How we change what others think, feel, believe and do

Alfred Schűtz (1899-1959)

Key points

Seeing things as 'the Stranger'.

Postulate of Adequacy (link experience to knowledge).

His situation was as a refugee in the USA from Austria in the late 1930s, and so understood the notion of being a 'stranger'.

Suggested the Postulate of Adequacy, whereby ideas have to link lived experience with scientific knowledge.

Each concept or idea in 'scientific model of human action' must be constructed such that it is understandable in terms of everyday life.

Scientific statements must account for everyday life.

Person on the street: at home in a given place, tacit working knowledge on what to do.
The cartographer: seriously studying the environment, able to map it, but is detached and can't truly understand the person on the street.
The stranger: Passing through, but needs a deeper understanding. Not unreflective (like person on the street) nor trapped by a narrow viewpoint (like an academic cartographer).

The Stranger is a key position as it offers an open-minded view.