Teach the group to code its own contributions.
technique — attributed to Caitlin Walker
Walker's training discipline for self-modeling groups is operational. Members learn to code their contributions and reactions. Is someone speaking about a problem or an outcome? Are they giving an example or a metaphor? Are they speaking in evidence (what can be seen or heard) or in inference (what they are making up about what they saw or heard)? The codes give the group time to respond mindfully rather than reactively. A member who says I am stuck and the project outcome is not clear enough is coded as: speaking about a problem, giving a metaphor of being stuck, expressing an inference about the outcome. The group can then ask what would you like to have happen, or what would make the outcome clearer, moving the conversation toward resolution.
For facilitators training groups in self-modeling and for team leaders thinking about how to build metacognitive capability. The technique is most useful as a sustained training over multiple sessions rather than a single intervention.
coding-contributions, problem-outcome, evidence-inference, metacognition