AI, Quantum Physics, & Management Science

A human being is a part of the whole called by us 'universe,' a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. —Albert Einstein

I recently had the honor of interviewing for a professorship in management at a small, private liberal arts university. I don’t know that I would have advanced in the process (I subsequently withdrew my application based on the realization that the position might not have been the best fit), but I was instantly intrigued by the composition of the search committee, the members of which I met during a panel interview. Of the five member panel, only one was from the business administration department. The others held positions in the physics, math, biology, and education departments. The members explained that the diverse composition was quite intentional, given that a core principle of the university emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary education.

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Of course, there’s nothing novel about an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the world; just ask Leonardo da Vinci. In fact, it’s quite common in many, if not most academic disciplines these days to incorporate diverse knowledge and methods from multiple disciplines or fields of study. Taking this approach can not only provide a holistic understanding of a particular phenomenon or field of study, but can improve critical thinking, problem solving, adaptability, and versatility, not to mention innovation and breakthroughs.

Nevertheless, I found the cross-departmental interview approach unique and compelling, on the merits. Especially since I’ve discovered through the years that the only way for me to corral my very short attention-span is by approaching almost any endeavor from this perspective. (Just ask my wife, if she asks me to clean the bathroom, I might initially head in that direction, cleaning supplies in hand and full of well-intentioned ideas and purpose, but along the way I might suddenly say, “hey, let’s go ride bikes!” There’s a connection in there somewhere, right?). OK, so maybe too many diversions can be counter-productive, but if we examine the primary elements of innovation and discovery we see a consistent pattern of broad curiosity, openness to change, and an unrelenting willingness to explore diverse perspectives.

This is one of the things that I find compelling about the study of organizational behavior (OB). Namely, that it’s an interdisciplinary field that draws from the domains of psychology, sociology, anthropology, economics, and technology to explain individual and group behavior in a variety of organizational settings. But why stop there? Why not further illuminate and complement our understanding of ourselves and others in various situations (which, in essence, is really what OB is about) by bringing in concepts from other fields such as, physics, history, literature, art, music, etc. etc?

A unit on strategic thinking, for instance, may explore the power of paradox --i.e., the cognitive ability to hold a variety of opposing perspectives in one’s mind simultaneously and letting the “tension” play out until an optimal solution comes into focus. The human mind likes to simplify things —we like to reduce complexities into binary choices (A or B), and we often become the prisoners of one option or the other. By contrast, many great business strategists are said to have been (and still are, in some cases) particularly gifted in their ability to leverage paradox to arrive at superior strategies (e.g. Jack Welch, Sheryl Sandberg, Angela Ahrendts, Peter Drucker, Michael Porter, etc.).

But what if an OB professor wants to solidify a concept, such as this, by exploring what other disciplines might have to tell us about this skill. For instance, what might history have to tell us along these lines? Well, figures such as Catherine the Great, Sun Tzu, Golda Meir, Winston Churchill, all shared this capacity -and look what they achieved. And what might literary fiction have to tell us about the power of paradox? In 1936, F. Scott Fitzgerald penned an essay entitled, The Crack Up; a quote from which is, “the test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.” Most MBA students probably wouldn’t see that one coming…not in a management class —but, in my experience, such references usually have the effect of making the course infinitely more interesting and dynamic.

But while an OB professor with a rudimentary knowledge of a variety of domains might be able to spot occasional similarities in patterns and concepts across said domains, it takes a tremendous amount of time, patience, research, and down right serendipity to stumble onto anything that merits a true so what factor. Artificial intelligence, by contrast, may just have the ability to do this in nanoseconds —if properly directed.

It is from this perspective that I’m prompting ChatGPT to write a management textbook, the working title of which is, Organizational Behavior and Leadership in an AI-driven World. (And yes, to force the looming IP issue posed by AI, I will specifically submit the book as having been authored by ChatGPT, with my cooperation —which is to say that I’m merely providing it with an outline of what to write. I’m not even entirely sure how to credit this article —do I get credit just for asking ChatGPT things?). Anyway, the book itself, and how it’s being written and credited is perhaps a topic for another installment, but for the purpose of this article, and to further illuminate the power of interdisciplinary education and thought, I thought I would share a truncated excerpt from one of the book’s chapters entitled, Pygmalion, Hawthorne, Heisenberg, and Quantum Cognition…Connected by AI.

Background

The textbook currently covers, in detail, the prevailing leadership theories of the 20th and 21st centuries, as well as individual and group personality characteristics and dynamics, motivation theories, critical thinking frameworks, the key components of emotional intelligence, communication strategies, culture, problem-solving, decision making, business strategy, change management, conflict resolution, power & politics, etc. (OK, I get it…YAWN!) For this article, however, I’ll just provide a brief overview of two common principles from management science (the Pygmalion Effect, and the Hawthorne Effect), followed by two tangentially related principles from quantum physics (the Observer Effect, and the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle), as well as a sneak peek into the emerging field of Quantum Cognition. Finally, I’ll throw all of this into the ChatGPT hopper (like my wife’s ThermoMix) and test its ability to be a snapper up of unconsidered trifles. (Hey wait, did that Shakespeare class finally come in handy just now…?).

The Pygmalion Effect

The Pygmalion effect, also known as the self-fulfilling prophecy, is a psychological phenomenon where higher expectations placed upon individuals lead to an increase in their performance. The term is derived from the Greek myth of Pygmalion, a sculptor who fell in love with a statue he created and believed it to be a real person.

In the context of human behavior and performance, the Pygmalion effect suggests that people tend to perform better when they are given high expectations and positive feedback. Conversely, when low expectations are set, individuals are more likely to underperform. (Conversation with ChatGPT, May 20, 2023).

(Some may note the similarities between the Pygmalion Effect and Goal-setting theory, developed by Edwin A. Locke and Gary P. Latham in the 1960s. A key tenet of which is the motivating power of setting challenging, yet attainable goals (stretch goals) - consistent with the power of high expectations in the Pygmalion Effect). —I’m reminded of driving 55 mph in the fast-lane…a skillful driver like Mario Andretti might well fall asleep because he’s so underwhelmed, but put him on a speedway at 230 mph, and now now you’ve got a driver who’s firing on all cylinders —pun intended).

The Hawthorne Effect

The Hawthorne effect refers to a phenomenon in which individuals modify their behavior or performance when they are aware that they are being observed or studied. It is named after a series of studies conducted at the Western Electric Hawthorne Works in Chicago during the 1920s and 1930s.

When individuals are aware that they are being observed, they may alter their behavior or performance in response to the attention they receive. This can result in improved performance, as individuals strive to meet perceived expectations or appear more favorable.

Psychological factors such as increased motivation, engagement, and enthusiasm often arise from being the focus of attention. The bottom-line, however, is that our behavior changes when we know we’re being observed. (Conversation with ChatGPT, May 20, 2023).

The Observer Effect and the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle

These are actually two different but related principles from quantum physics. The Observer Effect refers to the phenomenon in which the mere act of observing a quantum system (e.g. sub-atomic particles) affects the system itself. It suggests that the very act of observation alters the behavior or properties of the sub-atomic particles being observed.

While proving this theory is inherently complex, for obvious reasons (how do you prove that particles behave differently when being observed, without observing them?), some studies have claimed success. One way scientists have explored the Observer Effect is through the famous double-slit experiment. In this experiment, a beam of particles, such as electrons or photons, is directed toward a barrier with two slits. When the particles are not observed, they behave as waves and create an interference pattern on a screen behind the barrier, indicating wave-like properties. However, when the particles are observed or measured to determine which slit they pass through, they behave as particles and no longer create an interference pattern. The act of observation collapses the wave-like behavior into a particle-like behavior.

The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, formulated by Werner Heisenberg in 1927, is related, but has more to do with the act of trying to precisely measure and locate a particle and it’s momentum (I think). Anyway, it states that it is impossible to simultaneously know the precise values of certain pairs of physical properties of a particle with certainty. Specifically, the principle asserts that the more precisely one measures the position of a particle, the less precisely one can know its momentum (and vice versa). (Conversation with ChatGPT, May 20, 2023).

My take on how this ties into management science -and with my very limited human capacity to understand complex concepts- is that maybe it’s impossible for humans to precisely measure, and thereby understand, ourselves. To do so, would require being bigger than ourselves. —Perhaps this is in example of what psychologist Alfred Adler referred to as a fictional finalism. Though the goal understanding of ourselves may be fictional (i.e., unobtainable), it nevertheless serves as a source of motivation. Perhaps our reach should always exceed our grasp…). Then again maybe AI is big enough to achieve what humans have largely been unable to do, vis-a-vis true self-knowledge.

OK, I digress…a lot. However, we can say scientifically that human behavior in the macroscopic world (the one human’s live in) and particles in a sub-atomic world, both change when being observed and/or measured. This is where the next section comes in…and where we can really start to test AI’s capacity for mashing together nuggets of knowledge from disparate fields with the aim of creating novel insights —in this case, into the human condition.

Quantum Cognition

Quantum cognition is an emerging field of research that applies principles from quantum theory to model and understand human cognitive processes, such as perception, decision-making, and reasoning. It explores the idea that certain phenomena in human cognition can be better explained using concepts from quantum physics rather than classical probabilistic models.

For instance, quantum cognition suggests that certain human cognitive phenomena exhibit features similar to those observed in quantum systems, such as superposition, interference, entanglement, and contextuality. These features are seen as potential mechanisms to explain cognitive phenomena that cannot be fully captured by classical models. It aims to address cognitive paradoxes, inconsistencies, and biases that classical theories struggle to explain. These may include phenomena like cognitive dissonance, preference reversals, the conjunction fallacy, and framing effects.

In practical examples, quantum models of cognition offer alternative ways of understanding (for example) decision-making and reasoning processes. They propose that individuals may make choices by simultaneously considering multiple options, weighing their probabilities, and engaging in constructive and destructive interference to arrive at decisions.

Other practical examples might include things like, probability weighting. Quantum cognition challenges the traditional view of probability as a fixed quantity and suggests that people may exhibit context-dependent weighting of probabilities, similar to quantum probability theory. This can influence decision-making under uncertainty.

Further, researchers in quantum cognition develop mathematical models and experimental frameworks inspired by quantum theory to capture cognitive phenomena. These models often involve using quantum probability amplitudes, density matrices, and other mathematical tools from quantum physics to represent cognitive states and processes.

To be sure, quantum cognition is a relatively new and controversial field, and there are ongoing debates about its validity and applicability to human cognition. Critics argue that quantum-like behavior in cognitive processes can be explained by classical models without invoking quantum concepts —but personally, I think it has potential nonetheless. (Conversation with ChatGPT, May 20, 2023).

An AI-generated Macroscopic Unified Theory?

Now we get to kind of test ChatGPT’s ability to not just comb through vast amounts of data and provide a probabilistic generated response in seconds, but to see just what capacity it has, when very loosely directed, to create novel concepts and insights. What follows is a conversation I held with ChatGPT in an attempt to do exactly this. Certainly the response falls far short of what we might consider as novel. However, I think it does provide some interesting insights and considerations that might lead to truly novel concepts —either human-generated, or via detailed prompting and exploration with an AI platform.

DR: Dear ChatGPT: We know that physicists, including Albert Einstein, have never been able to produce a unified field theory in physics (i.e., a theory of everything. ToE), so please don’t hurt yourself, but if you have a spare nanosecond, can you perhaps combine concepts from the emerging field of quantum cognition and traditional organizational behavior to suggest new insights into human behavior in the workplace, especially in a world in which AI is now producing a significant percentage of the goods and services that humans consume? Again, only if you have a spare nanosecond…

ChatGPT: Certainly! Combining concepts from quantum cognition and traditional organizational behavior principles can provide new insights into human behavior in the workplace in a world where AI plays a significant role. Here are a few potential insights:

1. Superposition of States: In quantum cognition, superposition refers to the ability of quantum systems to exist in multiple states simultaneously. Applying this concept to the workplace, individuals can adopt a mindset that embraces multiple perspectives, ideas, and approaches simultaneously. This allows for greater flexibility and adaptability in the face of AI-driven changes. Rather than seeing AI as a threat, employees can explore ways to collaborate and integrate AI technologies with their own skills and knowledge.

2. Entanglement and Interconnectedness: In quantum systems, entanglement describes the correlation between particles, where the state of one particle affects the state of another, regardless of the distance between them. In the workplace, recognizing the interconnectedness of humans and AI systems can foster collaboration and mutual support. Employees can leverage AI technologies to enhance their own capabilities and vice versa, creating a symbiotic relationship where both human and AI strengths are utilized.

3. Observer Effect and Workplace Culture: The Observer Effect in quantum physics highlights the impact of observation on the behavior of quantum systems. In the workplace, the observation or feedback individuals receive can influence their performance and motivation. By fostering a positive and supportive workplace culture, leaders can shape the way employees perceive themselves and their abilities. Providing constructive feedback, recognizing achievements, and creating a psychologically safe environment can enhance employee engagement and productivity.

4. Quantum Decision-Making: Quantum cognition suggests that decision-making is not always based on strict rationality but can involve probabilistic and intuitive processes. Applying this to the workplace, individuals can embrace non-linear decision-making approaches, considering both rational analysis and intuitive insights. This can lead to more creative problem-solving, adaptability to complex situations, and embracing ambiguity and uncertainty in AI-driven environments.

These are just a few potential insights that emerge from combining concepts of quantum cognition with traditional organizational behavior principles. By incorporating the principles of quantum cognition, individuals and organizations can navigate the evolving workplace landscape in the AI era with greater adaptability, collaboration, and innovative thinking. (Conversation with ChatGPT, May 20, 2023).

OK, well….with all due respect my friend, maybe for now you should stick to writing textbooks, but let’s try this again a year from now. :-)

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