The power of description part 1 for bb
- 1. Part I
- 2. Induction vs. Deduction: What’s Your Style? Big picture first? You form an overall impression first. Then you review details to check and possibly modify your impression. Small pieces first? You carefully observe details first. You use the details to form a central impression. Which one describes how you approach observation?
- 3. Both approaches work. Neither is better… but knowing which is more comfortable will help you to choose an effective strategy for observing and crafting your notes. If your approach is inductive • form your impressions • then look carefully to gather evidence from the environment • Caution: What you glean from the details may cause you to modify your first impression! If your approach is deductive • Carefully and thoroughly collect details • Organize the details into meaningful categories or chunks • Draw impressions from your details and use the details to support the impression.
- 4. Fixing on a Place: Identifying Concrete Physical Details
- 5. POSITIVE MOOD WORDS NEGATIVE MOOD WORDS Light-hearted Tense Playful Gloomy Tender Violent Enlightened Insidious Optimistic Pessimistic Liberating Confining Warm Cold Hopeful Hopeless Nostalgic Haunting Peaceful Nightmarish Welcoming Hostile Harmonious Suspenseful Trustful Foreboding Vivacious Painful Confident Threatening Idyllic Desolate Sympathetic Merciless Joyous Terrifying Dignified Barren Ecstatic Vengeful Empowered Heartbroken Inclusive
- 6. BUT…. The key is NOT TELLING Instead of using the atmosphere/ mood words, use details to SHOW the atmosphere.
- 7. Try It!
- 8. What do you see? Inductive: What is your impression of this room? What feeling do you get from it? Deductive: What details stand out to you? What impression do these details create? There is no right answer here. However, the picture of this room should have prompted you to think about the purpose of this room and the feeling you get from the artifacts in it as well as the color scheme.
- 9. People: Perception Look: Listen:
- 10. People Watching 101: It’s all about REACTIONS • To others • To the setting • To the environment Group vs. Individual • Are most people reacting similarly? • Are individuals reacting differently? Group dynamics • Supportive and comfortable? • Involved? • Focused? • Disinterested? Bored? • Tense?
- 11. Use your senses! Sight: Sound: Smell ** Taste Physical sense (touch, texture, temperature)
- 12. Try It: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-m3yC_hhr3E Watch this short clip from a television sitcom, and pay special attention to the body and facial language of the actors. • What do they reveal? • What subtle and overt cues let you know what they are thinking?
- 13. Now you know what to look for, but how can you take notes in a room where you are not allowed to take notes or record? Plan ahead!
- 14. Think ahead about what you will be seeing and what it might look like: Structure of the Meeting: Opening Ritual Organization Parts/Sections Artifacts (texts, symbols) Closing
- 15. Preparation: Draw a map ahead of time Use the map to prompt memory after the meeting (fill in with details, impressions)
- 16. Brain Dump Soak up as much information as you can while the meeting is going on Write down as many specific details as you can immediately after the meeting Later (allow some time to pass), write your impressions
Editor's Notes
- #3: Inductive or deductive—which are you? Think about your personality. Myers-Briggs (intuitive? Judger? Perceiver? Thinker) I’m a judgeer—get the big picture first. What are you? This determines how you approach an observation. Judger—make a decision about the general impression first—use details to answer, am I right? If you are a perceiver—use details to form an impression—collect information first and then decide. Judge--inductive
- #5: Fixing on place: Taking in all the details—in an organized way. What are the elements? Date, time, exact location. Outside location. Room. People. Artifacts within the room (furniture). Physical description will support your overall impression. Drawing a sketch is often helpful—for gethering your thoughts and for moving describing them.
- #6: General Atmosphere: Overall impression—colors the way you see everything.
- #8: Picture of the inside of an empty room---describe it! How? What do you see? Doing this well will allow you to “hang” other details on it later.
- #13: First without sound—then with sound.
- #15: Structure of the meeting: chronological order—beginning middle end.