What are interdependencies in teams?

In work-related social networks, users present now and then professional conflicts asking for solutions at the same time. Such a post could read like this: “In the project team, Tom and Laila agree: If the introduction of the CRM module is to succeed at all, the customer master data must first be cleaned up. However, Dennis, who has accompanied such projects in the past, warns that the whole schedule could then topple over. Dennis is therefore strictly against Tom and Laila's idea. What recommendations would you give the team?” This is usually followed by “Do this” or “Don't do that” type comments from other users.

From coopartner's point of view, it is crucial to first establish a structured understanding of the task. The following questions, for example, could be suitable:

Situation: What are the relevant self-interests of each person in the team? What other strategic interests does each person pursue? What stage is the project currently at? Which stakeholders have what expectations of the project?
Interaction: What is the relationship of dependency between the people? How are decisions made in this team? What incentives does each team member have to achieve a good project result?
Other influencing factors: What values dominate each person's own social behavior? How does each person deal with decisions that subsequently turn out to be mistakes? What basic feelings guide each person in his/her work?

The approach outlined here is in line with Interdependence Theory, one of the great classical theories of social psychology. Its first determinants were presented by the two US-Americans John W. Thibaut (1917-1986) and Harold H. Kelley (1921-2003) as early as 1959. As this theory describes the fundamentals of social exchange in general terms, it can be applied to nearly any kind of social situation.

One of its elements is the insight that lasting relationships between people must always be mutually beneficial. If the costs of a relationship are permanently higher than the associated rewards, a person will sooner or later give up the respective relationship. Teams do usually not exist for the long run. Nevertheless, it also makes sense for team leaders to take this aspect into account in their day-to-day work.