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Podcast: Leadership Article Review Podcast
Episode: Managing Emotions During High-Stakes Organizational Conflict: Applying Neuroleadership Principles, by Jonathan H. Westover PhD
Description:
This article explores how neuroscience insights can transform organizational conflict management. It examines how the brain's threat response system, primarily driven by the amygdala, can hijack rational thinking during disputes, causing leaders to perceive opponents as enemies rather than collaborators. Drawing on neurological research, the author presents practical strategies for regulating stress responses during conflict, including creating space for emotional de-escalation, reframing adversaries as partners in problem-solving, and focusing on underlying interests rather than positions. Through case studies from academia, nonprofit management, and labor negotiations, the article demonstrates how leaders who understand and counteract their brain's default stress reactions...