novalis comments on The Landmark Forum — a rationalist's first impression - Less Wrong

11 Post author: Nisan 01 June 2011 03:55PM

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Comment author: novalis 31 October 2012 04:04:49PM 1 point [-]

I have a suggestion for you: Since you're running some of these courses yourself, you could make a list of which specific rationality skills you think that the courses, with their present content, improve. For instance, increasing cognitive reflection, reducing framing bias, reducing sunk cost bias, etc. Then you could test it by handing out surveys to half of your students before the course, and to the other half after, and see what kind of results you get.

Comment author: Abd 01 November 2012 04:42:23PM 1 point [-]

Thanks. I'm not running courses. I was in a training to lead Introductions, which are just that, a brief Introduction. A typical Intro might have a handful of guests. There is a survey form handed out, but it's not any kind of test.

The Forum might benefit from such a survey, but it's not generally done. If I worked like crazy, I could be a Forum Leader in a few years, but I'm not going there. Other people can and will do it, and they will do it well.

Landmark is in a process of revisioning itself, and measures of performance as suggested could be useful. However, Landmark isn't about teaching rational skills, as such; rather, it's about opening a clearing which can enable the recognition of "identity" and the realm of "self" that must underlie deep rationality.

An old story: the Sufi had been out talking with barbarians, fierce tribesmen, and brought them into the mosque. However, they were wearing boots, and the imam pulled the Sufi aside and asked him to get his friends to remove their boots.

The Sufi said, "I got them into the mosque, you get them to take their boots off."

Landmark doesn't "teach" the tools of rational process, it opens the door to the space of clarity, in which transformation becomes possible.

You get their boots off.