On Tue, 22 Nov 2005 19:11:54 +1100, Allison & Jim Baensch <mb...@iinet.net.au> wrote:
>My second paper at the conference will be about high and low dreams - >a paper related to Process Oriented Psychology (Arnold Mindell and >colleagues). >So I am aware of the benefits of not just focussing on the positives >of a situation. >Thanks for your tasty response, >Allison. Hello Allison, welcome to the list and thanks for your input. I am thrilled of the combination of the two sessions you will host at the conference: Open Space Technology and Process Oriented Psychology. I have been working with OST for a while and just started a couple of months ago to involve myself into POP, attending a training with Max Schupbach. What one usually does is to compare (even if you don't want to compare), and one starts to compare on different levels. I, for example, compare the process level of OST gatherings and POP (unfortunately I have not yet been exposed to an open forum, but rather to 20-40 people processes). More interesting for me, I also compare the meta level. What I found out is that the underlying assumptions and the foundationss of OST and POP match somehow. We just had an interesting discussion in the German OS list about the application of Quantum Physics (QP) to social processes. POP refers to QP as its main founding theory. In the literature on OST, QP has not been mentioned (at least not that I know), although the principles, particular the "What ever happens..." are deeply quantum. I like the analogies to QP, but as I have learned from physicists, they are just analogies / models, and that there is no computer in the world which can calculate whether quantum effects guide large systems. My main critic of POP is that they (sometimes) take QP not as a model, but as a guiding principle for groups. Although that sounds nice, it is not supported by current physics, which can only prove the validity of QP to atomic and molecular systems. On the other side, OST (and Appreciative Inquiry/AI) have a lot of references to Social Constructivism (SC) and Neurobiology, while POP has more implicit assumptions of SC. OST, then, has its foundation in Complexity or Chaos Theory os Systems Thinking (ST). I always feel that ST as a guiding principle is closer to the reality of larger social systems then QP. Maybe it will turn out that ST is a macro description of QP. POP does not speak in system terms but in quantum terms. However, the practices and the processes are very different. In POP, you have the facilitator as an explicit role (which can shift from person to person, because POP assumes non-local roles). In OST you basically don't have a facilitator (in German, we speak instead of a "Begleiter", which means somebody who goes along with somebody or something). Another difference between the two processes is the degree to which conflicts are verbalized and addressed. What I like about OST and AI is the ease with which tensions are dealt with. As a consequence, people might see that there are alternatives to dealing with problems and conflicts in a violent manner. In POP processes, I have seen a lot of verbal violence, and grief. One can argue wether this is not part of life, and OST and AI neglect the deep divide which exists between people. As my spiritual teacher Stephen Gilligan has said: "Life is beautiful, but sometimes it hurts like hell." You see, I have only questions, no answers at all. I am fascinated of both approaches, and would like to hear from you how do you perceive the difference (and the similarities). If you could send me your presentation of POP, I would be quite pleased. Go on! With best regards Holger Nauheimer Change Facilitation sro Panenska 3 81103 Bratislava Slovakia http://www.change-management-toolbook.com * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist