CAR Pattern: Four Resistance Types

The team member does not yet know the answer to how the change applies to their work. They are asking what changed and what is expected, sometimes repeatedly. Behavior looks like clarification questions, hedged updates, and forwarded ambiguity.

Intervention shape: information and a worked example. A short walkthrough of a specific situation usually moves the label faster than written documentation.

The team member knows the answer but does not yet have the skill, tool, or access to execute. Behavior looks like delayed adoption, workarounds, and apologetic non-completion.

Intervention shape: practice time, coaching, or the missing tool. Sending more explanation when the issue is capability accelerates the slip into self-preservation.

The team member has the know-how and the capability but does not believe they have permission or control. Behavior looks like deference, checking before acting, and explicit hand-offs of decisions that are theirs.

Intervention shape: explicit ownership and decision rights. Naming the decision as theirs and stating it in writing usually moves the label inside one cycle.

The team member is disengaging because relational trust with the manager or team has thinned. Behavior looks like short replies, missing context, and absence from informal channels.

Intervention shape: relationship repair before content. A connection-pattern label will not move from a tactical conversation about the work. It moves from a check-in that names the relationship first.