive feedback and use negative feedback to complete their work with better end results. Low self-efficacy will limit one's ability to accept positive or negative feedback.
What is Social Judgment Theory?
Social Judgment Theory is about understanding how people respond persuasion. Social Judgment Theory is a spectrum that covers three different responses to persuasion:
The latitude of rejection is the range of persuasive message that a person rejects or refuses. A person rejects these messages because they are different from their way of thinking or completing a task.
The latitude of noncommitment is the range of persuasive messages that a person doesn't reject or accept. A person may feel indifferent about a message and doesn't have a strong opinion.
The latitude of acceptance is the range of persuasive message a person agrees with and accepts. A person accepts these message because they align with their way of thinking and completing tasks.
For example, I like using the Oxford Comma (latitude of acceptance). My friend doesn't think using the Oxford Comma is necessary (latitude of rejection). My sister doesn't have an opinion about the Oxford Comma (latitude of noncommitment). Something that falls within my latitude of acceptance doesn't necessarily fall within your latitude of acceptance. The lines on this spectrum are often blurred and vary for each individual.
Social Judgment Theory also involves how a person's environment affects their biases. A person's environment is made up of social, physical, and cultural factors. The social environment includes coworkers, friends, and family. The physical environment is a person's location, physical state, and well-being. The cultural environment includes an organization's culture and a community's set of values and beliefs. A person's biases (gender, authority, situations, subjects, etc.) affects how one accepts/rejects feedback and how one reacts to the feedback.
When receiving feedback, a person may choose to become reactive, physically or verbally, based on how the information fits into one's biases. A person's reactiveness also determines how the feedback will fall toward their latitude of rejection, noncommitment, or acceptance.
How are Social Cognitive Theory and Social Judgment Theory Connected?
People have biases that are shaped by their environment and internal processes. Social Cognitive Theory provides an explanation of how individual's thought process, attitudes, and actions are shaped by their environment and how the environment continues to shape them. Self-efficacy is an important part of how one's internal process continue to be shaped. Social Judgment Theory explains that all messages are not equal. Some messages are easy to accept, such as positive feedback, while others, such as negative feedback, are difficult to accept. Feedback can impact one's self-efficacy and how well people accept feedback messages in the future.
Behavior is shaped by a person's past experiences. People learn about how to communicate and maintain relationships in different ways. One way is through direct experience and how people have treated or communicated with them. Another way is vicarious experience or watching how other people are treated. A third way is social modeling or group expectations and reinforcements for behavior. For example, you behave different in a bank than a restaurant because there are different expectations for behavior in each setting. Humans develop patterns of behaviors over time. As Social Cognitive Theory focuses on internal process (from past experiences), environment changes, and self-efficacy, changing one of these three areas creates an opportunity to improve communication or behavior in a relationship.
Feedback occurs in every relationship because relationships are social. In Social Judgment Theory, we take into account our own judgments and the judgments of others (social judgments). Our personal judgment is always more important than the social judgment. However, the social judgment does influence our own thoughts, feelings, and actions. The key is figuring out the balance needed to maintain and strengthen any relationship. Social Cognitive Theory and Social Judgment Theory provide an explanation for how feedback impacts all of us. The theories provide a guide of awareness for managing our reactions and those with whom we interact. It doesn't tell us how we will react but it provides an awareness for reactions and how other will react.
Why is Feedback Important in the Editor-Writer Relationship?
Writing is an essential skill in almost every field. When writing is involved in a task, someone will be reviewing the content and giving feedback on the work. Understand how to graciously accept feedback in a professional manner is an important part of this process.
Editor-writer relationships take on many forms, including freelance writer, regular contributor, or full-time employee working within a large corporation. Building and protecting this relationship is both the editor's and writer's responsibilities.
Social Judgment Theory is about understanding how people respond persuasion. Social Judgment Theory is a spectrum that covers three different responses to persuasion:
- latitude of rejection
- latitude of noncommitment
- latitude of acceptance
The latitude of rejection is the range of persuasive message that a person rejects or refuses. A person rejects these messages because they are different from their way of thinking or completing a task.
The latitude of noncommitment is the range of persuasive messages that a person doesn't reject or accept. A person may feel indifferent about a message and doesn't have a strong opinion.
The latitude of acceptance is the range of persuasive message a person agrees with and accepts. A person accepts these message because they align with their way of thinking and completing tasks.
For example, I like using the Oxford Comma (latitude of acceptance). My friend doesn't think using the Oxford Comma is necessary (latitude of rejection). My sister doesn't have an opinion about the Oxford Comma (latitude of noncommitment). Something that falls within my latitude of acceptance doesn't necessarily fall within your latitude of acceptance. The lines on this spectrum are often blurred and vary for each individual.
Social Judgment Theory also involves how a person's environment affects their biases. A person's environment is made up of social, physical, and cultural factors. The social environment includes coworkers, friends, and family. The physical environment is a person's location, physical state, and well-being. The cultural environment includes an organization's culture and a community's set of values and beliefs. A person's biases (gender, authority, situations, subjects, etc.) affects how one accepts/rejects feedback and how one reacts to the feedback.
When receiving feedback, a person may choose to become reactive, physically or verbally, based on how the information fits into one's biases. A person's reactiveness also determines how the feedback will fall toward their latitude of rejection, noncommitment, or acceptance.
How are Social Cognitive Theory and Social Judgment Theory Connected?
People have biases that are shaped by their environment and internal processes. Social Cognitive Theory provides an explanation of how individual's thought process, attitudes, and actions are shaped by their environment and how the environment continues to shape them. Self-efficacy is an important part of how one's internal process continue to be shaped. Social Judgment Theory explains that all messages are not equal. Some messages are easy to accept, such as positive feedback, while others, such as negative feedback, are difficult to accept. Feedback can impact one's self-efficacy and how well people accept feedback messages in the future.
Behavior is shaped by a person's past experiences. People learn about how to communicate and maintain relationships in different ways. One way is through direct experience and how people have treated or communicated with them. Another way is vicarious experience or watching how other people are treated. A third way is social modeling or group expectations and reinforcements for behavior. For example, you behave different in a bank than a restaurant because there are different expectations for behavior in each setting. Humans develop patterns of behaviors over time. As Social Cognitive Theory focuses on internal process (from past experiences), environment changes, and self-efficacy, changing one of these three areas creates an opportunity to improve communication or behavior in a relationship.
Feedback occurs in every relationship because relationships are social. In Social Judgment Theory, we take into account our own judgments and the judgments of others (social judgments). Our personal judgment is always more important than the social judgment. However, the social judgment does influence our own thoughts, feelings, and actions. The key is figuring out the balance needed to maintain and strengthen any relationship. Social Cognitive Theory and Social Judgment Theory provide an explanation for how feedback impacts all of us. The theories provide a guide of awareness for managing our reactions and those with whom we interact. It doesn't tell us how we will react but it provides an awareness for reactions and how other will react.
Why is Feedback Important in the Editor-Writer Relationship?
Writing is an essential skill in almost every field. When writing is involved in a task, someone will be reviewing the content and giving feedback on the work. Understand how to graciously accept feedback in a professional manner is an important part of this process.
Editor-writer relationships take on many forms, including freelance writer, regular contributor, or full-time employee working within a large corporation. Building and protecting this relationship is both the editor's and writer's responsibilities.
Using Social Cognitive Theory and Social Judgment Theory to Promote Positive Communication
In this section, there will be four scenarios that represent sources of conflict between editors and writers. The conflict for each scenario was chosen based on responses from two technical editor and writer LinkedIn groups responding to the question, "What situations cause the most conflict between editors and writers?" The goal was to obtain issues where both parties were emotionally involved. While the underlying conflict is real, the setting and interactions between parties are of my own creation.
Each scenario is followed by a discussion of how to fix/prevent the situation using Social Cognitive Theory and Social Judgment Theory.
The environment for the scenarios takes place in a traditional office as opposed to freelance work. The conflict and solutions apply beyond the office setting, as these are not strictly office struggles.
Conflict #1
You are an editor working in the Marketing and Communication Department for a small lawn care organization. Your primary job is both managing and overseeing writers who draft in-house content and work with external vendors (e.g., printed user manuals vs. e-content). The company has their own style guide to ensure consistency of documentation.
A recent addition to the writing team drafts an update for one of the electric lawn mower manuals. The writer previously worked at a large, multinational organization. As you begin editing, you notice the writer is not following the company style guide. Instead, the writer appears to follow a comprehensive style manual (e.g., The Chicago Manual of Style 17th Edition), which is too broad for the company’s current standards.
You apply edits based on the company guidelines. A query is added to the platform messaging center with a specific request to follow the company style guide. The writer does not accept the editorial changes and believes that the organization's style guide is outdated.
Solution #1
Disagreements about style guides and usage are common. Employees change jobs often and have preconceived ideas about what a style guide should look and function.
Social Cognitive Theory explains your (the editor) perspective on the style guide. Once crafted, the style guide is a living document that all members of the organization agree to use. You manage the style guide and have not received feedback from other employees that it needs to be changed.
Social Cognitive Theory also explains the writer's behavior in the situation. The writer identifies an industry standard to be used. The writer could still be adjusting to their new job, their previous environment impacting their thought process and how they apply edits. The writer comes from a place of professionalism with the best interest of the department. What might be perceived as negative feedback to the editor or the writer, was meant to be constructive.
Social Judgment Theory shows people accept feedback based on their latitude of acceptance or latitude of rejection. Feedback you gave the writer landed in the writer’s latitude of rejection. They were not willing to accept the feedback because they did not agree with it. This is the same for the feedback the writer gives you. You are comfortable with the current style guide and have used it for a lengthy period of time. Any suggestions to change the style guide is automatically primed to be rejected.
To solve this conflict and prevent further issues, you and the writer are encouraged to meet. Depending on how old the style guide is, it might be time for a few updates. This doesn’t mean that the style guide must fit the industry standards the writer previously used. It is important that the style guide still fits the needs of the lawn care company and the audience of the documents (the customers who buy the lawn care products). If updating the style guide is needed, communicating with all the writers during the process is essential to make sure all team members are aware of the changes that will be made. If updating the style guide is not needed, it is important to communicate directly with the writer about why the style guide will not be changed. The reasons provided should be concrete, reasonable, and accurate. This will allow the writer to move toward the latitude of noncommitment and the latitude of acceptance.
Conflict #2
You are an editor working for a furniture company. The company's business model is furniture that the customer puts together themself. Each product requires a detailed, step-by-step instructional manual. Each manual is usability tested to make sure it is easy for the customer to understand and will help them build the product successfully.
A writer working for the company sends you an instructional manual for a bookshelf. You notice that the language the writer used to describe the materials is not consistent with company terminology. For example, the company prefers to use “panel” to describe each part of the bookshelf. Instead, the writer referred to the panels as “piece” and “plank."
You replace “piece” and “plank” for “panel." You send the edited document back to the writer and add a query, requesting that “panel” is used to describe the materials. The writer responds by saying that "panel" is too repetitive and other companies use different terminology.
Solution #2
When creating technical documents, the purpose of the document should always be supporting the audience’s needs. Ensuring that the audience can understand the document’s information should drive most of the decisions in the writing process, from organization of the document down to word choice.
Social Cognitive Theory explains that the writer is influenced by the environment of current industry trends. Your current workplace environment informs your decision to remain with standard company terminology, even if the current industry trend is different. If the writer proposed the suggestion with their best intentions, they might be expecting positive feedback.
Social Judgment Theory explains how your feedback could fall toward the writer’s latitude of rejection. When this happens, the writer is less likely to accept the feedback. When discussing this situation, you need to be mindful of their tone and language used so the feedback is more likely to fall toward the latitude of acceptance.
To solve this conflict and prevent further issues, you should discuss with the writer how a change in terminology will affect the reader. Begin the conversation by thanking the writer for their suggestion. Acknowledge that even if this has become a trend in the industry, it might not be the best word choice for your company. You must explain why using consistent language is necessary. Remind the writer that the purpose of the document is to help customers put together furniture easily. Repeat customers may be thrown off by the new language and become frustrated if they are not able to understand the instructions. Providing the writer with reasonable information will help them be open to accepting the feedback and allow the decision to fall toward the latitude of acceptance.
You are encouraged to investigate the writer's claims about audience needs and language usage. There may be an opportunity during usability testing for customer feedback. For example, customers who preview and test new furniture may be given two sets of instructions, one with the old language and one with the new language. The company can test which language customer's preferred and found more helpful.
Conflict #3
You are an editor for a large kitchen appliance company that specializes in appliances for the average consumer. The company is currently finishing designing their new line of blenders, toaster ovens, and pressure cookers. Each product will need a user manual. Some sections of the user manual will be simple to create as the company has legacy documents from its previous product versions. Other sections, such as the instructions and the explanation of functions, will need to be tailored specifically to the new models.
For this product launch, the company has decided that the instruction manuals should include more pictures than words than the last version. Graphics will need to be created for each product version to show how to use the new features.
You are one of three editors that the company employs. The company has six writers to accommodate for the number of products they sell. One of the editors is out on family leave. Before the editor left, they were supposed to contact the graphic designer to have them update the old graphics.
A few of the writers contact you asking for the updated graphics so that they can create the supplemental text. You don’t have the graphics so you contact the other editor asking if they have the materials. You quickly realize that the editor on family leave never contacted the graphic designer so the updated graphics were never started. You and the other editor must decide how you want the writers to proceed with the absence of information. You also have to communicate with other departments (supply chain, product design) about where your team is at and make sure your team remains on track.
Solution #3
Miscommunication is bound to happen. Small miscommunications might not affect the outcome of a project, but they can still affect how a team works together. Preventing miscommunication that delay or derail projects is crucial.
Social Cognitive Theory explains that the editor on family leave was influenced by their environment. They didn't intentionally forget to contact the graphic designer but allowed non-work issues to affect work. You (an editor) and the other editor are experiencing low self-efficacy. You believe you do not have the ability to complete your work on time and meet standards. With low self-efficacy, you and the other editor will expect a less-than-desirable outcome and not do your best work. Low self-efficacy can also limit how you and the other editor accept/reject positive and negative feedback from the writers, graphic designers, and other members of the company.
Social Judgment Theory explains how the editor on leave will react to this situation when they return. If they understand the mistake they made, the editor is likely to be receptive to negative feedback, and the feedback will fall toward their latitude of acceptance. Recognizing the mistake and accepting negative feedback could promote high self-efficacy, as they feel obligated to help solve the problem and prevent further issues. If the editor insists they contacted the graphic designer, they are likely to reject negative feedback, and the feedback will fall toward their latitude of rejection.
Social Judgment Theory also explains how the other editor, writers, and you will accept or reject feedback. Conflict over edits is likely to decrease because producing complete documents is the end goal. You and the other editor will likely have more flexibility with your edits as long as it does not compromise the end product. Any feedback the writers, the other editor, and you give/receive will fall toward everyone's latitude of acceptance because it will help get the documents completed faster.
The graphic designer is also influenced by Social Judgment Theory. Depending on what you ask of the graphic designer, the need for updated product graphics could fall toward their latitude of rejection. This happens because of time constraints. The work needed is not possible before the deadline. The graphic designer will want to agree to the project because of the expectation that the work is completed, but they will ultimately be affected by their environment (other projects they are working on). Through communication with you and the other editor, the group can come to an agreement of how many graphics can be done, prioritizing the necessary changes, so that the feedback falls toward the latitude of acceptance.
To solve this conflict, you need to prioritize which graphics are needed and communicate this to the graphic designer as soon as possible. If older graphics are available and usable, the writers should use them to write the manuals until the new graphics are ready. You also need to communicate with other departments, such as supply chain and product testing, how far along the team is and if they will be able to meet the deadline. You and the other editor need to have a planning meeting to discuss who will be editing what document to make sure both parties are being efficient.
To prevent this situation from happening again, you and the other two editors need to have a discussion about roles and responsibilities. This will make sure that everyone is on the same page from the beginning and that all parties involved will be contacted in a timely manner. Constant communication throughout every stage of the project will ensure that the team does not rush and produce sub-par work. This is no way to prevent every miscommunication but discussions at the start and during the project will help prevent most of them.
Conflict #4
You recently started working for a medium-sized company that sells auto parts. You are assigned to edit an instruction manual, detailing how to change the cabin air filter. A writer sends you the manual for you to edit. You edit the manual and send it back to the writer so they can implement your changes.
The writer sends the Subject Matter Expert (SME) the updated manual. The SME tells the writers that the editor changed the meaning of the text and the information is not correct anymore. The SME indicates that the words before the editor’s changes had a very particular meaning. The SME is worried that the reader might not understand the information. For example, the SME indicates that the phrase “release the limiting stop arm by removing the pin” is the correct terminology as opposed to the editor’s suggestion of “detach the lever by removing the pin." ("What You Need To Know...")
The writer sets up a meeting for the SME and editor to talk and come to an understanding about the correct phrasing.
Solution #4
Within any organization, understanding who has the final say about the content is important. Sometimes it will be the editor. Other times it is the writer or SME. As an editor, acknowledging when you have made mistakes and changed the meaning of one’s words will reduce strained relationships.
Social Cognitive Theory explains how the SME is affected by their learning experiences and environment. They are experts with the content. The SME knows how to replace the cabin air filter and has accurately described these steps to the writer. The theory also explains how feedback works in this situation. The writer has the difficult job of communicating with both you (the editor) and the SME, providing feedback to both parties. You are not receptive to the SME’s negative feedback because you believe your edits have made the document stronger. The SME is not receptive to your negative feedback because the content does not have the same meaning after being edited.
Social Judgment Theory explains how the feedback has landed toward you and the SME's latitude of rejection. The writer needs to help you lean toward their latitude of noncommitment and eventually, the latitude of acceptance. When the correct changes are made to the document, the SME will automatically align themselves with the latitude of acceptance.
To solve this conflict, the writer, the SME, and you need to have a meeting to discuss terminology. You needs to voice your concerns over what you perceive as jargon. The SME needs to explain that consumers will expect to hear “limiting stop arm” and that changing the wording will confuse customers ("What You Need..."). The writer will act as a mediator to make sure that both sides are heard. The writer should also do research about terminology in the industry to make sure that the language used is accurate and consistent across product lines and documents.
To prevent this conflict from happening again, you should query the writer if they are unsure of terminology instead of automatically changing the wording. If there are particular terms that need to be used, you should add them to their style guide to ensure proper usage in the future. You and the writer may choose to consult the product launch team about putting supplementary content on the website to ensure clarity of meaning. The goal is customer success with a product, avoiding jargon when possible. You should also be aware that within this company the SME has the final say over the content. Communication between the writer, the SME, and you will be beneficial to all parties.
In this section, there will be four scenarios that represent sources of conflict between editors and writers. The conflict for each scenario was chosen based on responses from two technical editor and writer LinkedIn groups responding to the question, "What situations cause the most conflict between editors and writers?" The goal was to obtain issues where both parties were emotionally involved. While the underlying conflict is real, the setting and interactions between parties are of my own creation.
Each scenario is followed by a discussion of how to fix/prevent the situation using Social Cognitive Theory and Social Judgment Theory.
The environment for the scenarios takes place in a traditional office as opposed to freelance work. The conflict and solutions apply beyond the office setting, as these are not strictly office struggles.
Conflict #1
You are an editor working in the Marketing and Communication Department for a small lawn care organization. Your primary job is both managing and overseeing writers who draft in-house content and work with external vendors (e.g., printed user manuals vs. e-content). The company has their own style guide to ensure consistency of documentation.
A recent addition to the writing team drafts an update for one of the electric lawn mower manuals. The writer previously worked at a large, multinational organization. As you begin editing, you notice the writer is not following the company style guide. Instead, the writer appears to follow a comprehensive style manual (e.g., The Chicago Manual of Style 17th Edition), which is too broad for the company’s current standards.
You apply edits based on the company guidelines. A query is added to the platform messaging center with a specific request to follow the company style guide. The writer does not accept the editorial changes and believes that the organization's style guide is outdated.
Solution #1
Disagreements about style guides and usage are common. Employees change jobs often and have preconceived ideas about what a style guide should look and function.
Social Cognitive Theory explains your (the editor) perspective on the style guide. Once crafted, the style guide is a living document that all members of the organization agree to use. You manage the style guide and have not received feedback from other employees that it needs to be changed.
Social Cognitive Theory also explains the writer's behavior in the situation. The writer identifies an industry standard to be used. The writer could still be adjusting to their new job, their previous environment impacting their thought process and how they apply edits. The writer comes from a place of professionalism with the best interest of the department. What might be perceived as negative feedback to the editor or the writer, was meant to be constructive.
Social Judgment Theory shows people accept feedback based on their latitude of acceptance or latitude of rejection. Feedback you gave the writer landed in the writer’s latitude of rejection. They were not willing to accept the feedback because they did not agree with it. This is the same for the feedback the writer gives you. You are comfortable with the current style guide and have used it for a lengthy period of time. Any suggestions to change the style guide is automatically primed to be rejected.
To solve this conflict and prevent further issues, you and the writer are encouraged to meet. Depending on how old the style guide is, it might be time for a few updates. This doesn’t mean that the style guide must fit the industry standards the writer previously used. It is important that the style guide still fits the needs of the lawn care company and the audience of the documents (the customers who buy the lawn care products). If updating the style guide is needed, communicating with all the writers during the process is essential to make sure all team members are aware of the changes that will be made. If updating the style guide is not needed, it is important to communicate directly with the writer about why the style guide will not be changed. The reasons provided should be concrete, reasonable, and accurate. This will allow the writer to move toward the latitude of noncommitment and the latitude of acceptance.
Conflict #2
You are an editor working for a furniture company. The company's business model is furniture that the customer puts together themself. Each product requires a detailed, step-by-step instructional manual. Each manual is usability tested to make sure it is easy for the customer to understand and will help them build the product successfully.
A writer working for the company sends you an instructional manual for a bookshelf. You notice that the language the writer used to describe the materials is not consistent with company terminology. For example, the company prefers to use “panel” to describe each part of the bookshelf. Instead, the writer referred to the panels as “piece” and “plank."
You replace “piece” and “plank” for “panel." You send the edited document back to the writer and add a query, requesting that “panel” is used to describe the materials. The writer responds by saying that "panel" is too repetitive and other companies use different terminology.
Solution #2
When creating technical documents, the purpose of the document should always be supporting the audience’s needs. Ensuring that the audience can understand the document’s information should drive most of the decisions in the writing process, from organization of the document down to word choice.
Social Cognitive Theory explains that the writer is influenced by the environment of current industry trends. Your current workplace environment informs your decision to remain with standard company terminology, even if the current industry trend is different. If the writer proposed the suggestion with their best intentions, they might be expecting positive feedback.
Social Judgment Theory explains how your feedback could fall toward the writer’s latitude of rejection. When this happens, the writer is less likely to accept the feedback. When discussing this situation, you need to be mindful of their tone and language used so the feedback is more likely to fall toward the latitude of acceptance.
To solve this conflict and prevent further issues, you should discuss with the writer how a change in terminology will affect the reader. Begin the conversation by thanking the writer for their suggestion. Acknowledge that even if this has become a trend in the industry, it might not be the best word choice for your company. You must explain why using consistent language is necessary. Remind the writer that the purpose of the document is to help customers put together furniture easily. Repeat customers may be thrown off by the new language and become frustrated if they are not able to understand the instructions. Providing the writer with reasonable information will help them be open to accepting the feedback and allow the decision to fall toward the latitude of acceptance.
You are encouraged to investigate the writer's claims about audience needs and language usage. There may be an opportunity during usability testing for customer feedback. For example, customers who preview and test new furniture may be given two sets of instructions, one with the old language and one with the new language. The company can test which language customer's preferred and found more helpful.
Conflict #3
You are an editor for a large kitchen appliance company that specializes in appliances for the average consumer. The company is currently finishing designing their new line of blenders, toaster ovens, and pressure cookers. Each product will need a user manual. Some sections of the user manual will be simple to create as the company has legacy documents from its previous product versions. Other sections, such as the instructions and the explanation of functions, will need to be tailored specifically to the new models.
For this product launch, the company has decided that the instruction manuals should include more pictures than words than the last version. Graphics will need to be created for each product version to show how to use the new features.
You are one of three editors that the company employs. The company has six writers to accommodate for the number of products they sell. One of the editors is out on family leave. Before the editor left, they were supposed to contact the graphic designer to have them update the old graphics.
A few of the writers contact you asking for the updated graphics so that they can create the supplemental text. You don’t have the graphics so you contact the other editor asking if they have the materials. You quickly realize that the editor on family leave never contacted the graphic designer so the updated graphics were never started. You and the other editor must decide how you want the writers to proceed with the absence of information. You also have to communicate with other departments (supply chain, product design) about where your team is at and make sure your team remains on track.
Solution #3
Miscommunication is bound to happen. Small miscommunications might not affect the outcome of a project, but they can still affect how a team works together. Preventing miscommunication that delay or derail projects is crucial.
Social Cognitive Theory explains that the editor on family leave was influenced by their environment. They didn't intentionally forget to contact the graphic designer but allowed non-work issues to affect work. You (an editor) and the other editor are experiencing low self-efficacy. You believe you do not have the ability to complete your work on time and meet standards. With low self-efficacy, you and the other editor will expect a less-than-desirable outcome and not do your best work. Low self-efficacy can also limit how you and the other editor accept/reject positive and negative feedback from the writers, graphic designers, and other members of the company.
Social Judgment Theory explains how the editor on leave will react to this situation when they return. If they understand the mistake they made, the editor is likely to be receptive to negative feedback, and the feedback will fall toward their latitude of acceptance. Recognizing the mistake and accepting negative feedback could promote high self-efficacy, as they feel obligated to help solve the problem and prevent further issues. If the editor insists they contacted the graphic designer, they are likely to reject negative feedback, and the feedback will fall toward their latitude of rejection.
Social Judgment Theory also explains how the other editor, writers, and you will accept or reject feedback. Conflict over edits is likely to decrease because producing complete documents is the end goal. You and the other editor will likely have more flexibility with your edits as long as it does not compromise the end product. Any feedback the writers, the other editor, and you give/receive will fall toward everyone's latitude of acceptance because it will help get the documents completed faster.
The graphic designer is also influenced by Social Judgment Theory. Depending on what you ask of the graphic designer, the need for updated product graphics could fall toward their latitude of rejection. This happens because of time constraints. The work needed is not possible before the deadline. The graphic designer will want to agree to the project because of the expectation that the work is completed, but they will ultimately be affected by their environment (other projects they are working on). Through communication with you and the other editor, the group can come to an agreement of how many graphics can be done, prioritizing the necessary changes, so that the feedback falls toward the latitude of acceptance.
To solve this conflict, you need to prioritize which graphics are needed and communicate this to the graphic designer as soon as possible. If older graphics are available and usable, the writers should use them to write the manuals until the new graphics are ready. You also need to communicate with other departments, such as supply chain and product testing, how far along the team is and if they will be able to meet the deadline. You and the other editor need to have a planning meeting to discuss who will be editing what document to make sure both parties are being efficient.
To prevent this situation from happening again, you and the other two editors need to have a discussion about roles and responsibilities. This will make sure that everyone is on the same page from the beginning and that all parties involved will be contacted in a timely manner. Constant communication throughout every stage of the project will ensure that the team does not rush and produce sub-par work. This is no way to prevent every miscommunication but discussions at the start and during the project will help prevent most of them.
Conflict #4
You recently started working for a medium-sized company that sells auto parts. You are assigned to edit an instruction manual, detailing how to change the cabin air filter. A writer sends you the manual for you to edit. You edit the manual and send it back to the writer so they can implement your changes.
The writer sends the Subject Matter Expert (SME) the updated manual. The SME tells the writers that the editor changed the meaning of the text and the information is not correct anymore. The SME indicates that the words before the editor’s changes had a very particular meaning. The SME is worried that the reader might not understand the information. For example, the SME indicates that the phrase “release the limiting stop arm by removing the pin” is the correct terminology as opposed to the editor’s suggestion of “detach the lever by removing the pin." ("What You Need To Know...")
The writer sets up a meeting for the SME and editor to talk and come to an understanding about the correct phrasing.
Solution #4
Within any organization, understanding who has the final say about the content is important. Sometimes it will be the editor. Other times it is the writer or SME. As an editor, acknowledging when you have made mistakes and changed the meaning of one’s words will reduce strained relationships.
Social Cognitive Theory explains how the SME is affected by their learning experiences and environment. They are experts with the content. The SME knows how to replace the cabin air filter and has accurately described these steps to the writer. The theory also explains how feedback works in this situation. The writer has the difficult job of communicating with both you (the editor) and the SME, providing feedback to both parties. You are not receptive to the SME’s negative feedback because you believe your edits have made the document stronger. The SME is not receptive to your negative feedback because the content does not have the same meaning after being edited.
Social Judgment Theory explains how the feedback has landed toward you and the SME's latitude of rejection. The writer needs to help you lean toward their latitude of noncommitment and eventually, the latitude of acceptance. When the correct changes are made to the document, the SME will automatically align themselves with the latitude of acceptance.
To solve this conflict, the writer, the SME, and you need to have a meeting to discuss terminology. You needs to voice your concerns over what you perceive as jargon. The SME needs to explain that consumers will expect to hear “limiting stop arm” and that changing the wording will confuse customers ("What You Need..."). The writer will act as a mediator to make sure that both sides are heard. The writer should also do research about terminology in the industry to make sure that the language used is accurate and consistent across product lines and documents.
To prevent this conflict from happening again, you should query the writer if they are unsure of terminology instead of automatically changing the wording. If there are particular terms that need to be used, you should add them to their style guide to ensure proper usage in the future. You and the writer may choose to consult the product launch team about putting supplementary content on the website to ensure clarity of meaning. The goal is customer success with a product, avoiding jargon when possible. You should also be aware that within this company the SME has the final say over the content. Communication between the writer, the SME, and you will be beneficial to all parties.
Sources:
- “APA Dictionary of Psychology: Latitude of Acceptance.” American Psychological Association. American Psychological Association. Accessed February 14, 2021. https://dictionary.apa.org/latitude-of-acceptance.
- “APA Dictionary of Psychology: Latitude of Noncommitment.” American Psychological Association. American Psychological Association. Accessed February 14, 2021. https://dictionary.apa.org/latitude-of-noncommitment.
- “APA Dictionary of Psychology: Latitude of Rejection.” American Psychological Association. American Psychological Association. Accessed February 14, 2021. https://dictionary.apa.org/latitude-of-rejection.
- “APA Dictionary of Psychology: Self-Efficacy.” American Psychological Association. American Psychological Association. Accessed February 14, 2021. https://dictionary.apa.org/self-efficacy.
- “APA Dictionary of Psychology: Social Cognitive Theory.” American Psychological Association. American Psychological Association. Accessed February 14, 2021. https://dictionary.apa.org/social-cognitive-theory.
- “APA Dictionary of Psychology: Social Judgement Theory.” American Psychological Association. American Psychological Association. Accessed February 14, 2021. https://dictionary.apa.org/social-judgment-theory.
- Cooksey, Ray W., “The Methodology of Social Judgement Theory,” Thinking and Reasoning 2, no. 2-3 (July 1996): 141-173, https://doi.org/10.1080/135467896394483.
- Dahling, Jason J., and Christopher L. Ruppel, “Learning goal orientation buffers the effects of negative normative feedback on test self-efficacy and reattempt interest,” Learning and Individual Differences 50, (August 2016): 296-301, https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2016.08.022
- “Feedback.” Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster. Accessed February 14, 2021. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/feedback.
- Smith, Sandi W., Charles K. Atkin, Dennis Martell, Rebecca Allen, and Larry Hembroff. “A Social Judgement Theory Approach to Conducting Formative Research in a Social Norms Campaign,” Communication Theory 16, no. 1 (February 2006): 141-152, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2885.2006.00009.x
- “What You Need to Know about Changing Your Cabin Air Filter,” July 13, 2015. https://napafilters.com/do-it-yourself/step-by-step-filter-maintenance/what-you-need-to-know-about-changing-your-cabin-air-filter/.