William Bergquist, Ph. D. and Suzanne Brennan Nathan, Psy.D.
We all know that it is best to be honest. Even in the Boy Scout Code there is an emphasis on honesty. It is tied to the first quality of the code: Trustworthy. A Scout is defined as “Trustworthy. A Scout tells the truth. He keeps his promises. Honesty is part of his code of conduct. People can depend on him.” This means that honesty is not just a general virtue but a core part of a Scout’s character and reliability. We similarly find an emphasis on honesty in many religious creeds and self-help books (such as Jessica Alba’s The Honest Life (Alba, 2013). We also see the matter of honesty – and wide-spread dishonesty—being addressed in the work of Dan Ariely, a noted behavioral economist (Ariely, 2012).
We agree with the scouts and these authors regarding the importance of honesty and find this interpersonal value to be central to the formation and sustaining of an important and constructive relationship. We have identified this forming and sustaining as Ligato—Latin for the “binding” of a relationship.
However, we wish to push the usual analysis further than it usually goes by introducing the four-fold model of interpersonal relationships originally offered by Joe Luft and Harrington Ingham in their widely- deployed Johari Window (Luft, 1969; Luft, 1984). It is in each of the four panes of the Johari Window that we find a unique version of honesty.
The Original Johari Window
Joe Luft and Harrington Ingham’s original model contained four quadrants that represented the total person in relation to other people. The following definitions and principles are substantially the same as those presented in both On Human Interaction Luft, 1969) and Luft’s second major book, Group Processes (Luft, 1984)
Quadrant 1 (Q1): the open quadrant, refers to behavior, feelings, and motivation known to self and to others. [often called “public self”]
Quadrant 2 (Q2): the blind quadrant, refers to behavior, feelings. and motivation known to others but not to self. [often called “unaware self”]
Quadrant 3 (Q3): the hidden quadrant, refers to behavior, feelings, and motivation known to self but not to others. [often called the “private self”]
Quadrant 4 (Q4): the unknown quadrant, refers to behavior, feelings. and motivation known neither to self nor to others. [often called the “potential self”]
The original model helped to clarify changes in awareness and openness as well as changes in tension, defensiveness, and hostility. Certain universal questions were addressed through the model—questions about the effect of unknowns on human interaction, trust, levels of miscommunication, ancient and primitive leadership patterns, and appropriate disclosure of self.
