Are you and your colleagues on the same page? Are you thinking about your work in the same way? Do you see your objectives and your challenges similarly? Being on the same page is what researchers call shared cognitions, which impact the way your team interacts, communicates, and accomplishes tasks.
People are different and come from different perspectives. This is what makes working in groups so enriching and at times—so difficult! But the idea of shared cognitions is more basic than the personality and style differences that might exist on your team. While different team members might approach a problem differently, shared cognitions are about how we are defining the problem and what we ultimately think our team is responsible for.
In the book Teams that Work, Tannenbaum & Salas (2021) identify 8 shared cognitions that are important for team effectiveness. They are listed in the table below.
| Questions To Ask | Type of Shared Cognitions |
| Where to? | Vision, purpose, goals |
| What’s important? | Priorities |
| Who should? | Roles and responsibilities |
| How to? | Tasks, norms, interdependencies, expectations |
| Why to? | Rationale and connection to larger organization |
| Who knows? | Expertise on the team |
| What if? | Contingencies and succession planning |
| What’s up? | Situational awareness, team cues |
Does your team know the answers to these questions? Would you all answer these the same way?
I once worked with a team that was experiencing some conflict. As we set out on a dialogue session, I realized that some of the team thought their biggest problem was how the team interacted internally, and some of the team thought their external partners were causing their problems. This difference in problem definition caused reactions, plans, and perspectives that that team members could not understand. Instead of just working on why each person behaved a certain way, we needed to go back to how everyone was thinking and get on the same page about that. What problems were happening internally, and how did the team plan to address those? What problems were happening externally, and how did the team plan to address those? Shared cognitions are the foundation upon which interdependence, collaboration, and team success rest.
Here are some strategies for assessing and converging the cognitions that exist on your team:
- Communicate! Share perspectives. Allow others’ perspectives to emerge.
- Establish a team charter or shared expectations document for how you will work together. (The Ombuds Office can help with this!)
- Allow time for brainstorming, and refrain from evaluating the ideas that emerge.
- Have everyone write down what the goals or objectives are for the team, and then compare what everyone has written. This can highlight similarities and differences in how the team sees the work.
- Create a visual map of the team. Who has expertise in what area, and who can back that person up?
- Cross-train each other, both to ensure backup and to enhance understanding of what each teammate does.
- Debrief after projects or events that required coordination and teamwork. What went well? What could be improved?
Is your team on the same page? How can you get there?
Box #1:
What is the Ombuds Office?
The Ombuds Office is a confidential, independent, neutral, and informal space for staff to process concerns, get information, and develop options for how to move forward in a difficult situation. I can provide education, conflict coaching, mediation, and facilitation as well as referrals to other resources across Clemson. If you are unsure how to move forward in any way, I can help you work through it.
Tessa Byer
Phone: 864-656-5353
Email: tbyer@clemson.edu
Address: 135 Old Greenville Hwy, Ste. 203 (Next to Esso!)
*Save the date for upcoming training offered by the Ombuds:*
Introduction to Mediation
September 19, 2025, from 9 a.m. – noon
Virtually only; sign up here:
Don’t Tough It Out: Difficult Situations at Work
October 1, 2025, from 9 a.m. – noon
Location: University Facilities Center; sign up here
Cultivating Resilience
November 3, 2025, from 9-11 a.m.
Location: University Facilities Center; sign up here:
Emotional Intelligence at Work
November 14, 2025, from 9 – 11 a.m.
Virtual; sign up here
