Part 2 (Quite Long 😐 )
Following on from Part 1, this provides a little more detail on the levels
The Logical levels detail
Figure 1 Logical Levels
Environment
When considering human behaviour, it is important to note that it will always occur within an environment. The environment will affect behaviour and of course behaviour will affect the environment. Examples are people behave differently when locked up in a penal institution and also, if you consider the World-wide organisation Greenpeace, it is constantly telling us our behaviour as a species is having major effects on the environment.
Thus there is a link between where we are and what we do. We can consider also that working within, for instance, a large corporation, puts us in an environment where certain behaviours are expected, allowed etc. You may also consider that technology / tools / infrastructure are part of the environment.
Behaviour
So knowing there is a strong two-way link between environment and behaviour then we can look to see if the environment is appropriate and conducive to the behaviour desired.
It must also be very clear at this level, what specific behaviour(s) is/are being addressed, they need to be described.
The next level to consider is given when we ask the question does this person, or group of people know how to behave in the desired way?
Capability / Competency
Now we are at the level of competency, again there is a two-way linkage What we know how to do will affect our behaviour and the feedback we get from behaving in specific ways will increase or maybe decrease our competency levels.
A good example is when we learn to drive. When faced with having to behave as a driver does for the first time, we recognise that our competency is low and we need a lot of assistance to learn the desired behaviours, until they become locked in as unconscious competency.
So when observing behaviour and noticing it is not what is desired, we need to ask, does the person or group of people, really have the knowledge, skill, capability to behave in the desired way? In fact are they able to utilise the environment (technology – tools – infrastructure)
We now need to consider what the person or group of people believe in order to understand the reasons behind exhibiting specific behaviours or just as commonly not exhibiting those behaviours
Beliefs
As we get down into the level of beliefs then we are getting close to the essence of the person and it is interesting to note that if you wish to discuss beliefs with a person or group constructively (and this is one of my beliefs 🙂 ) then you need a high level of rapport and the language tonality is probably gentle.
As people grow, they form beliefs about all sorts of things including what are good and bad things to do at work. These may be influenced by colleagues, previous Managers, Fathers, Mothers, schoolteachers, people in public life, personal experience, all sorts of things. What’s important to consider here is, beliefs will affect whether we want to learn new ways, whether what is being proposed makes sense (we check the new proposal against our beliefs of, for instance, good and bad, if it makes sense then the behaviour will possibly follow). Switching beliefs is sometimes called generating Buy-in and is extremely important if we want to change behaviour. Another check we will do at this level is ‘How important is it that I do this’? If I believe its important then I’ll do it…” My boss and her boss in a room all day telling me about it, makes it important in my judgment”
To summarise, if I believe something then I will look for evidence to support that belief (and find it by the way 🙂 )..and behave in ways that support the belief. So fundamental to new behaviours is beliefs that back them up.
Note:- New beliefs may need to be switched to, from old long held beliefs. Nice easy thing to do? Eh, maybe it will take some focused attention 🙂
Identity
The identity level or level of I, is where we ask the question What does this mean to me, or about me, how does this make me feel? It is I who hold this set of beliefs and have these competencies / skills and behave in these specific ways in particular environments.
This is where the power game and EGO live and it has a powerful effect on what people will and will not do in terms of behaviour. Thus if we are asking a Leader to behave in a specific new way and he/she thinks that makes me feel like I’m not trusted… then they may say they’ll do it but the observed behaviour will be they don’t really…maybe we get lip service..
We must pay a lot of attention to this level for change to be a success
Spiritual / beyond identity / life purpose
The final deepest level is the spiritual level.
Let me share an experience I had, as an example.
In the early 1990s in Solihull town square, I saw a group of people singing and playing guitars, they seemed to be very happy and smiling. It is pouring rain but they don’t seem to mind. Other people (including me 🙂 ), singly and in small groups are rushing by, looking for shelter, not paying the first group any attention. This first group, it turns out are committed religious people and if you like, are different to the others at this deep fundamental spiritual level. In other words, they have a purpose, who they think they are is different, the beliefs they hold are different, about good and bad things to do, what will work, what won’t work, what will happen in the future etc. etc…Also what they’ve become good at is different and of course, as I observed, the behaviour is certainly different from the norm in a rainy town square.
I would also point to the purpose in Mother Theresa or Ghandi, both seeing God in poverty and distress.
Let me end with another picture of the Dilts’Logical Levels
Thinking about your behaviour, in some specific contexts:-
- Think of a behaviour you perhaps don’t do so well?
- Which level might hold the key? 🙂
- Where a behaviour is expected of you and you don’t really do it, what are your beliefs about it?
- What would it mean about you if you really did do it?
- Where your behaviour could be perceived as negative, what is ‘driving’ that?
- Just notice the behaviour of others, (at work or with family / friends) what might be at the root of those behaviours ? Perhaps seek their intent behind behaving this way. 🙂