[OSList] Open Space and Boundaries

Fri Apr 11 07:47:31 PDT 2014

Dear, Harold!

I studied Lewin as student and "discovered" him recently as I developed
interest in visualization tools (especially maps - mind map, concept map,
dialogue map).
As I understand one of Lewin's important concept is "field" which is center
of his field theory. He talks about personal life space that includes
different drives, forces (vectors) that end up in some sort of equilibrium.
I am fascinated with his topological diagrams although I am not sure i
understand how should they be used. So it is rather my question if
visualisation could be used to clarify the ideas of boundaries and
containers, what is going on inside, outside and on the border.

Be well!

Arno

2014-04-08 20:31 GMT+03:00 Harold Shinsato <harold at shinsato.com>:

>  Thanks for adding in Kurt Lewin, Arno. I'm not sure I fully understand
> his topological method. Would you say more about how you see it working?
>
> The "privacy regulation model" from Altman is quite interesting.
>
> I've seen some criticize Open Space as not being friendly to introverts -
> yet as an introvert myself I found Open Space incredibly liberating because
> it empowers me to regulate my interactions with the group - to move towards
> privacy when I need it - including going for a walk alone or taking a nap -
> and re-engaging when I feel motivated.
>
> I also remember being fascinated at an Open Space with Harrison Owen - the
> Leadership in a Self-Organizing World conference at the Sleeping Lady
> resort in the mountains east of Seattle a few years ago - watching these
> circles of very different intensity. As I was buzzing around, some were
> inviting or relatively porous in letting in new participants. Others
> circles had boundaries that seemed so intense it felt like I'd be an
> intruder if I tried to enter. Different membrane constructions - all
> self-organized. I also remember someone at that conference setting up a
> more formal membrane that asked participants to come at the beginning and
> not to leave. I didn't go, but it seemed to work and not harm the other
> circles, even though the convener was in a sense "breaking" the rules of
> open space and the Law of Two Feet. There were so many professional
> facilitators at that conference - not all of them were big fans of OST. I
> was a bit of a newbie back then. I spent a lot of time being surprised!
>
>     Harold
>
>
>
>
> On 4/8/14 2:42 AM, Arno Baltin wrote:
>
> Dear All!
>
>  I like this discussion.
> I wonder if this border topic could be visualized (for example with
> something like Kurt Lewins initiated topological method). How to represent
> visually the border...no border...wall...fence ... container ... around
> individual or group or both ... What forces drive people to close or open
> the border. An example of descriptive approach here is the privacy
> regulation model <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_regulation_theory>from social psychology (I. Altman and others) where the social subject is
> regulating its border with environment trying to find equilibrium (optimum)
> between isolation and crowding. The cell analogy is often used in this
> context as the cell is defined by its border (membrane) and the
> communications with its environment goes by and through this border. In
> privacy regulation model the border is a means to develop and keep subjects
> identity and integrity.
>
>  Be well!
>
>  Arno
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 2014-04-07 4:33 GMT+03:00 Michael Wood <michael.wood at uwa.edu.au>:
>
>> Thanks, Harrison, for your response to my question on 'boundaries',
>> particularly your paraphrasing of my question - which was spot on.  One
>> thing I've taken from this brief conversation is that although considering
>> the boundaries can be useful, we also need to accept that boundaries are
>> never entirely clear, always moving on a spectrum from clear to
>> uncertain/murky and if we, as a sponsor or facilitator, get overly bound up
>> with boundaries then we might have moved, once again, into being too
>> controlling.
>>
>> Michael Wood
>> Perth, Western Australia
>>
>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 1
>> Date: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 12:01:40 -0400
>> From: "Harrison Owen" <hhowen at verizon.net>
>> To: "'World wide Open Space Technology email list'"
>>         <oslist at lists.openspacetech.org>
>> Subject: Re: [OSList] Open Space and boundaries
>> Message-ID: <000301cf4f56$00776480$01662d80$@net>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
>>
>> It has been common for us to speak of Containers and Boundaries as
>> somehow essential to Open Space. I can't quite find the place, but I do
>> remember saying something like that myself, as in, "The role of the
>> facilitator is to create the container..." It certainly made sense at the
>> time, but I always felt a little uncomfortable with the image. Too
>> mechanical, coercive... too something. And Michael has brought the subject
>> up again. "So...here we have a situation where the 'boundaries' are
>> actually in a state of complex flux and uncertainty. The financial 'givens'
>> are ambiguous; there is no 'locum'
>> pastor in place because of legal uncertainties with the existing
>> pastor...etc." You might call it "messy boundaries" -- and he raises the
>> question whether one should press ahead with Open Space, or wait until the
>> "mess" is settled down. On the one hand, Michael "hunches" that one should
>> press on -- Open Space. But his hesitation comes, I suspect, from the prior
>> notion that fixed boundaries/containers are necessary for an effective Open
>> Space. What to do?
>>
>> Some thoughts (new ones for me): Containers are great for cooking soup,
>> but are unneeded and maybe even problematical in Open Space. It is all
>> about holding things together. In Open Space groups of people come together
>> to deal with their issues. At the very least that would mean gathering in
>> some common time/space, be that physical or electronic. It would seem that
>> this co-location could be facilitated were some suitable "container"
>> provided, presumably by the sponsor/facilitator. This certainly makes
>> sense, and as a rough way of speaking, it seems to describe what is going
>> on. But as I think about it, I think we may be missing a most important
>> point. Coming together in Open Space happens because people care to come.
>> And they continue their connection as long as they care to do so. (Law of
>> two feet)
>>
>> >From the "outside" it might look as if they were held in place by a
>> container, but that is illusory. The actual dynamics are centripetal, the
>> force is mutual attraction... people are "there" because they care to be
>> there and not because they are contained by some external structure. In a
>> word, we as facilitators really don't do a thing, and creating a container
>> is the least of what we DON'T do. The people, from the beginning, do it all.
>>
>>
>> Of course, there are situations where groups come together under orders,
>> mandates, whatever. And they are definitely "contained." It is also true
>> that the tighter that container, the less likely self organization will
>> take place. If true, providing a container is not only unnecessary but also
>> destructive. In the name of Opening space, we effectively close it. Or so I
>> suspect it might be. Just thinking...
>>
>> Anyhow Michael, should my mental peregrinations lead anywhere useful, it
>> would seem that your "hunch" was spot on. Forget the boundaries/container.
>> Just invite the space to open.
>>
>> Harrison
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Harrison Owen
>> 7808 River Falls Dr.
>> Potomac, MD 20854
>> USA
>>
>> 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)
>> Camden, Maine 04843
>>
>> Phone 301-365-2093
>> (summer)  207-763-3261
>>
>> www.openspaceworld.com
>> www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)
>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of
>> OSLIST Go to:
>> http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org
>> [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Michael Wood
>> Sent: Tuesday, April 01, 2014 9:59 PM
>> To: 'oslist at lists.openspacetech.org'
>> Subject: [OSList] Open Space and boundaries
>>
>> A Case Study....
>> One of the principles that I have generally worked with in Open Space is
>> helping the client get clear on the 'boundaries' of the space that's being
>> opened. For example, helping people who come into the space to know 'what
>> up for grabs here and what isn't? What decisions have already been made?'
>>
>> So picture this (purely hypothetical of course)....a church community in
>> which the pastor has (in many peoples' opinion) run off the rails and the
>> main church body is in the process of trying to dismiss him; the church is
>> in compete disarray and completely conflict ridden, many people have left;
>> the pastor who holds all the keys, banking passwords; church telephone
>> connections etc etc, has taken legal advice and had hunkered down in the
>> church owned house where he continues to hold the reigns of power (via some
>> of his 'allies' in the church) despite not formally being the Pastor of the
>> church anymore....
>>
>> So...here we have a situation where the 'boundaries' are actually in a
>> state of complex flux and uncertainty. The financial 'givens' are
>> ambiguous; there is no 'locum' pastor in place because of legal
>> uncertainties with the existing pastor...etc etc.
>>
>> So in terms of 'Opening Space', do we wait a bit longer until some of the
>> legal boundaries are clarified, OR open space right away in the midst of
>> the mess....my hunch is the latter, but any thoughts from anyone?
>>
>> Cheers
>> Michael
>> _______________________________________________
>> OSList mailing list
>> To post send emails to OSList at lists.openspacetech.org To unsubscribe
>> send an email to OSList-leave at lists.openspacetech.org
>> To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:
>> http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> OSList mailing list
>> To post send emails to OSList at lists.openspacetech.org To unsubscribe
>> send an email to OSList-leave at lists.openspacetech.org
>> To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:
>> http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
>>
>>
>> End of OSList Digest, Vol 38, Issue 3
>> *************************************
>> _______________________________________________
>> OSList mailing list
>> To post send emails to OSList at lists.openspacetech.org
>> To unsubscribe send an email to OSList-leave at lists.openspacetech.org
>> To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:
>> http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
>>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> OSList mailing list
> To post send emails to OSList at lists.openspacetech.org
> To unsubscribe send an email to OSList-leave at lists.openspacetech.org
> To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
>
>
>
> --
> Harold Shinsato
> harold at shinsato.com
> http://shinsato.com
> twitter: @hajush <http://twitter.com/hajush>
>
> _______________________________________________
> OSList mailing list
> To post send emails to OSList at lists.openspacetech.org
> To unsubscribe send an email to OSList-leave at lists.openspacetech.org
> To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:
> http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/pipermail/oslist-openspacetech.org/attachments/20140411/5d93e230/attachment-0008.htm>