Q. Why did you use words instead of descriptive sentences on the Gregorc Style Delineator?
A. The decision was based upon three key points: (1) my interest in psychological domains/complexes and association theory, (2) the theories of semantic differentials and antinomies, and (3) a means of complementing my phenomenological research on the nature and functions of the mind.
According to semanticists, different concepts and constructs are conveyed by shades of meanings of words. Psychologist Carl Jung found that a single word can elicit whole complexes which have an attraction and repulsion upon an individual. Comparatively, personal research revealed specific words that prompted differentiated responses among people with dominant CS/AS/AR/CR qualities. This lead to the words on the Word Matrix and the accompanying style characteristics.
I chose not to use descriptive sentences because they did not tap into the inherent and consistent perceptual and ordering abilities, nor trigger the common complexes I was looking for. I found such statements to be content and role specific as in the case of learning styles instruments that deal with school related behaviors. If a person didn't have a personal desk, then asking him/her if it was important to keep it neat was irrelevant and provided useless information.
Q. Can people cheat on the Delineator?
A. Yes. A rare few do fake their responses and try to figure out the design. They allow their ego to speak, rather than their Self. By cheating, these people lose valuable Self-knowledge.
Q. Do you have a computerized version of the Gregorc Style Delineator?
A. No. I found that the paper-and-pencil Self-assessment instrument mode yields the caliber of results I demand. The noumena of the computer introduces intervening variables which limit the intimacy that the handwritten form so elegantly provides. The variables also affect the results. No trials have convinced me otherwise.
Q. Are there foreign language versions of the Gregorc Style Delineator?
A. No. Development of such an instrument would require replicating the entire phenomenological study used to develop the present version. Both word options and stylistic characteristics would have to be identified and tested within the specific language population.
This is not merely a matter of translation. In fact, the instrument isn't translatable. Synonyms cannot be used in the present Matrix because each word was specially-derived and similar words do not carry the same power in the choice-making activity. Such is the nature of word-association research.
Q. I would like to have my adult students take the Gregorc Style Delineator, but we do not have any money to buy them. May I have permission to duplicate it?
A. No. I do not permit its reproduction in any form.
I suggest that you ask the students to pay for their own instruments if your school or program does not have the funds. Experience has shown that most people are willing to spend the equivalent to the cost of a burger and fries, or 50% of a movie ticket or a pack of generic cigarettes to gain insight into their minds. If they are not, perhaps they are not yet ready to deal with the ideas inherent in the Model.
Q. What does your term, Mind Field, mean in relation to my Profile?
A. The Mind Field is the area within the four lines you drew to join the CS/AS/AR/CR points of your Profile. This field is your "internal garden." It requires cultivating, fertilizing and weeding so that your "seed" (psyche/soul/Self) can grow, develop and reach fruition. It is your own "field of
dreams." Build and they (good things) will come. And, it is your sacred space whose boundaries must be guarded and protected lest the seed be damaged.
Q. My job requires me to behave like a 35 point CS, although I score only 15 points. Is this what you call overachievement? Is this why I feel strung-out, frustrated and tired most of the time?
A. If a 15 point CS has to stretch to meet a consistent 35 point demand, then yes, that is overachievement. You are struggling to achieve using powers that are far beyond your natural endowments. You are drawing on latent potential which is not to be used. Plus you may be neglecting the use of your endowments thereby underachieving at the same time. This situation can become debilitating if it is chronic.
Stress symptoms often accompany overachievement/underachievement. They can, of course, be also due to many other factors. You may wish to discuss your concerns with both your physician and mental health care providers.
Q. I'm a dominant CS. Can the Delineator help find the best career for me?
A. No. Talents, gifts, vocations (callings) and missions (Life's Goals) are part of your psychological blueprint. The Delineator does not tap these.
