John Nolte responded to a statement made on www.Grouptalkweb.org with the following quote. I think it needs to be brought to everyone's attention to review and refresh. The quote has been divided for easier reading on this blog.
“5) The Sociometric Experiment—The objective of Who Shall Survive? Was to describe a sociometric experiment and not merely to introduce a number of techniques. The first sentence in the book ‘A truly therapeutic procedure cannot have less an objective than the whole of mankind’ indicated my intention. It is disconcerting that this has been so completely misunderstood although in writing the book I have put this idea straight under the nose of the reader. It is stranger yet that this sentence is the most frequently quoted phrase of the book and that still its meaning has rarely been appreciated.
To demonstrate the idea, the book analyzes and enfolds an entire community and tries to turn it from an untherapeutic community into a therapeutic one—within the limits of its setting—by means of various methods. It appears that for many this sentence has been taken at best as a poetic metaphor for an ailing society and gently pushed aside. As a consequence, the immediate meaning of the entire book has been overlooked.
....The principle task of the experiment was to initiate a therapeutic process which involves then entire community, not only the so-called ‘inmates’, but the entire staff, from the superintendent down to every teacher, social worker, minister, clerical worker, farm worker, manual laborer, chauffeur, carpenter, electrician. The old adage ‘Physician heal thyself’ was replaced with a new one, ‘Community, heal thyself’.”
To demonstrate the idea, the book analyzes and enfolds an entire community and tries to turn it from an untherapeutic community into a therapeutic one—within the limits of its setting—by means of various methods. It appears that for many this sentence has been taken at best as a poetic metaphor for an ailing society and gently pushed aside. As a consequence, the immediate meaning of the entire book has been overlooked.
....The principle task of the experiment was to initiate a therapeutic process which involves then entire community, not only the so-called ‘inmates’, but the entire staff, from the superintendent down to every teacher, social worker, minister, clerical worker, farm worker, manual laborer, chauffeur, carpenter, electrician. The old adage ‘Physician heal thyself’ was replaced with a new one, ‘Community, heal thyself’.”
Moreno, J. L. (1956). THE SOCIOMETRIC SCHOOL AND THE
SCIENCE OF MAN. Sociometry A Journal of Inter-personal Relations
and Experimental Design, Vol. XVIII, December, 1955 No. 4 pp 23-24.
SCIENCE OF MAN. Sociometry A Journal of Inter-personal Relations
and Experimental Design, Vol. XVIII, December, 1955 No. 4 pp 23-24.
My trainer, Carl Hollander, stressed that the goal of sociometry was to find the criterion/criteria to bring people together. The purpose was to create an environment so that all could express their spontaneity and creativity.
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