Method guide · Work with a structured grid
Facilitator Feeling Signal Check
Use with co-facilitator or experienced support to separate a facilitator’s internal reaction from observed events and tentative group-related hypotheses.
- People
- 3–30
- Base procedure time
- 15 minutes
- Recording
- Individual record
Purpose: Reflect and learn; Explore through dialogue.
English guide
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How this method works
Organise a bodily sensation or feeling noticed by the facilitator as a clue, not a conclusion. Separate one reaction into what just happened, the facilitator’s own reaction that has occurred before, and a hypothesis about its relationship to the group, then check with a co-facilitator. Choose one option: share briefly in the session, leave it aside for now, or hand over to the co-facilitator. Do not conclude that it is the whole group’s emotion or that an individual participant caused it, and do not make participants process the facilitator’s reaction. The outputs are observed facts, hypotheses and the chosen response. This description independently adapts Rhizome’s Noticing and Using Your Feelings, published by the Commons Library, with changes under CC BY-SA 4.0 and is provided under the same terms. Do not use it for psychological diagnosis or treatment, or for handling safety problems alone.
Phase schedule
Minutes are cumulative from the start of the base plan, not a live timer. Read scaling for any additional time. Phase controls do not advance automatically.
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- Record bodily sensations and feelings without judgement0–3 minutes from the start (3 minutes)
Action: Record. Participation: Facilitator.
Individual record
- Separate the preceding event as observed fact3–6 minutes from the start (3 minutes)
Action: Separate. Participation: Facilitator.
Individual record
- Separate personal reactions from group-related hypotheses6–9 minutes from the start (3 minutes)
Action: Separate. Participation: Facilitator.
Individual record
- Check with a co-facilitator without concluding9–12 minutes from the start (3 minutes)
Action: Check. Participation: Facilitator and co-facilitator.
Individual record
- Choose sharing, holding or handing over12–15 minutes from the start (3 minutes)
Action: Choose. Participation: Facilitator and co-facilitator.
Individual record
Facilitation steps
- For 3 minutes, the facilitator writes one noticed bodily sensation and feeling on the four-field sheet without evaluating it.
- For 3 minutes, separate what just happened as observed facts from the facilitator’s own reactions.
- For 3 minutes, separate known personal reactions and hypotheses about their relationship to the group without drawing conclusions.
- For 3 minutes, show the observed facts and hypotheses to the co-facilitator and check alternative views.
- For 3 minutes, choose sharing, holding or handing over to the co-facilitator without making participants process the reaction.
If something changes
If
The facilitator’s reaction is so strong that safe, stable facilitation cannot be maintained.
Then
Hand over to the co-facilitator and receive off-site reflective support with an experienced professional.
If
The facilitator is about to identify an internal reaction as an individual participant’s emotion or the whole group’s emotion.
Then
Do not share it with participants. Hold it and return only to the event and known personal reactions.
If
Even one participant safety issue, sudden illness or danger occurs at the same time.
Then
Stop the self-check and prioritise safety and the formal emergency or support route.
Preparation
Materials
- One original four-field sheet for the facilitator: event, personal reaction, group-related hypothesis and next action
- One set of share, hold and hand-over-to-co-facilitator cards for the facilitator
- One card for the facilitator showing co-facilitator, off-site reflective support and safety-support routes
- One broad-tip pen for the facilitator
Room and setup
- Separate just one bodily sensation or feeling the facilitator has noticed into the preceding event, a known personal reaction and a hypothesis about its connection to the group.
- Arrange a co-facilitator or a route for off-site reflection with an experienced professional afterwards, and roles that allow temporary handover. Do not make participants process the facilitator’s internal reactions.
- Do not conclude that it is the group’s feeling, or use this for psychological diagnosis, treatment or universal interpretation of bodily reactions. Choose sharing, holding or handing over; safety issues take priority over self-checking.
Adjust for people and time
For 3–30 people, do not divide the participants. The facilitator and co-facilitator organise just one internal signal from one facilitator within 15 minutes. For 31 or more people, do not infer the group’s emotions alone; move to a separate session with a co-facilitator or off-site reflective support with an experienced professional after the session.
Safety and non-applicable situations
Treat internal reactions as clues, not group emotions, individual causes, diagnoses or universal bodily interpretations. Do not make participants process them or handle safety issues alone. Use co-facilitation and experienced reflective support, and stop self-checking immediately when a safety issue requires the formal emergency/support route.
Manuscript's recorded references
These translate the original manuscript's source and rights claims. They remain separate from any current-page notice below; they do not establish new verification.
- Commons Library / Rhizome Facilitation Tools and Techniques: Noticing and Using Your Feelings
https://commonslibrary.org/facilitation-tools-and-techniques/#h-noticing-and-using-your-feelings
CC-BY-SA-4.0 adaptation; changes made
- Conditions applying to CC-BY-SA-4.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Diagram, print, and video language
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