Feedback: it’s rocket science!
The German philosopher
and psychologist Kurt Lewin (1890–1947) was one of the early proponents
of group dynamics and action research directed towards solving social
problems. Lewin pioneered the practice of T-group training, in which
participants find out about themselves through feedback, problem-solving
procedures and role play. The technique was first designed as a means
of changing attitudes, beliefs and behaviours of individuals. The
practice of sharing emotions, as opposed to making judgements or drawing
conclusions, enables people to understand how the way they speak and
behave can produce specific emotional responses in others.
Lewin borrowed the term
‘feedback’ from electrical engineering and rocket science. When a rocket
in space sends messages to Earth, mechanisms receive and interpret the
signals and then send feedback to the rocket in order that it can
correct its position or make repairs. Lewin compared humans to rockets,
in that people send out signals through their words, body language,
actions and other behaviours. When receivers catch the signals, they
respond through feedback that’s intended to adjust other people’s
behaviour.
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