How do we make sense of information and reach conclusions?
People use different ways of reasoning when they analyse information, solve problems and make decisions. Some prefer to start with what they can observe, experience or verify in practice. Others are more comfortable starting with concepts, principles or broader patterns and using these to understand a situation.
These preferences influence what people consider convincing, relevant or reliable. Someone may want to see evidence from real situations before accepting an idea, while someone else may first want to understand the theory or principle behind it.
Neither approach is inherently better. The important question is what people look for when they are trying to understand a situation, evaluate an idea or reach a conclusion.
Two different preferences
At one end of this dimension is a more empirical approach to reasoning. People may place greater value on observable facts, practical experience and evidence from real situations. They may prefer to test an idea in practice and draw conclusions from what they can see, measure or experience.
At the other end is a more theoretical approach. People may place greater value on concepts, models, principles and broader patterns. They may first seek to understand how different elements fit together and use a conceptual framework to analyse a situation or anticipate what might happen.
These are not two fixed types of people. Someone may prefer practical evidence in one situation and theoretical reasoning in another, depending on the subject, the available information and what is at stake. The dimension helps make visible how we tend to make sense of information and what we consider a convincing basis for a conclusion.
What might this look like at work?
The difference can become particularly visible when people need to analyse information, solve problems or make decisions together.
When discussing a new idea, one person may ask for examples, previous results or evidence that the idea works in practice. Another may first want to understand the underlying concept, assumptions or model behind it. What one person experiences as a need for evidence may feel like a lack of openness to new ideas to the other.
When solving a problem, an empirical thinker may start by examining what has happened before and what can be observed in the current situation. A more theoretical thinker may first look for a pattern or principle that could explain why the problem is occurring.
When making a decision, one colleague may feel more comfortable once there is sufficient practical evidence. Another may be willing to act based on a conceptual understanding of the situation, even when not all practical evidence is available.
When sharing knowledge, one person may explain how something works by using examples from experience, while another may prefer to explain the underlying principles before moving to specific examples.
When preferences meet
Different expectations can easily lead to misinterpretation.
Someone who prefers empirical reasoning may experience a theoretical colleague as abstract, overly conceptual or disconnected from practical reality. The theoretical colleague may experience the same person as too focused on individual examples or insufficiently interested in the bigger picture.
Both may be responding appropriately from their own perspective. The difference lies partly in what they consider convincing evidence and how they move from information to a conclusion.
One person may want to see what works before drawing a conclusion. Another may want to understand the underlying principle before deciding whether something is likely to work. Neither interpretation necessarily tells the whole story. When we recognise that others may reason differently, we can become more curious about what they are looking for and why.
From awareness to intercultural skills
The Empirical ↔ Theoretical dimension helps make visible something that can easily be misunderstood: people may use different ways of analysing information and reaching conclusions.
Recognising these differences is a first step. The real intercultural skill develops when we can use that awareness in everyday interactions: when analysing information, solving problems, making decisions, presenting ideas or sharing knowledge.
The goal is not to become more empirical or more theoretical. It is to recognise what the situation requires, understand what others may need to make sense of the information and choose how to communicate or respond.
Helpful generalisations — not labels
The Empirical ↔ Theoretical dimension describes possible preferences in how people reason and evaluate information. It does not determine whether someone is practical, analytical, creative, intelligent or open-minded.
Every professional operates within different situations, teams and organisational contexts. Someone may rely heavily on practical experience in one context while using theoretical models in another.
The value of this dimension lies not in placing people or cultures on one side of a scale, but in opening a conversation about how we make sense of information, what we consider convincing and how different approaches can contribute to better thinking and decision-making.
How does this work within your team?
The Mazzi-Inc. Cultural Profiler makes cultural preferences visible that may influence how people analyse information, solve problems, make decisions and share knowledge.
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