Cora, Just found this document on my PC.
Martin http://www.aradford.co.uk/ai.htm APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY This section gives some information on: * the background to the development of AI * set of assumptions in working with AI * the 4D cycle of Appreciative Inquiry * examples. Background: In the mid-eighties, Dr. David Cooperrider, Suresh Srivastva and their colleagues at Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA challenged the traditional problem solving approach to change management. They introduced the term Appreciative Inquiry and began to look at organizations as expressions of beauty and spirit. Set of assumptions: Appreciative Inquiry works from a set of assumptions. These are: 1. In every society, organisation or group, something works. 2. What we focus on becomes our reality. 3. Reality is created in the moment, and there are multiple realities. 4. The act of asking questions of an organisation, or group influences the group in some way. 5. People have more confidence to journey to the future (the unknown) when they carry forward parts of the past (the known). 6. If we carry forwward parts of the past, they should be what is best about the past. 7. It is important to value differences. 8. The language we use creates our reality. >From The Thin Book of Appreciative Inquiry by Sue Annis Hammond. While these may seem obvious, we know from our own experience that we can look at what isn't working and start problem solving. Those of us who are facilitators and consultants know how important it is to ask the right questions when we are working with groups of people or individuals. If we focus on difficulties in the past, people become self defeating and feel that life is hopefess. When we ask them about their successes, they become enthusiastic and start to hope again. Appreciative Inquiry '4-D' Cycle Discovery: The Appreciative Inquiry approach to personal or organisational change is to begin by looking for what is working-APPRECIATING the best of our experience. Dream: This is to consider what might be-ENVISIONING RESULTS Design: What should be the ideal?-CO-CONSTRUCTING Destiny: How to empower, learn and adjust or improvise? SUSTAINING The tangible result of the inquiry process is a series of statements that describe where the person or organisation wants to be, based on the high moments of where they have been. Because these statements are grounded in real experience and history, people know how to repeat their success. Examples where Appreciative Inquiry has been used Appreciative inquiry has been used as the way of helping people develop their preferred future in companies, governments, and organizations in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America. It has been combined with large scale interventions such as Open Space Technology and Future Search to great effect in world wide projects such as United Religions (a look at the possibility of having a United Nations type organzation for religions of the world.) In-house people and consultants are using Appreciative Inquiry to address organizational issues such as internal communication and leadership issues, and individual or group effectiveness issues. Examples include: Increasing effectiveness of managers dealing with a new role and wider responsibilities through 1:1 and group coaching. (financial services, and local government sector) Increasing the effectiveness of a department team. (Social Services department) Increasing the level of communication between trustees of varying experience on the board. (Housing association) Ai is also being used in areas like mediation in the voluntary sector, international conflict resolution situations, City-wide activities like Imagine Chicago, and community activities like Imagine Waterloo. The purpose is to reconnect with the life giving forces-what is working-and then go beyond that to what could be. (via Tim Pearson) * * ========================================================== [email protected] ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected], Visit: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
