The most beautiful way of learning was invented back in the distant 5th century BC. e. philosopher Socrates. He believed that in order for a person to say a clever thing, he must be led to this conclusion with special leading questions. Over the past millennia, the Socratic method has not lost its relevance at all.
Method definition and features
Socratic dialogue is usually called a situation when the truth is born in the process of communication between two subjects, neither of which is sure in advance which answers are correct. But at the same time, both of them are ready to give various arguments and facts and ask certain questions in order to eventually come to the right conclusions.
This is the reason why some scholars liked to call Socrates the first psychoanalyst. After all, psychoanalysts also do not seek to explain to patients what is right and what is not. They only push a person to discover things that are important to him. In the process of conducting a conversation, Socrates asked questions in a certainorder, so that the interlocutor's answers form a coherent story, where one fact follows logically from another. At the same time, the interlocutor independently puts into words those ideas that were previously unknown to him, but to which he came in the process of Socratic dialogue with the help of reasoning.
Purpose of technique
What was the main thing in the learning process for Socrates himself? He believed that the main thing is to approach the right decision through inductive dialogic reasoning. At the same time, it is necessary to doubt everything. As you know, Socrates said:
I know I don't know anything, but they don't even know that…
The main goal of the Socratic dialogue is not to tell, but to make your listener guess, to make an important discovery for himself. The truth that is born in the process of conversation, in fact, already determines the conversation itself. In a hidden way, the deductive concept precedes the inductive one.
Obstetrician of wise sayings
The main way of Socratic dialogue is usually called maieutics. The philosopher himself defined it as the subtle art of "obstetrics". The mother of Socrates, named Fenareta, was a midwife. And the philosopher often said that his work is similar to this craft. Only if a midwife helps women give birth to a child, then Socrates helps men give birth to smart ideas (in those days, ladies-philosophers were very rare).
This is what the philosopher writes about in his dialogue Theaetetus regarding his method,along the way, developing the idea that “he who is not able to do it himself teaches other people” (in the performance of Socrates, this idea is unlikely to be offensive to teachers - after all, the philosopher emphasizes that the ability to teach is also an important skill):
In my midwifery, almost everything is the same as theirs - the only difference, perhaps, is that I receive from husbands, and not from wives, and I take birth of the soul, not the flesh. But the great thing about our art is that we can inquire in various ways whether the thought of a young man gives birth to a false ghost or a true and full-fledged fruit. In addition, the same thing happens with me as with midwives: I myself am already infertile in wisdom, and for which many have reproached me - I ask everything from others, but I myself never give any answers, because I myself am no I don't know wisdom, it's true. And the reason is this: God forces me to accept, but forbids me to give birth.
Socratic Methods
Usually Socrates used two methods in his dialogues. The first one is irony. It consisted in showing the interlocutor how ignorant he was. The philosopher deliberately led the opponent to completely absurd conclusions, allowed him to follow false ideas in reasoning. It was originally supposed that a person, when he sees that he has driven himself into a trap, realizes his mistakes, and this will make him smile.
The second technique - "guise" - implies the emergence of the interlocutor's interest in his own thinking. One of the most important philosophical aphorisms, “Know thyself,” is devoted to this issue. This phrase was written on the wallancient temple of Apollo at Delphi. Socrates considered these words very important, because all his skill as a philosopher was aimed at a specific goal: to help people solve theoretical difficulties with the power of their minds.
It should also be noted that, from the point of view of the logical construction of the dialogue, Socrates used the method of induction. In other words, his reasoning proceeds from the particular to the general. This or that concept was defined in the process of Socratic dialogue through a series of questions clarifying its boundaries.
Three yeses in the Socratic method
This method has only recently become known as the principle of three yeses. But it has reached our time without changing its basic idea. In the process of building a Socratic dialogue with an interlocutor, it is important to follow the main rules and formulate questions so that the other person answers “yes” without a doubt. Using this method, you can prevent aggressive disputes in which people pursue the goal of asserting the last word for themselves, and not proving their case with the help of obvious facts. In the process of verbal skirmish, two types of communication arise - dialogue and monologue. As for the monologue, this is a simple, but completely ineffective option. And dialogue is a more perfect tool that allows you to convince the interlocutor of something. When using this method, friendly notes appear in the voice, and a person is led to a certain idea without any pressure.
Example
Let's consider an example of a Socratic dialogue.
- Socrates, any lieis evil!
- Tell me, does it happen that a child is sick, but does not want to take bitter medicine?
- Yes, definitely.
-Does his parents trick him into taking this medicine as food or drink?
- Of course it happens.
- That is, such a deception will help save a child's life?
- Yes, maybe.
- And no one will be harmed by this lie?
- Of course not.
- In this case, would such deception be considered evil?
- No.
- So can any lie be considered absolute evil?
- It turns out that not everyone.
How to learn the Socratic dialogue method?
To do this, you must adhere to the following rules.
- Pre-think your speech logically, carefully analyze it. In order for the opponent to understand and then accept the idea, it is necessary to understand it very well yourself. And for this you need to put all your thoughts on a piece of paper. Then the main theses and the logical argumentation for them are singled out. Only in this way can you fully understand the topic, clearly and clearly convey it to your interlocutor.
- Then the theses written on paper should be reformulated into questions. These understandable leading questions can lead the interlocutor to the desired conclusion.
- To captivate your interlocutor. There is a type of people who are not even inclined to enter into a dialogue, let alone listen to their opponent. Therefore, the beginning of the conversation should be thought out especially carefully.
- Try to be proactive - don't wait for the other person to start talking.
The main advantages of the method
The main advantages of the Socratic dialogue technology are as follows:
- A person comes to the conclusion himself, without any pressure or external coercion. And this means that he will not challenge it either.
- If there is no pressure on the interlocutor, then there will be no opposition from him.
- The interlocutor involved in the conversation will listen more carefully to the statements than in the case of a simple monologue.
Where is the technique used now?
This method can be applied in various areas of human activity, in the process of analyzing all kinds of problems and searching for their original causes. Questions allow you to explore the cause and effect relationships that underlie a particular problem.
Today, Socratic dialogue is often used in sales. It is one of the techniques for manipulating the mind of a potential buyer, who is asked skillfully planned questions in advance. The purpose of such questions is to arouse in the client the intention to buy a thing.
A positive target for the application of the Socratic technique may be the area of education and psychological counseling. In this case, a person comes to an understanding of certain truths that were previously inaccessible to him, but with the realization of which his life becomes brighter, more versatile.
Socratic Method in Psychology
Conversationis one of the main psychotherapeutic tools, while it is widely used in counseling and Socratic dialogue. The therapist carefully prepares questions for the client to teach him new behaviors. The objectives of the questions are as follows:
- Clarify existing difficulties.
- Help the patient discover their wrong mental attitudes.
- Explore the significance of certain events for the patient.
- Assess the consequences of maintaining negative thoughts.
With the help of the Socratic dialogue technique, the therapist slowly leads his client to a certain conclusion, which he has already planned in advance. This process is based on the application of logical arguments, which is the essence of this technique. During a conversation with a client, the therapist asks questions so that the patient answers only positively. In doing so, he is approaching the adoption of a certain judgment, which was initially completely unacceptable to him.
Socratic dialogue: an example in counseling
Consider a dialogue between a psychotherapist and a client. The patient is 28 years old, he works as a programmer in one of the large companies. He got a job in it recently, but during the entire time he has been working, thoughts of dismissal have not left him. Although he likes his work, conflicts with colleagues do not stop. He brought one of the employees to tears, trying to belittle her mental abilities regarding the use of a computer. Consider this client's conversation with a therapist as an example of a Socratic dialogue inpsychotherapy.
Therapist: Do you try to prove to other employees that you are right in order to make your work more effective?
Patient: Yes.
T.: Do other employees say that initially they were used to working in a completely different way?
P.: Exactly.
T.: This situation is similar to the saying that they don’t go to a foreign monastery with their charter
P.: Something like this.
T.: I remember how I had to come from the capital to visit my relatives outside the city, and that striking difference in customs, communication between residents of a large city and a village. And this despite the fact that the town is only 120 km from the metropolis.
P.: What can I say, as a child I was sent to a town 10 km from the capital, where people opened the door to the entrance only with a kick. At that time, we didn’t like the inhabitants of big cities… Wait, so what is it, for my colleagues I look like a city dweller who came to visit the provinces?
The use of this method is useful both for psychologists and educators, and for people who are far from these areas. Using the method of Socratic dialogue, you can bring the interlocutor to a certain conclusion, persuade him to accept his point of view.
