Tag: Dialectical Thinking

Reviews of my work on dialectical thinking since 1999 are far and few between and have been long in coming. This delay has to do with the fact that my work on this topic responds directly to Bateson's perceptive view that "the major problems in the world (today) are the result of the difference between how nature works and the way people think" (as quoted in this paper). Bateson's perspective, much detailed philosophically by Roy Bhaskar, is a view of no interest in the present, entirely logic-based, global economy and its associated cognitive and social sciences. In this clear and incisive article, John Stewart, organizer of the First Planning Meeting for the Second Enlightenment, explains in more detail why the topic of dialectical thinking touches upon the issue of the evolution of the human race and may well concern its survival. John Stewart on vol. 2 and Primer Read More...

There is a vast lack of knowledge about how one's own level and phase of development as an adult uncanningly and forcefully causes the kind of suffering one feels most keenly. This short article is meant as a pointer to what is missing in all of the "helping" literature and the well-meant helping activities in a society which continues to be characterized by master-slave relationships in a multitude of forms. What is everybody losing out on     Read More...

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...

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...