Syntopical reading is an exercise that provides participants with a way of reading and sharing a large body of information in a condensed period of time. During a Syntopical Reading exercise, participants are asked to scan, read and later discuss a set of materials. The materials they are given contain an eclectic mix of essays, articles and book chapters, ranging from innovations in business, to science fiction; from new physics to social commentary. These may be focused on specific issues the participants are addressing, yet should provide as broad a range of perspectives as possible, appropriate to the situation. This exercise is based on the understanding that the creative process is stimulated by both the difference and similarity of seemingly "unrelated" pieces of information.

To read syntopically is to read many books or articles simultaneously, and to study each work in relation to the others. The exercise is based on How to Read A Book, by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1972) and Mortimer Adler's The Great Ideas: A Syntopicon of Great Books of the Western World (Chicago: Encyclopedia Brittanica, 1952). We have adapted the concept to cover many subjects simultaneously. Adler's Syntopican method studies one subject at a time.*

Syntopical reading demands that the reader bring a new synthesis, to construct an analysis of the subject that is not in any single article or book. Because the reader is actively engaged in an exploration with the authors, s/he is reading at the most active and rewarding level. It is as though the reader is the researcher and the authors are the consultants to the reader.

The syntopical reading exercise is a key part of the "Domain 1" (Body of Knowledge) management of an event. It is a major opportunity (sometimes the major opportunity) to introduce to the participants ideas and concepts that they may need in order to arrive at effective solutions.

Take a look at the list of titles provided in the NavCenter library.

*MG Taylor Corporation Glossary
An Introduction to Management Center Theory and Practice version 2.0