Mitroff (2005)

Management > Crisis Management > Lectures > Independent Research > Mitroff's book >The effects of abnormal crises > Defence mechanisms

Defence mechanisms

Organisations are not run by impersonal machines, but by people. Thus firms need to build up a resilience to crises (see Rosenthal & Kouzmin, 2000), developing programs of pre-crisis psychological training, as otherwise a firm will have a lot of emotionally broken and irrational people on its hands when a crisis strikes.

The following are emotional patterns people follow when faced with abnormal conditions.

Denial - "Crises only happen to others. We are invulnerable" (see Invulnerability syndrome, lecture 2)
Trauma - while Denial occurs before the crisis, trauma happens during or after the event
Betrayal - CEOs and top management are seen as villains who have betrayed the employees, who they were supposed to protect. CEOs are seen as types of parents and the employees their children. "People need to have someone to blame for the crisis". Betrayal is rooted in our basic feelings that people are supposed to be good and trustworthy, so this feeling being shattered is the most hurtful emotion of all.

Victim and the villain

Complexity

Four styles of thinking

General Motors - outdated responses to crises

Needed action

A well-designed organisation

Spirituality

Benetton-Turkey

Corporate emotional intelligence

CM and betrayal

Myths

Additional myths