Understanding Perspectives and Points of View

Every human beingspeaks and acts from the perspective of a personal point of view. Everything we say or do is based on-or equivalently, is biased by-that point of view.

Thus, everything you read in any textbook, including this one, is biased by the author's point of view. The author may think that he is writing an unbiased account of neutral subject material. But no one can write an unbiased account of anything, because we all write from a perspective.

Similarly, your professors speak to you from their points of view. They have experience, goals, objectives, hopes, and fears, and, like all of us, those elements provide a framework from which they think and speak. The statement in Q1 that this course is the single most important course in the business school is clearly an opinion. Other professors in other departments may disagree. Is one of us right and the other wrong?

I think so, but do you? Other opinions are less apparently opinions. Consider the following definition of information: "Information is a difference that makes a difference." By this definition, there are many differences, but only those that make a difference qualify as information. This definition is not obviously an opinion, but it nevertheless was written from a biased perspective.

The perspective is just less evident because the statement appears as a definition, not an opinion. But, in fact, it is the definition of information in the opinion of the well-known psychologist Gregory Bateson. I find his definition informative and useful. It is imprecise, but it is a good guideline, and I have used it to advantage when designing reports and queries for end users. I ask myself, "Does this report show someone a difference that makes a difference to them?"

So, I find it a useful and helpful definition. My colleagues who specialize in quantitative methods, however, find Bateson's definition vapid and useless. They ask, "What does it say?" "How could I possibly use that definition to formalize anything?" or "A difference that makes a difference to what or whom?" Or they say, "I couldn't quantify anything about that definition; it's a waste of time." And they are right, but so am I, and so was Gregory Bateson. The difference is a matter of perspective, and, surprisingly, conflicting perspectives can all be true at the same time.

One last point: Whether it is apparent or not, authors write and professors teach not only from personal perspectives, but also with personal goals. I write this textbook in the hope that you will find the material useful and important and tell your professor that it is a great book so that he will use it again.

Whether you (or I) are aware of that fact, it and my other hopes and goals bias every sentence in this book. Similarly, your professors have hopes and goals that influence what and how they teach. Your professors may want to see light bulbs of recognition on your face, they may want to win the Professor of the Year award, or they may want to gain tenure status in order to be able to do some advanced research in the field.

Whatever the case, they, too, have hopes and goals that bias everything they say. So, as you read this book and as you listen to your professor, ask yourself, "What is her perspective?" and "What are her goals?" Then compare those perspectives and goals to yours. Learn to do this not just with your textbooks and your professors, but with your colleagues as well. When you enter the business world, being able to discern and adapt to the perspectives and goals of those with whom you work will make you much more effective.

Discussion Questions

1. Consider the following statement: "The quality of your thinking is the most important component of an information system." Do you agree with this statement? Do you think it is even possible to say that one component is the most important one?

2. This text claims that although it is not possible to increase your IQ, it is possible to improve the quality of your thinking. Do you agree? Whether or not you agree, give three examples that illustrate differences in quality of thinking. They can be all from one person or they can be examples from three different people.

3. Though it does not appear to be so, the statement, "There are five components of an information system: hardware, software, data, procedures, and people" is an opinion based on a perspective. Suppose you stated this opinion to a computer engineer who said, "Rubbish That's not true at all. The only components that count are hardware and maybe software." Contrast the perspective of the engineer with that of your MIS professor. How do those perspectives influence their opinions about the five component framework? Which is correct?

4. Consider Bateson's definition, "Information is a difference that makes a difference." How can this definition be used to advantage when designing a Web page? Explain why someone who specializes in quantitative methods might consider this definition to be useless. How can the same definition be both useful and useless?

5. Some students hate open-ended questions. They want questions that have one correct answer, like 7.3 miles per hour. When given a question like that in question 4, a question that has multiple, equally valid answers, some students get angry or frustrated. They want the book or the professor to give them the answer. How do you feel about this matter?

6. Questions like those in the 2021 section obviously have no correct answer. Or, they have a correct answer, but that answer won't be known until 2021. Because this is true, are such questions worthless? Are you wasting your time thinking about them? Why or why not? Because the answer cannot be known on a timely basis, is any answer as good as any other? Why or why not?

7. Do you think someone can improve the quality of his or her thinking by learning to hold multiple, contradictory ideas in mind at the same time? Or, do you think that doing so just leads to indecisive and ineffective thinking? Discuss this question with some of your friends. What do they think? What are their perspectives?