Four Thinking Styles of Perception/Process Carl Jung observed that some intellectuals think best when handling abstract concepts, while others prefer dealing more directly with their senses, staying close to the impressions of sight and sound, touching, tasting and smelling. Then there are intuitive thinkers who rely on hunches more than abstract reasoning, artists of all kinds are often found in this category. Finally there are those who find emotions are more important than logic, once again a characteristic more likely to be found in art than in the science. MIND STYLE/ WORKS BEST WITH/ HELPFUL FOR Using intellect/ Abstract concepts/ Scientists Sensing/ Sensations/ Farmers Using intuition/ Hunches/ Artists Feeling/ Emotions/ Therapists (Sorry FB doesnt make creating tables easy at all) In practice few people are exclusively one mind style or the other, it depends on circumstances obviously. It is still likely that one style of thinking will feel more natural and be used more effortlessly than the others however. Dr David Kolb groups Jungs four into two main ways in which the events may be perceived: 1) Through abstraction (intellect, sensing, intuition) 2) Through direct experience (feeling) Those who favor 1) are defined as abstractors and those 2) feelers. Feelers tend more to the actual experience itself. They perceive through their senses, They are involved. By contrast abstractors perceive at one step removed from their direct sensory experience. Having taken in relevant information from their surroundings, they create a highly abstract model in the mind, and this, rather than the real world, then becomes the focus of their perceptions. In a major human tragedy feelers would be emotionally involved in the plight of the victims, where the abstractors would be approaching it in a more analytical manner finding more general solutions such as transporting supplies to disaster areas. The second step in thinking is the Processing stage where the information is acted on by the brain. There are two distinct groups, those who respond and those who reflect. Responders are fast to trail and error, give a young child some different shaped blocks to put through different shaped holes and the responders will without hesitation pick up the blocks and try to put them into the different holes. Reflectors however will sit back, think about the shapes and mentally try to solve the problem before attempting it, reflectors like to weigh up the pros and cons. Combining Perception and Processing together we can generate four main groups of thought. -Percieve: Feeling Process: Reflective = Involved Thinker. -Percieve: Abstract Process: Reflective = Intellectual Thinker. -Percieve: Abstract Process: Responder = Implementing Thinker. -Percieve: Feeling Process: Responder = Inventive Thinker. Definitions of the Four group combination of perception/processing. Involved Thinker: The mind style of people who perceive by feeling and emotionally observing the information, on which they then carefully reflect before proceeding. These type of thinkers search for the meanings in the world around them and are most interested in WHY questions. Sociable and cooperative who get deeply involved in anything that catches their attention and they are more interested in people than theories or objects. Intellectual Thinker: Objective, rational, logical and factual, often assertive and emotionally controlled. Interested in WHAT questions. These kind of thinkers do best in school and university. Although they only consist of about 25% of students, they do well with abstract and reflective subjects of which science and maths are heavily based upon. Implementing Thinker: Energetic doers rather than deep thinkers, prefer immediate action rather than lengthy introspection. They have an urge to put ideas into practice as swiftly as possible. The best theory in the world is valueless unless it has immediate practical application. Dislike rules and authority figures and being handed answers on a plate, think most successfully when able to get hands-on experience. Interested in HOW questions. Inventive Thinker: Remain close in touch with their physical sensations. Unlike involved thinkers however they process by responding rather than through reflection reacting to intellectual challenges with more speed than thought. Enjoy change and variety, willing to take risks. Parents and teachers might often consider these children as over impulsive and insufficiently thoughtful. Of all four mind styles inventive thinkers fare the worst in formal education and are least popular with teachers teaching academic subjects. Give an inventive child a plastic model they will not read the instructions but rather prefer pushing parts that might fit together being satisfied with the end result even if it is not what it should be if one followed the instructions. There is a problem with how we have taught as a whole over the years. Institutions do not take into consideration what is the best method to teach the individual student. For the intellectual thinkers this is not a problem but for the other mind styles it can certainly be. The way education has long been organised can be likened to an athletics event where all competitors no matter what their disciple is must compete in the 100m sprint. Every competitor no matter what the body build, physical skills, is obliged to run the race. Those who do well are rewarded and those who do not are penalized and made to feel utter failures, despite the fact that it is the rules of the game rather than their own inadequacy that are responsible for that result. It is important to realize that all mind styles are equally valid and given the right teaching and encouragement children can learn to become flexible thinkers, perceiving and processing information a way best suited to each circumstance. changingminds.org/explanations/learning/kolb_learning.htm
Posted on: Tue, 24 Jun 2014 03:18:48 +0000
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