The Social Nature of Man – falsifiable
Empirical Study on the Global Meaning of Spatial Positioning of Humans to Each Other
Die soziale Natur des Menschen – falsifizierbar
Empirische Studie über Systemaufstellungen und die weltweite Bedeutung räumlicher Stellungen von Menschen zueinander
English translation/Englische Übersetzung Christine Hokamp
2018
First edition, 2018
ISBN 978-3-8497-9013-4 (print)
ISBN 978-3-8497-9018-9 (epub)
ISBN 978-3-8497-9017-2 (PDF)
© 2018 Carl-Auer-Systeme, Heidelberg (Germany)
Cover design: Uwe Göbel
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Erste Auflage, 2018
ISBN 978-3-8497-9013-4 (Printausgabe)
ISBN 978-3-8497-9018-9 (epub)
ISBN 978-3-8497-9017-2 (PDF)
© 2018 Carl-Auer-Systeme, Heidelberg
Reihengestaltung nach Entwürfen von Uwe Göbel
Printed in Germany 2018
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To my parents
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INHALT DEUTSCHE FASSUNG
ABSTRACT
1.INTRODUCION
2.METHODS AND RESULTS OF THE MULTIPLE CHOICE EXPERIMENTS IN CHINA
3.METHODS AND RESULTS OF THE GALILEIAN EXPERIMENTS IN CHINA
4.DISCUSSION OF ETHICAL STANDARDS
5.DIRECTLY DERIVABLE CONCLUSIONS
6.MAN AND HIS AFFECTED SPACE
6.1REQUIREMENTS OF CONCEPT FORMATION
6.2THE DEFINITION OF SOCIAL AFFECTED SPACE
6.3REAL AND CONCEPTUAL BOUNDARIES OF A PERSON’S SOCIAL AFFECTED SPACE
6.4VALUES AND FORCES IN THE SOCIAL AFFECTED SPACE
6.5HISTORICAL AND POLITICAL ASPECTS OF THE SOCIAL AFFECTED SPACE
6.6THERAPEUTIC CONCLUSIONS
7.METHODS
7.1ONE OF FOUR SERIES OF TEST SERIES STEP-BY-STEP
7.2ERROR ANALYSIS
7.3IRREVERSIBILITY
7.4HERMENEUTIC PRE-INVESTMENT
7.5THE MOTTO OF THE GLOBAL RESEARCH PROJECT
ZUSAMMENFASSUNG
1.EINFÜHRUNG
2.METHODIK UND ERGEBNISSE DER MULTIPLE-CHOICE-VERSUCHE IN CHINA
3.METHODIK UND ERGEBNISSE DER GALILEISCHEN VERSUCHE IN CHINA
4.DISKUSSION DER ETHISCHEN ANSPRÜCHE
5.DIREKT ABLEITBARE SCHLUSSFOLGERUNGEN
6.DER MENSCH UND SEIN WIRKRAUM
6.1VORAUSSETZUNGEN DER BEGRIFFSBILDUNG
6.2ZUR DEFINITION DES SOZIALEN WIRKRAUMES
6.3REALE UND BEGRIFFLICHE GRENZEN DES SOZIALEN WIRKRAUMES
6.4WERTE UND KRÄFTE IM SOZIALEN WIRKRAUM EINES MENSCHEN
6.5POLITISCHE ASPEKTE DES SOZIALEN WIRKRAUMES
6.6THERAPEUTISCHE SCHLUSSWORTE
7.METHODISCHES
7.1EINE VON VIER VERSUCHSREIHEN SCHRITT FÜR SCHRITT
7.2FEHLERANALYSE
7.3IRREVERSIBILITÄTEN
7.4HERMENEUTISCHE VORINVESTITION
7.5DAS MOTTO DES GLOBALEN FORSCHUNGSPROJEKTS
LITERATUR
‘Business, after all, is nothing more than a bunch of human relationships.‘1
Lee Iacocca
The empirical doctoral thesis on system constellations with life-sized figures, which was completed in 20052,could also be realised with identical meaning in China in 20153. The results discovered this way in these very different cultures, show some remarkable mutual phenomena, which were able to be observed with scientifically falsifiable claims. In these reports, the dominating view is still that one can only gain access to understanding this phenomenon with seemingly esoteric ideas. However with our research, the events in system constellations occur with rationally comprehensible meaning: When people use their intuition to represent their social relationships in a family or company using persons or life-sized figures in a space, then they are externalising previously available mental content. In this way, constellations which occur from this are later assigned differentiated social meaning by any test persons, i. e. these constellations are read as gestures of a language about social relationships and tend to be understood in the same way. Whereby here a purely intuitive ‘reading’ is taking place. The Chinese understand this ‘language of position’ differently, as with a dialect, but just as significantly as Germans. Here the null hypothesis demands that different constellations are assigned evenly distributed different meanings. This hypothesis was falsified using scientific and multiply redundant test types in Germany and China using a basic Chi2 test (error probability < 0.1%). The discovered and applied research method involves social relationships and binding forces between persons. With it, two terms – ‘social empathy’ and ‘social unconscious’ – find an empirically falsifiable content, i. e. a similar basis. Thus, the original and mental core of the human being, the human species, has been discovered as researchable phenomenon. It is about nothing less than the research and justification of something which we can call human social gravitational force, and the aforementioned gestural language can now be called global language. We suggest naming this methodology ‘Sociothesie’. On this basis, the concept of a human-social affected space can be developed, with which elementary phenomena of human sociality are better understood, and in particular a direct connection to unequivocal results of anthropology can be achieved with this.
An overview of all the abbreviations used:
| CHS | Characteristic sentance/s – multiple-choice option |
| DOC | Doctorate from 2005 |
| PRO | Profile/s – multiple-choice option |
| SIR | Life-size figure/s – silent representative/s |
| SYC | System constellation/s |
| TL | Test leader/s |
| TP | Test person/s |
1 http://www.beste-zitate.de/lee-iacocca/business-ist-nichts-anderes-als-ein-knaeuel-menschlicher-beziehungen/, 01.11.17, own translation.
2 See also research film link: https://vimeo.com/user1176373
3 Ibid.
In the latter half of the previous century the ‘systemic approach’ was developed in psychology and psychotherapy4. This states that in order to provide a sufficient problem analysis and solution, the person cannot be observed as an isolated individual, but is to be seen as a part of a social whole. Starting from around the 1970s, work with system constellations (SYC) grew, originally in the form of family constellations5. Both lines of development in therapy and consultation are called ‘systemic’ but are not seen as being identical6.
The core of SYC is that in a consultation clients do not use a verbal description, but instead use their intuition to erect the social system which is suspected as being decisive for them and their question, such as a life-sized sociogram, according to the phrase often used in German: ‘Wie stehen wir zueinander?’, ‘What is our connection to each other?’ – literally: How do we stand with each other? (Here it is expressly indicated that the further discussed quasi passive intuition of humans is paired with a quasi active power of imagination which still has not been investigated very much.) Thereby representatives which are not part of the system are placed in the imaginary positions of the persons in the system who, with the exception of the client, are normally not present. This SYC is known as problem constellation. A solution is then sought on the visual plane in the space together with the representatives (mainly without the client’s involvement). The solution is a geometry in which every end-position in the system is subjectively experienced as positive. This constellation is called the solution constellation. After a few years not only family situations, but also career situations started to be processed using SYC. This has now become known as organisation constellations.7
In 1999 Peter Schlötter developed life-sized figures for working in a professional context, which he called ‘silent representatives’ (SIR). Using them he discovered the possibility of identically reproducing SYC. Essentially an empiricism with the character of a laboratory was created with well controllable test conditions, while at the same time allowing TP (test persons) in this laboratory to do exactly what representatives in an SYC normally do, which is to express their representing perception. In this way, a test procedure could be developed which united the qualities of laboratory and field tests.8 With the results which have now also been found in China, Simon’s hypothesis can no longer be limited to Germany, in fact it now obtains a global dimension.
There are many researches, such as the summarising efficacy study by Weinhold mentioned in footnote 1, which are concerned with therapeutic effects. So they are about the phenomena which follow an SYC. But these have nothing to do with the focus of the work presented here and vice versa. So the same applies today as ascertained over 10 years ago in the dissertation, that no further work has been published which needs to be referred to here either as basis or to distance ourselves, see the note in the DOC. ‘There are no models which we could simply follow’9.
4 Schlippe A, Schweitzer J. Lehrbuch der systemischen Therapie und Beratung (Textbook for systemic Therapy and Counselling, own translation). Göttingen (Germany): Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; 2nd edition 2013. 32 p.
5 Weinhold J, et al. Dreierlei Wirksamkeit (Effectiveness in Three Ways, own translation). Heidelberg (Germany): Carl-Auer; 2014. 13 p.
6 Ibid. 71 p.
7 Weber G, publisher. Praxis der Organisationsaufstellungen (Organization Constellation in Practice, own translation). Heidelberg (Germany): Carl-Auer; 2000.
8 Schlötter P. Vertraute Sprache und ihre Entdeckung (Familiar Language and its Discovery, own translation). Heidelberg (Germany): Carl-Auer; 2005. III p.
9 Ibid. 12 p.
The doctoral thesis which was completed in 2005 is the basis of the respective identical repeat of the empiricism in China. As with the precursor study it has been ensured that the chain of documentation, video – test date, for every test date is anonymous but unbroken and permanently available (see the discussion on ethical standards below). Test-1 was always equipped with one camera, test-2 with two (shot – reverse shot). Important implementation details are found in chapter 7 on methodology. Two documented older consultation cases were selected for the research project. Over ten years ago, the technical manager of a medium-sized company positioned the SYC used in test-1 according to his intuition, as shown in Fig. 1. He chose a position for himself which as later named position 1 (numbering was only carried out in the later evaluation). These organisation constellations are identically followed time and again with the SIR. The TP are employees from cooperating private companies and so it is not hard to achieve a good cross-section of the normal working population (for example this included 1&1 GmbH, Kroll Ontrack GmbH, Bertelsmann Stiftung and Robert Bosch GmbH, the latter also in China). A TP is led from one individual test to the next, always in exchange with a figure and in this sequence through the whole constellation. Any personal communication with the test leaders during the test is avoided wherever possible. If necessary small writing boards and electronically accessed statements can be used.
In test type 1 every TP is offered the same meaning options (CHS: characteristic sentences) at the same place, and for this selection in the first round of the test there is only the figure constellation as information, nothing else:
Fig. 1-b – The same with TP and SIR. Test 1 is described in the text and if they wish, every reader can now carry out this test themselves using the seven CHS, whereby in the real test the hierarchy was still completely unknown. The human imagination of course only provides weaker signals with the small pictures, but this is sufficient for the required decisions in this sample test mostly.
Fig. 1-a – Problem constellation in Test 1, top view,
‘a.That is the position that safely belongs to the group but may only go along with the rest.
b.That is the position which has lots of responsibility here with support.
c.That is the position which doesn’t have anything to say and no longer belongs to the group.
d.That is this position from which something important is expected.
e.That is the position which is respected as observer and is seen as being somewhat ‘in the line of fire’.
f.That is the position which remains neutral, more than others.
g.That is the position which feels safe and important and is somewhat restricted.
h.I clearly feel something different.
i. I don’t feel anything at all.’
At every point a TP can completely freely choose one of these seven social characterisations. After completing this first round, the redundant second round involves the TP being shown seven turned-down piles of seven size A6 profiles (PRO: profile/s), and has the opportunity to freely choose one PRO to attach to the individual positions. These PRO are roughly the same as the CHS, but are much longer with 20-50 words, also for the first time in this experiment the additional information of a heirarchical relationship of each of the characterisations is provided in the PRO: (a. ‘Workforce’; b. ‘Management, executive board’; c. ‘Former deputy manager’; ’; d. ‘Technical manager’; e. ‘Production manager’; f. ‘Customer’; g. ‘New deputy manager’).
Whenever someone steps up to an SYC they will spontaneously get a feeling about the concrete social system which is represented on the visual plane and its apparently active social references from the perspective of this individual person. This phenomenon was observed in almost all TP, as the option ‘i’ was selected in China by 1.35% of persons and in Germany by 1.30% of persons. This means that the social relationship active in each position is intuitively read by a person when confronted with this constellation. Every reader can test this hypothesis in Fig. 1-a with the seven CHS.
This phenomenon is known as representative perception. ‘Representative perceptionis the central mutual phenomenon of the different types of system constellation.’10 This representative perception consists of two components which are different but may not be separated; on the one hand the perception of a visual image which results from the person’s perspective of a constellation and on the other hand what this person’s introspection provides in emotions and spontaneous valuations when confronted with the figure constellation11. This introspection is initially a spontaneous, unconscious process. Here a person’s specific intuition is expressed, which is quite different from the phenomenon of an intuition with an individual different person which is described as empathy. The latter ability is explained in recent research work on the basis of mirror neurons12. The figures used have an absolutely invariant appearance which definitely do not provide any perception which could be connected to live mimics, gestures or physical posture. The intuition which can be observed in SYC using SIR can therefore only refer to the geometric position of SIR or persons in the space, and should therefore also be named individually. We will return to this again in chapter 5.
For the research in China only the verbal components used in the test needed to be translated. Everything else remained completely the same. The frequencies found in the choice of the options are specified as example at individual positions in the bar graphs (see Fig. 2-a to 2-c).
Fig. 2-a to 2-c – Representative examples of CHS frequenciesin absolute figures as they were found in China.These examples already show the occurring significance and also that the options were used approximately just as often over several positions, so that a trivial result can be excluded.
Differentiated observations with specific future research mean differentiated insights and conclusions can be expected with reference to cultural characteristics. This remarkable potential can be explained using the results on ‘Position 1’ as an example.
Fig. 3-a: This shows the frequencies found in China (CHS vs PRO) in comparison. In the upper figure, the CHS are entered, i.e. the options which were chosen to represent the position. Thereby the social intuition from ‘inside’ is applied (see chapter 5). The accumulation of sentence b is immediately obvious, while approx. a third gave option d precedence. In the lower figure, the PRO are shown, which on the other hand were selected with a certain distance, namely when the TP could move around within the constellation. The formal hierarchy offered in the PRO dominates with option b for the Chinese with 85%.
Fig. 3-b: Here the CHS choice is still in the same place in Germany (below), in contrast to the CHS choice in China (above). The formal hierarchy was not yet named. In Germany the option b, which was favoured in China, was taken into consideration but only by a strong majority, while the informal powerful position d was selected with the highest unanimity (74%) which ever occurred in these tests in Germany. In both countries there are general similarities between both positions and the social meaning, which is at this position in both cultures, only from these options together. They are the two most powerful positions and options.
Fig. 3-a to 3-c – Comparison of frequencies of Position 1 in China and Germany, all figures are in percentage. Chinese understand gestural language of the positions in the space differently as with a dialect, but just as significantly concordant as Germans.
Fig. 3-c: If the formal hierarchy was given in a PRO as option, in China almost only sentence b with exactly this option was chosen, while in Germany also a basic majority prioritised the formal hierarchy, however not many less remained with their original estimation.
The frequencies found are initially an objectively definable fact. However on this basis further interpretive theories can be developed and justified, in this case, for example, the association with formal and informal hierarchies:
1.Relating to the predominant social feeling in China,
2.Relating to the predominant social feeling in Germany,
3.Relating to a comparison of cultures in the two countries. Differentiated observations with specific future research mean differentiated insights and conclusions can be expected with reference to cultural characteristics,
4.Relating to this technology manager in person, with his private and, above all career consequences, which were also developed in the consultation process.
The apparent significances in the results are also reflected in the calculations for Chi2 (see Fig. 4, all values are calculated with the formula for Chi2: Chi2 = S ((frequency – mathematical expectation)2 / (mathematical expectation)). The significances which can be calculated with Chi2 exceed the minimum value of 24.32113 on every place with great security. So an error probability of less than 0.1% can be met well. This means that the Chinese understand gestural language of the positions in the space differently as with a dialect, but just as significantly concordant as Germans.
In his ‘Fünfer Regel’ (fiver rule), Tukey requires a minimum number of tests in which every option could occur five times14, which is at least 35 here. The number of tests for each individual test is also 53 in China, which is definitely within a safe range.
In order to discriminate and exclude trivial significances, ‘transverse’ significance calculations were also carried out for the results in China, i. e. All options referring to all places were put to use equally frequently (see chapter 7.4 on the crucial importance of hermeneutic pre-investment).
In addition, our conclusions from our results are of course secured by the considerable redundancy which 1219 individual tests can realise (Test-1: (53 TP x 7) x 2 + test-2: (53 TP x 7 + 53 TP x 2)).
Fig. 4 – Statistic significances, presented with Chi2, found with redudant CHS and PRO tests, and the black line (24.321) shows an error probability of p = 0.001.
10 Varga von Kibéd M in Weber G, publisher. Praxis der Organisationsaufstellungen (Organization Constellation in Practice, own translation). Heidelberg: Carl-Auer; 2000. 16 p (emphasis by publisher, own translation).
11 Schlötter P. Vertraute Sprache und ihre Entdeckung (Familiar Language and its Discovery, own translation). Heidelberg (Germany): Carl-Auer; 2005. 18 p.
12 Hickok G. Warum wir verstehen was andere fühlen (Why we understand what others feel, own translation). Munich: Hanser; 2015.
13 Sachs L. Angewandte Statistik (Applied statistics, our translation). Berlin: Springer; 8th edition 1997. 235 p.
14 Ibid. 172 p.
This title is based on the experiments with marble tracks to investigate Galileo Galilei’s law of falling bodies. In the same way that in his experiment exactly controlled marbles were left over to the track and gravity, here the TP were left over to the figure constellation and their own feelings15. In test 2 name tags are attached to the figures: 1. ‘Dr. Müller, Managing director/Sales, for 32 years’; 2. ‘Father Schulz-Senior, (50% share of inheritance), Managing director’; 3. ‘Son Schulz-Junior, Manager of accounting, for 5 years’; 4. ‘Father Böhm-Senior, (50% share of inheritance, silent partner)’; 5. ‘Son Böhm-Junior, Project manager, for 3 years’; 6. ‘Customer’; 7. ‘Company S&B Metal (180 employees, turnover: € 13 mio/year)’ 1997. In this test no numerically evaluable step is initially integrated, moreover the TP are led to every position and requested to verbally express their feelings. Only more randomly selected examples have already been transcribed and translated (see the ‘hidden treasures’ below).
Fig. 5-a shows the problem constellation in which the father of the ‘real’ Böhm-Junior was not placed in the constellation (is still behind the screen), as this Senior is not important in this system according to the son, nor does he work in this company.
In addition to a semantic evaluation of the depictions from these representative perceptions, these steps in the test also have the function that the TP can get to know the constellation and their own introspective measuring instruments through experience. In a final step they reach the position for Böhm-Junior. They then wait away from the constellation until the problem constellation has been set up for the solution. They are now invited via loudspeaker to find a position for themselves as Böhm-Junior based on their own feelings if they see this as meaningful. The scientific observer who is present must make a point of sitting away and obviously shutting their eyes at this point, as announced. The result is therefore created entirely without verbal mediation by simply measuring the position (3 coordinates x, y, α) which a TP took up at free will. Fig. 5-b (China) and Fig. 5-c (Germany) show the apparently resulting significances in the graphic display of positions selected by the TP.
Fig. 5 Gravitational forces acting between people Figures have name tags.
Fig. 5-a Problem constellation Positioned by the consultation client.
Fig. 5-b Positions found intuitively by the test persons in China in the solution constellation. 52 TP from a total of 53.
Fig. 5-c Positions found intuitively by the test persons in Germany in the solution constellation. 63 TP from a total of 70 are visible in the section of the image.
15 See Schlötter P. Das Spiel ohne Ball im Unternehmen (The game off the ball in companies, own translation). Stuttgart (Germany): Schäffer-Pöschel; 2008. 170 p.
A test person can decide and execute every step in one of the text according to their own feelings. Each of these steps are introduced through standardised and non-binding invitations, which are played from a CD in the same way for all. They can express their current state of mind verbally, select a verbal option or look for a place which they feel is fitting or desired at that moment. Each of these steps is then respectfully documented without further ado as ‘the correct result’ while the TP are present or it is simply documented by the video camera which is running. The process takes less than an hour for every TP, is a unique event and consists primarily of a standardised interview which is fundamentally constructed in its present form and previous implementation without individual enquiries. This ensures that these tests do not have an intervening character. In themselves they are similar to an opinion poll (two thirds of them are in the form of a multiple-choice questionnaire) and uncritical from an ethical point of view.
The test persons are won from the partner company. The research project is made known in the company via an information sheet (A4 sheet), and the employees are given the opportunity to take part in the research as part of their normal working hours if they desire to do so. Other than this, no other advantages or disadvantages are suggested.
All data which can lead back to a natural person are made completely anonymous as part of the procedure for the evaluation. This is carried out with all data documented on the standardised recording sheets using two measures:
1. When ascertaining frequencies, any personal reference disappears when recording in the quasi tally sheets.
2. The chronological numbering of the participants throughout their participation in the experiment is deleted by physically destroying the list of participants after the participants have been newly sorted alphabetically. This ensures that the frequency calculated using only the numbered recording sheets can always be checked to their full extent, and at the same time every personal reference is physically deleted which could only have been gained using the chronological but nameless participant numbering in the recording sheets. Deleting every personal reference on the video documentation is more complicated but is also still completely carried out. The video’s sound track is deleted immediately after transcripting has taken place. Faces are pixelated until they can no longer be recognised before evaluation.
Sometimes outlier actions are carried out, if only very rarely. In the DOC the following was stated in respect of this: ‘However it must be accepted that, even if very rarely, test persons use their freedom, for example to shut their eyes for a long time (over 60 seconds, occurred 2-3 times with over 240 test persons in the whole project)’16, and in China a test person stood behind the screen, or in Germany two persons stopped the test with the comment: ‘I don't want to be the son in a family business’17. Exceptions like these are simply noted and tolerated. An explicitly impersonal but at the same time appreciating contact to the test leaders has priority. With a total of over 300 test person, such phenomena prove how subjectivity free the TP feel in this experiment setting.
But the researchers (and users, in particular those in companies) must be aware of the dangers when dealing with the uncovered possibilities towards individual mental factors. An absolutely integral handling of the deeply personal data which occur when TP act naturally must be made expressly clear, because after all, these data are created through the test person’s intentional subconscious reactions. As test leaders we aim for an atmosphere in which the test person can express their perceptions in the tests with interest, if not even with intrigue and pleasure.
For scientific purposes there must be unlimited transparency as to how each individual test result from a TP occurred, and at the same time the anonymity of the TP toward the public must be guaranteed, or rather any personalisable publication which enables conclusions to be drawn on a certain person, must be specifically authorised by this TP, or must be made impossible. In China in August 2015 we shared the following information with test participants: ‘All the results of the experiment are completely anonymous. We just have to be able to prove that you personally took part in an experiment. However no-one will be able to tell which of the 50 different answers to each of the 25 experiments came from you personally. Nor is this relevant for the experiment.’ The original was Chinese.
16 Schlötter P. Vertraute Sprache und ihre Entdeckung (Familiar Language and its Discovery, own translation). Heidelberg (Germany): Carl-Auer; 2005. 71 p Footnote.
17 Ibid. 162 p.
sociothesie