Background

 Feedback research to date has been largely focused on negative / gap feedback designed to boost performance. However, the research on positive feedback and the impact on relationships has been lacking. 

Aims

 This presentation will share how to catch people doing things right (or well) to increase both task performance and relationship qualities (such as trust), to create virtuous cycles of feedback provision, task performance, relationship qualities, feedback seeking behaviour, and so on. This work is grounded in self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan), as well as broaden and build (Fredrickson), organizational justice (Greenberg) and trust (e.g. Earley; Mayer; Lewicki, Tomlinson & Gillespie). 

Method

 There are different dimensions that need to be taken into account when catching others (or yourself) doing things right. These dimensions include time modalities (past, present, future focus), self-other, process-outcome, general-specific, right-wrong and logical-emotional. Without awareness and practice, we might catch someone doing something "right" in a way that undermines task performance and/or relationship qualities. For example, general praise about intelligence can lead to fixed mindset (Dweck) or untimely recognition could lead to mistrust in the relationship, leading the feedback recipient feeling like they are being manipulated rather than genuinely appreciated.

Results

 With appropriate implementation of positive feedback, attendees will learn how to effectively express their appreciation in ways that enhance both performance and relationships.

Conclusion

This may seem self-evident - that we should catch people doing things right. However, anecdotal evidence and observation indicate that people (e.g. managers, instructors, parents) are not very skilled at this, and there is far more training and education "out there" about how to deliver negative feedback than how to focus on the positive, even though the research on positive feedback is enormously compelling.