Quote by Karl Weick, "Theory Building as
Generalists, people with moderately strong attachments to many ideas, should be hard to interrupt, and once interrupted, should have weaker, shorter negative reactions since they have alternative paths to realize their plans. Specialists, people with stronger attachments to fewer ideas, should be easier to interrupt, and once interrupted, should have stronger, more sustained negative reactions because they have fewer alternative pathways to realize their plans. Generalists should be the upbeat, positive people in the profession while specialists should be their grouchy, negative counterparts.
Summary
This quote explains the difference in response to interruption between generalists and specialists. Generalists, who have moderately strong attachments to many ideas, are resilient to interruptions and can easily adapt to changing circumstances due to their wide range of options. Consequently, their negative reactions to interruptions are weaker and shorter-lived. On the other hand, specialists, with strong attachments to fewer ideas, struggle more when interrupted as they have fewer alternative pathways to pursue. Thus, their negative reactions are stronger and more sustained. This quote suggests that generalists tend to be more positive and optimistic, while specialists may lean towards being negative and disgruntled.
Topics
Attitude
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