Conviction Methods

Approach Duality

The method of using language as plotted on the TET evidently lie along two diagonals: see diagram.

As usual, the two sets of methods defined by the diagonals provide complementary properties and define the approach duality.

It seems that this duality covers the twin essences of communicative interaction: personal conviction and social consensus. Here the focus is on conviction. (See the next topic for consensus.)

Personal Conviction

Approaches lying on the diagonal that goes from bottom left to top right are based in personal convictions of the communicator. In order, they are:

Associative ↔ Logical ↔ Concrete ↔ Gestalt

In the Associative approach, you state a view about what you regard as the case. Usually it is a local observation or it may be something going through your mind. It could be trivial and the other person may disagree. You may change your mind and be inconsistent from day to day or even moment to moment. In practice, the level of conviction may be quite low or issues of belief may be irrelevant. In any case, what is said does not depend on consensus, but on personal assertion. Sometimes that assertion is defended irrationally.

In the Logical approach, you are articulating fundamental principles that are felt to be unarguable or should be assumed axiomatically. It may be that others are willing to agree: and you assume that they should be. But it may be you are noting something not previously noticed. In that case, others may simply ignore or reject what you have to say. That doesn't matter to you. It may make you check your communication just to be sure. If you are sure, you may try harder to explain, or you may not bother.

In the Concrete approach, you are presenting details and sequences of instructions that have been specifically devised to apply in a situation or to an object. You are convinced they are accurate: if you were not, you would alter your instructions or not offer them. You may well ask for your readers or listeners to advise you of any errors or inaccuracies. You are not looking to anyone for agreement, but you would be surprised if it were not forthcoming.

In the Gestalt approach, you are working to communicate a total or holistic sense of a characteristic human experience. This may be a marriage or family life or death or poverty, often within a social nexus like an epidemic, politics, war or criminality. The piece must work as a whole: its parts must contribute to that whole. You must have conviction about what you want to communicate and how you are doing this or the audience will not resonate and the creative piece will not work.

Increasing Precision: Moving Up the Diagonal

The diagonal contains approaches that range from «low control of expression + low efforts to make sense» to «high control of expression + high efforts to make sense». In other words, effort goes into producing communications and this shows up in the degree of precision. Precision typically entails increasing detail and complicated communications.

  • Associative: These personal statements have minimal need to be precise and to an outsider may appear imprecise in the extreme.

  • Formal: It is not so difficult to perceive assumptions, to sense essences, to offer principles and to make generalizations. Perhaps surprisingly, even rather imprecise formulations can be useful. But getting the formulations well-articulated and being sure that all individuals or all instances are covered is difficult, so imprecision is likely.
  • Concrete: The demand for precision becomes greater here because language must mirror physical features and guide movements. Small errors that creep in may not spoil things if easily recognized and ignored or corrected by the user.
  • Gestalt: The demand for precision is now at its maximum because meanings are so subtle and multi-facetted. Every aspect of the communication must serve the overall goal. A small error can spoil the whole effect or create an entirely misleading impression.

Last draft: 27-May-2013. Amended: 4-Sep-2016. Last updated: 10 Feb-2023.