2.2 Engaging conversations

Psychologist and organisation consultant, David Kantor, developed a model for understanding conversational dynamics from his work with families facing difficulties. Kantor’s argument is that understanding the structure of human communication is key to keeping communication open and making good decisions. We can learn to recognise and intervene in these dynamics to make communication better.

The insights from Kantor are important for enhancing diversity in work conversations. They can help you to:

• encourage participation from less conversationally active people, improving the diversity of who speaks and who is listened to
• appreciate the value of conversational roles and practices that tend to be underappreciated
• diversify the kinds of contributions made within conversations.