In this piece, the writer speculates about the health effects of (negative) feedback.
As with most human actions, there are good ways of giving feedback and terrible ways....the quick, sharp comment that we're all guilty of sometimes isn't good feedback. In fact, saying "Why on earth did you do it that way?!" doesn't qualify as feedback at all!.
That doesn't mean feedback is not a good idea though. Without feedback, how do we know how we're doing?
- Feedback is not about general snide comments, put-downs or verbal abuse, or having your ideas rejected...it's about giving someone an example of a specific thing they did or said and its effect, which can be good or bad.
- Feedback can also be very positive, encouraging and motivating. It can also be incredibly helpful if it's specific and given immediately.
- Finally, with regard to the study, I would question a study that can relate performance changes to a specific activity (in this case feedback). Also, if one third of all studies showed a one-third decline, can we assume that two-thirds showed an improvement...?
- 360 Degree Feedback is one of the most powerful ways of being able to give feedback to someone. It's structured, clear and consistent, and comes from a group of colleagues, so it's richer and more multi-dimensional.