[From Bill Powers (920908.2000)]
Thomas Baines (920908) --
You have some pretty attentive ears out here. Your description of
organism-raising could provide some answers to the general problem of
how independent autonomous systems can get along together, and how to
"raise" children of any species by some means that doesn't end up
teaching them violence and crippling their self-starters.
On the other hand, a skeptic could need some convincing that this is a
method that others might want to use. First off, I've never heard
anyone describe a method of child-rearing they worked out and used and
conclude by telling us that the kids turned out terrible as a result
of the method. The problem here is that the parent naturally uses his
or her own reference levels in judging the result. If the children
behave in a way consistent with those reference levels, the parent
will point to them as proof that the method works. I expect that the
Ayatollah Khoumeni's Dad was quite proud of the job of child-rearing
he did. So to judge the worth of any method of raising children (or
pets), one has to get outside of the framework of the parent doing the
raising. That's where a theoretical framework can help.
Your description leaves itself open to several interpretations,
depending on what the reader thinks is right and proper. Many people
think they know what children and dogs "pay attention to:" pain,
hunger, thirst, parental (or masterly) rejection, and loss of freedom.
So they might interpret this phrase a little differently from the way
you meant it (I presume):
This requires figuring out what the kid (or dog) pays attention to,
then using that as the channel through which to impart knowledge &
stimulate curiosity.
Some people would mean by that, "Find out what they value, and then
take it away from them until they cave in." Considering your interest
in PCT, I rather doubt that this is what you meant, but you see the
problem.
I think everyone would like to hear the details, for comparison with
PCT principles and probably for more practical reasons than that. How,
for example, do you do the housebreaking? How about some examples of
"rudiments of ... responsibility for personal actions" and how you
actually teach them?
The one that really gets me is
Any insistence on my part to force the kid or pup to see things my
way >have been pretty fruitless. I have to see things their way, then
establish why their viewpoint is in error.
As a father of teenagers I was terrible at trying to figure out (a)
what mistake they were making, and (b) expressing it in a coherent way
that they might understand. How the hell did you do it, aside from
using your natural genius? I'll bet a lot of people would like to
know.
ยทยทยท
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Best,
Bill P.