Book Review : The Intuitive Edge.

Philip Goldberg. New York: Putnam. 1983. pp 236. $9.95

Mary Scholl

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One of the joys of teaching is the miracle of the unexpected, unknown, and previously-not-thought ideas which surface at just the right moment. Just when a student asks a seemingly unanswerable question and I freeze in a moment of indecision as to how to proceed, an idea of how to answer it, and how to help the student come to an answer, miraculously pops into my head, and out through my words and actions. Unfortunately, having to depend upon miracles is a bit stressful in daily life. They don't always appear, and there are times in which I am left with a less than satisfactory response. It would be nice to know that these miracles could always happen on demand. It would be convenient to be omniscient. And only slightly impossible.

I began to think about how I could know more, in order to minimize my dependency upon those miracles. The questions: "How do I know what I know? How do I know what to do? How do I make the thousands of decisions in the classroom?" started to creep into my thoughts. Two sources of answers seemed obvious: my "school induced knowledge" and my intuition. I summarily defined intuition as an intangible thing that "just happens." In other words, a miracle. A friend and advisor shared with me her belief that intuition was not as mysterious as it is made out to be, and it was because of her urging that I began to look further into intuition.

My search began by reading an outstanding book that left me wanting to discuss it with all my colleagues and friends. Philip Goldberg, in his book The Intuitive Edge, presents a thorough and stimulating presentation of this complex an delusive subject. Goldberg looks to scientific, academic and spiritual traditions of both eastern and western cultures in regards to intuition. He artfully combines both theoretical and practical aspects to give the reader a multidimensional understanding of what intuition is, how it affects our lives, and how we can enhance our abilities to intuit.

Goldberg begins by recognizing the usefulness of the prevailing model for gaining knowledge (one he calls Scientism), which, he states, consists of a rigorous interchange of reason and systematically acquired knowledge, but notes that the role of intuition has been discounted. "If reason and empirical observation steer the course of discovery, and the passion for truth supplies the fuel, it is intuition that provides the spark." (p. 20) Goldberg contends that Scientism has traditionally discredited the value of that spark. He asserts that we often force ourselves to think in a rigidly rational-empircal manner in situations when it is inadequate or inappropriate, situations where we need a spark. By recognizing and using different cognitive processes, we can make better decisions, find more creative ideas, and have deeper insights. In this way, Goldberg looks on intuition as a part of rational thinking and complementary to scientism.

Definitions of intuition can be broad and vague. Goldberg uses intuition to mean "anything knowable, including vague hunches and feelings about mundane matters, significant discoveries of concepts and facts and divine revelation." He outlines five ways we use the concept of intuition to describe our experience. Intuition could:

1. signify an event or occurrence ( I had an intuition);
2. represent a faculty of the mind (I used my intuition);
3. be a verb ( I intuited the answer);
4. apply to a personality attribute (she is really intuitive); or
5. describe a style of functioning that contrasts with the analytic style.

He further states that "The basic sense of the word suggests spontaneity and immediacy; intuitive knowing is not mediated by a conscious or deliberate rational process." (p. 32) Intuition is the word we use when we know something, but we don't know how we know it.

Based on this definition and description, Goldberg presents the reader with six functions that intuition serves: discovery, creativity, evaluation, operation, prediction, and illumination. Reading each section, I found myself being reminded of my, and others, miracles, which reinforce Goldberg's assertions. He weaves together theories, counter theories, stories, perceptions, contradictions, paradoxes and language which characterize the intuitive experience, and explores who is intuitive and what is happening in the mind when intuition happens.

This is all well and good, but how can I make intuition (my miracles) happen? Goldberg claims that I can't. I can only ready myself for them by making myself as receptive as possible. Towards the end of the book Goldberg explores the practical side of nurturing intuition. His advice on activities which promote receptiveness to our intuition include: attitude adjustment, writing exercises, brainstorming, sleep, meditation, physical exercise, breathing techniques, mental journeying, and journaling. These activities make sense to me, and I know that when I make the time for them, my thinking is clearer, my mind is calmer, and my intuition is sharper.

As far as miracles in class are concerned, I know I can't predict them, but I can make myself more receptive to them. I can remain calm in the face of uncertainty. I can listen to a number of thoughts and then make a decision. Or I can trust my instincts and see where they lead me. I can meditate, write and exercise outside of class to keep myself conscious while I am in class.

Goldberg concludes his book with a plea for greater commitment to the development of our understanding and our support for intuition. He reiterates the intimate, interdependent relationship between scientific and intuitive thought, and examines some common restraints to intuition. One large contribution that teachers can give in making the world safe for intuition is for them to be intuitive in the classroom: for teachers to provide a model of how inquisitive, mature minds work in the pursuit of knowledge and solutions to problems. To me, this means not only opening myself to the miracles in class, but sharing those miracles with the students, and helping or letting the students create the miracles themselves.

Originally published in Learning Learning 2/1 (March, 1995), pp. 7-8. Mary Scholl, 1995

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