Exploring the World of NLP

by Allan J. Hirshey

A retired financial analyst, Allan has been living in Israel for eight years. Writing social science articles, learning part-time in a yeshiva, voluntary tutoring and counseling, and playing tennis take up most of his time. 

You’ve probably heard the term “NLP” at academic venues and social events. But do you really know what it is? If not, then this brief summary will provide a general framework and enhance your NLP vocabulary.

NLP began in the early 1970’s at the University of California, at Santa Cruz. The co-creators were Richard Bandler, a gestalt psychologist, and John Grinder, a professor of linguistics. Bandler wanted to find out what made certain psychotherapists more effective than their peers.  He then teamed up with Grinder to discover the “magic” of three eminent psychotherapists - Fritz Perls (father of Gestalt Therapy), Virginia Satir (mother of Family Therapy), and Milton Erickson (father of Clinical Hypnotherapy).  Grinder and Bandler modeled the language skills demonstrated by these therapists.  As a result, they created several models of excellence and a new form of psychotherapy, called Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP).

Understanding NLP is made easier by focusing on its three terms or systems. Neuro refers to the mind or brain, how we think, and to our five senses. Linguistic refers to language, how we use it and the way it affects us. Programming relates to our emotions and behavior, resulting from the interaction of the mind and language. All three of these systems “glued” together can be likened to a human communication model - inputting, processing, and outputting information brought in from the outside world (reality) or “territory”. 

The mind makes “sense’ of the world by creating representations of pictures, sounds, and words and generating feelings, tastes, and smells.  What we see, hear, touch, taste, and smell in the world is inputted into the brain as a “sense experience”. The latter is then filtered by our meta programs (habitual ways of thinking), memories, value, beliefs, decisions, and culture and backgrounds.

The filters affect the “sense” experience by deleting (selectively omitting), distorting (selectively weighting), and generalizing (making decisions based on one experience) it. Afterwards, the “‘sense” experience is then shaped into an internalized experience, representation, map, or model of one’s world. The map is then combined with a physiology (heartbeat, breathing level, etc.) to form an emotional state (angry, depressed, terrified, confidant, etc.). The emotional state triggers and determines one’s behavior at any given moment.  

Importantly, our maps determine how we perceive the world of reality, how we express (language) and feelings to others, and what behaviors (ways of interacting within ourselves and with others) we see available to us.  Imbalances between our personalized maps and the real world can result in emotional pain and destructive behavior patterns. The goal of NLP is to bring our unhealthy maps closer to reality, by re-mapping them.

We communicate our map feelings and perceptions with others through a two-level language representation system (deep and surface structure).  This dictum was copied from Noam Chomsky’s Transformational Grammar discipline. Chomsky posited that the deep structure represents the core semantic relation of a sentence which is mapped into a surface structure  (spoken words).  Flow-wise, the map’s language is unconsciously transformed into words from the deep structure into a surface structure.

So what does all this information tell us about NLP?  Here are some major points.

 (a) Our maps are seldom reality. Instead, they represent our internalized perceptions of the world or reality - how we feel things ought to be, rather than how they really are. We don’t experience the world, since we are always deleting, generalizing, and distorting its information.

(b) Since language is not real in the same way the experience is real, it (language) is only an abstraction of the experience. As Albert Korzybski (famous linguist who founded General Semantic discipline) posited - “the map (language) is not the territory (outside world). 

(c) The mind and the body are part of the same cybernetic loop. A change in one will affect a change in the other - there is no separate mind and no separate body. If one’s body is tense then his/her state of mind will also be tense.

(d) Two people witnessing the same experience at the same exact time can present incongruent mental states and behavior patterns. For example, identical twins wake up one morning and see a snake crawling down their open bedroom window. One twin might remain “cool, calm & collective”, phoning the local animal control center. But the other might go “totally ballistics”, screaming and throwing every object in sight at the reptile.

(e) Similar to actual road maps, if our maps are too restrictive, the more difficult it will be to find our “destinations”.  Limited choices of behaviors (ways of interacting within ourselves and with others) can lead to serious mental problems. Therefore, the people presenting the greatest number and flexibility of behaviors navigate through life more smoothly.

A few NLP “tools” designed to re-map unhealthy maps are now briefly described.

Meta Model - the therapist uses an explicit set of language patterns and questions to aggressively challenge the client’s miscommunication patterns (deletions, distortions & generalizations). Therapist: “How’s your social life?” Client: “It sucks!”  Therapist:  “Why does your social life suck?” Client: “Because, I’m a loser.” Therapist: “Who says you’re a loser?” Client: “Everybody!” Therapist:  “Everybody you meet socially calls you a loser?”  “Is that really true?” Extricating the client’s deep-rooted anxieties reconnects the deletions, distortions, and generalizations to his/her original “sense” experience. Therefore, the client’s restrictive map is expanded, resulting in a more objective surface structure.

Milton Model - the therapist puts the client in a trance state via hypnotherapy.  This is done to disconnect the surface structure, making it easier for the therapist to penetrate and probe the client’s deep structure for problems and solutions. The therapist communicates with the client by using vague and expanded language patterns.  This strategy makes it easier and more comfortable for the client to find and choose words expressing his/her true feelings. In NLP lingo, making meaning of someone else’s words, by referring them to your own feelings and experiences, is called a transdrivational search.

Reframing - an approach used when the client feels disempowered, angry, and in despair.  Assuming this was caused by a sudden job loss, the therapist attempts to put a positive “spin” on the situation. This is done by focusing on the situation’s positive sides. Here, the positive sides might include finding a better job opportunity, being able to spend more time with immediate family, and having time to learn new skills in demand that pay higher salaries. Reframing advantages are minimizing fear and panic and creating empowerment feelings.

Today, NLP is a world-wide industry. No longer restricted to psychotherapy, NLP has taken off into other directions - management, business, sales, education, sports, parenting, and law.  Coming into play here is the idea that modeling analyses can also be applied to other areas, not just psychotherapy.     

Is NLP controversial?  It certainly is!  Certain NLP opponents (linguists, psychiatrists, and psychologists) claim that it can’t address learning disorders, depression, phobias, and psychosomatic illnesses.  For example, some critics claim that NLP’s “anchoring” technique (a take-off on Pavlov’s conditioned response theory - remember “Psych 101?”) doesn’t hold up.  Worse yet, some academics claim that NLP’s title, concepts, and practices can’t be validly tested.

In summary, the NLP “industry” needs to tighten up the accreditation of its practitioners and the literature they produce. Furthermore, the “industry” needs to refute the pseudo-science accusations made against it, by demonstrating that its foundations, concepts, and practices are valid.  Establishing a recognized central authority would be a start in the right direction.  

Well, that’s my internalized representation of NLP.  You’re entitled to yours!

"Coaching" - A Different Connotation and Application Today

By Allan J. Hirshey

Allan J. Hirshey (LLB, MS) is a former U.S.Government financial analyst, and business lecturer (adjunct faculty) at a Maryland community college. Training Medicare reimbursement specialists was a major part of his career.  After making aliyah, he earned a professional counseling diploma, and studied English teaching/tutoring theory.  He writes scholarly articles on the social sciences.  Additionally, he provides voluntary English tutoring to yeshiva students, adults (through AACI) and also to disadvantaged students at a local Jerusalem community center. “Express Tutoring” is the name of his business, specializing in business English, business math, resume preparation,  job interview coaching, personal financial problems, and life counseling using Reality Therapy techniques.   

Historically, coaching has always been associated with the sports world.  Today, however, coaching has taken on a new meaning.  No longer restricted to sports, coaches are privately being hired for a variety of personal reasons.  There are dating coaches, divorce coaches, writing coaches, voice coaches, lawyer coaches, executive coaches, and the list goes on.

How does private coaching differ from athletic coaching? In private coaching, the client sets the agenda & is considered “king.”  Furthermore, the client/coach relationship takes the form of an “alliance” or partnership to meet the client’s needs.  In this “alliance”, the partners interact on a “level playing field” - an authoritative relationship doesn’t exist. Ideally, the coach guides, supports, and empowers the client to recognize and then solve his/her problem(s) - poor motivation, low self-esteem, unsatisfactory job performance, etc.  In other words, the coach doesn’t provide answers or solve the client’s problem(s).  How does this work?  

Basically, the coach uses skillful powerful, creative, and opening questioning techniques, to stimulate the client’s thought processes and to break away from his/her problem “mindsets.”  If these questioning techniques are used effectively, the client recognizes the problem(s), and then sets up appropriate personal goals, satisfactorily achieving them within realistic set time frames.   

There are also other differences.  Whereas athletic coaching is done face-to-face, private coaching is also done over the phone, including long distance and by email.  Athletic coaches are normally paid straight salaries. However, private coaches often negotiate their own fees.  In that regard, top-class business and/or executive coaches often negotiate their own remunerations, based on fixed percentages of their clients’ future profit margins.  Consequently, compared to other private coaching areas, corporate coaching is the most lucrative, financially.

How does private coaching differ from psychotherapy, mentoring, counseling, consulting, & tutoring?  Unlike professional therapists, teachers, & counselors, private coaches are not government regulated - they don’t require licenses to practice their profession.  Moreover, private coaches don’t delve into clients’ past lives trying to uncover reasons for present problems.  Some other notable differences, broken down by related disciplines, are as follows:   

Psychotherapy - therapists normally work with poorly motivated and low self-esteem clients.  In contrast, private coaches, especially, at the corporate level, work with high driving, functioning clients, who strive for more excellence. 

Mentoring - mentors are normally older, wiser, with expertise in one area.  Basically, mentors bestow their knowledge to their clients.  Therefore, the client is not solving his/her problem(s).

Counseling - similar to a therapist/client relationship, there is no “alliance.”   Instead, the counseling relationship is more hierarchical.  The counselor is “boss”, and normally solves the client’s problem(s).

Consulting - consultants are hired for their fields of expertise to solve their clients’ specific problems.  So in this relationship there is no “level playing field”, and the consultant, not the client, solves the client’s problem(s).

Tutoring – again, there is no “level playing field” - the tutor is “boss.”  The client depends on the tutor to solve his/her problem(s).    

What are some of the key qualifications needed for successful private coaching?  A background in behavior modification psychology (including NLP) is one important tool.  To specialize in business and/or executive coaching, an aspiring coach also needs to know the following:  the fundamentals of business management; how corporate organizations develop and function; and the principles of risk and crisis/conflict management.  Moreover, having an MBA degree, supplemented by management experience in such areas as marketing, corporation finance, human resources, and/or telecommunications, provide a further “competitive edge.”  

Assuming an aspiring private coach’s CV lists the above qualifications, his/her glass is only half full.  Just as crucial is his/her mastery over certain key interpersonal skills. In that regard, recent studies have identified five critical interpersonal skills needed for successful private coaching. The first is the ability to develop client rapport.  Without client rapport, a partnership or “alliance” can’t be crafted.  Here, having a condescending nature is an important asset. Second, a coach needs to have deep listening abilities at multiple levels.  Hearing what the client is not saying is just as important as hearing what the client is saying.  Third, a coach needs powerful, creative, and opening questioning skills to effectively guide the client to solve his/her own problem(s).  Coming into play here is the coach’s ability to adroitly manage the conversation, and not the client.  Fourth, a coach needs to know how to implement open and objective feedback skills to maintain an effective coach/client “alliance.”  Praising the client as much as possible strengthens implementation of the feedback process.  And fifth, a keen sense of intuition is needed to ensure that the client is staying on track and exerting the maximum effort required to achieve his/her goal(s).  Here, a coach must be careful to trust his/her intuition, but not to overly rely on it.

What’s today’s job market picture look like for private coaches?  Unfortunately, it’s pretty bleak!  Although the supply side is growing at an exponential rate, the demand remains stagnant.  Some of the major factors causing this supply/demand imbalance are as follows: little, if any, governmental regulation (no coaching license requirements); a proliferation of  coaching courses and seminars, mostly short-term in length and without realistic enrollment requirements; high global unemployment rates; and the related scarcity of jobs for recent college graduates.  

In conclusion, an aspiring private coach needs three critical tools to be effective: (a) expertise in a specific field/occupation; (b) a working knowledge of the fundamentals of behavioral modification psychology; and (c) the innate personal skills to empower people to recognize and then to solve their own problems. If anyone of these skills is deficient or lacking, particularly, (b) or (c), pursuing a private coaching career isn’t realistic.  Perhaps a consulting, mentoring, or a counseling career would make a better choice.      

They sell books in supermarkets, don't they?

by David Lloyd

David Lloyd

This blog entry was borrowed, with permission, from David Lloyd's blog - Why I May Still Be Canadian.

Originally from Canada, David has been living most of his adult life in Israel. David has been teaching EFL and working with computers in education for the past 30 years. He founded ETNI in 1996.

David's first novel - As I Died Laughing - has been published as an e-book.

 

A well known Israeli writer is selling his new book exclusively through an Israeli supermarket chain. There, nestled between the carrots and tomatoes, you can pick up his book and add it to your cart of groceries. How is he doing so far? He has already sold over 50,000 copies of his book - which is quite good in such a small country as Israel.  Why did he choose to sell his new book only in this one supermarket chain? He apparently read the writing on the wall. More and more bookstores are closing. Those which are still open have entered into a price war, and as a result - books are marked down by more than 70% and it is impossible for an author to make any real money from his writing. Is his decision then a protest, or is he simply giving in to the inevitable?

We live in an age where e-books are becoming more and more popular, and many people fear that they will replace the hardcover book altogether. Will only online bookstores survive and the library shelves now be filled with e-readers? And if there still is such a thing as the hardcover - will this be nestled somewhere in the supermarket? Attention shoppers. There is a special sale of fresh books in aisle 5. And what about the author? Will he be sitting in the dairy section signing books? Maybe they will leave it up to each author to decide where in the supermarket he wants to set up his table. For some, the pastry and desserts section would serve quite well. Others may prefer coffee and tea. And others may resign themselves to the vegetables. Will your place in the supermarket define you?

Or does it really matter? Surely the idea is the essence, and how it is housed is of secondary importance. Once upon a time, such things were literally written in stone. A rather tedious and slow operation. And then ink was invented and each book was painstakingly written out by hand. And if you wanted a copy of the book, that too had to be written out by hand. And then along came the printing press. There must have been a lot of opposition to that. Mass producing ideas through automation. How could anything good come out of automation? But, like most things, it didn’t take long for us to forget what came before and we soon began romanticizing the notion of the mass produced book. Or maybe the romanticizing only came when the book appeared to be in danger of extinction. Think of it - we are not even left with something we can hold in our hands! How crass. Well, actually you can hold a kindle in your hands, but what about the smell of leather and the rustling of the pages. (When was the last time we actually held a leather book in our hands - or anything with a hardcover?)

And then some people - those real fanatics - ask why we even need books. Why not let ideas  play out through film. Much more visual and so much  more can be included. Imagination? People want to be entertained, without exerting too much effort on their own part. The demands of imagination is maybe why fewer and fewer people read books these days - even before the first e-book or supermarket haven.

It is quite a mess, actually. At times I ask myself why I couldn’t have published my novel twenty years ago when the rules were much clearer. But then, maybe it is better this way. I actually wrote and published an e-book before reading one. Is there any real irony in this? Would I consider selling my book in a supermarket? But then, how could an e-book be sold in a supermarket? Maybe the back of cereal box could be transformed into an ink based e-reader screen. Different brands offering different books. This isn’t such a revolutionary idea. It wasn’t long ago that you got a free video cassette of a movie together with your six pack of beer. I mean - what do we want as a writer? To reach the widest and largest number of readers possible - no? I see some of you shaking your heads.

I have actually begun to write a screenplay for my book. Not so much because I want to quickly reach a wider audience, but rather because I realized that Gwyneth Paltrow will soon be too old to play the main female part (she was quite young when I first started writing the book). But I digress.

One day, probably not in the too distant future, young people will remark - upon hearing about bookstores - “What a quaint idea. A whole store just for selling books. But how could anyone make a living just out of selling books?”

Or by writing them.

Inviting Outside Speakers to Writing Courses

by Gilda Haber, PhD

Gilda Haber, PhD

Professor of Sociology, University of Maryland, College Park. Professor of English and ESOL at Montgomery College. Teaches sociology, social psychology, criminology, assists PhD foreign students with English composition and writing. Research includes human spatial position and behavior to profile individual attitudes to the group. Writes and publishes scholarly articles, creative non-fiction, fiction and memoir. Writing awards from Ferguson, Scorched Earth, and other contests. gildahaber.com

Students in English 101, an introductory English course at MC, are required to write at least four essays: a Narrative, Compare and Contrast, Cause and Effect and a Research Essay.  My students besides taking a full load also work. EN101 is a required course; students do not necessarily come inspired to learn English writing and rhetoric especially in a Friday late afternoon, 160 minute class. Consequently students, many of whom are not native speakers, need a variety of teaching strategies to keep them engaged.

The strategies I have used often included ten minutes of free-writing, critical readings, awareness of outside audience attitudes, peer group review of essays, reporting possible improvements on peer writing (names removed) revisions, and voluntary verbal and board presentation of work to the class. We also view film documentaries relevant to the goals of the class, critique bias in films, and I have invited several outside speakers.

My purpose in inviting speakers was to provide the class with eye-witnesses accounts of major world events or with experts to increase exposure to a wide range of topics, to hone skills in listening, encourage feedback, ask questions, critique, observe bias, encourage independent thinking, develop research and writing skills besides formatting techniques used to thank our speakers. (One student wrote me a thank you letter for an enjoyable semester.)  These skills were all required both in written form and or in class discussion. After all speakers were heard, questions asked and answered, I asked students to free-write their reaction to speakers, engage in class discussion and practice critiquing skills. Over the semester, in-class and assigned writing at home with revisions achieved a marked improvement in student writing.  Speakers added another strategy to student writing. How were speakers selected?

I did not randomly select speakers, but selected them on the basis of four criteria. First, the speaker before the Narrative Essay had to have been an eye-witness to a major event that would be a good basis for a narrative.  Second, the speaker needed to frame his or her talk toward requirements of the upcoming essay. Each speaker was given the same written outline given students as a guide. Speakers always came to class prepared to follow the outline given them. Speakers thus provided a training ground for students’ essays of their own choice.  Third, speakers had to have experience in public speaking and fourth, speakers were asked to bring documents and graphics and or statistical or research material related to their talk. This last request was used to acquaint students with documentation and research methods.

For the Narrative Essay, I invited Ness Godin, honorary MC Degree recipient. Ms. Godin is a Holocaust survivor, whose eye-witness experience fitted in well with requirements for the Narrative Essay. Also, since Holocaust survivors are mostly in their eighties, it is important to hear their eye-witness testimony before they disappear.  Ms. Godin is an internationally acclaimed survivor who speaks world-wide for the Holocaust Museum and who has been invited to speak at the United Nations.  She vividly narrated her Holocaust experience: character, tension with change from normal to Nazi concentration camp day-to-day survival, a death march, and the encouragement of other women survivors. Her final message: “Do not stand by apathetically when any group of people is targeted for genocide. Help victims.”  Students in free-write wrote that they were “touched” “impressed” “horrified” “amazed,” “honored” and “privileged” to hear her speak.  They had heard and read about the Holocaust in high school but had never seen nor heard a live Holocaust speaker: a “totally different experience.”  “I will from now on aid others I see attacked like those in Darfur, as Ms. Godin asked us to do.” Ms. Godin also showed photographs of herself as a child, and of her murdered family, photos acquired from distant relatives long after the war.  Students went up to Ms. Godin after her talk, and hugged her. After this inspiring speaker students wrote feedback on Ms. Godin’s speech and then they began drafting their own Narrative essay.  Students learned a new social and writing skill as they were required to write thank-you letters to each speaker.  Many had never heard of a thank-you letter!  Speakers loved receiving these student letters.

Our second essay was Compare and Contrast. Since we had studied and heard a renowned speaker on the Holocaust, I showed a documentary on Hiroshima, and we compared and contrasted the Holocaust with Hiroshima. I was able to find a speaker on Nagasaki, Ms. Alice Stephens, who is writing a historical novel, and who has lived in and taught English in Nagasaki. Since we had compared and contrasted the Holocaust with Hiroshima, Ms. Stephens further broadened our horizons by addressing the class on the cause and effect of bombing Nagasaki. Her research included surprising information on prejudice against Nagasaki victims or their descendants.  Residents fear that the offspring or grandchildren of such victims might be born with physical disabilities due to their forebears’ exposure to radiation. Here, we looked back on our comparison of the Holocaust with the bombings of Japan. Population- and long-term-wise, the global Jewish population has decreased, while that of Nagasaki has increased and become normal. The physical and emotional effects of the Holocaust have affected second generation, i.e. the children of Holocaust survivors. No findings were presented on the emotional effect, if any, of second generation Nagasaki victims.

These topics and their presenters, according to student written feedback, have deeply enriched student experience in thinking and writing essays. The ethical implications surrounding each of the topics prepare EN101 students for the next class EN102: Argument.

           

For a more concrete and modern researched topic in preparation for the Cause and Effect essay, I chose a speaker skilled and experienced in medicine. Here, there is much research and statistical information.  I asked Dr. John Melmed to speak to the class on the cause and effect of any illness or condition of his choice. I gave Dr. Melmed the outline of our Cause and Effect essay and asked him to also provide the class with handouts that included graphics and statistics.  Dr. Melmed chose to speak on and provided handouts including statistics on the causes and effects of osteoporosis and of teenage abortion. These two topics engaged the students in current conditions that also concern them personally. It appears that osteoporosis can begin at a very young age, and most teenagers or young students like ours are aware of the risks of pregnancy and abortion.  They were less aware of the dangers of birth control pills that Dr. Melmed documented with figures and charts. The class enjoyed Dr. Melmed’s talk, asked him many questions and also wrote him a thank-you letter.

Research methods were introduced with the Compare and Contrast Essay so that students learned early to include MLA documentation, statistics, graphics and a bibliography. 

Having several speakers during a semester greatly widens student exposure to independent thinking. Writing about their experience with each speaker immediately after hearing the speaker hones student thinking and critique writing skills. Revision of all submitted written work improves basic writing skills.  Using all of these strategies for a practice essay prior to the student’s own essay provides students with the opportunity to practice a dry- run before writing their own drafted and final essays.

Writing a final essay causes many students stress. A warm-up with a speaker, a written critique and class discussion helps students tackle each new essay with less tension, more insight, enthusiasm and expertise.  These varied strategies also provide material for students’ Reflective Essay at the end of the semester.

In listening to other speakers, students also felt encouraged to present the class with their own drafts and final essays, and to engage class response to their essays. These experiences will stand them in good stead in their future working and social lives.

Social Psychology and ELT – The HALO Effect

by Nick Michelioudakis

(This article was originally published in the TESOL Greek Newsletter.)

Nick Michelioudakis (B. Econ., Dip. RSA, MSc [TEFL]) is an Academic Consultant with EDEXCEL.  He has worked in the field of ELT for many years as a teacher, examiner and trainer. He has written more than 50 articles and regularly gives talks to both private and state school teachers.  He likes to think of himself as a ‘front-line teacher’ and is particularly interested in one-to-one teaching and student motivation. He also has a keen interest in Social and Evolutionary Psychology.  When he is not struggling with students, he likes to spend his time in a swimming pool or playing chess.  For any questions, comments or feedback, you can contact him at nickmi@ath.forthnet.gr. To see more of his published articles you can visit his site at http://www.michelioudakis.org/

How important is one’s handwriting?  Hardly at all you might say, especially today when most people use a computer.  Yet research shows otherwise.  In a revealing experiment, a number of exam scripts were copied twice – once in good handwriting and once in bad handwriting.  They were then passed on to two groups of examiners who were told to mark them and were specifically instructed to mark for content.  Amazingly, the neatly-written scripts got significantly higher marks than the others (Sutherland 1992).  Why did such a thing happen?  The answer is that very often when we have to assess someone (or something) and this person has a salient, positive feature, the latter colours our judgment, so we tend to make all kind of positive attributions about this person, judgments which are at best only marginally related to the quality which stands out.  This is called the ‘Halo Effect’.

An experiment: One would expect the scientific world to be less susceptible to such an effect.  Not so.  In 1982, two psychologists decided to try out an interesting experiment.  They selected 12 well-known journals of psychology and to each one they sent an article to be considered for publication.  These articles are routinely checked by two authorities on the particular field as well as the editor.  The results: in 8 out of the 12 cases the articles were deemed unworthy of publication.  Out of 16 ‘evaluators’ and 8 editors who (presumably) read them, not a single one had a different view.  Well, one might say, not all articles submitted are up to par.  This is true, only in this case these particular articles had been published by the very same journals, under the same title only a few months previously!!  The only thing the two psychologists had changed were the names of the authors (eminent university professors) to imaginary ones and their affiliations (originally such prestigious universities as Harvard or Princenton) to non-existent (and by definition obscure) ones!  Well, you might think, at least 4 of the articles were thought to be good.  Not quite.  In 3 out of the 4 cases someone simply realised that they had published this material before… (Sutherland 1992)

Why did such a thing happen?  The answer is probably that journals like the above are probably inundated by submissions from academics on the make who are anxious to add yet another entry to their CV.  It is equally likely that many of these articles are run-of-the-mill, with little to recommend them.  This being so, it makes sense for the ‘evaluators’ to resort to ‘shortcuts’ (Cialdini 2001) – rather than scrutinize each script, they look at the name of the writer first.  If s/he is a famous professor from an Ivy-League University, then the article is more likely to be worthy of publication.  But if we start thinking like this, then an amazing change happens: as Sutherland (1992) points out, when faced with a piece of work by an established writer, we tend to look for its positive aspects, while if the writer’s name rings no bells then we start looking for flaws!

Still not convinced?  Here is another example.  In the mid-70s, someone sent a book to no less than 27 different publishers and literary agents.  No marks for guessing what happened.  All 27 rejected it.  Yet this book (‘Steps’ by Kosinsky) had actually been published in 1969 and had won the American National Book Award!  All that had been changed was the title and the name of the writer.  What is more remarkable is that one of the publishers who rejected the ‘new book’ was ‘Random House’ – the ones who had published the original one!! (ibid.)

Lest you should think that this phenomenon is restricted to the world of books and publishing, here are some more examples to show you just how widespread it is:  Good-looking people are universally thought to be friendlier, more intelligent and more humorous, tall people are thought to have all kind of leadership qualities, they are clearly favoured in job interviews and make more money than people like me who are slightly challenged in the vertical dimension, and, of course, men of a high social status are judged as more attractive by women…(Brehm, Kassin & Fein 2002).

Applications in the field of teaching:  If we can create for ourselves this ‘aura’ of the competent/charismatic/special teacher, then we are halfway towards winning the battle for the ‘hearts and minds’ of our students.  Here are some ideas:

Friendliness:  When I ask my students to describe the best teacher they know, they almost invariably mention someone possessing this quality.  When I try to probe deeper to see what it is about their method that is so special, my students are often stumped.  It is because attitude is such a salient feature that it colours the students’ perception of the teacher both as an individual and as a professional (for research on this very theme, see Alberson, Frey & Gregg 2004, p. 8)

First impressions:  Teachers often ‘save’ their best techniques for later – a big mistake in my view.  By using your favourite materials/techniques early on, you create a positive impression in the students’ minds which will pre-dispose them favourably towards all your subsequent lessons.  The tendency of first impressions to ‘stick’ has been demonstrated again and again (Fine 2005)

Professionalism:  Little details like being prepared, giving an outline of your lesson in advance, revising what you did the previous time, showing students that there is a continuity in your sessions – all these create an impression of ‘professionalism’ and they are more observable than, say, a profound activity sequence (Lewis & Hill 1992). The point is that once you have acquired a reputation as a ‘true professional’, this reputation precedes you and everything you do will then be seen in this light!

Success:  Unfortunately perhaps, teachers too are judged by results.  This is particularly true in the case of 1-1 lessons.  Consequently, there is a lot to be said for ‘blowing your own trumpet’.  This will create an expectation of success which boosts the students’ confidence and acts like a self-fulfilling prophecy (Dornyei 2001).

Titles:  As I have said in other articles and as the above experiment clearly demonstrates, titles like ‘MSc’, ‘PhD’ etc. never fail to impress people about your competence – so if you have them, flaunt them!  (On how effective this ‘aura’ can be, see also Goldstein, Martin & Cialdini 2007).  Similarly, if you happen to work for a prestigious institution, then mention it to your students.  I remember how people’s faces used to light up when I told them I was an Oral Examiner for the British Council!

Looks:  At the cost of repeating myself, the importance of being good-looking can hardly be exaggerated.  Not only does this quality affect the ‘marks’ one gets in virtually all other fields, but there is evidence that this positive pre-disposition of others actually elicits all kind of positive behaviours from them (Aronson 1999).  The moral is clear: it pays to work on your appearance!

What about ELT?  So, what about our field?  Are there any elements which can create a ‘Halo Effect’?  Yes, there are - two of them: a) Your passport and b) your accent.  Let me explain.  I believe that if would-be employers receive 2 identical CVs, one from a native speaker and another from a Greek teacher, there are many cases when only the former will be short-listed.  I believe that if two Greek EFL teachers go through an interview and one of them has a native-like accent while the other one does not, then the former is far more likely to be hired, even if the latter has better qualifications/more experience.  And I am certain that (ceteris paribus) native speakers are on average better paid when it comes to private lessons.  Now, I do not have any hard evidence for all this, but I am prepared to bet good money that all 3 hypotheses are true.  Anyone for research?

References

1.  Abelson, R., Frey, K. & Gregg, A. “Experiments With People” Lawrence Erlbaum Associates 2004

2.  Aronson, E. “The Social Animal”  Worth – Freeman, 1999

3.  Brehm, S., Kassin, S. & Fein S. “Social Psychology” Houghton Mifflin, 2002

4.  Cialdini, R. “Influence – Science and Practice”, Allyn & Bacon 2001

5.  Dornyei, Z. “Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom” CUP, 2001

6.  Fine, C. “A Mind of its Own”  Icon Books 2005

7. Goldstein, N., Martin, S. & Cialdini, R. “Yes! 50 secrets from the science of persuasion” Profile Books 2007

8.  Lewis, M. & Hill, J. “Practical Techniques for Language Teaching”  LTP 1992

9.  Sutherland, S. “Irrationality” Constable and Company, 1992