Symbolic interactionism and definition of the situation

Definition of the Situation:

The definition of the situation is a fundamental concept in symbolic interactionism advanced by the American sociologist W. I. Thomas. It involves a proposal upon the characteristics of a social situation (e.g. norms, values, authority, participants' roles), and seeks agreement from others in a way that can facilitate social cohesion and social action. Conflicts often involve disagreements over definitions of the situation in question. This definition may thus become an area contested between different stakeholders (or by an ego's sense of self-identity).

Hmm.  I have been involved in enterprise strategy, program management, enterprise transformation, TQM, etc. for four decades.  Problem definition is always a central issue and the absence of effort to ensure a shared problem definition (and associated measurement) is one of the most frequent root causes of project failure.

For whatever reason, people, worldwide, tend to assume there is a shared definition of the problem, typically ascribed to a singular root cause and then leap to a preferred (and also unexamined) solution.  20% of the effort at most is on problem definition, problem measurement, root causal relationships, and assessment of solution alternatives (trade-offs, differential beneficiaries, differential burden bearers), and 80% is invested entirely in the project or program management.

I wouldn't go so far as to argue that it should be respectively 80% and 20%, but it is a tenable position.

But over all those projects and over all those years, I never knew I was exercising a "fundamental concept in symbolic interactionism."  The things you discover.