I LISTENED TO OUR PANELISTS WITH my introductory thoughts in mind. That is, with my own personal biases, or, if you wish, my own frame of reference. I suppose we all listen in the same way, even if we adapt well to our role as listeners and students. The connection between biases or frames of reference to character and how it influences our way of listening and learning is akin to any other role complementarity, including the patient-doctor relationship. It includes character and ideological derivatives and influences directly our capacity for social adaptation to roles, including being successful as a listener and a learner. There are a couple of reference points that frame my role as a host and a learner.

The first is a definition of character trait. I see it as a security operation based on early acquired convictions incorporated in what Sullivan calls the self-system, which are nearly immutable closed-circuits. Second, therapeutic attempts to deprive a patient