4,446 books on Amazon on relational practice, but what does it mean?

Karen Izod, TIHR Professional Partner, joined us recently as part of our lunchtime talk series to present some of her ideas on what 'relational practice' might mean.

With the fashion to call any and every approach to engaging with others ‘relational’ what does relational actually mean? Karen Izod gave us a snapshot of ideas on what relational practice means to her, and how it is embodied in her work as a consultant to organisational change and professional development.

This ‘work in progress’ presentation draws on doctoral research that Karen is presently undertaking based on her publications, consulting and teaching over the past 20 years. It leads her to construct and propose the idea of a ‘relational terrain’, an assemblage of theories, perspectives and practices for understanding, participating and intervening in group life from a relational psychoanalytic perspective.

Transcript

1. 4.446 books on Amazon on relational practice, but what does it
   mean?
   A Food for Thought session with Karen Izod
   Wednesday 6th September 2016
   1.00pm
   This talk is ‘ work in progress’: not all slides have been made available, but can be sent upon
   request to karenizod@virginmedia.com your feedback is also very welcome
   ©Karen Izod 2016
   

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2. Supplementary notes to the audio recording
   Timing / references in the talk:
   •  8:30: ‘Mindfulness’ - For a detailed introducLon to the themes of Mind-ful
   ConsulLng see Susan Rosina WhiRle’s introducLon to Mind-ful ConsulLng (2009)
   Eds, WhiRle, S.R & Izod, K. Karnac Books: London.
   •  14.30: Reference to slide 5 - Miller, E.J. (1997) EffecLng OrganisaLonal Change
   in Large Complex Systems: a collaboraLve consultancy approach in Eds.
   Neumann, J.E., Kellner, K. and Dawson-Shepherd, A. Routledge: London
   •  16.22: ‘People who felt that ins=ncts and drives were not innate’ Erratum:
   Fairbairn did not dispute drive as innate, but he saw it as ‘object-seeking’ as a
   drive for relaLonship, rather than pleasure seeking through the libido. Fairbairn,
   W.R.D. (1952) PsychoanalyLc Stuides of the Personality, Tavistock PublicaLons:
   London/New York
   •  23:40: ‘Work Study group in the 1980s...’ - The work study group at the
   Tavistock Clinic was led by Evelyn Cleavely. John Bowlby had reLred at this Lme,
   and was an occasional contributor to the Advanced Social Work Programme.
   •  Further informa=on on the relaLonal aspects of idenLty, representaLon,
   regulaLon, revelaLon can be found in Resource-ful ConsulLng, Izod, K, &
   WhiRle, S.R (2014) Karnac Books: London
   

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3. Relational Practice what does it mean?
   •  RelaLonal – tending to be used in generalised way to describe
   pracLces that put people or relaLonships first, or are organised
   around relaLonship – mainly the ‘talking’ pracLces, counselling,
   psychotherapy, coaching and supervision - but not exclusively so
   •  The RelaLonal Turn
   •  First mooted 1980’s/90’s though evident much earlier in social
   sciences - espouses commonaliLes of pracLce between different
   professional acLviLes, economics, architecture, social sciences –
   pedagogy, coaching, consulLng
   •  Through
   •  A focus on processes rather than individual behaviours
   •  Post modern/post structural concepts on the nature of the
   individual in relaLon to society
   •  Emphasises aspect of co-crea=on, shared meaning making,
   mul=plici=es of truths and plurali=es of voices
   

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4. What do I mean by ‘relational terrain’
   •  RelaLonal: having the funcLon of relaLng one thing to
   another in a search for meaning – travelling within and
   between systems, together with the act of telling – relaLng,
   communicaLng – is a communicaLon
   •  Terrain is: a morphology – sense of movement and shijing
   ground, an inner landscape with varying organisaLons of
   structure, forms, textures – and a constructed landscape –
   domains of knowledge, aspects of experience – have been
   here before!
   •  Together – an assemblage of theories, perspecLves, and
   pracLces for understanding, parLcipaLng and intervening in
   group and organisaLonal life
   

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5. Relational Terrain located in systems-psychodynamics
   

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6. Components of the Relational Terrain
   Cultural/ecology
   Epochal perspecLves on
   organisaLonal systems, knowledge
   and experience. Meaning derived
   from context: Lme and place
   Rela=onal Group Processes
   emphasis on dual operaLonal and
   relaLonal group tasks together with
   condiLons needed for work
   Social Theories of Development
   emphasis on aRachment theories,
   and processes of recogniLon,
   representaLon and regulaLon of
   emoLons
   Role/s
   implicaLons for taking up roles
   (organisaLonal player/agent of and or
   consultant to change) with emphasis
   on Presence and idenLty,
   differenLaLon and mediaLng inner/
   outer worlds
   Rela=onal Core:
   NegoLaLng and re-
   negoLaLng meaning:
   to explore, make and
   sustain connecLon
   

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7. Relational core:
   •  At the centre of the RelaLonal Terrain is an intenLon: to promote
   condiLons whereby human systems can construct, nego,ate and
   renego,ate meaning:
   •  Requires the capacity to
   •  explore, make and sustain connecLons between phenomena
   emerging in the act of relaLng - which arise in interplay between
   inner and outer worlds
   •  Reliant on capacity to:
   •  Take up a subject to subject relatedness
   •  An awareness of ‘self-in-process’
   •  Work away at emoLons which hold me/us to parLcular posiLons
   (polarising, essenLalising)
   •  These features permeate each of the components of the RelaLonal
   Terrain …..
   

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8. Social
   theories of
   development
   Roles
   Context/socio
   —ecological
   factors
   Core of
   RelaLonal
   Terrain
   RelaLonal
   group
   dynamics
   

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