Berry’s Praise
5/81
I am talking to Berry Thompson (a boyhood friend who went on to become an orthopedic surgeon) at his house. He is very friendly. We are talking about the pain treatment program. He is very complementary. We are sitting in his living room.
associations
At the time I was running a pain treatment program in Little Rock focusing on lifestyle change. I had contracts with Workman’s Comp, contracts with consultants, and housed my people at an inpatient psych hospital. Berry is an orthopedic surgeon that I went through public school with. I viewed him as a local boy who made good.
predicted preferences
Most Accepting Character: Berry
Least Accepting Character: Dream Self
Most Preferred Character: Pain Treatment Program
Most Rejected Character: None
Most Preferred Action: talking
Most Rejected Action: none
Most Preferred Feeling: friendly, complementary
Most Rejected Feeling: none
Sociomatrix commentary
Dream Self I’m very pleased
Berry Ditto
House Ditto
Pain Treatment Program Ditto
Comment: The pain treatment program seems more like a character than an action, although it is borderline.
Dream commentary
If you could change this dream in any way that you wanted, as long as it respected the rights of all fellow dream group members, how would you change it?
Berry: There is nothing about this dream any of us would change.
House: Right
Pain Treatment Program Right
Dream Self Right
Waking commentary
If you were this dreamer and were dealing with his waking issues – money, relationships, fears, career choices, physical health, spiritual development – would you do anything differently? If so, what?
Berry: Keep up the good work.
House: Right. You’re going in the right direction.
Pain Treatment Program: Ditto.
Dream Self This support sure does feel good. It gives me added confidence.
Actual Preferences
Most Accepting Character: Dream Self
Least Accepting Character: House
Most Preferred Character: All
Most Rejected Character: none
Most Preferred Action: taking, sitting
Most Rejected Action: none
Most Preferred Feeling: friendly, complementary
Most Rejected Feeling: none
6 of 8
sociogram commentary
A synergistic little sociogram of an archetypal sort. This sociogram indicates that dream group members are not always wanting more and are never content. When constructive choices are made and a psychic balance is attained, they are uniformly positive. This is not a strong synergistic pattern; there are mostly “likes” and no “loves” here, but it is balanced, consistent, and solid. On the acceptance axis, the proximity of Dream Self and Berry implies that I am praising myself and that inner forces see this is appropriate. I am identified consciously with the role of constructive healer, both as an attitude and process (Pain Treatment program).
On the form axis we find mutual respect and appreciation. It is a constructive meeting of equals, all supportive of one another. This is the type of team one would want to have around them to tackle any life problem.
On the process axis, openness of communication is applauded and supported.
On the affect axis, praise and friendliness are preferred emotions. We are left to wonder how important these feelings are to the formation of synergistic dream groups and how much more synergistic groups would be if these feelings were routinely present. The hypothesis here is that those dream groups containing these emotions are more highly synergistic; those individuals who produce groups with more of these emotions produce more synergistic dream groups.