Hot Action: The vulnerability of analysing one's decision-making collegially

Beckett (1996) suggests that one of the central distinguishing features of the professional’s work is the requirement for discretionary judgements. Discretionary judgements involve decisions that take into account a variety of relevant factors; considers what one might believe or do in the circumstance; and then acts accordingly. An approach that draws attention to the main features of judgements along with a growing awareness of the contributing factors is the consideration of moments of “hot action”; the analysis of decision-making associated with an immediate event. In this way, it is assumed that the contributing beliefs and assumptions associated with a judgement might be more readily known. This methodological approach is supported in recent research advocating an increased interest in the social and affective aspects of judgements and indications that an individual’s judgement attends to one’s total perception of the workplace.

Over a 3-week period, a research team including an external consultant, academic and administrative staff, evaluated the decision-making process of the Dean of a tertiary institution. The research highlighted the benefits of intentionally reviewing one’s workplace judgements with immediate colleagues for the purpose of improving one’s capacity to contemplatively and empirically carry out judgements that have integrity and consistency with one’s mission, goals and values. The process of analysis enabled enriching and empowering collegial dialogue and drew upon affective, social and emotional domains in addition to a cognitive consideration.