Optimizing group norms for effectiveness. Could also be phrased as “team-level rationality.”
There are certain group norms (or “cultural practices or attitudes”) that are generally good to have in place, irrespective of what the goal of the group is. Many of these are so obvious and natural that almost all human cultures develop them organically. Some of them are more controversial, because they border on politicized topics. Some of them are yet undiscovered.
I would further editorialize that Less Wrong has historically been paralyzed by insinuations of phygishness whenever the topic of optimizing for group norms comes up. I find this annoying. You can’t have the results of the (fictional) Bene Gesserit or Mentats, or the Beisutsukai Order, or for that matter the (actual) Navy SEALS, NASA Apollo program, gold medalist Olympic team, or McKinsey-level consulting firm without committing to the idea that you’re going to be establishing a novel set of group norms geared toward optimizing some specific purpose.
As a group we’re going to find it difficult to obtain extraordinary results if we rely on ordinary cultural technologies.
I upvoted you because I noticed that the term “team level rationality” piquing my interest. Is “team level” or “group rationality” emphasized or taught in follow-on CFAR workshops?
This seems like a potential area of low-hanging fruit where existing “executive team coaching program” content could be adapted. Somebody hypothesized that the growing popularity of local meetups and professional growth sapping LW readership. Group effectiveness content, especially in the context of the world-class teams/names/organizations that you listed, could potentially be immediately implemented in local meetups and in professional capacities.
I don’t doubt however that as difficult as it has been for a community to generate individual rationality content, group effectiveness content is even harder to generate due to a perceived smaller set of individuals capable of proven & effective group enhancement, longer timeframes to realize group results and outline group experiments, plus a will and capability to explain said technique progressions.
EDIT: Kahneman’s “Thinking, Fast and Slow” has an anecdote about the “leaderless group challenge” as the inspiration for his illusion of validity cognitive bias. The group challenge is an example of the type of activity, often described as “team building exercises”, that could be adapted specifically to raise small collective acuity and coordination effectiveness. As far as I’m aware, no widely available content exists specific outside of specific business, military or other domain-specific niches.
Another indirect tangent is the “Checklist Manifesto” by Atul Gawande, drawing on his experience with medical errors (especially in high-performing OR units). Although this a huge step in the right direction, it still doesn’t quite get to the root of formulating and internalizing a set of practices specific to enhancing collective effectiveness (even in a small groups).
Optimizing group norms for effectiveness. Could also be phrased as “team-level rationality.”
There are certain group norms (or “cultural practices or attitudes”) that are generally good to have in place, irrespective of what the goal of the group is. Many of these are so obvious and natural that almost all human cultures develop them organically. Some of them are more controversial, because they border on politicized topics. Some of them are yet undiscovered.
I would further editorialize that Less Wrong has historically been paralyzed by insinuations of phygishness whenever the topic of optimizing for group norms comes up. I find this annoying. You can’t have the results of the (fictional) Bene Gesserit or Mentats, or the Beisutsukai Order, or for that matter the (actual) Navy SEALS, NASA Apollo program, gold medalist Olympic team, or McKinsey-level consulting firm without committing to the idea that you’re going to be establishing a novel set of group norms geared toward optimizing some specific purpose.
As a group we’re going to find it difficult to obtain extraordinary results if we rely on ordinary cultural technologies.
I upvoted you because I noticed that the term “team level rationality” piquing my interest. Is “team level” or “group rationality” emphasized or taught in follow-on CFAR workshops?
This seems like a potential area of low-hanging fruit where existing “executive team coaching program” content could be adapted. Somebody hypothesized that the growing popularity of local meetups and professional growth sapping LW readership. Group effectiveness content, especially in the context of the world-class teams/names/organizations that you listed, could potentially be immediately implemented in local meetups and in professional capacities.
I don’t doubt however that as difficult as it has been for a community to generate individual rationality content, group effectiveness content is even harder to generate due to a perceived smaller set of individuals capable of proven & effective group enhancement, longer timeframes to realize group results and outline group experiments, plus a will and capability to explain said technique progressions.
EDIT: Kahneman’s “Thinking, Fast and Slow” has an anecdote about the “leaderless group challenge” as the inspiration for his illusion of validity cognitive bias. The group challenge is an example of the type of activity, often described as “team building exercises”, that could be adapted specifically to raise small collective acuity and coordination effectiveness. As far as I’m aware, no widely available content exists specific outside of specific business, military or other domain-specific niches.
Another indirect tangent is the “Checklist Manifesto” by Atul Gawande, drawing on his experience with medical errors (especially in high-performing OR units). Although this a huge step in the right direction, it still doesn’t quite get to the root of formulating and internalizing a set of practices specific to enhancing collective effectiveness (even in a small groups).