Author: Otto Laske

The Frankfurt School is well known, liked or not liked, due to its pervasive influence in the domain of culture critique. As on account of increasing threats to democracy its legacy is once more coming to the fore, there is a strong tendency to focus on the products and results of the school's activity while totally bypassing quite another legacy of the school, namely, rigorous teaching of complex, 'dialectical' thinking. In this blog, a veteran attendant of Frankfurt School Hauptseminars, directed by Max Horkheimer and Th. W. Adorno, from 1958 to 1966, Otto Laske, speaks up to remind those interested in the school of its huge promise for helping (young and young remaining) minds achieve new depths of reflection and circumspection, not only about society, but also about the cosmos at large and about themselves in their societal and ecological predicament. Otto Laske reviews the teachings of the school's Hauptseminar which focused on Hegel's Logic of 1812-16 as a vehicle for achieving fluid and holistic systemic thinking, more than ever needed in the world we live in, which we created without much further thought about the consequences of our actions supported by fabulous technologies. Taking a measure of Hauptseminar teaching... Read More...

Given that CDF, the Constructive Developmental Framework, is more than a set of tools and therefore requires for its use a particular mindset, have you wondered what one might say are the main barriers to using it optimally? The short blog below is meant to give some answers to this question. Barriers to Using CDF   Read More...

Obwohl das Programm des diesjaehrigen Wiener Leadership Kongresses () keine Einfuehrung in CDF -- das Constructive Developmental Framework --umfasst, werden viele Kongressteilnehmer die sich aus der Benutzung von CDF ergebenden Fuehrungsvorteile wahrscheinlich kennenlernen wollen. CDF ist eine von Otto Laske erstellte Synthese von Forschungsbefunden der Harvardschule hinsichtlich Erwachsenenentwicklung seit 1975, die Dimensionen des kritischen Denkens der Frankfurter Schule mit denen des dialektischen Denkens von Roy Bhaskar verbindet.  Diese Methodologie ist seit dem Jahre 2000 am IDM, dem Interdeveopmental Institute, internationalen Studentengruppen in der Form von Zertifikatskursen angeboten worden. Sie wird heute von Otto Laske vorwiegend in der Unternehmungsberatung mit Fokus auf collaborative intelligence in teams  und neue Konzeptionen von 'human capital' eingesetzt. Der Leser findet unten (in downloadable form) eine kurze Auflistung von Vorteilen, die sich aus der organizationsweiten Benutzung von CDF ergeben, der auch eine kurze historische Vignette ueber die Entstehung von CDF beigefuegt ist. Geschaeftsvorteile und Anlass von CDF Read More...

Dieser Workshop der Firma Four Dimensions, Wien und Salzburg (), offeriert Personalverantwortlichen, Personalentwicklern, Beratern und Coachs eine Einfuehrung in Methoden fuer die Bestimmung des emotionalen und kognitiven Reifegrades von Individuen und Teams. Diese Methoden leiten sich aus Otto Laske’s Arbeiten am Interdevelopmental Institute (IDM), Gloucester, MA. her. Instruktoren sind Simone Rack, Rainer v. Leoprechting, und Otto Laske. Interessenten die an diesem Workshop teilnehmen wollen schreiben bitte an [email protected] Sketch of Workshop Agenda Wien Read More...

The future of work is not a topic for logical thinking as much as it is one for revamping logical into complex, 'dialectical', thinking. The difference between the two is explained and exercised in a workshop in Brussels whose program can be downloaded here. If interested in this workshop, held on January 18, 2019, near Brussels, write to [email protected], my co-author of a book on collaborative intelligence of teams entitled "Dynamic Collaboration" (2018). In the downloadable attachment, the program is commented upon from a dialectical-thinking point of view by Otto Laske. Program Jan 18 2019 Brussels Read More...

There is presently a dearth of study materials for absorbing a new form of complex thinking called 'dialectical' or 'transformational' thinking. In order to change this state of affairs, IDM, the Interdevelopmental Institute, has just released a short workbook that introduces readers to DTF, Laske's Dialectical Thought Form Framework . Following an overview, the workbook describes each of the 28 thought forms (TFs) of DTF and elucidates how to use them, both for oneself and in teams, based on Probing Questions applicable to work in the most divergent domains. To obtain the Workbook, go to IDM Publications, , and search the short list above the "Buy Now" button leading to PayPal. All of the publications in the list are updated editions of Laske's writings in pdf form, including translations into German, French, Spanish, and Japanese. They will be emailed to the purchaser by IDM upon payment within 48 hours. Two further, more comprehensive, publications on boosting the complexity of one's thinking by paying attention to the dialectical thought form structure of one's dialogue with self and others are also available in the list: The stand-alone Manual of Dialectical Thought Forms, DTFMThe paperback entitled "Dialectical thinking for integral leaders: A primer",... Read More...