| As a central reality in life and human systems, interdependent opposites (inherent tensions) have been addressed in writings of philosophy and religion for more than 4,000 years. They exist in every type of organization. They exist at home and at work. In business and industry, inherent tensions are viewed as problems to be solved with either/or thinking. Johnson (1996) has described interdependent opposites requiring both/and thinking. deWit and Meyer (1998) stated that at the very heart of every set of strategic issues leaders wrestle with "fundamental tension between apparent opposites." Few studies, however, have examined polarities and the leadership experience in organizational life. The purpose of this qualitative grounded theory study was to explore the phenomenon of both/and (polarity) thinking as experienced by leaders who face inherent tensions as they work within a variety of organizations.;This study involved in-depth interviews approximately one and one half hours in length with ten leaders from a variety of organizations. The leaders had been exposed to Johnson's concept of polarities and polarity management through two-day workshops conducted by Johnson and therefore shared a common definition.;Data analysis was performed using the grounded theory method---open, axial, and selective coding. Issues of validity and reliability were addressed through the use of member checking, peer examination, a reflective journal, and an audit trail.;Findings revealed seven main themes regarding the participants' experiences with both/and thinking: unconsciously predisposed to both/and thinking early in life, embracing both/and thinking---a paradigm shift, feeling a sense of freedom and urgency to take action, perceiving marked improvement in quality of communication and decision making, re-setting of expectations for the role of leadership, permeating whole life, and taking it to the world.;A theoretical model was developed around the themes describing (a) causal conditions of the phenomenon, (b) phenomenon resulting from the search for answers to inherent tensions, (c) context in which both/and strategies developed, (d) intervening conditions influencing strategies, (e) strategies deployed for addressing inherent tensions, and (f) consequences of strategies for addressing inherent tensions. |
