After reading it, you will understand the basics of this powerful decision making tool. Introduction the ladder of inference available data up and down the ladder of inference if you ask the average person why they behaved. Exhibit i taken from chris argyris and donald schon, theory. The ladder of inference problemsolving training from mindtools. The data is long since lost to memory, after years of inferential leaps. The ladder is a model of our reasoning steps as we assess a situation and decide what action to take. The ladder of inference was first developed by chris argyris and included in the fifth discipline fieldbook by peter senge, et. The ladder of inference is a key tool of action scienceone approach to action research. The more i believe that doris dislikes me, the more i reinforce my tendency to notice her malevolent behavior in the future. This would constitute doubleloop learning, because both the governing variable and the action strategy have changed. Groupthink and the ladder of inference the journal of human. All over the world, there is a theory in use about how to handle people nicely. Ive probably leapt up that ladder of inference many times before. Using the ladder of inference you cant live your life without adding meaning or drawing conclusions.
The ladder of inference describes the thinking process that we go through, usually without realizing it, to get from a fact to a. Ladder of inference a common mental pathway of inc reasing abstraction, often leading to misguided beliefs. The ladder of inference, developed by chris argyris, is a tool for understanding a. These can be correct, but also wrong conclusions and can lead to conflicts with other people. Chris argyris talks about culture and management youtube.
Initially developed by chris argyris and used by pete senge, the ladder of inference attempts to explain how, when faced with a situation, we tend to behave or jump to conclusions. The work of chris argyris 192320 has influenced thinking about the relationship of people and organizations, organizational learning and action research. This entry describes the features of the ladder and how it can be used to help people reflect on their behaviour and the reasoning behind it. The ladder of inference is a mental model first described by organizational psychologist, chris argyris, and later popularized by peter senge in his book, the fifth discipline. The ladder is made up of 7 rungs or stages that outline the rapid process our minds go through to make conclusions and take action in a given situation. A video on how the ladder of inference can be used to understand why we create bad judgements. Under these conditions, if double loop learning occurs, it would be because of.
The ladder of inference was first put forward by organizational psychologist chris argyris and used by peter senge in the fifth discipline. So we have norms embedded within norms that inhibit double loop learning. As this book is out of print, it is available as a free pdf download. Chris argyris is the james bryant conant professor emeritus of education. Double loop learning resources benjamin mitchells blog. For example, as chris argyris cautions people, when a fact. Chris argyris developed the ladder of inference as a tool for doubleloop learninglearning. Achieving this doubleloop learning is more than a matter of motivation. Ive probably leaped up that ladder of inference many times before. The system diagrammed in figure 4 has a doubleloop learning gate as a key part. It involves making inferences about another persons behaviour without checking. Problemsolving as a doubleloop learning system citeseerx.
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