Integral Studies

Inter-Integralism ~~~ Critical Perspectives on Advanced and Adequate Phenomenology and “Pheno-Practice” for Integral Research

by Wendelin Kuepers

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This contribution investigates the status of phenomenology in integral theory. In particular it will problematise the... more This contribution investigates the status of phenomenology in integral theory. In particular it will problematise the classification of life-worldly phenomenology as a discipline located only in the interior upper-left quadrant or as a Zone 1 perspective in Wilber’s integral model and methodology.
Based on main ideas of classical (Husserlian) phenomenology and its various critiques and further developments, the treatment in integral (AQAL) theory is discussed critically. Especially the ordering of phenomenology into a separate field or zone, the status of consciousness, including the debate related to its structure and states, and inter-subjective dimensions as well as the relation to contemplation and meditation are examined systematically.
Furthermore, then with regard to the more advanced form of phenomenology as developed by Merleau-Ponty its proto-integral potential will be outlined. It will be argued that activating this potential may contributes to correct some of the weaknesses and limitations of conventional integral theory. 
Moreover, it will be proposed that advanced phenomenology provides the foundations for an “adequate phenomenology” in integral research. As part of this more adequate phenomenology and its ontological, epistemological, and methodological dimension some perspectives on what is called integral “pheno-practice” will be offered.
All in all, it is hoped that the critical exploration of phenomenology in its more proto-integral, adequate and pheno-practical forms might enrich integral research, improve its theory building and empirical testing by offering a more inclusive, coherent approach as part of an overarching holarchical ecology of integrative knowledge and practice

Towards the reconciliation of Idealism and Realism through Monoistic Idealism

by Martin Robson

Ken Wilbur's Integral Theory of Consciousness as Applied to Instructional Theory

by Jonathan Dunn

        To include everything within your framework seems to be a daunting task. The world’s... more         To include everything within your framework seems to be a daunting task. The world’s greatest knowledge traditions need to be defined for our audience. Clearly, there is quite a bit of room to apply this theory to instructional theory. Difficulty lies in teachers and students ability to access their truth as well as individual and group perspectives. Depth is an additional factor to learning, beside content and pedagogy. It has been said that with depth comes clarity. Compassion is even a farther reach, after thoughtful understanding of learned material. Some research and instructional questions for participants in human endeavor might be; What frameworks have been affective in ordering the thoughts of students to find specific truths and perspectives? What frameworks can we use in order to access the greater integral framework? How do we assess our truths and seek other compatible truths which help us to formulate
instructional theory and design?

A Model for Integral Sustainable Design Explored through Daylighting

by Mark DeKay

Conceptual Barriers to Creating Integrative Universities

by Jon Awbrey

Awbrey, S.M., and Awbrey, J.L. (May 2001), “Conceptual Barriers to Creating Integrative Universities”, Organization : The Interdisciplinary Journal of Organization, Theory, and Society 8(2), Sage Publications, London, UK, pp. 269–284.

Today’s society looks to universities for solutions to broad-based issues that require cross-disciplinary expertise.... more Today’s society looks to universities for solutions to broad-based issues that require cross-disciplinary expertise. Yet, the organizational structure of our institutions remains locked in academic and administrative silos that have little genuine ability to communicate or to recognize the interdependence of knowledge. Why does the capacity to communicate between disciplines and units remain limited? How do formalizations of our experience create barriers? What kind of reflection would it take to subject our mental models of knowledge and learning to critical inquiry? This discussion highlights one of the most entrenched ‘group identity myths’ that underlie the structure of modern academic institutions, the ‘triviality of integration’ thesis.

What Is Critical Integral Theory?

by Daniel Gustav Anderson

This is an essay iin response to a request to summarize what I have done, where I think needs to be redone or reconsidered, and where I intend to go with this work, published at Frank Visser's Integral World website. Find it here: http://www.integralworld.net/anderson9.html

Prajna on the Left?: In Reply and Gratitude to Raphael Foshay

by Daniel Gustav Anderson

Published at Integral World in response to Raphael Foshay's 2009 essay "Tension on the Left."

Towards A Post-Wilberian, Critical Integral Theory: Why It is Not Necessary to Read Past Page Five in Sex, Ecology, Spirituality

by Daniel Gustav Anderson

Another experiment in engaged scholarship, also published at IntegralWorld.

Nonviolence of Nonmetaphysics: An Interview

by Daniel Gustav Anderson

Also published at Frank Visser's Integral World site.  At the time of this interview, I was very ill and somewhat delirious.  The ideas are of interest, even if the mode of expression might be uneven.

Such a Body We Must Create: New Theses on Integral Micropolitics

by Daniel Gustav Anderson

First published in The Integral Review, 2008.  This is an attempt to think systematically through a rather eccentric archive.  The result is speculative and utopian, but hopefully it points to one way forward for the discourse of Consciousness Studies and Integral Theory.

Integral Theory After Wilber

by Daniel Gustav Anderson

An experiment in dialectical thinking

Integral Sustainable Design: transformative perspectives

by Mark DeKay

New book. Available from Amazon, Earthscan, or Routledge web sites

This book offers practical and theoretical tools for more effective sustainable design solutions and for communicating... more This book offers practical and theoretical tools for more effective sustainable design solutions and for communicating sustainable design ideas to today's diverse stakeholders.

It uses integral theory to make sense of the many competing ideas in this area and offers a powerful conceptual framework for sustainable designers through the four main perspectives of: behaviours; systems; experiences; cultures.

It also uses human developmental theory to reframe sustainable design across four levels of complexity present in society: the Traditional, Modern, Postmodern, and Integral waves. Profuse with illustrations and examples, the book offers many conceptual tools including:

• twelve principles of integral sustainable design
• sixteen prospects of sustainable design
• six perceptual shifts for ecological design thinking
• five levels of sustainable design aesthetics
• ten injunctions for designing connections to nature.

Toward a Sustainable Future: Integral Leadership in the New World Economy

by Brian McConnell

This paper was originally written for, and published in, the Integral Leadership Review:

http://integralleadershipreview.com/2581-toward-a-sustainable-future-integral-leadership-in-the-new-world-economy

Presenting a background of historical context, “Toward a Sustainable Future” offers an overview in the ascendancy of... more Presenting a background of historical context, “Toward a Sustainable Future” offers an overview in the ascendancy of neoliberal/neoconservative viewpoints constituting the world’s dominant socioeconomic ideology today. An AQAL framework is then introduced and subsequently examined as an aid to envisioning and ultimately adopting Integral approaches
capable of better supporting value(s) of human relatedness. In so doing, the article’s content aspires to empower today’s leaders to pioneer practical, sustainable, transformations in
community living and lifestyles.

Sri Aurobindo, the Mother, and the Integral Movement

by M Alan Kazlev

Originally published in the Spring 2011 issue of _Collaboration: Journal of the Integral Yoga of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother_  A few minor changes have been made with the present essay.

In this essay I consider the relation between the Integral Yoga of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother (Mirra Alfassa), and... more In this essay I consider the relation between the Integral Yoga of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother (Mirra Alfassa), and the Integral tradition of thought, especially its newest incarnation the (for sake of a better word) Integral movement.  Because Integral Yoga is a tradition that engages in the world, some observations are offered of ways that Sri Aurobindo, the Mother, and the Integral Yoga community might be able to contribute to the contemporary Integral movement, and conversely what, in a spirit of collaboration, the current academic and grass roots initiative within Integral philosophy might have to offer the Integral Yoga community.

Towards An Integral Career and Employment Counselling

by Durwin Foster

An Integral Approach to Counseling Ethics.

by Durwin Foster

Edited by Christopher Sink, Editor Counseling and Values Journal June 26, 2006 Version 2

by Durwin Foster

The Gamma Hypothesis

by Adam Kennedy

A phylogenetic theory of Human development,

Human consciousness has gone through several distinct permutations throughout history. These structural changes have... more Human consciousness has gone through several distinct permutations throughout history. These structural changes have been documented and supported by a wealth of anthropological, mythological, linguistic, artistic, philosophical, and scientific data. The human brain has not changed in over 200,000 years; yet, we have developed in language, art, technology, and culture.  These developments have stamped human beings with a unique identity, far superior to any other creature on the planet. Currently, there is a disagreement in theory as to how, or why, consciousness has shifted over time; however, there is overwhelming evidence that it is shifting again.

In the book, The Ever Present Origin, Jean Gebser puts forth a theory, which follows the progression and subsequent "mutation" of consciousness from the early hominid, to present day man, and into the future. These developments in consciousness, according to Gebser, occur because of the ever-changing relationship of human beings to space and time. Gebser argues that human consciousness is in transition; therefore, if consciousness mutated in the past, then it will, by simple logic, mutate again. Gebser's book effectively chronicles these changes in consciousness. Through his research into the past eras of human history, Gebser identifies four previous consciousness structures: Archaic, Magic, Mythic, and Mental. He also states that human beings are in the process of mutating into a new structure: Integral.

There is a direct link between these “structures” of consciousness and specific correlative brainwave states. This interconnection suggests that the human brain adapts to the new structure by adding a corresponding brainwave that aids in explicating and interpreting the new world coming into view. This suggests that the higher brainwaves in the known spectrum were yet dormant and inaccessible to early humans, and, as mutation occurred, there was a reciprocal unfolding of ever-higher frequency waves. This determination also reveals a profound relationship between the developmental growth of a human being, and the development of the species at large, shedding new light on the symmetrical recapitulation of ontogeny and phylogeny.
 
Based on data from Jean Gebser’s model, the Archaic structure of consciousness is directly associated with Delta brainwaves. Furthermore, the Magic structure is associated with Theta, the Mythic with Alpha, and the Mental with Beta brainwaves. This suggests that the new structure on the horizon, which is deemed Integral consciousness, will be accompanied by its’ very own set of brainwave patterns, those of the Gamma wave band.  Human beings have acquired brainwave frequencies well up into the Beta range. These brainwaves have been proven to predominate at various stages of development. They will also gain access to Gamma oscillations as their dominant frequency, which allow for higher mental cognition and neuronal synchronization. This will “integrate” the other brainwave states together; creating what philosopher Sri Aurobindo has termed the Supermind. Once this system is understood holistically, it will enable a transparent vision of our history, our future, and the development of consciousness. This, in turn, will unfold for each and every human being the very meaning of life.

Tribal Leadership from an Integral Perspective

by Brian McConnell

The following content has been adapted from excerpts in the 'Bridging Integral Leadership' section of a soon to be... more The following content has been adapted from excerpts in the 'Bridging Integral Leadership' section of a soon to be published paper entitled, "Inspiring a Miracle, Sharing the Dream: Adopting an Integral Model in Developing Sustainable Urban Communities".

Towards Epignosis (or not)

by Brian McConnell

This paper explores the meaning of ‘epignosis’ in respect to contemplative practice. By contrasting similarities... more This paper explores the meaning of ‘epignosis’ in respect to contemplative practice. By contrasting similarities between Fascist Europe and today's world, it proposes adopting a framework in developing 'integral awareness' as a means of redirecting a comparable path.