Category: Cognitive Dimension

Copyright 2016 by Graham Boyd & Otto Laske In this article, the authors put forth a new approach to distributed leadership based on research in adult development and the pedagogical thought of Vygotsky, originator of the notion of zones of proximal development. The article attempts to re-totalize the issues neglected, or fragmented, by theories of holacracy and other models of shared leadership, in order to arrive at a deeper understanding of contemporary attempts to redesign organizational work in the direction of “organizations without managerial hierarchies”. In so doing, the authors leave behind present notions of “individual coaching”, “team coaching”, “managerial hierarchy”, and “organizational behavior”, among others, focusing squarely on contributors’ frame of reference (FoR; world view) that determines how they put their capabilities to work collaboratively and what their needs for developmental support are. The article’s essential argument is summarized in Tables 2a and 2b, one for each dimension of adult development. The authors come to the conclusion that for holacracy and similar models to succeed, much more attention must be paid to the fact that unconventional organization designs challenge contributors’ self-identity and psychological well-being. They also show that a one-sided focus on tasks and competences (Task House) is counter-productive... Read More...

This article is based on my research in adult cognitive development, published in Laske 2008 and 2015. It reminds the reader that his/her thinking undergoes life-long changes that have a dramatic impact on work effectiveness and quality of life, especially the latter. The notion that there are no changes in thinking after early adulthood is thoroughly debunked. It is shown that the structure of “thinking” is built of “thought forms”, and that how these forms are linked and coordinated internally determines not only the flexibility of thinking but also how far human thinking is enabled to grasp the real world in all of its complexity. "Thinking" is also shown to shape emotional life since every emotion is saturated with thinking, in contrast to mere feeling. The article places thinking into a developmental progression from Common Sense to Understanding to Reason and Practical Wisdom, inspired by Bhaskar’s notion of the UDR movement (Bhaskar 1993). It showcases an independent line of adult development of great influence on Kegan's "social-emotional" sequence of stages. ILR August 24 2012 Read More...

In this paper, the authors (Otto Laske, Alessandro Rossi) lay out a practical approach to integral counseling (part A) and consulting to teams (part B), based on the Constructive Developmental Framework (CDF). The main topic is how to combine interventions for strengthening developmental level and cognitive fluidity, seen as intrinsically related as well as mingled in practice.  CDF tools are described as prompts that trigger evidence about the frame of reference based on which clients and teams think, feel, and make decisions. Theoretically, the proposed framework includes and transcends both Wilber’s quadrants and Bhaskar’s moments of dialectic, showing a path toward integral constellations work for which teachable and learnable pragmatic tools are presently hard to find. A Developmental Framework for Deep Listening and Thinking Read More...

From AQAL to AQAT: Dialog in an Integral Perspective In this paper, presented at the 2014 Integral European Conference, Budapest, Prof. Bruno Frischherz compares with great clarity the methodological tools offered by Wilber's Integral Theory to those offered by Laske's CDF.  The author shows that AQAL in its present form -- focusing only on I, We, and It(s) -- omits the category of You and, as a consequence, excludes the dialectic fundamental to engaging in dialog. The author also shows the lack of an ontological foundation of Integral Theory, accounting for its irrealism in the sense of Bhaskar, and thus shows it to be a continuation of the irrealism of western philosophy since Parmenides. He proposes a dialectical extension of AQAL called AQAT -- "all quadrants, all (CDF) thought forms" -- able to render the moves-in-thought naturally occurring in integral thinking but suppressed by Wilber. The paper stands as the clearest outline of AQAL as a purely formal logical theory with false pretensions to totalizing human experience. dialog_in_an_integral_perspective   Read More...

This text by Otto Laske and Alessandro Rossi describes the use of the Constructive Developmental Framework as a culture transformation instrument. Pragmatic implementations of CDF are geared to strengthening dialectical thinking in groups, teams, committees, and coalitions, whether commercial, academic, political, or educational, with an eye on increasing collaborative intelligence. The focus of such work is placed intoplaying “dialectical thought games” in real time, targeting a real-world problem. The authors think that innovation has to become commensurate with the challenges now arising from the human ability to transform nature (anthropocene). Accordingly, their call to action is focused on dialectical cognition, not psychology or social-emotional development. The main topics are: The need for a new concept of human being and of work Handling complexity in the anthropocene is not “business as usual” Moving from systems thinking to transformational (dialectical) thinking has become a societal necessity Human development needs social support in the zone of proximal development Innovation requires collaborative intelligence and maturity in teams A Developmental Agenda EN Read More...

In this short article I am pointing to some deficiencies of the present notion of DDO, "deliberately developmental organizations". In contrast, I present a short apercu on the benefits of CDF, the Constructive Developmental Framework which I see as a more comprehensive approach to understanding the nature of work and a set of tools for designing new work environments. Seeing WORK As A Medium of Adult Development Read More...