Finding a Reflection Process for You (Part 3/3)

In this three-part series, we will explore models and methods on reflection.

Reflection Process Methods Continued

If you struggle to view an experience objectively, it can help to see events from other perspectives. The Brookfield Model of Reflection, originally designed to help teachers create more effective curricula, offers you a way to reflect on an experience through four distinct lenses. I have adapted these lenses to apply to a broader audience.

1) Autobiographical Lens: Reflect on the experience from the perspective of a past or different version of yourself. For example, how would the teenage version of yourself (or the best version of yourself, etc.) interpret the experience? How might they have responded? How would they have perceived your behavior during the experience?

2) Student’s Lens: Also called the Follower’s Lens, reflect on the experience from the perspective of the people who follow you (i.e., your employee’s perspective). You can select a specific person or multiple people and envision how they might perceive the experience and your role in it. The purpose of this lens is to incorporate the role of power dynamics in the reflective process. We often forget that power dynamics can have a profound impact on how we perceive an experience.

3) Colleague’s Lens: Also called the Peer Lens, explore the event from the perspective of those who are your equals in responsibility, experience, or authority. How might a peer interpret the experience and behavior throughout?

4) Theoretical Lens: Also called the Literature Lens, this approach involves reading an article or book about a subject relevant to the experience, then using the theme as an optic to reflect on the experience. For example, if you are reflecting on an uncomfortable disagreement with a co-worker, you may read an article about emotional intelligence. Afterwards, you can revisit the experience through the lens of self-awareness. Alternatively, if you are reading a work of fiction, you might consider how the protagonist of the book you are reading might perceive the experience. The purpose of this lens to simply get you looking at the experience from a unique point of view that does not involve your perspective or that of others within your social sphere.

If you want to explore how your intuition may influence your behavior during an experience, consider Schön’s Model of Reflection which focuses on the role of tacit (or implicit) knowledge in our behavior. Schön’s framework consists of three components.

1) Knowing in Action: This pertains to our implicit knowledge or intuitive ability to know, perform, or behave in a situation. While tacit knowledge is important, the fact it is tacit means we are not consciously aware of it which can lead us to misinterpret or misjudge an experience. This stage is about identifying and acknowledging how these implicit variables underly our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. In other words, this step in the process is about making implicit knowledge explicit.

2) Reflection on Action: By making the implicit explicit we bring awareness to it. Now, you can begin to reflect on an experience. Put another way, you can explore the experience with a greater attention to detail on how your intuition or instinct influenced your behavior during the experience.  

3) Reflection in Action: This is a unique aspect of Schön’s model involving the real-time reflection of an experience as it unfolds. This requires you recognize you are in a moment as the moment is happening. Bringing awareness to this, you may begin to recognize how your instinctive or intuitional thoughts may lead you to certain behaviors, giving you the opportunity to adjust, if necessary. 

If you want to reflect on an experience that created an intense emotional reaction or triggered you, consider using the SCARF Model. Developed by neuroscientist Dr. David Rock, the SCARF framework is based on the belief that many of our social behaviors stem from primal reactions. In other words, some of our social actions emerge from fight or flight or a desire to avoid threats and seek rewards. The model consists of five domains, any one of which when triggered, could lead a person to perceive the source as a threat and react accordingly.

1) Status: This pertains to our perceived relative importance to others and includes experiences in which our sense of status is challenged.

2) Certainty: This relates to our need for stability and predictability in our lives and includes experiences that creates uncertainty, chaos, or ambiguity.

3) Autonomy: This pertains to our sense of control over our lives and our environment and includes experiences that make us feel a loss of control.

4) Relatedness: This involves our need to belong and includes experiences that make us feel abandoned or alone.

5) Fairness: This pertains to our need to be treated equitably and include experiences that make us feel singled out or treated unfairly.

These five models represent a small sample of the frameworks available to you. What constitutes the right, or the best model of reflection is subjective. Ultimately, it is a matter of personal preference. One model may be appropriate for one experience but not another. One model may be appropriate for personal reflection but may not be suitable for group reflection. For this reason, it is important to familiarize yourself with the different frameworks. You can find a comprehensive list of reflection frameworks in The Infourge Compendium of Models and Theories. 

To talk to an executive coach about this model or similar ideas, reach out here.