Murray, T. (2010). Holding and Promoting Beliefs: A Develpmental View. Presented at Integral Education and Sustainability Seminar, Aug. 2010, Mt. Madonna, CA

1. Holding and promoting beliefs:A developmental Perspective OnDevelopment, Beliefs, Skills, and Post-metaphysics Tom Murray — Integral Education Seminar, Aug. 2010

2. Belief: what, how, why (ethics)? Belief Knowledge Truth Justification (un)Certainty Decision Making & Leadership Communication & Collaboration Wilber-IV: post-metaphysics, methodological pluralism, zones, perspectives…from “What is true?” to “How do we know?”

3. Instinctive/Sensate Magical Warrior (& Subjugate)/ Mythic Traditionalist/Believer Rationalist/Modernist Pluralistic/Sensitive Integral 3 ____ Second Tier: ____ … … (figure: see www.spiraldynamics.net)

4. Activity: Reminding ourselves of Developmental “Meme” levels Purple Magical Create a 30 second play: “Deciding where to go out to dinner” Red Warrior/Mythic Blue Traditionalist/Believer Rationalist/Modernist Orange Pluralistic/Sensitive Green 4

5. 5 EDUCATION (and Environmentalism) as conveying/supporting important knowledge what is an integral or second tier approach to holding & promoting beliefs? In teaching, advocating beliefs when and how do we include (as we “transcend”) magical, mythical, conventional, modern ways of thinking (and believing/knowing)? see, FormelessMountain.com

6. Map of the talk – Useful distinctions Development of belief-holding (epistemics): Mythic/magical (metaphysical/mystical) Rational & Conventional Pluralist/Green Integral; Second Tier; Post-metaphysical Promoting knowledge: Belief vs. Skills What are second tier skills? The “post-metaphysical” perspective Beliefs in: Concepts (what exists) vs. Statements (what is True or Good) Indeterminacy and Positive vs. Negative Epistemic Capability

7. Some New Age vs. Integral Beliefs 7

8. What is real (exists)? (concepts; metaphysics) vs. What is true (or good)? (propositions; validity claims)

9. Magical thinking – imagination as reality Nonliving things have an animate life force; intentions, can hurt & bless Powerful beings (gods, spirits…) can punish or reward; we are vulnerable I have the psychic power to effect the world; bless or curse; pray, manifest (omnipotency) I hear inner messages; I use special objects and rituals to access divinations Impulses and emotions and power dynamics determine my actions (not abstract ideas or plans) All is one; boundary-less; we are all connected Wishful thinking (the unwanted is unreal) – Very in touch with imagination; subtle phenomena – 9

10. Magical/mythical Criteria for what is true (and good) Authority figures and charismatics Magical or sacred books and objects Social norms, habit, they way it has been Peer identification; what everyone does/says My own experience 10

12. Orange meme: systematic, possibilities/probabilities, logic; rigor, efficiency & perfection drives

13. Differentiating/discriminating:

14. Feelings vs. thoughts

15. Interiors vs. exteriors (self reflection)

16. True / Good / Beautiful

17. Self vs. group/culture

18. Belief vs. truth

19. Past/Future

20. Statement validity:

21. observation, repeatability, logic

22. Scientific method11

23. Ideas as reality Magical thinking – imagination as reality Mythical thinking – stories as reality Conventional thinking – norms as reality Modern thinking – concepts/models as reality (Postmodern? – mirror as reality?)

24. Integral/Second Tier thinking?

26. In what way?

27. How sure are you?

28. How would I explain/argue for (against) it?

30. Portability of integral ideas 16 THEM Beliefs, values?? US (integralists) beliefs, knowledge, values… Skills??

31. A heuristic spectrumof developmental narratives 17 WHAT one believes HOW one believes/thinks What on does/can DO Skills &Capacities Beliefs &World Views (Virtues, Habits) (Values, Identity,)

32. “Skill” = Higher order skills, capacities, capabilities, "skillful means" Cognitive, social/ethical/emotional skills The beliefs in focus are meaning-generative:cultural, metaphysical, spiritual, philosophical… (not concrete facts) Tom Murray | www.perspegrity.com | August 2010 18

33. E.G. belief & world-view basedNarratives of human development Cohen & Hamilton’s Evolutionary Enlightenment Kosmos Journal McIntosh’s Integral Consciousness Beck & Cohen’s Spiral Dynamics Wilber? AQAL?... 19

34. Memes as Beliefs vs. Skills Is “Mean Green Meme”about belief or skill? 20

35. Some Problems with Development as a Worldview or Belief System Beliefs: perspectival, culturally bound, fallible Attached to identity and support in/out group Beliefs can “clash” in struggles of power and identity; skills are “cognitive tools” Beliefs-systems can be ideologies/dogmas (manipulation/misconception/misuse) Charismatic propaganda, peer pressure (inculcation/adoption vs. teaching/learning) Tom Murray | www.perspegrity.com | August 2010 21

36. The value of belief systems Motivation, intention, vision! …when and why to USE skills/capacities Power of story, myth, narrative Shared world-view  Synergetic action, solidarity, meaning-generation Stable base for new levels of cultural evolution Need shared beliefs (community) to create skills(?) 22

37. Wisdom Skillsfor Second Tier enaction Egoawareness (self/ego/will and being/spirit/essence; "I" dimension) Relationalawareness (emotional/social/ethical/interpersonal intelligence; "We" dimension) Constructawareness(cognitive; "It" dimension) Systemsawareness ("Its" dimension; context, cognitive capacity RE dynamic systems and networks of relationships) 23

38. Integral & post-metaphysical injunctions>> Toward Construct Awareness << Don’t confuse map with territory Avoid the Myth of the Given Beliefs are perspectives: “Things are getting better” “Things are getting worse” “Things are always perfect” 24 } Belief …. Skill

40. No view from nowhere (privileged perspective), beyond myth of the given; map is not territory;

41. Perspectival: all truths/experiences come from a perspective and are partial/fallible

42. There are no fixed eternal forms, structures, or archetypes, because everything is evolving

43. Phenomena are enacted/co-constructed (makes no sense to say things exists(ed) unless (until) perceived)(There is no ideal, transcendental, essential, or primordial in the metaphysical sense) 25

44. Integral Post-metaphysics Kosmic address: altitude + perspective (of S,O) Who x How x What Who: adequatio (developmental level(s) of perceiver) How: method / tool; relationship of S,O; zone What: quadrant (I,we,it,its) 26 the dog, Santa Claus, √-1, Emptiness, ecosystem,… - where/how do the referents to these signifiers exists? - “ecosystems exist only in a worldspace of turquoise or higher”

46. 2. Experience —Beyond concepts/words. (I/who)

47. 2.5 Conceptualize, Infer, & Communicate — A “truth” from the experience & everything else you know

49. Describe alternatives; limitations; fallibilities…

50. What is the knowledge for and what level of certainty is needed/called for?

52. “Epistemic Drives”(in beliefs, ideas, knowledge) Concreteness/reification (of abstractions) Seeing connections, patterns (over-) Generalize & abstract Attribute sharp boundaries to concepts (ignore the grey areas) Foundationalism, essentialism, universality Unity/oneness, totality/wholeness, integration …proto-fascism, grandiosity, hegemony, elitism…? 29

53. Belief and Emotion, Ethics (1) (embodiment, enaction) Certainty / importance / emotional intensity Fear, risk, urgency, ecstasy… (states) Risk of “misplaced concreteness” Magnification of epistemic (and other) drives Regression to Black & white (us/them; either/or) Reliance on authority, peers & norms 30

54. Pause and reflect… Belief and Emotion (and Will)… Positive and Negative capability…

55. Belief and Emotion, Ethics (2) (embodiment, enaction) Habermas (on the validity of statements): Knowledge and truth are strongly related to ethics – fairness, equality, power, and authenticity (and emotion)

56. Statements:A 4th Validity Type? True (science) Good/Just (morality) Beautiful (aesthetics) & Meaning-generative (e.g. reincarnation) 33

57. Underview– Useful distinctions Development of belief-holding (integrating all levels): Mythic/magical (metaphysical/mystical) Rational & Conventional Pluralist/Green Post-metaphysical; Integral; Second Tier Promoting knowledge: Belief vs. Skills What are second tier skills? The “post-metaphysical” perspective Beliefs in: Concepts (what exists) – fuzziness; perspectival Statements (what is True or Good) – validity claims; Meaningfulness Models & Theories – indeterminacy analysis ‘wrappers’ Indeterminacy and Positive vs. Negative Epistemic Capability Implications of embodied thought for ethical decisions

58. Thanks!… tommurray.us@gmail.com | www.tommurray.us

59. A few extra slides…

60. Focusing in on construct awareness David Bohm: "underneath [humanity's dilemmas] there's something we don't understand about how thought works" and that what is needed is a "very deep [and] very subtle" awareness of thought itself. Albert Einstein: "the significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” Deeper understanding mind, thought, language, knowledge, belief…=> the (epistemic or) “post-metaphysical turn” 37

62. The economy

63. Green meme

64. Eros

65. UR quadrant