Dialogue is the interaction between people with different view points, intent on learning from one another. The purpose of this learning is to lay the foundation for creating new solutions. Dialogue differs from discussion which focuses on each person presenting, advocating, or selling their point of view to others. The intent of discussion appears to be winning, or convincing others of your view. Each side tends to dig in deeper and hold more firmly to their view. Simultaneously, each side becomes more and more convinced that the other's position is untenable. Rigidity creeps in, polarization occurs and the distance between the viewpoints increases. Taken to a logical extreme, discussion can escalate to litigation. Dialogue cannot occur when some people believe they have "the word" and that others do not.

Engaging in the technique of dialogue provide the chance to create something new—a new understanding. The focus is on changing oneself through the process of exploring ones own perspective or viewpoint, particularly as the dialogue surfaces differences. In other words, flexibility creeps in, and the distance between the viewpoints decreases as common ground is mutually discovered. New solutions can be built in this common ground, typically with very high degrees of energy and commitment. At the periphery of the common ground, many unresolved differences may lie. But the focus is not on trying to fight your way through these, rather the focus is on the common agenda created by the new learning. As actions are taken in the common areas, it is usual to find that the unresolved conflicts dissolve.

Essential Elements of Dialogue

Learning:

Your intention to learn is the foundation of dialogue. Even a unilateral commitment to learning can entice the other side into learning with you. Bruce Evans, Director of the Mint Museum, once remarked that the best meetings are those where the outcome was completely different from what he expected when the meeting began.

Humility:

You cannot learn if you believe the other person is ignorant and do not perceive your own ignorance. It seems that the more formal education a person has, the more difficult it is to believe that those without an equivalent education can have anything to teach you.

Mutual Respect:

As humility appears it becomes possible to respect the other person. From a practical point of view this means that when you hear the other person say something that is not in agreement with your experience or view, you accept their viewpoint as valid. You don't discount or belittle it. You strive to understand how they could have come to their view. Dialogue is built upon the concept of mutuality. You and I will learn together. When the feeling is I will teach you or I will educate you, mutuality is lost; dialogue disappears. The opportunity for creativity is lost and, with it, the commitment to change.

Critical Thinking:

Critical thinkers view reality as a continually changing process. Naive thinking, on the other hand, sees the realities of the past and expects the present to emerge from the past in a linear, normalized and well behaved manner. The naive thinker wants the future to accommodate to her accustomed past. The critical thinker participates in the transformation of reality on behalf of creating a better future. Dialogue both requires and fosters critical thinking.

Acknowledgment:

These notes are based on Paulo Freire's work, especially his book, The Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Continuum, 1970, 1984. Freire was a university intellectual who wanted to educate illiterate Brazilian peasants so they could participate in democracy. He failed miserably as he tried to teach the peasants what he knew. He finally succeeded when he began to engage the peasants in a dialogue where each shared and each learned from the other.

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