4-Sides Model



Field of application 

Communication

Intercultural Training

Resume / Brief description

This activity is based on the 4-Sides Model by Friedemann Schulz von Thun.

Target group

Students

Lecturers

Entrepreneurs

Colleagues of the same company or work team

Colleagues working in intercultural contexts

Professionals of different area

Group size

There is a minimum number of 1 participant for this exercise. The ideal group size is 12-20 participants.

Objectives

The activity has the objective

To differentiate between the four levels of communication:

Factual,

Self-revealing,

Relationship, and

Appeal.

Requirements

Material

Stopwatch

Signal (whistle, sound signal, etc.)

Time

10-15 minutes for the activity

5 minutes for the debriefing

Implementation - Guidelines

1.

 Preparation

Read the explanation of the model and analysis of different messages

2.

 Process

Present the 4-sides model

Make a first example statement

Analyse the factual level

Analyse the self-revealing level

Analyse the relationship level

Analyse the appeal level

Make a second example statement

Re-analyse all levels

3.

 Debriefing

What does the other person hear from me through all four sides?

Do I hear everything the other person communicates?

Can I draw other conclusions from the other person's message that are more empathetic, accepting and inclusive?

Template

Handout for individual work: Handout_Offline Reflection and Discussion.pdf

Additional format/references

Thiagarajan, S. (2012). More Jolts! 50 Activites to Wake Up And Engage Your Participants, San Francisco: Pfeiffer.

Thiagarajan, S. (2016). Interaktive Trainingsmethoden: Thiagis Aktivitäten für berufliches, interkulturelles und politisches Lernen in Gruppen (3. Auflage.). Schwalbach: Wochenschau Verlag.