In general, a metamodel is a model which describes a model.

The metamodel in Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) is a model of (primarily) linguistic models that people have. Neuro-Linguistic Programming is the name of a set of techniques originally proposed by Richard Bandler and John Grinder to describe the relationship between mind (neuro) and language (linguistic, both verbal and non-verbal) and how their interaction can be calibrated (programming) to affect an individuals mind, body and... An abstract model (or conceptual model) is a theoretical construct that represents physical, biological or social processes, with a set of variables and a set of logical and quantitative relationships between them. ... Linguistics is the scientific study of human language, and someone who engages in this study is called a linguist. ...

Put simply, the meta-model is a set of language patterns (from Virginia Satir, Fritz Perls and Transformational syntax) designed to challenge limits to a person's map of the world (Grinder & Bostic, 2001). Effectively the meta-model can be reduced to asking "What specifically", or "How specifically?" to challenge unspecified nouns or verbs. Other challenges are directed at distortions, generalizations or deletions in the speaker's language (Bandler & Grinder, 1975a Ch3). The reverse set of the meta-model is the Milton-model; a collection of artfully vague language patterns elicited from the work of Milton Erickson (Bandler & Grinder, 1975b). Together these models form the basis for the all other NLP models. Syntax, originating from the Greek words συν (syn, meaning co- or together) and τάξις (táxis, meaning sequence, order, arrangement), can be described as the study of the rules, or patterned relations that govern the way the words in a sentence come together. ... Milton Hyland Erickson, MD (1901 - 1980) was a psychiatrist specializing in medical hypnosis. ...

The following examples are mainly derived from within a therapeutic context, however, it is also claimed that these same patterns can be noticed and applied to any context.

Distortion: Semantic Well-formedness

Example 1: Presuppositions

• Speaker: My son is as Lazy as my Husband
• Challenge: Am I to assume that your Husband is Lazy?

Example 2: Cause and Effect (x means y, or x makes me y)

• Example Speaker: That news makes me angry
• Challenge: How, specifically, does the news make you angry?

Generalisations

Example: Lack of Referential Index (never, nobody, everybody, all, ...)

• Speaker: Nobody pays attention to anything I say.
• Challenge: Who specifically doesn't pay attention to you?

Deletion

Example: Comparatives and Superlatives (best, worst, ...)

• Speaker: That was the best plan
• Challenged: Compared to what?

(src: Bandler & Grinder, 1975a Ch3 & Ch4)

Its roots can be traced back to the work of Noam Chomsky Transformational Grammar and even further to the nominalistic tradition of William of Ockham. Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is the Institute Professor Emeritus of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. ... Nominalism is the position in metaphysics that there exist no universals outside of the mind. ... Hello, I am Sam, Sam I am. ...

An effort unrelated by origin but going in the same direction of improving clarity of communication is the constructed language Loglan (and its close cousin, Lojban). An artificial or constructed language (known colloquially as a conlang among aficionados), is a language whose phonology, grammar and vocabulary are specifically devised by an individual or small group, rather than having naturally evolved as part of a culture as with natural languages. ... Loglan is a constructed language originally designed for linguistic research, particularly for investigating the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis. ... Lojban logo Lojban (IPA , official full name Lojban: a realization of Loglan) is a constructed language which was created by the Logical Language Group in 1987 based on the earlier Loglan, with the intent to make the language more complete, usable, and freely available. ...

See also

• List of NLP topics
• Modeling (NLP)
• Noam Chomsky's Transformational-Generative Grammar
• General semantics
• E-Prime
• Knowledge representation
• John Grinder
• Richard Bandler
• Syntax
• Fritz Perls
• Virginia Satir

This is a list of topics related to Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP). ... NLP modeling (or modelling) is a process used in neuro-linguistic programming to discover and codify patterns of excellence, as demonstrated consistently by top performers in any field ideally via direct experience. ... Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is the Institute Professor Emeritus of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. ... Transformational grammar is a broad term describing grammars (almost exclusively those of natural languages) which have been developed in a Chomskyan tradition. ... General Semantics is a school of thought founded by Alfred Korzybski in about 1933 in response to his observations that most people had difficulty defining human and social discussions and problems and could almost never predictably resolve them into elements that were responsive to successful intervention or correction. ... Dr. David Bourland coined the term E-Prime, short for English Prime, in the 1965 work A Linguistic Note: Writing in E-Prime to refer to the English language modified by prohibiting the use of the verb to be. E-Prime arose from Alfred Korzybskis General Semantics and his... Knowledge representation is needed for library classification and for processing concepts in an information system. ... John Grinder, Ph. ... Richard Bandler (full-name: Richard Wayne Bandler) (born February 24, 1950) is the co-inventor (with John Grinder) of Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP). ... Syntax, originating from the Greek words συν (syn, meaning co- or together) and τάξις (táxis, meaning sequence, order, arrangement), can be described as the study of the rules, or patterned relations that govern the way the words in a sentence come together. ... Frederick S. (Fritz) Perls (1893 - 1970) was a noted German-born psychologist and psychotherapist. ... Virginia Satir (26 June 1916 - 10 September 1988) was a noted psychotherapist, known especially for her approach to family therapy. ...

References

• Richard Bandler, John Grinder: The Structure of Magic: A Book About Language and Therapy, ISBN 0831400447
• Richard Bandler, John Grinder: The Structure of Magic II: A Book About Communication and Change, ISBN 0831400498

Richard Bandler (full-name: Richard Wayne Bandler) (born February 24, 1950) is the co-inventor (with John Grinder) of Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP). ... John Grinder, Ph. ... Richard Bandler (full-name: Richard Wayne Bandler) (born February 24, 1950) is the co-inventor (with John Grinder) of Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP). ... John Grinder, Ph. ...

External links

• What is metamodeling?