PERCEPTUAL PROCESSES


Dawna Markova (1991). The Art of the Possible: 

                                        A Compassionate Approach to 

                                       Understanding the Way People Think,         

                                       Learn, and Communicate.


Markova (PhD in Psychology) is well known for her therapeutic work with clients. In this book she offers a compassionate approach to understanding how we (and others) process reality. Nearly every page has a quote in the side margin, there is information, stories, and practices, with some references to research. At the time of my reading in 2025, the book is 34 years old but still feels applicable (the science references to brain research could be updated)...nonetheless, her claims and advice ring true for me for the most part.

There are 3 ways we process information, visual (V), auditory (A), and kinesthetic (K) in 3 different modes, primary (front, first preference, action oriented, beta brain waves), secondary (middle, 2nd preference, organizing, sorting, alpha brain waves), and less conscious (back, deeper 3rd mode, un/sub-conscious processing, place of creative impulses, delta brain waves).

These 6 processes and modes represent 6 typical patterns: 

KVA, KAV, VAK, VKA, AVK, and AKV.

To discover your (and others) processing mode, consider your first preference for acting on the world, do you: 

(1) write, make charts/lists, need behaviors modeled for you before you act (visual)

(2) talk, listen, need explanations before you act (auditory)

(3) prefer to act, engage, figure things out as you go, need to experience (kinesthetic)


For a practice, when engaging in problem-solving, try all 3 modes of processing: 

doodle it (kinesthetic)

gibberish it (auditory)

story it (visual)

          which works best for you?

 


 


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