Thought Experiments
Beginner
Skill Level:
The more silly or impossible sounding the thought experiment is, the more likely it is that participants will discover and relate to their issues in an entirely new light. Thought experiments continue to be a favorite shifting activity for inventors and modern day Albert Einsteins!
The very first phase of SERA requires the development of an experience or psychological stimulus that triggers, jolts, or firmly guides a conscious Shift in one’s orientation to present-moment experience; or more specifically, from conceptualization to simply being. The word sera itself translates in Spanish to mean “it will be,” which resembles a conscious orientation to whatever may show up in our awareness. This orientation, which is known as beginner’s mind, is necessary because human attention has a tendency toward automatic preoccupation with active thinking (Kabat-Zinn, 2003).
Triggering or guiding a conscious Shift in one’s orientation to present-moment experience, from conceptualization to intuition.
Frappier, M., Meynell, L., & Brown, J. R. (Eds.). (2013). Thought experiments in philosophy, science, and the arts (Vol. 11). Routledge.
Kornberger, M., & Mantere, S. (2020). Thought experiments and philosophy in organizational research. Organization Theory, 1(3), 2631787720942524.
Ludwig, K. (2007). The epistemology of thought experiments: First person versus third person approaches. Midwest studies in philosophy, 31, 128-159.
