Pattern
Languages as
Media for
Creative
Dialogue:
Functional
Analysis of
DialogueWorkshops236

Iba, Takashi
Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University, Endo 5322, Fujisawa Kanagawa, Japaniba@sfc.keio.ac.jp

This paper presents the Dialogue Workshop as an application for using pattern languages as media for creative dialogue. The workshop provides participants anopportunity to reflect on their experiences, talk about
them with others, and visualize the future using pattern languages. This paper elucidates the functions of
the Dialogue Workshop. The manifest functions of the
Dialogue Workshop are [M1] Good Opportunity for
Dialogue with Others, [M2] Building Images of Actions
from Stories, and [M3] Rediscovering Self. The latentfunctions of the Dialogue Workshops are [L1] Discovering the Pleasure of Dialogue, [L2] Becoming Encouraged toward the Future, and [L3] Discovering Meaning.
These functions are confirmed by feedback from workshop participants.
Pattern Language; Dialogue, Workshop, Learning;
Functional Analysis

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1. Introduction
The idea of using pattern languages to describe design knowledge was proposed by Christopher Alexander (Alexander et al., 1977; Alexander, 1979). His intent in creating patternlanguages was to help people become involved in the design process for their towns andbuildings (Alexander et al., 1985). At the stage (in about 1985) that I call “Pattern Language
1.0” (Iba, 2011a, 2012, 2014), architects used pattern languages to share design knowledge
with laypersons. Ten years later, Alexander’s concept of the pattern language was adopted
into the software design field (Beck and Cunningham, 1987). In this new stage, which I call“Pattern Language 2.0,” the pattern language began to be used differently. Although it described design knowledge for software development, its main purpose became filling thetechnical gap between expert and less experienced designers.
Thereafter, pattern languages expanded into creative human actions such as education (Pedagogical Patterns Editorial Board, 2012), organizational change (Manns and Rising, 2005),
collaboration (Iba and Iba Laboratory, 2014a), learning (Iba and Iba Laboratory, 2014b), andpresentation (Iba and Iba Laboratory, 2014c). At this stage, which I call “Pattern Language
3.0,” the use of pattern languages turned toward the sharing of stories of experience. In stages 1.0 and 2.0, people learned from the description of a pattern itself. In stage 3.0, patterns
helped users to illuminate less noticeable parts of their experience, which helped them toreconsider the experience, talk about it, and share it with others. In this way, people become familiar with others’ diverse experiences, and can learn much more than the content of
the patterns themselves. In addition, based on the patterns, there is room for one to thinkcreatively about one’s own ways. Thus, stated simply, pattern languages act as media forcreative dialogue on experience.
In this study, I introduce the Dialogue Workshop as an application of pattern languages as
media for creative dialogue. This study conducts a functional analysis of the workshop andconfirms the analysis with feedback from the workshop participants.

2. Dialogue Workshop with a Pattern Language
The easiest implementation of pattern languages as media for creative dialogues is organizing a Dialogue Workshop (Iba, 2011b, 2011c; Iba et al., 2012). The workshop provides
participants an opportunity to reflect on their experiences, talk about them with others, andvisualize the future using pattern languages. In this workshop, first, participants are asked torecall their experiences in terms of the provided pattern language. They are asked to choo-238

Pattern Languages as Media for Creative Dialogue: Functional Analysis of Dialogue Workshops

se five patterns they wish to master in the near future. Then, participants are free to mingle
and to find and talk with other participants. When they find someone who has experienced
a pattern they want to master, they listen to the other participant’s story.
So far I have held over 70 workshops, both in Japan, in United States, and at international
conferences, for various groups including college students, teachers, business people, designers, and engineers, using the Learning Patterns, the Collaboration Patterns, and the
Presentation Patterns. Since 2011, Dialogue Workshops with Learning Patterns (Iba and Iba
Laboratory, 2014b; Figure 1, and see also Appendix) have been held for all freshmen — 900
students annually — at the Faculties of Policy Management and Environment and Information Studies at Keio University (Figure 2). The same workshops have also been organized at
U.S.- an university and international conferences (Figures 3 and 4).

Figure 1: Overview of the Learning Patterns

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Figure 2: Dialogue Workshop with Learning Patterns (Keio University, Japan, 2013)

Figure 3: Dialogue Workshop with Learning Patterns (University of North Carolina at Asheville,
USA, 2014)

Figure 4: Dialogue Workshop with Learning Patterns (International Conference on Collaborative
Innovation Networks, Switzerland, 2012)240

Pattern Languages as Media for Creative Dialogue: Functional Analysis of Dialogue Workshops

3. Analysis of the Participants’ Feedback of
Dialogue Workshop
Based on my intent, the manifest functions, i.e., the intended results, of the Dialogue Workshop are as follows: [M1] Good Opportunity for Dialogue with Others, [M2] Building Imagesof Actions from Stories, and [M3] Rediscovering Self. The latent functions, i.e., the unintended results, are as follows: [L1] Discovering the Pleasure of Dialogue, [L2] Becoming
Encouraged toward the Future, and [L3] Discovering Meaning. A functional overview of Dialogue Workshops is shown in Figure 5. In what follows, I provide feedback on each function
from workshop participants.

Figure 5: Overview of the functions of the Dialogue Workshop
The following are the examples of feedback from participants of the Dialogue Workshop
with Learning Patterns at Keio University in April 2014. In total, 912 freshmen participated.
The author translated the comments and added emphasis by underlining them.
[M1] Good Opportunity for Dialogue with Others. In the workshop, participants are instructed to talk only to people they do not know. This rule provides them with a sense of theextraordinary. Of the many survey comments received, many workshop participants said
that they were able to talk to people they had never talked to before. About 20% of participants wrote comments similar to the followings.

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PURPLSOC: The Workshop 2014»» This workshop was a good opportunity for me to meet and talk to many new people.
»» The talks in the workshop were a precious experience for seeing the different values thatpeople have.
»» It was a surprise to find out so many people around me had ideas that I never thoughtof before. Talking to people who would listen closely to my stories and answer my questions generously made the workshop very inspiring.
»» At first, I felt uneasy talking to new people, but once the workshop started, it was a lotof fun.
»» Honestly, I am very shy and usually don’t speak to anyone I don’t know. However, once
I started to talk with my peers, it was interesting to find out about their thoughts andvalues that that were clearly different from mine.
»» At first, I felt resistance in speaking with people I didn’t know. However, once the workshop started, I realized how much fun it is to learn about different viewpoints that people
have and also to talk to these people with pure interest. This workshop, which provided
me a good experience of talking to people without any hesitation, was truly fun.
[M2] Building Images of Actions from Stories. Another type of comment participants
commonly provided involved how they gained ideas about specific actions they could take.
»» By having other people explain with their stories the patterns that I want to adopt, therather abstract image of the patterns became more concrete and started to seem feasible.
»» Although I felt I understood the patterns in my head, it was a good experience hearing
actual stories from other people, since doing so added reality to the information.
»» By hearing stories of other peoples’ experiences, I was able to get a clear image of theprocess of how the patterns I want to take on can be actually be pursued. Before that,
I just had a vague goal of using the patterns, but the stories provided me ideas and achance to think about what types of specific actions I could take or how I could engage
with my study topics.
With a limited number of patterns, the participants tended to think that only similar stories
would emerge. In contrast, however, numerous different kinds of stories arose from thesame pattern. In addition, the participants discovered that the same pattern could havevarious applications, since the workshop asked participants to collect as many stories as242

Pattern Languages as Media for Creative Dialogue: Functional Analysis of Dialogue Workshops

possible about their five chosen patterns.
»» I was thinking about the amount of experience everyone has. The stories from my peers
made me realize how much more there still is for me to experience and learn.
»» I was surprised at how much diversity there is in what people have experienced in theirlives, just in Japan.
»» The workshop made me realize one simple fact: all human beings live different lives.
»» I found out through the workshop that people could have different types of stories eventhough they are based on the same pattern.
»» We all had different styles of learning, which we each found to fit us best.
»» When I was reading through the Learning Patterns in preparation for the workshop, I
was imagining how I would put the patterns to use. I participated in the workshop thinking that other people would have experienced the patterns similarly, but in reality, thestories I heard were all different, which made the workshop an interesting experience.
Not only did the workshop participants listen to the stories, they were able to share andsolve problems they faced.
»» We usually don’t get a chance to talk about how we face learning and what types ofthoughts or experiences we have with it. Therefore, listening to stories of my peers in thisclass provided me new perspectives.
»» By listening to people sharing their stories, I was able to discover interesting learning
styles from my peers.
»» Talking to my peers, I found many who have similar learning styles, goals, and plans tomyself. I also found out that they face the same problems and worries as I do. Talking tothem about these topics, I felt my worries that I had since I started attending this school
being washed away.
»» The workshop was a good chance to talk to others about worries we were keeping toourselves. Interestingly, since the conversations are not one-way but more about sharing
our thoughts, everyone was accepting of each other.
»» Through the workshop, I was able to find a solution to a problem I had been worrying
about since I started college.

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[M3] Rediscovering Self. Interestingly, in addition to learning new things from other people’s stories, some people commented that they discovered new aspects of themselves.
»» This workshop was a good opportunity for me to organize the experiences I have hadup until now. I was able to figure out things that I still need to work on and things that I
want to start working on.
»» I thought I had only a typical “have-experienced” list of patterns, but at the workshop,
more people asked me about the pattern “Firm Determination” than I expected. This
made me realize how each one of us is full of unique experiences. This also made me
realize how valuable my past actions are, and it helped them become a source of confidence for me.
»» Through today’s workshop, I was able to realize the originality of my experiences and thefact that they could become a “weapon.” I have experienced the pattern “Be Extreme”
multiple times before, and it was something I could enjoy without any special effort. But
the workshop became a chance to look back at these experiences since “Be Extreme”
was the most frequent pattern I was asked about.
In some cases during the dialogues, participants gained better understanding of a patternthat led them to discover that they did have experience with a pattern that they thought
they didn’t have experience with. Dialogues using patterns led to a better understanding of
the patterns and therefore to a better understanding of the self.
»» At first, the pattern didn’t seem fitting for me, but after hearing stories about it, there
were cases where I realized that I had a similar experience as the story had described.
»» I thought that hearing stories about the patterns we don’t have experience with would
provide us a better understanding of the pattern. This is because when I was listening tosomeone’s story, I thought that if that is what this pattern means, then I have a similar
experience. I was probably thinking of each pattern in too complicated a manner, but
at a smaller and more local level, I had already achieved that pattern. This provided me
confidence for further challenges in the future.
»» My biggest finding was the fact that even though I might think I haven’t done something
before, I still have experience with it.
Such findings by workshop participants were due to using the patterns to talk about themselves.
»» By talking to other people about my experiences with the patterns, I found new aspects

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Pattern Languages as Media for Creative Dialogue: Functional Analysis of Dialogue Workshopsof myself that I didn’t know before.
»» The experience of talking to other people about my experience itself became an experience of being a “Talking Thinker” from the Learning Patterns. Since I don’t usually getto speak about such experiences in an organized manner, by talking about them in theworkshop, I found that I got a better understanding of myself.
»» New ideas kept coming into my head even while I was talking to someone else. This helped me organize my thoughts.
[L1] Discovering the Pleasure of Dialogue. Of the participants, 20% commented that theworkshop was “fun” or “interesting.” This is significant since the workshop’s theme was learning — something students do not usually consider fun or interesting. In addition, over 10%of the participants said they were shy and did not like talking to people they did not know.
Soon, however, they experienced it as being fun.
»» Speaking to someone new about a story of my experience was something I have neverdone before and was fun.
»» Listening to a story of someone I have never met, and then telling them a story of myown was a fresh new experience for me. I found out how much fun it is to communicate
with others.
»» The workshop was simply fun. At the beginning, I felt shy and couldn’t keep from hiding
behind my friend, but once I came near the pond [where the workshop was held] andstarted the workshop, I found out it was fun listening to other people’s stories and speaking of my own. I felt I found a new part of myself through the workshop.
»» First of all, the workshop was very fun!! I am usually very shy, and therefore was afraid
when I heard I would have to talk to people I didn’t know in the workshop. But this fear
disappeared within the first five minutes. Everyone was full of ideas I would never havethought of, and I thought I saw a whole new part of the world I didn’t know before. I felt
I was able to break out of my shell, and I understood what it means to “learn throughdialogue.”
Why were these shy people able to talk and enjoy the workshop? One answer might be thatthe workshop’s atmosphere and rules made it comfortable for people to talk.
»» Although it is usually tough to start talking to someone I don’t know, the workshop’s providing a common goal among the participants made it easy to start talking.

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PURPLSOC: The Workshop 2014»» When I try to start talking to someone, I usually hesitate for fear of annoying them or ofthem having no interest in what I have to say. However, in the atmosphere created bythis workshop, everyone had a legitimate reason to have interest in anyone else there.
Therefore, even I, who usually hesitate to talk to other people, was able to become enthusiastic about talking, so much so that I found the end of the workshop a little disappointing.
»» Since I am very shy, I was nervous about this workshop. However, I was surprisingly able
to speak naturally to the other participants. I think this was due to the preparation we did
where we wrote down specific episodes with the patterns beforehand. With the written
down note in hand, I didn’t have to get nervous every time I had to tell my story. This rule
was only a small preparation, but its effect was huge. The achievement of being able tospeak to other people without getting nervous raised my confidence.
»» “Rule No. 1: You must speak only with people you don’t know.” The moment I saw thesewords, I started to get scared. I am very shy and don’t like talking to people I don’t know.
However, since this is a class assignment, I had to stand up and start talking. I probably
never had spoken to so many people I don’t know in one day. Once the workshop began,
the warm and fun atmosphere helped me to start speaking to different people.
Furthermore, interestingly, some participants said they made new friends through theworkshop.
»» I actually made several new friends.
»» Although only a few, I made some new friends in the workshop.
»» Surprisingly, I met a peer who wanted to study something close to what I wanted to do incollege, and we were able to trade email addresses too.
[L2] Becoming Encouraged toward the Future. The dialogue workshop using patternlanguage brought out more than just the sharing of stories between participants. The participants became stimulated by their peers and increased their motivation.
»» I was simply astonished by the people who had abilities in things I can’t do, and at thesame time, I hoped others would think the same about me.
»» There are many people around me who have experienced many different things. They
also have different ways of thinking. These are not visible in their plain looks, and wemust listen to their stories to truly understand them. I was impressed by them, andthey became a good stimulus for me. I sometimes even envied them. “I want to exceed

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beyond them,” I thought; “I want to become able to compete equally with these greatpeers.”»» From listening to the stories of my peers, I was surprised to find something I can respectin each one of them. I found out there is no need to underestimate my possibilities, norshould I be afraid of and avoid making any mistakes. I should step forward confidently
and accept my mistakes gracefully.
How did the participants change through the workshop? The survey shows that they gained
a wider viewpoint on others and their “worlds.”»» I met people who had a whole different view of the world, and they became a great inspiration for me.
»» I realized what a small part of the world I was looking at. By listening to other people’s
experience with the Learning Patterns, I could see what type of background they have.
This becomes a good source of inspiration for thinking about how I want to be in thenear future. I thought it would be good if we could continue this workshop periodically towiden and deepen our thoughts and views even more through synergy.
»» I realized through today’s workshop that the world I have experienced until today is onlya small part of the larger whole. I also realized how much I don’t know. Although I don’tknow very much, I was able to see the different possibilities that await me, and how much
I could grow through the experiences that yet are to come.
[L3] Discovering Meaning. What did participants learn from the workshop? Were the patterns really able to help participants in their learning? In the survey, a few participants commented on how they changed their perspectives on learning itself.
»» We all have different lives, and everything from big events in our lives—happy or sad—tosmall and local events in our daily lives shape our experiences. This was my finding through this workshop.
»» I found out through the workshop that I am already practicing the Learning Patterns on
a very small and daily level. Therefore, I thought that if I started with small things I could
start improving how I learn.
»» I thought that learning starts from having an intention to change.
»» From listening to the stories of lots of people, there were two types of stories that I founduseful: stories of things I liked and stories where I found out something new. This led me

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to notice how important it is to jump into a new, unknown field of study to find something
I really like that I could learn about.
»» I was able to realize through the dialogues that things I want to learn about are lying infront of me, and it is up to me to take the opportunity. I think that many of the people I
talked to had grown because they took actions with determination. Therefore, from now
on, I should not only think in my head but actually take actions based on my thoughts.
In addition, some participants commented on what the Dialogue Workshop made clear forthem.
»» The workshop was not only beneficial because we heard others’ stories, I thought it wasalso helpful because it helped us to put our achievements from the past into words andconnect them to future achievements.
»» Talking to people we don’t know about our experiences is we usually don’t do, but it wasinteresting to do since we were able to connect other peoples’ past experiences to future
experiences of our own.
»» I learned through today’s workshop that something normal for me is not necessarily
normal for others. Something abundant and normal for me could be something very
precious for someone else and vice versa. It was a good opportunity to realize how important it is to listen to other people. Listening to other people’s stories means that you
are tracing their life experiences, and for sure, that would let you realize something you
haven’t realized before. Finding this out was the biggest thing I learned today.
»» Listening to someone’s story and then telling him or her one of my own was something I
have never done before. It was a fresh experience, and I was able to feel what “learning
through dialogue” means.
Another interesting phenomenon was that the students were already using the pattern names — such as “Open Learning,” “Consequential Encounters,” “Field Diving,” and “Discovery
of Growth” — as part of their vocabulary in their comments.
»» I thought this workshop itself was an experience of doing “Open Learning.” It was a goodexperience to share a learning experience with lots of people and to thereby mutuallyenhance our motivation.
»» I was able to experience “Field Diving” in this workshop by talking to people I don’t know
and sharing information in order to find out about things I didn’t know about. I was alsoable to make new friends in the workshop.

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Pattern Languages as Media for Creative Dialogue: Functional Analysis of Dialogue Workshops»» I noticed that even though we each have a different field of study, we still have common aspects that we can share on how to learn. This was a good learning from “Hidden
Connections.”

4. Conclusion
In sum, the Dialogue Workshop using a pattern language had the following merits: First,
participants could talk to people they have never talked to before. By making a rule thatparticipants had to talk only to people they did not know, the workshop became an extraordinary and interesting event and was still feasible even if participants were shy and did not
like talking to new people. This is because the atmosphere and rules of the workshop madeit more comfortable for people to talk. Moreover, the workshop was fun and interestingeven though its theme was learning, and the participants even made new friends.
Second, to implement the patterns they wanted to do, the participants gained ideas about
specific actions they could start taking and also learned that the same pattern can have various applications. In this workshop, participants could become stimulated by other people’s
attitudes and experiences of learning, and from seeing the diversity of others’ experiences.
Through the workshop, the participants gained a broader view of the world and themselves,and it helped them share and solve the problems they were facing.
Third, the workshop not only allowed participants to know about others but also to find new
aspects within themselves by using the Learning Patterns to talk about themselves. In the
dialogues, they also sometimes discovered that they had experience with a pattern they
thought they had not experienced, and these experiences changed how the participants faced learning itself. Some participants were already using the pattern names as part of their
vocabulary and making emphatic comments about what the Dialogue Workshop actualized
in them.
As the comments above demonstrate, the Dialogue Workshop causes not just simple conversation involving the trading of information, but becomes a place for “Creative Dialogue.”

5. Appendix: Summary of the Learning Patterns
The patterns in the Learning Patterns are all written in the same specific format: PatternName, Introductory Sentence, Illustration, Quotes, Context, Problem, Force, Solution, Action, andConsequence. Here, the Context, Problem, and Solution statements of each pattern are sum-

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marized: The Pattern Name gives the pattern a short and memorable name that describes
well the pattern so that it can be easily referred to. The Context describes the conditions forwhen the readers should apply this pattern. The Problem describes a difficulty that often
occurs in the context, which is not easily overcome. Finally, the Solution describes how tosolve the problem, with Actions offering concrete methods to put the solution into practice.
The patterns are:0.

Design Your Learning: You’ve recognized that continual learning is an essential activity in a complex and fluid society. In this context, it is not easy to learn how to learn.
Therefore, learn the way of learning from the Learning Patterns, which will help you
achieve good methods for learning.

1.

Opportunity of Learning: You are ready to learn, perhaps having some expectations.
In this context, there are few good opportunities for learning compared with yourexpectations. Therefore, make opportunities for learning by yourself, based on yourinterests.

2.

Learning by Creating: You have started to learn, and maybe you want more excitement. In this context, you are unwilling to learn just by acquiring knowledge and skills.
Therefore, launch your own project and carry it out to improve your knowledge andskills.

3.

Open Your Learning: You have already learned to some extent, and you want todeepen your learning. In this context, learning tends to be closed. It is difficult todeepen your understanding only by yourself. Therefore, share your learning process
and collaborate with others to deepen each other’s learning.

4.

Jump In: You have already found the new environment that you wish to be in andare about to start a new challenge. In this context, you are still doubtful whether thecommunity is really suitable for you. Therefore, jump into a new environment to learnsomething new.

5.

Copycat Learner: You have just started to learn new skills, maybe after doing Jump In(No.4). In this context, it is difficult to find your own way from the beginning. Therefore,
begin learning by imitating the ways of others.

6.

Effective Asking: You got stuck, and you cannot figure out the way to go forward
by yourself. In this context, it is difficult to get the right answers when you ask vague
questions. Therefore, clarify where you got stuck and then seek advice.

7.

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Output-Driven Learning: You are working on acquiring new knowledge and skills. In

Pattern Languages as Media for Creative Dialogue: Functional Analysis of Dialogue Workshops

this context, it is difficult to keep learning if the necessity is unclear. Therefore, create
an output in order to acquire knowledge and improve your skills.
8.

Daily Use of Foreign Language: You’ve recognized that you need to read, write, or
speak in a foreign language in the near future. In this context, it’s difficult to improve
the language without any practice. Therefore, engage yourself in reading, writing andspeaking in a foreign language in your daily life.

9.

Playful Learning: You find yourself bored by the process of learning. In this context,
learning as a duty is ineffective and painful. Therefore, take “play” into the process oflearning.

10. Tornado of Learning: You’ve found that there are a lot of resources, for example
books, articles, and courses, about what you are interested in. In this context, aneffective learning is not brought about by passively receiving information. Therefore,
collect information related to your interests like the vacuum of a tornado.
11. Chain of Excitement!: You have made some progress of learning, and perhaps you
think that you’ve almost achieved your initial goal. In this context, it is not easy to keep
active in explorations and studies. Therefore, the strong emotion of accomplishment
will motivate your learning.
12. Quantity brings Quality: You are realizing that you have only a shallow understanding of what you are interested in. In this context, it is difficult to continually deepen
your understanding. Therefore, collect a lot of information about the target you wish
to learn, and understand it from various angles.
13. Skill Embodiment: You want to acquire a skill, and maybe you’ve started to learn. In
this context, it is not enough to memorize the “how to.” Therefore, continue practicing
a skill again and again until it becomes unconscious.
14. Language Shower: You want to have a good command of a foreign language. In thiscontext, mastering the language is tough. Therefore, set up an environment where
you can always listen and read in the foreign language you wish to learn.
15. Tangible Growth: You need to continue practicing for acquiring Skill Embodiment(No.13) or taking Language Shower (No.14). In this context, it is not easy to keep yourself motivated to learn. Therefore, record the activities of your learning so you canreflect on your path and improve.
16. Thinking in Action: You have been studying by reading books, articles, or other written materials. In this context, it is difficult to get out of the situation when you beco-

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me stuck. Therefore, deepen your thought process by making prototypes and doing
fieldwork.
17. Prototyping: You have an idea and are almost ready to implement it. In this context,
you cannot clarify an image of what you will create. Therefore, make some prototypes
and consider how it can be made better.
18. Field Diving: You are thinking about and have an interest in an actual problem. In thiscontext, you cannot touch upon reality only by referring to documents. Therefore,
dive into the field and work with the people actually concerned while maintaining the
viewpoint of an outsider.
19. A Bug’s-Eye & Bird’s-Eye: You are studying what you want to understand or working
on creating an output. In this context, you have trouble improving the quality of an
idea or a mediocre result. Therefore, take turns viewing the whole and the details.
20. Hidden Connections: You are studying something from typical points of view. In thiscontext, unexpected discoveries rarely manifest themselves from a conventional classification. Therefore, explore hidden connections among things to attain inspiration.
21. Triangular Dig: You’ve been interested in something, but you have only a shallow
understanding of it. In this context, you do not know how to develop your understanding of what you only roughly know. Therefore, acquire knowledge indirectly related towhat you want to understand, and you will understand it better.
22. Passion for Exploration: After acquiring knowledge and improving skills, you finally need to decide the subject to explore from now on. In this context, it is hard tochoose a subject for which you will be able to carry out an exploration. Therefore,choose a topic that you can be passionate about – something that you can feel “love”
or “passion” for.
23. Brain Switch: You are creating an output, and you’ve had some progress. In this context, logical thinking is not enough to achieve a breakthrough without intuitive thinking,and vice versa. Therefore, switch between the two modes of logical and intuitive
thinking.
24. Fruit Farming: You are planning to create an output, but your vision might be too big.
In this context, it is difficult to grow a big result all at once. Therefore, do your best to
put your idea into shape, and then nurture it.
25. Attractive Expressions: You are starting to make your presentation to share youridea or product with others. In this context, your idea / product seems not to be at-252Pattern Languages as Media for Creative Dialogue: Functional Analysis of Dialogue Workshops

tractive to others. Therefore, find better ways of expression to attract others.
26. The First-Draft-Halfway-Point: You are writing your ideas in order to share themwith others. In this context, the initial draft is not suitable to be read by others. Therefore, after finishing an initial draft, brush it up with the view of considering whether or
not readers will be able to easily understand it.
27. Acceleration to the Next: You have almost achieved your goal. In this context, yourmotivation is faltering even though the goal is within reach. Therefore, set and accelerate towards the next goal in order to pass through the current goal without slowing
down.
28. Community of Learning: You’ve realized that what you are starting to work on is achallenging problem or activity. In this context, what you want to study is too big andtoo hard to explore alone. Therefore, build a community of learning with people whoshare similar interests.
29. Serendipitous Encounters: You want fellows to share and discuss the topics related
to what you are interested in. In this context, there are few opportunities to meet
people who have similar interests as you. Therefore, find people who have similarinterests as you by getting involved in the field you are interested in.
30. Good Rivals: You’ve realized that you need to spend a lot of time for working toward
your goal. In this context, it is difficult to keep making the effort alone. Therefore, finda partner that can be a good rival so that you can inspire each other.
31. Talking Thinker: You’ve worked on developing your idea, but it is not so clear. In thiscontext, thinking alone often brings you to a dead end. Therefore, explain what you
think verbally to someone else to improve your idea.
32. Learning by Teaching: You’ve studied a certain topic to some extent so far. In thiscontext, you have no idea how you can improve your superficial understanding of it.
Therefore, teach others your knowledge while considering their levels, and you cangain an understanding on various levels.
33. Firm Determination: You are facing a challenge. In this context, it is tempting to giveup on your goal. Therefore, firmly determine what you are going to do, and set up theenvironment to concentrate on it.
34. Questioning Mind: You’ve dedicated yourself to a certain activity. In this context,
you cannot find any obvious reasons for what you are doing. Therefore, confirm yourassumptions by questioning yourself again.

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35. The Right Way: You are working on your activity in a certain way. In this context, thewrong way will lead you away from your goal. Therefore, consider whether your current way is actually correct or not; then quickly change your approach as necessary.
36. Brave Changes: You’ve just realized that there is no clear purpose to your activity orthat your current approach is inappropriate. In this context, there seems to be no solution to break through the current dilemma. Therefore, throw away previous themes
or approaches to achieve a wider view for the future.
37. Frontier Finder: You’ve started to engage in your exploration. In this context, youhave to know where the frontier of exploration is in order to undertake valuable activity. Therefore, grasp the frontier of the field, and then acquire the knowledge needed
to reach that line.
38. Self-Producer: You’ve had a clear goal and started to engage in your activity. In thiscontext, it is difficult to design your career despite your attempts. Therefore, design aconcrete plan to achieve your goal while inventing your future.
39. Be Extreme!: As a result of your dedication to activities, you’ve established a reputation for them. You, however, feel that it is not enough. In this context, in spite of yourbest effort, you and your results hardly see the light of day. Therefore, think strategically where you can/want to be distinguished from others.

6. References
Alexander, C., Ishikawa, S., Silverstein, M., Jacobson, M., Fiksdahl-King, I., and Angel, S. (1977)
A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction, Oxford University Press.
Alexander, C. (1979) The Timeless Way of Building, Oxford University Press.
Alexander, C., Davis, H., Martinez, J., and Corner, D. (1985) The Production of Houses, Oxford
University Press.
Beck, K. and Cunningham, W. (1987) “Using Pattern Languages for Object-Oriented Programs,” OOPSLA-87 workshop on the Specification and Design for Object-Oriented Programming.
Iba, T. (2011a) “Pattern Language 3.0 Methodological Advances in Sharing Design Knowledge,” in the International Conference on Collaborative Innovation Networks 2011 (COINs2011).
Iba, T. (2011b) “Experience Mining and Dialogues Workshop with a Pattern Language forCreative Learning,” Workshop, in the International Conference on Collaborative Innovation
Networks 2011 (COINs2011).

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Iba, T. (2011c) “Experience Mining and Dialogues Workshop with the Learning Patterns,” inthe 2nd Asian Conference on Pattern Languages of Programs (AsianPLoP2011).
Iba, T. (2012) “Pattern Language 3.0: Writing Pattern Languages for Human Actions,” Invited
Talk, in the 19th Conference on Pattern Languages of Programs (PLoP2012).
Iba, T. (2014) “Using pattern languages as media for mining, analysing, and visualising experiences,” International Journal of Organisational Design and Engineering: Special Issue on
Creative Networks, 2014 Vol. 3, No. 3/4, 2014, pp. 278–301.
Iba, T. and Iba Laboratory (2014a) Collaboration Patterns: A Pattern Language for Creative
Collaborations, CreativeShift.
Iba, T. and Iba Laboratory (2014b) Learning Patterns: A Pattern Language for Creative Learning, CreativeShift.
Iba, T. and Iba Laboratory (2014c) Presentation Patterns: A Pattern Language for Creative
Presentations, CreativeShift.
Iba, T., Shimomukai, E., Nakamura, S., Isaku, T., and Tamefusa, A. (2012) “Dialogue Workshop
using the Learning Patterns,” in the 19th Conference on Pattern Languages of Programs(PLoP2012).
Manns, M. L. and Rising, L. (2005) Fearless Change: Patterns for Introducing New Ideas.
Addison-Wesley.
Merton, R. K. (1996) On Social Structure and Science. Chicago: The University of Chicago
Press.
Merton, R. K. (1948) Social Theory and Social Structure. New York: The Free Press.
Pedagogical Patterns Editorial Board (2012) Pedagogical Patterns: Advice For Educators,
Createspace.

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Peter Baumgartner | Richard Sickinger (ed.)

PURPLSOC

The Workshop 2014

ISBN 978-3-7375-5458-9
Editors: Peter Baumgartner, Richard Sickinger
Book Design and Page Layout: Wolfgang Rauterwww.purplsoc.org
info@purplsoc.org

Creative Commons Licence CC-BY-ND
creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0
Printed in Austria
Department for Interactive Media and Educational Technologies, Danube University Krems
imb.donau-uni.ac.at
Krems, June 2015

Every effort has been made to make this book as complete and as accurate as possible,
but no warranty or fitness is implied. The information provided is on an „as is“ basis. The
authors and the editors/publishers shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damages arising from the information containedin this book.

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