Purpose
Exploring different perspectives on a theme and how they are rooted in disciplinary traditions
Description
Disciplinary traditions, professional backgrounds, and personal beliefs define the perspectives with which participants in inter- or transdisciplinary collaborations perceive the world. These perspectives will differ across participants, often in quite unconscious, more implicit ways.
Engaging in inter- and transdisciplinary collaborations requires understanding and familiarizing with the knowledge traditions that team members bring to the collaboration. In addition, all members bring their emotional engagement to the topic of the collaboration, which is all the more relevant in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaborations, which often aim to address societal challenges.
Through the empathy map a theme is explored that holds relevance to all participants, so that each can reflect on it from their own disciplinary/knowledge perspective. This helps to accommodate making explicit each members’ emotional relation to the topic, as well as their (disciplinary) perspective, and to facilitate conversation around it.
In terms of disciplinary grounding, this helps to understand some of the basic assumptions of the disciplines involved, the epistemology, its methods and ways of validation.
This activity is useful at the start of an inter- or transdisciplinary collaboration, or even prior to forming research teams.
Instructions
Organize the room in groups of three. Round tables are preferable. Make sure the room can comfortably host the number of participants, with enough space between the tables (and taking into account sound levels).
Invite participants to divide in groups of three, if possible with others they work on a topic with.
Step 1 Guided Journaling
- Introduce Guided Journaling as a method (see slide). Invite participants to write down their answers to the questions in the designated area of the empathy map. Make explicit that they will enter into a conversation with others afterwards about what they have written down.
- Guided Journaling: read out the questions on the slide one by one, two minutes per question. Keep the time, announce when there are 30 seconds left.
Step 2: Interviews in trios
- Invite participants to share their answers by assigning roles, watch the timing and to practice deep listening, bearing in mind the listening levels.
- Explain the interview process (see slide). Remind participants to use open questions, examples on the slide, and that during dialogue no advice is given, stimulate the asking of open and deepening questions. If there is a deep need to do that, it can be done after the interview round.
- Start the interviews, walk around to listen in, keep an eye on the time
Step 3: Dialogue
Invite the trios to reflect on the activity for 5 – 10 minutes (depending on the available time), examples of guiding questions available (see slide).
Phase
Convene/Getting to know each other
Competence
Disciplinary Grounding
Time
60 minutes
Group size
Groups of three, up to any number depending on the number of facilitators
Required materials
- Printed A3 empathy maps, one per participant
- Pens
- Clock for timekeeping
- Set of slides
Related tools
This exercise can be combined with Listening Levels
Relevant resources
This activity is inspired by the Human Centred Design empathy map. The process is inspired by Theory U – guided journaling & case clinics.
Tips & experience
Ensure time-keeping at the tables
Appoint one observer of the Listening Levels during the dialogue
End this activity with a two-minute reflection through individual journaling