GROUP DECISION AND SOCIAL CHANGE by Dean Gotcher

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence [desires], and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.

But now ye also put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.

For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

"(W)e recognize the point of view that TRUTH AND KNOWLEDGE ARE ONLY RELATIVE and that there are no hard and fast truths which exist for all times and all places." Taxonomy of Educational Objectives Book I: Cognitive Domain, Benjamin S. Bloom (ed.) Longman, New York, 1956, p. 32.

"In the eyes of the dialectic philosophy, nothing is established for all times, nothing is absolute or sacred." Karl Marx

"They [English & English] further state that ‘THE SUPEREGO . . . IS CONCEIVED IN PSYCHOANALYSIS AS FUNCTIONING SUBSTANTIALLY IN THE SAME WAY AS THE CONSCIENCE.' Superego development is conceived as "…the incorporation of the moral standards of society…' Internalization (incorporating as one's own) is thus a critical element in superego development and in the development of conscience. Therefore the levels of the Taxonomy should describe successive levels of goal setting appropriate to superego development." Taxonomy of Educational Objectives Book 2: Affective Domain, David R. Krathwohl, Benjamin Bloom, Bertram Masia (ed.), Longman, New York, 1964, p. 39.

"The affective domain is, in retrospect, a virtual ‘PANDORA'S BOX.' WE ARE NOT ENTIRELY SURE that opening our ‘box' is necessarily a good thing; we are certain that it is not likely to be a source of peace and harmony. . . ."

"The affective domain contains the FORCES THAT DETERMINE THE NATURE of an individual's life and ultimately the life OF AN ENTIRE PEOPLE." Ibid. p. 91.

"This is not to suggest that education in an open society does not attempt to develop personal and social values. It does indeed. But more that in traditional societies it allows the individual a great amount of freedom in which to achieve a Weltanschauung. [fn. Often this is too challenging a goal for the individual to achieve on his own, and the net effect is either maladjustment or the embracing of a philosophy of life developed by others. Cf. ERICH FROMM, 1941; T.W. ADORNO et al, 1950.]" ibid p. 165-166. (Emphasis added to all preceding quotations) FROMM and ADORNO were Transformational Marxists.

For anyone interested in knowing the reason for all the reform we are now experiencing in, not only education (OBE), but also in the workplace (TQM) and politics (STW), Kurt Lewin's article Group Decision and Social Change (Readings in Social Psychology, 1947, 1952, 1958, a book of readings prepared for the Committee on the Teaching of Social Psychology of the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues) is important reading. His research for this article was done during WWII. It was an experiment to get Iowa housewives to buy food because of the need to belong to a group and no longer just because of custom, submission to a higher authority, or personal likes. This project was supported with federal funds.

Before this project was started Lewin did most of his social engineering research under the Child Welfare Department at the State University of Iowa. It was from here he used Iowa farmers, housewives, and children as guinea pigs for his experimentations on "group dynamics," a way of changing people without their full knowledge.

With the information he collected from these experiments he planned "to integrate cultural anthropology, psychology, and sociology into one social science." With this new social "science" Lewin planned to change the whole world. Outcome-Based Education (OBE), Total Quality Management (TQM), and School to Work (STW) are all built upon Kurt Lewin's social science.

Kurt Lewin was obsessed with inducing and sustaining social change. By evaluating and then manipulating the "intersect" where "group life and individual psychology" met, he could detect an "individual's readiness to change." Then, through "social processes and social management," the individual and the group could be changed together (group dynamics).

Partnership in "changed group conduct," he found, discouraged backsliding into the old way of doing things (the traditional way of doing things). This is the reason for programs with agendas such as "sustainable development" or "continuous improvement."

To control change, the right environment must be developed and sustained by the social-psychologist. To determine what this environment was, social-psychologists worked backwards from the outcome to the environment (syllogism).

By first defining the outcome desired, then identifying the answers which produce that outcome, then developing the questions which produce those answers, and then identifying the environment which produce those questions, social-psychologists were able to develop the "right" environment which would always produce the right questions, which would always produce the right answers for their desired right outcome.

Therefore everyone participating in the facilitated meeting would be forced into the outcome predetermined by the social scientist (facilitator). With this method of analysis, social-psychologists like Kurt Lewin have been able to develop powerful tools with which to control individuals in a group setting.

The ideal environment or channel being used by facilitators today is the very same one Lewin developed in the mid 40's: "a diverse group of people, dialoguing to consensus, over a social issue, in a facilitated meeting." (A DIVERSE GROUP OF PEOPLE, DIALOGUING TO CONSENSUS, OVER A SOCIAL ISSUE, IN A FACILITATED MEETING) His intent was to produce individuals who were more concerned about how the group (society) would respond over their (the individuals) decision rather than how any prior higher authority would respond. This mental conditioning is called "group think."

Lasting change, according to Kurt Lewin, requires two elements of social "steering;" "gatekeepers" and "reality perception." Gatekeepers are people who make decisions which influence others. Control over them is essential if social change is to be instigated and controlled. Reality perception is where the gatekeeper sees their final accountability directed toward, i.e. God, a single person, a small group, the community, a nation, or society in general.

Accountability is aimed toward three sources: external—the gatekeeper is obedient to higher authority, the traditional way of thinking, internal—the gatekeeper is obedient to their own feelings, the transitional way of thinking, or "rational"—the gatekeeper is obedient to participation in group decision, the transformational way of thinking (partnership).

By locating the gatekeepers in a community and then detecting how they understand accountability, the social engineer is able to select the "right" proportion of gatekeepers to participate on task forces. Then, through the use of group dynamics, he is able to realign the allegiance of the traditional and transitional gatekeepers from allegiance toward higher authority or from allegiance toward feelings of compassion for the needy in the community toward allegiance to group participation. The social engineer is thereby able to control the community through this newly created "partnership" environment.

A gatekeeper's decision to change (the gate) depends upon two things, the process being used and the readiness of the gatekeeper to change. According to Lewin, if change is to be permanent, the process used to make a decision must be one which incorporates all the gatekeepers in the group to collectively, emotionally and rationally, agree to the change (consensus).

Change will not be permanent if one gatekeeper makes the decision for the group (autocratic), no matter how rational the decision. The same will be true if the group of gatekeepers simply respond to feelings (laissez-faire), no matter how compassionate the cause. Change must be "rationally" agreed upon by all gatekeepers for there to be any lasting change.

The change desired by social-psychologists (facilitators) is not what the gatekeepers decide to do to solve a social problem; it is HOW they come to their decision. This is the difference between tradition, transition, and transformation.

As the housewife (the gatekeeper) walks up and down the aisles of the grocery store picking items off the shelves, she is determining what will end up on the dinner table. She is making this determination based upon her husband's likes, her children's, and her own likes. Essentials, customs, and preparation time are all considered. A major factor is cost. After dialoguing with all these voices she then purchases the food (the gate). Justification is most likely not needed when the meal is served.

To change her buying habits, Lewin and his fellow social-psychologists, first put her in a lecture with other housewives. The results were not impressive. Most wives did not change.

When she was placed in a group of other wives, and relationship phrases such as "housewives like you" were used, major changes took place. As the wives were encouraged, by facilitators, to dialogue among themselves about the crisis of the war going on at the time (WWII) and each person's individual responsibilities toward a common social cause (winning it) a bonding with the group developed.

The buying of harder to prepare, cheaper, more offensive type foods (the predetermined outcome) eventually came to the forefront. After a lengthy dialogue between the housewives, a possible solution was arrived at, that of buying cheaper, harder to prepare, more offensive foods for the war effort. All were encouraged to participate as a group by the raising of their hands (the gate was opened and closed). All would report their actions the next time the group met.

The next time the housewife went up and down the aisles picking out food, she was now listening to the voice of the group. She was now doing "group think." She will now have to justify the change of eating styles to her family for the sake of the group (society).

The moment she opened and closed the gate at the cash register, buying the group's food, she moved from tradition. She is now in transition moving in the direction of transformation. Only continued participation in the group meetings will finalize the change.

By controlling the channel (the consensus building environment), the facilitator (social-psychologist) is able to control the gate (decision making process), and thereby control the gatekeeper (community leader). Therefore all decisions must be made with a diverse group of people, dialoguing to consensus, over a social issue, in a facilitated meeting. This is how a transformational Marxist, communist society is developed and controlled. We have arrived, and no one fired a shot. Welcome to the 21^st century.

This process is slavery to all who participate. By putting your child (OBE), your spouse (TQM), or your elected officials (STW) in this process you are giving up your God given "unalienable" rights. In the end it is nobody's fault but your own.

Get everyone out of the control of this environment and back to personal accountability before higher authority, with God the highest authority, and we will be on the right track. To get there will depend upon how willing you are to stand for what is right. At this point it may cost you all you have. Those who founded this nation were willing to pay the cost, believing freedom was worth it. The question is: Are you willing?

"If in the opinion of the People, the distribution or modification of the Constitutional powers be in any particular wrong, let it be corrected by an amendment in the way in which the Constitution designates. BUT LET THERE BE NO CHANGE BY USURPATION; FOR THOUGH THIS, IN ONE INSTANCE, MAY BE THE INSTRUMENT OF GOOD, IT IS THE CUSTOMARY WEAPON BY WHICH FREE GOVERNMENTS ARE DESTROYED. Farewell Address by George Washington, Sept. 19, 1796.

"Philosophy of praxis is both A EUPHEMISM FOR MARXISM and an autonomous term used by Gramsci to define what he saw to be a central characteristic of the philosophy of Marxism, the inseparable link it establishes between THEORY AND PRACTICE, THOUGHT AND ACTION." Selections from the PRISON NOTEBOOKS, Antonio Gramsci, International Pub., NY, 1995 (1971) p. xiii.

"In Gramsci's view, it was only through the creation of organisms capable of UNITING the masses and CHANNELING their spontaneity, that the revolution could command majority assent and hence OVERCOME DEFINITIVELY the power of the capitalist State." Ibid. p.l xi (Emphasis added to all preceding quotations.)