Malcolm,
Answering your msge, below. Yes there is a connection between all these
(depending on how we define them) and it is quite well documented in
psychology studies. I have recently completed a 5 month course in
"personal mastery" and many of these issues were discussed as they are at
the core of personal mastery.
I've not got any notes in front of me and am working from memory (not my
strong suite) but:
We learn many of our "lessons" early in life (in first 2 years) and as we
integrate these they become "beliefs". eg its not good to break rules, its
not OK to make a noise, I am not good enough etc. We tend to collect these
beliefs up to early teenage years and during this time they coalesce into
mental models. The problem is that most of us don't question the beliefs
and don't even recognise the mental models that we operate under, but they
definitely define our individual reality. The object of personal mastery
is to at least recognise these things and then decide whether they are
working for or against us at any particular time and to make a decision as
to whether we (I) will change the way I react to my perceived reality.
I've not read either Kuhn or Barker but I suspect that a "paradigm"
exists when a number of people with similar beliefs and mental models are
operating together. Getting a different picture on things in this
situation would be nigh on impossible.
I've recently finished reading the Fifth Discipline and was able to relate
to it strongly but my feeling whilst reading it was that many people would
not really understand what Senge was on about when he was discussing
Personal Mastery and Mental Models. You can't intellectualise these topics
- you've got to experience them and unfortunately most people never will.
One thing I do know - once you start on the personal mastery route you
will question everything you do and every thought you have. Its a life
time experience.
Bruce Campbell
Malcolm Burson wrote:
> The recent discussion of beliefs sponsored by Morty's passionate
> advocacy has re-kindled in me some questions I've been pondering for
> some time. It goes under the general heading of,
> "What is the conceptual and practical relationship among
> beliefs, mental models, paradigms, and (perhaps to take it a leap
> further) what German speakers call 'Weltanschauung'?"
> That is, I'm [hesitantly] asking if there is some sort of conceptual
> hierarchy among these, so that each is the stuff of, or precursor to,
> the next "level."
>
> Morty asserts that "all behavior is a function of beliefs," and if
> I'm understanding this correctly, such a notion is very consonant
> with Argyris' Ladder of Inference model. So we use experience and
> other data to construct ways of thinking and believing, and these are
> the source of action.
>
> Senge and others seem to use "mental model" to reference a further
> developed construct which might be imaged as an interactive cluster
> or matrix of beliefs which are manifested in a range of behaviors and
> activities.
>
> "Paradigm," as popularized by Kuhn and marketed by Joel Barker, seems
> to me to go a step further, toward an overarching schema by which we
> make sense of large systems/constellations of our reality. And if we
> were to keep going, "Weltanschauung" would seem to denote "the full
> catastrophe."
>
> Questions to ponder and discuss:
> 1. Is this progressive or staged model useful or necessary?
> 2. What is the relationship between the individual and larger
> populations in this matter? That is, is it possible for an
> individual to "hold" a paradigm or Weltanschauung as a single self,
> or do these inherently imply a shared construct?
> 3. If there is a line in the sand between a mental model and a
> paradigm, what is the implication for organizations? These may,
> after all, be dependent on a particular paradigm for their success or
> failure, but such a structure would be constantly being jostled by
> the beliefs and mental models of the employees/members?
>
> and probably lots more questions, but that's enough. Any thoughts?
--Bruce Campbell Macquarie University Sydney, Australia
e-mail: Bruce.Campbell@mq.edu.au
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