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| Receiving information through observation |
All information gathered is interpreted. It is interpreted by everyone who can perceive it.
The manner in which we receive information is interpreted in a complex series of lenses that filter information by how it affirms or conflicts with our preconceived notions about what life is about. Our background and personal lived experiences interpret what we presently do, say, and think, and how we plan. These lenses are the constructs of our broad social influences. Each person's lens was put in place by his or her culture and society and can include heritage, nationality, region, social status, language, philosophies, religions, creeds, sexual orientation, gender affiliation, and so on.
People from different background see the world differently, think differently, and act differently, even if they all experience the same events simultaneously, like witnessing a car accident or viewing art or a outdoor music concert.
The cumulative effect of these filters and lens moment by moment and what we do with that information and our reactions to events is the interpretation of what information means to us, and it is up to every individual to decide what to do about it.
We are all searching for meaning in our lives. How we interpret our lives affects who we are and what we do, because we are constantly interpreting our world as it unfolds. This happens internally in what we think, say, and do. What happens to us via external forces causes us to interpret each situation and formulate reactions. Further, what we do not do or what does not happen to us is also interpreted.
Reflective insight helps us reinterpret information. Think back to things that happened in the past that happened to you and after some time new information becomes available that was not available before. Can we call these new revelations revisionist? This would include our experiences, thoughts, attitudes in childhood and after years and becoming a parent, when for the first time we see and understand why certain things happened and why our parents reacted and acted as they did then.
Our limited perspective inhibits our interpretation because it is held by a single person. However, engaging in dialog discourses or group discussion helps widen perspective. Hopefully that widening allows for a better interpretation.
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| Capturing information for "internal storage" |
Of course, there is the flip-side. Vastly differing perspectives can inhibit understanding by being so far from reasonable that they detract from understanding, yet differences in perspectives give understanding richness. We must be humble enough to allow someone else to have a good idea that we had not thought of. That is why collaborative teamwork efforts and "synergy" tend to yield powerful results.
Interpretation takes reflection. For example, asking oneself, "How does my interpretation match up to reality?" is a great question to ask when seeking understanding. Can we get more perspectives to confirm the reality of the situation?
It is because of these things that I affirm the ORACLE approach, or the Only Right Answer Comes from Lived Experience, because we are interpreting all the time by living. Further, it's one of the reasons I try to integrate Audience Centered Experiences in my programs, because visitors are already interpreting; they just don't know that they are doing it. We only know what we know because it is the one who is doing the interpreting has an answer. By comparing answers, we can see whether of not our interpretation is correct.
Life experience is interpretation.
