"Magical Feedback"

While I was doing some background reading on Coach Gregg Popovich for my last blog post, I came across a really interesting article that talked about something called "magical feedback".  The article jogged my memory a bit - as it turns out, I've heard about this "magical feedback" before in a book called The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle.  Coyle talks about a research study published by a group of psychologists from Stanford, Yale, and Columbia that focused on how middle-school teachers could give constructive criticism or feedback to their minority students, who tend to mistrust the system of education, their teachers, and society in general (for a lot of really good reasons).  What these researchers found is both interesting and instructive.

Basically, 7th grade students were asked to write an essay on their favorite hero.  Students (both white students and black students) were randomized to either the planned intervention (something that they called "wise criticism" and Coyle calls "magical feedback") or control.  The teachers marked up the essays with corrections, suggestions, and both positive and negative feedback (basically what teachers do all the time).  However, in the "wise criticism" (i.e., "magical feedback") group, the teachers also added the following note:

"I'm giving you these comments because I have very high expectations and I know that you can reach them."

Pretty simple - nineteen words that basically say:

1. You are part of this group.
2. This group is special, and we have high standards in our group.
3. I believe that you can reach those high standards.

The students that received this kind of feedback chose to revise their paper (they had an option to revise the essay and turn it back in for a grade) far more often than those who did not receive this kind of feedback.  In fact, while there was a 40% increase in the number of white students who chose to revise their essay, there was a 320% increase in black students who chose to revise their essay.  The students were more likely to follow the teacher's recommendations, and the quality of the essay also significantly improved (based on a standardized rubric).  Also of interest (but maybe less relevant to the present discussion), the degree of mistrust of the educational system decreased, even as late as 3 months after the intervention. 

It's pretty cool that a simple intervention like this can increase motivation and, in turn, increase the chance of successful performance.  Simple feedback that establishes a connection, highlights the expected standards of the group, and expresses confidence that the individual can meet those standards is really all about caring for and valuing the members of the team (which, if you've been reading my last two posts here and here is exactly what we've been talking about). 

"Wise criticism" or "magical feedback" - call it whatever you want.  Value your team and take care of them.  Set high standards, but express confidence that your team can meet those high standards.  It's something that Coach Popovich and many other leaders like him have found particularly successful.  It worked for them, and it will work for you.