Interdependence is coordinated when parties recognize that their actions depend on and affect the efforts and results of others, and act with that in mind. It also means parties work together to establish or adjust its terms – what interdependence requires, who bears costs and benefits, how different purposes can be pursued together.
Coordinated interdependence is structural, not just emotional or behavioral. It’s a situation in which people work with rather than against each other in handling their interdependence. Within that situation, what people think, feel, and do can vary. That can range from loosely coordinating separate efforts to co-authoring shared work. Conditions can also change over time, and coordinated interdependence can strengthen, weaken, or break down.
I use collaboration for coordinated interdependence as a whole, the way I use conflict to name contested interdependence. This anchors both in the interdependent nature of work and keeps the distinction clear. What happens within either can be characterized by degrees. The point of the definition is describe interdependence as contested or coordinated, not to classify every form it might take.
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