Op-Ed: Adopt a ‘both/and’ approach to create policies that sustain over time

Lindner Dean Marianne Lewis proposes way for bridging societal division

The Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision that overturned a half-century of abortion rights has sparked intense and opposing emotions. Lindner College of Business Dean and Professor of Management Marianne Lewis, PhD, explored this issue in a recent editorial for MarketWatch.

"We find ourselves, yet again, in a polarized political fight with the battlegrounds in Congress, in the boardrooms, on the streets, on social media and, for some of us, at our kitchen tables.” 

Lewis' research and forthcoming book, “Both/And Thinking: Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Toughest Problems,” explore how organizations can transform tensions into opportunities for innovation and personal growth.

composed graphic of two women's headshots side-by-side with an image of their book cover in the middle

Smith, left, and Lindner Dean Marianne Lewis coauthored "Both/And Thinking: Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Toughest Problems."

Lewis and coauthor Wendy Smith, PhD, Dana J. Johnson Professor of Management at the University of Delaware Lerner College of Business and Economics, "have spent the last 25 years studying how people face such complex and tenuous issues. Our research shows that when decisionmakers engage opposing positions and adopt what we call both/and thinking, they generate more sustainable and creative solutions.”

Read more from MarketWatch.

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