Point Omega Research omega http://wiki.omega-research.org/Main_Page MediaWiki 1.26.1 first-letter Media Special Talk User User talk Omega Research Omega Research talk File File talk MediaWiki MediaWiki talk Template Template talk Help Help talk Category Category talk Cite Cite talk 0 1 6922 6793 2017-01-24T10:38:06Z Baby Boy 2 /* Featured articles */ wikitext text/x-wiki '''Warning: we advise to read the [[Omega Research:General disclaimer|''disclaimer'']] of this Wiki first''' <br/><br/> '''Welcome to the <center><big style="font-size: 300%; line-spacing: .5em;">Point Omega Research Wiki</big> ''' <big style="font-size: 200%; line-spacing: .5em;"><b> (for understanding who we are,<br /> beyond superstition, answers to the "eternal" questions,<br /> with courage, integrity and intelligence) </b></big> </center> For an overview of this Wiki go to''':''' [[Omega Research:Map|Wiki map / Reading scheme / Overview / Contents]] ==About this wiki== * [[Omega Research:About#Disclaimer|Disclaimer]] * [[Omega Research:About#Goal of this site|Goal of this site]] * [[Omega Research:About#Definitions of "Point Omega"|Definitions of "Point Omega"]] * [[Omega Research:About#What this site is about and what it is not|What this site is about and what it is not]] ==Featured articles == * [[Point Omega (summary)]] * [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki|A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki (40 pages)]] * [[Learning from aversive experiences; the effect of timing]] * [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] * [[Striving, Playing and Learning]] * [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)|Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (C.E.L.) (1)]] * [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (C.E.L.)]] (2) * [[Energy and Strokes|Energy and Strokes: how the quality of relationships influences the process of learning and individual development]] * [[Why a Point Omega transition ?]] * [[Behaviorism versus Humanism, an Integration; Application of the Cognition Energy Learning Model (CEL) on an old controversy]] (under construction) * [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]] * [[Selection pressure for high as well as for low levels of intelligence in modern Homo sapiens]] (under construction) * [[ Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|Eating from the Forbidden Fruit: on the power of Good and Evil]] * [[Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality]] (under construction) * [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world]] (under construction) * [[The biological instability of social equilibria (abstract)]] * [[The biological instability of social equilibria]] * [[K.A.I. and Changes in Social Structures: on the Anatomy of Catastrophy]] * [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history]] * [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability]] (under construction) * [[Personality of Mice and Men; re-arranging personality dimensions in a six-dimensional adjective space]] * [[Personality Traits in terms of Social-Role Probabilities; an innovative theoretical essay on the possibility of overcoming the chaotic diversity in personality theories]] * [[Escaping from Chaos: Temperamental Personality Traits in terms of Social-Role Probabilities]] (to be added) * [[Why never peace ?]] (to be added) * [[The significance of the Point Omega transition]] (under construction) * [[Characteristics of human behaviour before and after Point Omega]] (to be added) * [[Directives for after Point Omega]] * [[Enlightenment]] (under construction) * [[What it means to be human]] (concept, schedule) == The [[Omega Research Foundation]] == This wiki is brought to you by the [[Omega Research Foundation]]. You might also be interested in our [http://blog.omega-research.org/ Weblog]. * [[Omega Research Foundation|Goals of foundation]] * [[Omega Research:Site support|How to contribute]] == Further reading, movie pictures, websites == * [[Videos and websites on related subjects]] * [[Movie pictures and websites on related subjects]] * Comments on Richard Dawkins' "[[The God Delusion]]" * Comments on John Gray's "[[Straw Dogs, Thoughts on Humans and Other Animals]]" * Comments on John Gray's "[[Black Mass, Apocalyptic Religion and the Death of Utopia]]" * Comments on Daniel Quinn's "[[Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure]]" * Comments on Ruiz * Comments on Eckhart Tolle's "[[A New Earth|A New Earth, Awakening to your life's purpose]]" * Comments on Kris Verburgh's "[[Fantastisch, over het universum in ons hoofd]]" * Comments on Amy Wallace's "[[Sorcerer's Apprentice, my life with Carlos Castaneda]]" * Article in Dutch on the innate human disposition for religion (see: Religie en Spiritualiteit - het Religieuze Brein) [http://www.skepsis.nl/s-frames.html] * List of Cognitive Biases in Humans [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases (from Wikipedia)] * [[Further reading|List of literature and references]] __NOTOC__ lie9cmpqg473bu0vhlnb0noc05g0k30 6 2 4 2007-03-20T15:52:46Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-03-20T15:52:46Z BigSmoke 1 Embrace-earth-white-background-200x200.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Embrace-earth-white-background-200x200.jpg 6065 hy3ujbghqubmwbjfyyshmf6t1x9ruyv Embrace-earth-white-background-200x200.jpg 12 3 11 10 2007-03-20T16:11:05Z BigSmoke 1 Tried to really fix redirect link this time. wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Help:Editing] fanq8f4yo2i734fpp37hm8cnguf6de7 2 5 5840 5004 2014-06-29T14:29:50Z BigSmoke 1 Better phrasing wikitext text/x-wiki BigSmoke is an alias for [[Rowan Rodrik van der Molen]]. That is a son of [[Popko Peter van der Molen]], the person who did the actual ''Omega Research''. I created this wiki (and the [http://blog.omega-research.org/ blog]) as a platform for my dad to persue his dream. That does not mean that I support or share particular philosophies or ideas featured here. I have some other web projects too: * [http://www.payformystay.com/ payformystay.com] * [http://15monkeys.com/ 15 Monkeys] * [http://www.worldwide-wilderness.com/ Worldwide Wilderness] * [http://wiki.hardwood-investments.net/Main_Page Hardwood Investments wiki] mp3y1fu7kxvm8zrch5zvkticcoz13dc 0 6 6757 6756 2017-01-16T14:21:57Z Baby Boy 2 /* One-sidedness of psychological theories */ wikitext text/x-wiki This article is a copy of the original article by [[Popko Peter van der Molen|Popko van der Molen]]. That paper was written as an answer to questions put forward by Ian Mathie, University College, Cardiff, and Bill Livant, University of Regina, Canada, at the International Symposium on Reversal Theory, University of Wales, Sept. 2 - 4, 1983. Their stimulating remarks during that conference are gratefully acknowledged. A modified version of this paper has been published in Acta Biotheoretica (Molen, P.P. van der (1984): "Bi-stability of emotions and motivations: An evolutionary consequence of the open-ended capacity for learning"). The implications of this theory for psychotherapy and growth-psychology have been published in {{Harvnb|Apter|Fontana|Murgatroyd|1985}} and in the British Journal of Guidance and Counselling [[#CITEREFMolen1986|(van der Molen,1986)]]. ---- '''(**) Abstract''' - One of the highest evolutionary achievements is the open-ended capacity for learning. This is the ability to acquire a behavioural repertoire which is specifically tailored to the environmental situation(s) an individual happens to live in. This capacity is best exploited if the individual's behavioural organization causes any surplus of energy to be invested in expanding and refining the repertoire, and adapting it to prevailing circumstances. Adaptations of the repertoire are most likely to have survival value if applicable to emergencies and other situations causing high arousal. Experience and skills are therefore maximizing fitness if acquired, and subsequently used, in arousal-evoking, and often risk involving, situations. Entering high-arousal situation, either voluntarily or involuntarily, however, may be harmful to the individual if the resulting state of high stress lasts too long to allow proper (neuro-)physiological functioning, or if too much risk is involved. An open-ended learning capacity is therefore maximally adding to survival if paired to two distinct tendencies: # a tendency to seek high-arousal evoking situations whenever surplus energy is available; and # a tendency to seek arousal reducing situations as soon as an emergency occurs or as soon as the surplus energy is exhausted. This suggests that a bi-stable "telic/paratelic" system of preferred levels of arousal, as described in Apter & Smith's theory of motivational reversals {{Harv|Apter|1982}}, can be considered an Evolutionary Stable Strategy (E.S.S.), as compared to homeostatic systems of arousal and motivation. __TOC__ == Introduction == '''(***)''' One of the most recent evolutionary achievements is an open-ended capacity for learning. This is the ability to acquire a behavioural repertoire which is specifically tailored to the environmental situation(s) an individual happens to live in. It will be argued here that this ability is highly enhanced by a bi-stable organization of motivation as described by Apter & Smith in their "reversal theory"(see {{Harvnb|Smith|Apter|1975}}<nowiki>;</nowiki> {{Harvnb|Apter|1976}}, [[#CITEREFApter1982|1982]]; {{Harvnb|Apter|Smith|1976a}}[[#CITEREFApterSmith1976b|b]][[#CITEREFApterSmith1976c|c]], [[#CITEREFApterSmith1977|1977]], [[#CITEREFApterSmith1979|1979]]; and {{Harvnb|Apter|Fontana|Murgatroyd|1985}}). In fact, it will be shown that the predisposition for such a bi-modal antagonist system of emotional and motivational reversals constitutes the basis of behavioural flexibility Pelt (this volume) is referring to. The present paper therefore deals with the dynamic structure of the biological substrate of what may be called "memes" {{Harv|Dawkins|1976}} or "culturgens" {{Harv|Lumsden|Wilson|1981}}. It deals, so to speak, with the interface between "genes" and "memes", between the "hardware" and the "software", as has occurred in man. Here we will deal with the motivational mechanisms taking care of the acquirement and the selection of "software" at the individual level. (For returning to the "Guided Tour", click [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Missing piece #1: the C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model)|here]]. For more detail, continue.) == Reversal Theory == '''(***)''' Let us first have a look at what this "reversal theory" is all about. Apter ([[#CITEREFApter1982|1982]]) introduced his reasons for proposing a model of motivational bi-stability as follows and as schematically pictured in Fig. 1. : Let us start by reflecting on a number of different situations in which different levels of arousal, high and low, can be experienced, and see if any pattern or structure can be discerned. : First of all reflect, if you will, on what it is like to be in a dentist's waiting room, about to have a filling. Focus on particular on the kind of arousal which you feel. Now imagine that you are soaking in a hot bath after a hard day's work, and again try to conjure up what the arousal which you experience in this situation feels like. Next, make believe that you are waiting for a bus which is taking a long time to come; you are not in a hurry so that there is no pressure of time, but you have nothing to read or take your attention. Finally, imagine yourself to be in a cinema watching a thriller film and the film has a particularly tense point. I thing you will agree that the arousal feels different in some important sense in each of these cases. : For one thing, of course, the amount of arousal which you feel will be different. If you are like most people, the level of arousal which you experience is likely to be high to some degree or another in two of the cases (waiting for the dentist and watching the film), whereas in the other two cases (waiting for bus and in the bath) it is likely to be rather low. : A second obvious way in which the arousal-experience will be found to differ is in terms of its pleasantness or unpleasantness. Again, two of the situations listed are likely to be found to involve unpleasant arousal (waiting for the bus and waiting for the dentist). Pleasantness and unpleasantness are not, therefore, simple reflections of the amount of arousal. : In terms of just these four examples, high arousal can be pleasant or unpleasant, and so can low arousal. In fact, there would appear to be at least four types of arousal experience. This is corroborated by the fact that there are four widely-used arousal words in everyday language which relate exactly to these four types: anxiety (unpleasant high arousal), excitement (pleasant high arousal), boredom (unpleasant low arousal) and relaxation (pleasant low arousal). : [[Image:Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png|frame|none|Figure 1. The very existence of colloquial labels for our emotions like ''relaxation'', ''boredom'', ''excitement'' and ''anxiety'' illustrates emotional/motivational bi-modality.]] Apter & Smith (1979) have generalized these and similar findings into a simple but comprehensive theory. One of the fundamental postulates of their theory is : [...] that certain psychological processes, especially certain motivational and emotional processes, exhibit bistability rather than homeostasis (i.e. unistability). Switching from one stable state to the other in a bistable system can be referred to as a "reversal" (hence the name of the theory) and may be brought about by a number of different factors. (See fig.2) : [[Image:Reversal between preferred level of arousal.png|frame|none|Figure 2. At certain times the individual seeks high arousal which is then felt as pleasant when achieved ("excitement"); at other times he reverses to a state in which he seeks low arousal, at which time high arousal is felt as unpleasant ("anxiety"). In the former case low arousal is felt as unpleasant ("boredom") and in the latter case low arousal is felt as pleasant ("relaxation"). (After Apter & Smith, 1979).]] : [[Image:Telic and paratelic pleasantness of different arousal levels.png|frame|none|Figure 3. Each hypothetical curve represents the relationship between arousal and affective tone for one of the two stable states. These two states are labels "telic" (goal-directed; from the Greek word "telos" = "goal, end, close") and "paratelic" (behaviour-directed) respectively. (After {{Harvnb|Apter|Smith|1979}}, with permission).]] Apter & Smith ([[#CITEREFApterSmith1979|1979]]) explain that the point of presenting the above figure 3 is to illustrate that the relationship between arousal and anxiety may not be linear but bi-variate: high levels of arousal may provoke anxiety in the telic state but may be regarded as both exciting and pleasurable in the paratelic. Thus this figure implies that, when the homeostatic nature of certain psychological processes is rejected in favor of bi-stable models of such processes, human action may be seen to be far more complex. Evidence of these relationships can be found in Apter ([[#CITEREFApter1976|1976]], [[#CITEREFApter1982|1982]]) and in Apter et al. ([[#CITEREFApterFontanaMurgatroyd1985|1985]]). It should be emphasized that the telic and paratelic states are self-perception-determined. That is, a person can be said to be in one or other of these states only as a result of the way in which he sees his own actions; it is not the actions themselves which identify the operative state an individual is experiencing. To illustrate this point, consider an individual driving a car at 130 mph. This action may be regarded by the individual performing it as telic if he is driving at this speed in order not to miss an important appointment very relevant to an essential business transaction. Alternatively, the individual may perceive his action as paratelic if he performs it because driving at high speed is thrilling and exciting. This point---that these states are self-perception-determined and may be examined only by reference to the individual's perception of his own action---is crucial to an understanding of the theory of reversals. This and other features of the theory involve a development and systematization of the notion {{Harv|Schachter|Singer|1962}} that particular emotions derive from the conjunction of a particular arousal level with a particular cognitive interpretation. == Difference with homeostatic theories == '''(***)''' The view of Apter & Smith on the relationship between felt arousal and affective tone contrasts sharply with Freudian theory, with 'drive-reduction' theory, and with optimal arousal theory, which are all homeostatic theories. The basis of Freud's earlier theory of motivation is the constancy or 'stability' principle, which he took over from Fechner ([[#CITEREFFechner1873|1873]]) and restated in the following terms: "The mental apparatus endeavours to keep the quantity of excitation present in it as low as possible or at least to keep it constant" {{Harv|Freud|1920}}. This principle dates back to the beginning of Freud's psychological work, and as early as 1888 he was writing of a "stable amount of excitation" {{Harv|Freud|1888}}. Apter ([[#CITEREFApter1982|1982]], p. 129) suggests that it forms the basis for Freud's pleasure principle, the idea being that 'unpleasure' is avoided if excitation (or 'tension') is kept constant or reduced to a minimum. In a similar way, reversal theory differs from, and is an essential addition to, other homeostatic theories of motivation; e.g., Lorenz'([[#CITEREFLorenz1950|1950]]) hydrolic models of (aggressible) behavior; Hull's ([[#CITEREFHull1943|1943]]) learning theory which assumes that all reinforcement, and therefore all learning, depends ultimately on the reduction of primary homeostatic drives; Zuckerman's theory ([[#CITEREFZuckerman1974|1974]], pp. 82, 136) on "sensation-seeking"; and Festinger's ([[#CITEREFFestinger1957|1957]]) theory of "cognitive dissonance". : From the perspective of reversal theory, then, most theories of motivation up to the present time have been at best little more than half theories: they have in the main dealt in their different ways with motivation in relation to the telic system, but not to the paratelic. {{Harv|Apter|1982|p=133}}. The alternating antagonistic telic and paratelic tendencies may be expressed at various levels and areas of functioning (see Table 1). [[Image:The telic and paratelic mode in relation to means-ends time and intensity.png|frame|none|Table 1. The Telic and Paratelic mode in relation to Means-Ends, Time and Intensity]] On explorative behavior and the familiarity/novelty opposition {{Harvnb|Smith|Apter|1975|pp=10,11}} write: : In the telic system, familiarity is the dominant member of the pair and novelty is the dominant member in the paratelic system. That is to say, in the telic system the organism searches for security and safety in order to reduce arousal; in the paratelic system it searches for novelty and surprise in order to increase arousal. However, calling exploration a drive as is now done widely, following the work of {{Harvnb|Butler|1953}}, {{Harvnb|Berlyns|1960}}, and others, implies that to discover new things is arousal reducing. Our claim is the contrary: namely that such discovery increases arousal and, in the paratelic state, this is in fact pleasurable. This idea therefore constitutes an attack on the assumption that all behaviour is governed by principles of drive-reduction. Whereas this "reversal theory" cannot be denied intrinsic elegance, it is not exceptionally attractive in terms of parsimony and simplicity, compared to models of drive-reduction, of homeostatis, and of optimum-arousal theory. As may be clear from the foregoing, Apter & Smith defended the introduction of their theory quite straightforwardly on the grounds of fitting better to the data. Below I will present another argument in favour of adopting reversal theory, an argument in terms of evolutionary stability of behavioural strategies. The evolutionary stability of the reversal system is linked directly to the existence of an open-ended learning capacity. But in order to see how a "reversal system of antagonistic motivational modes of behaviour" ties in with open-ended learning, and how it can be stable evolutionarily, we will first have to take a closer look at the organizational requirements and implications of the capacity for open-ended learning itself. == Requirements of open-ended learning == '''(***)''' If an open-ended learning capacity is present, it is of course best exploited if also a behavioral program is included which causes any surplus energy to be invested in expanding and refining the behavioural repertoire and in adaptations to prevailing circumstances. Surplus energy is to be understood here as the basis of physical and psychological preparedness for activity, i.e., after the various immediate goals, related to physiological and social needs have been fulfilled. There are, of course, differences between the various levels of energy, e.g., between the physical and the psychological level, but it is not necessary to differentiate here. Surplus energy on any one level may facilitate paratelic activity on the level in question. Even when being dead-tired physically, one may very well derive pleasure from arousal on a purely mental level, and the other way around. Furthermore, it matters what sort of experience and skills are gathered, and in what sort of situation. Most crucial to the individual are those experiences and skills that are applicable to emergencies and to other situations of vital importance. Skills are especially needed when much is at stake and when high risks are involved. Situations of vital importance in which much is at stake, are likely to be highly arousal inducing; and conversely, experiences and skills, learned in highly arousal inducing situations, are more likely to be applicable or transferable to emergencies and other vital situations than are experiences gathered in low-arousal situations. Whenever surplus-energy is available to be invested in the learning process, it seems therefore most advantageous if this energy is invested in high arousal inducing situations. On the other hand, high arousal inducing situations often imply relatively high risks and a relatively high probability of emergencies turning up. If one seeks excitement, one might get more arousal than one would appreciate; and this is felt then as anxiety. What, after all, is exciting (arousal inducing)? Exploration, the unfamiliar, experimentation with situations and social roles, play, spontaneity, etc. are; and such behavioral tendencies are likely to lead sooner or later to unforeseen problems or to outright emergencies. Emergencies and other problem situations evoke high arousal and other behavioral adaptations useful for immediate and short-lasting top-performance. But such adaptations for emergency peak performance are harmful to the individual if they last too long. A neuro-physiologically strong activation of the sympathetic system has to give way after some time to the activation of the parasympathetic system; if not, lasting damage to the individual's organs will occur and physiological balance will not be restored. It is therefore essential for an individual to stop seeking arousal (excitement) as soon as exploration, play, spontaneous experimentation, or any other excitement-seeking behavior has run out of hand and an emergency had arisen (anxiety), or as soon as his surplus-energy has been exhausted (fatigue). In summary, the survival value of an open-ended learning capacity is maximized, if paired to two tendencies: # The tendency to seek high-arousal-evoking situation whenever surplus-energy is available; and # the antagonistic tendency to seek arousal-reducing situations as soon as an emergency occurs, or as soon as the surplus-energy has been exhausted. Such elaborations may seem a bit superfluous and self-evident, but combination of these two requirements in fact implies a departure from optimum-arousal theory, and from principles of drive-reduction. In fact, these requirements are met perfectly by a bi-modal organization of motivation as described by Apter and Smith's hypothesis. It is therefore concluded that, given the possibility of a telic/paratelic system of antagonistic motivational states, an open-ended learning capacity without such a system can never be an Evolutionary Stable Strategy (E.S.S.) {{Harv|Molen|1984}}[[#CITEREFMolen1985|1985]]. == Function of the motivational states in the process of learning == '''(***)''' Having concluded that a reversal system of telic and paratelic antagonistic motivational states is a behavioural adaptation to maximize the effect of an open-ended learning capacity, we still need to find out how the learning process works as seen in the light of that reversal system. One commonly occurring sequence of changes between different types of experienced arousal is depicted in Figure 4b (see Apter, 1982, p. 100). It is important to note that a reversal from relaxation 1 to boredom 2 (as indicated in Fig. 4b) is not just dependent on a quick and sufficient decrease of the arousal level, but that some time is required during which the state of relaxation must last and grow deep enough for the telic state to become satiated. In other words, after anxiety has been overcome successfully by effective attempts to reduce the level of arousal, the individual needs some time to restore mental and physical equilibrium to the extent as is necessary for the paratelic state to emerge again. In fact, as was explained in [[#Requirements_of_open-ended_learning|Section 4]], the shift to the paratelic state can be assumed to depend on the availability of surplus-energy which can be invested in gathering experience and information. Furthermore, reversal from excitement 3 to anxiety 4 (Figure 4b) is not always simply facilitated by a gradual increase of arousal during the paratelic, arousal-seeking mode of behavior, but occurs often very suddenly because of an emergency situation (reversal by contingency). After all, paratelic behavior is non-telic, i.e., goal-less and open-ended. As was pointed out above, an individual in a paratelic state is therefore likely to encounter novel, unfamiliar situations from which emergencies may arise all of a sudden. The paratelic behavior state is, by its open-ended and exploratory nature, important for the process of expanding the behavioral repertoire. However, experiences gathered in the telic state are also of vital importance. In that state the effectiveness of acquired skills and experiences is further tested and modified during serious attempts to escape from anxiety-evoking emergencies. It is therefore not just the paratelic, behavioral expansive, exploratory state which is important for the process of learning, but rather the sequence of changes as depicted in Figure 4, including all the different aspects of striving and playing, agony and pleasure, involved. From this it follows that if this sequence of changes in moods and strategies is hampered, for instance by a persistent inability to attain relaxation when in the telic state, the process of learning is essentially impeded. And such an inability to attain relaxation may stem from internal factors (unskills) as well as from unfavourable environmental factors. [[Image:Reversal system of antagonistic motivations.png|frame|none|Figure 4. Reversal system of antagonistic motivations. '''a.''' "Telic" and "Paratelic" moods may be considered as antagonistic motivational states. '''b.''' The dynamic process of motivational reversals steers the acquirement and the processing of experiences. A common sequence in this dynamic process is depicted here. If an individual can muster sufficient skills to reach and consolidate relaxation after having arrived in a telic state, his state of relaxation will after some time reverse into boredom, which implies reversal from a telic to a paratelic frame of mind. After having succeeded in the paratelic state to become sufficiently strong stimulated and aroused as to fulfil the—paratelic—desire for excitement, the strongly stimulating situation in question may eventually prove to cause too much arousal to bear. At that moment excitement reverses into anxiety, which implies reversal from the paratelic back to the telic state.]] == Learning-drive mechanisms == '''(***)''' Because of its biological significance, it should be stressed here again that this learning mechanism is basically involuntary. In fact, this accounts for the "drive" for self-actualization in humanistic psychological theory. In the normal, healthy case, the telic and the paratelic state reverse sooner or later into each other automatically. And because of the open-ended character of paratelic behavior, the individual will time and again be launched willy-nilly into unexpected trouble. By seeking high arousal (excitement) whenever surplus-energy is available, experience is likely to be gathered involuntarily in situations of such gravity that they seem undesirable if foreseen. Examples of how the above mentioned sequences of motivational changes occur, and indications of their importance for the processes of learning and development, may be derived from the work of various authors (Maslow, [[#CITEREFMaslow1963|1963]], [[#CITEREFMaslow1968|1968, pp. 46-47]]; Ainsworth, [[#CITEREFAinsworth1977|1977]]; Bowlby, [[#CITEREFBowlby1969|1969]], [[#CITEREFBowlby1977|1977]], 1979[[#CITEREFBowlby1979a|a]][[#CITEREFBowlby1979b|b]]; van de Rijt-Plooij, [[#CITEREFRijtPlooij1986|1986]]). They point out that growth occurs in small steps, and that each step ahead is facilitated by a feeling of security (telic). There is a necessity for 'points of reference' where one may seek refuge and rest every time when, after a long enough bout of exploration, the individual has, for the moment, reached his 'tax' of experience. This is clearly visible in the behavior of young children. For a young child which is, for instance, entering a new environment with its mother, it is characteristic to first cling to mother's knee while exploring the room with its eyes. After a while it moves away a little, while checking its mother's presence constantly. Subsequently, the excursions extend further and further away, while physical or eye contact with the mother is re-established time and again in between the (paratelic) explorations. In this way a child may explore and become acquainted with a dangerous and unknown world. If the mother suddenly disappeared, the child would grow timid and lose interest in reconnaisance of the world. It would merely be interested in getting back (telic), and may even lose command of already acquired skills---thus crawling instead of walking for example. The child does not particularly 'strive' to enlarge experience and knowledge of the new setting. Rather, it expresses its curiosity in a balanced alternation with the need for safety and reassurance {{Harv|Bowlby|1977|pp=204-206}}. In such a way, the need to explore (paratelic) and the need for safety (telic) involuntarily help to bring about a proper sequence of experience and of opportunity to 'digest' such experience. Bowlby empirically showed that for children it is of crucial importance to have opportunity to attain relaxation by being offered reassurance by a significant adult whenever they need it. If there is not enough reassuring support for the child and not enough opportunity for relaxation (no satisfaction of telic tendencies), the behavioural repertoire will not develop properly, and as a result neuroticism and other forms of behavioural imperfections will eventually develop (see e.g., {{Harvnb|Plooij|1979}}; {{Harvnb|Davenport|1979}}). The same has experimentally been shown in chimpanzees. Van de Rijt-Plooij & Plooij ([[#CITEREFRijtPlooij1986|1986]]) and Plooij ([[#CITEREFRijtPlooij1984|1984]]) presented evidence that insufficient caretaking may cause a delay of many months for chimpanzee babies in taking their first steps. So, the peculiar picture emerges that a young chimpanzee walks earlier, if it has sufficient opportunity to hang-on to its mother's body. Whereas this may sound somewhat contradictory at face-value, it is quite plausible in the light of the theory developed above. Chronic lack of reassuring (physical) support may not only lead to a delayed development, but may even lead to illness and eventually death {{Harvnb|Rijt|Plooij|1982}}. On the other hand, maternal aggression and reluctance to respond to the infant's demands with reassurance and physical support, is not necessarily harmful. As van de Rijt-Plooij & Plooij ([[#CITEREFRijtPlooij1986|1986]]) point out, one of the essential tasks of the mothers at certain developmental stages is to actively "push" the infant over a threshold beyond which new behavioural systems may be triggered and exercised, leading to a next-higher level of maturation and autonomous functioning. Whereas such a maternal "urging" may involve considerable amounts of aggression and some denial of previous support patterns, the behavioural development of young chimpanzees can be seriously impeded if their mother fails to urge them sufficiently to make them start performing different and for the infant novel behaviours. In Selye's ([[#CITEREFSelye1978|1978]]) words, such maternal pressure and aggression and its emotional effect on the infant, geared to promote the learning process, could be labelled as "eu-stress". Selye argues that a certain frequency of stressful events is a prerequisite for optimal development (see Fig. 5). [[Image:Stress for Health.png|thumb|400px|none|Figure 5. Stress for Health (by kind permission of Arend van Dam)]] == Positive and negative learning spirals == '''(***)''' The Reversal Theory of antagonist motivational states may give us also more detailed clues as to the factors determining whether certain stressful events will in the long run lead to # a cumulation of avoidance- and defence-reactions and to neuroticism and other behavioural deficiencies, or to # a gradual mastering and digestion of the stressful experiences, leading to more integrated skills and abilities in that particular area. It can in particular give us insight in the effect of given (physical) support and emotional security and reassurance on the processing of such stress-experiences. To that end we have to focus on the content of experience, rather than merely on its emotional flavour. An experience which is very frightening (anxiety producing) in a telic mood, may, because of its arousal raising properties, be attractive in a paratelic mood (i.e., intriguing). In particular, if there is ample opportunity for relaxation and recovery, more and more experience with the former source of anxiety may be facilitated in the successive paratelic states, until eventually enough experience with the situation in question has been gathered in order for this situation to have lost most of its arousal raising properties. By that time the situation has become either boring (paratelic) or reassuring because of its familiarity (telic), depending on the prevailing meta-motivational state. In other words, the situation has been 'mastered', and the formerly rough experience has been successfully 'digested'. If, however, insufficient time and relaxation can be attained after every harsh experience, as to cause satiation of the telic state, the sequence as depicted in Figure 4, which is considered essential for the process of learning to occur in a satisfactory way, will be impeded. Instead of a 'final assimilation' of the experiences on a high level of integration, accumulation and fixation of defence- and avoidance-reactions on a rather simple, rough-and-ready level of functioning will then occur (see Figure 6) (see {{Harvnb|Peterfreund|1971}} for more material on this effect). In the case of optimum sequences of anxiety⇒relaxation⇒boredom⇒excitement⇒anxiety⇒relaxation⇒etc., experiences can be assimilated successfully and be transformed into highly integrated skills. And the increase in the variety of skills and in flexibility will then in turn facilitate telic/paratelic motivational reversals with sufficient time in the paratelic state, as is optimal for a further growth of skills and flexibility. The other part of Figure 6 represents the opposite option. Both options are based on positive feed-back, the one resulting in a learning spiral with favourable results (a "positive learning spiral"), and the other one ending in an ever increasing accumulation of stereotyped reflexes and rigidity, with unfavourable consequences for further coping and learning (a "negative learning spiral"). The more situations and experiences of any kind have been experiences, re-experienced, and subsequently digested and masted, and thus have become familiar and maybe even reassuring, the easier it is to attain relaxation in any one problematic situation inducing the telic state. And this is the more likely if the previously mastered situations and settings are in some way related to that particular problematic situation in question. [[Image:Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on proper rhythms of telic paratelic alternations.png|frame|none|Figure 6. Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on the ability to establish proper rhythms of Telic/Paratelic alternations. Whether experiences are processed merely into stereotyped emergency-and avoidance-reflexes or into a high-level integration of skills and information, depends on the rhythm of emotional/motivational reversals: inability to reach relaxation⇒lower general skills level⇒lower ability to reach relaxation when needed⇒etc. (and vice versa).]] Well-integrated experience and skills are most easily applicable in situations to which those experiences and skills bear some relevance. New skills and fields of mastery are therefore most likely to develop in areas of experience which are in some way related to other, already properly integrated and mastered areas of experience. Skills therefore tend to grow in clusters, and conversely, unskills (sets of stereotyped avoidance reaction patterns) also tend to grow in clusters (see Figure 7). [[Image:Outcome of the growth of positive and negative COEX systems.png|thumb|600px|none|Figure 7. Hypothetical example of the outcome of the growth of positive (+) and negative (-) systems of COndensed EXperience in the "field" of experience. Badly and superficially digested experiences (rendering stereotyped and rigid emergency reflexes) decrease the likelihood of a proper digestion of experiences in related areas of life, and vice versa. This accounts for Grof's ([[#CITEREFGrof1976|1976]]) positive and negative COEX-systems (systems of COndensed EXperience). Negative COEX-systems are e.g. fears, phobias, neuroses and consciousness blocks. This figure of course just represents a two-dimensional projection of the basically multidimensional space of all possible COEX-systems. Distances on the X and Y axes indicate a measure of unrelatedness of the experience.]] == Positive and negative clusters of COndensed EXperience == '''(***)''' A cluster of 'unskills' (see Figure 6) can sometimes be labelled as a "phobia" or as a specific form of 'neurosis', and indeed this is the case if the cluster of frightening items is—for the onlooker (e.g., a therapist)—easily recognizable as a 'special' setting. However, according to the view presented here, a behavioural repertoire which is just neurotic in general, may also be considered as an individual-specific set of phobias, resulting in a general restlessness, anxiety and unpreparedness for stress-evoking stimuli from the environment. This prediction about the occurrence of clusters of related skills on the one hand, and of frightening and not-mastered items on the other, is supported and illustrated by the findings of the depth-psychological investigator and psycho-therapist Grof (1972, 1973, 1976). He analyzed some 2000 protocols of therapeutic L.S.D. sessions and concluded that for a more complete understanding of these sessions as well as of the personality structures involved, a new principle would have to be introduced into psychoanalytical thinking, which he called the principle of "specific memory constellations" or "COEX-systems" (systems of COndensed EXperience; see Table 2). : [...] A COEX system can be defined as a specific constellation of memories consisting of condensed experiences (and related fantasies) from different life periods of the individual. The memories belonging to a particular COEX system have a similar basic theme or contain similar elements and are associated with a strong emotional charge of the same quality. {{Harv|Grof|1976|p=46}}. : [...] The nature of these themes varies considerable from one COEX constellation to another [...] {{Harv|Grof|1976|p=47}}. And he discussed for instance: systems connected with sex, systems that involve aggression and violence, systems related to humiliation and degradation damaging to the self-esteem, systems connected with guilt and moral failure, systems connected with emotional deprivation and rejection, etc. : [...] The personality structure usually contains a greater number of COEX systems. Their character, total number, extent, and intensity varies considerable from one individual to another. According to the basic quality of the emotional charge, we can differentiate negative COEX systems (condensing unpleasant emotional experiences) and positive COEX systems (condensing pleasant emotional experiences and positive aspects of an individual's past life). Although there are certain interdependencies and overlappings, separate COEX systems can function relatively autonomously. In a complicated interaction with the environment, the influence selectively the subject's perception of himself and of the world, his feeling and ideation, and even many somatic processes.[...] (ibid., pp. 47, 49). {| border="1" cellpadding="2" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" |+ style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto;" | Table 2. Negative and Positive COEX-Systems. Experiences which have previously been digested badly, and have thus been turned into a negative COEX-system (phobia, neurosis, etc.), may gradually be reprocessed and re-digested afterwards. This happens automatically if sufficient paratelic states do occur, since "frightening" issues may be considered "intriguing" in the paratelic state, precisely because they are arousal inducing. |- ! colspan="2" | COEX - systems (Systems of COndensed EXperience) |- !negative COEX-systems !positive COEX-systems |- |flight/fight responses |stay/play responses |- |behavioural rigidity |flexibility of reactions |- |stereotyped reflexes |creative responses |- |unskills |skills |- |aversion from |enjoyment of |- |phobia's |interest in |- |neuroses |mastery of |- |consciousness blocks<br/>(unconscious repressions) |awareness of |} Comparison of Table 2 with Table 1 shows that Grof's negative COEX-systems can be associated with a telic orientation whereas positive COEX-systems should rather be associated with a paratelic orientation. One well-investigated and discussed example of a negative coex-system is Seligman's (see Kalma, this volume) "learned helplessness" syndrome. Seligman's experiments showed the incapacitating effect of the experiences inability of solving a stressful situation. The experimental setting enters into a negative COEX-system and every following experience of the sort is further consolidating a stereotyped and inadequate attitude in situations which are perceived as similar. == An illustration: the Neurotic Paradox explained == '''(***)''' The gradual successive growth of COEX systems by the mechanism of positive feedback—in the cybernetic sense—as described, could account for the latency of "incubation" period between the original traumatic events and actual neurotic or even psychotic breakdowns later in life. Manifest psychopathological symptoms seem to occur at a time when the COEX system reaches a certain critical extension, and traumatic repetitions contaminate important areas of the patient's life and interfere with the satisfaction of his basic needs. It accounts also for what Mowrer ([[#CITEREFMowrer1950|1950]]) indicated as the "neurotic paradox": the phenomenon that a basically adaptive mechanism, the acquirement of avoidance-responses, can be the basis for the acquisition of seeming maladaptive behaviour patterns, i.e., if a too strong and too continuous accumulation of such avoidance-patterns occurs. In fact, the above described mechanism (negative learning spirals) of the gradual growth of clusters of stereotyped avoidance reactions (negative COEX systems) accounts effectively for some frequently discussed empirical data that have been difficult to reconcile with classical conditioning theory, viz. the growth and perseverance of neurotic behavior patterns. I quote from Eysenck ([[#CITEREFEysenck1979|1979, p. 158]]) (but see also Bindra's, Bolle's, and Öhmen & Ursins's commentaries on Eysenck, in {{Harvnb|Eysenck|1979}}): : In many neuroses we not only fail to observe the expected extinction of the unreinforced 'Conditioned Stimulus', but we find an incremental (enhancement) effect, such that the unreinforced Conditioned Stimulus actually produces more and more anxiety ('Conditioned Response') with each presentation of the Conditioned Stimulus. : [...] the final 'Conditioned Response' (the neurotic breakdown) is stronger (involves more anxiety) than the original 'UnConditioned Response'. This goes counter to all we know of the general fate of UnConditioned Responses; these are known to habituate, rather than to increase in strength[...] In [..] neuroses, traumatic original 'Unconditioned Stimuli' are distinctly rare ({{Harvnb|Lautsch|1971}}; {{Harvnb|Gourney|O'Connor|1971}}); in the majority of cases there is some sort of insidious onset, without any single event that could be called "traumatic" even by lenient standards ({{Harvnb|Rachman|1968}}; {{Harvnb|Marks|1969}}). Whereas Eysenck takes great pains to squeeze these well-known clinical phenomena into a revised form of classical conditioning theory, which is basically a homeostatic theory (e.g., there is a tending for conditioned responses to return to the unconditioned strengths over time unless new conditioning occurs), the same phenomena may serve as perfect illustrations of the—non-homeostatic—theory of learning as developed in these pages, and of Grof's theory of COEX-systems. These characteristics of neuroses perfectly illustrate the negative options of these theories, viz. 'negative' learning spirals and 'negative' systems of COndensed EXperience, as well as the dynamic, non-static aspects thereof (see also Bolles' commentary in Eysenck, [[#CITEREFEysenck1979|1979]]). My model of motivational antagonists and learning processes predicts under which conditions a certain source of arousal (ambivalent stimulus) will enter into a 'negative' COEX-system with clusters of stereotyped avoidance reflexes, rather than to be 'digested' properly and to be integrated in a positive COEX-system with clusters of high-level skills. It all depends on the contingencies already present (innate, learned, or structured in the environment), and on the prevailing telic/paratelic motivational balance in the individual concerned (see also Bindra's commentary in Eysenck, [[#CITEREFEysenck1979|1979]]). Mowrer's ([[#CITEREFMowrer1950|1950]]) "neurotic paradox" is therefore no paradox at all, since it is based on a misconceived homeostatic character of the process of learning. == "Trying very hard" and the process of learning == '''(***)''' From the above it may be concluded that for acquiring skills in dealing with a certain setting it is generally speaking of much more importance that in and around that setting an adequate rhythm of telic and paratelic states is maintained, with sufficient paratelic bouts, than that one consciously "tries very hard" to master that specific setting in question. Trying hard is typically a telic attitude. By trying very hard one may indeed gather relevant experiences in that setting. However, as this novel theory about the learning system explains, only by a proper sequence of telic and paratelic states with sufficient paratelic states the individual will in the end achieve "mastery" of the setting in question. It is especially in the paratelic bouts that the organism automatically and involuntarily by "curiosity" seeks out those experiences and those (sub-)settings that are best suited to fill out the "gaps" in the experience gathered up to that moment in time. That way the individual is enabled to automatically glue together the bits and pieces of experiences already gathered before. The telic / paratelic meta-motivational system has evolved to find the optimal balance between experiences that are without risk, but not very informative and experiences that are very relevant, but perhaps still too risky and difficult to handle. This motivational system steering curiosity in the most useful and fruitful direction operates involuntarily and unconsciously. Trying very hard to acquire the desired experiences may therefore be counterproductive if its effect is a continuation of too frequent and long lasting bouts of telic states, blocking the emergence of sufficient paratelic meta-motivational states in between. The conclusion is that in any setting where a person seeks mastery, "trying very hard" should be applied very carefully. It may be useful to try one's best, but for optimal results there should be (created) enough space and time for paratelic states to emerge frequently enough. Curiosity, seeking its own direction, should have enough space to operate as it has evolved for. == One-sidedness of psychological theories == '''(***)''' Kalma (this volume) pointed out that in all major theories in the field of cognitive social psychology, the need for uncertainty-reduction is implied. The present theory of learning, based on the notion of an antagonist Telic/Paratelic motivational and emotional system, clarifies, however, that all these theories primarily deal with the Telic aspects of behavior, and are therefore basically one-sided. Kalma mentions amongst other things the "false consensus bias", the "actor-observer fundamental attribution error" (which means that the observer tends to disregard the effects of situations on their people's actions, focusing on their personal dispositions, while looking at themselves as reacting on situational events), the "cognitive dissonance" theory, "conformity defying available information", "ingroup-outgroup differentiation", dominance tendencies, dogmatism, rigidity, etc.. These concepts and behavioral models are all quite adequate description of the "reactive", telic part of the behavioral system, in which the individual seeks clarification, order and certainty in order to reduce arousal, even at the cost of a proper assessment of the situation. But all these theories fail to cover the paratelic side of our behavior. "Strange means dangerous", but this only holds in the light of the telic state. In the paratelic state, "strange" means "exciting" which is then felt as pleasant and thus not avoided, but even sought! The "actor-observer fundamental attribution error" is said to be stronger under stressful and ambiguous conditions. The present theory of learning states even more, namely that this cognitive behavioral effect is typical for the telic arousal-avoiding state, and that in the paratelic state there is no need for this sort of make-believe certainty, precisely because ambiguity, unpredictability of other people's behavior, as well as a feeling of not being in control of the situation, are all exciting. Similarly, cognitive dissonance may be avoided at the cost of objective assessment when in the telic state, but in the paratelic state cognitive dissonance is rather associated with mirth or with evoked curiosity. Hitherto, the paratelic, arousal-seeking side of behavior seems to be generally neglected in psychological theory. And since the paratelic states are the very basis of exploration, exercise and behavioral expansion, it is not very surprising that, similarly, psychological theories on "growth impulses" or on a behavioral expansive "learning drive", which forms the basis of humanistic psychological theory, are not too popular in scientific circles. Evidently, this attitude is not warranted by the present theory [[#CITEREFMolen1985|(see van der Molen, 1985)]]. == Behavioural idiosyncrasies and the dimension of "self-actualization" == '''(***)''' The organization of experience in positive COEX-systems and "skills", and and in negative COEX-systems and "un-skills", as predicted by the present theory of learning, has two important implications for the way people differ from one another. On the one hand, the way the COEX-sytems come into existence and grow, readily explains the considerable behavioral idiosyncrasies among individuals. This learning system is basically open-ended, and consequently the available options of what is going to be learned are practically infinite. After all, this utterly flexible learning system is a recent and very special evolutionary achievement, providing a maximum potential for adaptation, a potential which is in particular characteristic for the human species. On the other hand, as has been pointed out in [[#Positive and negative learning spirals|Section 7]] (see Figure 6), different "skills", no matter how unrelated they may seem (but, the more related, the better), enhance a further growth of skills in general, while unskills tend to hamper a further growth of skills. The present theory therefore predicts that, apart from striking idiosyncrasies in the behavioral repertoires, individuals will tend to differ in some over-all level of skills. As a consequence, a dimension of 'general level of skills', or 'general rigidity versus flexibility', or 'general level of actualization of behavioral repertoire', or 'general growth level', or 'general level of exploratory and creative behavior', or whatever label one wishes to use, is likely to account for a substantial portion of the interindividual differences in behavior. And this runs essentially parallel to the basic idea in humanistic psychology of a dimension of 'self-actualization' being one of the most important sources of interindividual differences. (It should, however, be clear from the foregoing that according to the present theory of learning, no value-criterion can be attached to the notion of self-actualization, other than merely in terms of the smoothness with which the learning is running, and of the general level of skills acquired.) Whereas it may be seen as a source of "basic injustice" that the already favored learn best and easiest, this mechanism is boosting biological selection. Differences in genetic make-up will also tend to become amplified phenotypically, and as a consequence the speed of selection is increased. And such a booster effect on selective forces can in itself be regarded as another important asset of the mechanism of open-ended learning as paired to a reversal system of antagonistic motivational states, an asset which adds to its Evolutionary Stability. == Acknowledgment == This paper was written as an answer to questions put forward by Ian Mathie, University College, Cardiff, and Bill Livant, University of Regina, Canada, at the International Symposium on Reversal Theory, University of Wales, Sept. 2 - 4, 1983. Their stimulating remarks during that conference are gratefully acknowledged. A modified version of this paper has been published in Acta Biotheoretica. The implications of this theory for psychotherapy and growth-psychology have been published in {{Harvnb|Apter|Fontana|Murgatroyd|1985}}. (For returning to the "Guided Tour", click [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Missing piece #1: the C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model)|here]]) == References == {{Citation | last=Ainsworth | first=M.D.S. | year=1977 | chapter=Social development in the first year of life: maternal influences on infant-mother attachment | editor-first=J.M. | editor-last=Tanner | title=Developments in psychiatric research | place=London | publisher=Tavistock }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1976 | title=Some data inconsistent with the optimal arousal theory of motivation | periodical=Perceptual and Motor Skills | issue=43 | pages=1209-1210 }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1981 | title=Reversal theory: making sense of felt arousal | periodical=New Forum | issue=8 | pages=27-30 }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1982 | title=The experience of motivation: a theory of psychological reversals | place=London | publisher=Academic Press }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1976a | chapter=Humour and the theory of psychological reversals | editor1-first=A.J. | editor1-last=Chapman | editor2-first=H.C. | editor2-last=Fast | title=It's a funny thing: humour | place=Oxford | publisher=Pergamon Press }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1976b | title=Psychological reversals: some new perspectives on the family and family communication. Paper presented at the First International Family encounter, Mexico City. }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1976c | title=Negativism in adolescence | periodical=The Counsellor | issue=23/24 | pages=25-30 }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1977 | title=Religion and the theory of psychological reversals. Second Lancaster Colloquium on the Psychology of Religion, January 1977, Plater College, Oxford }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1979 | chapter=Sexual behaviour and the theory of psychological reversals. | editor1-first=M. | editor1-last=Cook | editor2-first=G. | editor2-last=Wilson | title=Love and Attraction | place=Oxford | publisher=Pergamon Press }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Fontana | first2=D. | last3=Murgatroyd | first3=S. | year=1985 | title=Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments | place=Cardiff, U.K. | publisher=University College Cardiff Press }} {{Citation | last=Berlyne | first=D.E. | year=1960 | title=Conflict, arousal and curiosity | place=New York | publisher=McGraw-Hill }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first=J. | year=1969 | title=Attachment and loss | volume=I, Attachment | place=New York | publisher=Basic Books }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first=J. | year=1977 | title=The making and breaking of affectional bonds; expanded version of the fiftieth Maudsley Lecture, 19-11-1976 | periodical=British Journal of Psychiatry | issue=130 | pages=201-210 & 421-431 }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first=J. | year=1979a | title=By ethology out of psychoanalysis: an experiment in interbreeding | periodical=Animal behaviour | issue=28 | pages=649-656 }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first=J. | year=1979b | title=Psychoanalysis as art and science | periodical=International Review of Psycho-Analysis | issue=6(3) | pages=1-14 }} {{Citation | last=Butler | first=R.A. | year=1953 | title=Discrimination learning by Rhesus monkeys to visual-exploration motivation | periodical=Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology | issue=46 | pages=95-98 }} {{Citation | last=Davenport | first=R.K. | year=1979 | chapter=Some behavioral disturbances of great apes in captivity | editor1-first=D.A. | editor1-last=Hamburg | editor2-first=E.R. | editor2-last=McCown | title=The Great Apes, Perspectives on human evolution | volume=V | place=Menlo Park, Calif | publisher=Benjamin/Cummings }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=R. | year=1976 | title=The Selfish Gene | place=Oxford | publisher=Oxford University Press }} {{Citation | last=Eysenck | first=H.J. | year=1979 | title=The conditioning model of neurosis | periodical=The Behavioral and Brain Sciences | issue=2 | pages=155-199 }} {{Citation | last=Eysenck | first=H.J. | year=1980 | title=The conditioning model of neurosis | periodical=The Behavioral and Brain Sciences | issue=3 | pages=459-482 }} {{Citation | last=Fechner | first=G.T. | year=1873 | title=Einige Ideen zur Schöpfungs- und Entwicklungsgeschichte der Organismen | place=Leipzig }} {{Citation | last=Festinger | first=L. | year=1957 | title=A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance | place=Evanston, III. - White Plants, N.Y. | publisher=Row, Peterson & Cy }} {{Citation | last=Freud | first=S. | year=1888 | chapter=Hysterie | editor-first=A. | editor-last=Villaret | title=Handwörterbuch der gesamten Medizin | issue=1 | pages=886-892 | place=Stuttgart }}<!-- TODO: Include info on translation --> {{Citation | last1=Gourney | first1=A.B. | last2=O'Connor | first2=P.J. | year=1971 | title=Anxiety associated with flying | periodical=British Journal of Psychiatry | issue=119 | pages=159-166 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1972 | title=Varieties of transpersonal experiences: observations from L.S.D. psychotherapy | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=4 | pages=45-80 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1973 | title=Theoretical and empirical basis of transpersonal psychology and psychotherapy: observations from L.S.D. research | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=5 | pages=15-54 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1976 | title=Realms of the Human Unconscious. Observations from L.S.D. Research | place=New York | publisher=Dutton }} {{Citation | last=Hull | first=C.L. | year=1943 | title=Principles of Behavior | place=New York | publisher=Appleton-Century-Crofts }} {{Citation | last=Lautsch | first=H. | year=1971 | title=Dental phobia | periodical=British Journal of Psychiatry | issue=119 | pages=151-158 }} {{Citation | last=Lorenz | first=K. | year=1950 | title=The comparative method in studying innate behaviour patterns. Symposia of the Society for Experimental Biology, Vol. 4 | pages=221-268 }} <!-- Missing info --> {{Citation | last1=Lumsden | first1=C.J. | last2=Wilson | first2=E.O. | year=1981 | title=Genes, Mind and Culture | place=Cambridge, Mass. | publisher=Harvard University Press }} {{Citation | last=Marks | first=I.M. | year=1969 | title=Fears and Phobias | place=London | publisher=Academic Press }} {{Citation | last=Maslow | first=A.H. | year=1963 | title=The need to know and the fear of knowing | periodical=The Journal of General Psychology | issue=68 | pages=111-125 }} {{Citation | last=Maslow | first=A.H. | year=1968 | title=Toward a Psychology of Being | place=New York | publisher=Van Nostrand Reinhold (quotation from 1962 edition) }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1984 | title=Bi-stability of emotions and motivations: An evolutionary consequence of the open-ended capacity for learning | periodical=Acta Biotheoretica | issue=33 | pages=227-251 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1985 | chapter=Learning, self-actualization and psychotherapy | editor1-first=M.J. | editor1-last=Apter | editor2-first=D. | editor2-last=Fontana | editor3-first=S. | editor3-last=Murgatroyd | title=Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments | pages=103-116 | place=Cardiff, U.K. | publisher=University College Cardiff Press }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1986 | title=Reversal theory, learning and psychotherapy: On using the theory of motivational reversals for explaining the dynamics of psychological growth | periodical=British Journal of Guidance and Counselling }} {{Citation | last=Mowrer | first=O.H. | year=1950 | title=Learning Theory and Personality Dynamics | place=New York | publisher=Arnold Press }} {{Citation | last=Peterfreund | first=E. | year=1971 | title=Information, Systems and Psychoanalysis. An evolutionary biological approach to psychoanalytical theory | place=New York | publisher=International University Press }} {{Citation | last=Plooij | first=F.X. | year=1984 | title=The Behavioral Development of Free-living Chimpanzee Babies and Infants | place=Norwood, N.J. | publisher=Ablex Publishing Corp. }} {{Citation | last=Rachman | first=S.J. | year=1968 | title=Phobias: their nature and control | place=Springfield, III. | publisher=C.C. Thomas }} {{Citation | last1=Rijt | first1=H.H.C. van de | last2=Plooij | first2=F.X. | year=1982 | title=Mother-infant relations in free-living chimpanzees of the Gombe National Park, Tanzania | publisher=Unpubl. doctoral dissertation | place=Cambridge, U.K. }} {{Citation | last1=Rijt | first1=H.H.C. van de | last2=Plooij | first2=F.X. | year=1986 | chapter=The involvement of interactional processes and hierarchical systems control in the growing independence of early infancy | editor1-first=J. | editor1-last=Wind | editor2-first=V. | editor2-last=Reynolds | title=Essays in Human Sociobiology | volume=2 | pages=155-165 | place=Brussels | periodical=Study Series V.U.B. | issue=26 }} {{Citation | last1=Schachter | first1=S. | last2=Singer | first2=J.E. | year=1962 | title=Cognitive, social and physiological determinants of emotional state | periodical=Psychological Review | issue=69 | pages=379-399 }} {{Citation | last=Selye | first=H. | year=1978 | title=On the real benefits of Eustress (Interview) | periodical=Psychology Today, March issue | pages=60-70 }} {{Citation | last1=Smith | first1=K.C.P. | last2=Apter | first2=M.J. | year=1975 | title=A Theory of Psychological Reversals | place=Chippenham, U.K. | publisher=Picton Publ. }} {{Citation | last=Zuckerman | first=M. | year=1974 | chapter=The sensation seeking motive | editor-first=B.A. | editor-last=Maher | title=Progress in Experimental Personality Research | volume=7 | place=New York - London | publisher=Academic Press }} lrk65kka1unjiz2jvgg13v20qvb5x1m 6 8 39 2007-03-25T21:24:07Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-03-25T21:24:07Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.svg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.svg 6709 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.svg 6 10 41 2007-03-25T21:55:34Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-03-25T21:55:34Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 20070325220444!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070325220444%21Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 11651 66b0q39arcpqqztjex7bvu6mli1dwuh archive/20070325220444!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 2007-03-25T22:04:45Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 20070325220619!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070325220619%21Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 8627 j15krjfnsa5u27f4y4ll2ml0mz56wdt archive/20070325220619!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 2007-03-25T22:06:19Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 20070325221442!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070325221442%21Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 6913 o3wmibdd5196jq99vdbm8mtofbi8dr1 archive/20070325221442!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 2007-03-25T22:14:42Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 20070325221749!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070325221749%21Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 6913 o3wmibdd5196jq99vdbm8mtofbi8dr1 archive/20070325221749!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 2007-03-25T22:17:49Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 20070325222026!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070325222026%21Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 7132 90dpcrqhwixse3qtq7042z7avgi60yb archive/20070325222026!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 2007-03-25T22:20:26Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 20070325222348!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070325222348%21Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 10762 ju6r5u1nh8ujp5gllfkc9egeaf4ofv9 archive/20070325222348!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 2007-03-25T22:23:48Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 20070325222647!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070325222647%21Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 10708 b6gokhcuoeaacmwg1yqlddfi5xarz57 archive/20070325222647!Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 2007-03-25T22:26:47Z BigSmoke 1 Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 10848 taffujn166vl1hdcqur1u2d972yelyr Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png 0 11 6228 5906 2016-08-14T08:38:26Z Baby Boy 2 /* We advise to read this page first, before continuing with this Wiki */ wikitext text/x-wiki == Disclaimer== ===We advise to read this page first, before continuing with this Wiki=== # Visiting this site is completely '''one's own responsibility'''. Please read the disclaimer with attention. # This site may cause cognitive dissonance or psychological discomfort for longer periods of time. # Taking note of the information of this site may possibly cause some disruption of your social life. # This Wiki site may cause bouts of concern or anger at the cost of your personal tranquility. # More specifically, this site may possibly not suit your taste if you consider yourself to belong to one or more of the following categories: #* "Sociable", rather than "self-willed and curious after the fringes of common wisdom"; #* Well adapted to local culture and customs; #* Well accepted by society and popular among peers; #* Attached to belief in God, Allah, or any other higher power, the belief in which enjoys a wide support; #* Attached to personal emotional and social tranquility. <br/> ===This site is rather suitable for persons who. . . . . === * Are curious, rather than concerned; * Consider themselves to be independent thinkers; * Value truth more than social acceptance; * Take truth as the authority, rather than authority as the truth; * Are often fed up with current, generally accepted cultural "wisdom"; * Enjoy a more than average intelligence; * Feel capable of sustaining "standing out alone", apart from the crowd; * Do not grow concerned if people denounce them as non-believers or atheists; * Are not afraid to be left with no purpose; * Do not fear the unprotected nakedness of truth and don't mind if truth hurts. '''In case the above 10 lines do not apply, we advise you to quit these pages and to spend your time and attention on something more agreeable to yourself.''' In case you think the above dangers are quite manageable for you and you don't fear to lose your mental tranquility, carry on. If you prefer to dive into these matters with help of our Guided Tour, please [[A guided tour through this Wiki|click here]]. Otherwise you may find your way through the Main Page or through the Site Map (see the menu at the top left). csbzico8kb25bn6k3eghj98d534g93n 0 12 6227 6226 2016-08-14T08:37:01Z Baby Boy 2 /* For your efficiency and comfort */ wikitext text/x-wiki <b>(About this Omega Research Wiki)</b> {{:Omega Research:General disclaimer}} == Goal of this site == * To help trigger awareness of what has been protected from our awareness since we became intelligent hominids. * To help trigger awareness of what, apart from and on top of the above, has been actively hidden from our awareness since the start of the agricultural revolution. * To bring awareness and understanding of the evolutionary rules and necessities for the emergence, wherever and whenever in the universe, of any high intelligence. * To bring awareness and understanding of the inescapable and necessary evolutionary transitory phase in between the rise of meme-power structures and the (future) start of conscious evolution. * To bring awareness of the radically impersonal character of the entities in charge of human societies since the agricultural revolution. * To bring understanding of humanity's present position in the final stages of our own present transitory phase in the evolution of high intelligence, which transition has lasted for some 10.000 years now. * To spread awareness of the underlying mechanisms, and their evolutionary stability, that enhance and maintain superstition and ignorance on a massive scale up till today, supporting the impersonal meme-power-structures in charge. * To help bring closer Point Omega. * [[To finally put an end to war, genocide, wholesale rape and the destruction of the living world|To finally put an end to war, genocide, wholesale rape and the destruction of the living world]] (that have been characteristic for human history since the start of agriculture until now). == Definitions of "Point Omega" == * The end of (customary) history. * A transition point in human history, equally or even more important than was the agricultural revolution. * The dissolution of the impersonal power structures that controlled human life for thousands of years. * Self-actualization versus truncated phenotypes in humans, on a large scale. * The end of the evolutionary stability of mass neuroses. * Growing understanding of what is enlightenment and what it is not. * Transition from the evolution of consciousness towards conscious evolution. * [[The end of the second intermediary phase before any evolving intelligence, whenever and wherever in the universe, reaches maturity and full deployment.]] *[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega_point Definitions from Wikipedia] * Whereas the term Point Omega is borrowed from Teilhard de Chardin, we do not follow Teilhard's own definitions of Point Omega, but develop a new definition, based on novel insights as described on this Wiki. == What this site is about and what it is not== '''This site presents data, based on scientific research, suggesting that:''' # Homo sapiens, since some 5.000 to 10.000 years, is functioning on average far below the level of general skills that is supported by its congenital potentials. # Good evolutionary reasons can be traced that can explain this seemingly illogical and unexpected situation, being a temporary but necessary phase in the evolution of higher intelligence. # This 10.000 years old suppression of a high "free" intelligence is, for technical reasons, presently becoming increasingly unstable, gradually leading to human society approaching an "escape-point" of human intelligence, which will trigger major shifts in societal structures and culture. # A transition in human society and human behaviour, labeled as Point Omega, a term borrowed from Teilhard de Chardin, is therefore possible and even likely to occur at some, not so far away, point in time. # According to some authors, such a Point Omega transition has already started and is underway. # "Enlightenment", "spiritual awareness", "God-consciousness" and similar descriptions of certain states of the human mind, can be described and explained in terms from ethology and behavioural sciences. Also their function can be explained and predictions derived about their likelihood and occurrence in human beings. # There is a very simple common denominator to what many prophets have originally told their people, many messages of which have in the course of time been deformed and corrupted into organized religions that invariably block awareness and understanding of the original messages, wielding massive power over their followers instead of liberating them. This simple common denominator concerns the truth of how the behaviour of ourselves is organized and what alternative perspectives we would have, once awareness of these relatively simple truths has become common knowledge and people become able in numbers to escape from debilitating indoctrination and the systematic suppression of the utilization of intelligence. '''This site ''does'' however ''not'' deal with phenomena like:''' # Morphogenetic fields # Telepathy # Clearvoyance # Premonition # Aura's and chakra's # Notions from organized religions # Reincarnation # And other phenomena that are beyond the boundaries of present scientific understanding. '''This site ''does'' deal with known and well established reality''' It is clear that scientific data as available today cannot give us a complete picture of the universe and its functioning, let alone of our own functioning therein. No doubt that in the future we will become aware and gather scientific proof of mechanisms that until now seem rather mysterious and incomprehensible to us. Our picture of the world is incomplete and will always be incomplete, no matter how far our scientific understanding will expand. This site will not deal with any subject that is still beyond the boundaries of scientific knowledge, nor will we indulge in speculation. This site only deals with data and knowledge that have already become firmly rooted in scientific research. It will present a number of notions, well rooted in scientific research, that, each separately, nevertheless are until now only known in very limited circles of specialists, each within those separate fields of research, in spite of the fact that most of these notions are not difficult to understand from a technical point of view. This implies that from a technical point of view, humanity in principle could have grasped these notions already a long time ago, if familiarity with a broader field of science would have been more customary than it is now. Each of these notions was and is however also subject to specific blindnesses in our collective human awareness. This site puts a number of these not widely known notions from different scientific disciplines together and will show that removal of the blind spots from a variety of research fields produces an overall picture that explains human history and development from an unexpected angle and allows us to obtain a clearer and very surprising picture of our human potential and future. '''[[Curiosity replacing fear, rather than science replacing belief systems|This site argues that it is not so important that we exchange "belief systems" for "science", but rather that we exchange "fear" for "curiosity" and explains how such changes can be brought about]]'''. == For your efficiency and comfort == The various contributions on this Wiki greatly differ in detail, in length, in depth and in thoroughness of scientific underpinning of arguments and proof. This Guided Tour helps you to choose the sequence of articles that suits you best. Do you want a better overview first or are you looking for a better underpinning of arguments and of presented data? You can follow your preference at any place during this Tour. You may decide to dig deeper into the subject you are immersed in, or, reversely, you may return to the surface and look for a better and broader overview. The Guided Tour will give you such moments of choice during reading and browsing. For your convenience we therefore have marked the articles and contributions with asterixes '''(*), (**), (***)'''. *(★)<level 1> '''Quick and efficient''': Stands for an overview article, short, superficial, quick and efficient. These articles are best to start out with. They are the ones that the Guided Tour brings you first. *(★★)<level 2> '''Some more detail''': Stands for reading one level more deeply. These articles give more thorough argumentation, but do not lead you into the depths of scientific corroboration and into a lengthy underpinning of presented data. *(★★★)<level 3> '''More depth''': Research level; stands for articles with so much detail that you might also find them in scientific publications and papers. The arguments given in these articles are best suited to help you decide whether you buy the viewpoints given or not, but they require more time and scientific patience from the reader. They contain more references to other sources of information. They are less efficient reading, but these are the articles that determine where we stand at the end of the day. In the Guided Tour these are the articles that you are guided to in case your curiosity keeps pressing on and doesn't let you "off the hook". Throughout this Guided Tour we occasionally have put some of the '''basic issues in bold'''. This may be handy for quick scanning the texts while browsing around to find your way to what you prefer to read next. == Editing this Wiki == This Wiki originally has been set up as a medium for publishing the findings and comments from the contributor, registered on this Wiki as Baby Boy, and for interaction with readers. However, because the Wiki off late has suffered under attacks from automatized advertizement campaigns that are programmed to replace pages from the Wiki with all sorts of advertizements from sales organizations, we have had to block free access to this Wiki. Therefore, if readers wish to contribute in a serious way, they can send their contributions, comments or critique by e-mail to rowan@bigsmoke.us, the manager coordinator of this Wiki. We welcome any constructive contributions. 2eeed2fvts24u320a5tjx2z7h3nx6qn 0 13 6899 6898 2017-01-23T15:23:56Z Baby Boy 2 /* Priorities for an action list */ wikitext text/x-wiki == Introduction == {{Level|1}} This chapter, Directives for after Point Omega, is placed almost at the end of this Wiki. The reason is that for understanding this way of summarizing of the situation of mankind, one needs to have understood the basics of several notions that these days are not yet part of our cultural heritage and common awareness, but that are nevertheless indispensable for assessing the most important dangers, options and opportunities that humanity is faced with these days. This Wiki is dedicated to communicating information that already has become available in different, specific circles of specialists, but that has not yet reached the status of common knowledge and that we nevertheless consider here as indispensable for a proper understanding. Some of the bits and pieces of information that we need here, have in previous years already been published separately in scientific papers, each of which is dealing with one of those specific fields of interest and research. In such cases it is indicated in the chapters in question. But these pieces of information are at best known to the limited circle of specialists in those specific scientific research fields, and not to the public at large. Other pieces of information on this Wiki have not yet been published in scientific papers, but are nevertheless based on thorough research. Still other contributions consist of general discussions about combining various of such bits and pieces of information and about investigating what emerges from such a combining of different fields of research. All these bits and pieces are needed in order to come to a comprehensible total picture of the present human situation. None of the presented issues can be missed, or the complete picture will fail to emerge. For the above reasons it is indispensable to already have taken notice of most of these separate issues, dealt with in the various other papers on this Wiki, in order to be able to grasp what led us to the conclusions and advices as formulated in the paragraphs below. In case a reader wishes to first take notice of the advices and the directives below, before having grasped all the different issues in question as each dealt with in one or more of the other articles on this Wiki, we have in the text below added links to where for each separate issue additional explanation can be found. What the reader should at least be familiar with before continuing to read the below, is what is meant with the term "Point Omega transition" ([[Omega Research:About#Definitions of "Point Omega"|see e.g. here]]`and [[Self-blindness_in_humans_as_prerequisite_for_the_evolution_of_advanced_intelligence#Point_Omega|here]]). In case the reader has read and digested successfully the chapter with the title "[[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki|A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki]]" and has understood the underlying argumentation in the chapters referred to there, it should be possible to also grasp the meaning of the paragraphs below. == Lost perspectives, . . . . . what next ? == {{Level|1}} Right now, in the beginning of the 21st century AD, we are living in a period in which the greater ideological movements have lost most of their appeal. All great religions suffer from believers moving towards a secularized position, stopping to behave like meek sheep. Disbelief and denial of superstition rule the day. Not only the great religions lose their influence and control over their people, also the greater political idealistic systems encounter more and more critique and scepticism. The communist system has lost the cold war competition and thus lost most of its credibility. But also the capitalist system is encountering more and more scepticism from its citizens, who recognize the obvious shortcomings of blind capitalism that follows the basic principles of the survival of the fittest in an economic sense. Many feel that this competitive system does not support its people well enough and that in the capitalist societies, and not only there, the majority of "losers" in the competitive societal structure are locked into a more or less hopeless struggle for survival. They may survive, or at least many of them, but hardly with any hopes for a pleasant future. More and more people resent society treating them like slaves without any prospect for liberation or an otherwise agreeable life. And that also holds for the western "democratic" and "enlightened" societies, not only for those "backward" societies elsewhere in the world, that are widely recognized as repressive, dictatorial and totalitarian, suffering from unpredictable arbitrariness and cruelty. People in modern society apparently have lost their perspective for a better, future, society. This makes a sense of ever more openly confessed hopelessness gradually spread among the populations of the civilized world. The fairy tales are being exposed as such and nothing comes forward to fill the gap. There seems to be a growing need for a perspective that can give hope for a brighter future, a perspective that can survive the scrutiny of seasoned disbelievers, a perspective that cannot be put aside as another fairy tale, a perspective that is not anchored in badly tested political ideals or in superstitions, but a perspective that is firmly anchored in scientific knowledge. Such a perspective is increasingly sought after, but it is generally felt that it is alas nowhere in sight. This Wiki is dedicated to showing that, despite this ever more widely felt hopelessness, such a novel perspective is very well possible and in fact that the total of available data suggests that an enormous shift in human perspective is at hand, called here the [[Omega Research:About#Definitions of "Point Omega"|Point Omega transition.]] And that once the Point Omega transition has started, the sought after perspective will present itself automatically and unavoidably. This perspective will fill the gap and it will bring purpose where now hopelessness rules [[Self-blindness_in_humans_as_prerequisite_for_the_evolution_of_advanced_intelligence#Point_Omega|(see here for a description of the Point Omega concept)]]. After Point Omega namely, humanity finds itself in a totally novel situation. We will have left the millennia long era in which consciousness has gradually been evolving up to this Point Omega and instead we will have entered the situation of "conscious evolution", the beginning of which is basically what Point Omega is all about. Many of the rules and laws, regulating societies before Point Omega, will become superfluous or counter-productive and will vanish as a consequence. Most of these limiting rules and laws, needed in the customary societal situation(s), dictating our behavioural possibilities and impossibilities, will lose their function and their necessity. This reduction of repressive forces will release enormous amounts of energy in all participants, energy that can forthwith be spent on more useful, more creative and more productive goals than merely keeping each other in check, or winning all sorts of - now dysfunctional and obsolete - competitions for survival. The bottom line is that, according to us, there is now a new perspective emerging, a perspective that will be firmly anchored in scientific research and a perspective that perfectly makes sense in view of everything we scientifically know for sure, a perspective that also will help us overcome the neuroticizing and utterly unpleasant power structures that have ruled the existence of Homo sapiens for about 10.000 years. Those crippling and utterly unpleasant power structures have ruled our existence for all that time and that situation is now coming to an end. Homo sapiens will take over the lead over its own existence and over its own evolution as well. Once these new options and possibilities will start spreading, human society will gradually absorb this new perspective and in the end there will not be any lack of "purpose" left. Having sorted out in this Wiki most theoretical issues that we need to know in order to assess our situation properly and correctly, we can now come to a listing of what is awaiting us, which options we do have and which options do not exist or otherwise are "no go" areas and what would be the most clever issues to work on, in order to make our coming transition as smooth as possible. Before starting with a listing of useful directives as given [[Directives_for_after_Point_Omega#Priorities_for_an_action_list|further below]], it seems useful to first rehearse the most important findings of the research reported elsewhere on this Wiki, findings that we will have to take into account when ruminating how our future will going to be shaped. With each of these findings a link is given to where on this Wiki more information is to be found about each specific issue. == New facts we need to take into account == {{Level|2}} * Human beings have strikingly little capacity to understand their own or each other's behaviour. As a consequence human beings behave essentially like other Apes behave, no matter their intellectual pretense. We can call this phenomenon [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|'''Self-Blindness''']](*). * At the cognitive level Human beings utilize an important tool to consolidate that Self-Blindness, which is the '''Good-Bad''' polarity. Good-Bad differences refer not to any real behavioural differences, although people tend to think that they do. But in reality good-bad differences refer to different likings or appreciations from the side of the onlooker or "judge" that serve to stabilize existing ideas (prejudices) of one person about the other. The Good-Bad dimension therefore stabilizes social relationships while preventing (effectively shielding off) any understanding of the real social mechanisms involved. It helps ascertain that human beings keep acting socially to a large extent like other Great Apes. And the latter is crucial for the continuation of procreation en evolutionary success. Until this moment in our evolution this [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#The_illusory_aspects_of_the_Positive.2Fnegative_or_Good.2FBad_dimension|illusory Good-Bad tool]](**) was an indispensable attribute for mankind's survival. * '''Self-Blindness''' has evolved in Homo sapiens as a consequence of, or rather as '''[[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|a condition for higher intelligence]]'''(*). * Much later, beginning with the agricultural revolution, since the period of 10.000 years ago till 5.000 years ago, Human evolution was taken over by an evolution on the level of "memes" or of "software". The latter evolution moves at a much higher speed than the traditional level of DNA or "hardware" evolution. The evolution of the hardware (Genes, DNA-based) is therefore lagging behind as compared to the evolution of the "software" (Memes, Culture). But, since we humans are carriers of both genes ánd memes, this causes motivational friction in individuals of Homo sapiens, which friction is structural. We call this friction the [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22_.28the evolutionary_Jet-Lag.29|'''"Evolutionary Jet Lag"''']](**). * '''Agriculture needs power structures''' at the cultural level (software-level). As mentioned above, these power structures in fact have taken over the lead in Human evolution. As carriers of the [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#New_demands_and_requirements_since_the_agricultural_revolution|power structure]] "memes"(**), human individuals tend to be pushed into a state of mild or harsh slavery, as compared to their primordial natural tendencies. * Power structures have evolved in such a way, that they developed a myriad of tricks to subdue and control their carriers. One of the most elementary tricks is to [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Power_structures_utilizing_.22jet-lag.22_effects_in_human_evolution|'''neuroticize their human carriers''']](*). Whereas this customary neurotization strongly reduces the capacity of human individuals for realizing their full innate behavioural repertoires, it improves their maleability and adaptation to slavery. Power structures need large masses of malleable work slaves and military ("cannon fodder" these days). Power structures compete with one another at such levels, and that determines the direction of our evolution. * Self-Blindness has always prevented humanity to understand the most basic elements of the fundamentals of our behaviour, to the extent that we even do not have daily used words for the most essential basic elements of our own behaviour. That way the '''mechanisms of [[Striving,_Playing_and_Learning|emotional and motivational reversals]]`'''(***) have for instance always escaped our attention and stayed hidden, in spite of the fact that these mechanisms are the very cornerstones of any behaviour in species with an open ended capacity for learning, and therefore in particular in us humans. * '''Repair of the [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|Blindness]](*) for our own [[The_evolutionary_stability_of_a_bi-stable_system_of_emotions_and_motivations_in_species_with_an_open-ended_capacity_for_learning|emotional and motivational reversals]]'''(***) harbours untold opportunities to open completely novel and more mature and wholesome avenues of regulation and support of us human beings. It opens up the road for intelligently looking at ourselves as well as looking at each other. * Behavioural differences between individuals in socially living species are partly based on genetics. One of these congenital personality dimensions is "'''differences in adaptiveness versus creative innovation", also to be labeled as "Social versus Self-Willed"'''. [[The_biological_instability_of_social_equilibria_(abstract)|'''Involuntary and automatic selection forces within social structures''']](**) are causing automatic shifts in average genetic make up of the group members. That results in a limited life span of any social structure of socially living mammals, including in human societies and other social human structures. Depending on the level of social organization that mechanism leads to turn-over catastrophes like e.g. in rodents periodic migration waves and e.g. in us humans "bankruptcy", "revolution", "genocide" and similar phenomena. Whereas this mechanism throughout the ages always has made any stable social structure in also human societies impossible, the mechanism doesn't need to cause much concern at this moment in time. Once Conscious Evolution has been started up, the sting can be taken out of this primordial mechanism and it can consciously be replaced by more agreeable mechanisms. * Another mechanism with a genetic basis that until now has always been kept hidden from awareness, by means of taboo-structures, is [[The_effects_of_genetic_pollution_on_political_structures_and_human_history|'''genetic pollution''']](**). That mechanism in itself has always already been enough to make any stable social organization impossible to survive for long. Genetic pollution has always been a sufficient extra reason to make (peaceful) social organizations collapse in due time. For thousands of years it has been one of the main reasons why complex civilizations would only have limited life spans and would invariably end in catastrophical collapse. But also this mechanism does not need to fill us with much concern. Even while this mechanism is still beyond our collective awareness at this moment in time and still keeps triggering the collapse of all large civilizational structures in the usual way, the start of Conscious Evolution will easily and automatically make this problem of [[The_effects_of_genetic_pollution_on_political_structures_and_human_history|genetic pollution]](**) be tackled successfully in the slipstream of events. == From fact-finding to courses of action == {{Level|2}} Thus we memorized above the most important novel facts that we have to take into account for understanding the present human situation properly. These facts, that were either unknown or that were out of the focus of our attention, we now do need to be aware of in order to be able to design our future course, for the options that we have, and for the actions that we may decide to take as a consequence. These novel bits of extra information, the formerly unknown facts and the already known facts that were not in the focus of our attention, together with a number of generally well known facts that already were part of our cultural heritage, led us to the conclusion that we are at the brink of a major transition in the evolution of mankind, which transition point we labeled as Point Omega. Having become aware of the above mentioned novel bits of information, we can now start to discuss a number of issues that each will play a completely different role in our existence, once we will have moved from the pre-Point-Omega condition to the post-Point-Omega situation. For it is mankind's moving through the transition of Point Omega that will change the role and the importance of each of the discussed phenomena. Below, we will now first discuss a number of such key issues one by one, viewing each issue from both perspectives, the actual, pre-Point-Omega perspective and the coming post-Point-Omega perspective. One general consideration that we should keep in mind while trying to find our way, is that '''scientific thinking will replace traditional superstitions'''. But, that is what will happen at the surface. Below the surface, within ourselves, as part of our system of feelings, emotions and motivations, it is that '''curiosity will''' increasingly '''replace fear''' as the all-determining factor in our lives. That is what the over-all picture of the theory of Point Omega predicts. That is what can be derived from the detailed knowledge as is presented elsewhere on this Wiki. The all pervading neuroticising structure of the old society will more and more give way to the emergence of curiosity and creative impulses. And since those differences are very [[Energy_and_Strokes#10._.22Contagiousness.22_of_Interpersonal_Psychological_Skills_and_Adaptation|contagious]], those changes will happen with the increasing speed of a chain reaction and with an unexpected rapidness. In the below, non exhaustive, listing, some issues are presented, in the form of rules that will apply, others in the form of well known, but until now badly understood or difficult to realize admonitions, each of which issues will get a completely new reality value in the new situation. Each consideration in this listing leads to a course of action. We will now present here in the below chapters 12 such courses of action. And at the end we will summarize the suggested courses of action in a listing of priorities. That may be an indication for us where we now had best put most of our attention and energy. 12 considerations: - Democratization of education - Transparency - Procreating consciously - Avoiding Good-Bad social reflexes - Dealing with other aspects of Self-Blindness - What about Religion - Curbing destruction of the environment - Competition and Work; how to deal with it in a different way - Evolutionary Jet-lag & (Un)Happiness - Treating others as you would like to be treated yourself - How to deal with hopeless cases ? - Assuming responsibility for every human being in existence == Democratization of education == {{Level|1}} The first issue is about the optimization of educational opportunities. Power structures lean among other things on an information privilege. Youngsters from privileged classes enjoy more opportunities for study and for personal development than do youngsters from the working class. This situation does have a number of advantages for the structures in power. It stabilizes the position of power of the persons manning the power structure control positions, keeping control positions "in the family". Privileged wealth is one of the driving stimuli to keep this pattern going. For society as a whole there is however also a strong disadvantage to this education privilege. That is that enormous quantities of talent are continuously being wasted, because stemming from the working and other lower classes of society. A society can potentially win vast advantages when exploiting all potential to the full, which can be achieved by making education levels just depend on individual potential and talent and not on the incidental wealth of the family of the persons in question. In some countries the availability of education for those who are capable is to some extent democratized. In those countries, now still a minority, the learning potential of the population is exploited to a much higher degree than what is usually the case. After Point Omega we may expect that this tendency to democratize education will further be perfected world wide. The results will be two-fold. First of all expensive education resources will not any more be wasted on stupid or less gifted members of the privileged classes. Those resources can then be utilized more effectively. In the second place almost all innate potential in the whole population can be utilized, where now only a fraction of that potential is coming to bloom. Comparing the percentage of potential until now being realized world wide with what would potentially be realized afterPointOmega, leads to the conclusion that this education issue will be one of the major power sources for a stabilization of Point Omega developments. Just this one of the many basic changes around Point Omega does in itself already have the potential to change our world beyond recognition. == Transparency == {{Level|1}} The second issue is about transparency. Transparency is a key issue in the transition to the post-Point-Omega world. Transparency combines with honesty, but not with counterfeit and fraud. Powerstructures heavily lean on information advantages and on keeping the ruled masses unaware of what is really going on. The more ignorant the subdued masses, the easier it is to keep exercising power over them. Power structures in general prefer to keep information privileges in place. Transparency often is poison to their power games and (hidden) ruling techniques. However, these days, because of technical developments, we are experiencing an information explosion and with that an explosion of accessibility of information. One of the implications is that it is becoming increasingly more difficult for power structures to maintain their information privileges and communication advantages. Knowledge is democraticized unstoppably and the customary information privileges are crumbling down. In the old days, up till this moment in time, information privileges were the "normal" state of affairs. Everybody is used to it and customarily takes it for granted. In the new era however, transparency will be valued more than the holding upright of the power structures of the day. People will prefer to do away with all that. There is also another, different side to this coin. That is the side of "privacy". People in general are very much attached to their privacy. People in general fear "thought control" by the powers in charge and wish to defend their last areas of privacy left to them. People wish to keep their most personal thoughts and feelings hidden from other people. They want to defend their freedom of thinking and feeling differently from what they perceive as the "ideal" that society is trying to impose. The result is that people do not wish transparency regarding their personal selves. They do not wish that other people can read their thoughts. However, these are reactions and reflexes that are anchored firmly in the old situation. The old situation is a situation of struggle and strife. A situation where competition is present in every corner and fold of society. No matter how far a human society has advanced in establishing a "just" and "fair" societal structure, every societal structure before Point Omega needed to harbor a certain degree of "survival of the fittest" principles in order not to loose the quality of its carriers, us humans, too rapidly by genetic pollution and random drift. These are principles that never have been articulated clearly, in fact they were in general "taboo", but nevertheless in reality they always have been a prerequisite and a strict condition, because of the demands of the struggle for survival between the different competing power structures in the human world. Therefore, in practice, only societal structures that kept incorporated certain degrees of competition and "survival of the fittest" within their population and within their structures, could win in the evolutionary battle for survival, a battle basically carried out on software level. But that battle clearly was / is felt in the personal lives of us, individual carriers, also. And that hurts ! In the new situation however, the old evolutionary requirements will have been replaced by the new principles of "conscious evolution". And these new principles make the primordial requirements of competition and strife superfluous. That holds not only for the evolutionary survival struggle between the different power structures, but also for the evolutionary struggle and competition between individuals within the same power structure or culture, between the carriers of the same power structure, between neighbours, between even family. No need for competition any more after Point Omega. Its evolutionary usefulness and necessity will have become obsolete. That also implies that the need for secrecy, for cheating and for fraud is large and by becoming obsolete. The struggle for survival by all sorts of competition used to lean heavily on the cleverness of individuals, on their capacity to be just a little more clever than their individual competitors. In the old structures huge seas of energy and effort used to be invested in attempts to be more "clever" than the other, and unavoidably that always implied attempts for cheating and fraud, especially if not detected. This principle is so basic to human society, that we don't notice how much these mechanisms rule our lives and how much energy they take. Of course it is true that any society, small or large, is anchored in regulations about which behaviours are permitted and which are not and in more or less effective measures to force its citizens to stick to those rules and laws. Still, within such law systems, people try to outflank each other in "cleverness" and they naturally search for the boundaries of what they can socially and legally get away with. In short, in the old system the individuals cannot help but be subjected to the all-overruling demand to compete and to excel in comparison with their fellow citizens and unavoidably also often would try to cheat and defraud the others if they could get away with it. One needed to be almost "holy" to no fall for such pressures. And holiness was rare by definition. In practice, one could simply not avoid to join in those aspects of the rat race. A liking for transparency did not fit in those situations. After Point Omega the situation is however quite different, also in that respect. If the deeply felt need for being better at cheating and defrauding falls away because the need for it has become obsolete, incredibly vast amount of energy and attention are spared and can be invested in more agreeable and more pleasant issues. In fact, we are talking here about ''the major part of all our energy spent.'' After Point Omega there will be felt much less need for privacy and secrecy, because the danger of being unmasked and the need for winning in such competitions of cheating and fraud doesn't play such an important role any longer. That has become irrelevant. People will not be concerned any longer if others can look into their inner thoughts and feelings. They don't fear to lose important competitions by too much "transparency" any longer. They couldn't care less. This does have important implications for governments and other leaders of society. '''Transparency''' can safely be a basic target and goal with less concern for unwanted transparency in the feelings and likings of the individuals. They don't have much to hide any longer anyway. Transparency ? Yes ! Privacy ? Who cares any longer ? And for what obsolete reasons ? One of the results of transparency is that power structures are losing their information privileges and thus lose an important tool for keeping their citizens / carriers subdued and in slavery, mild or harsh. That relaxation of repression tools will diminish also the selection pressures in favour of sociability and compliance and against individualism, self-will and creativity. As explained in detail [[The_biological_instability_of_social_equilibria#Selection_within_human_social_structures|elsewhere on this Wiki(***)]], the relaxation of that selection pressure will take the power away from the cyclic processes that cause turn-overs, bankruptcies, revolutions and genocides. Social selection cycles and '''social catastrophes''' will as a consequence become '''easier to handle''' and can be redirected. This side effect of transparency should provide an extra reason for governments and other authorities to stimulate such transparency where possible. == Procreating consciously == {{Level|1}} The third issue is about procreation. There is no need to receive children with handicaps, nor to produce them. Parents, and also governments with all their guidance potential, have a responsibility towards newborn life. '''Every newborn is entitled to be wished for and to be received with joy and love'''. This includes the parental care for the quality of the new life, also in the planning phase. Medical and biological knowledge and skills make suffering from innate defects large and by unnecessary from Point Omega on. This principle will automatically put an end to overpopulation. [http://www.ted.com/talks/hans_rosling_religions_and_babies Statistics show] that the percentage of children, born unwanted, is such that if that category will end, numbers will rapidly decrease. In a not too far future after Point Omega it will be difficult to imagine for the people from that time, that in the past our present overpopulation was such a grand problem and that people were quite prepared to live with a couple of thousand people per square kilometer. What we today consider as "usual" population densities will then be regarded as a nightmare from the past. Technically speaking, there will be no need to restrict the number of children, permitted per parent, by force. Chinese methods are, or will soon be, superfluous. Helping parents to avoid unwished for children, will already be enough to reduce the average reproduction rate to below 2,0 per woman. Governments had better spend their energy in counter-effecting the tendency of "the most stupid people reproducing fastest". Whereas knowledge about the effects of '''genetic pollution''' is not at the core of our present day cultural heritage, it used to be a more common concern just a couple of generations ago. Among other things by the misdemeanour of the Nazis these notions have been put away in taboo sections of our present day culture. The above considerations as derived from the information presented on this Wiki (see for instance [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history|here (#5)(**))]] lead however to the conclusion that, in spite of the Nazi-inspired taboo on population genetic thinking on humans, we should effectively address our genetic make up and start to prevent genetic pollution from automatically undermining any attempts to establish lasting fair and civilized societies. We wish to point out here that in that respect we do not need to foster any fears as installed in us by what happened in the Third Reich. We now do have all technological tools at our fingertips to help people avoid unwanted genetic defects in their offspring. And since the average human being can easily be brought to the point of paying attention to these genetic issues and act accordingly, there is basically no need whatsoever to exert strong pressures from above to enforce a genetic police system. Where it appears possible to seduce people for instance to buy the useless foods that they daily purchase in great quantities, it should be no problem at all to seduce them to follow a healthy management of their own offspring. The level of advertisement needed to achieve that is probably less intensive than the advertisement needed to make them continuously buy unwholesome quantities of junk food. All that is needed is a better level of awareness at all levels of society, breaking this specific veil of organized ignorance and superstition. To put it bluntly, humankind can only survive if it addresses effectively not only the unhampered growth of numbers, that is causing the destruction of the world’s ecological heritage, but also the effects of genetic pollution and deterioration, that would unavoidably cause the collapse of any serious attempt to establish a really civilized human community, as it has always done, throughout the history of mankind. All the necessary know how is now available. '''We just need to change focus, breaking taboos and ignorance and embrace awareness'''. Our civilization is getting global. Let’s take the war producing population genetic sting out, before it destroys us all. We cannot afford to have complete morons sit at the red buttons, which is what unavoidably happens more and more when ever increasing “genetic loads” are smothering any further possibility for adequate and intelligent action. The stark truth is that most of us do behave as, and have been trained to behave as complete morons, adapted with force, under penalty of being ostracized, to systems of collective superstition, blindness and ignorance that block any tendency to come to our senses and take adequate, responsible decisions. It is '''time to wake up'''. Further delay will become more and more “homo-cidal” to us all. Let us consider shortly what we may expect on the level of human population genetics after we have "woken up". What will happen after Point Omega ? Increased awareness of our genetic endowment, an increased general level of sober thinking and a strongly improved set of medical tools to assist us in family planning will result in an ever larger percentage of the population procreating consciously and voluntarily. That will increase the frequency couples are utilising genetic counseling for optimal procreational results. In the USA we have seen already a steady increase during the last decades of the use of genetic counseling. And these tendencies are spreading towards Europe and other wealthy regions as well. Governments can easily induce more use of medical techniques for enhancing the quality of the offspring. Therefore it is '''not needed''' at all '''to use''' much government '''pressure and force'''. Nazi-like measures are not needed at all. Modern advertisement techniques are effective enough to help trigger such '''rational procreational methods to spread among the population widely'''. The modern techniques of birth control enable parents to choose the proper time for procreation. These techniques are spreading rapidly all over the world. This has two very important consequences. One is that conscious procreation will stop the growth of overpopulation. If all unwanted children would not get born, the world population would stop to grow and the present overpopulation would come to a halt. The second consequence is that the genetic counseling going with a more conscious procreation would decrease levels of genetic load and pollution. These effects will come automatically and unavoidably, simply because they have become possible and people like to profit themselves from their advantages. We may expect that contemporary taboos that are still blocking such developments, will gradually but shortly lose their power over us. There will be more different effects on the population genetic level that we may expect to emerge after Point Omega. But the above examples will suffice to indicate the trend to be expected. == Avoiding Good-Bad social reflexes == {{Level|2}} The fourth issue is dealing with our illusions about "Good" and "Bad". The ability to avoid being trapped by the tendency to indulge in Positive versus Negative Evaluation is likely to be a prerequisite for manipulating [[The biological instability of social equilibria|population- and group-cycles]] at will. And since human population- and group-dynamics tend to be worked out nowadays at the level of economic strangling techniques, genocide and (nuclear) war, the skill of controlling such population-dynamic forces would seem to be a prerequisite for man's survival. The positive-negative dimension, Good versus Bad, does not relate to actual behaviour. Still, people think it does. This phenomenon is one of the most striking examples of man's innate Blindness for the Self. The Good-Bad dimension is a very effective veil for hiding human behavioural reality from awareness. One of the mechanisms [[The biological instability of social equilibria|described on this Wiki]](***) is the built in time bomb within every social structure, making sure that the life span of any social structure is only limited and in the end causing catastrophic turn over events like break down through ossification, bankruptcies, revolutions, genocides, political collapse, etc. For the people involved these catastrophic events are highly unpleasant and problematic, but the (historical) biological and evolutionary advantages have been amply explained [[The biological instability of social equilibria|elsewhere on this Wiki.]](***) The evolutionary usefulness of these built in catastrophes is clear. The proximate mechanism fueling these cyclic selection mechanisms is the involuntary selection pressure within each organizational structure in favour of the genetic roots of docility, sociablity and adaptiveness and against innovative creativity and individualism. These forces of attraction and repulsion work out on the cognitive level through the illusory [[Good_and_Bad,_an_illusory_dimension_as_the_cornerstone_of_human_personality|notions of Good and Bad]]. The Good-Bad dimension thus motors the cyclic turn over mechanisms and the periodic emergence of social catastrophes. Until now, these social cyclic turn-over mechanisms are practically unknown, let alone their effects and implications. For all practical reasons, after Point Omega it is not necessary to focus on the working of those cyclic catastrophes. It will be sufficient to focus attention on the knowledge of Good and Bad, that is, on the illusory character of it. Once awareness will be spreading about this one particular aspect of humanity's Self-Blindness, the attachment to utilizing this illusory polarity as the most important personality dimension, the all overriding power of these good-bad reflexes in social relations will diminish and gradually lose its influence in human social life. And that is in particular of crucial importance on the level of politics and governmental decision making. Viewed from a point of view from before Point Omega (which is "now"), this option, this possibility to collectively overcome the devastating effects of this aspect of our Self-Blindness, the blinding effects of the utilization of the Good-Bad dimension, is rather difficult to grasp. If not conceptually too complicated for most people, it certainly is a bridge too far emotionally to ask from people to not follow the primordial dictates of the blind forces of social attraction and repulsion, that have steered their / our behaviour since the beginning of time. However, viewed from our situation áfter the Point Omega transition, it will be increasingly easy for increasing numbers of people to overcome these primordial reflexes of attraction and repulsion and to consciously choose more fruitful ways to interact. And this change will also be subject to positive feed back mechanisms that will make it progressively easier for people to adopt novel ways to interact, once certain critical numbers have been reached. In short, it will pay off for governments to enhance scientific knowledge about the Good-Bad concepts and to stimulate people to find alternative and more fruitful ways to interact with one another. Such ways will be counter-intuitive at first, but gradually people will get used to it, especially after it becomes more and more clear what bounties can be expected at the other side of the divide, after having passed the boundary of the knowledge of Good and Bad. If you understand how (illusory) Good-Bad reflexes work, you automatically stop to "judge" people. "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." (Matthew 7, verse 1&2.) == Dealing with other aspects of Self-Blindness == {{Level|1}} Self-Blindness has been a steady trait of Homo sapiens since a couple of million years, that is, from the time the intelligence of our ancestors started to rise. A high intelligence cannot be an ESS without a special provision that blocks the application of intelligent faculties to the own behaviour. The latter is the strong and striking Self-Blindness that is such a peculiar feature of our own species. The above discussed compulsive human tendency to make use of Good-Bad differences in judgments is just one of the many forms in which Self-Blindness appears. In the psychological research literature one can find a vast amount of issues that show specific human blindnesses in certain (other) fields of functioning. Even on Wikipedia one can find a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases list of cognitive biases], each of which biases is another expression of the striking Blindness for the Self of Homo sapiens (see also [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|here]](*) for a chapter on this Wiki that is dedicated to these Self-Blindness phenomena). Since Self-Blindness is one of the main ingredients for the structures that keep humanity bound in slavery and neuroticism, it is of great importance, and very urgent at that, that we collectively try as quickly and as effectively as we can, to come to grips with this typically human behavioural bias. If we wish to create a more agreeable world, we do have to take this hurdle. There is no escape from that necessity. In the above mentioned chapter on this Wiki it is argued that we should start a research discipline that is fully dedicated to create clarity and scientific insight in these aspects of Self-Blindness. In [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Towards "Amathology" or the science of ignorance|that chapter]] it is suggested to label such a research discipline as "Amathology" or "the science of ignorance". It may sound outrageous at first sight to advertise such a research discipline, but it is not meant as a joke. In fact this should be considered as one of the most important issues for putting extra energy, time and attention, if we wish to stimulate a smooth transition into the post-Point-Omega world. Seriously dealing with the human Self-Blindness should therefore be considered as one of the major differences between the pre-Point-Omega condition and the post-Point-Omega situation. In fact, starting up research disciplines on Amathology could be labeled as a significant characteristic of the post-Point-Omega era. == What about Religion == {{Level|1}} The sixth issue to pay attention to here is religion. Religion is one of the areas of life where great differences will occur between the pre-Point-Omega situation and the post-Point-Omega situation. In the realm of religions great changes will inescapably occur. One of the reasons is that religions deal with peoples attitude towards life and towards society and towards fellow citizens and at the same time religions play a major, and often hidden, role in keeping people under control. Apart from being a rescue and a life vest for the struggling populace, religions in general also play a major role as tools for power structures. This dual role contributes to the confusion that religiously oriented subjects tend to suffer from. And this confusion is one of the corner stones of power structures in charge for maintaining control. Because of these central functions in human life, religions will change in appearance and in function once all major aspects of human life are changing with the Point Omega transition. Briefly summarized, we can recognize 4 central characteristics of religions: 1) Religions represent an important information source for its adherents; religions also function as a support system for people in need; and religions function also as networks for social communication and social relationships; and finally, religions provide a channel for spiritual experiences, god-consciousness and related levels of awareness. These aspects together are the information and support sides of religions. 2) A totally different function is that religions are also functioning as tools for suppression, installing fears and superstitions in their carriers / subjects. 3) Religions also serve as a sort of life vests for neurotic and fearful people. And since the vast majority of people falls in that class of people, the life-vest function of religion has always been, and still is, crucial. 4) The above 3 functions may seem contradictory in many respects, and they are. Religions always seem to create inextricable tangles of basically inexplicable complexities, that nevertheless manage to bind people within their believe systems. The pictures of the world and of peoples own existence may seem inextricably complex, but as such these pictures and views, as provided by religious beliefs, represent an ESS structure ( Evolutionarily Stable Strategies) for the power structures in place. All these 4 aspects of religion will change tremendously during the shift towards Point Omega. So, religions play a central role in keeping communal world views in place and at the same time in keeping their carriers (us) bound in a strong dependence of the local power structures in question. Neuroticism and dependency of the masses is strongly defended and given shape by means of all the fairy tales and lies that religions keep in place (see [[ Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|''here''(**)]] for more explanation about the way power structures utilize organized ignorance, superstition and fear for maintaining their power over their carriers - subjects). Packages of superstition, ignorance and neuroticizing belief systems may be disadvantageous to their personal carriers, but they evolved and always existed because of their evolutionary survival value at the communal level. And by that we mean survival value on the level of software, the level of "memes", the leading level for the evolution of Homo sapiens. Not surprisingly, many philosophers (and prophets) consider science as conducted properly and soberly, as a means to liberation. "Seek ye the truth, and the truth will make you free", as the saying goes, a saying that can also already be found in the Bible. In that sense such philosophers mean to indicate science as juxtaposed to religious superstition, ignorance and belief-systems. What can be expected to happen after Point Omega in this respect is a further secularization of society, in the sense that superstitious beliefs and structured ignorance will stop controlling society as they did in the past. The world will more and more choose for science where science appears to conflict with religious traditions and blindness for the truth, and especially with religious taboos against looking at ourselves soberly. In that sense science will work as a liberating force. Another effect we may expect from this secularization and increasing awareness of all the workings within ourselves is a cleaning up of all aspects, mentioned under point 1) above. Our world views, our support systems for the needy, our social networks, and also our spiritual life, will all be cleaned from taboo structures and other irrational blocks, from fear inducing old habits, from illogical inexplicabilities, from structured and forcefully imposed ignorance. And such a clean up will unleash untold and unexpected quantities of personal energy in all people involved, taking away the myriads of energy consuming tricks with which the power systems always kept us subjugated in neuroticizing structured slavery and ignorance. And the synergy between all these individual clean ups will cause an exponential increase of human potential and communal energy. It will verily motor the Point Omega transition. (For an [[Energy and Strokes|explanation of the mechanisms underlying such synergies, see here]](***).) So, yes, the religion-related changes will be crucially important aspects of the new era and of the transition thereto. Also, these changes will not be the end of spirituality and personal salvation, for authentic spirituality is not dependent of superstition and fairy tales. On the contrary, ending superstition, institutionalized ignorance and repression systems, will open up the road to a massive revival of genuine spirituality. From the above we may conclude to a number of focusing points for governments to pay attention to and to invest in, like: - Discourage superstitions that are blocking science or blocking truth - No worldly power should be allotted to systems of fairy tales and superstitions. - Protect secularization tendencies. - Protect authentic spiritual revival movements from persecution by old established repressive religious traditions. (The latter have in general become mixed with repressive power structures.) For deciding how to deal with the differences between religious affairs before Point Omega and religious affairs after Point Omega, it is useful to do one step back and consider the evolutionary necessities that have formed these characteristics of human life and that determine and will keep determining our options, options in personal behaviour, options in political management, and options in philosophical and ideological attitudes, including religions. As explained in more detail in the [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|''article on this Wiki about human Self-Blindness'']](*), a higher intelligence could only evolve in humans by virtue of specific built in blindnesses for our own and each other's behaviours. Human evolution has been a competition between increasing intelligence and concomitantly needed Self-Blindness needed for preventing that evolving intelligence from biting in its own tail, blocking further successful procreation and spreading of a higher intelligence through the population. As pointed out above and in [[ Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|''other articles on this Wiki'']](**), religion is a major tool to keep sufficient Self-Blindness operational for allowing higher levels of freely applicable intelligence to evolve. == Co-evolution of High Intelligence and Self-Blindness, the example of the Jews == With respect to the above, which was the sixth issue we discuss here, it should be of interest to pay attention to one of the oldest grand religions on earth, the jewish believe system. That belief system already exists for over 3.000 years and has well survived until this day. That feat is a very exceptional feat. Most religions in the world have been in operation only locally and only for a limited period of time. In general such local religions were very ethnocentric and self-serving. What strikes the interested onlooker is that the jewish tribe enjoys a higher than usual average intelligence, while at the same time the religious prescriptions are more numerous and more restrictive for daily life, than is usually the case with other religions. What also strikes the attention is that the jewish race has survived quite a number of (forced) mass-migrations out of their home-territory and returning later, not loosing their ancestral religious culture. This cultural survival is not customary in most other religious systems. Tribes and races tend to disappear and or to dissolve in other peoples and tribes, their local belief systems disappearing with them. When investigating the relationship between the evolution of intelligence in the human species and the theoretical prerequisite of Self-Blindness therefore, the case of the apparently successful jewish race could be utilized as a test example. There are a number of other striking features to the jewish people. We mention here the holocaust-like historical events, that have plagued the jews repeatedly, in fact for thousands of years, every time without the jews disappearing completely from the scene, as is more customary with other tribes and creeds in the world of Homo sapiens. Another feature of jewry is that they have moved through a number of population-cycle events as described in [[The biological instability of social equilibria|''another article on this Wiki(***), consisting of a paper that was also presented in 1987 in Jeruzalem at a conference of the ESS (European Sociobiological Society)'']]. The effects of genetic pollution and of extreme selection effects in favour of sociability and against creativity and innovation, as one would expect in most social structures, be it tribes, races or local cultures, evidently have been circumvented in the case of the jews, probably by how their history was shaped. Irrespective of these latter considerations, the fact is that the jewish tribe or race combines a higher than average intelligence with a higher than average religious pressure on personal and social life. Also, it can easily be recognized that also theír religious system is an extra barrier to understanding of the own behaviour or of behaviour of human beings in general. Looking at Jewry, just from the surface, it immediately strikes the eye that these people have just recently gone through an unbelievably harsh racist ordeal, losing literally millions of their kin at the hands of the Nazi nationalists. We should not forget that the genocide that happened in the Third Reich was nothing more than what in earlier times of human history, and even before that, was what ordinarily happened between competing tribal entities. Genocidal and territorial "final solutions" were the rule rather than the exception. The Third Reich was just a larger scale and more "industrialized" version of an ancient pattern. Now, some 80 years later, we find that the Germans in general are deeply ashamed that "they", that theír folk, allowed such stark collective blindness to take the lead. The Nazi's considered the Jews as foreigners, as another tribe or race, which makes genocide easier, but history shows us that such a racial component is not even necessary for committing monstrous and massive killings of people, even of one's own kin. Carrying other than the preferred ideas or believes may be sufficient to be exterminated on a massive scale. We have seen that recently happen in quite a number of occasions, like e.g., the Stalinist purges, killing of tens of millions of the Russian's own people, Mao Tse Tung's Great Leap Forward, costing the lives of also tens of millions of people, The Pol Pot regime in Cambodia, also taking the lifes of a high percentage of the own people, simply because they were suspected of not carrying the right political ideas and ideals, etc. So, ethnocentric aspects may facilitate massive killings, but they are in no way a condition for these atrocities to occur. They just make genocides and the like a little more probable. In the case of thew Jews, one would expect that, having suffered such an ordeal just recently, they themselves would nót fall for the automatisms of racism and ethnocentric territoriality. Present history shows us however that that expectation is far too optimistic. Even while a large part of the nations in the world are denouncing this Jewish territorial and ethnocentric aggression, against people who lived there first, the Israëli nevertheless still "stick to their guns" and carry on with the usurpation at hand. Taking another step back and looking at what is happening today in the "holy land", we cannot but be flabbergasted by the enormity of Jewish Blindness. We wish to point out here that this is a good example of the evolutionary necessity of Self-Blindness in cases of an evolving higher intelligence. No doubt that the Jews are one of the most intelligent tribes on earth. No doubt also, that hey demonstrate collective Self-Blindness in an incredibly clear and obvious way. The least we can say is that what happens to the Jews today, is in line with what is predicted from the pages of this Wiki. As a comment in the margin we could add here that we may hope that the Israëli will shortly manage to learn to keep thinking soberly in front of a mirror, the mirror e.g., of the opinion of the rest of the world. If they would manage to do just that, that would verily be a novelty. Because ........................... we outsiders may easily conclude that the jews in the "holy land" are crazy racists, having lost their minds, but what the jews are showing there is the result of primordial social reflexes that are the endowment of us all, of all the people in the world. Let's hope that they shortly learn how to keep their intellect working in front of the mirror, how to conquer the typical Blindness for the Self that has been the characteristic of us since Homo sapiens started to differ from its hominid ancestors. The Jews have not much time left. The proliferation of nuclear weapons on both sides makes survival of a jewish ethnocentric and territorial state ever more unstable, if not impossible. It looks like time is running out. They either come to their senses quickly, or some competitor group might obtain nuclear weapons and wipe Israël off the map. If that terrible thing would happen, that would no doubt be an extra impulse for the rest of the world to analyse what has happened and what are the basic mechanisms leading to such disasters. And that would facilitate and boost a rise in Self-awareness. And that in turn would facilitate the Point Omega transition. An alternative to such a disaster would be the Israëli coming to their senses, starting to understand themselves at last and explaining to the world how it all works. In that case they could take the lead in the coming explosion of (self-)awareness. That would fit in their self-assigned role of a "chosen People". For the world at large will learn from their mouths, or they will learn from their graves. Let's hope that the first option will prevail. Time is almost up. (........... refer here to Jonathan Sacks ..............) The Jewish ethnocentric creed can thus serve as an example illustrating the evolutionary need for Self-Blindness in our species. When considering and discussing governmental measures to be taken for the benefit of the human species for after Point Omega, it would therefore seem useful to also consider such measures in comparison with and in relationship with the jewish creed as an example. The history and the shaping of that tribe can serve as a reference point and bench mark. == Curbing destruction of the environment == {{Level|1}} The seventh issue is about biodiversity and our pretended stewardship. As we have seen, present day human evolution is primarily determined by the survival struggle between meme level power structures. And these power structures are dragging the much slower gene level evolution of mankind along. Competing power structures basically have no "interest" in the environment. They are only interested in spreading their software as well as possible among as many carriers as possible (us). The ecological environment is only important in as far as that environment should be able to keep the power structure's carriers alive. Of course there is no "intent" in the power structures, but from the outside, at the surface, it looks like that. The survival struggle looks like there is intent involved, but of course it just is an automatic process, the process of evolutionary changes. So, for the power structures in charge ecological values and biodiversity are only interesting in as far as they enhance the more effective spreading of "their" culture, their memes among us humans. Before Point Omega, including the moment of "now", the real competition is between the power structures in charge. And money is power, so if more money can be made in a short time at the cost of some extra environmental damage, the environment is in bad shape. Even if good stewardship would render more long term profit, then still, higher short term profits are generally preferred, even if the long term environmental damage is high and thus the long term profits lower than would be possible with more rational methods. Because of the short term higher profits environmental destruction has been going on since mankind has learned to manipulate its environment. Agriculture has been reducing the carrying capacity of the environment consistently since almost 10.000 years. Some people may think that environmental damage is a recent phenomenon, but that is not the case. The damage may proceed faster these days then in earlier times, but for instance the process of desertification has already taken its toll since thousands of years. For instance, in some North African regions, that used to serve as granaries for the Roman empire, the desert is now practically reaching to the sea. Another example is the sorry ecological state of the löss plateau in China, the source region of the yellow river, This highly fertile löss area is where the Han Chinese originated from, but in recent centuries the area only could support a minor percentage of the people it could support in more ancient times. The reason has merely been short sighted short term profit making by conforming to habits of overgrazing and subsequently losing fertile soil. Similar agricultural mis-use of soils occurred everywhere in the world. In fact there is more man-made desert on this planet than there is agricultural land. Since the blind competition struggle between power structures was the leading factor in our evolution, the environmental price being paid locally did not play an important role. As long as the carriers of the power structures in question would not survive less than the carriers of competitor power structures, the environmental effects could safely be neglected and ignored. We can now formulate that even more precisely. As long as the struggle between power structures determines our lives, and that is still the case completely, it is practically impossible to prevent biodiversity from further dwindling away. After Point Omega however, we will enter the phase of conscious evolution, which will take the sting out of the all overruling influence of the power structures. The ancient penalties on the level of success and procreation, that had to be paid if one's own power structure would not win, do not apply any more. After Point Omega we will enjoy freedom from the old procreational dictates and laws, that used to make rebellion against the interests of the power structures a risky and often fatal affair. After Point Omega we can safely reverse the wave of ecological destruction that has plagued mother earth for such a long time already. In our modern age of tool making and technical innovations we can then choose to use all those technical tools for "creating more biodiversity" rather than reduce it. It just needs some awareness of what has been going on and how we could do it better. And once we have come around to calculating the long term financial profits of good stewardship, we can in principle easily stimulate decisions to improve biodiversity, rather than reduce it. All the modern tools and technical possibilities can equally well be applied for the better instead of only for the worse. Modern ecological methods that can replace the ancient agricultural habits, go by various names: "Permaculture", "Natuurbouw" (Nature construction), "Ecological Stewardship", "Sustainability", etc. These more rational ecologically-friendly agricultural methods and land-management methods are nowadays spreading rapidly all over the world. Still, the all pervading influence of big money serves as a powerful engine for ecological destruction. Financially, it still pays off on the short term to continue to accept destruction as collateral damage of making more money in the short term. Until these days that destructive effect of the way power structures express themselves cannot easily be countered lastingly, because in the end the question is always which power structure was able to win from which other power structure, wielding its resources, including money, for spreading itself maximally. And the ecological collateral damage was always of minor importance in comparison to the survival of the power structure in charge. However, once we will have entered the phase of conscious evolution, the usual evolutionary penalties will lose their previously all pervading power and influence, making it possible for mankind to conscientiously choose its own course of action, which course of action then may very well be a course that optimizes biodiversity on earth instead of destroying it in the slipstream of the blind battle for survival between the impersonal powers structures. What governments could do to speed up the turning around of ecological destruction is to wield taxes as a means to help steer the behaviour of their people in more environment-friendly and wholesome directions. After Point Omega governments will get increasingly more space to introduce such methods. And their populaces will simply demand it, being aware of what is at stake. == Evolutionary Jet-lag & (Un)Happiness == {{Level|1}} The eighth issue is about happiness, illusory or not, or about what comes most close to it. As described in other articles on this Wiki (see e.g. [[The_significance_of_the_Point_Omega_transition|here]]), lasting happiness is something people tend to strive after, but in reality it does not exist. As the Canadian philosofer Tennessen used to say: "happiness is for the pigs". And indeed, once a person starts to understand how our behaviour works, the illusion of the possibility to eventually reach a state of lasting and stable happiness will have vanished. The notion of happiness is a valid phenomenon in our own personal, day to day, minute to minute, system, in that it indicates a direction in which we wish to go at any one moment in time. The difference between happiness and unhappiness makes us move. And the items or situations that are thought to make us happy or unhappy, are the things we move away from (unhappiness) and things we move towards (happiness). We move from what we dislike towards what we do like. Any living being that is not a plant but a moving entity does have such perceptions or it would stop moving. So, the feeling or sensation of happiness simply is implied by being an animal and not a plant. But, even if some steady state of happiness does not exist in reality, it is pointed out [[The_evolutionary_stability_of_a_bi-stable_system_of_emotions_and_motivations_in_species_with_an_open-ended_capacity_for_learning#Behavioural_idiosyncrasies_and_the_dimension_of_.22self-actualization.22|elsewhere on this Wiki]] that it is nevertheless very well possible to reach states of well functioning and personal growth as opposed to states of disfunctioning and stagnant learning processes. Happiness may be illusory, but "well functioning" certainly is a real thing, that can be measured and that can be strived after and eventually be obtained successfully. In the small Himalaya country Bhutan they do not have a ministry of economic affairs that is trying to maximize the gross national product, but they have instead a ministry that has the task to maximize the gross national happiness. In the same vein most people in the world are striving continuously on a personal level to improve their situation and to seek happiness. Knowing what we now know about our behaviour as laid down on this Wiki, we, Homo sapiens, can become aware that we are not plants, but animals, that we are `movers`, that we move from `A` to `B`, from unpleasant to pleasant, from unhappiness towards happiness. Being constantly on the move, our awareness includes the point where we come from, `A` as much as the point we are moving towards, `B`. So, basically each person can be aware of both happiness and-or unhappiness, just depending on whether the attention is reaching forward or reaching backward. In principle it is technically speaking quite simple to make that switch from looking backward to looking forward, but nevertheless people in general feel either the pain of the situation to move away from, or the pleasure of the situation preferred, giving the illusion that one is either in state `A` or in state `B`, while in reality one is always connected to both, while moving. This very basic fact of human life can serve as an example of to what extent we are blind for our own behaviour. People mostly need so called `wise men` to be reminded of the above truth, instead of really understanding all that automatically right from the start. Tennessen´s statement `happiness is for the pigs` means to illustrate the illusory aspect of states of happiness. That is the subjective side of the story. From the objective side however we can discriminate very well between states of well functioning and states of bad functioning, between states of expanding and processing experience successfully and states of a faltering learning process and a stagnant development. And whereas that latter distinction is not the same as happiness versus unhappiness, it is functionally related with happiness / unhappiness and it is very real and nòt illusory. That is why on this Wiki we have paid attention to states of well-functioning versus states of mal-functioning, states of optimal development versus states of stagnation and neurotization. This distinction is not only very real, it is an important issue in the present day state of Homo sapiens. [[Striving,_Playing_and_Learning#5.2_Growth_of_Skills_versus_Growth_of_Unskills|Elsewhere on this Wiki (see e.g., here)]], the basic mechanisms of learning and the processing of experiences is described. There the basic mechanisms of motivational end emotional reversals is discussed and the importance of a proper rhythm between the two is explained. Since we are not plants but animals, we are "movers" and therefore switches between feeling happy and feeling unhappy alternate. That's what makes us move. In cases where the rhythm of telic / paratelic switches are optimal, also an optimal learning process will result. In cases where the telic /paratelic switches are far from optimal, usually with too few paratelic states, a cumulation of avoidance reflexes occurs and from that the formation of so called "negative COEX-systems" (a label introduced by Stanislas Grof; i.e. Systems of COndensed EXperience). In the ideal case an optimal rhythm of telic and paratelic switches occurs and that results in the formation of many "positive COEX-systems". Such positive COEX-systems consist of areas of experience where the experiences in question have been processed sufficiently and have as a result been integrated in areas of "mastery". That route leads to the actualization of many potentials that were/are present in the person in question. A proper rhythm leads to Self-actualization and an improper rhythm leads to neuroticism and truncated behaviour patterns. ==== Before Point Omega ==== As explained in other articles (see [[Impersonal_Power_Structures_ruling_our_world|e.g. here]]) the power structures that have ruled human societies for almost 10.000 years now derive advantages from inducing to some degree neurotization in their carriers, us humans. They are in need of fearful compliance and that state can easier be induced in ailing neurotics than in well functioning self-actualizers. Another characteristic of the situation before Point Omega is the continuous and structural mismatch between P-feelings and N-demands (see [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22_.28the_evolutionary_Jet-Lag.29|here]] for further explanation). We labeled the source of that mismatch as "evolutionary Jet-Lag". And that mismatch in turn also does have a strongly neuroticizing effect. These two effects together result in Homo "sapiens" nowadays functioning quite sub-optimally. We are on average neurotic, truncated, fear-driven failures as compared with "what every individual could have been". The evolution of "memes" is running on a different time scale that does the biological DNA-based evolution. Since both memes and genes have us humans as their carriers, we humans are the ones who suffer from the Jet-Lag between the gene-evolution and the meme-evolution. All in all this emotional friction from that Jet-Lag brings us mainly pain and bad feelings. Seen from that point, Homo sapiens after all does have a severe unhappiness-problem. That is, the present state of mankind is characterized by neurotic, truncated behaviour and a very low frequency of Self-Actualizers. However, this does not imply that subjectively we feel rather unhappy on average. Because we are saddled with a strong Self-Blindness, we are not aware of our relative malfunctioning. Our point of reference is ourselves and our very myopic way of looking at things, precludes us becoming aware of the difference between "what is" and "what could be", especially in ourselves. Humanity is in a very bad state for already many thousands of years, but as individuals we have no clue as to this situation. We cannot see. For us, this horrible state is "normalcy". ==== After Point Omega ==== After Point Omega Humanity will resort to conscious evolution and that will inter alii result in taking the sting out of that evolutionary mismatch between P-feelings and N-demands. We will more and more direct the N-demands ourselves and create matches between the consciously designed N-demands and our primordial P-feelings. Until this moment in time, this phase in our evolution, there would be a high penalty on not yielding to current, traditional, N-demands. However, that evolutionary penalty will be suspended by the introduction of conscious evolution. So, what will happen after Point Omega is this: Conscious Evolution ---> Consciously dealing (and successfully) with evolutionary Jet-Lag ---> less pressure from N-demands that are not fitting with our primordial P-feelings ---> more Self-Actualization ---> more "happiness" in an objective way, i.e. more Well-Functioning (but this does not imply a higher level of subjective happiness, because that is a technical impossibility). The mechanisms described here offer distinct options for governments to ease the escape from the all influential control over us by the power structures in charge. Governments may choose to help spread awareness of the unpleasantness of the demands by the power structures. That would make it easier for people to gather the necessary courage to make a stand and choose more wholesome course of action, increasing their psychological health and well-being structurally. And, apart from that, governments can choose to actively take a host of other measures for reducing mass neuroticism, now that they understand the working of the underlying mechanisms. And that will result in freeing enormous quantities of human energy and resources. It does not need much further explanation to understand that such developments will result in a chain reaction of mass-self-actualization, fueling and speeding up the Point Omega transition at large. == Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself == {{Level|2}} The ninth issue is about how we behave towards one another. As pointed out in the article [[The_evolutionary_stability_of_a_bi-stable_system_of_emotions_and_motivations_in_species_with_an_open-ended_capacity_for_learning|about Reversal Theory on this Wiki(***)]], that is dealing with the antagonist motivational states Telic and Paratelic and the alternations between the two, our behavioural system is designed to make optimum use of acquired experiences and to make us automatically search for those experiences that would optimally fit as a useful addition to already acquired experiences and skills. That way the system makes optimal use of any surplus of energy, investing it automatically in exactly those places and situations that fit best to expand the systems of condensed experience [[The_evolutionary_stability_of_a_bi-stable_system_of_emotions_and_motivations_in_species_with_an_open-ended_capacity_for_learning#Positive_and_negative_clusters_of_COndensed_EXperience|(COEX systems)(***)]] that have already been acquired and already are available. On the one hand this mechanism results in better chances to successfully expand the behavioural repertoire in cases where the individual in question has already learned quite a bit and is on average well balanced. This is a positive feed back system within the individual behavioural system. The more skills already acquired, the easier it is to acquire further growth. Between people, at the level of social interaction, a similar effect can be recognized. A positive attitude from one person to the other (we can label that as "strokes") does enhance better chances for the receiving person to find relaxation when needed and subsequently to establish or maintain an optimal rhythm of telic / paratelic reversals. That way there exist also very strong positive feed back loops between people, that finally result in a high contagiousness of psychological health. If one would seek for methods to enhance a healthy psychological development of as many people as possible, a good strategy would be to treat individual people as supportive and as positively as possible. Such treatment, abundant with "strokes", helps the receiver of such an attitude to reach or maintain optimal telic / paratelic alternations and thus an optimal learning cycle. "Treating others as one would like to be treated oneself" an admonition which is familiar to e.g. Christians and Buddhists, would therefore be a logical strategy when striving to create a more ideal society. And obviously, the usefulness of that principle has already been recognized by seeers and prophets since a very long time. This principle also pertains to behaviour towards other species than only to the human race itself. Self actualization brings forth automatically a raised compassion with all forms of life, because in that state of mind there is more emotional space available, in whichever direction. This involuntarily results in "good stewardship" over nature, also an old Christian (and also Buddhist) ideal. However, until now there have always been very strong evolutionary principles and laws that are at variance with the above mentioned ideal. Evolution cannot proceed without a continuous competition between individuals, resulting in that only the most "fit" will contribute proportionally to the next generations. Without such a selection pressure, a certain species, or a certain sub-population thereof, will soon crumble down and perish from genetic load and pollution after selection pressure has been suspended for some generations. Creating a "socialist, fair and just" society may work for a little while, but it is basically at variance with the above basic laws of evolution and thus of survival. In that sense a fair and just society at best is postponement of selection pressure, or rather, that has always been the case until now. Some philosophers therefore say: "Civilization is a conspiracy against evolution". And necessarily, such conspiracies always were only short lasting. Every time a civilization would crumble down under the pressures of resumed natural selection mechanisms, times would be hard again on all inhabitants and disaster, mayhem, wholesale rape, economic strangling techniques and other misery, up to and including genocide would reign again for some period of time. Such periods of time would allow for selection pressures to recoup lost terrain again and also typically would enhance a reshuffling of gene pools, causing hybrid vigour to help boost the genetic quality of the left over populations surviving the period of disasters. ([[The_effects_of_genetic_pollution_on_political_structures_and_human_history|See here for more explanation about the effects of genetic load.]](***) '''After Point Omega''' However, after Point Omega the blind forces of the evolutionary laws that rule all life, including our own, will be enriched in the case of Homo sapiens by "conscious evolution". In fact, by introducing conscious evolution, humanity can take the sting out of the customary selection pressures that until this moment in time always have made "fair and just" societies intrinsically unstable. What this means is that after Point Omega finally the above mentioned ideal of "treat others as you would like to be treated yourself" can be introduced to stay. The usual danger of becoming unstable after a limited amount of time, because of genetic deterioration, can now be countered by "conscious evolution". The changes coming with the Point Omega transition may imply that religions will disappear, at least the vast majority of (superstitious) varieties thereof. But on the other hand the state of affairs that prophets would sometimes label as the "kingdom of God", meaning a really fair and just society, may at last be realized in a stable and evolutionarily viable way. When the admonitions "love your neighbors like yourself" and "treat others as you would like to be treated yourself" rule, the result will be: more Strokes --> easier to attain relaxation when being in a Telic State --> better Rhythm of Telic/Paratelic reversals --> Better Processing of experiences --> Better Learning results --> more Self-Actualization --> Mass Enlightenment --> catalysation of Point Omega shift --> Chain Reaction character of Point Omega transition. == How to deal with hopeless cases ? == {{Level|1}} The tenth issue is about how to deal with the complete failures, the people that fill us with disgust and hate. From the previous paragraph it follows that it is a good advice to treat others as one would like to be treated oneself. As stated, this is the old christian admonition, that also can be found in numerous other widely spread cultures and traditions. It can be considered a useful prop to enhance the emergence or rather catalysation of the Point Omega transition. One could however counter that there are vast numbers of individuals that cannot reasonably be considered as even potentially useful for society and for their fellow men. Many criminals, psychopaths, etc., do not evoke any other reactions than aversive aggression and disgust. For many of such individuals the conclusion is almost inevitable that such persons better were dead, for the benefit of their fellow men as well as for themselves. From a practical point of view, such a radical defensive attitude regarding these failed persons may be advisable or at least very seductive. However, there are by now very good scientific and political reasons why also towards such acknowledged failures, such absolutely hopeless individuals, it is of crucial importance to also treat such disgusting individuals in the way as described above. That is because once the above is the official attitude, every individual "knows" that he will be accepted "as he/she is". And that awareness will stop most of the basic fears as ordinarily used to be, and still are, installed by the ruling power structures. And that new, novel situation will stop the internal personal feed back loops that always were stabilizing neuroticism. It can be calculated that this is a relatively cheap and easy to install change of course. And the beneficial effects at the social plane will simply be tremendous. A very stable and thorough relaxation will enter the minds and hearts of such "hopeless" persons. And that will have enormous effects on the citizens around, because of the great contagiousness of relaxation and paratelic states. The advice to governments should therefore be to assume responsibility for making clear that all people, simply because they were born, are entitled to acceptance and support if needed, of course within reasonable boundaries. In the pre-Point-Omega situation such measures could not be carried through without penalty. Population genetic laws would make sure that then genetic load would increase too much and sooner or later the social structure would collapse under the pressure of genetic pollution, not being able any longer to come up to the competitive challenges from other power structures with a less polluted gene pool. In other words: social stress, competition, struggle and suffering are needed to exert enough selection pressure on the population to realize some degree of selection pressure enabling the power structures in question to not loose its carriers in the competition for survival. However, in the after Point Omega situation we will have conscious evolution replacing the natural struggle between power structures over the backs of their carriers, us people. Conscious evolution takes care of preventing genetic (over-)load, of preventing the ordinary social selection cycles and other mechanisms with which mother nature always kept our innate qualities at the required level. The "natural" methods of mother nature invariably come with struggle and strive and pain for the individuals in question. Circumventing that misery always was self-defeating because of the basic demands from the laws of evolution. But, once conscious evolution is in place, the usual penalties are suspended and society can safely install the luxury of accepting every human being born, thus removing all serious basic fears. The chain reaction that such a novel situation will trigger is assumedly of such a magnitude, that the proposed measures will produce revenues of a completely different order than what the costs amounted to. The bottom line is to organize that we all need to assume responsibility for one another, which attitude is further discussed in the next chapter. == Assuming responsibility for every human being in existence == {{Level|2}} The eleventh issue is about a new foundation for human social relationships. One of the basic characteristics for after Point Omega is that every human being should be guaranteed a relatively stress-free life. Such a situation is already the ideal of many societies and political systems. However, more often than not, such striving appears to be quite difficult to bring into practice, especially in the long term. And besides, many societies do not embrace such a principle at all. Until this moment in history principles of "survival of the fittest" and the "struggle for life" have dominated the situation. And such principles were very necessary in order to maintain a certain required level of genetic selection pressure. Without such selection pressures genetic pollution and degeneration would quickly put an end to any societies' survival. After Point Omega however, "conscious evolution" will have taken over and therefore the stress of selection struggles will have become superfluous. The consequence of this change in evolutionary demands is that there finally will be (evolutionary) space for fair and just societies to be continued without end. Genetic pollution and social selection cycles can be countered with ease and the usual life span limitations of social structures can be by-passed. The implication of such a novel situation is that we may set aside and overcome primordial reflexes of attraction and repulsion without in the end suffering the thereby speeded up life cycle end and the total collapse of the social structures in question. And that in turn implies that our very strong tendency to indulge in black/white or bad/good thinking regarding other people, will have lost its evolutionary "usefulness". We can now safely open our eyes to reality, to how we are put together, to how we have evolved, to what our options are, and which traditional options have become "no-go areas". Having bypassed the ordinary needs for evolutionary selection pressures in our society and our social relations, we can at last safely refrain from denouncing adversaries, from scapegoating, from black/white thinking, etc. We can safely "love our neighbor like ourselves" without paying in the end the concomitant evolutionary penalty for it. Even more, because we will have entered a situation where conscious evolution has taken over and that being in a democratic context, we are basically all together responsible for every human being that is being born on this earth. A situation will develop, where large and by humanity together decides how procreation will be given shape. Ultimately, that implies that '''everybody basically is co-responsible for every other human being that has been born'''. And that may be considered as one of the '''basic rules''' of the human world '''after Point Omega'''. Conscious evolution has not yet been started up and it will probably take quite a number of generations before that state of affairs will have been consolidated. In the mean time however we can already get used to thinking along those terms. That will help to support individuals that have problems in functioning smoothly and properly. Many of such problem-people may need to be firmly controlled or even locked up in order to avoid them causing harm to other people, but if we remember that we all together are responsible for their very existence, it is easier to maintain a supportive attitude. As argued [[Energy and Strokes|in the article about "strokes"]] handing out "strokes" is the best medicine to help people regain proper rhythms of telic/paratelic reversals and thus regain growth towards fulfillment of their best innate capacities. Self-actualizers are more pleasant company than overstressed neurotics. And every "stroke" helps to bring that better option about. Ultimately, increasingly more strokes will come back to us in a process of social interaction which is, from a technical point of view, basically a process of positive feed back loops. And because of the technical characteristics of positive feed back loops, this will cause a chain reaction of strongly increasing mutual social support. And that, in turn, will diminish neuroticizing structures beyond a critical point, making space for a more broadly occurring actualization of human potentials to an unprecedented extent. And, because of the technical consequences of the positive feed back loops involved, these changes will increasingly gain speed until the majority of mankind wil all of a sudden be "taken by surprise" (but in a positive sense). These are the considerations why we need to assume responsibility for every human being in existence, and act accordingly. It is about time. It is clear that this general attitude of mutually assured respect and support is strikingly different from the pre-Omega condition of unlimited competition on all levels, ethnocentric cramps and reflexes, racism and genocide. This new attitude of accepting responsibility for and giving support to also the less privileged of our fellow human beings, up and including "the hopeless cases", the hardened criminals, and the plain idiots and simpletons, that attitude is an emotional cornerstone of the post-Point Omega world order. Before Point Omega we hardly could afford such an attitude, because of the evolutionary penalties involved, but from now on that attitude will fully pay off on all levels and that to an unprecedented degree. == Competition and Work; how to deal with it in a different way == {{Level|1}} The twelfth and final issue to be addressed here is about our attitude to "work". Our relationship with work is another area of human life where great changes can be expected with the Point Omega transition. Work can be experienced in very different ways. Work can be an activity through which we manage to be an accepted member of society, being useful to the community through our (professional) "work". Work can also be felt as a social obligation, something the person in question does not want, but does not dare to challenge in order to avoid being expelled or ostracized. In order to be accepted and stay accepted, one has to do his fair bit of the toil. In more extreme cases, one simply is forced to do some sort of work. That may be forced labour in a prisoner-type of setting or, more subtle, being forced to do labour against one's will because the social pressure and control mechanisms are felt as inescapably strong and permanently overwhelming. In such situations one cannot formally be labeled as a prisoner or a slave, but the emotional experience is coming close to that. At the other side of the spectrum one finds those persons who have managed to make money with their hobby, or at least with something that they like to do. In those cases, what people already prefer to do by themselves, is accepted by society as something that is generally considered a useful contribution. Ideally, parents wish to bring up their children in such a way that they can master one or other skill that is considered useful for society and is being paid for, while the kids in question like to perform that specific type of (professional) skill. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they don't. In the latter cases, the children in question end up in some sort of jobs that they don't really like, but that they keep performing in order to make some money and survive, trying to forget that they are basically living in some sort of harsh or gentle slavery. Basically, on average we live in states of mild or harsh slavery and the extent to which we manage to like our "jobs" differs greatly. The more we like our "job", the less we feel enslaved. One of the specific factors that tends to make work less pleasurable for us humans, is the factor of the rat-race. Successful societies in general have incorporated in their social systems structures that induce competition between people doing similar work. Our capitalist system is but one example in which organizations strive to get the necessary work done in the most efficient and profitable way. Workers are under continuous pressure to perform better and often it is quite difficult for them to maintain a healthy balance between work pressure and personal needs for relaxation and recovery. In such cases the slavery-aspect is felt more strongly. Seen from the point of view of the power structures ruling our societies and lives, it doesn't matter so much if a majority of the people works under such pressure that they do not manage any more to maintain proper emotional balances and as a consequence end up as fearful neurotics. The useful output per neurotic person may be less than optimal, but the power structure can manipulate neurotic workers easier than they can manipulate self-actualizers. Neurotics have much more fear-handling-points that can be utilized by the power structures in charge. The useful output per person may then be lower, but the malleability of the neurotic herds is much better. They can be better employed to man the production lines and the military battle units, doing as they are told. One more factor we need to keep in mind about work is that mankind is suffering from evolutionary Jet-Lag. This means that the requirements that are demanded by the power structures are often at variance with our primordial emotional preferences and tendencies. There is a misfit between our primordial P-feelings and the N-needs. And it is especially in "work" where we feel that squeeze hurting. Much work that is required by the power structures, only gets done by way of force, either harsh or subtle. If we look at human history, we can recognize that during the last millennia we have been moving from very clear cut slavery structures, being a cornerstone of society, to less total suppression and slavery in which the slave-aspect is more and more hidden and less painful. Since in the latest centuries technical machinery has been developed to replace simple manual labour, society does not need any more such high percentages of slaves in order to be successful. In particular stupid and mindless work is done more and more by machines. And besides, those machines can produce way more products in less time and against lower costs than what was possible before. In fact we have entered a situation of affluence and that situation is not going to disappear. On the contrary, in the present time we are testimony of an explosive increase of efficiency and that gives an enormous boost to the world wide "wealth" of us humans. The present development of computers and communication tools is multiplying the effects of the industrial revolution and our wealth will keep increasing accordingly. Seen from that point of view, from the exploding increase in wealth, the millennia old rat race and the millennia old enslavement of people have become basically superfluous. In principle, society could start to utilize other, different, ways to win the competition with other power structures. After Point Omega the playing field changes thoroughly and more agreeable methods can become the winning formulae. '''After Point Omega''' After Point Omega the percentage of neurotics will decrease, making it more difficult for power structures to utilize the age old methods to rule by fear. It becomes increasingly more viable to seduce people to do useful things by being transparent and by simply paying more for unpleasant jobs. If fear doesn't work any more, the remuneration needs to go up in case it is different from work that is intrinsically pleasant to do. After Point Omega the balance between telic and paratelic states and their alternations will improve, with a higher frequency of paratelic states, in turn resulting in better growth and development of the individuals, which in turn results in a higher percentage of Self-actualizers. Point Omega basically is the run away increase in optimal telic-paratelic reversal frequencies. The contagiousness of proper personal growth will fuel the typical Point Omega changes leading, among other things, to a radically different work attitude. People will more often stop accepting slave positions and will more and more demand "meaningful" work. And "meaningful" is in principle more in line with our [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22_.28the_evolutionary_Jet-Lag.29|P-feelings]](**). So, the evolutionary Jet-Lag will stop to make our work situations miserable. The dirty, boring, tedious, heavy, difficult work that cannot be done by some efficient machinery, simply will have to be paid better in order to be in balance with the new situation. Evolution works through competition between conspecifics. We humans have to compete with fellow human beings, either within our own group or tribe or competing with other people in a more far away group or society. Evolution proceeds because the winners contribute more to the next generation than do the losers, losers in whichever sense of the word. Men may theorize about fair societal structures in which aggressive competition is harnessed and cooperative friendliness reigns. But, as we mentioned above, civilization can in a sense be regarded as a conspiracy against evolution. No matter how clever a fair and just society had been designed, sooner or later such a society would collapse and selection pressures would recover lost terrain by launching the citizens of the former fair society into chaos, turmoil and destruction. Competition as we know it in our societies can be hard, in the sense that one's life depends on the outcome, but also it can take the form of a rather "sportive" competition. In such cases winning the competition is striven after, but one's life does not directly depend on the outcome. In such cases it is rather like in sport. One works hard to win, but basically it stays a game. What we may expect after Point Omega is that competition will not disappear from work and social life, but that the ongoing competitions get a more "sportive" flavour. We then work ourselves right until our limits, but we do it for fun, not out of fear and desperation. Since after Point Omega work will be more like a game, giving enjoyment to the "worker", rather than stress and fear, and since we all will have to take responsibility for literally every human being on this planet, base pay comes in sight. It can be calculated that granting every person in society a base pay, no matter what the person in question is contributing, an enormous shift in general attitude will occur in most people. The pressure is off and relaxation is always within reach. As pointed out [[The_significance_of_the_Point_Omega_transition|elsewhere on this Wiki]](*), easier relaxation will trigger better learning processes and subsequently will bring about an ever higher percentage of Self-Actualizers. Until this moment in time "work" used to be in most cases very much a "re-active" activity, full of fears and concerns. After Point Omega work will have a more "pro-active" flavour. People will work rather "for the hell of it", rather than out of fear to drop out or to perish financially. Work and play will be better compatible and pleasure in work will become the rule, rather than the exception. And as pointed out above, if, in such a fear-free society the dirty, hard or unpleasant work is refused by most people, a better pay for the jobs in question will do the trick. == Priorities for an action list == {{Level|1}} After the above 12 paragraphs we may draw the conclusion that: - After Point Omega many issues and many problems will have to be treated in a different way than before. - Some of these changes in attitude will follow suit automatically and involuntarily. In those cases no extra pressure is needed to steer the changes in the right direction. Such changes therefore do not need to be put high on the list of priorities, that is, the priority list of where we should invest extra attention, energy and time. These changes may in some cases be quite crucial for mankind in the new situation and they may play a central role in the shifting towards the Past-Point-Omega state of affairs. But still, these issues end up low on the priority list, because they will also come about without extra purposeful action from our side or from the side of the authorities. - Some changes can be boosted and sped up from outside rather easily. Where that is the case, it pays off for that reason to give these changes an extra "boost" and the issue may for that reason be put higher on the priority list. There, extra effort will pay off. - Some of the changes, related to the emergence of Point Omega, are already on the list, in the sense that people already pay attention and try to spread the changes in question as broadly as they can. An example is "freedom of speech". In many parts of the modern world the importance of this change is recognized, but in many other countries freedom of speech is still a utopian dream. These issues are certainly of importance. Still, they do not need to be put high on this priority list, because, evidently, they already are getting attention, time and energy. With these three criteria in mind we now can, as examples, order a non-exhaustive listing of priorities and recommended actions for governments and individuals. With every item, every change, we will give an indication of why the item has been put higher or lower on our list of priorities. '''1) Amathology'''. Spending time and money studying the mechanisms of human Blindness for the Self is crucial for dealing with the changes needed for moving through the Point Omega transitions. Awareness of and knowledge about these mechanisms of Self-Blindness are fundamental for the Past Point Omega world. However, for purely technical reasons we should expect that people and institutions will not automatically put energy and time and money in that type of research, no matter how important it is. For most people these issues just "don't feel right". Therefore this item is put high on the priorities list. Extra effort on this issue will pay off exponentially. '''2) Transparency'''. One of the major tools for power structures to maintain their control over their subjects is that the officers "in charge" enjoy broad information privileges. They "know more" than their subjects and keep their people that way in a permanent state of helplessness, which, by the way, these subjects consider as "normal". In contrast, democratic ways of cooperation need to be anchored in sufficient information levels for the people who are part of the democracy. Otherwise, no educated opinions can be formed. In our modern world, and especially recently, transparency has increasingly become a hot item and the target of introducing and improving transparency on many levels is part of most modern societies. In spite of all this already existing attention, we still put transparency high on this priority-list, because it is something that can easily be improved and steered by governments and other large organizations. By putting energy in the further improvement of transparency on all levels, the transition to the post Point Omega situation can considerably be facilitated. Transparency is a main characteristic of the "new world" and it will pay off to increase the emphasis it is already receiving. '''3) Legal innovations for "taking responsibility"'''. Taking responsibility by everybody, for everybody else's existence, is a new concept for most people. It is not or hardly supported by already existing traditions and culture. It goes counter to traditions of competition and of holding failing people responsible for their failures to "have made it". Still, this novel type of responsibility - by all for all - will have a tremendous impact on the feelings of well-being of the majority of mankind. It will give every individual a feeling of "being OK" and "being accepted". It will take away the feeling of failure and the neuroticizing fear to be ostracized or held personally responsible for failure. By positive feed back loops in our behavioural system such a removal of imposed feelings of inadequacy will free enormous amounts of positively spent energy. This admonition to accept responsibility for literally everybody will have tremendous effects on the peace of mind and the peace of heart of our fellow human beings. Knowing the mechanisms of the contagiousness of well-being and of emotional equilibrium and personal growth it is clear that "Taking Responsibility" is very important for the transition to the other side of Point Omega. Because of its importance and because it is difficult for individual people to switch to this new attitude, we have put this issue high on the list of priorities. Attention and energy being spent on this issue will most likely be very well spent and that is why we have put this issue also close to the top. Once the idea of "together taking responsibility for every human being alive" has been accepted as a useful tool to (re)form our world, this principle has to be embedded in new legislation that can help to establish and propagate the global support for "everybody". First of all the authorities should recognize the importance of this "support of all by all". And one of the most effective - lastingly effective - methods for authorities to boost this principle is legislation itself. '''4) Psychological sciences'''. Giving shape to the post-Point-Omega world will be supported by an increase in scientific research efforts. In our rapidly developing and changing world, new techniques emerge and are actively sought in all fields of human functioning. Whereas technical scientific developments traditionally used to get much attention and financing and will automatically receive such attention in the future, we have good reasons to advise for a shift in emphasis into the direction of research in the fields of psychology, sociology and ethology. The Omega-shift implies that humanity will enter into another level of understanding of our own behaviour. One of the tenets defended on this Wiki is that the level of knowledge about our own behavioural system, our emotions and motivations is still very limited and at places almost non-existent. Large gaps in our understanding of these matters need to be filled in urgently. Many of these gaps in our knowledge have traditionally been maintained by complex systems of taboos and contemporary superstitions. After Point Omega we will need to pay extra attention to for instance the following fields in psychological research: -- Good-Bad reflexes and their biological functions; -- Reversal Theory, dealing with the dynamics of our emotional and motivational system; -- Automatic selection pressures in the social plane on the dimension of Adaption-Innovation and the resulting periodic catastrophes in social structures; -- Amathology or the research on human blindness for the own behaviour and its biological function. Whereas not being exhaustive, these issues should be in the front of our future scientific research efforts. As pointed out in many papers on this Wiki, human misery is finally and solidly anchored in ignorance about exactly these fields of psychological functioning. Spending attention, time and energy here, certainly will pay off. For that reason this focus point is placed rather high on our list of priorities. '''5) Military authority for the UN'''. At this moment in time, it is becoming more and more likely that at some stage a group of deranged idiots will be able to lay their hands on nuclear retaliation instruments. If that would happen, humanity will be in bad shape. For instance, Islamic fanatics have flown 2 airplanes into the New York twin towers. Imagine what would happen in case such fanatic morons would get control over nuclear missiles. Such disaster would most likely trigger the immediate allocation of more military power in the hands of the UN "government", in order to be able to prevent such idiocies from happening again. However, it seems much better strategy to arrange such decisive military power to the UN level before the above may happen. Until now, people don't seem to feel the urgency to put more effective power in UN hands. But that is a sorry example of shortsightedness, that might cost many millions of us their lives unnecessarily. Since this issue is likely to be taken seriously too late, and because of the price humanity would have to pay for the sorry consequences, this issue is also put high on this priority list. Imagine what would happen if the North Korean government would indeed have control over nuclear hitting power. These days there are quite a number of political states of whom we would not like to know nuclear hitting power in their hands. Examples from the recent past or the present are for instance: ISIS, North Korea, the Ayatolla state in Iran, Zimbabwe, Ruanda's genocide, Pol Pot in Cambodia, etc., etc. '''6) UN-power guaranteeing the right to political self-determination for all populations and sub-populations'''. Self-determination will come about for all people in the world without any doubt at some point in time. Developments that can be expected after Point Omega will bring that about inevitably. Until this moment in time, until this moment in our evolution, differential procreation of tribes and races and other (sub-)populations was inevitable and necessary for the gradual evolution of novel characteristics of Homo sapiens, for the progress of evolution. And selection processes on that level of operation come with genocide, large scale war, economic strangling techniques and other misery producing events. These events may always have been unpleasant, or rather terrible, properties of human life, but they were basically and in principle unavoidable because of the evolutionary dictates of differential fitness of different tribes, races or genetic sub-groups of people. Only when the ordinary automatic evolutionary pressures have been bypassed by a different (and more effective) mechanisms, can we hope to have conquered the above mentioned eternal sources of human misery and pain, pains that are basically the same as the pains of any species in evolution, but that in the case of Homo sapiens tend to occur at a larger scale and more at distinct intervals instead of continuously. After the introduction of "conscious evolution", after Point Omega, the evolutionary forces leading to all those forms of suffering will be bypassed and principles of self-determination will become a possibility that is not unstable any more. So, after Point Omega we may expect that principles of self-determination will automatically become the rule rather than the temporary exceptions. However, it pays off to put extra energy and attention in this development and speed that process up where possible, because of the dangers for mankind stemming from the present situation in many countries, where self-determination is still a far away dream and violent revolutions are lurking below the surface. The sooner we can install a generally applicable right to self-determination, the sooner those - really great - dangers will be brought under control. In the new situation every local population will be entitled to collectively decide how much autonomy is preferred against which decrease of efficiency of size or decrease of governmental expertise. Recent examples of where such issues are under discussion or, less ideal, should be under discussion, are for instance: Scotland versus the UK; the UK versus the EU; the Krim versus Ukraina or Russia; East Ukraina versus Ukraina or Russia; East-Timor versus Indonesia; Papua New Guinea versus Indonesia; Catalunia versus Spain; Western Sahara versus Marocco; Southern Sudan versus Sudan; Darfur versus Sudan; etc.; etc.; etc. '''7) Create better opportunity for mothers to care sufficiently for their babies'''. One of the most effective ways to improve chances for young children to grow up to be mature and capable individuals is to enable mothers of neonatives to spend enough time and attention to their newborns and in the first years after birth. There are ample scientific research data that show the large effects of proper maternal care on the development of the newborns. Also, various articles on this Wiki explain how this developmental effect comes about. Whereas in the future there will be no doubt more space, time and room for mothers to care for their newborns in an optimal way, we still need to emphasize here the usefulness of paying more attention to these long term developmental effects of good maternal care. On the one hand there will be created more and more opportunity for mothers to give their birthlings an optimal start. On the other hand, we can catalyze these changes tremendously by putting still more attention and energy in these changes. Therefore this issue should get relatively much priority. It will happen anyway, but events can be much optimized by now already speeding up this particular change as much as possible. (A scientific analysis of these effects can for instance be found in the work of [[Further_reading#Bowlby1969|Bowlby]](1969) and of [[Further_reading#Bettelheim1969|Bruno Bettelheim]](1969), where he describes the large scale failures in 20th century kibbutses regarding the early upbringing of babies.) '''8) Tax reforms world wide'''. Taxes are a relatively easy way to help steer the behaviour of large masses of people in the right direction. An environment tax would make it more expensive for people to purchase or apply environment-unfriendly articles and products. Price differences can easily bring people to make better choices on a daily basis. This method could reduce pollution considerably and could equally improve the protection of biodiversity. Likewise a junk-food tax could help to make people buy less unhealthy fodder (then more expensive) and instead buy more healthy (cheap) alternatives. This would improve the average well-being of people and simultaneously reduce costs of medical care. At this level benefits can also be obtained by making better international agreements on preventing tax-evasion. That would improve the possibilities for governments to collect fair levels of taxes from all citizens concerned, including the bigger international companies who nowadays often do not need to pay their fair share. Fair taxes for internationals would greatly reduce the tax levels for ordinary citizens, this to the benefit of all. And once the big companies pay their fair share of taxes, the environmental components of the taxes will finally have a strong effect on the reduction of pollution and the improvement of biodiversity. These tax issues already do have increasing lots of attention, but still it would pay off greatly to put extra energy in these reforms, because the powers that resist such reforms are traditionally very strong and the effects of these tax reforms will have immediate beneficial effects on the whole of society. Also, it will enhance people's confidence in the authorities if they manage to realize a broad tax-equality. '''9) Eugenics'''. One main characteristic of the transition Point Omega is finishing the era of evolving gradually towards higher levels of consciousness and entering a new era, a new phase in human history, the era of Conscious Evolution. That new situation implies the conscious utilization of Eugenics and all its techniques involved. Homo sapiens ''cannot survive'' without taking its ow evolution consciously in its own hands. It is therefore of crucial importance now and in the near future. One of the novel tools involved in dealing with eugenics is Eugenic Mapping. The improvement of these techniques is a major tool for conscious evolution. On the one hand we mention it here, because it is not something that will automatically be taken on by governments. At this moment in time this matter is still hidden safely behind walls of taboos and superstition. On the other hand, eugenic mapping will gradually but inescapably be boosted by public demand. People will increasingly demand to enjoy all the advantages of genetic screening and other measures to produce offspring that is as healthy and as capable as possible. It can therefore be put at a relatively low position on the list of priorities, because in due time this issue will get sufficient attention anyway. The public at large simply will demand it. '''10) Sexual liberation of women'''. The inequality between the sexes is a primordial given. Apart from cultural habits our biological past has caused difference between the average investments in newborns by mothers and the average investments by the fathers. This difference between the sexes has always been causing certain basic frictions. These differences in focus and in where the main concerns are located in each of the sexes, evidently has been an Evolutionarily Stable Strategy, ESS, throughout our evolution. However, in the coming era of conscious evolution it will be of crucial importance that women will increasingly be in command of their own bellies, about their own offspring and if possible, the fatherhood involved. Genetic pollution, which is one of the major classic obstacles for a long lasting and stable peaceful human society, will have to be tackled with a range of novel approaches. And more say for women about their own pregnancy is one of those indispensable novel attitudes. This beneficial effect of women's sexual emancipation on the reduction of genetic pollution is the reason why we have included this issue here on the list of priorities. '''11) Make biological fathers pay for their offspring'''. As a pair to the above item is the priority of making men pay for the offspring they have sired in a biological sense. Medical techniques to assess fatherhood without a doubt are now available everywhere and they will increasingly be applied to back up claims of young mothers to share the burden of parenthood with the biological fathers. This tendency is already on the increase in most places of the world. That we still mention it here is because this will put a break on the tendency of men to "knock up" women with child without coming up with marital assistance. And that shift will be in favour of fathers who are capable of giving parental support and this shift will be an increasing hindrance to the fatherhood of incompetents. Making biological fathers pay their fair share in parental efforts is an extra brake on genetic pollution and moreover it helps to provide newborns with a good start. '''12) Pollution'''. Pollution too, needs to come to an end shortly. We presently tend to regard the fight against pollution as crucial for human well-being. And that is quite right. However, the pollution problems will automatically be tackled more vigorously and more effectively once Point Omega has been passed. Most individual people and also their governments are increasingly aware that pollution needs to stop and that human well being can be raised that way. Pollution can therefore safely be put somewhat low on the priority list. We'll effectively deal with it anyway. '''13) Overpopulation'''. Alleviation of present day suffering of our whole planet through over-exploitation, fueled by millions of tonnes of superfluous human flesh, is very urgent and one of the major features of the new time. Still, this item ends up rather low on the priorities list, because a systematic and lasting reduction of human numbers will inevitably and automatically happen anyway, and that without draconian pressures from above. '''14) Secularization'''. We have put this item low on the list because doing away with superstition and religious fear will score high with many people already anyway. Giving shape to the world after Point Omega does not need spiritual awareness to disappear. What it does need is that superstitions and collective fears do not keep dominating individual and group behaviour. Organized religions normally played a crucial role in maintaining power structures by inducing and regulating fears in their people. What will be left in the future of present day religions is at best a kind of spiritual awareness and feeling of unity, that is denuded from all the traditionally concomitant fears and unwholesome taboos, that served the power structures rather than the individual welfare of the believers. Anyway, putting religions back in their proper place, where they do "good" and no "harm", will continue to happen automatically and unavoidably. '''15) Ecology.''' For evoking sensible and rational action with respect to the global ecological hot issues, the best and also lasting approach is to broaden the education packages about ecology for our young people in the schools. The more people are aware of the ecological imbedding of Homo sapiens, the more our ecological heritage will be protected and improved upon. The more emphasis we put on the issues of ecology, the better we will take care of our biological heritage. A movement that already is gaining more and more influence at the level of ecological values, is "Permaculture". The Permaculture methodology guides land owners in the direction of producing useful goods, foods and raw materials, while at the same time improving and not exhausting the local ecological carrying capacity. This new method about how to deal with our world originated in Australia and has since its beginning kept spreading over the world at an ever expanding pace. A similar striving is included in what we call the "Sicirec Formula", applied in plantation forestry, but equally well applicable in any other exploitation of land for whichever purpose, be it forestry, agriculture, industry or urban planning. That formula emphasizes that crucial for preserving biodiversity is the strategy to keep a certain percentage of the land involved in a state of its climax vegetation, together with its climax animal life, spatially intertwined with areas for rational productivity. The latter may refer to forms of Permaculture, but less ideal patterns of utilization will also work out well within the Sicirec Formula. Boosting the world wide utilization of these new ecological principles, can and will have a tremendous impact of the well being of the world as a whole and thus on our own well being. Still, we put this issue relatively low on our priority list, simply because these issues will be tackled with more and more vigor and purpose anyway already. '''16) Technical sciences'''. Boosting scientific developments is not surprisingly of crucial importance for shaping the world after Point Omega. This holds for psychological and related sciences, as mentioned above, but also for technical sciences. That this item shows relatively low on the list of priorities is due to the fact that rather automatically sufficient energy, time and money will be invested in these developments. There is hardly an extra boost needed. '''17) Medical Sciences'''. Equally, Medical Sciences have been put in a low position on the priority list. Apart from what people generally think about the reasons why medical care and medical knowledge are so important, we wish to point out one crucial effect of good medical care that is of importance for how the transition to the era of conscious evolution will come about. Good medical care namely, makes longevity of our species increase. And that in turn implies that decision making will increasingly be in the hands of older and more experienced people. And that in turn is equal to saying that less decision making will be left to inexperienced youngsters who have not yet learned to deal with their testosterone boosted social reflexes or the female equivalents of it in a prudent way. For instance, male inclinations towards group aggression and female brainless procreational impulses will have lower chances to run out of hand. This beneficial collateral effect of longevity will be one of the major ingredients of the after Point Omega society. Anyway, Medical Sciences will automatically receive sufficient support from society and therefore a high place on this priority list is not needed. == Relax .......... we can afford it now == {{Level|1}} The main tenet on this Wiki is that we are now entering the shift of human society into Point Omega, and beyond. Indications are that humanity has already entered the accelerating phase in this transition and that we are already beyond the "point of no return". What is certain, according to the information on this Wiki, is that Point Omega will happen, sooner or later, automatically and unavoidably, simply because that is how human behaviour has been organized and has evolved up to this point. And yes, we think that we already have entered the predicted accelerating phase. That this is not generally recognized already is mainly due to the fact that human awareness very strongly is hindered by myopic effects, making it almost impossible for humans to see the broad and complete picture. Our personal horizons are very narrow indeed, for both genetic and cultural reasons. From the contributions on this Wiki one might deduce that this Omega Transition, being of more influence and importance than the agricultural revolution, and bringing untold changes and advantages to the whole of mankind, is very much worth fighting for. And of course, this is very much true. Of all possible targets and goals, helping Point Omega to proceed appears to be the most useful possible, rightly deserving all our best efforts. Having listed in the above chapter the priorities that we could handle to make our choices about what to do first and what second, we could embrace the attitude of "let's not waste any time, but go for it right away with all power available". The conclusion does emerge that such is the best thing to do, with all energy available. We seem not to have time to waste, because ''we really still do have to do a thing or two !'' However, this motivation also would tie in perfectly with the pre-Point-Omega general attitude of "telic dominance" and the customary out-of-balance "goal directedness". And this tencency is very seductive indeed. But, what in fact would facilitate the necessary shifts towards Point Omega best is more relaxation of all participants involved. So, our message should rather be: ...... RELAX. Allow yourself personally the time to come back into balance, into emotional and motivational balance. Only then the paratelic states will emerge more frequently and only thus you will be able to correctly perceive the situations at hand and choose prudently the most effective ways to proceed and contribute from here. Only when anchored in a proper telic/patatelic emotional and motivational balance, a person can grow into great enough strength and capacities to make a difference for the whole of society at all. So, RELAX ........, we can afford it now. Looking at the world-wide situation of humanity, we are basically in a very comfortable position. We have unprecedented amounts of energy at our disposal. We are producing plenty of food to feed the whole world populations, be it that we still don't manage to distribute it effectively enough. We are living in the middle of an avalanche of technological innovations, making life proceedingly easier. Basically, this is an era of plenty, no matter what problems the newspapers present to us each day. So, what we can do, what we can afford to do, is just STOP ! RELAX ........ We can afford it now, at last. So, let's enjoy it ! And besides, that way we best boost an increasing frequency of paratelic states in as many people as possible. The articles on this Wiki have explained how that contagiousness works. And the restoration of mankind's emotional and motivational balance is the most important trick of all. And it is our birthright. No feelings of guilt for laziness needed. The theory explains how paratelic states will automatically emerge sooner or later, once relaxation has done its job. So, give it a chance. That's what the world really needs at this moment in time: your and everybody's paratelic states, in sufficient frequencies. Don't worry, ''relax, and a thing or two will happen to you'' ! . . . . . and especially . . . . . to us ''all''. l1p5icqolcpqjkclf5r85ktpw8ayv3e 0 14 6775 6774 2017-01-17T12:12:33Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki ................. This page is under construction. ..................... (For the time being see also: [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|Point Omega / Mass enlightenment]]) '''(*)''' This site deals in particular with a transition point in human history, equally important for us humans as was the agricultural revolution. All articles on this Wiki were set up and written to investigate and explain this phenomenon. That transition point is labeled as Point Omega. From the point of view of the whole of evolution this transition is even '''more important than was the agricultural revolution'''. The agricultural revolution triggered the shift from a family or tribe-based societal structure towards the emergence and growth of large impersonal power structures controlling societies. This started only some 10.000 years ago and in most regions of the earth even less time ago. Long before that time however, in the ancestors of Homo sapiens, the evolution of intelligence had already entered into an acceleration phase. This was only possible after the emergence of a specific novel faculty, namely the faculty to not utilize intelligence on any issues concerning the behaviour patterns of oneself. One could call this a "'''mirror block'''". It entails the switching off of intelligent faculties in front of a mirror, so to speak. Mirrors did not exist of course, but this is just to describe where such a block is functionally located within the behavioural system. From a theoretical evolutionary point of view, the development of high levels of intelligence is impossible, unless such a "mirror block" of intelligence exists. See [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|here]](*) for an explanation of this principle. The evolutionary introduction of such "mirror blocks" and the subsequent acceleration of the growth of intelligence, occurred much earlier than the agricultural revolution, some half million to two million years ago. Essentially, '''Point Omega therefore is in Human history the next most important step after the acceleration of the development of intelligence in our hominid ancestors'''. It is in fact the consolidation of the evolutionary emergence of intelligence and releases another, second acceleration phase of that development of intelligence. This latter acceleration phase develops because Point Omega finally removes the primordial blocks on the unlimited utilization of intelligence that resulted from an age-old reproductive premium on simplemindedness and a reproductive penalty on awareness. [add link ****] It is this same friction between two opposed evolutionary forces, working on the faculty of intelligence, that produced in our hominid ancestors the development of the above mentioned "mirror block" as a solution to the evolutionary problem of double requirements regarding the faculty of understanding (see: add link ****). This situation that mankind has ended up in, may at first sight seem utterly strange and unfamiliar to us. We are an exceptionally intelligent species. We have changed the whole surface of the earth. We call this era as a consequence the "anthropocene". On the other hand we appear to be exceptionally blind for understanding our own behaviour and each other's behaviour. In those areas of life we rather behave like any other ape species. But, once understanding the working of it all, it is becoming clear that this strange and somewhat paradoxical situation is a natural and in fact inevitable phase in the evolution of intelligence. As shown in another article [add link ****] intelligence above a certain level in general is not an ESS (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy). That is because of the special relationship between proximate reasons for behaviour and ultimate reasons for behaviour. Finding intelligent short cuts to fulfill proximate reasons for behaviour in general may thwart the fulfillment of the ultimate reasons for behaviour. Since such a relationship between ultimate and proximate aspects of behaviour is necessarily and unavoidably a consequence of any behaviour developed anywhere (in the universe), a consequence of being a moving living entity, the evolutionarily emerging intelligences are initially all limited in their evolutionary development to that certain level of intellectual capacity, that just does not (yet) lead to functional conflicts between proximate and ultimate goals of the behaviours in question. However, in principle it should technically be possible that at some stage in evolution some species will escape from this usual upper limit to intelligence by "finding" the solution of a built in Self Blindness. That then makes the utilization of more intelligence possible, without the disadvantage of decreased procreation by fooling around intelligently with the proximate goals and targets. Homo sapiens now is in a situation of technological revolution, enabled to establish that by its "escaped" intelligence, an intelligence that only could escape by its concomitant Self-Blindness. And during the past 10.000 years, after the agricultural revolution, the Self-Blindness was boosted extra by newly evolved tricks on the level of culture, because the power structures, that took over the lead in evolution, were able to take advantage of blinding mankind even further. However, it is built in into these cultural systems, software systems, that at some stage the intelligence will have advanced to the point that it will understand the general principles of intelligence an thus the principles of the evolutionary phases of any intelligence, having emerged wherever in the universe. We may therefore regard Point Omega as the "coming of age" of intelligence, in which stage the intelligence starts to understand its own nature and its own evolution and development. At that stage the evolution towards ever more awareness and consciousness of the species in question, in this case Homo sapiens, will shift into a process of "conscious evolution". In that (next) phase intelligent understanding cannot be suppressed any more and there is no other option left than such a conscious evolution. In short: Humanity at this moment in time finds itself at the most important switch in its entire evolutionary development, labeled here "Point Omega". It is the point where Intelligence comes to understand itself. For humanity that boils down to the end of classical history and the start of something completely new. This novel situation doesn't need to scare us. Basically, a multitude of emotionally very unpleasant mechanisms that always took care of the competitive struggle for survival will have lost their evolutionary usefulness and can safely be replaced by something that we like more. We will still have our disputes about the best routes to go, but those choices are choices of evolutionary targets and not blind and badly understood competitions for attempted mutual destruction. Because the latter is what usual evolutionary forces boil(ed) down to. Yes, we will still be inclined to fight, but on a different level, a level where the results will not any more be genocide, mass slavery, mass neuroticism, wholesale slaughter, torture and ethnocentric idiocy. The transition has started already and cannot be stopped any more. So, let's enjoy what is waiting for us just around the corner ! **** Also include some information about the nature of the concept of "Happiness". The illusory character of it. The happiness- misery polarity is what makes us move. What "real" thing comes closest to what we (erroneously) call "Happiness" ? ****** == See also == * [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]] * [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|Point Omega / Mass enlightenment]] sjbzhbobpaucshd384qbkey9sbbssis 6 15 59 2007-07-13T15:29:28Z BigSmoke 1 Contact me for the original vector file for Inkscape. wikitext text/x-wiki Contact me for the original vector file for Inkscape. 47ywhcswghf9wfja24fb7gr0se8dz7e 2007-07-13T15:29:28Z BigSmoke 1 Contact me for the original vector file for Inkscape. Reversal_between_preferred_level_of_arousal.png 20070713153613!Reversal_between_preferred_level_of_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20070713153613%21Reversal_between_preferred_level_of_arousal.png 18906 9abdcl8nt9uge9bsd5q2nvq88of0jnn archive/20070713153613!Reversal_between_preferred_level_of_arousal.png 2007-07-13T15:36:13Z BigSmoke 1 Reversal_between_preferred_level_of_arousal.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Reversal_between_preferred_level_of_arousal.png 28218 a6nqitvtk0deh4ztye4jk3glo915ofq Reversal_between_preferred_level_of_arousal.png 10 16 99 88 2007-07-15T19:50:02Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki <includeonly>({{#ifeq:{{{Ref|}}}|none |{{#if:{{{5|}}} |{{{1|}}} et al. {{{5|}}} |{{#if:{{{4|}}} |{{{1|}}}, {{{2|}}} &amp; {{{3|}}} {{{4|}}} |{{#if:{{{3|}}} |{{{1|}}} &amp; {{{2|}}} {{{3|}}} |{{{1|}}} {{{2|}}} }} }} }} |[[#{{#if:{{{Ref|}}} |{{{Ref}}} |CITEREF{{{1|}}}{{{2|}}}{{{3|}}}{{{4|}}}{{{5|}}} }}|{{#if:{{{5|}}} |{{{1|}}} et al. {{{5|}}} |{{#if:{{{4|}}} |{{{1|}}}, {{{2|}}} &amp; {{{3|}}} {{{4|}}} |{{#if:{{{3|}}} |{{{1|}}} &amp; {{{2|}}} {{{3|}}} |{{{1|}}} {{{2|}}} }} }} }}]] }}{{#if:{{{loc|}}} |, {{{loc|}}} |{{#if:{{{p|}}} |, p. {{{p|}}} |{{#if:{{{pp|}}} |, pp. {{{pp|}}} }} }} }})</includeonly><noinclude> {{Template doc}} </noinclude> kzw1zagnk938dzg0wp477xoism8rvng 10 17 63 2007-07-14T10:29:31Z BigSmoke 1 Copied template logic from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Citation wikitext text/x-wiki <includeonly>{{ #if: {{{inventor-surname|{{{inventor1-surname|{{{inventor-last|{{{inventor1-last|{{{inventor|}}}}}}}}}}}}}}} <!-- CITATIONS FOR PATENTS --> |{{Citation/patent |Surname1 = {{{inventor-surname|{{{inventor1-surname|{{{inventor-last|{{{inventor1-last|{{{inventor}}}}}}}}}}}}}}} |Surname2={{{inventor2-surname|{{{inventor2-last|{{{inventor2|}}}}}}}}} |Surname3={{{inventor3-surname|{{{inventor3-last|{{{inventor3|}}}}}}}}} |Surname4={{{inventor4-surname|{{{inventor4-last|{{{inventor4|}}}}}}}}} |Given1 = {{{inventor-given|{{{inventor1-given|{{{inventor-first|{{{inventor1-first|}}}}}}}}}}}} |Given2={{{inventor2-given|{{{inventor2-first|}}}}}} |Given3={{{inventor3-given|{{{inventor3-first|}}}}}} |Given4={{{inventor4-given|{{{inventor4-first|}}}}}} |Inventorlink1={{{inventorlink1|{{{inventorlink|}}}}}} |Inventorlink2={{{inventorlink2|}}} |Inventorlink3={{{inventorlink3|}}} |Inventorlink4={{{inventorlink4|}}} |Title={{{title|}}} |CountryCode={{{country-code}}} |PublicationNumber={{{publication-number|{{{patent-number}}}}}} |Description={{{description|}}} |PublicationDate={{{publication-date|}}} |IssueDate={{{issue-date|}}} |Year={{{year}}} }} <!-- CITATIONS FOR THINGS LIKE BOOKS AND PERIODICALS --> |{{Citation/core |Surname1 = {{{last|{{{surname|{{{last1|{{{surname1|{{{author1|{{{author|{{{authors|}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}} |Surname2 = {{{last2|{{{surname2|{{{author2|}}}}}}}}} |Surname3 = {{{last3|{{{surname3|{{{author3|}}}}}}}}} |Surname4 = {{{last4|{{{surname4|{{{author4|}}}}}}}}} |Given1 = {{{first1|{{{given1|{{{first|{{{given|}}}}}}}}}}}} |Given2 = {{{first2|{{{given2|}}}}}} |Given3 = {{{first3|{{{given3|}}}}}} |Given4 = {{{first4|{{{given4|}}}}}} |Authorlink1 = {{{author-link|{{{author1-link|{{{authorlink|{{{authorlink1|}}}}}}}}}}}} |Authorlink2 = {{{author2-link|{{{authorlink2|}}}}}} |Authorlink3 = {{{author3-link|{{{authorlink3|}}}}}} |Authorlink4 = {{{author4-link|{{{authorlink4|}}}}}} |Year={{{year|{{ <!-- attempt to derive year from date, if possible --> #if: {{{date|}}} |{{ #switch: {{#time:Y|{{{date|}}}}} |Error: invalid time = {{{publication-date|}}} |{{#time:Y|{{{date|}}}}} }} |{{{publication-date|}}} <!-- last resort --> }} }}} |Date = {{{date|{{{year|{{{publication-date|}}}}}}}}} |Title={{{title|}}} |URL={{{url|}}} |Periodical = {{{journal|{{{periodical|{{{newspaper|{{{magazine|}}}}}}}}}}}} |Volume = {{{volume|}}} |Issue = {{{issue|{{{number|}}}}}} |Pages = {{{pages|{{{page|}}}}}} |IncludedWorkTitle = {{{chapter|{{{contribution|}}}}}} |IncludedWorkURL = {{{chapter-url|{{{chapterurl|{{{contribution-url|}}}}}}}}} |Edition = {{{edition|}}} |Place = {{{place|{{{location|}}}}}} |PublicationPlace = {{{publication-place|{{{place|{{{location|}}}}}}}}} |Publisher = {{{publisher|}}} |PublicationDate = {{{publication-date|}}} |EditorSurname1 = {{{editor-last|{{{editor-surname|{{{editor1-last|{{{editor1-surname|{{{editor|{{{editors|}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}} |EditorSurname2 = {{{editor2-last|{{{editor2-surname|}}}}}} |EditorSurname3 = {{{editor3-last|{{{editor3-surname|}}}}}} |EditorSurname4 = {{{editor4-last|{{{editor4-surname|}}}}}} |EditorGiven1 = {{{editor-first|{{{editor-given|{{{editor1-first|{{{editor1-given|}}}}}}}}}}}} |EditorGiven2={{{editor2-first|{{{editor2-given|}}}}}} |EditorGiven3={{{editor3-first|{{{editor3-given|}}}}}} |EditorGiven4={{{editor4-first|{{{editor4-given|}}}}}} |Editorlink1={{{editor-link|{{{editor1-link|}}}}}} |Editorlink2={{{editor2-link|}}} |Editorlink3={{{editor3-link|}}} |Editorlink4={{{editor4-link|}}} |ID={{{id|{{{ID|}}}}}} |ISBN={{{isbn|{{{ISBN|}}}}}} |ISSN={{{issn|{{{ISSN|}}}}}} |OCLC={{{oclc|{{{OCLC|}}}}}} |DOI={{{doi|{{{DOI|}}}}}} |AccessDate={{{access-date|{{{accessdate|}}}}}} |Ref={{{ref|}}} }} }}</includeonly><noinclude>{{Template doc}}</noinclude> 4rvrbizbn8w1sipjto3h0jtcyev1db5 10 18 64 2007-07-14T10:33:59Z BigSmoke 1 Copied template logic from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Template_doc wikitext text/x-wiki <noinclude>{{pp-template|small=yes}}</noinclude>{{template doc inline|1={{ {{#ifexist:{{SUBJECTSPACEE}}:{{{1|{{PAGENAME}}/doc}}}|{{SUBJECTSPACEE}}:{{{1|{{PAGENAME}}/doc}}}|ns:0}} }}|2={{SUBJECTSPACEE}}:{{{1|{{PAGENAMEE}}/doc}}}}} 4x8nf7si6ik32i7xskx1ahvypjgxe43 10 19 68 65 2007-07-14T10:41:28Z BigSmoke 1 Fixed image reference wikitext text/x-wiki <noinclude>{{pp-template|small=yes}}</noinclude><includeonly><div class="template-documentation" style="background-color:#ecfcf4; border:1px solid #aaa; padding:5px;"> <div style="font-size: 1.5em; border-bottom: 1px solid #aaa;">{{#if:{{{2|}}}|<span class="editsection" style="font-size: small">[<span class="plainlinks">[{{fullurl:{{{2}}}}} view]</span>] [<span class="plainlinks">[{{fullurl:{{{2}}}|action=edit&preload={{urlencode:Template:Template doc/Preload}}}} edit]</span>]</span>}}[[Image:Template-info-50px.png]] <span class="mw-headline">Template documentation</span></div> {{{1}}}</div></includeonly><noinclude>{{template doc}}</noinclude> 81ayxtjd0fudidv3z9xt8dfpat527g9 6 21 67 2007-07-14T10:40:34Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Template-info.svg wikitext text/x-wiki Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Template-info.svg 2sgxlagsthx1hmffp3ihlqzmmha43fm 2007-07-14T10:40:34Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Template-info.svg Template-info-50px.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Template-info-50px.png 2864 6pwgc86wtkzxl03m81f5mdwjqh5nq33 Template-info-50px.png 10 22 69 2007-07-14T10:45:17Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Template_doc_inline/doc&oldid=143782301 wikitext text/x-wiki This template displays a "Template documentation" box like you are seeing now. It is primarily used by {{tl|template doc}} to automatically display the documentation for the template from a /doc subpage, but can also be used to display inline documentation. ==Usage== '''{{tlx|template doc inline|1&#61;''inline documentation''|2&#61;''pagename''}}''' * ''Inline documentation'' is the text to display inside the box. * ''Pagename'' refers to the name of the documentation page, which if specified, creates [view] and [edit] boxes to the right of the heading. 7ta4j9u3ej2m63mhs686nhqd9cfpoqc 10 23 71 70 2007-07-14T10:47:45Z BigSmoke 1 Fixed template call wikitext text/x-wiki {{[[Template:{{{1}}}|{{{1}}}]]}}<noinclude> {{Tl/doc}}</noinclude> 5j4u3moq832c0prjd2om3rqwrsnguea 10 24 72 2007-07-14T10:51:01Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Tl/doc&oldid=144004157 wikitext text/x-wiki <includeonly>:''This template documentation is [[M:Meta:Template doc page pattern |<!--- ----- ---->transcluded]] from [[Template:Tl/doc]]'' <!--- ----- ---->[<span class="plainlinks">[{{fullurl:Template:Tl/doc|action=edit}} <!--- ----- ----> edit usage]</span>]<!--- ----- ---->{{#ifeq:{{SITENAME}}|Meta|<!--- then do nothing ---->|<!--- ----- otherwise ---->[<span class="plainlinks">[{{fullurl:M:Template:Tl/doc|action=edit}} <!--- ----- ----> edit Master usage]</span>]}}<!--- ----- ----></includeonly><!--- ----- ----><noinclude><!--- ----- ----> <!-- EDIT TEMPLATE DOCUMENTATION BELOW THIS LINE ----><!--- ----- ----> {{Interwikitmp-grp|V=D|cat=|Tl/doc|{{PAGENAME}}}}</noinclude> __NOTOC__ ==Documentation== {{Tlx|Tl}} and {{Tl|Tl2}} are simple [[w:macro|macro]] [[m:Help:template|templates]] used to display a template name as a link. '''Tl''' stands for '''T'''emplate '''l'''ink. :Tl2 differs in that it displays an arguably clearer result like {{[[Template:Tlx|Tlx]]}}, and also like takes the named parameters 'SISTER=xx' and 'LANG=ll', so that it may also be used to ''list and link to templates on other English and non-English language sister projects''. ;related: {{Tl2|Tlx}} displays with the same enhanced presentation, and also expands several 'placeholder' parameters to generate a sample template call. == Usage == <pre> {{Tl|template name to display}} and {{Tl2|template name to display}} -- local link, just like Tl. or {{Tl2|SISTER=V:|template name to display}} -- displays a template on Wikiversity or {{Tl2|LANG=fr.|SISTER=wikisource|template name to display}} -- displays a template on the French Wikisource sister project. </pre> == Example == {| class="wikitable" ! Code ! Result |- | <code><nowiki>{{Tl|x0}}</nowiki></code> | {{[[Template:X0|x0]]}} |- | <code><nowiki>{{Tl2|x1}}</nowiki></code> | <tt><nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[{{{LANG|}}}{{{SISTER|}}}{{ns:Template}}:x1|x1]]<nowiki>}}</nowiki></tt> |- | <code><nowiki>{{Tl2|SISTER=M:|3x}}</nowiki></code> | <tt><nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[{{{LANG|}}}M:{{ns:Template}}:3x|3x]]<nowiki>}}</nowiki></tt> |- | <code><nowiki>{{Tl2|SISTER=wikibooks|LANG=de:|WP}}</nowiki></code> | <tt><nowiki>{{</nowiki>[http://de.wikibooks.org/wiki/Vorlage:WP WP]<nowiki>}}</nowiki></tt><!--- ----- This is currently a fraudulent output result... the template code needs modified to work ----- per this plan, then this /doc file fixed up to match whatever the correct syntax actually is. ----- ALMOST work: [[:de:wikibooks:{{ns:template}}:WP |WP]] [[de:wikibooks:{{ns:template}}:WP |WP]] ----> |} 8esqg7vo37mq6jzjax2z74rd66anqjr 10 25 73 2007-07-14T10:53:11Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Citation/doc&oldid=144034351 wikitext text/x-wiki <includeonly>{{template doc page transcluded}}</includeonly><noinclude>{{template doc page viewed directly}}</noinclude> <!-- EDIT TEMPLATE DOCUMENTATION BELOW THIS LINE --> {{esoteric}} The '''Citation''' template is a versatile template for citing books, periodicals, contributions in collective works, patents, and web-sites. Its goal is to be an all-purpose citation template. It also has functionality to aid the use of the [[Harvard referencing]] style. The template allows author-date ("Harvard") citations in the main body of text to link to a full citation (generated by this template) in a "References" section at the end of the article via the [[:Template:Harvard citation]] template. This template creates an [[HTML]] anchor to which the [[:Template:Harvard citation|Harvard citation]] and related templates can link. The template knows whether you are citing a book, periodical, or a chapter in a compilation, depending on which combination of parameters you use. For use with author-date systems such as the [[:Template:Harvard citation|Harvard citation]] template, use of '''last''' and '''date''' parameters should be considered mandatory, where possible. ==Citing books== ===Parameters (all are optional)=== {| border="1" |- |<pre>{{Citation | last = | first = | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | date = | year = | title = | edition = | volume = | place = | publisher = | id = | isbn = | doi = | oclc = | url = | accessdate = }}</pre> | * '''last''' (or '''last1'''): The author's surname or last name. * '''first''' (or '''first1'''): The author's first or given name(s). * '''author-link''' (or '''author1-link'''): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first author. * '''last2''', '''last3''', '''last4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. * '''first2''', '''first3''', '''first4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' first or given name(s), if applicable. * '''author2-link''', '''author3-link''', '''author4-link''': Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth author, if applicable. * '''date''': Date of authorship or publication. * '''year''': Year of authorship or publication. (Mandatory for use with links from [[:Template:Harvard citation]]. In some situations, the template may be able to derive a year from the full date.) * '''title''': Title of the book. * '''edition''': Number or name of the edition, if not the first; for example: ''edition''=2nd. * '''volume''': The volume number of a multi-volume book. * '''place''' (or '''location'''): The city of publication. If more than one town/city is listed on the title page, give the first one or the location of the publisher's head office. If the city is not well-known, you may add a county, region, or state. States in the U.S. are denoted by a two-letter code; for example: <code>Place=Paris, TX</code> (no period at the end). Where the publisher is a university and the place or location is included in the name of the university, do not use this parameter. * '''publisher''': The name of the publisher. Omit terms such as ''Publishers'', ''Co.'', ''Inc.'', ''Ltd.'', etc., but retain the words ''Books'' or ''Press''. * '''id''': Identifier such as ''<nowiki>ISBN 1-111-22222-9</nowiki>'' * '''isbn''': Use this parameter if the book has an ISBN. * '''doi''': A [[digital object identifier]] such as ''<nowiki>10.1016/j.coi.2004.08.001</nowiki>''. * '''oclc''': [[Online Computer Library Center]] ID number, such as ''3185581'' * '''url''': An [[url]] of an online location where the book can be found. * '''accessdate''': Date when the url was accessed. |} ===Examples=== {| border="1" |- |One author |<pre> {{ Citation | last=Turner | first=O. | title=History of the Pioneer Settlement of Phelps and Gorham's Purchase, and Morris' Reserve | publisher=William Alling | place=Rochester, New York | year=1851 | url = http://olivercowdery.com/ texts/1851Trn1.htm#turn1851 }}. </pre> |{{ Citation | last=Turner | first=O. | title=History of the Pioneer Settlement of Phelps and Gorham's Purchase, and Morris' Reserve | publisher=William Alling | place=Rochester, New York | year=1851 | url = http://olivercowdery.com/texts/1851Trn1.htm#turn1851 }}. |- |Three authors, a volume, and an edition |<pre> {{ Citation | last1=Lincoln | first1=A. | last2=Washington | first2=G. | last3=Adams | first3=J. | title=All the Presidents' Names | publisher=The Pentagon | place=Home Base, New York | volume=XII | edition=2nd | year=2007 }}. </pre> |{{ Citation | last1=Lincoln | first1=A. | last2=Washington | first2=G. | last3=Adams | first3=J. | title=All the Presidents' Names | publisher=The Pentagon | place=Home Base, New York | volume=XII | edition=2nd | year=2007 }}. |} ==Citing journals, newspapers, magazines, or other periodicals== ===Parameters=== {| border="1" |- |<pre> {{Citation | last= | first= | author-link= | year= | title= | periodical= | volume= | issue= | pages= | url= | doi= | oclc= }}. </pre> | * '''last''' (or '''last1'''): The author's surname or last name. * '''first''' (or '''first1'''): The author's first or given name(s). * '''author-link''' (or '''author1-link'''): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first author. * '''last2''', '''last3''', '''last4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. * '''first2''', '''first3''', '''first4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' first or given name(s), if applicable. * '''author2-link''', '''author3-link''', '''author4-link''': Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth author, if applicable. * '''date''': Date of authorship or publication. * '''year''': Year of authorship or publication. (Mandatory for use with links from [[:Template:Harvard citation]]. In some situations, the template may be able to derive a year from the full date.) * '''title''': Title of the book. * '''periodical''' (or '''journal''', '''newspaper''', '''magazine'''): Name of the periodical. * '''volume''': The volume number of the journal. * '''issue''' (or '''number'''): The issue number of the journal. * '''pages''' (''optional''): The pages in the issue where the article may be found. * '''url''': An [[url]] of an online location where the article can be found. * '''doi''': A [[digital object identifier]] such as ''<nowiki>10.1016/j.coi.2004.08.001</nowiki>''. * '''oclc''': [[Online Computer Library Center]] ID number, such as ''3185581'' * '''accessdate''': Date when the url was accessed. |} ===Examples=== {| border="1" |- |Journal article |<pre> {{Citation | last=Hill | first=Marvin S. | title=Joseph Smith and the 1826 Trial: New Evidence and New Difficulties | journal=BYU Studies | volume=12 | issue=2 | year=1976 | pages=1&ndash;8 | url=https://byustudies.byu.edu/ shop/PDFSRC/12.2Hill.pdf }}. </pre> |{{Citation | last=Hill | first=Marvin S. | title=Joseph Smith and the 1826 Trial: New Evidence and New Difficulties | journal=BYU Studies | volume=12 | issue=2 | year=1976 | pages=1&ndash;8 | url=https://byustudies.byu.edu/shop/PDFSRC/12.2Hill.pdf }}. |- |Newspaper article |<pre> {{Citation | last=Smith | first=Joseph III | author-link=Joseph Smith III | title=Last Testimony of Sister Emma | newspaper=The Saints' Herald | volume=26 | issue=19 | date=[[October 1]], [[1879]] | year=1879 | month=October | page=289 | url=http://www.sidneyrigdon.com/ dbroadhu/IL/sain1872.htm#100179 }}. </pre> |{{Citation | last=Smith | first=Joseph III | author-link=Joseph Smith III | title=Last Testimony of Sister Emma | newspaper=The Saints' Herald | volume=26 | issue=19 | date=[[October 1]], [[1879]] | year=1879 | month=October | page=289 | url=http://www.sidneyrigdon.com/dbroadhu/IL/sain1872.htm#100179 }}. |} ==Citing edited books, or parts of edited books, including encyclopedias and encyclopedia articles== ===Parameters=== {| border="1" |- |<pre> {{Citation | last= | first= | author-link= | last2= | first2= | author2-link | year= | date= | publication-date= | contribution= | contribution-url= | editor-last= | editor-first= | editor-link= | editor2-last= | editor2-first= | editor2-link= | title= | edition= | place= | publication-place= | publisher= | volume= | pages= | id= | doi= | oclc= | url= }}. </pre> | * '''last''' (or '''last1'''): The first author's surname or last name. * '''first''' (or '''first1'''): The first author's first or given name(s). * '''author-link''' (or '''author1-link'''): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first author. * '''last2''', '''last3''', '''last4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. * '''first2''', '''first3''', '''first4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' first or given name(s), if applicable. * '''author2-link''', '''author3-link''', '''author4-link''': Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth author, if applicable. * '''year''': Year of authorship or publication. (Mandatory for use with links from [[:Template:Harvard citation]]. In some situations, the template may be able to derive a year from the full date.) * '''date''': Date of authorship or publication. * '''publication-date''': Date of publication (if different than ''date''). * '''contribution''' (or '''chapter'''): Title of the contribution or chapter. * '''contribution-url''' (or '''chapter-url'''): URL of the contribution or chapter. * '''editor-last''' (or '''editor1-last'''): The first editor's surname or last name. * '''editor-first''' (or '''editor2-first'''): The first editor's first or given name(s). * '''editor-link''' (or '''editor1-link'''): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first editor. * '''editor2-last''', '''editor3-last''', '''editor4-last''': The second, third, and fourth editor' surname or last name, if applicable. * '''editor2-first''', '''editor3-first''', '''editor4-first''': The second, third, and fourth editors' first or given name(s), if applicable. * '''editor2-link''', '''editor3-link''', '''editor4-link''': Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth editor, if applicable. * '''title''': Title of the book or compilation. * '''edition''': Number or name of the edition, if not the first; for example: ''edition''=2nd. * '''volume''': The volume number of a multi-volume book or compilation. * '''place''' (or '''location'''): The place where the article, encyclopedia entry, or other included item was created. Usually, this is collective work's city of publication; if not, then use the separate ''publication-place'' parameter. If more than one town/city is listed on the title page, give the first one or the location of the publisher's head office. If the city is not well-known, you may add a county, region, or state. States in the U.S. are denoted by a two-letter code; for example: <code>place=Paris, TX</code> (no period at the end). Where the publisher is a university and the place or location is included in the name of the university, do not use this parameter. * '''publication-place'''. The place where the collective work was published (if different from ''place'' or ''location''). * '''publisher''': The name of the publisher. Omit terms such as ''Publishers'', ''Co.'', ''Inc.'', ''Ltd.'', etc., but retain the words ''Books'' or ''Press''. * '''id''': Identifier such as ''<nowiki>ISBN 1-111-22222-9</nowiki>'' * '''isbn''': Use this parameter if the book or compilation has an ISBN. * '''doi''': A [[digital object identifier]] such as ''<nowiki>10.1016/j.coi.2004.08.001</nowiki>''. * '''oclc''': [[Online Computer Library Center]] ID number, such as ''3185581'' * '''url''': An [[url]] of an online location where the book or compilationcan be found. * '''accessdate''': Date when the url was accessed. |} ===Examples=== {| border="1" |- |Manuscript published in an edited compilation |<pre> {{Citation | last=Bidamon | first=Emma Smith | author-link=Emma Hale Smith | chapter=Letter to Emma S. Pilgrim | date=[[March 27]] [[1876]] | year=1876 | editor-surname=Vogel | editor-first=Dan | title=Early Mormon Documents | volume=1 | publisher=Signature Books | publication-date=1996 | isbn=1-56085-072-8 }}. </pre> |{{Citation | last=Bidamon | first=Emma Smith | author-link=Emma Hale Smith | chapter=Letter to Emma S. Pilgrim | date=[[March 27]] [[1876]] | year=1876 | editor-surname=Vogel | editor-first=Dan | title=Early Mormon Documents | volume=1 | publisher=Signature Books | publication-date=1996 | isbn=1-56085-072-8 }}. |- |Work with an editor but no author |<pre> {{Citation | editor-surname=Vogel | editor-first=Dan | title=Early Mormon Documents | volume=1 | publisher=Signature Books | publication-date=1996 | isbn=1-56085-072-8 }}. </pre> |{{Citation | editor-surname=Vogel | editor-first=Dan | title=Early Mormon Documents | volume=1 | publisher=Signature Books | publication-date=1996 | isbn=1-56085-072-8 }}. |- |Encyclopedia article by a named author |<pre> {{Citation | last = Kramer | first = Martin | author-link = Martin Kramer | contribution = Bernard Lewis | editor-last = Boyd | editor-first = Kelley | title = Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing | volume = 1 | pages = 719&ndash;720 | publisher = Fitzroy Dearborn | place = London | publication-date = 1999 | contribution-url = http:// www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/ BernardLewis.htm }}. </pre> |{{Citation | last = Kramer | first = Martin | author-link = Martin Kramer | contribution = Bernard Lewis | editor-last = Boyd | editor-first = Kelley | title = Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing | volume = 1 | pages = 719&ndash;720 | publisher = Fitzroy Dearborn | place = London | publication-date = 1999 | contribution-url = http://www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/BernardLewis.htm }}. |- |Encyclopedia article with no named author |<pre> {{Citation | contribution = Bernard Lewis | editor-last = Boyd | editor-first = Kelley | title = Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing | volume = 1 | pages = 719&ndash;720 | publisher = Fitzroy Dearborn | place = London | year = 1999 | contribution-url = http:// www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/ BernardLewis.htm }}. </pre> |{{Citation | contribution = Bernard Lewis | editor-last = Boyd | editor-first = Kelley | title = Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing | volume = 1 | pages = 719&ndash;720 | publisher = Fitzroy Dearborn | place = London | year = 1999 | contribution-url = http://www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/BernardLewis.htm }}. |} ==Citing contributions, republications, or edited quotations in a periodical article== ===Parameters=== {| border="1" |- |<pre> {{Citation | last= | first= | author-link= | last2= | first2= | author2-link | year= | date= | publication-date= | contribution= | contribution-url= | editor-last= | editor-first= | editor-link= | editor2-last= | editor2-first= | editor2-link= | title= | periodical= | volume= | issue= | pages= | place= | publication-place= | publisher= | id= | doi= | oclc= | url= }}. </pre> | * '''last''' (or '''last1'''): The first author's surname or last name. * '''first''' (or '''first1'''): The first author's first or given name(s). * '''author-link''' (or '''author1-link'''): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first author. * '''last2''', '''last3''', '''last4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. * '''first2''', '''first3''', '''first4''': The second, third, and fourth authors' first or given name(s), if applicable. * '''author2-link''', '''author3-link''', '''author4-link''': Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth author, if applicable. * '''year''': Year of authorship or publication. (Mandatory for use with links from [[:Template:Harvard citation]]. In some situations, the template may be able to derive a year from the full date.) * '''date''': Date of authorship or publication. * '''publication-date''': Date of publication (if different than ''date''). * '''contribution''' (or '''chapter'''): Title of the contribution or chapter. * '''contribution-url''' (or '''chapter-url'''): URL of the contribution or chapter. * '''editor-last''' (or '''editor1-last'''): The first editor's surname or last name. * '''editor-first''' (or '''editor2-first'''): The first editor's first or given name(s). * '''editor-link''' (or '''editor1-link'''): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first editor. * '''editor2-last''', '''editor3-last''', '''editor4-last''': The second, third, and fourth editor' surname or last name, if applicable. * '''editor2-first''', '''editor3-first''', '''editor4-first''': The second, third, and fourth editors' first or given name(s), if applicable. * '''editor2-link''', '''editor3-link''', '''editor4-link''': Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth editor, if applicable. * '''title''': Title of the book or compilation. * '''periodical''' (or '''journal''', '''newspaper''', '''magazine'''): Name of the periodical. * '''volume''': The volume number of the journal. * '''issue''' (or '''number'''): The issue number of the journal. * '''pages''' (''optional''): The pages in the issue where the article may be found. * '''place''' (or '''location'''): The place where the article, encyclopedia entry, or other included item was created. Usually, this is collective work's city of publication; if not, then use the separate ''publication-place'' parameter. If more than one town/city is listed on the title page, give the first one or the location of the publisher's head office. If the city is not well-known, you may add a county, region, or state. States in the U.S. are denoted by a two-letter code; for example: <code>place=Paris, TX</code> (no period at the end). Where the publisher is a university and the place or location is included in the name of the university, do not use this parameter. * '''publication-place'''. The place where the collective work was published (if different from ''place'' or ''location''). * '''id''': Identifier such as ''<nowiki>ISBN 1-111-22222-9</nowiki>'' * '''doi''': A [[digital object identifier]] such as ''<nowiki>10.1016/j.coi.2004.08.001</nowiki>''. * '''oclc''': [[Online Computer Library Center]] ID number, such as ''3185581'' * '''url''': An [[url]] of an online location where the book or compilation can be found. * '''accessdate''': Date when the url was accessed. |} ===Examples=== {| border="1" |- |Manuscript edited and published in a journal |<pre> {{Citation | last=Knight | first=Joseph, Sr. | year=1833 | editor-last=Jessee | editor-first=Dean | title=Joseph Knight's Recollection of Early Mormon History | journal=BYU Studies | volume=17 | issue=1 | publication-date=1976 | pages=35 | url=https://byustudies.byu.edu/ shop/PDFSRC/17.1Jessee.pdf }}.</pre> |{{Citation | last=Knight | first=Joseph, Sr. | year=1833 | editor-last=Jessee | editor-first=Dean | title=Joseph Knight's Recollection of Early Mormon History | journal=BYU Studies | volume=17 | issue=1 | publication-date=1976 | pages=35 | url=https://byustudies.byu.edu/shop/PDFSRC/17.1Jessee.pdf }}. |- |Manuscript written at one date and place, then published in a periodical at a different date and place with commentary by the editor. |<pre> {{Citation | last=Klingensmith | first=Philip | contribution=Affidavit | year=1872 | date=[[September 5]] [[1872]] | place=Lincoln County, Nevada | title=Mountain Meadows Massacre | editor-last=Toohy | editor-first=Dennis J. | journal=Corinne Daily Reporter | publication-date= [[September 24]] [[1872]] | publication-place=Corinne, Utah | volume=5 | issue=252 | pages=1 | contribution-url=http:// udn.lib.utah.edu/u?/corinne,5359 }}. </pre> |{{Citation | last=Klingensmith | first=Philip | contribution=Affidavit | year=1872 | date=[[September 5]] [[1872]] | place=Lincoln County, Nevada | title=Mountain Meadows Massacre | editor-last=Toohy | editor-first=Dennis J. | journal=Corinne Daily Reporter | publication-date=[[September 24]] [[1872]] | publication-place=Corinne, Utah | volume=5 | issue=252 | pages=1 | contribution-url=http://udn.lib.utah.edu/u?/corinne,5359 }}. |} ==Tools== See [[Wikipedia:Citing sources#Tools]] for a list of tools which can help create a reference in the 'citation' format. <includeonly> <!-- ADD CATEGORIES BELOW THIS LINE --> [[Category:Citation templates|{{PAGENAME}}]] [[Category:Templates generating COinS|{{PAGENAME}}]] [[Category:Templates using ParserFunctions|{{PAGENAME}}]] <!-- ADD INTERWIKIS BELOW THIS LINE --> [[sl:Predloga:Citat]] </includeonly> 34da39x3vqw2dkbpx2a6t81oa2fpk5m 10 26 75 2007-07-14T10:58:38Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Harvard_citation/doc&oldid=130103193 wikitext text/x-wiki ==Usage== <pre> {{Harvard citation | ''Last name of author(s)'' | ''Year'' | ''Location in the text'' }} </pre> Alternative to using ''Location'', you may also use the following parameters: p = ''page'' pp = ''pages'' ; Notes *The abbreviation ''Harv'' may be used. *The first parameter is the author's last name. *The second parameter is the year of publication. *The third parameter is the location of the cited material within the reference. This parameter is optional. *The parameter ''p'' is an optional page parameter (e.g., "<nowiki>{{ Harv | Smith | 2006 | p=25 }}</nowiki>" yields {{Harv|Smith|2006|p=25}}. *The parameter ''pp'' is an optional page range parameter (e.g., "<nowiki>{{ Harv | Smith | 2006 | pp=25-26 }}</nowiki>" yields {{Harv|Smith|2006|pp=25-26}}. If ''Ref''=''none'', then no hyperlink is created. *To avoid the brackets surrounding the citation, use {{tl|Harvard citation no brackets}} (or {{tl|Harvnb}}). ==Examples== *<nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[Template:Harvard citation|Harvard citation]] <nowiki>| Smith | 2006 | loc=ch. 100}}</nowiki> *<nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[Template:Harv|Harv]] <nowiki>| Smith | 2006 | p=25}}</nowiki> *<nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[Template:Harv|Harv]] <nowiki>| Smith | 2006 | pp=25-26}}</nowiki> *<nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[Template:Harv|Harv]] <nowiki>| Smith | 2006 | pp=25-26 | Ref=none}}</nowiki> *<nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[Template:Harv|Harv]] <nowiki>| Smith | Jones | 2006 | p=25}}</nowiki> *<nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[Template:Harv|Harv]] <nowiki>| Smith | Jones | Brown | 2006 | p=25}}</nowiki> *<nowiki>{{</nowiki>[[Template:Harv|Harv]] <nowiki>| Smith | Jones | Brown | Black | 2006 | p=25}}</nowiki> yields: *{{Harvard citation|Smith|2006|loc=ch. 100}} *{{Harv|Smith|2006|p=25}} *{{Harv|Smith|2006|pp=25-26}} *{{Harv|Smith|2006|pp=25-26|Ref=none}} *{{Harv|Smith|Jones|2006|p=25}} *{{Harv|Smith|Jones|Brown|2006|p=25}} *{{Harv|Smith|Jones|Brown|Black|2006|p=25}} ==Other versions== * {{tl|Harvard citation no brackets}} / {{tl|harvnb}} is a bracketless version of this template. <br> For example, <tt><nowiki>{{Template:Harvard citation no brackets | Smith | 2006 | loc=ch. 100}}</nowiki></tt> yields "{{Harvard citation no brackets|Smith|2006|loc=ch. 100}}". * {{tl|Harvard citation text}} / {{tl|harvtxt}} is a version for when the author name appears in the text. <br> For example, <tt><nowiki>{{Template:Harvard citation text | Smith | 2006 | loc=ch. 100}}</nowiki></tt> yields "{{Harvard citation text|Smith|2006|loc=ch. 100}}". Editors editing this template are requested to make parallel changes to these other versions. ==See also== * Use {{tl|Citation}} to format the citations in the ''References'' section. pkkifnc4ktobdrt9dz3zjkeuu2yoamq 10 27 76 2007-07-14T11:01:11Z BigSmoke 1 Added redirect as on Wikipedia wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Template:Harvard citation]] dn9qlg927pkdnmfh95oeycbtkzo47bk 10 28 2600 2583 2011-04-13T20:06:29Z BigSmoke 1 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/173.162.82.25|173.162.82.25]] ([[User talk:173.162.82.25|Talk]]) to last revision by [[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] wikitext text/x-wiki <span <!-- This is a COinS tag (http://ocoins.info), which allows automated tools to parse the citation information: --> class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt={{urlencode:info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:}}book{{ #if: {{{Journal|}}} |&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle={{urlencode:{{{Title|}}}}}&rft.title={{urlencode:{{{Periodical|}}}}} |{{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} |&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle={{urlencode:{{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}}}} |&rft.genre=book }}&rft.title={{urlencode:{{{Title|}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} |&rft.aulast={{urlencode:{{{Surname1}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Given1|}}} |&rft.aufirst={{urlencode:{{{Given1}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Date|}}} |&rft.date={{urlencode:{{{Date}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Volume|}}} |&rft.volume={{urlencode:{{{Volume}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Issue|}}} |&rft.issue={{urlencode:{{{Issue}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Pages|}}} |&rft.pages={{urlencode:{{{Pages}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Edition|}}} |&rft.edition={{urlencode:{{{Edition}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Place|}}} |&rft.place={{urlencode:{{{Place}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{PublicationPlace|}}} |&rft.place={{urlencode:{{{PublicationPlace}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Publisher|}}} |&rft.pub={{urlencode:{{{Publisher}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{DOI|}}} |&rft_id=info:doi/{{urlencode:{{{DOI}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{ISBN|}}} |&rft.isbn={{urlencode:{{{ISBN}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{ISSN|}}} |&rft.issn={{urlencode:{{{ISSN}}}}} }}{{ #if: {{{URL|{{{IncludedWorkURL|}}}}}} |&rft_id={{urlencode:{{{URL|{{{IncludedWorkURL|}}}}}}}} }}" ><cite style="font-style:normal" class="external text" {{ #if:{{{Ref|}}} |{{#ifeq:{{{Ref|}}}|none||id="{{{Ref|}}}"}} |id="CITEREF{{#if:{{{Surname1|}}} |{{{Surname1}}}{{{Surname2|}}}{{{Surname3|}}}{{{Surname4|}}} |{{{EditorSurname1|}}}{{{EditorSurname2|}}}{{{EditorSurname3|}}}{{{EditorSurname4|}}} }}{{{Year|{{{Date|}}}}}}" }}>{{ <!--============ Author or editor and date ============--> #if:{{{Surname1|}}} |{{Citation/authors | Surname1 = {{{Surname1|}}} | Given1 = {{{Given1|}}} | Authorlink1 = {{{Authorlink1|}}} | Surname2 = {{{Surname2|}}} | Given2 = {{{Given2|}}} | Authorlink2 = {{{Authorlink2|}}} | Surname3 = {{{Surname3|}}} | Given3 = {{{Given3|}}} | Authorlink3 = {{{Authorlink3|}}} | Surname4 = {{{Surname4|}}} | Given4 = {{{Given4|}}} | Authorlink4 = {{{Authorlink4|}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Date|}}} |&#32;({{{Date}}}) }} |{{ #if: {{{EditorSurname1|}}} |{{Citation/authors | Surname1 = {{{EditorSurname1|}}} | Given1 = {{{EditorGiven1|}}} | Authorlink1 = {{{Editorlink1|}}} | Surname2 = {{{EditorSurname2|}}} | Given2 = {{{EditorGiven2|}}} | Authorlink2 = {{{Editorlink2|}}} | Surname3 = {{{EditorSurname3|}}} | Given3 = {{{EditorGiven3|}}} | Authorlink3 = {{{Editorlink3|}}} | Surname4 = {{{EditorSurname4|}}} | Given4 = {{{EditorGiven4|}}} | Authorlink4 = {{{Editorlink4|}}} }}, ed{{#if:{{{EditorSurname2|}}}|s}}.{{ #if: {{{Date|}}} |&#32;({{{Date}}}) }} }} }}{{ <!--============ Title of included work ============--> #if: {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} |, {{Link | 1={{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkURL|}}} |{{{IncludedWorkURL}}} |{{{URL|}}} }} | 2={{ #if: {{{Periodical|}}} |''{{{IncludedWorkTitle}}}'' |"{{{IncludedWorkTitle}}}" }} }} }}{{ <!--============ Place (if different than PublicationPlace) ============--> #if: {{{Place|}}} |{{ #ifeq: {{{Place|}}} | {{{PublicationPlace|}}} | |{{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} |, at {{{Place}}} |{{ #if: {{{EditorSurname1|}}} |, at {{{Place}}} |{{ #if {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} |, at {{{Place}}} }} }} }} }} }}{{ <!--============ Editor of compilation ============--> #if: {{{EditorSurname1|}}} |{{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} |, {{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} |in&#32; }}{{Citation/authors | Surname1 = {{{EditorSurname1|}}} | Given1 = {{{EditorGiven1|}}} | Authorlink1 = {{{Editorlink1|}}} | Surname2 = {{{EditorSurname2|}}} | Given2 = {{{EditorGiven2|}}} | Authorlink2 = {{{Editorlink2|}}} | Surname3 = {{{EditorSurname3|}}} | Given3 = {{{EditorGiven3|}}} | Authorlink3 = {{{Editorlink3|}}} | Surname4 = {{{EditorSurname4|}}} | Given4 = {{{EditorGiven4|}}} | Authorlink4 = {{{Editorlink4|}}} }}{{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} | |, ed{{#if:{{{EditorSurname2|}}}|s}}. }} }} }}{{ <!--============ Periodicals ============--> #if: {{{Periodical|}}} |{{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} |,&#32; |{{ #if: {{{EditorSurname1|}}} |,&#32; }} }}{{ #if: {{{Title|}}} |"{{Link | 1={{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} |{{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkURL|}}} |{{{URL|}}} }} |{{{URL|}}} }} | 2={{{Title}}} }}",&#32; }}''{{{Periodical}}}''{{ #if: {{{Volume|}}} |&#32;'''{{{Volume}}}'''{{ #if: {{{Issue|}}} |&#x00a0;({{{Issue}}}) }} |{{ #if: {{{Issue|}}} |&#32;(no. {{{Issue}}}) }} }}{{ #if: {{{Pages|}}} |<nowiki>: </nowiki> {{{Pages|}}} }}{{ #if: {{{PublicationPlace|}}} |, {{{PublicationPlace}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Publisher|}}} |{{ #if: {{{PublicationPlace|}}} |<nowiki>:</nowiki> |, }} {{{Publisher}}} }} |{{ <!--============ Anything else with a title, including books ============--> #if: {{{Title|}}} |{{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} |,&#32; |{{ #if: {{{EditorSurname1|}}} |,&#32; |{{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} |,&#32; |{{ #if: {{{Periodical|}}} |,&#32; }} }} }} }}''{{Link | 1={{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkTitle|}}} |{{ #if: {{{IncludedWorkURL|}}} |{{{URL|}}} }} |{{{URL|}}} }} | 2={{{Title}}} }}''{{ #if: {{{Volume|}}} |, vol. {{{Volume}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Edition|}}} |&#32;({{{Edition}}} ed.) }}{{ #if: {{{PublicationPlace|}}} |, {{{PublicationPlace}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Publisher|}}} |{{ #if: {{{PublicationPlace|}}} |<nowiki>:</nowiki> |, }} {{{Publisher}}} }} }} }}{{ <!--============ Date (if no author/editor) ============--> #if: {{{Surname1|}}} | |{{ #if: {{{EditorSurname1|}}} | |{{ #if: {{{Date|}}} |, {{{Date}}} }} }} }}{{ <!--============ Publication date ============--> #if: {{{PublicationDate|}}} |{{ #ifeq: {{{PublicationDate|}}} | {{{Date|}}} | |{{ #if: {{{EditorSurname1|}}} |{{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} |, {{{PublicationDate}}} |&#32;(published {{{PublicationDate}}}) }} |{{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} | |&#32;(published {{{PublicationDate}}}) }} }} }} }}{{ <!--============ Misc. Identifier ============--> #if: {{{ID|}}} |, {{{ID}}} }}{{ <!--============ ISBN ============--> #if: {{{ISBN|}}} |, ISBN {{{ISBN}}} }}{{ <!--============ ISSN ============--> #if: {{{ISSN|}}} |, [[International Standard Serial Number|ISSN]] [http://worldcat.org/issn/{{{ISSN}}} {{{ISSN}}}] }}{{ <!--============ OCLC ============--> #if: {{{OCLC|}}} |, [[OCLC]] [http://worldcat.org/oclc/{{urlencode:{{{OCLC}}}}} {{{OCLC}}}] }}{{ <!--============ DOI ============--> #if: {{{DOI|}}} |, [[Digital object identifier|DOI]]:[http://dx.doi.org/{{{DOI}}} {{{DOI}}}] }}{{ <!--============ Page within included work ============--> #if: {{{Periodical|}}} | |{{ #if: {{{Pages|}}} |, at {{{Pages}}} }} }}{{ <!--============ Access date ============--> #if: {{{URL|}}} |{{ #if:{{{AccessDate|}}} |. Retrieved on {{{AccessDate}}} }} }}</cite></span> rmt52pl7gr6p9zb5lfa2r6jxyefn2vb 10 29 78 2007-07-14T11:10:51Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Citation/authors&oldid=106919298 wikitext text/x-wiki {{ #if: {{{Surname1|}}} |{{ #if: {{{Authorlink1|}}} |[[{{{Authorlink1}}} |{{{Surname1}}}{{ #if: {{{Given1|}}} |, {{{Given1}}} }}]] |{{{Surname1}}}{{ #if: {{{Given1|}}} |, {{{Given1}}} }} }}{{ #if: {{{Surname2|}}} |{{ #if: {{{Surname3|}}} |<nowiki>; </nowiki> |&#32;&amp;&#32; }}{{ #if: {{{Authorlink2|}}} |[[{{{Authorlink2}}} |{{{Given2|}}} {{{Surname2}}}]] |{{{Given2|}}} {{{Surname2}}} }}{{ #if: {{{Surname3|}}} |&#32;&amp; {{ #if: {{{Authorlink3|}}} |[[{{{Authorlink3}}} |{{{Given3|}}} {{{Surname3}}}]] |{{{Given3|}}} {{{Surname3}}} }}{{ #if:{{{Surname4|}}} |&#32;et al. }} }} }} }} fdk5bcu34a9isshdszoakyxfirq4t8l 10 30 79 2007-07-14T11:15:46Z BigSmoke 1 Copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Link&oldid=130338197 wikitext text/x-wiki {{#if: {{{1|}}} | [{{{1}}} {{{2|}}}] | {{{2|}}} }}<noinclude> {{pp-template}} ==Usage== This template produces an external link with the URL as its first argument, and the text to be displayed as its second argument. [[Category:Templates using ParserFunctions|{{PAGENAME}}]] </noinclude> sx5nnfq6u87w71aw1m8d1qhqe64329w 2 31 95 90 2007-07-15T17:04:13Z BigSmoke 1 javascript text/javascript // install [[User:Cacycle/wikEd]] in-browser text editor //document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="' //+ 'http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Cacycle/wikEd.js' //+ '&action=raw&ctype=text/javascript"></' + 'script>'); 5q9n7j52fx8yu1rzttho14nzmhl680v 10 32 2614 2509 2011-04-13T20:27:22Z BigSmoke 1 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/66.189.126.3|66.189.126.3]] ([[User talk:66.189.126.3|Talk]]) to last revision by [[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] wikitext text/x-wiki <includeonly>{{#ifeq:{{{Ref|}}}|none |{{#if:{{{5|}}} |{{{1|}}} et al. {{{5|}}} |{{#if:{{{4|}}} |{{{1|}}}, {{{2|}}} &amp; {{{3|}}} {{{4|}}} |{{#if:{{{3|}}} |{{{1|}}} &amp; {{{2|}}} {{{3|}}} |{{{1|}}} {{{2|}}} }} }} }} | [[#<!-- -->{{#if:{{{Ref|}}}<!-- -->|{{{Ref}}}<!-- -->|CITEREF{{{1|}}}{{{2|}}}{{{3|}}}{{{4|}}}{{{5|}}}<!-- -->}}<!-- -->|{{#if:{{{5|}}}<!-- -->|{{{1|}}} et al. {{{5|}}}<!-- -->|{{#if:{{{4|}}}<!-- -->|{{{1|}}}, {{{2|}}} &amp; {{{3|}}} {{{4|}}}<!-- -->|{{#if:{{{3|}}}<!-- -->|{{{1|}}} &amp; {{{2|}}} {{{3|}}}<!-- -->|{{{1|}}} {{{2|}}}<!-- -->}}<!-- -->}}<!-- -->}}<!-- -->]] }}{{#if:{{{loc|}}} |, {{{loc|}}} |{{#if:{{{p|}}} |, p. {{{p|}}} |{{#if:{{{pp|}}} |, pp. {{{pp|}}} }} }} }}</includeonly><noinclude> {{/doc}}</noinclude> clbmwshaocqzcgcm8mkgc12vzcpfqb5 10 33 92 2007-07-15T16:27:01Z BigSmoke 1 Redirecting to [[Template:Harvard citation no brackets]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Template:Harvard citation no brackets]] jw81ib73iv718k3mrpnv4q4f1qbz194 6 34 103 2007-07-16T15:22:12Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-07-16T15:22:12Z BigSmoke 1 Telic_and_paratelic_pleasantness_of_different_arousal_levels.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Telic_and_paratelic_pleasantness_of_different_arousal_levels.png 48495 tspoex9ujrtc5b8bkyof3p1o8hhl986 Telic_and_paratelic_pleasantness_of_different_arousal_levels.png 6 35 105 2007-07-16T16:13:38Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-07-16T16:13:37Z BigSmoke 1 The_telic_and_paratelic_mode_in_relation_to_means-ends_time_and_intensity.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/The_telic_and_paratelic_mode_in_relation_to_means-ends_time_and_intensity.png 142710 8xzansjeguyyv9klwr76elz305fs8oa The_telic_and_paratelic_mode_in_relation_to_means-ends_time_and_intensity.png 6 36 4101 107 2012-07-22T11:35:13Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[File:Reversal system of antagonistic motivations.png]]":&#32;Added text to describe reversals and telic/paratelic actions. wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-07-16T20:27:27Z BigSmoke 1 Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png 20120722113513!Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20120722113513%21Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png 61259 h9b0k6squiekfo5ghgftllaapjf9ck6 archive/20120722113513!Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png 2012-07-22T11:35:13Z BigSmoke 1 Added text to describe reversals and telic/paratelic actions. Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png 66717 h9b0k6squiekfo5ghgftllaapjf9ck6 Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png 6 37 109 2007-07-16T21:17:37Z BigSmoke 1 This image was used by [[Popko Peter van der Molen]] in [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] with permission by Arend van Dam. wikitext text/x-wiki This image was used by [[Popko Peter van der Molen]] in [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] with permission by Arend van Dam. 9fag1tuxeel0x0nxxco5yll5p3muten 2007-07-16T21:17:37Z BigSmoke 1 This image was used by [[Popko Peter van der Molen]] in [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] with permission by Arend van Dam. Stress_for_Health.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Stress_for_Health.png 50981 0u4u1bbd2nsrua4isihmlecadcuo257 Stress_for_Health.png 6 38 111 2007-07-16T21:39:30Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-07-16T21:39:29Z BigSmoke 1 Dependence_of_positive_and_negative_learning_spirals_on_proper_rhythms_of_telic_paratelic_alternations.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Dependence_of_positive_and_negative_learning_spirals_on_proper_rhythms_of_telic_paratelic_alternations.png 54532 7d8kesv9019v1bi8m280mivy76geu1v Dependence_of_positive_and_negative_learning_spirals_on_proper_rhythms_of_telic_paratelic_alternations.png 6 39 112 2007-07-16T21:52:57Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2007-07-16T21:52:57Z BigSmoke 1 Outcome_of_the_growth_of_positive_and_negative_COEX_systems.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Outcome_of_the_growth_of_positive_and_negative_COEX_systems.png 45444 fse3b1u59q8igeqwf2pxjvgmlkezq79 Outcome_of_the_growth_of_positive_and_negative_COEX_systems.png 1 40 283 282 2007-12-16T00:28:50Z BigSmoke 1 Added a date/time stamp to Baby Boy's remark wikitext text/x-wiki Nuttig om toe te voegen als standaard gang van zaken: Bij begin van een artikel de reference van het artikel zelf. En in dit artikel een link vanaf waar er naar wordt verwezen, if any. Hier bijv. bij Kalma "in this volume" .............. -- [[User:Baby Boy|Baby Boy]] 03:18, 17 July 2007 (MST) : I don't think that I can completely follow you, but for one of your suggestions: At the left of each page, in the "toolbox", there's always a ''What links here'' function. This will give a list of pages which link to the current page. --[[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] 17:27, 15 December 2007 (MST) 064ydbopbc44wb5wsrnwqg8mvh6igbs 0 41 3528 3527 2012-04-07T15:29:36Z Baby Boy 2 /* Further reading on enlightenment */ wikitext text/x-wiki == What is enlightenment? == Discussing [[Point Omega]] in many cases leads us to the idea of enlightenment as a desired state of mind which supposedly is at present still rare and difficult to achieve, but easier to achieve and more common after we have passed through Point Omega. On this page we will first give some short general statements about what we think enlightenment is and what enlightenment is not. Subsequently, we will add some more in-depth comments on the concept of enlightenment and about how it can be achieved, about what works and what does not work and about why this is the case. Finally we will give some sources for further reading, we found to be of interest. '''Enlightenment is not:''' * A state of perpetual happiness and experienced love. * A state of knowing everything. * A state of personal power over oneself. * A state of personal power over one's (social) environment. * What ordinary religions bring you. * An ephemeral / passing state of mind. '''Enlightenment is a state in which:''' * Happiness is easier to reach. * Reaching happiness is not a primary concern any more. * Personal matters have lost their all overriding importance. * The person merges with the flow of events easily and automatically. * The person readily takes risks by deviating from tradition and common beliefs. '''Enlightenment is:''' * What all organized religions promise to bring, but never do. * The natural result of personal growth, if unhampered; the birthright of us all. * An unusual state of mind (before [[Point Omega]]); a state we vaguely seem to remember, but don't know how to reach. * The ordinary state of mind after [[Point Omega]]. * Permanent and irreversible. == The relationship between organized religion and enlightenment == (under construction) Religions as power structures. The importance of mass-neuroses for power structures. Tricks of religious structures to prevent people from escaping mass neuroses. Guilt for not having realized enlightenment. Skipping the realization of "telic" and "paratelic" states from common consciousness (hiding the key). == Shortcuts to enlightenment == (under construction) The difference between ephemeral states of enlightenment and permanent enlightenment. Break throughs versus the results of gradual development. About the dynamic mechanisms of developing enlightenment. Common involuntary tricks of cults to bind people and to prevent a thorough understanding of how enlightenment works (promising but not giving). == Further reading on enlightenment == (under construction) * [[The Guru Papers]] by Joel Kramer and Diana Alstadt (see data in the list of literature) hkz2oxs9jcggcth2eeew36yjjdbh790 0 42 1596 1595 2010-03-09T06:56:24Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki ;1944 :Born at Winschoten, prov. of Groningen, The Netherlands ;1957-1964:Gymnasium ß at Winschoten ;1964-1966 :Military service, heavy cavalry, 1st lieutenant ;1966-1973 :Study Biology at State University of Groningen, (R.U.G.): <br/>kandidaats (masters) in biochemistry, doctoraal (doctorate without thesis) in behavioural genetics with applied mathematics (with licence), ethology, population genetics and forest-ecology ;1974-1975 :Industrial diver in the Persian Gulf ;1975-1993 :Scientific researcher at the State University of Groningen (RUG): <br/>personality psychology, learning processes, life cycles of organizations (inclusion in the Marquis Who’s Who in the World for scientific articles, books and reports on these subjects) ;1975-1990:President of the Foundation for Voluntary Forest Management (S.V.B.; Stichting Vrijw. Bosbeheer Noord-Ned.) ;1990-now:Board member of same ;1983-1996 :Part time teacher “Application of Native Plants and Animals / Toepassing Inheemse Flora en Fauna” (TIFF) for gardeners and managers at the AOC of Leeuwarden ;1987-now :Director of Cyclo Systems (research and advice company in the area of social and ecological cyclical systems) ;1991-2007 :Founder and president of Sicirec S.A. (Sistemas de Circulación Ecológica), company for the servicing and representation of reforestation investors ;1997-2001 :Vice-president of Bosque Puerto Carrillo / PanAmerican Woods (PAW), a 3000 hectares teak plantation in Costa Rica (initiator of the rescue operations in 1997-1998) ;1998-1999 :Founder and ad interim-director of NIBO (Nederlandse Internationale Bosbouw-Onderneming), holding with a controlling interest in PAW ;2007-now:Co-founder and director of the Sicirec Group, company for advising and financing of reforestation projects and for the management of mutual funds in that area ;2007-now :Co-founder and director of Sicirec Bolivia S.A., company for managing the ArBolivia project, initiated by an FAO initiative and reshaped by Sicirec S.A., a cooperation tree planting scheme with some 2000 smallholders, combining commercial profits for all parties with lasting protection and restoration of local ecosystems ;Hobbies:gardening, aikido, swimming (previously: judo, jiu jitsu, karate, tai kwon do, skiing) == External links == *[http://www.sicirec.org/ Sicirec website] *[http://blog.omega-research.org/ Researching Point Omega Blog] *[http://wiki.omega-research.org/ Point Omega Research Wiki] 00jt8w74j4q5s6oiokhf702xgw19z6f 0 43 6770 6769 2017-01-17T11:52:24Z Baby Boy 2 /* Point Omega / Mass enlightenment */ wikitext text/x-wiki = summary, 20 lines = {{Level|1}} Humanity seems to be at the brink of a major change in the direction of its evolution. What happened before is the following. An increased intelligence emerged somewhere between 1 million and a quarter million years ago. This could only happen after a safeguard had emerged in our ancestor's genome preventing high intelligence to be used for manipulating our own behaviour. We call that Self-Blindness. It is a prerequisite for the evolution of higher intelligence. More recently, only some 10.000 years ago, another major shift occurred in human evolution, the development of agriculture. Agriculture made military defense, high level organisation and long term planning necessary. From that moment on, evolution at the meme level took over the lead from evolution at the gene level. Meme evolution moves much faster than gene evolution and thus drags our gene evolution along. Human beings therefore suffer from incompatibility between on the one hand the genetic organisation and primordial innate impulses and on the other hand the meme level demands of modern agricultural, political and military structures. Moreover, the meme level power structures have increased their influence over us humans by facilitating high levels of neurotisation. However, quite a number of techniques with which power structures keep their carriers, us humans, down and unawares, are nowadays gradually losing their strength. Once these blinding forces have lost their power sufficiently, understanding will emerge of the cultural mechanisms that keep us bound in subjugation since the beginning of the agricultural revolution. By that time it will as a consequence also become more likely that humanity will become aware of the reasons for our innate Self-Blindness which has been our special feature for more than half a million years already. Intelligence will then deploy more fully and it will end up understanding itself. And that is likely to trigger a chain reaction of understanding, freeing our effective intelligence and opening up myriads of new possibilities. The gradual evolution of humanity towards more consciousness, will then shift to the conscious evolution of Homo sapiens. = summary, 2 pages (At the brink of change) = '''Self-Blindness''' {{Level|1}} On this Wiki it is argued that humanity is at the brink of a major change in the direction of its evolution, which changing point we call Point Omega. Human hominid ancestors developed an increased intelligence somewhere between 2 million and a quarter million years ago, escaping from the usual [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|upper boundary of intelligence in the animal kingdom]]. This could only happen after a provision, a safeguard had emerged in our ancestor's genome preventing high intelligence to be used for manipulating our own behaviour. We label this provision as Self-Blindness. So, what happened is that from the time the species Homo developed out of its primate ancestors, it paired a superior intelligence to a specific inability to utilize intelligence to its own behaviour. In a sense, we were able to become so clever by virtue of that peculiar and specific stupidness. This happened more than 200.000 years ago. '''The agricultural revolution''' More recently, only some 10.000 years ago, another major shift occurred in human evolution. That was the development of agriculture. That cultural innovation thoroughly changed the way groups of humans lived together. The family groups or bands of individuals, our primate ancestors and related primates lived in, were replaced by much larger social structures with a much higher level of task specialisation. And agriculture made military defense, a high level of organisation and longer term planning, necessary. The evolution of culture became of paramount importance for survival in the competition for (agricultural) resources. From that moment on [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22|evolution at the meme level took the lead over evolution at the gene level]]. Meme level power structures compete with one another for supremacy and in the process they are dragging the much slower selection pressure at the gene level along. '''Suffering from evolutionary "jet-lag"''' Thus, selection processes between competing power structures nowadays determine the fate of mankind. Homo sapiens is the carrier of genes and at the same time the carrier of memes. Only, the meme evolution moves much faster than the gene evolution. And since the gene evolution is moving so much slower than the meme evolution, human beings are suffering from a certain emotional and motivational friction between our gene-level basis and the present day meme-level demands. This friction stems from an incompatibility between on the one hand our primordial genetic organisation and subsequent innate impulses and on the other hand the demands and requirements of the quickly evolving modern agricultural and military organisations that are ruling our lives. We could call this an [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Power_structures_utilizing_.22jet-lag.22_effects_in_human_evolution|"evolutionary jet-lag" from which humanity is suffering]]. '''Non-self-actualisers''' Power structures need masses of carriers, us humans, that can easily be manipulated and programmed. One of the ways power structures achieve that goal is by facilitating high levels of neurotisation and feelings of dependency. That is of course [[Striving,_Playing_and_Learning#5._Positive_and_Negative_Learning_Spirals|not conducive for a high level of individual development]]. But, whereas the quality of the behavioural output may thus on average be reduced in us neurotic carriers of the power structure memes, this negative effect is more than compensated by increased economic and military pushing power of the meme level power structures in charge. For the power structures malleability and obedience is more important than individualist creative output. Since one of the results of such neurotic dependency is an impaired developmental process, the result is that in us humans [[The_evolutionary_stability_of_a_bi-stable_system_of_emotions_and_motivations_in_species_with_an_open-ended_capacity_for_learning#Behavioural_idiosyncrasies_and_the_dimension_of_.22self-actualization.22|self actualisation]] has become the exception rather than the rule, which is contrary to the state of affairs in primates and other animals. '''Dormant intellectual potential''' In summary, we humans are evidently the pinnacle of the evolution of intelligence. However, our intellectual faculties appear to be harnassed by awareness blocks and intelligence blocks at several levels. So, different mechanisms work together to keep human intellectual faculties under control. More specifically, we suffer from the following handicaps regarding the deployment of high intelligence: 1) an innate [[Self-blindness_in_humans_as_prerequisite_for_the_evolution_of_advanced_intelligence|Self-Blindness]], blocking awareness of our own behaviour, originating from a quarter to two million years ago; 2) high average neurotic states and stress levels because of a [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22|structural mismatch]] between our primordial behavioural impulses and modern requirements from meme level power structures; this mismatch arose since some 10.000 years ago; 3) extra neuroticising special effects from the meme level power structures that further facilitate malleability and obedience of its carriers. Both 2) and 3) result in higher strength and pushing power of the power structures in charge, but at the expense of a lower than normal percentage of self actualising individuals in the population. This leads us to the following conclusion. With an intelligence that is structurally and genetically blocked regarding the own behaviour and that is furthermore systematically reduced by neuroticising power structures, the full human intellectual potential is not coming to full expression, but is largely laying dormant. If this view is correct, it implies a rather sorry state of Homo sapiens, but simultaneously points at unsuspected human potentials. '''Point Omega''' When studying in detail the mechanisms ruling [[Striving,_Playing_and_Learning|learning and development]] and the mechanisms ruling the [[The_biological_instability_of_social_equilibria#Life_cycles_of_social_groups_and_structures|life and birth of power structures]], it can be argued that a number of the mechanisms that in practice keep us humans trapped in neuroticising power structures, are nowadays gradually losing their influence and power. That will most probably lead, at some point in time, to a situation in which humanity's intellectual potency will not be controlled and limited to the same extent any more and will gradually or suddenly break loose from its cultural fetters causing a chain reaction in personal and social development, including an explosion of free intellectual capacity. That will then in turn lead to an understanding of the cultural mechanisms that keep us bound in subjugation to the impersonal power structures in charge since the beginning of the agricultural revolution. And once that will happen, it is becoming more likely also that humanity will start to grasp the reason for our innate Self-Blindness that has been our special feature for more than half a million years already. In short, once that happens, intelligence will understand itself, which future point in time we have labeled Point Omega. That is likely to trigger a chain reaction of understanding, opening up myriads of new possibilities. From that moment on, the gradual evolution of humanity to more and more consciousness, will shift to conscious evolution, which will be an important shift towards a completely new direction in the evolution of Homo sapiens. This shift in human evolution will be far more basic and far more influential than was the agricultural revolution. From an evolutionary point of view, the agricultural revolution will then be seen as just a transitory state of mankind, that, in hindsight, unavoidably occurred just before our species came of age. = summary in 5 pages = == Introduction == {{Level|1}} This 5 page summary and the data it refers to consist of only scientific data, devoid of and often contrary to popular beliefs. Wishful thinking is eliminated wherever it is traced. All data presented are derived from scientific research and can be traced and checked by anybody interested. The novelty about it is in the unusual combination of facts and data from different disciplines, rendering an overall picture of the human condition with quite unexpected perspectives. The prediction of a Point Omega transition that can materialize in a relatively short period of time, results from simple and clean thinking. The only speculative part is the quantification of timing; when can it / will it happen ? This summary consists of four parts. # The human species is peculiarly unable to think clearly about its own behaviour. Our '''intelligent capacities''' are effectively '''blocked regarding''' our '''personal and social functioning'''. It will be argued that this specific blindness, a blindness which started to develop some half million to two million years ago, is a prerequisite for the evolution of high intelligence (no matter how peculiar and contradictory this sounds). We will explore the consequences of this phenomenon, in the past as well as for the (near) future. # The second part is about how the '''dynamics of our emotions and motivations''' are organized. We will deal only with the most elementary of these motivational dynamics. I will present the basics of '''“Reversal Theory”''' (developed by Apter and Smith) and explain how this theory explains the basics of our learning process and why this is important to be aware of. # What controls our lives at present? Human autonomy is an illusion. Instead, highly '''impersonal power structures''' are '''in charge'''. This development started with the agricultural revolution, some 10.000 years ago. Since then we gradually ended up in a situation where humans only do have any value insofar as they are suitable carriers of “memes”, belonging to winning power structures. However, this millennia old state of affairs has become highly unstable lately, leading us to discussion item 4. # On the probability of a '''Point Omega transition''', possibly within the near future. == Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness == {{Level|1}} We can put a man on the moon, we can dive to the bottom of the deepest oceans, we have produced Hydrogen bombs, we can annihilate the whole of the human world population within one day, but we cannot think clearly in front of a mirror. How strange ! The human species is peculiarly unable to think clearly about its own behaviour. Our intelligent capacities are effectively blocked regarding our personal and social functioning. It can be argued that this specific blindness, a blindness which started to develop some half million to two million years ago, is a prerequisite for the evolution of high intelligence. Social and personal blindness is a prerequisite for the evolution of intelligence, any intelligence, beyond a certain level. Social and personal blindness is culturally supported by massive and multidimensional organized ignorance and superstition. It can easily be shown experimentally that human beings are quite unawares of the way they socially interact and how their capacity to understand matters is effectively blocked to give ample space to original and primordial social reflexes. The reason, why in such matters intellectual capacities are blocked in favor of original, primordial reflexes, is stemming from the functional conflict between proximal and ultimal causes of behaviour. I will explain why this is so, and what are its consequences. In short, it means that ultimal reasons for behaviour, the evolutionary usefulness of behaviour, are not the same as the short-term reasons why we behave like we do. We derive feelings of satisfaction from obeying emotional drives and instincts successfully, drinking, eating, sleeping, sex, exploration, etc. These instincts are organized in such a way that, ultimally, they serve procreational purposes. Intelligence may / might be used to find – easier - shortcuts to short term satisfaction. However, such shortcuts are quite likely to outflank the collateral behavioural effects of those primordial instincts, collaterals that serve procreational purposes, for which reasons those instincts were evolutionarily selected for in the first place. Intelligence, applied on our own behaviour, therefore quickly leads to sterile behaviour, no matter how satisfactory from a personal emotional (very proximal) point of view. For that reason awareness blocks for the own behaviour '''had''' to develop, parallel to the development of superior intelligent capacities. Otherwise the latter never could have evolved further than a certain, not dangerous, level. However, from an evolutionary point of view, it is also unavoidable that at some point in time the paradox of a high intelligence, paired to not understanding oneself, becomes technically too unstable to continue. Point Omega (term of Teilhard de Chardin) is when the present system collapses, when collective ignorance cannot be maintained any longer and understanding of self and social relationships starts to spread like a prairie fire, releasing at the same time unparalleled amounts of energy, boosting in turn this process itself. It will function as a sort of chain reaction resulting in an explosion of awareness and clarity. The presently ruling awareness blocks for one’s own behaviour, one’s emotions and motivations, imply that human beings are in particular blind to how they interact socially. For more on this phenomenon of “Social-Role Blindness” and for exploring some ''examples of how this works'' and what are its consequences for the present as well as for the future, click [[The biological instability of social equilibria|here]]'''(***)''' . '''Some of the consequences of Self Blindness:'''<br/> Present: * Socially, we act like animals, especially where things matter very much. * Nepotism * Tribalism * Fears continue and are not understood. Thus human beings are more easily locked up in neurotic systems permanently. Implications for the future: * Breaking awareness / intelligence blocks is of crucial importance. * Awareness of the own personal motivations opens strategic moves for change and escape from neurotic imprisonment. * This awareness and the breaking of the intelligence blocks is crucial antidote against the power structures in charge. For more, click here: [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Social-role blindness|Social Role Blindness]]'''(***)'''. == Reversal Theory of Emotions and Motivations == {{Level|1}} Children learn and develop by playing. Almost everybody is aware of that. Children play for fun. They like to explore and to venture out. In between they seek - and generally find - cover, security and reassurance. Alternating between venturing out playfully and seeking cover and reassurance, they gather experience in optimal quantities and thus develop their skills and behavioural repertoire. Adults show less playful behaviour. They are "mature" and their behavioural repertoire is supposed to be fully grown. Still, human adults and also semi adults, show less playful exploration than what seems natural. It seems that humanity largely lost its ability to learn by playing. The [[A guided tour through this Wiki#The C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model), missing piece #2|CEL (Cognition-Energy-Learning model)(*)]], based on Reversal Theory, explains how this works in detail and this Wiki elsewhere deals with the reasons why humanity lost most of its capacity to learn by playing in the natural way and what are the implications of this defect for the present human situation. “Reversal Theory" (developed by Apter and Smith) explains the basics of our learning process. The basic principles are explained in a different chapter with graphs, pictures and examples. [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Reversal Theory|click: Reversal Theory(***)]] Since these mechanisms of emotions and motivations are the very basis of our behaviour and thus of our very existence, consciousness of these mechanisms is of crucial importance. It is striking and highly peculiar, that awareness of these mechanisms has not always already been the normal state of affairs. Our cultures invariably have taken care of blinding us specifically for these basic aspects of our existence, utilizing and enhancing the already innate specific human blindness for the self, establishing and maintaining numerous structures to consolidate that blindness. Becoming aware of the reversal mechanisms in our emotional organization is therefore a key to any attempt of mankind to (re)gain autonomy. Once these basic mechanisms of collecting and digesting experience, and from there the dynamics of learning, are understood, it is much easier to optimize instructional and educational methods, helping to enlighten mankind. In fact, this very theory can render the tools to boost self-actualization processes on a massive scale. It enables people to effortlessly enhance and stimulate general developmental processes in one another. Before diving into the [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|details of Reversal Theory(***)]] it is good to realize that whereas the mechanics of the motivational reversals are basically very, very simple from a purely technical point of view, they are nevertheless very difficult to grasp for most people. This is because of clear evolutionary reasons, resulting in the unavoidable specific human blindness for oneself and for all mechanisms involved. == Impersonal power structures ruling our world == {{Level|1}} Since the agricultural revolution, some 10.000 years ago, human evolution switched to another level and took a novel course. Evolution up to that point basically was an affair of competing '''gene''' structures, in humans just as in any other living creatures; the familiar Darwinian stuff. From that time on however, power structures ('''meme'''-structures) took over. This means that, essentially, meme-structures (term of Dawkins) started to compete more strongly with each other in a struggle for survival. The major evolutionary forces, working on mankind, from that time on also operated on the level of '''memes'''. The evolution of memes runs much faster than the evolution of genes. The classical evolution of genes is lagging behind, now responding to the requirements imposed by the evolving meme structures. As a consequence, the genes humans carry in their bodies, have become just subsidiary to those goals. We have to be suitable meme carriers in the first place. From being merely gene’s survival machines, we have become the pawns of power structures as well. From the time of the agricultural revolution, some 10.000 years ago, up till this moment, it has been in the interest of the power structures in charge to keep us humans in a perpetual state of neurosis and stress. Neuroticism renders a lower than optimal useful output, but this lower output per individual is more than compensated by increased pushing power and retaliation force of the meme structures in charge. Besides, the neurotic state also enhances controllability and malleability of masses, which is an important advantage for the power structures. The collective neurotic state is characterized among other things by a high average fear level and as a consequence over-dominance of the [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|telic meta-motivational state]] '''(***)''', which in turn hampers healthy developmental processes in the individual. (For more details click [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative learning spirals|here]] '''(***)''') Because meme-selection occurs much faster than gene-selection, there is a time squeeze involved. We humans, as the only carriers of those meme-structures, find ourselves at the interface between the ancient gene-evolution and the novel meme-evolution. We humans therefore get the full load of that time squeeze, our gene-evolution lagging behind our meme-evolution, with all the internal and external frictions involved (see also [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Power_structures_utilizing_.22jet-lag.22_effects_in_human_evolution|here]] '''(**)'''). An easy way to explain the human situation is by utilizing terms from computer technology. We human beings, with our intelligence and learning capacity, are the carriers of information, of memes. The suitability for that task is determined in the first place by our genes. The genes make our hardware so to speak. We are the PC’s. The memes we carry, are the software. We humans contain flesh and soul, hardware and software. We are subject to evolutionary forces at two levels, the old evolution of hardware and the new, much faster, evolution of software. However, there are good reasons to assume that this [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|state of mass neurosis and slavery regarding the power structures in control]] '''(**)''', has become highly unstable lately, leading us to issue number 4, Point Omega and mass enlightenment. (To return to the Guided Tour click [[A_guided_tour_through_this_Wiki#In_summary_.....|here]] '''(*)'''.) == Point Omega / Mass enlightenment == {{Level|1}} There are reasons why we can predict that the old scheme will collapse and enlightenment (once more) will spread (and this time will win for good). Analysis of the usual state of affairs and the evolutionary selection mechanisms keeping us there, renders a number of insights (and reasons for optimism): * The '''information explosion'''. Power structures derive much of their power from information gaps. Information privileges are breaking down these days. Also, unpopular power actions are increasingly more difficult to hide. Secrecy schemes are evaporating all over the world. * Power structures derive great advantages from ignorance and superstition, making their meme carriers / subjects more malleable and manageable. The information explosion renders a strong democratization of information. '''Ignorance is''' therefore increasingly '''more difficult to induce and to maintain.''' Structures of superstition, like religions and such, are rapidly losing their stability and influence. * Like neuroticism, '''self-actualization is also very contagious'''. The communication explosion of this era reduces distances. Through the Internet all sorts of groups emerge with increasing ease. Self-actualizers, historically a small (escapee) minority, therefore also can easier find their likes nowadays. Critical sizes of self-actualizing groups can therefore develop easier and can eventually trigger chain reactions of contagious self-actualization. That will undermine the usual thoughtless and massive subservience to power structures. * '''Birth control''' is inducing more and more children being born wanted with parents who are ready to bring them up successfully in more harmonious situations. This increases the percentage of children growing up with sufficient basic security. This in turn increases the likelihood of self-actualization and thus of enlightenment. * Two other genetic mechanisms will be discussed each of which is quickly losing its age-old function and evolutionary purpose. That way some cornerstones are taken out of the foundation of the power structures in charge. * .. One of these is the effect of selection forces against self-will and creativity in any type of organization. * .. Another one is the disastrous effect of genetic pollution wherever there is a relatively even distribution of wealth and reproductive capacities. * Both of these primordial causes for periodic catastrophes and disaster always thwarted any attempt to establish schemes for larger scale self-actualization and made them inherently unstable in time. '''Scientific understanding''' of these genetic and social mechanisms can take also these stings out of human evolutionary existence, freeing the way for a stabilization of massive self-actualization and enlightenment. * There are a number of threats for the (pleasant) survival of mankind that force more and more people to think over thoroughly the human condition and the options that we have. There is mass pollution, there is the nuclear capacity to destroy the human species largely or completely, waging war is nearing more and more to potential massive self-destruction, etc. etc. These '''urgencies trigger more awareness''' about our own situation and our own functioning than has been usually the case, due to the innate blocks preventing awareness of and preventing clear thinking about our own behaviour and our own (social) situation. Such increased awareness therefore sooner or later undermines the ultimate power of the meme structures in charge and will undermine their blinding schemes. * Etc. In order to compensate for the changes as mentioned above, the power structures in charge would need to step up selection forces to make their meme carriers even more reliable then before. That would mean: more blindness for the own behaviour than before, more neurotic and thus more malleable then before, less intelligent then before, etc. However, many of the changes as mentioned above, occur in such a rapidly increasing speed, that there simply is not enough time any more for the selection pressure to change the properties of us meme carriers quickly enough to secure the safety and evolutionary success of the meme-power-structures. The whole of the meme structures is rapidly slipping towards a point of no return, where the meme world will inescapably start "to understand itself". Whereas it is difficult to estimate what type of time schedule follows from the above insights, the conclusion is that in a not too far future the all pervading power of the meme structures in charge will be overruled and that the subsequent neurotic and subservient state of the human species will also end and be replaced by mass enlightenment, which has been mankind’s primordial potential to start with. The natural state of enlightenment is where we come from, be it without the awareness at that time of all our behavioural mechanisms, behavioural reflexes, that took us for a (rough) ride during the last 10.000 years, since the agricultural revolution. Becoming aware, and with our present day technological tool box, we finally can reclaim our long lost right to lead complete lives, and we can take the evolutionary lead ourselves. And besides, ................... we have no choice. Speaking about mass enlightenment we should clarify one common misconception. We do not mean to claim that after passing Point Omega mankind will enter in a stable state of eternal "happiness". Happiness is a very relative concept. In the Canadian philosopher Tennesson's words: "happiness is for the pigs". We are designed to feel and become aware of differences. Steady states tend to slip out of conscious awareness. Feeling happy therefore refers to a change in mood. Thinking of it as a steady state to be sought after is therefore a delusion. What will be mankind's condition after point omega, as is the condition of present day enlightened persons, is a state in which the rather continuous emotional and motivational friction, caused and fueled by the functional discrepancies between P-Feelings and N-demands, has been overcome, has disappeared. As is discussed [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The primordial niche of Homo sapiens and the feelings and emotions "fitting" that environment|elsewhere]] in more detail, P-feelings, "Primordial" feelings, stem from our primordial evolutionary heritage, representing our most basic feelings, preferences and tendencies. N-demands, "New" demands, stem from the relatively recent, less than 10.000 years old, complex social power structures we live in since the agricultural revolution. After Point Omega we will not so much "feel" more happy, we will "only" be more happy from an objective point of view (which we do not feel). In particular, the functional friction and stress between the P-feelings and the N-demands will be reduced by a basic and thorough understanding of how it all works, an awareness that will take us humans "off the hook". That's all. Whereas it will not be felt so much, it is sufficiently worthwhile to rejoice! It will affect our real behaviour, not our subjective, delusionary perception of it. For returning to the "Guided Tour of this Wiki" click [[A guided tour through this Wiki#In_summary_......|here]] '''(*)'''. flgdqxtdtnfim39tuebjv2zrtnqf782 0 44 5717 145 2014-01-08T19:55:12Z BigSmoke 1 Redirected page to [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] 6mk23d42sh99si4jk1mxkuirjmysq7r 0 45 6653 6071 2016-12-25T19:14:48Z Baby Boy 2 /* Acknowledgements */ wikitext text/x-wiki '''(Subtitle: Social-Role Blindness and the periodic emergence of conflict and disaster; on Population Cycles precluding the establishment of lasting social equilibria)''' '''[[Popko Peter van der Molen|by P.P. van der Molen]]''' '''In: Evolutionary perspectives on competition, cooperation, violence and warfare''' (Chapter 4) '''Edited by J. van der Dennen and V. Falger''' Published in Sociobiology and Conflict, 1st ed. 1990, ISBN 0 412 33770 3 (HB) See also the separate [[The biological instability of social equilibria (abstract)|abstract]] of this article. == Acknowledgements == {{level|3}} The writing of this chapter has been supported by a grant of the ANO foundation. Comments and criticism from [[Michael Kirton]], [[Vernon Reynolds]] and [[Robin Dunbar]] were of great help to improve this text, which is not to imply that they are responsible for any flaws in the basic line of argumentation defended here. The help of [[Ben Hoffschulte]] in refining and presenting this text is also gratefully acknowledged. --- PPvdM ''The Sociobiology of Conflict'' was the topic of the ninth meeting of the European Sociobiology Society, held on January 10 and 11, 1987. It was Michael Hopp's initiative to organize this conference in '''Jerusalem''', Israel, a symbolic place in many respects. Thanks to the scientific and personal qualities of Professor Amotz Zahavi, from Tel-Aviv University, many non-Israeli participants were able to experience the naturalistic, geographical and political history of the country in an impressive guided tour which influenced clearly the presentations and discussion in the conference. Without the hospitality and financial support of the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute the meeting would not have been possible. The Institute's director, Professor Yehuda Elkana, and Mrs Rivka Ra'am, member of the Executive Board of the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, in close cooperation with local organizer Michael Hopp, contributed very much to the success of the meeting itself. The Board of the European Sociobiological Society expresses its gratitude for this vital support. In the conference itself Vincent Falger, Lea Gavish, Johan Goudsblom, Anne Rasa, Avi Shmida, Jan Wind and Amotz Zahavi presented papers next to those elaborated and collected in this volume. ESS Board members Jan Wind, Hans van der Dennen and Vincent Falger organized those aspects of the conference not immediately connected with the meeting in Jerusalem. == Outline == {{level|3}} This chapter deals with a behavioural mechanism which thwarts any systematic attempts to prevent and put a permanent end to conflicts between social groups and organizations. Essential in this mechanism is a certain kind of social-role blindness, a peculiar unawareness of what we are doing on the level of social-role interactions, whereby attraction or repulsion are effectuated. As in Tiger's contribution (Chapter 5), special provisions in our behavioural system are discussed which prevent us from utilizing our intellectual and cognitive faculties for investigation of our innermost social tendencies. We shall return to these 'no entrance' signs built into our cognitive system below. Other elements of this mechanism are involuntary incrowd–outcast selection reflexes and a 'trait dimension', which may be described as a `readiness to comply with a submissive role'. This dimension is correlated with a great amount of social behaviour and a small amount of thing-oriented, individualistic and explorative behaviour. It is, by definition, of great importance for the distribution of social roles and for the social structure in a group; it determines, for example, the likelihood of drifting into an outcast position versus the likelihood of assuming or maintaining a compliant and socially accepted subordinate position. Knowledge of this personality trait dimension and of its effects in social groups and structures may increase our understanding of a wide range of intriguing and sometimes disquieting phenomena. These phenomena range from educational and organizational strategies to the often catastrophe-like collapses and turn-over phenomena in companies and other social structures, and from the way social roles and positions tend to be distributed up to the resulting evolutionary consequences. First I will explain why, from a purely biological point of view, differences between individuals are to be expected in any socially living mammalian species in the following situations: readiness to comply with a submissive role; sociability versus thing-orientedness; compliance versus self-will. It will be argued that the underlying biological organization must, from an evolutionary standpoint, be very old and elementary. We will investigate then the consequences of these behavioural differences on the level of social interaction. A life span theory of social structures and organizations will be introduced as one of the implications. The first sections of this chapter comprise a concise outline of these mechanisms, omitting at this point experimental data and illustrations. The basic assumptions made will, however, be stated explicitly. In the following sections we will check these assumptions against experimental and empirical data from biological and psychological research. Finally, it will be pointed out why understanding of the way these interpersonal differences are behaviourally organized (and the way our awareness tends to be blocked in these respects) have such far reaching consequences; an increase in our understanding of the life cycles of social structures might be by far their most important result. Such understanding would enable us to map the processes underlying periodic catastrophe-like turn-over phenomena and to learn how to control their decreasing efficiency and violent backlashing on any level of organization. == Some consequences of living socially == {{level|3}} Among socially living mammals, each individual is by necessity saddled with a conspicuous bi-polarity in behavioural urges. First, being a socially living animal, drives for social contact and interaction are an important part of its behavioural–genetic endowment; but secondly, it has a set of perhaps even more basic drives to ensure the fulfilment of a range of non-social personal needs, e.g., water, food, cover, warmth, sex, territory, etc. As far as these latter needs are concerned, the amount of resources is often limited, thus causing competition and social conflict. For that reason a very basic functional conflict does exist in every social individual: between the urges to fulfil a great variety of personal basic (physical) non-social needs and the urge to maintain social contact and interaction. A socially living mammal inescapably has to shift between these two sets of urges much of the time. Whenever some of the needed resources are scarce, the ensuing competition will put a strain on social relations. Under such conditions an individual frequently has to choose between continuation of peaceful social relations and receiving an appropriate share of the resources, eventually at the cost of social peace and harmony. Most of the time this dilemma boils down to the question of whether or not to submit to the initiative of other individuals at the cost of fulfilling personal urges and desires. In any socially living species this conflict of needs is inescapably present in each individual day after day, the average outcome determining how the individual will deal by and large with the social situation at hand. It is most desirable to have one's own way most of the time and still maintain close social contact and interaction, but that is more or less identical to what is generally understood by a dominant social role, and such roles are rather scarce. [[Image:Two dimensions of social-role behaviour.png|framed|'''Fig. 4.1.''' Two dimensions of social-role behaviour.]] It is, therefore, of theoretical interest to know what happens to the majority of individuals, the various types of subordinates (see Fig. 4.1), who are under regular pressure to comply and postpone or even abandon part of their individual desires and initiatives. For such non-dominant individuals, the balance between the strength of the desire for social contact and interaction, and the strength of the desires to fulfil other biological needs, determine the outcome of this continuous process of balancing one need against the other. Given a certain pressure to comply, it largely depends on this equilibrium of basic sensitivities within the subordinate individual as to what the behavioural outcome will be, either drifting gradually into an outcast position or assuming a compliant and socially accepted subordinate position. Such differences between subordinates have indeed frequently been observed in mammals (refer to section 4.7). What is important for us to note here is that for any socially living mammalian species the competing sets of needs under discussion are very general and basic. We must therefore assume that the variance in the balance between those sets of basic needs has strong genetic roots. (After all, for many species, the behavioural organization is so simple that learning processes can only play a minor role in establishing behavioural variation. The equilibrium discussed above is therefore also an equilibrium between functionally competing parts of the genetic programme. As such we may consider this equilibrium, varying over individuals, as a trait in the classical sense. We could express this set of behavioural polarities as a set of (inter alia genetically based) trait differences which do have a clearly defined impact on the distribution of social roles. Up to this point, three basic assumptions have been made about the behaviour of socially living mammals in general: '''1.''' There is a strong functional link, on the level of behavioural orientation, between the frequency of social behaviour versus thing-oriented individualistic behaviour, and, on the level of distribution of social roles, between conformity and compliance with authority versus a self-willed attitude. These two polarities cannot be separated; they have the same behavioural basis. Therefore a range of personality characteristics have to be strongly intercorrelated, e.g., self-will, thing-orientedness, individualism and innovative creativity on the one pole, and compliance, person-orientedness, sociability, conformity, and adaptiveness to rules and traditions on the other pole. '''2.''' Individuals differ from one another as far as the balance between these polarities is concerned. '''3.''' This variation between individuals must have genetic components. In the next part of this chapter we will check these assumptions against experimental data, but first we will investigate their logical consequences. At this point one might justly retort: 'why so much ado about nothing? It seems self-evident that these polarities in behaviour are interconnected, and since for most broad behavioural characteristics it is likely that differences in behaviour are partly caused by genetic differences, in particular if they are of very old phylogenetic origin, which these behaviours apparently are, it is rather tautological to state that they have genetic roots.' The point is, first, that this notion of a biological basis of certain behaviours may be self-evident to behaviour biologists, but it is certainly not for large groups of sociologists and psychologists. Secondly, these three assumptions do have peculiar and important consequences if applied to the sociology of group structures — the incrowd–outcast dynamism and the concomitant behavioural reflexes in particular. In order to discuss these consequences we have to add one more assumption, which is rather a definition, namely: '''4.''' In what follows, social groups will mean groups over which individuals are distributed discretely. In other words, individuals can be recognized by one another as either belonging to the social group in question or not – and are treated accordingly. <center><big><b>Hypothesis</b></big></center> == Life cycles of social groups and structures == {{level|3}} If social groups are defined as above, the previous four assumptions imply that within such social groups there is exercised a more or less continuous selection pressure in favour of compliance and sociability. It is such because the most compliant – and thus most socially-oriented and rule-adaptive –individuals are most likely to establish long lasting accommodation within the group. Self-willed individualists on the other hand (also being innovative and thing-oriented according to assumption 1), are most likely to run into trouble and disagreement with the dominant individuals and/or habits and rules in the group. They are least prepared to pay the price of postponing or giving up personal urges and initiatives in order to keep up peace and social harmony. As a consequence, such individuals are the ones who are most likely to either fight hard for attaining a dominant position, or, if failing, to drift into marginal omega-like social positions and eventually become outcasts and leave the social structure. For any eventual influx of individuals into the social group or structure, the opposite holds. Individuals will be most readily accepted if they do not pose a threat to the individuals and/or habits ruling group life, which of course favours rule-adaptive compliants. The effect of such a continuous selection pressure is that the average behavioural make-up of a group will shift gradually towards compliance and sociable rule-adaptiveness. Due to assumption 1, this also implies a shift towards less and less independent creativity and thing-oriented innovativeness; because of assumption 3, this shifting of group characteristics is (genetically) consolidated. What automatically happens then with every social group (structure) is a gradual loss of innovativeness and behavioural flexibility. In the end such a gradual ossification reduces the effectiveness of the group (structure), whether its function be the preservation of a territorial area with sufficient resources to keep a deme of mice alive, or, in man, the enhancement of some sport, the maintenance of political ideals, the aim to get a better share of the market, or the preservation of a political state. Such ossification especially matters whenever novel challenges turn up in the form of environmental changes or the emergence of competing groups. The disadvantages of a lowered flexibility and innovative creativity weigh most when, because of changing circumstances, innovations and a change of habits are urgently required. In such circumstances the advantages of the old social system in terms of experience, solidly established routines, compliance, malleability of all members, and sheer size, may easily be outdone by the innovativeness, flexibility and efficiency of a younger, and often much smaller, social group (structure) on which these selection pressures have not, as yet, been working for such a long period of time. At such a moment the old structure will yield to the younger structure in a relatively sudden way. Therefore, provided the above mentioned assumptions are valid, social groups and structures only have a limited life span, and, as I shall try to show below, these assumptions indeed seem to fit most socially living mammal species with discrete group structures, including man. The life cycle of a social institution in human society then, can be indicated roughly as: :foundation → consolidation → internal selection pressure → increasing ossification and a reduction of flexibility of the social structure → eventual attempts to compensate these effects by means of more striving for growth and power → further increase of rigidity and ossification → catastrophic collapse by sudden environmental changes or competition (Fig. 4.2). [[Image:Changes in time of social group structures.png|none|framed|'''Fig. 4.2.''' Change in time of the average characteristics of the prevalent social group structures and their incrowd members.]] Our model implies a departure from notions of mere gradual changes in societal structures. The probability of sudden catastrophic turn-over events increasing in time with cumulating selection effects can be graphically represented and mathematically described with help of the bi-stable models from the mathematical branch of catastrophe theory (Thom and Zeeman, 1974; Zeeman, 1976; Woodcock and Davis, 1978). Figure 4.3 shows a cusp catastrophe, visualizing the relation between the continuous and the discontinuous part of the cycle. After foundation of a social structure, the level of overt challenges tends to decrease and the stability of the structure tends to increase until the inefficiency begins to take its toll, after which the stability of the structure decreases again. During this process the average level of self-will decreases. An increase in the level of experienced challenges may then sooner or later lead to a catastrophic turn-over event. In the new structure the percentage of innovators (average level of self-will) starts again at a high level. [[Image:Social turn-over cycles.png|framed|none|'''Fig. 4.3.''' Turn-over cycles in terms of personality characteristics and institutional functioning.]] The selection rate determines the speed of ossification; the life expectancy of a social structure is, therefore, roughly inversely proportional to the internal selection pressure. Such sudden turn-overs of social structures are therefore bound to happen at any level at which discrete social group structures are operating, as long as individuals can be recognized by one another as either belonging or not belonging to that group, and as long as there is some outflow or neutralization (and eventually a selected influx) of individuals. Depending on the level of organization, such a turn-over goes by the labels conquest, close-down, discontinuance, bankruptcy, revolution, subjugation or extermination. Once the old, ossified social structure has been replaced by one or more younger competitor-structures, the individuals from the population as a whole have been reshuffled in favour of resourceful self-willed innovators who now occupy the 'incrowd' positions. The rule-adaptive compliants who formed the bulk of the establishment of the former social structure in power, have drifted into marginal positions and now run the worst risks. Thus the previous internal shift in genetic make-up has been undone, and a new selection cycle is started in these new structures. The selective advantages for individuals are therefore different within and outside of social groups and structures, and are also different depending on the stage of the life cycle an institution is in. A compliant, adaptive and sociable temperament gives a selective advantage within a large, and especially older, social system, whereas a thing-oriented, innovative and self-willed temperament is selectively advantageous outside of the protective maze of established structures, or within small, young systems. == Evolutionary advantages == {{level|3}} Notwithstanding the above mentioned unpleasant aspects of the turn-over catastrophes themselves (in the case of man labelled bankruptcy, revolution, etc.), such a scheme of automatic and unavoidable cyclical changes in social-behavioural structures does also have evolutionary advantages. It is, for instance, clear that this mechanism keeps everything moving: structures, individuals and finally genes. After every turn-over event (or catastrophe) there is a thorough re-shuffling of individuals and when in the ensuing chaos new combinations of individuals reassemble in the newly emerging social group structures, novel combinations of gene sets are eventually formed also. Apart from this advantage at the level of interpersonal social reorganization and consequently of ensuing recombination of gene sets, there is also an advantage at the level of migration, exploration and colonization of the environment (e.g., Lancaster, 1986). Most mammals are reluctant to go beyond the limits of familiar territory – their home range – and generally must be forced one way or the other to do so (Christian, 1970). Every time an old structure breaks down, a large number of individuals is forced to move and is therefore added to the extra-group surplus population. This will produce a sudden increase in interindividual competition outside of the group (structures) and will produce, therefore, a sudden increase in the pressure on other established (group) structures. This will catalyse the impending catastrophic collapse of more systems, thus locally adding to the already existing chaos. This spatial synchronization causes migratory and related pressures to occur spasmodically and strongly instead of continuously and rather weakly. This may be an advantage where, for example, geographical barriers need to be overcome in order to enable further migratory moves of the population or species as a whole. Many authors have commented on the importance of surplus individuals in producing strong pressures for dispersal (Darlington, 1957) and from the model discussed above it may be clear that social hierarchies constitute by themselves a major force for dispersion. This is also stressed by Christian (1970) in a review of population dynamics research in mammals. He concludes that it is in general primarily the low-ranking individuals that are forced to emigrate from their birthplace (often maturing young animals), and whereas they have an extremely high rate of mortality, it also follows that by their expulsion increasingly more marginal and submarginal habitats should become occupied as density and migration pressures increase. Moreover, this process facilitates speciation: :... once in a great while a dispersing individual may, one would suppose, harbour a mutation or genetic change that increases its ability to adapt to the new surroundings and improves its chance of survival. It is such individuals that should be the basis for evolutionary changes. A sub-optimum area could be invaded repeatedly by countless numbers of individuals before a genetic change permitting adaptation occurred. Thus, the dispersal of large numbers of socially subordinate individuals into new environments may provide the wherewithal for natural selection, in contrast to the relative conservatism of dominant individuals in an optimum habitat. (Christian, 1970, p. 86) The implication is that the Darwinian 'struggle for life' is in fact a process with much irony and relativity, since those individuals with, apparently, maximum reproductive success (the dominants) create by the very violence of their success the outcasts that carry on the process which we call evolution (Hoffschulte, 1986). Likewise, the ethologist and social psychologist Calhoun (1974), p. 302-3) comments on our own origins: :The strong remain where conditions are most salubrious to preserving the old life-style. The weak must emigrate – bodily, behaviourally or intellectually. Our more distant ancestors swung from trees. Slightly less distant ones lost that race and won another. Population pressure forced them out of forest islands to wander across the African plains in search of another patch of forest where they could renew the old ways. Successive losses and successive demands for adjusting culminated in upright walking creatures much like ourselves. So it has been through all of evolution; the weak [eventually] survive, changed, to open new routes into the future. The meek do inherit the earth. The evolutionary advantages described here are of course most important in species inhabiting niches of a temporary character, which require the regular invasion and colonization of new environments. Christian (1970) reports that the above mentioned strong fluctuations in population density and migration pressure are indeed most conspicuous in species living in habitats which are ecologically transitory and thus of a strongly temporary and changing character. A species dependent on that type of habitat depends more on regular migratory moves for survival than species living in extensive and stable habitats. In this light it is noteworthy that the human species, by colonizing the most extreme sorts of habitats, has, in its recent evolutionary history, managed to inhabit virtually all of the earth's surface. The mechanism of social selection pressure and expulsion of outcasts should, therefore, have been of great importance in man's evolution. This is also implied by Coser's (e.g., 1956, 1978) and Girard's (e.g., 1982) comprehensive works on scapegoating in man. Girard describes how throughout human history the distribution of social role positions has been brought about by means of violent acts of social repression. Not only is the dramatic shifting of non-average, deviant subordinate persons into outcast positions just as common as in lower mammals, but, according to Girard, the very development of our culture even depended on it. Only through acts of violence and the collective commemoration of the victim-outcast or scapegoat do human groups find the social-cognitive norms and unanimity from which culture can develop. Culture in our species is not to be considered, therefore, as an immaculate attainment with which we have overcome primitive forms of violence. On the contrary, it is precisely through the violent social collisions themselves that human culture emerged from the animal background. The threatening circle around victims who are found guilty of social disorders is, so to say, the daily bread of social cultural order (Hoffschulte, 1986, on Girard). In summary, the mechanism of population- and group-cycles, as postulated above, would facilitate speciation through genetic adaptation to marginal habitats, would help to overcome migratory bottlenecks and would, in the case of man, serve to motor the evolution of culture. The actual turn-over catastrophes themselves may not be pleasant for the participants at all, but that is irrelevant from an evolutionary perspective. On this grand scale it is not the feeling and suffering of the individual involved that counts, but the long-term behavioural and behavioural—genetic output that does. Having outlined these intriguing and also somewhat disquieting consequences of the four assumptions made, I will now present some data from ethological and psychological research that may help us assess the validity of those assumptions. <center><big><b>Data</b></big></center> == Experiments with behavioural differences in house mice == {{level|3}} Some 33 groups, each containing 4 male and 2 female housemice of the same age, having grown up together from the same litter, were each placed in large observation cages in order to investigate interindividual differences in behaviour and the way these differences come about (van der Molen, 1981, 1988). The study investigated: # how social role differences within such groups could be manipulated; # which part of the behavioural differences had to be ascribed to those role differences; # which part of the behavioural differences was due to innate trait-factors. Dominance appeared to determine the behaviour of an individual to a great extent, thus being an indispensable tool for ethological descriptions of interindividual differences. It could also be shown experimentally that becoming dominant or subordinate was mainly dependent on coincidence and contingencies, and only to a limited extent on individual characteristics such as body-weight, social- and fighting-experience, self-will, ferocity, etc. Within the categories of dominants and subordinates there appeared large differences in tolerance for other individuals. Some dominant mice behaved far more aggressively towards their subordinates than did others and these differences determined to a large extent the number of subordinates eventually holding out with such a dominant. Another role-difference which could rather easily be manipulated experimentally was the Incrowd/Outcast difference, or rather, the difference between beta and omega-subordinates (the usual terms in mouse research). Detailed ethological data on the behavioural characteristics of 36 individuals were factor-analysed, using factor rotation with the experimentally found social-role differences as anchoring points. The remaining factors of (within-role) differences in behaviour were interpreted as active versus non-active and as self-willed versus compliant As far as the latter dimension is concerned, self-willed conflict-proneness was found to be strongly correlated with a high frequency of exploratory and thing-oriented behaviour, whereas compliance was found to be strongly correlated with a high frequency of social and partner- oriented behaviour. Every time a group of four males and two females was placed in a large observation cage for the first time, there were at first no clear alpha-, beta-, or omega-roles. In the course of the following days (or weeks) an alpha male would emerge and the differences in behaviour between the subordinate males would still be rather vague. Subsequently, differences would gradually evolve between the behaviour patterns of the subordinates. These differences occurred in the amount of resistance to the initiatives and the manipulations of the alpha, the number of fights they had with the alpha, and the amount of patrolling and exploration by themselves through the territory. Some subordinates sat still and allowed the alpha to groom them whenever he chose to do so and in return groomed the alpha if he offered himself by 'crawling under', which is the mouse way of saying something like 'please scratch my back'. Other subordinates tended to walk away more often when the alpha started to groom or to crawl under. The latter type of subordinate eventually appeared to be attacked by the alpha more regularly and subsequently showed more 'fleeing'. Such individuals then remained for increasingly longer periods of time in their hiding places, especially when the alpha was walking around, and eventually they ended up as inhabitants of an uncomfortable and, for the alpha, rather inaccessible hiding place. The subordinate mice who adapted to the initiatives of the alpha behaved submissively more regularly and underwent the maipulations of the alpha more often. They were however less often disturbed by aggressive attacks from the alpha, and did not much care whether the alpha was awake or asleep. The subordinates who put up more resistance towards the alpha showed on the other hand a conversely adjusted type of activity pattern; they kept silent for as long as they sensed that the alpha was active, and walked around when he was asleep. These gradually developing behavioural differences between subordinates can be described as differences in staying (beta types) and fleeing (omega types), since the latter type showed a tendency to flee the territory if possible. It should be noted here that the emergence of extreme omega behaviour patterns was an artifact of the experimental setting, owing to the fact that the mice were unable to escape. In natural settings they would probably have disappeared from the territory before showing such clear omega type reaction patterns. Indeed, in experimental situations in which opportunities for fleeing are provided, a large proportion of the (young) subordinate males do indeed flee the territory (Van Zegeren, personal communication). This is similar in many other rodent species (for example refer to Healey, 1967; Ewer, 1971; Wilson, 1975a, p. 278; Barash, 1977).<ref>In human societies there are also many occasions when a fleeing pattern is as difficult to achieve as it is with the artificially restricted mice in these experiments. Ghettos must consist of groups unwilling or unable to integrate fully and unable or unwilling to disappear. And whereas enforced ghettos are an extreme case, it exemplifies the general thresholds existing in any social structure, were it alone for overcoming the psychological bonds of habituation and attachment to the old situation and the extra risks and feelings of insecurity concomitant with breaking out.</ref> In the process of a subordinate gradually becoming an omega, the behaviour of the alpha gradually changes towards treating the omega ever more as a stranger. What is important to note here however, is that the behavioural differences between betas and omegas seemed to develop before the alpha'began to treat the subordinates in a different way. This suggests that these beta/omega differences are caused by differences between the individual subordinates themselves. It could, in principle, also be explained by assuming that an alpha male initiates these differences by having a dislike for one of the subordinates, and that this subordinate thereupon avoids the alpha more than the other subordinates do. These differences in treatment by the alpha might initially be of such a subtle nature that even though the subordinate in question reacts promptly with increased avoidance behaviour, these differences have escaped our attention. It could however be shown in a cross-breeding experiment that the differences between omegas and betas originate primarily from the subordinates themselves (see van der Molen, 1987; 1989). (Of course these two hypotheses are not mutually exclusive; they may both be valid, supporting each other's effect.) == Experiments with beta- and omega-roles == {{level|3}} In 30 populations (or groups of 4 males and 2 females in a large observation cage, as described above) observations were undertaken to determine whether or not the subordinate males did indeed develop into 2 distinct classes of betas and omegas. We used groups from the inbred C-57-black strain and the inbred CPB's-bagg albino strain and also from their F-1 and F-2 hybrids. These two inbred strains were chosen because of the conspicuous differences in the patterns of their aggressive behaviour and in their level of inter-individual tolerance. Two similar populations of wild mice were also incorporated in the experiment. Ethologically verifiable and clearly recognizable differences between betas and omegas developed in: * 1 out of 9 CPB's populations * 1 out of 8 C-57 populations * 4 out of 8 F-1 hybrid populations * 3 out of 3 F-2 hybrid populations * 2 out of 2 wild populations In the CPB's populations subordinate males tended to take up an (outcast-like) omega position, whereas in the C-57 populations the subordinates tended to take up a (compliant) beta position. The development of distinct classes of subordinates occurred quite clearly in half of the F-1 populations, and seemed to be normal in the F-2 as in the wild mice. The hypothesis that subordinates from F-1 populations showed less individual differences in this respect than subordinates from F-2 and wild populations was tested by means of Fisher's exact test for independence. The statistic in question, having a discrete, hypergeometric distribution when the zero-hypothesis is true, rendered a significant value for stat.alpha = 0.10. This is in fact the most significant result that can be obtained with these numbers of populations. These results suggest<ref>See, for example, East and Nilsson-Ehle in Srb, Owen and Edgar, 1965, pp. 450-74; or any other handbook on the basics of population genetics.</ref> a segregation and recombination in the F-2 generation of the genetic factors that determine the likelihood of subordinates becoming omega versus the likelihood of becoming a beta. An explanation of these effects in terms of differences in behaviour of the alpha mice does not make sense because in these data, subordinates were distinguished in behaviour only in relation to the alpha. Apart from this, an increase in behavioural variance of alpha males in the F-2 generation would imply more populations of the F-2 lacking either omegas or betas. This is contrary to what was found; thus the differences between omegas and betas stem, at least for a greater part, from genetic differences between the subordinate individuals. We label these differences accordingly as self-will, intolerance, tendency to have one's own way, or for that matter, tendency to dominate. In these experiments it was found furthermore, that tolerant, compliant males, apt to take up a beta role instead of an omega role when in a subordinate position, were tolerant of the subordinates when performing an alpha role, contrary to males with a high level of self-will or tendency to dominate. == Other ethological research data == {{level|3}} In many species differences between individuals have been found which resemble the above mentioned differences in male mice. From ethological field research it appears to be a general characteristic of social mammals that some individuals exert a lot of aggressive dominance, bullying their subordinates much of the time, whereas other dominants act as a sort of controller, governing the social relations in the group by social skill, sustained by the appreciation from companions rather than by aggressive intimidation. These differences are, for instance, reported from ethological research on mountain gorillas by Fossey (1972), on chimpanzees by Reynolds and Luscombe (1969), on a number of species including man by Chance and Jolly (1970) and Wilson (1977a, pp. 311-13) and exclusively on man by, for example, Lippit and White (1958), Krech, Crutchfield and Ballachey (1962, Chapter 12), Gibb (1969), Strayer and Strayer (1976), Hold (1976), and Sluckin and Smith (1977). Wilson (1975a) comments on these differences (p. 294): It is not wholly imprecise to speak of much of the residual variance in dominance behaviour as being due to personality. The dominance system of e.g., the Nilgiri langur (Presbytis johnii) is weakly developed and highly variable from troop to troop. Alliances are present or absent, there is a single adult male or else several animals coexist uneasily, and the patterns of interaction differ from one troop to another. Much of this variation depends on idiosyncratic behavioural traits of individuals, especially of the dominant males (Poirier, 1970). Itani et aL (1963) and Yamada (1966) describe the behaviour of extreme beta-type males in Japanese monkeys (Macaca Mcata) and indicate that a compliant temperament seems to be conditional for assuming such a role. Yamada further points out that, when such individuals eventually achieve a dominant position, a tendency for independence sometimes seems to exclude a tolerant attitude towards subordinates. Differences of this sort between dominant males have also been described in stumptail macaques (Macaca speciosa) by Bertrand (1969), who describes both 'bullies' and 'fair alpha males' and stresses that aggressiveness is not always a necessary factor for dominance. She states that stumptail macaques differ considerably in the amount of intolerance and aggression displayed, and that in certain cases the sustained aggressiveness of some individuals, who were followed up for several years, seemed a personality trait that appeared early in childhood. Furthermore she concluded that the amount of investigative behaviour shown by an individual also depended upon the predisposition of each monkey, apart from social rank, age and conditions of captivity. Some individuals were far more adventurous than others. This personality dependence of investigative behaviour overruled age and rank dependent behaviour in particular when the stimuli were frightening or ambivalent. In animal and social psychological research alike, variation in tolerance and acceptedness is reported between individual subordinate role styles. In general, it appears that individuals who do not manage to attain a dominant role (a-position in Fig. 4.1) may either stay in a subordinate position while (incrowd-)subordinates are often observed to gradually grow into a semi(incrowd-) subordinates are often observed to gradually grow into a semi-outcast or outcast position. Such outcast-like subordinates are then the potential migratory, running all the risks implied, whereas the better accepted incrowd-type subordinates, who show a better adaptation to existing hierarchical pressures, may eventually succeed the present dominant(s) if the latter should become incapacitated or even die. Such differences in social-role types have been observed frequently in relation to dispersal mechanisms operating through young individuals in particular (Wilson, 1977a; Barash, 1977).<ref>Similar descriptions have been given for e.g., deermice (Healey, 1967), free-living populations of black rats (Ewer, 1971, pp. 135-137), free-living lions (Bertram, 1975), rhesus monkeys (Vandenbergh, 1966), free-living Japanese monkeys (Irani et aL, 1963; Yamada, 1966) and by Eisenberg et al. (1972) for a number of primate species.</ref> Bertrand (1969) reports the occurrence of scapegoats in stumptail macaques and de Waal (1975) in Java monkeys. The latter reports that high-ranking individuals often formed alliances against the lowest ranking adults or adolescents, notwithstanding the fact that each of the high-ranking monkeys clearly dominated the scapegoat in question also without any help of others. == Human behaviour == {{level|3}} The significance of the self-will versus compliance or individualistic, thing-oriented versus social dimension in the domain of temperament traits is not only corroborated by a substantial amount of ethological research data on animals, but also by ethological as well as personality–psychological literature on human behaviour. Gibb (1969), Strayer and Strayer (1976), Hold (1976) and Sluckin and Smith (1977) report differences in dominance-styles of children, and of adolescents (Savin-Williams, 1977a,b, 1979, 1980); they are similar to those described above for mammalian behaviour. Gibb (1969) calls the two antagonist styles leadership and domination. With leadership, authority is spontaneously accorded by fellow group members whereas with domination there is little or no shared feeling or joint action and authority derives from some extra-group power. Turning from dominance styles to more general differences in behavioural style, Abrams and Neubauer (1976) report that human infants differ considerably in the way they divide their attention between persons and objects. This trait dimension, which they called thing- versus human orientedness, was manifest as early as in the second month of life. They found that the more thing-oriented child shows a greater freedom in exploration. Therefore we might label this dimension of thing- versus human orientedness (or sociability) also as explorative versus social, parallel to the vocabulary in Bertrand's (1969) longitudinal research on macaques. Abrams and Neubauer (1976) furthermore report that learning processes are shaped in a way which is different for each type of child: :Training issues are characterized essentially as 'tasks' for the more thing-oriented child; for the human-disposed infant, they are characterized as acts in the spectrum of approval or disapproval ... If earlier impressions were that the more thing-oriented children are more outer-directed, by the third year of life they appeared more inclined to be motivated by inner determinants and resources, a distinction which seems to persist thereafter ... The dispositions of infants are re-inforced in the milieu, as implements in evolving strategies are cycled back into the psychological system and thus inevitably emerge as traits of character. From her long range ethological research, Hold (1976) reports that children who rank high in the attention structure tend to set initiatives instead of complying to the initiatives of other children and that they :. . . prefer to play alone when the leading role was already taken by another high-ranking child. It seems that these children do not like to be commanded by other children. This runs essentially parallel to what has been said in the introduction in that self-willed, thing-oriented individuals are more prone to become either dominants or loners than to become beta-type compliant subordinates. A similar trait contrast is employed by Edwin McClain (1978, 1979) in his detailed longitudinal study on the behaviour of adult women. He distinguishes between women who are dominated by a need for independence and women who are dominated by a need for affiliation. McClain, like Ausubel (1952), points out that two basically opposing patterns of maturation already occur in the parent—child relationship during a youngster's early years. He terms the resulting personality types as satellizers who tend to adapt to existing rules, versus nonsatellizers who tend to behave more individualistically. :The satellizing child establishes her life orbit about her parents, whom she perceives as the benign source of all that is good in her life. In contrast, the nonsatellizing child rejects this kind of dependency because she believes that her welfare lies in her freedom to choose her own course. (McClain, 1978, p. 436) The material of McClain's study was derived from the behaviour of women. Kirton (1976, 1978b, 1987a) investigated a somewhat related dimension, namely the balance between adaptiveness and innovativeness in adults in general. The K.A.I. (Kirton Adaption–Innovation Inventory) was developed as a psychometric instrument for these investigations. Kirton based his instrument on the notion that a person confronted with a problem has a choice: he/she can do things 'better' or 'more' to solve the problem (adapt; the social-oriented approach) or he/she can do things 'differently' (innovate; the thing-oriented approach). Doing things better implies the acceptance of the old framework, while doing things differently means breaking accepted patterns. As Kirton says: :The Adaptor is right at home in bureaucracies, which tend to become more adaptor-oriented as time goes on ... whereas . . . the natural position of high Innovators seems to be out on a limb. Kirton's work is of special significance for the performance of leaders (Kirton, 1961, 1977, 1987a; Thomson, 1980; De Ciantis, 1987). He shows that innovators tend to become initiating and directing task-leaders whereas adaptors tend to become consideration- oriented maintenance-specialists of social relations. This is in line with the differences between leader types as described by, for example, Bales (1953), Halpin and Winer (1957), Thibaut and Kelly (1959), Krech et al, (1962) and Reddin (1970, 1987). From a conceptual point of view, innovativeness may be considered, furthermore, as a positively appreciated creative variant of non-conformism and disobedience. Conformity as defined by Krech et al. (1962) in their research on the dimensions of social interactive behaviour, is also related to the trait dimension thing-oriented and self-willed versus social and compliant. They found that some people are more resistant to group pressures and demands (the hard-core independents and the deviants) than are others (the easy conformists). Their research offers strong support for the proposition that conformity tendencies are significantly related to enduring personality factors in the individual. The relevance for our model becomes especially clear where they define conformity as a 'trait of the person' as opposed to conformity as a `trait of the situation' (or social role dimension in our words). :. . . conformity might be thought of as a 'trait of the situation'. [but] There are also marked individual differences in general readiness to conform, over a wide variety of situations. These differences . . ., reflect conformity as a 'trait of the person'. This distinction between conformity as reflecting the conformity-inducing properties of a situation and as reflecting the conforming propensity of a person should be kept well in mind. Much of the controversy and misunderstanding about the facts and theories of conformity stems from a confusion of these two aspects of conformity. (Krech et at, 1962) [[Image:Extraversion and sensation seeking dimensions.png|framed|none|'''Fig. 4.4.''' Feij's dimensions 'extraversion' and 'sensation seeking', the balance between them – our dimension adaptive – and their relation with 'general activity level'.]] Of particular interest is the existence of a similar dimension in Factoranalytic Personality Trait Research. Feij (1978) compares the trait models of Heymann (1932), Eysenck (1953), Zuckerman (1974), Strelau (1974a, b), Buss, Plomin and Willerman (1973), and Buss and Plomin (1975), amongst others. Although these authors often use different classes of subjects and prefer different final rotations of their resulting factorial models, some of their dimensions appear closely related to our dimension self-willed and individualistic and thing-oriented and explorative versus compliant and social (Fig. 4.4). For instance, a high score on Zuckerman's (1974) and Feij's (1978; Feij et at, 1979, 1981) trait dimension of sensation seeking indicates a strong need for change, exploration and new experiences, a tendency towards independence of other people and an anti-authoritarian attitude, while low sensation seeking implies a tendency to comply with conventional values and rules. Feij (1978) stresses that extreme sensation seekers may on the one hand be antisocial, drop-out delinquents, but may on the other hand be unconventional but fully accepted creative innovators. This is in agreement with what was postulated above, namely that highly self-willed individuals tend to become either drop-outs (omega-role) or accepted innovators in the focus of attention (alpha-role), and that individuals with a low self-will tend to assume beta-roles compliantly. Buss and Plomin's (1975) trait dimension sociability, indicates a strong need to be together with others, a high responsiveness toward others and a predilection for social interaction above non-social reinforcers (Feij, 1978). In Cattell's sixteen-personality-factor set, the dimension labelled as `liberalism' (Qj) is supposed to measure an underlying tendency toward nonconformity and independence versus a need for affiliation (Cattell, Eber and Tatsuoko, 1970; Karson and O'Dell, 1976; McClain, 1978). At least three other dimensions from his 16PF battery also relate to concepts discussed here, namely Cattell's higher order factor IV, indicating subduedness versus independence, the factor assertiveness (E), indicating cautious humbleness versus abrasive assertiveness, and the factor superego (G), indicating conscientiousness versus expedience (Kirton and de Ciantis, 1986; Kirton, 1987b). In most other factoranalytic classification systems one or more dimensions may be discerned which are related to our concept of self-willed and thing-oriented versus compliant and social. Moreover, the empirical work of inter alia Goldsmith (1984, 1986, 1989; see also Kirton, 1987b, 1989) shows that the concepts emerging in all these factoranalytic dimensions from the various authors on personality are indeed statistically correlated, while forming a coherent web of conceptually intertwined behavioural characteristics. == Genetics == {{level|3}} The above mentioned data from factoranalytic personality research are the more relevant because various writers point out that a genetic basis of these dimensions has repeatedly been firmly established (Eysenck, 1967; Vandenberg, 1967; Buss et al., 1973; Buss and Plomin, 1975; Feij, 1978; Claridge, Canter and Hume, 1973; Eaves and Eysenck, 1975; Wilson, 1975a; Plomin and Rowe, 1977, 1979). The empirical findings of Kirton (1976, 1978a, 1987c) and Ettlie and O'Keefe (1982) are also in line with the notion of a biological basis. They report that differences in innovativeness versus adaptiveness are not significantly related to IQ, to level of education, or to previous experiences, but are apparently of a more basic (personality-trait) nature (Kirton, 1978a, 1987b, 1989; Kirton and De Ciantis, 1986). In this respect innovativeness, indicating the type of creativity differs from instruments which measure the level of creativity (Kirton, 1978a; Torrance and Horng, 1980). In section 4.2 it was pointed out that in socially living mammals at least two sets of basic urges have to be postulated, which, independently from one another, vary over individuals, thus producing inter alia the adaptor/ innovator differences. The first set contains drives for social contact and interaction, leading to gregarious types of behaviour; the second set contains the drives for thing-oriented behaviour. From recent neuroanatomical and endocrinological research it appears that there is probably a strong link between these two distinct sets of drives on the one hand, and specific neuro-endocrine systems on the other. Cloninger (1986, 1987) presented a biosocial theory of personality, based on a synthesis of information from family studies, studies of personality structure, as well as neuropharmacologic and neuroanatomical studies of behavioural conditioning and learning in man and other animals. He describes three dimensions of personality that are genetically independent, two of which, the novelty seeking dimension and the reward dependence dimension, relate to the two distinct sets of basic drives mentioned above. One of his dimensions of personality trait differences is principally ruled by the monoamine neuromodulator dopamine. This system determines the heritable tendency towards intense exhilaration and excitement, leading to frequent exploratory activity (novelty seeking) and avoidance of monotony. Individuals high on this dimension are generally also characterized as impulsive, quick-tempered and disorderly. They tend to neglect details and are quickly distracted or bored. They are also easily provoked to prepare for fight or flight. The other dimension is principally ruled by the monoamine neuromodulator norepinephrine. This system determines the heritable tendency to respond intensely to signals of social reward and approval, sentiment and succour. Individuals high on this dimension are generally characterized as eager to help and please others, persistent, industrious, warmly sympathetic, sentimental, and sensitive to social cues, praise and personal succour, but also able to delay gratification with the expectation of eventually being – socially –rewarded. According to Cloninger, a person high on novelty seeking (the dopamine system) and low on reward dependence (the norepinephrine system) is characterized as: seeking thrilling adventures and exploration; disorderly and unpredictable; intolerant of structure and monotony, regardless of the consequences; frequently trying to break rules and to introduce change; quick tempered and strongly engaged with new ideas and activities; socially detached; independent nonconformist; content to be alone; minimal ambition and motivation to please others; insensitive to social cues and pressures. Conversely, a person low on novelty seeking (dopamine) and high on reward dependence (norepinephrine) is characterized as: dependent on emotional support and intimacy with others; sensitive to social cues and responsive to social pressure; sentimental; crying easily; rigid; orderly and well organized; trying to impose stable structure and consistent routine; rarely becoming angry or excited; an analytic decision maker who always requires detailed analysis of complete information; slow to form and change interests and social attachments. The striking similarity of this polarity with descriptions of Kirton's innovator vs. adaptor dimension is obvious. In summary, the available data, including data from neuro-endocrinological research, support the view that a biologically based trait dimension thing-oriented, explorative versus social or, in different terms, self-willed versus compliant is indeed conspicuously present, and does have genetic roots. == Selection within human social structures == {{level|3}} The first three assumptions made at the beginning of this chapter apparently find ample support in ethological and psychological literature. Therefore, in any class of social (group) systems in which there are clear differences between members and non-members (prerequisite 4), cyclic changes should occur in the sense that each separate social group or structure only has a limited life-span, which is inversely proportional to the effectiveness of the selection pressure within the (group) structure in favour of compliance. The life cycles are then separated by turn-over catastrophes which go by various names, depending on the level of organization: territorial conquest; closedown; discontinuance; bankruptcy; revolution; subjugation; extermination; etc. In the literature on animal ecology and population dynamics, the research data on population explosions and emigration waves, at more or less regular time intervals, are renowned (for example, Christian, 1970, on various species of lemmings, mice and voles). Whereas Christian points to the importance for evolution of these periodic changes in density and migration activity, the proximal causation of these conspicuous phenomena has up to this moment not been explained satisfactorily. It shall be clear that the present model constitutes, among other things, an attempt to fill this gap. That selection forces do indeed operate within social groups against noncompliant, non-adapted individuals and other deviants, has experimentally been shown in various social mammals and birds (Neumann, 1981), in nonhuman primates (Kling and Steklis, 1976) and also in man (Schachter, 1951; Scherer, Abeles and Fischer, 1975; see van der Dennen, 1987, pp. 28 ff. and Flohr, 1987, pp. 200-2, for a discussion). In the psychological literature we can also find many comments referring to the relevance of the discussed selection processes for the way our human society is run,<ref>(See, apart from the authors quoted here, also e.g., Snow, 1961; Etzioni, 1964; Weick, 1969; and Tiger, Chapter 5).</ref> including data on the personality dimensions these selection processes operate upon. White and Lippitt (1960) and Scheflen and Scheflen (1972) give detailed behavioural descriptions of the process of creating chronic scapegoats as a fundamental process in the functioning of human social groups. They describe the physical as well as the cognitive and communicative aspects of the processes that lead either to getting stuck in a superdependent immobilized scapegoat-role or to becoming outcast (co-type). In their opinion there is a conspicuous contrast between, on the one hand, chronic superdependent immobilized persons who tend to neuroticism by accepting guilt and assuming the scapegoat role and thus getting stuck in cumulating 'double-binds' (Laing, 1967, 1970; Watzlawick and Fish, 1973), and on the other hand anti-social types who tend to deny guilt, generally refuse to be immobilized in a scapegoat role and tend to stay socially mobile, although in peripheral social roles. This is indeed what would be expected from our theory. Parallel to what de Waal (1975) suggests in the case of Java monkeys, Scheflen and Scheflen (1972) explain how in their opinion every human social group or society generates automatically its own neurotic scapegoats, deviates and outcasts as a necessary by-product of continuous consolidation and reaffirmation of internal (cognitive) values and social order. Such marginal social roles serve for the society in question as a necessary external frame against which the internal social values and role criteria may be projected and by which the `shoulds' and 'should nots' for all its members are continuously exemplified (Erikson, 1966). Milgram's (1974) famous experiments in which he asked subjects to administer heavy and supposedly life endangering electric shocks to stooges `for the sake of scientific progress', are also enlightening in this respect. According to Milgram, this general readiness to obey and even to torture fellow men, if urged and backed up by the authority of common opinion.... :... is the psychological mechanism that links individual action to political purpose. It is the dispositional cement that binds men to systems of authority. Facts of recent history and observation in daily life suggest that for many people obedience may be a deeply ingrained behaviour tendency, indeed, a prepotent impulse overriding training in ethics, sympathy, and moral conduct. This dependence of strongly repressive systems on a strong and dependable compliance of its employees and agents, explains what is often considered a paradox in the literature on holocausts. What is, for example, surprising is that the people who in 'das Dritte Reich' were in charge of the extermination machinery, quite generally appeared to be extremely docile, middle-class, adapted, morally rigid and reliable house-fathers and exemplary husbands, with an aversion to adventure and violence, and who more often than not were friendly and kind to children and pets in their daily social interactions, with an overtone of sentimentality. As shall be clear from the present theory, this is indeed the only type of person – the highly compliant, non-innovative, non-self-willed adaptor – that can be relied upon to carry through orders ('Befehl ist Befehl!') in situations where obedience strongly conflicts with morals and ethics. Under such extreme circumstances the selection pressure on personality characteristics, therefore, is extreme also, the not-socompliant individuals trying to avoid such ghastly agentic responsibilities. As Koestler (1967, in van der Dennen, 1987) eloquently stated: :It is not the murderers, the criminals, the delinquents and the wildly nonconformists who have embarked on the really significant rampages of killing, torture and mayhem. Rather it is the conformist, virtuous citizens, acting in the name of righteous causes and intensely held beliefs who throughout history have perpetrated the fiery holocausts of war, the religious persecutions, the sacks of cities, the wholesale rape of women, the dismemberment of the old and the young and the other unspeakable horrors ... The crimes of violence committed for selfish, personal motives are historically insignificant compared to those committed ad majorem gloriam Dei, out of a self-sacrificing devotion to flag, a leader, a religious faith, or a political conviction. Milgram (1974) labels this compliant, subordinate style of functioning the agentic mode, which expresses that somebody in that mode functions as the agent of some (personal or impersonal) authority. He points out that individuals tend to function in any one situation in either this mode or in its opposite, the autonomous mode. Milgram explains that the readiness to shift from the agentic mode into the autonomous mode in certain conflict situations differs considerably between adults, that people differ in the amount of time they spend in either mode, and that there is a complex personality basis to obedience and disobedience. These differences between individuals in their tendencies either to comply with social standards most of the time, or to act autonomously and independently most of the time, are also of crucial importance for the way in which bureaucratic structures and other social institutions are run (Kirton, 1978b, 1987a): :... the 'adaptor' personality ... who can be relied upon to carry out a thorough, disciplined search for ways to eliminate problems by 'doing things better' with a minimum of risk and a maximum of continuity and stability ... [whereas] ... innovative change ... leads to increased risk and less conformity to rules and accepted work patterns (Bright, 1964), and for this reason it rarely occurs in institutions on a large scale ... (Kirton, 1978b, p. 611) :It is said that organisations in general (Whyte, 1957; Bakke, 1965; Weber, 1948 (published in 1970); Mulkay, 1972) and especially organisations which are large in size and budget (Veblen, 1928; Swatez, 1970) have a tendency to encourage bureaucracy and adaptation in order to minimise risk. Weber (1948), Merton (1957) and Parsons (1951) wrote that the aims of a bureaucratic structure are precision, reliability, and efficiency. The bureaucratic structure in its nature exerts constant pressure on officials to be methodical, prudent, and disciplined, resulting in an unusual degree of individual conformity in that situation. (Kirton, 1987a) Therefore institutions tend to become more adaptor-oriented as time goes on because of selection, training and promoting policies which are in line with those aims (Drucker, 1969; Schumacher, 1975, p. 243). A negative selection pressure is continuously exerted against innovators.<ref>A similar process of selective isolation was seen by Rogers (1959), and reported in his account of the 'creative loner'.</ref> Even when an innovator finds badly needed novel solutions for pressing problems, it will often fail to render him social approval, inter alia because of inherent (sometimes insurmountable) communication problems with his more adaption-oriented colleagues. Instead of winning social approval when coming up with such solutions, the innovator finds that tolerance for his innovative style of approach is at its lowest ebb when his adaptor-type colleagues feel under pressure from the need for quick and radical change (Kirton, 1987b). Even when the novel solutions in question are accepted, it does not generally lead to a suspension of the above discussed selective forces. In an empirical study to investigate the ways by which ideas leading to radical changes in some companies were developed and implemented, Kirton (1987a) found that: :There was a marked tendency for the majority of ideas which encountered opposition and delays to have been put forward by managers who were themselves on the fringe, or were even unacceptable to the 'establishment' group. This negativism occurred not only before, but after the ideas had not only become accepted, but had even been rated as highly successful. At the same time other managers putting forward the more palatable (i.e., conventional) ideas were themselves not only initially acceptable, but remained so even if their ideas were later rejected or failed. It can thus be seen how, much unlike the fate of innovators, failure of ideas is less damaging to the adaptor, since any erroneous assumptions upon which the ideas were based were also shared with colleagues and other influential people (Kirton, 1984). As a consequence of these differences in selective pressure, ageing institutions suffer from the disadvantages of not having innovator type creative output available in times of change when policy and methods are required to change as well. Such necessary changes, therefore, are often brought about only when a precipitating event, or a crisis, occurs when at last the adaptor needs, and so collaborates with, the innovator (Kirton, 1961). == Ossification == {{level|3}} Science is an outstanding example of a branch where these considerations about systematic intra-group selection pressures seem relevant. The very goal of scientific research is to find even better conceptual and instrumental frameworks, but, as Kuhn (1970) points out, changing the paradigms which are hitherto accepted without question by an entire scientific community requires a breakdown of previously accepted rules. Such breakdowns are the very process of scientific revolution and this revolutionary process is fundamental to scientific advance; thus, as a social institution, science stands out as an extraordinary oddity (Tiger, 1985). The consolidation and preservation of group cohesion and established rules are not its primary goal, but the creative expansion of conceptual boundaries. In scientific institutions, the innovator type input is not only needed at the rare times of inevitable change, but very regularly, since precipitating events or conceptual crises are the very thing that scientific efforts are supposed to be aimed at. When ageing institutions become too adaptor- and compliance-oriented by the resulting unconscious bias in selection and in promotion policies, it may not be initially very disastrous in the case of factories or bureaucratic units. For as long as no drastic external challenges turn up, they can just go on producing their output as they formerly used to do with excellent results. But in research units it is eventually disastrous if the cognitive climate becomes more and more adaptor-oriented. The innovator type creative output, consisting of (often disquieting) conceptual challenges and explorations of the unknown and unthought, will in that case gradually be replaced by compliant adaptor type output consisting of puzzle-solving and quasi-discoveries without any conceptual threats. This means that scientific units finally reach an efficiency close to zero when becoming more adaptor-oriented with increasing age. After an initially fruitful phase of consolidation, the prevailing paradigms will become rigid and dogmatic. It is clear moreover, that in a government-protected scientific community competition does not operate freely. This may postpone organization—structural turn-over catastrophes considerably, and thus the timely rejuvenation science continually needs. As a result, . . . 'The Church of Reason [science] like all [ageing] institutions, is based not on individual strength, but on individual weakness. What's really demanded is inability. Then you are considered teachable: a truly able person is always a threat' (Pirsig, 1974). This description of the process of ossification also fits perfectly for most of the established and institutional religions, as has been recognized by many philosophers and other scientists. Kierkegaard for instance, heavily criticized the organized churches, pointing out that in our society authentic existential religiosity nowadays has two great enemies: philosophers indulging in mere abstract speculations of a strict and limited rationality on the one hand, and church-going fundamentalists and uncritical believers on the other. Kierkegaard believed that the Church has degenerated into a bunch of unthinking fanatics, or even worse, a flock of passionless and anemic herd-mentalities, who dutifully walk into church for no other reason than that was the direction most others were walking. He resented that the church does not have the decency to recognize that whatever its teaching of watered-down, polite moral humanism has become, it isn't Christianity any more (Wilber, 1983). Christianity may have been founded for the enlightenment of mankind, as an attempt to raise people to a higher level of autonomy and socio-psychic health, and for overcoming the frequent social tendency towards hateful and revengeful cultivation of deviants, scapegoats and other presumed enemies by institutionalized practices of denunciation and mobbing (Coser, 1956, 1978; Girard, 1982; Hoffschulte, 1986). But, like any other social institution, the Church has gradually deteriorated into a system, preoccupied with its own propagation as a system, and thus – contrary to its original goals – with power and the binding-in-dependency of its members in uncritical docility (Toynbee, 1972). The Church does not invite, any more, to mysticism or to experiencing the 'void', instead it imposes 'belief in God and promotes conformity and respect for 'respectability' (Laing, 1967). Similar considerations hold for other traditional religions and belief systems. == Social-role blindness == {{level|3}} Apart from these specific ossification phenomena, many more areas in human society can be found where such effects of the selection mechanisms, as discussed in section 4.10, are manifest. Since these selection mechanisms are operative in lower social mammals as well as in man, they must be anchored quite solidly in the behavioural system. This is not surprising because this mechanism does have considerable evolutionary advantages, not only in animals, but, at least up to recent times, also in the case of man. As mentioned in section 4.4, it facilitates speciation through genetic adaptation to marginal habitats, helps in many species to overcome migratory bottlenecks, and even serves to motor the evolution of culture in the case of man. It seems plausible therefore, that if in the case of man, our superior capacity for learning plays a modifying role in these matters, then the organization of our intellectual capacities will have evolved in such a way, as to enhance the occurrence of selection cycles, rather than to thwart them. The mechanism of selection cycles and periodic turn-over catastrophes is basically powered by the involuntary forces of attraction and repulsion between individuals within social groups and structures. It must have been evolutionarily advantageous, therefore, for behavioural and cognitive `masterprogrammes' to develop, serving to prevent the newly evolved intellectual capacities from interfering with the (phylogenetically very old) involuntary biases in social interactions. This is indeed what can be found. Human beings appear to be peculiarly unable to assess objectively the quality of their own social-role behaviour and the behaviour of other people they are dealing with in the social group. There is a sort of 'social-role blindness', of specific blind spots in our cognitive capacities, safeguarding primitive, elementary tendencies of being either attracted or repulsed by other people, depending on the own and on the other's social role and position. As in the experiments with mice described in sections 4.5 and 4.6, the omega-like subordinates, the peripheral nonconforming types, are also in man most likely to be disliked by the established leaders as well as by the conforming and compliant subordinates. This is, in fact, a tautological statement, since drifting into a marginal or an outcast position ((o-type in Fig. 4.1) is just another way of saying that one is less acceptable to the in-group. As a tool for this mechanism, a considerable part of human communication consists not of transferring pure information, but of more or less involuntary emotional expressions of praise, admiration, criticism, ridicule and insults, as is shown for instance in the ethological work of Weisfeld (1980) on social-role behaviour in adolescent boys, or in the sociological investigations by Segerstrale (1986; Chapter 14) into the Wilson–Lewontin scientific debate as part of the sociobiological controversy. To a large extent the use of language serves to support or to camouflage non-verbal actions, actions for manipulating other people and for staking out and sustaining social roles (Scheflen and Scheflen, 1972; Mehrabian, 1972; Argyle, 1976a,b). In factoranalytic research on the social interactions between people, the first and by far the most conspicuous principal component is the so called evaluation of positive–negative (Good–Bad) dimension, describing to what extent one appreciates or disappreciates the rated other. In questionnaire research where elucidation of the actual social behavioural attitudes and social-role distributions is the primary goal, the raw data are, in general, firstly corrected for the positive–negative evaluation or social desirability dimension by partialling out its influence (Benjamin, 1974, p. 419). Those who rate other persons or questionnaires in general colour their judgements with appreciation or disapproval to indicate, explain and consolidate the social relations between themselves and the rated person.<ref>In the case of dominating individuals this cognitive distortion of the own and the other person's qualities is labelled by Kipnis 'the Metamorphic Effects of Power' (1976, ch. 9).</ref> The importance of this negative or positive bias in the way we think about our companions is also expressed by the fact that most behavioural attitudes and personality characteristics can be expressed in positive as well as in negative terms. We virtually have, therefore, a double set of conceptual labels for other people's actions and behavioural attitudes; a positive set and a negative set. This cumbersome and at first sight inefficient cognitive organization, in which the pure assessment of other people's behavioural qualities is blurred to a great extent by the strong involuntary bias of appreciation or disappreciation, can only be evolutionarily advantageous if it serves an essential purpose. From the above, it may be concluded that this purpose may be found in protecting the involuntary attraction and repulsion reflexes, which direct our social behaviour, against our intelligent faculties. Indeed, human individuals are hardly aware that the way they assess the other person's qualities is to a large extent coloured by their positive or negative feelings towards that other person, resulting from the involuntary forces of social attraction and repulsion in operation. People do not realize that their, say negative, labelling of (the behaviour of) an important other can easily be changed into its positive counterpart by simply regarding the same behaviour from the point of view of a supporter, and vice versa. They tend instead to attach a sense of permanence and absoluteness to their (categorically negative or positive) judgement, and in particular they are not aware of the relativity of the judgement in terms of its dependence on the mutual social positions of the rater and the ratee. In summary, the postulated blind spots and no entry signs in our intellectual faculties apparently do indeed exist. Despite our vaunted intellects and our protestations of rational and scientific know-how, we humans show a disturbing tendency to reserve our intellectual powers strictly for certain specific tasks. In other specific areas of functioning, like the mechanisms of social attraction and repulsion mentioned above, we tend to rely on involuntary biases while allowing the intellectual faculties to be effectively blocked. Therefore, ironically and paradoxically, this specific stupidness, this social-role blindness in us humans, should probably be regarded as a special adaptation to our great cleverness. In daily life, the result of these cognitive biases is that, in many instances, we cannot help but foster, involuntarily, a lower esteem for other persons if they happen to be less 'in-crowd' than ourselves. In more extreme cases, we cannot help tending to join others in mobbing or in scapegoating. We tend to justify the actions taken through our (biased) evaluations of the outcast's or scapegoat's qualities, attitudes and behaviour (unless we incidentally happen to be one of the outcast's supporters). Being in the agentic or systemic (Milgram, 1974) or compliant (Apter and Smith, 1976, 1985) motivational mode while dealing with a victim, we involuntarily tend to see the person in question to a larger or lesser extent as inferior, or even repulsive, detestable or evil. This cognitive distortion can in fact be considered the behavioural basis of torture. Without this psychological effect, the role of torturer would be impossible (Amnesty International, 1973), various built-in inhibitions on aggression would then in most cases take precedence. What happened in the extermination camps of 'das Dritte Reich' is an extreme – though unfortunately not very rare – type of event, exemplifying what this human faculty for selective blindness may facilitate. The Nazis called their victims 'Untermenschen', but likewise, we ourselves have in turn a strong tendency to label the people who were in charge of the Nazi extermination projects as incorporations of evil, as devils incarnate. As was stressed in section 4.10 however, they were, if they can be characterized at all, rather the opposite, or they would not have been fit for a task where ethics and personal norms would most likely conflict with obedience. Like the spectator-subjects in Milgram's experiments, we cannot imagine ourselves doing the same in similar circumstances, but the facts are that most of those Nazis were not beasts, but very quiet middle-class, social-oriented adaptors, and we are no saints, but ordinary people, who in similar circumstances are rather likely to do similar sorts of things. The difficulty we have with acknowledging that those Nazi employees were not so very different from ourselves, and the other way around, exemplifies the all overruling strength of this type of social-role blindness within ourselves. All in all, it seems that we cannot help but hate our (self-created) enemies and that we cannot help but love primarily just those individuals which the described selection-cycle mechanism urges us to appreciate. The effects of this same blinding mechanism can also be recognized in less extreme contexts, like for example, the social interactions between scientists or between managers. The contribution by Segerstrale gives us a very illustrative and piquant example of how this mechanism works out in the case of scientific colleagues with strikingly different cognitive styles. In her account of Wilson's and Lewontin's respective contributions to the sociobiology debate, Lewontin plays the part of the thorough and careful adaptor whereas Wilson plays the part of the creative, speculative and daring innovator, and the subsequent mutual denunciation of each others scientific qualities is prototypical. Thus, the turn-over catastrophes keep happening unhampered, in the case of man just disguised in cognitive ornaments which we, erringly, take for true. Whenever a turn-over catastrophe is at hand, there is still another type of social-role blindness in operation which ties in with the cognitive biases discussed above. It is discussed in more detail in the contribution by Tiger (see also e. g., Janis' book Group-think, 1982; Tiger, 1985). According to Tiger the evolution of the human intellect must of necessity have been accompanied by a simultaneous development of a set of awareness blocks, safeguarding groupthink tendencies and safeguarding the unhampered compliance with social habits and prejudices. He argues that the human intellect has primarily evolved as a tool for enhancing coordinated social action, not for independence and for critically observing the social processes one is involved in. Reason was designed to improve consent with the overriding purposes of kinship, not to challenge them. The effect of these particular blocks is that eventual intelligent attempts by any non-conforming individuals, trying to stop the precipitating catastrophe from happening, are likely to be futile. In most persons involved, this particular limitation to the use of intellectual faculties will overrule any capacity to rationally assess the personal risks and general consequences of the turn-over catastrophe at hand, and that will impel them to join compliantly in concerted mobbing or warring actions, not unlike lower social mammals. It is clear from the aforesaid that the former type of social-role blindness ties in here seamlessly. The concerted actions of animosity towards scapegoats, outcasts or enemies are of course greatly facilitated by the involuntary and uncritical denouncement of the supposed opponent's qualities. And at higher levels of organization, for example political states, the degrees of blindness of the collective are even more disquieting, not only with respect to the systematic and collective denunciation of supposed enemies, but also with respect to what are desirable and effective political courses of action (Janis, 1982), in particular as soon as the ideals and goals chosen become fixed and rigid (Talmon, 1980). As Popper says: 'The attempt to make Heaven on earth invariably produces hell'. The most extensive, quixotic and disgusting violence is justified with the invocation of an Utopian ideology, a paradisaic myth, a superiority doctrine, an eschatological or millenarian ideal state, or other highly abstract political/ethical categories, metaphysical values, and quasi-metaphysical mental monstrosities: national security; raison d'Etat; freedom; democracy; God; Volk und Heimat; Blut und Boden; peace; progress; empire; historical imperative; sacred order; natural necessity; divine will; and so on and so forth (van der Dennen, 1987). In view of their tasks, the stream of information governments take in is even more biased and unbalanced, and their tools are even less effective, than they are in the case of individuals (Deutsch and Senghaas, 1971). This unbalance has become particularly precarious under the present 21st century conditions. <center><big>Discussion</big></center> == Nature and nurture == {{level|3}} It can be argued that, at least in the case of man, the same social structure cycles with their turn-over catastrophes might occur merely because of mechanisms on the cognitive psychological level. In that case one would not need to postulate a genetic background for these gradual shifts in social structures to occur. Indeed, as we saw above, social-role blindness and related cognitive biases are a very powerful influence in man. Moreover, we can also find a wealth of empirical and experimental data on the various constraints on learning in man, on habit forming, traditions and the transfer of cultural information, on perceptual biases like the cognitive dissonance theory, etc., all showing that our behaviour is organized in such a way that a great inertia of ideas, concepts and habits is safeguarded in spite of our capacity to keep learning. These data would suggest that enough mechanisms, at a purely cognitive and cultural level, can be traced as to make social-structural cycles likely to occur. Admittedly, the basic requirement for the postulated selection cycles to occur is not so much that there is a genetic basis to it, but rather that individuals, once their phenotypes in these areas of functioning have established themselves, can not be reshaped into their opposites. As we saw above, this inflexibility aspect, irrespective of its causes, has been firmly established by psychological research. However, the evidence for genetic influence cannot be neglected. These mechanisms therefore are most probably implemented on the genetic as well as on the learning level. It goes without saying that in man, the learning animal par excellence, the influence of learning will be relatively important in that case. Another, related, critique is the argument that where a multi-gene basis of these differences should be expected, a strong enough selection pressure and a quick selection response are difficult to imagine. However, no high mortality, low fecundity or whatever on the part of the declining morph needs to be assumed at all. Basic to the model rather is the existence of differences between incrowd- and outcast-individuals. No physical elimination whatsoever needs to be assumed to let the cycles run. The only thing which needs to be postulated is that the in-group/out-group and the incrowd/outcast distribution of social roles and positions is subject to reshuffling; it depends on the level of organization we are talking about whether the postulate of a genetic effect needs to be included in a description of the cycles or not. In man this will, in my view, probably only be indispensable in the case of very longterm cycles on a very large scale. On most levels of human social structures the individuals selected against just need to be shifted into outgroup or outcast positions, relative to the unit(s) of organization in question, for the selection process to proceed. The very presence of the removed individuals in the organizational periphery then increases the likelihood of a turn-over catastrophe. == Perspective == {{level|3}} As was pointed out above, the duration of social-structural cycles is predicted to be roughly inversely proportional to speed and intensity of selection for the trait under discussion. In an industrial company the intensity of selection and the take-on/dismissal percentages are much higher than for example, the selection intensity and the immigration/emigration percentages in the much larger units of political states. Therefore the average cycle periods are likely to vary from a few decades in companies (for illustrative material refer to e.g., Schumpeter, 1939; Kirton, 1961, 1976) or in political parties (e.g., Ostrogorski, 1982), to a few centuries in political states (e.g., Olson, 1982), or even to one or two millennia in whole civilizations (refer to e.g., Spengler, 1918; Toynbee, 1972;<ref>Toynbee disagrees with what he calls Spengler's 'determinism'. Though he (Toynbee) gives abundant material to illustrate the point made here, he emphasizes that one cannot convincingly speak of some or other predetermined and fixed life span of societies. The present theory would support Spengler's view. But it would also give room for something that Toynbee stresses, namely that, as far as their life span and their spin-off in terms of disseminative effect towards other societies is concerned, societies differ greatly from one another. According to the present theory, it very much depends on incidental environmental factors how effective selective emigration can be, and how strong the differential propagation within the structures themselves. And it depends on the actual presence of competing structures how quickly the effects of the internal selection processes will precipitate an eventual turn-over catastrophe.</ref> Darlington, 1969; Davis, 1974). The small-scale turn-over cycles with a relatively stronger and quicker selection effect are superimposed, therefore, on the larger-scale turn-over cycles with a longer life span. Thus, individuals may be outcasts in terms of some small-scale social structure while at the same time being totally accepted incrowd members in terms of some larger-scale social structure. The small-scale cycles may be seen as the ripples on the surface of the long range waves of the large-scale cycles, What happens with a person at the social-role level of a sports club is not necessarily parallel to what happens to him at home or at the level of the village community, and what happens to a person at the level of a company does not at all need to be parallel to what happens to him on the level of the political state. In fact, being an incrowd group member on some small-scale level of organization may be vital for a person to keep functioning properly in case of struggling with an outcast position on a larger-scale level of organization. If it were possible to manipulate these – hitherto involuntary – selection mechanisms, it would be possible to stop or to speed up population cycles at will. This might for instance be relevant for personnel management in industrial companies or for measures at the level of political nations. The latter might be of particular significance in our nuclear age, since population cycles at this broad level tend to be worked out and consolidated by means of war and other economic strangling techniques. Mankind as a whole, up until now, has been able to afford this luxury of genocidal praxis, but war and economic asphyxia, nowadays, threatens to come close to total nuclear destruction. It might be worthwhile, therefore, to take the pressure off the dynamic population cycles kettle and to search for a way to replace or short-circuit nature's hitherto applied selection tricks with which it powered our evolution and our spatial spreading. It seems about time to substitute alternative and less dangerous mechanisms for it. It will be clear however from section 4.12 that such is easier said than done. The mechanisms in question apparently are anchored in our behavioural system quite solidly. Many authors are however of the opinion that this is no reason to sit down in utter despair. Girard (1982) for instance, points out that in some respects social-role blindness is gradually losing its grip on our behaviour. He calls attention to the exemplary function of Christianity. On the one hand, Christianity has its roots in ancient Jewish traditions, suffused with admonitions towards and justifications of revenge and genocide (see e.g., Deuteronomy, 20, 17, 7, 12; Joshua, 1-3, 6, 8, 10; Kings, 3, 22, 23; Isaiah, 61). The Old Testament can in fact serve as a school example of militant- ethnocentric delusions of racial superiority. On the other hand, a novel phenomenon has emerged from the Jewish tradition, and even more so in Christianity, which is the attempt to replace organized spite, hate and revenge by love and compassion. This scheme may not have been completely successful as yet – were it only for the systematically organized violent blindness in and through the Christian religious organizations themselves –but it certainly has had some effect in overcoming the all-out violent tendencies towards deviants and scapegoats. Christ's example and admonitions like 'love your enemies', and the attempts to break the old tradition of revenge and the resulting vicious spirals of violence and counter-violence, counteract the ordinary selective forces within social groups we have discussed here. They put the primordial tradition upside down by denying the guilt of the victims and scapegoats and by putting the blame on the persecuting society. They de-sanctionize social violence; but what is most important, this tradition, though not reversing our behaviour instantaneously, has opened our awareness to what is actually going on at the social-cognitive level. It has opened our awareness for the fact that we do not like to give up our scapegoats, that we are attached to them and find it utterly difficult to refrain from denouncing and persecuting them (Girard, 1982). It constitutes therefore a massive attack on certain blind spots, on aspects of social-role blindness that, since aeons, have been the cornerstone of the cyclic selection processes themselves. That is surely not the only glimmer of hope that may be discerned. The involuntary selection forces discussed are under attack from more sides. On the level of personnel management Kirton's work – as described in the previous paragraphs – may also be interpreted as an attempt to extend our awareness beyond its age-old confines into the realm of the dynamics of social attraction and repulsion, and what is more, his approach provides practical scientific tools to undercut the involuntary selection effects, tools that are likely to be utilized more and more because of their profitable effects on the output of the social structures (industrial companies) involved. It is my hope that this chapter may also add to our understanding of the mechanisms underlying periodic turn-over catastrophes. Admittedly, the present theory, in part, is still tentative, but its relevance for our very existence might urge us to search for further experimental evidence against or in favour of its basic assumptions. == Notes == <references /> == Bibliography == Abrams,S., Neubauer,P.B.(1976): "Object Orientedness: The Person or the Thing", The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 45(1), pp.73-99. Amnesty International(1973): "Report on Torture", London. Apter,M.J., Smith,K.C.P.(1976): "Negativism in Adolescence", The Counsellor, 23/24, pp. 25-30. Apter,M.J., Smith,K.C.P.(1985): "Experiencing Personal Relationships", in M.J.Apter, D.Fontana <Jc S.Murgatroyd (eds.): "Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments", Cardiff, U.K.: University College Cardiff Press, pp.161-178. Apter,M.J., Fontana,D. 6c Murgatroyd,S. (eds.)(1985): "Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments", Cardiff, U.K.: University College Cardiff Press. Argyle,M.(1976a): "Bodily Communication", London: Methuen. Argyle,M.(1976b): "Personality and Social Behaviour", in R. Harre (ed.): "Personality", Oxford: Blackwell, pp. 145-188. Ausubel,D.P.(1952): "Ego Maturation and the Personality Disorders", New York: Grune & Stratton. Bakke,E.W.(1965): "Concept of the social organisation", in M.Haire (ed.): "Modern Organization Theory", New York: Wiley. Bales,R.F.(1953): "Interaction Process Analysis", Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley. Barash,D.P.(1977): "Sociobiology and Behaviour", New York: Elsevier. Benjamin,L.Smith-(1974): "Structural Analysis of Social Behavior", Psychological Review, 81, pp. 392-425. Bertram,B.C.R.(1975): "The social system of lions", Scientific American, May 1975, 232(5). Bertrand,M.(1969): "Behavioural Repertoire of the Stumptail Macaque, Macaca speciosa", Basel: S.Karger AG. Bright,J.R.(1964): "Research, Development and Technological Innovation", Homewood, 111.: Irwen. Buss,A.H., Plomin,R., Willerman,L.(1973): "The inheritance of temperaments", Journal of Personality, 41, pp.513-552. Buss,A.H., Plomin,R.A.(1975): "A Temperament Theory of Personality Development", New York: Wiley. Calhoun,J.B.(1974): "The Universal City of Ideas", presentation at a conference on "The Exploding Cities", held at Worcester College and the Taylor Institution, Oxford, 1-6 April 1974, Conference Transcripts, pp.301-306. Cattell,R.B., Eber,H.W., Tatsuoka,M.M.(I970): "Handbook for the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire", Champaign: Institute for Personality and Ability Testing. Chance,M.R.A., Jolly,C. (1970): "Social groups of monkeys, apes and men", London: Cape. Christian,J,J,(1970): "Social Subordination, Population Density, and Mammalian Evolution", Science, 168, pp.84-90. Claridge,G.A., Canter,S.> Hume,W.J.(1973): "Personality Differences and Biological Variations: A Study of Twins", New York: Pergamon Press. Cloninger,C.R.(1986): "A Unified Biosocial Theory of Personality and its Role in the Development of Anxiety States", Psychiatric Development, 3, pp. 167-226. Cloninger,C.R.(1987): "A Systematic Method for Clinical Description and Classification of Personality Variants", Archives of General Psychiatry, 44, pp.573-588. Cloninger,C.R.(in press): "Personality and Psychopathology: A Unified Biosocial Theory", New York: Oxford University Press. Coser,L.A.(1956): "The Functions of Social Conflict", New York: Free Press. Coser,L.A.(1978): "Gulzige Instituties: Patronen van Absolute Toewijding", Deventer: van Loghum Slaterus, translation of "Greedy Institutions", 1974. Darlington,C.D.(1969): "The Evolution of Man and Society", London: Allen & Unwin. Darlington,Jr.,P.J.(1957): "Zoogeography: The Geographical Distribution of Animals", New York: Wiley. Davis,K.(1974): "The Migrations of Human Populations", Scientific American, 231(3), pp.93-105. De Ciantis,S.M.(1987): "Management Style and Thinking Style" in W.J. Reddin (ed.): "Effective Management", New Delhi: McGraw-Hill. van der Dennen,J.M.G.(1987): "Ethnocentrism & Ingroup-Outgroup Differentiation; A Review and Interpretation of the Literature", in V. Reynolds, I. Vine & V. Falger (eds.): "The Sociobiology of Ethnocentrism", London: Croom-Helm, pp. 1-47. Deutsch,K.W., Senghaas,D.(1971): "Die bruchige Vernunft von Staaten", in D. Senghaas (ed.): "Kritische Friedensforschung", Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, pp.105-163. Drucker,P.F.(1969): "Management's New Role", Harvard Business Review, 47, pp.49-54. Eaves,L., Eysenck,H.J.(1975): "The Nature of Extraversion: A Genetical Analysis", Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 32, pp. 102-112. Eisenberg,J.F., Muckenhirn,N.A., Rudran,R.(1972): "The relation between ecology and social structure in primates", Science, 176, pp.863-874. Erikson,K.(1966): "Wayward puritans: A study in the sociology of deviance", New York: Wiley. Ettlie,J.E., 0'Keefe,R.D.(1982): "Innovative Attitudes, Values and Intentions in Organizations", Journal of Management Studies, 19, pp. 163-182. Etzioni,A.(1964): "Modern organizations", Foundation of Modern Sociology series, A.Inkeles (ed.), New York: Prentice-Hall. Eysenck,H.J.(1953): "The Structure of Human Personality", London: Methuen. Eysenck,H.J.(1967): "The Biological Basis of Personality", Springfield: Thomas. Ewer,R.F.(1971): "The Biology and Behaviour of a Free-Living Population of Black Rats (Rattus rattus)", Animal Behaviour Monographs, Vol.Part 3, pp. 127-174. Feij,J.A.(1978): "Temperament: Onderzoek naar de Betekenis van Extraversie, Emotionaliteit, Impulsiviteit en Spanningsbehoefte", Amsterdam: Academic Press. Feij,J.A., Orlebeke,J.F., Gazendam,A., Van Zuilen,R.(1979,1981): "Sensation Seeking: Measurement and Psychophysiological Correlates", paper presented at the International Conference on Temperament, Need for Stimulation and Activity, Grzegorzewice, Poland, Sept. 1979; and in J.Strelau, F.H.Farley, A.Gale: "Biological Foundation of Personality and Behaviour", New York: Hemisphere Press, 1981. Flohr,H.(1987): "Biological Bases of Social Prejudices", ch.ll in V.Reynolds, V.Falger & I.Vine (eds.): "The Sociobiology of Ethnocentrism", London/Sydney: Croom-Helm, pp. 190- 207. Fossey,D.(1972): "Living with mountain gorrillas", in R.P. Marler (ed.); "The marvels of animal behaviour", Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, pp.209-229. Gibb,C.A.(1969): "Leadership, handbook of social psychology", Vol. 4 (G. Lindzey and E. Aranson, Eds.), Reading, Mass: Addison-Wesley, pp.205-282. Girard,R.(1982): "Le Bouc Émissaire", Paris: Bernard Grasset; translated into dutch as "De Zondebok", Kampen: Kok Agora, 1986. Goldsmith,R.E.(1984): "Personality Characteristics Associated with Adaption-Innovation", Journal of Psychology, 117, pp. 159-165. Goldsmith,R.E.(1986): "Convergent Validity of Four Innovativeness Scales", Educational and Psychological Measurement, 46, pp.81-87. Goldsmith,R.E. (1989): "Creative Style and Personality Theory", ch.2 in M.J. Kirton, 1989,a, pp.37-55. Halpin,A.W., Winer,B.J.(1957): "A Factorial Study of the Leader Behaviour Descriptions", in R.M.Stagdill & A.E.Coons (eds.): Leader Behavior: Its Description and Measurement", Bur. Bus. Res. Monogr. 88 Columbus: Ohio State University. Healey,M.C(1967): "Aggression and Self-Regulation of Population Size in Deer-mice", Ecology, 4S, pp.377-392. Heymans,G.(1932): Inleiding tot de Speciale Psychologie", Haarlem: Bohn. Hoffschulte,B.(1986): "The Scapegoattheory and Sociobiology", paper presented at the 8th meeting of the European Sociobiological Society (E.S.S.), 5-6 July 1986, Bussum, Netherlands. Hold,B.C.L.(1976): "Attention Structure and Rank Specific Behaviour in Preschool Children", in M.CR.Chance & R.R.Larsen: "The Social Structure of Attention", London: Wiley. Itani,J., Tokuda,K., Furuya,Y., Kano,K., Shin,Y.(1963): "The social construction of natural troops of Japanese monkeys in Takasakiyama", "Primates, 4(3), pp. 1-42. Janis,I.L.(1982): "Groupthink", Houghton Mifflin. Karson,S., 0'Dell,J.W.(1976): "A Guide to the Clinical Use of the 16 PF", Champaign: Institute for Personality & Ability Testing. Kipnis,D.(1976): "The Powerholders", Chicago/London: Univ. of Chicago Press. Kirton,M.J. (1961): "Management Initiative", London: Acton Society Trust. Kirton,M.J.(1976): "Adaptors and Innovators: A Description and Measure", Journal of Applied Psychology, 61(5), pp. 622-629. Kirton,M.J.(1977): "Adaptors and Innovators and Superior-Subordinate Identification", Psychological Reports, 41, pp.289-290. Kirton,M.J.(1978a): "Have Adaptors and Innovators Equal Levels of Creativity?", Psychological Reports, 42(3), pp.695-698. Kirton,M.J.(1978b): "Adaptors and Innovators in Culture Clash", Current Anthropology, 19(3), pp. 611-612. Kirton,M.J.(1984): "Adaptors and Innovators: Why New Initiatives Get Blocked", Long Range Planning, 17, pp. 137-143; reprinted in Hellriegel & Slocum - Companion to Organisational Behaviour, West Publishing and Richards M.D. - Readings in Management, South-Western Publishing Co. Kirton,M.J.(1987a); "Adaption-Innovation: Problem Solvers in Organisations", in K. Gronhaug & G. Kaufmann (eds.): "Innovation: An Interdisciplinary Perspective", Norwegian Press / Oxford University Press. Kirton,M.J.(1987b): "Adaptors and Innovators: Cognitive Style and Personality", in S.G. Isaksen (ed.): "Frontiers of Creativity Research: Beyond the Basics", Buffalo, New York: Brearly Ltd. Kirton,M.J.(1987c): Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI) - Manual, second edition, Hatfield: Occupational Research Centre (only obtainable through M.J. Kirton); Kirton,M.J.(1989a): "Adaptors and Innovators; Styles of Creativity and Problem-solving", London: Routledge. Kirton,M.J.(1989b): "A Theory of Cognitive Style", ch.l in M.J. Kirton, 1989,a, pp.1-36. Kirton,M.J. & de Ciantis,S.M.(1986): "Cognitive Style and Personality: The Kirton Adap¬tion-Innovation and Cattell's Sixteen Personality Factor Inventories", Personality and Individual Differences, 7, pp. 141-146. Koestler,A.(1967): "The Ghost in the Machine", London: Pan. Krech,D., Crutchfield,R.S., Baliachey, E.L.(1962): "Individual in Society; A Textbook of Social Psychology", NewYork,London,Toronto,etc.: McGraw-Hill. Kuhn,T.S.(1970): "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions", (second ed.), International Encyclopedia of Unified Science, 2(2), Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Laing,R.D.(l%7): "The politics of experience", Hammondworth, Penguin. Laing,R.D.(1970): "Knots", London: Tavistock. Lancaster,J.B.(1986): "Primate Social Behavior and Ostracism", Ethology and Sociobiology, 7 (3/4), pp.215-225; also edited in M.Gruter & R.D.Masters (eds.) (1986): "Ostracism: a Social and Biological Phenomenon", New York: Elsevier Science Publ. Co. Lippitt,R., White,R.K.(1958): "An experimental study of leadership and group life", in E.E. Maccoby, T.M. Newcomb, and E.L. Hartley (eds.): "Readings in social psychology" (3rd ed.), New York: Holt. McClain,E.(1978): "Feminists and Nonfeminists: Contrasting Profiles in Independence and Affiliation", Psychological Reports, 43, pp.435-441. McClain,E.(1979): article on satellizing versus non-satellizing children and the need for affiliation versus the need for independence in Brain/Mind Bulletin, 4(7), p.3. Mehrabian,A.(1972): "Nonverbal Communication", Chicago/New York: Aldine, Altherton. Merton,R.K.(1957): "Social Theory and Social Structure", Glencoe: Free Press. Milgram,S.(1974): "Obedience to Authority", London: Tavistock. Molen,P.P.v.d.(1981): "Self-will and Population Cycles; The concept of a genetically- - determined behavioural trait "Thing-oriented and Self-willed versus Social and Compliant" and its implications on the level of population dynamics", N.Z. Genetical Society News¬letter, 7, p.24. Molen,P.P.v.d.(1987): "Social Role Blindness and Selection on the Self-Will versus Compliance Trait; their Evolutionary Stability and the way they cause Cyclic Social Changes and Catastrophes", Heymans Bulletin HB-87-870-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.). Molen,P.P.v.d.(1989): "Adaption-Innovation and Changes in Social Structure: On the Anatomy of Catastrophe", chapter 7 in M.J. Kirton (ed.): "Adaptors and Innovators: Styles of Creativity and Problem Solving", London: Routledge, April 1989, ISBN: 0-415-02424-2, pp. 158-198; previous version appeared as: v.d.Molen,P.P.(1987): "Adaptor-Innovator Differences in Cognitive Style, Related Trait Differences and Cyclic Changes in Social Structures; On the Anatomy of Disaster", Heymansbulletin HB-87-834-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.), key lecture at the 10 year anniversary conference on Adaption-Innovation Theory at the Hatfield Polytechnic, England, July, 1987. Mulkay,M.S.(1972): "The Social Process of Innovation", London: Macmillan. Neumann,G.-H.(1981): "Normatives Verhalten und aggressive Aussenseitereaktionen bei gesellig lebenden Vögeln und Säugern, Opladen (BRD): Westdeutscher Verlag. Olson,M.(1982): "The Rise and Decline of Nations (Economic Growth, Stagflation, and Social Rigidities", New Haven: Yale University Press. Ostrogorski,M.(1982): "Democracy and the Organization of Political Parties", Brooklyn: Haskell House (first ed. 1902). Parsons,T.(1951): "The Social System", Glencoe: Free Press. Pirsig,R.M.(1974): "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance", London: Corgi Books (William Morrow & Cy.). Plomin,R., Rowe,D.C.(1977): "A Twin Study of Temperament in Young Children", The Journal of Psychology, 97, pp.107-113. Plomin,R., Rowe,D.C.(1979): "Genetic and Environmental Etiology of Social Behaviour in Infancy", Developmental Psychology, 15(1), pp.62-72. Poirier,F.E.(1970): "Dominance structure of the Nilgiri Langur (Presbytis johnii) of South India", Folia Primatologica, 12(3), pp. 161-186. Reddin,W.J.(1970): "Managerial Effectiveness", McGraw-Hill. Reddin,W.J.(1987): "Effective Management", New Delhi: McGraw-Hill. Reynolds,V., Luscombe,G.(1969): "Chimpanzee rank order and the function of displays", in C.R. Carpenter (edit.): "Proceedings of the Second International Congress of Primatology", Basel: Karger, pp.81-86. Rogers,C.R.(1959): "Towards a Theory of Creativity", in H.H. Anderson (ed.): "Creativity and its Cultivation", New York: Harper. Savin-Williams,R.C(1977a): "Dominance in a human adolescent group", Animal Behaviour, 25, pp.400-406. Savin-Williams,R.C(1977b): "Dominance-submission behaviour and hierarchies in young adolescents at a summer camp: Predictors, styles, and sex differences", Dissertation, University of Chicago. Savin-Williams,R.C(1979): "Dominance hierarchies in groups of early adolescents", Child Development, 50, pp.923-935. Savin-Williams,R.C.O980): "Dominance hierarchies in groups of middle to late adolescent males", Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 9(1), pp.75-85. Schachter,S.(1951): "Deviation, Rejection, and Communication", Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 46, pp. 190-207. Scheflen,A. & A.(1972): "Body language and social order", New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Scherer,K.R., Abeles,R.P., Fischer,C.S.(1975): "Human Aggression and Conflict: Interdisci¬plinary Perspectives", Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Schumacher,E.F.(1975): "Small is beautiful; Economics as if people mattered", New York: Harper & Row (First Perennial Library). Schumpeter,J.A.(1939): "Business Cycles, a Theoretical, Historical and Statistical Analysis of the Capitalist Process", McGraw-Hill. Segerstrale,U.(1986): "Colleagues in Conflict: An "In Vivo" Analysis of the Sociobiological Controversy", Biology and Philosophy, 1, pp.53-87. Sluckin,A.M. Smith,P.K.(1977): "Two approaches to the concept of dominance in preschool children", Child Development, 48, pp.917-923. Snow,C.P.(1961): "Either - Or", Progressive, febr.l961,p.24. Spengler,0.(1918): "Der Untergang des Abendlandes", Vienna & Leipzig: Wilhelm Braunmuller. Srb,A.M., Owen,R.D., Edgar,R.S.(1965): "General Genetics", (second ed.), San Francisco- /London: Freeman & Cy. Strayer,F.F., Strayer,J.(1976): "An ethological analysis of social agonism and dominance relations among preschool children", Child Development, 47, pp.980-989. Strelau,J.(1974a): "Temperament as an Expression of Energy Level and Temporal Features of Behaviour", Polish Psychological Bulletin, 5, pp. 119-127. Strelau,J.(1974b): "Experimental Investigations of the Relations between Reactivity as a Temperament Trait and Human Action", paper presented at the International Conference on "Temperament and Personality", october,1974, Warsaw, Poland. Swatez,G.M.(1970): "The Social organization of a University Laboratory", Minerva: A Review of Science Learning and Policy, 8, pp.36-58. Taimon,J.L.(1980): "The Myth of the Nation and the Vision of Revolution, The Origins of Ideological Polarization in the 20th Century", London. Themerson,S.(1974): "Logic, labels, and flesh", London: Lowe & Brydome. Thibaut,J.W., Kelley,H.H.(1959): "The Social Psychology of Groups", New York: Wiley. Thorn,R., Zeeman,E.C.(1974): "Catastrophe theory: Its present state and future perspectives", in A. Manning (ed.): "Dynamical systems; proceedings of a symposium held at the university of Warwick 1973/1974", Springer-Verlag. Thomson,D.(1980): "Adaptors and Innovators: A Replication Study on Managers in Singapore and Malaysia", Psychological Reports, 47, pp.383-387. Tiger,L.(1985): "Ideology as Brain Disease", Zygon, 20(1), pp.31-39. Tiger,L.(1990): "The Cerebral Bridge from Family to Foe", this volume. Torrance,E.P., Horng,R.Y.(1980): "Creativity and Style of Learning and Thinking Characteristics of Adaptors and Innovators", The Creative Child and Adult Quarterly, 5(2), pp.80-85. Toynbee,A.(1972): "A Study of History", London: Oxford University Press. Vandenbergh,J.G.(1966): "Rhesus monkey bands", Natural History, 75, pp. 22-27. Vandenberg,S.G.(1967): "Hereditary Factors in Normal personality Traits (As Measured by Inventories)", in: "Recent Advances in Biological Psychiatry", Vol.9, Plenum Press. Veblen,T.(1928): "The Theory of the Leisure Class", New York: Vanguard Press. de Waal,F.B.M.(1975): "The wounded leader; A spontaneous temporary change in the structure of agonistic relations among captive Java-Monkeys (Macaca fascicularis)", Netherlands Journal of Zoology, 25(4), pp. 529-549. Watzlawick,J.H., Fish,R.(1973): "Change", Palo Alto. Weber,M. (1948): "From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology", translated, edited, and with an introduction by H.H.Gerth and C.Wright Mills, London: Routledge and Kegan Paul (1970). Weick,E. 1.(1969): "The Social Psychology of Organizing", Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley. Weisfeld,G.E.(1980): "Determinants and Behavioral Correlates of Dominance in Adolescent Boys", in Donald R. Omark, F.F. Strayer & D.G. Freedman (eds.): "Dominance Relations: An Ethological Perspective on Human Conflict", New York: Garland, STPM Press. White,R.K., Lippitt,R.(1960): "Autocracy and democracy; An experimental inquiry", New York: Harper & Brothers. Whyte,W.H.(1957): "The Organization Man", London: Cape. Wilber,K.(1983): "Kierkegaard's Passion", Re Vision,6(1), pp.81-85, excerpt from "A History of Western Psychology" (in progress). Wilson,E.O.(1977): "Sociobiology, The New Synthesis", Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. Woodcock,A, Da vis,M. (1978): "Catastrophe Theory", New York: Avon. Yamada,M.(1966): "Five Natural Troops of Japanese Monkeys in Shodishama Island", Primates, 7, pp.313-362. Zeeman,E.C(1976): "Catastrophe Theory", Scientific American, 234(4), April 1976. Zuckerman,M.(1974): "The Sensation Seeking Motive", in B.A.Maher (ed.): Progress in Experimental Personality Research, Vol.7, New York: Academic Press. rx2p1z68100apmuy94z4uyy1zhthj74 0 47 5544 5543 2013-10-20T22:23:59Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki [[Main Page|'''Welcome to Omega Research Wiki''']] [[Omega Research:General disclaimer|'''Disclaimer''']] '''[[Omega Research:About|About this Omega Research Wiki]]''' * [[Omega Research:About|Goal of this site]] ** .......... ** .......... ** [[To finally put an end to war, destruction, genocide and wholesale rape]] * [[Omega Research:About#Definitions of "Point Omega"|Definitions of Point Omega]] ** .......... ** .......... ** [[The end of the second intermediary phase before any evolving intelligence, whenever and wherever in the universe, reaches maturity and full deployment.]] * [[Omega Research:About#What this site is about and what it is not|What this site is about and what it is not]] ** [[Omega Research:About#What this site is about and what it is not|Main text]] ** [[Curiosity replacing fear, rather than science replacing belief systems]] '''Reading scheme / Overview / Contents''' '''Featured articles''' * [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki]] ** [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki#Introduction|Introduction]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#For your efficiency and comfort|For your efficiency and comfort]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Your personal taste|Your personal taste]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#About human survival|About human survival]] ** [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki#New data|New data]] *** [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki#Novel concepts (#1 to #4)|Novel concepts (#1 to #4)]] *** [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki#More issues (#5 to #8) to take into account|More issues (#5 to #8) to take into account]] *** [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki#Another novel concept (#9)|Another novel concept (#9)]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Putting bits and pieces together|Putting bits and pieces together]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#More bits and pieces, needed to complete the puzzle and create effective understanding|More bits and pieces, needed to complete the puzzle and create effective understanding]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#How to put all bits and pieces together; three bits still missing|How to put all bits and pieces together; three bits still missing]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#The C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model), missing piece #2|The C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model), missing piece #2]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Explanatory power of the C.E.L.|Explanatory power of the C.E.L.]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Social Selection forces and Population Cycles, missing piece #9|Social Selection forces and Population Cycles, missing piece #9]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Human Blindness to the Self, missing piece #1|Human Blindness to the Self, missing piece #1]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#The major Blindness Block, probably stemming from some 0,5 million to 2 million years ago|The major Blindness Block, probably stemming from some 0,5 million to 2 million years ago]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Three more recent Blindness Blocks, stemming from 5,000 to 10,000 years ago|Three more recent Blindness Blocks, stemming from 5,000 to 10,000 years ago]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#What we can do|What we can do]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#What we can do to un-block awareness|What we can do to un-block awareness]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Approaching the problems with a better tool box|Approaching the problems with a better tool box]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Two technical reasons that prevent long lasting social equilibria|Two technical reasons that prevent long lasting social equilibria]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Times are changing; what we may expect|Times are changing; what we may expect]] *** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#What will human society look like after Point Omega ?|What will human society look like after Point Omega ?]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#In summary .....|In summary .....]] ** [[A guided tour through this Wiki#Your support|Your support]] * [[Omega Research:About#Definitions of "Point Omega"|Point Omega (definitions)]] * [[Point Omega (summary)|Point Omega (4 pages summary of this site)]] ** [[Point Omega (summary)|20-line summary]] ** [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness]] ** [[Point Omega (summary)#Reversal Theory of Emotions and Motivations|Reversal Theory of Emotions and Motivations]] ** [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|Impersonal power structures ruling our world]] ** [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|Point Omega / Mass enlightenment]] * [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Introduction]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Reversal Theory|Reversal Theory]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Requirements of open-ended learning|Requirements of open-ended learning]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Function of the motivational states in the process of learning|Function of the motivational states in the process of learning]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Learning-drive mechanisms|Learning-drive mechanisms]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative learning spirals|Positive and negative learning spirals]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative clusters of COndensed EXperience|Positive and negative clusters of COndensed EXperience]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#An illustration: the Neurotic Paradox explained|An illustration: the Neurotic Paradox explained]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#"Trying very hard" and the process of learning|"Trying very hard" and the process of learning]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#One-sidedness of psychological theories|One-sidedness of psychological theories]] ** [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Behavioural idiosyncrasies and the dimension of "self-actualization"|Behavioural idiosyncrasies and the dimension of "self-actualization"]] * [[Striving, Playing and Learning]] ** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#1. Critical recovery periods, an Experiment|1. Critical recovery periods, an Experiment]]<br/> *** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#1.1 Hormonal Feedback|1.1 Hormonal Feedback]]<br/> *** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#1.2 Recovery Intervals and Learning|1.2 Recovery Intervals and Learning]]<br/> ** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#2. Some models of agonistic behaviour|2. Some models of agonistic behaviour]]<br/> *** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#2.1 The Conflict- or Ambivalence Hypothesis|2.1 The Conflict- or Ambivalence Hypothesis]]<br/> *** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#2.2 The Psychohydraulic Model: the Catharsis Hypothesis|2.2 The Psychohydraulic Model: the Catharsis Hypothesis]]<br/> *** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#2.3 Aggression and Emergency Behavior|2.3 Aggression and Emergency Behavior]]<br/> *** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#2.4 Aggression,and Behavioral Reduction versus Behavioral Expansion|2.4 Aggression,and Behavioral Reduction versus Behavioral Expansion]]<br/> ** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#3. The Reversal Hypothesis|3. The Reversal Hypothesis]]<br/> ** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#4. An Additional Hypothesis: Integration of Theories on Aggression and on Learning|4. An Additional Hypothesis: Integration of Theories on Aggression and on Learning]]<br/> ** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#5. Positive and Negative Learning Spirals|5. Positive and Negative Learning Spirals]]<br/> ** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#6. The Use of the 'Aggression'-Label as an Element of the Agonistic Repertoire|6. The Use of the 'Aggression'-Label as an Element of the Agonistic Repertoire]]<br/> ** [[Striving, Playing and Learning#7. By way of Conclusion|7. By way of Conclusion]]<br/> * [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)|Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (C.E.L.) (1)]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#1. The Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|1. Homeostasis versus Bi-Stability]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#1. The Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|2. The Bi-stable Organization of Motivation]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#3. Two Metamotivational States and Reversals|3. Two Metamotivational States and Reversals]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#4. The Energy Dependent Basis of Motivation: Different Consequences on the Proximal and on the Ultimal Level|4. The Energy Dependent Basis of Motivation: Different Consequences on the Proximal and on the Ultimal Level]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#5. Motivational Sequences, Learning Spirals and Cognitive Areas of Experience|5. Motivational Sequences, Learning Spirals and Cognitive Areas of Experience]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#6. Cognitive Development|6. Cognitive Development]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#7. Summary and Conclusions|7. Summary and Conclusions]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#References|References]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)#Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject|Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject]] * [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning model (C.E.L.) (2)]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#Introduction|Introduction]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#Chapter 1: Lazarus' coping theory|Chapter 1: Lazarus' coping theory]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#Chapter 2: Apter's Reversal Theory|Chapter 2: Apter's Reversal Theory]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#Chapter 3: Van der Molen's Energy-Learning Model|Chapter 3: Van der Molen's Energy-Learning Model]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#Chapter 4: Lewicka's model of Antagonist Cognitive Modes|Chapter 4: Lewicka's model of Antagonist Cognitive Modes]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#Chapter 5: An integration of Lazarus', Apter's, Van der Molen's and Lewicka's theories|Chapter 5: An integration of Lazarus', Apter's, Van der Molen's and Lewicka's theories]] ** [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#Chapter 6: An illustration of the Cognition-Energy-Learning Model from a practical problem area|Chapter 6: An illustration of the Cognition-Energy-Learning Model from a practical problem area]] * [[Energy and Strokes|Energy and Strokes: How the quality of social relationships influences the process of learning and individual development]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#1. Transactional Emotions and Reversals in Social Interactions from an Evolutionary Point of View|1. Transactional Emotions and Reversals in Social Interactions from an Evolutionary Point of View]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#2. Pro-social Behaviour and Conditions for its Occurrence|2. Pro-social Behaviour and Conditions for its Occurrence]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#3. Two Postulates on the way in which Social Behaviour is Regulated|3. Two Postulates on the way in which Social Behaviour is Regulated]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#4. Two Metamotivational States ruling Social Behaviour|4. Two Metamotivational States ruling Social Behaviour]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#5. Social Means or "Strokes" as the Currency in Social Transactions|5. Social Means or "Strokes" as the Currency in Social Transactions]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#6. Combinations of Telic and Paratelic States with Allocentric and Autocentric States|6. Combinations of Telic and Paratelic States with Allocentric and Autocentric States]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#7. Synergetic Outcomes in Somatic and in Transactional Emotions|7. Synergetic Outcomes in Somatic and in Transactional Emotions]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#8. Conditions for Synergetic Effects|8. Conditions for Synergetic Effects]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#9. Social Contacts and Positive or Negative Learning Spirals|9. Social Contacts and Positive or Negative Learning Spirals]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#10. "Contagiousness" of Interpersonal Psychological Skills and Adaptation|10. "Contagiousness" of Interpersonal Psychological Skills and Adaptation]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#11. Social Support: Data from Effectivity Research and what has been missing up till now|11. Social Support: Data from Effectivity Research and what has been missing up till now]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#12. Summary and Conclusions|12. Summary and Conclusions]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#References|References]] ** [[Energy and Strokes#Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject|Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject]] * [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Evolution of Intelligence|Evolution of Intelligence]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Proximate and ultimate causes of behaviour|Proximate and ultimate causes of behaviour]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Breaking out of the customary intelligence ceiling|Breaking out of the customary intelligence ceiling]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Self Blindness and Social Role Blindness|Self Blindness and Social Role Blindness]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Cultural props for Self-Blindness|Cultural props for Self-Blindness]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Point Omega|Point Omega]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Where do we stand ?|Where do we stand ?]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Point Omega and Self-Blindness|Point Omega and Self-Blindness]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Before Point Omega:|Before Point Omega:]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#After Point Omega:|After Point Omega:]] ** [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#Towards "Amathology" or the science of ignorance|Towards "Amathology" or the science of ignorance]] * [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|Eating from the Forbidden Fruit: on the power of Good and Evil since the agricultural revolution; a consequence of "jet-lag" in recent human evolution]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#"Amathology", an introduction|"Amathology", an introduction]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#No-go areas for our intelligence|No-go areas for our intelligence]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The confusing role of established religions|The confusing role of established religions]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The primordial niche of Homo sapiens and the feelings and emotions "fitting" that environment|The primordial niche of Homo sapiens and the feelings and emotions "fitting" that environment]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#New demands and requirements since the agricultural revolution|New demands and requirements since the agricultural revolution]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Friction between P-feelings and N-demands; "Primordial" versus "New"|Friction between P-feelings and N-demands; "Primordial" versus "New"]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Some basic requirements for successful power structures|Some basic requirements for successful power structures]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Where evolution is leading us|Where evolution is leading us]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The evolutionary importance of blindness for self and the illusion of Good and Bad|The evolutionary importance of blindness for self and the illusion of Good and Bad]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Quantity of physical energy, invested in maintaining blindness and illusion|Quantity of physical energy, invested in maintaining blindness and illusion]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The illusory aspects of the Positive/negative or Good/Bad dimension|The illusory aspects of the Positive/negative or Good/Bad dimension]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Cultural power structures using Good and Evil as an effective blinding tool|Cultural power structures using Good and Evil as an effective blinding tool]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Power structures utilizing "jet-lag" effects in human evolution|Power structures utilizing "jet-lag" effects in human evolution]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Good and Evil, how great religions consolidate their power|Good and Evil, how great religions consolidate their power]] ** [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Summary: "amathology", the science of ignorance, as a crucial tool for our survival|Summary: "amathology", the science of ignorance, as a crucial tool for our survival]] * [[Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality]] (under construction; ook nog paragrafen opnemen) * [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world]] (under construction) ** [[The evolution of Gene-structures and of Meme-structures]] (to be added) ** Consequences of the difference in speed of the gene- and the meme-evolution (to be added) ** [[Existential friction: Homo sapiens at the interface between the gene- and the meme evolution]] (to be added) ** The evolutionary stability of mass-neuroticism (to be added) ** Mechanisms that safeguard mass-neuroticism (to be added) *** Selection for Sociability and Population Cycles; the cause for periodic conflict and disaster (to be added; refer to separate article below) *** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability]] (under construction) **** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability|Civilization as a conspiracy against evolution]] **** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability|To finally put an end to war, destruction and wholesale rape]] **** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability|Corruption as the default social structure]] **** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability|Genetic pollution and corruption as one of its automatic effects]] **** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability|Advantages and disadvantages of corruption]] **** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability|Two reasons for the need of continuous selection pressure and the impossibility of stability]] *** Overcrowding (to be added) ** Religions as power structures (to be added) ** [[Contemporary weakening of the foundations of Power Structures]] (under construction) * [[The biological instability of social equilibria|Social-Role Blindness and the periodic emergence of conflict and disaster; on Population Cycles precluding the establishment of lasting social equilibria]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria (abstract)|Abstract]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Outline|Outline]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Some consequences of living socially|Some consequences of living socially]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Life cycles of social groups and structures|Hypothesis: Life cycles of social groups and structures]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Evolutionary advantages|Evolutionary advantages]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Experiments with behavioural differences in house mice|Data: Experiments with behavioural differences in house mice]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Experiments with beta- and omega-roles|Experiments with beta- and omega-roles]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Other ethological research data|Other ethological research data]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Human behaviour|Human behaviour]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Genetics|Genetics]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Selection within human social structures|Selection within human social structures]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Ossification|Ossification]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Social-role blindness|Social-role blindness]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Nature and nurture|Discussion: Nature and nurture]] ** [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Perspective|Perspective]] * [[K.A.I. and Changes in Social Structures: on the Anatomy of Catastrophy]] * [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history|The importance of ignorance and superstition]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#What is genetic pollution ?|What is genetic pollution ?]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#Examples of genetic pollution|Examples of genetic pollution]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#The F1 trick in cattle breeding|The F1 trick in cattle breeding]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#Effects in human society|Effects in human society]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#The end of a civilization|The end of a civilization]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#Population genetic waves and war|Population genetic waves and war]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#Awareness versus taboos|Awareness versus taboos]] ** [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history#Time to wake up|Time to wake up]] * [[Personality of Mice and Men; re-arranging personality dimensions in a six-dimensional adjective space]] (to be added) * [[Personality Traits in terms of Social-Role Probabilities; an innovative theoretical essay on the possibility of overcoming the chaotic diversity in personality theories]] (to be added) * Why never peace (to be added; + SISWO-scheme) * [[The significance of the Point Omega transition|The significance of the Point Omega transition (under construction)]] * [[Characteristics of human behaviour before and after Point Omega]] * [[Directives for after Point Omega|Directives for after Point Omega (under construction)]] ** [[Directives for after Point Omega|Conclusions from Point Omega Research]] (under construction) ** [[Directives for after Point Omega#Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself|Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself (under construction)]] ** [[Directives for after Point Omega#Procreate consciously|Procreate consciously (under construction)]] * [[Enlightenment]] ** [[Enlightenment#What is enlightenment?|What is enlightenment?]] ** [[Enlightenment#The relationship between organized religion and enlightenment|The relationship between organized religion and enlightenment]] (under construction) ** [[Enlightenment#Shortcuts to enlightenment|Shortcuts to enlightenment]] (under construction) ** [[Enlightenment#Further reading on enlightenment|Further reading on enlightenment]] (under construction) '''[[Omega Research Foundation]]''' * Goals (to be added) * How to contribute (to be added) ** Donations, tax free (to be added) ** Legacies (to be added) ** Volunteers (to be added) '''Suggested further reading''' * [[further reading|List of literature and references]] * Comments on Richard Dawkins' "[[The God Delusion]]" * Comments on John Gray's "[[Straw Dogs, Thoughts on Humans and Other Animals]]" * Comments on John Gray's "[[Black Mass, Apocalyptic Religion and the Death of Utopia]]" * Comments on Eckhart Tolle's "[[A New Earth|A New Earth, Awakening to your life's purpose]]" * Comments on Daniel Quinn's "[[Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure]]" * Comments on Ruiz (To be added) * Comments on Kris Verburgh's "[[Fantastisch, over het universum in ons hoofd]]" * Comments on Amy Wallace's "[[Sorcerer's Apprentice, my life with Carlos Castaneda]]" * [[Movie pictures and websites on related subjects]] tgg0izi252sre52x4rfe4t7b4dhk4n1 8 48 5278 5276 2013-05-12T07:51:54Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki * navigation ** mainpage|mainpage ** Omega Research:General disclaimer|Disclaimer ** Omega Research:About|About this wiki ** A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki|Guided Tour ** Omega Research:Map|Sitemap of this wiki ** portal-url|portal ** recentchanges-url|recentchanges ** helppage|help ** Omega Research:Site support|Support this site p0e3a72rleanxzq6b7hw42toxsxxjnp 0 49 6781 6778 2017-01-17T12:35:47Z Baby Boy 2 /* Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject */ wikitext text/x-wiki <center> STATE UNIVERSITY GRONINGEN - HEYMANSBULLETIN HB-91-1029-EX (second part) <big><b>Energy and Strokes:</b></big><br/> <b>how the quality of social relationships influences the process of learning and individual development</b> (An Extension of the Cognition-Energy-Learning Model) by Bernard B. Maarsingh and Popko P. van der Molen Presented for the fifth international conference on<br/>Reversal Theory, June 21-25, 1991 at Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.A. </center> __NOTOC__ '''Contents:''' [[#1. Transactional Emotions and Reversals in Social Interactions from an Evolutionary Point of View|1. Transactional Emotions and Reversals in Social Interactions from an Evolutionary Point of View]]<br/> [[#2. Pro-social Behaviour and Conditions for its Occurrence|2. Pro-social Behaviour and Conditions for its Occurrence]]<br/> [[#3. Two Postulates on the way in which Social Behaviour is Regulated|3. Two Postulates on the way in which Social Behaviour is Regulated]]<br/> [[#4. Two Metamotivational States ruling Social Behaviour|4. Two Metamotivational States ruling Social Behaviour]]<br/> [[#5. Social Means or "Strokes" as the Currency in Social Transactions|5. Social Means or "Strokes" as the Currency in Social Transactions]]<br/> [[#6. Combinations of Telic and Paratelic States with Allocentric and Autocentric States|6. Combinations of Telic and Paratelic States with Allocentric and Autocentric States]]<br/> [[#7. Synergetic Outcomes in Somatic and in Transactional Emotions|7. Synergetic Effects in Somatic and in Transactional Emotions]]<br/> [[#8. Conditions for Synergetic Effects|8. Conditions for Synergetic Effects]]<br/> [[#9. Social Contacts and Positive or Negative Learning Spirals|9. Social Contacts and Positive or Negative Learning Spirals]]<br/> [[#10. "Contagiousness" of Interpersonal Psychological Skills and Adaptation|10. "Contagiousness" of Interpersonal Psychological Skills and Adaptation]]<br/> [[#11. Social Support: Data from Effectivity Research and what has been missing up till now|11. Social Support: Data from Effectivity Research and what has been missing up till now]]<br/> [[#12. Summary and Conclusions|12. Summary and Conclusions]] '''[[#References|References]]''' ---- === 1. Transactional Emotions and Reversals in Social Interactions from an Evolutionary Point of View === {{level|3}} In the previous chapter, the Cognition-Energy-Learnin­g model (CEL) was discussed and emphasis was placed on the energy-based process of learning. Subsequently it was indicated how the learning process could progress and what the implications of the learning process are for cognitive develop­ment. With respect to this development, the Cog­nition-Energy-Learning model, as is discussed up to now, has traced the origin of the differences between positive COEX systems (pleasant, agree­able, easy, boring, etc) and negative COEX systems (di­fficult, unpleasant, dangerous, etc). The model allows predictions to be made about the dynamics of the (cognitive) processes which control the attribution of labels to objects and experiences; it speci­fies when the "positive" and when the "negative" labels are applicable; and it describes how the dynamics of the learning process may effectuate gradual changes in the cognitive representation of objects and situations and in what set of cir­cumstances this may occur. A completely different aspect is the relationship bet­ween social interaction patterns and the learning process. The CEL-model also allows predictions about these interac­tions. However, the theoretical model, as discussed up to now, must be expanded considerably, in order to be able to describe this interacti­on. This is possible by inserting Apter's (1988) concept of reversals between transactional emotions into the CEL-model. prior to explaining the concept "transactional emotions", we shall attempt to provide an ethological foundation to the concept of "social inter­actions". In other words: a model is sought which can explain social interactions from an evolutionary point of view. In order to discover such an ethological explana­tion, we assume that social behaviour always contains a certain measure of altruistic behaviour. Hence, if a group wants to be able to work together efficiently, the indi­vidual members of the group will every now and then have to embark on investing time and energy which initially will be at the expense of themselves. This investment will however yield positive long term benefits. === 2. Pro-social Behaviour and Conditions for its Occurrence === {{level|3}} Superficially looking, pro-social behaviour would appear to be an anomaly from an evolutionary perspective, evolutionary forces rather favouring "egoistic" behaviours. Evolution would favour behaviours that help the individu­al at the expense of others. Moreover, we may presume that in the environment, at least in most cases, there is only room for a limited number of individuals or of species. In other words, there only is room for a limited number of genes which compete for the chromosomal space (Barash 1986, Dawkins 1976). If an individual is to contri­bute to its own reproductive success, it should possess certain characte­ristics that are not only personally advantageous, but also actively obstruct the reproductive success of others. In great contrast to this reasoning stands the fact that many species (amongst others, human beings) are social and often even actively work together. For example, bees make very laborious hives housing thousands of bees; buffaloes live (used to live) in gigantic herds and baboons live in a complex social system and survival depends on being a member of the group. Evidently, social behaviour is not so much an anomaly as it would seem to be at first sight. Every individual within a cert­ain (socially living) group is better able to maintain itself when belonging to a group, than when it leads a solita­rily existence. Advantages of groups could for instance be: more effective defence against preda­tors, such as in the case of baboons which, as a group, can even badly maul a leopard; or a more effective alert-system, such as with the tamarinds (New World monkeys) "using" each other's eyes, noses, and ears to promote their own safety. Another advantage could be that juvenile animals are able to learn from, abundantly available, adult animals. Humans are a good example of this principle and cul­tural theories of evolution are based on this ad­vantage (e.g. Boyd and Richerson, 1985). In short, there are many advantages in working together, and in living socially. It is interesting to con­sider human situations in which one person helps the other, even if this does not benefit him at all at that very moment in terms of survival (or reproductive suc­cess, see Daily and Wilson, 1983). This type of behaviour is called pro-social or altruistic behaviour. In order to be able to explain how such behaviour was able to evolve, three different theories have been sugge­sted, having as central concepts: group selection, kin selection and reciprocal altruism respectively. The theory of group selection implies that the group (of animals) is seen as the unit upon which selection pressure operates. So the individual members of the group manifest certain types of behaviour, because such behaviour supports the group. This approach was suggested by various authors (a.o. Wynne-Edwards, 1962), but according to many it was convincingly contradicted by Lack (1966) and later by Williams (1966) (see Daily and Wilson, 1983 or Campbell, 1972) and will not be further discussed here. Kin selection was introduced by Hamilton (1964) and implies that a person's altruistic act, even if this person more or less sacrifices himself, contributes to the survival of relatives (for instance family), so that this person contributes to the reproductive success of each (altruistic) gene which is shared with this relative. According to Hamilton a condition for this model is that the groups to which human beings must have belonged, must have been small. At any rate, small enough for there to be a reason­able chance that somebody actually helps a rela­tive, carrying his own genes, with an altruistic act. The third model stems from Trivers (1971) and we will investigate this model in more depth. Recipro­cal altruism is the situation in which one person helps another and the latter in turn later helps the former. These two acts can be seperated in time. Shapi­ro gives the following example of reciprocal altruism: "Let us take a relatively small group of people. In this group, there are, say, five hunters from each of the five unrelated families in the group. Let us imagine that the main food source consists of dodo birds and that the average probability of a hunter catching a dodo bird is low, so that he catches a dodo only once every five days. Let us also suppose that an average dodo bird will last a family for five days but really only lasts at most two days because of spoilage. Let us also suppose that a single dodo will suffice all five families for one day and that the total probability of any hunter's catching a dodo every day is unity. Than it would appear that those genetic variants that have a predisposition to share food will be more fit than those that hoard food. The sharing individual's reproductive potential will increase, and this altruistic quality will be selected for." (Shapiro, 1974, pp. 7-8). Trivers mentions a number of conditions which must be fulfilled for the evolution of reciprocal altruism. These are: (a) a large number of situations in which altruistic behaviour can occur, (b) a large number of interactions between members of a relatively small group, and (c) a division of symmetric situations in which the roles of altruist and receiver constantly interchange (for instan­ce through role specialism). In addition Trivers (1971) mentions a number of conditions such as: a relati­vely long life; the ability to recognize the other members of the group; a localized existence and a high degree of mutual dependence (for instance being endangered by the same predators or suffering food-shortage). This then results in small groups with stable numbers and little hierarchical organization in which the members provide mutually in fights with other groups. These conditions appear to be exactly the conditions which existed in the middle of the Pleistocene (ca 600.000 to 200.000 years ago), in the time that co-operative hunting behaviour in "humans" appears to have developed (Mazak, 1980). Before we go deeper into the consequences of Trivers's conditions, two postulates have to be discus­sed that will clear the way for the formulation of a system which can mediate and regulate social behavi­our. === 3. Two Postulates about how Social Behaviour is Regulated === {{level|3}} The first postulate is that social behaviour is regulated in such a way that social interacti­ons with others proceed optimally. And the second postulate is that such a system must allocate energy resources in the most efficient way. Both postulates can be linked together in one sentence: there must be a system, or rather a capacity, for the regulation of social interac­tions, in an energy efficient way. The question now is how such a system can regulate behaviour. One idea could be that the regulation of social behaviour proceeds in a way comparable to the regulation of learning behaviour. In the previous chapter it became clear that the learning system is regulated by emotional processes. In other words, the energy surplus together with the environmental demands result in a certain reaction, an emotion, and this indi­cates the direction of the motivation. For instance: if there is an energy-deficit and the environmental demands lead to a high level of arousal, the reaction is fear or nervous tension (Apter calls this anxiety). And this reaction is experienced as unpleasant. The organism then will seek to control the situation and this is more likely to lead to constrictive behaviour than to expansive behaviour. A similar regulation by means of emotional processes may also be expected in the case of social behaviour. === 4. Two Metamotivational States ruling Social Behaviour === {{level|3}} A prediction concerning the repercussions of a system of motivation, that could be made on the basis of Trivers's conditions (1971) and the terms of both postulates, could be described as follows: it is a system which functions by the frequent exchange of social lending means. A person will invest in others when there is a surplus of social means and will try to withdraw that investment when there is a shortage of social means. This implies that (just as with learning) we should be able to find two antagonist and alternating states of prefe­rence. The reversal theory (e.g. Apter, 1988) does indeed claim that two states of preference can be found. Apter distinguishes two categories of emotions: soma­tic and transactional emotions. Somatic emotions are the emotions which were discussed in chapter 1 (fear, excite­ment, bore­dom, and relaxation). Transactional emotions are emotions whose origins stem and have refe­rence to association with others (Apter, 1988, p. 45). Examples of such emotions that Apter mentions are: guilt, modesty, shame, pride and spite. This concept of transactional emotions seems especially suitable to serve as a further specification of the sought after system which regu­lates social behaviour. With somatic emotions the level of arousal is the key variable and with transactional emotions the key varia­bles is: the feeling that somebody has about the outcome of a certain transaction between himself and the other (this variable is called from now on: the result of the transac­tion). What do the various terms in this statement mean? In principle, "the other" not only refers to a person, but also to, for example, a group of people, an object or a situation (Apter, 1988). In this chapter it usually is assumed that the "other" refers to a person, because espe­cially face to face contacts will be discus­sed here. The outcome of an interaction has to do with for instance the experience of winning or loosing, succeeding or failing, doing something right or wrong, and domi­nating or being domina­ted. Such an outcome is expressed on a sliding scale ranging from great loss to great profit. Just as with somatic emotions it is impor­tant to realize that with transactional emotions the key variable, the outcome of an interaction, is also a subjective variable. This means that it cannot objectively be established whether there was profit or loss, but that the person feels himself more or less well off. And this feeling about the transactional result may change suddenly (reversal). Just as with somatic emotions, there are the "telic" and "para­telic" metamotivational states, with transactional emotions there are the "autocentric" and "allocentric" states. In the autocentric mode of behaviour the (subjective) reward for the person himself is the most important determinant of the hedonic tone (how good or bad a persons feels), whereas in the allocentric state the person iden­tifies himself with the other and then the benefit for the other determines his own hedonic tone. This means that in that state - "spending part of the sur­plus of social energy or social means" - is activated because the other is the most important determinant for the hedonic tone. It also holds the other way around: when the person himself is the most important determinant for the hedonic tone, it is pleasant to reap social means. So the motivation for an allo- or autocentric state receives its direction from how the person is focused at that moment in time, either on the other or on himself. Apter not only describes the metamoti­vational states, he also names the specific emotions belonging to a certain motivational state as well as the result of the interaction. Table 2.1 shows the somatic and transactional emotions. The arrows ( ****???****) indicate the emotional state which is prefered in the relevant metamotivational state. Table 2.2 provides an example of the types of beha­viour that are felt as pleasant in the allo- or autocentric state respectively. This table presents the nature or character of the social means. They can be material as well as imma­terial. Now we can revert back to the stipulations mentioned by Tri­vers. The model as described by Apter (1988) must, if it also purports to describe the altruistic side of social beha­viour, among other things also fulfill the conditions enumerated by Trivers (1971) mentions. The first condition was: a large number of situations in which pro-social behaviour can occur (a). This condition certainly is fulfilled. The second, a large number of interactions (b), is also met and the division of symmetric situations (c) is also fulfilled as both parties have in principle the same social means at their disposal. The condition concerning small groups is not met, and nor, for instance, is the condition concerning weak hierarchical structures, but these conditions do not refer to the character of the social means. They refer to the question how pro-social beha­viour has been able to evolve. Reversal Theory therefore meets the con­ditions that Trivers stipulates as far as the character of the social means of exchange is concerned. One gap in the Reversal Theory is however, that it does not specify what exactly is exchanged. [[Image:Somatic and transactional emotions.png|framed|none|Table 2.1: Somatic and transactional emotions.]] === 5. Social Means or "Strokes" as the Currency in Social Transactions === {{level|3}} In the last paragraph, part of Apter's Reversal theory (1982, 1988) was described. Note here that the concept "social means" as the basis of the two metamo­tiva­tional states, does not stem from Apter. Apter deals with transactional emotions on a descriptive, phenomen­ological level and does not attempt to explain their dynamics. The CEL-model postulates, following Van der Molen (1983, 1984, 1985), that the energy management is the source and reason for the bistability of motivation. {| border="1" cellpadding="2" |- ! ! Autocentric ! Allocentric |- | a) | trying to profit from a business deal | striving for solidarity in a trade agreement |- | b) | trying to win in a match | allow somebody to win |- | c) | trying to check and control an employee | trying to support and protect an employee |- | d) | desiring a present | giving a present |- | e) | trying to make people to listen to your story (at a party or such) | being prepared to listen to somebody else's story |- | f) | seeking help when in trouble | trying to help people in trouble |- | g) | trying to exercise political power | wishing to serve the interests of a political party |+ '''Table 2.2:''' Examples of situations in which auto- or allocentric metamotivational states occur. |} The result of this was that, Apter's motivational model could be extended into a model which in particular describes the lear­ning of coping skills and the cognitive representation thereof. A similar concept was also postulated in the case of transactio­nal emotions. That which determines the dynamics of transactional emotions, could be called social means, or social atten­tion. This concept of social attention can be compared to what Berne calls a "stroke" (1976). Berne describes a stroke as being a unit of recognition, and states furthermore: "... a stroke may be used as the fundamental unit of social action." (Berne, 1976). A stroke can also be a pat on the shoulder, a word of appreciation, a cup of coffee or for instance looking after somebody, etc. It is also possible, in Berne's terms, to get too many or too few strokes and to need a stroke at some times more urgently than at other times. Van Gorp (1984) speaks of a "stroke optimum", and explains this as follows: :"The stroke optimum continually changes, as a result of different experiences, situations, personal developmental tasks, and it is quite likely to be influenced by biochemical processes which can sometimes cause a comfort or discomfort not easily accounted for by psychological factors alone." The CEL-model, as described above, explicitly states that tran­sactional emotions, are also not homeostatically organized, i.e. a prefered stroke-position may change radically, due to sudden reversals. Just as the telic and paratelic experience of arousal differs under the influence of changes in the energy-balance-maintenance so could the allo- or autocentric experience of the result of a trans­action differ under influence of the stroke-balance-maintenance. So when there is a surplus of social means (allo­centric), the individual distributes strokes (allocentric) and when there is a deficit or social exhaustion, the individual strives to receive strokes (autocentric). By adding to Reversal Theory the concept of distributing versus gathering social means (strokes), the key variable of transactional emotion (the subjective experience of the result of a transaction) will acquire more substance. What happens is, that in the allocentric state the person has a surplus of social means to give to another person (wants to distribute strokes). And in the autocentric state the person demands attention from another person (wants to receive strokes). Both states alternate and reverse into one another under the influen­ce of either the surplus or the shortage of social means. We can now further elaborate on the (causal) connection between telic and paratelic states on the one hand and allo- and autocentric states on the other. === 6. Combinations of Telic and Paratelic States with Allocentric and Autocentric States === {{level|3}} From an energy point of view, it is of the utmost importance whether a person has a surplus or a shortage of energy. In the case of a surplus of energy, it can be expected that the person is often in the para­telic state and thus shows exploratory behaviour (expansive behaviour). In other words, in the paratelic state, when a person is actually focussed on new input, that person will also be open for "input" which comes from another. So he or she will sooner be able to pay attention to another. This pinpoints exactly the behaviour that is characte­ristic for an allocentric state. In other words, the person is more likely to be in an allocentric state. Another way of saying this is that energy-management is stochastically related to the management of strokes. Paratelic states and allocentric states more often occur in combination. The same is true in reverse, a telic state implies that there is a need for comfort and relaxation and that can be achieved by receiving strokes. A telic state therefore frequently occurs in combination with an autocentric state. For example: : Imagine that the energy surplus is depleted and the person switches to the telic state (focussed on behavioural constriction). As there is a deficit of energy it is to be expected that this person is more likely to ask for help or attention than to give help or attention to others. This means that the person who is in the telic state also has a fair chance of being in the autocentric state. This does not imply that a telic state always coincides with an autocentric state and that a paratelic state always coincides with an allocentric state, but rather that the likelihood of the above mentioned relationship combinations is higher than of other combinations. Another reason for the described stochastic relati­onships might be that the reception of attention can pro­vide a certain reassurance which was sought in the telic state. From research by Bowlby (1977) it appeared that regu­lar periods of relaxation are crucial for the readiness and ability to explore new situations. He describes how a child who is exploring an unknown situation, regularly returns to a familiar person (with Bowlby: the mother). In that way the child can relax and build up energy for the next phase of exploration. All kinds of behavioural deficiencies, such as chronic fear, can arise when the periodical need for relaxation and reassurance cannot be satisfied. Since the child every now and again returns to mother (receive attention and reassurance), it can explore again (exert energy) afterwards. Attaining relaxation which was earlier defined as somatic, is thus facili­tated by the supportive attention of others. The reassurance which results from a supportive social contact, may contribute to another interesting consequence. Namely, it provides the possibility of synergetic effects. === 7. Synergetic Outcomes in Somatic and in Transactional Emotions === {{level|3}} Murgatroyd (1985) describes how the tension (level of arousal) and with that the hedonic tone - with somatic emotions - can be increased, when a person who is in the paratelic state, applies behaviour and routines from the telic state. For this he uses the term ''synergy'' from system theory. Synergy means that two processes interact in such a way that the combined effects exceed the sum of their individual effects (Murga­troyd, 1985, p. 13). Routines from the one state (telic) are then applied within the other state (paratelic) in order to increase the ef­fect. To put it more simply, it comes down to the principle that two and two make five (Postle, 1989). A synergy can occur when two different perspectives or levels of meaning of the same entity or event occur immediately after each other or simultaneously, while these perspectives are in principle mutually exclusive or are each other's opposite. A sport such as badminton may serve as an example. : A feeling of ''security'' and ''safety'' is obtained by the "context" of the game: the hall, the net, the lines, the player's positions on the court etc., together with a series of strict rules of the game and the referee who enforces the rules. Within this fixed context which is predictable and safe, the badminton-players play the game. The game itself can be called the "content" of the situation which always differs, always produces ''unexpected incidents'' of which the outcome is ''uncertain'' as well as the way in which they occur. The opposing characteristics in this example are (1) the safety and security provided by the context of the game and (2) the tension and arousal, produced by the content. In such a situation (context is safe, content is uncertain) the context must provide the security or relaxation which will induce the paratelic state and the content provides the extra tension which is pleasant in the paratelic state. The synergetic effect that is caused by the excitement of the game and the security of the context, raises the arousal and provides a pleasant situation (in the parate­lic state). In the telic state this extra tension is felt as extra unpleasantness. Especially in the beginning, the aspects which are certain must often have a dominating function, because otherwise a telic state would be induced and the arousal would be experienced as unpleasantly threatening (Apter, 1982). Synergy can also be observed in transactional emotions. By using routines from, for instance, the auto­centric state within the allocentric state, the emotional "profit" for both parties can be increased. In other words: by receiving strokes every now and then in an allocentric state in which it is basically pleasant to distribute strokes, part of the positive meaning of receiving stro­kes in the autocen­tric state can "penetrate" into and merge with the pleasant feeling of distributing strokes in the allocen­tric state. Seeing that the allocentric state domi­nates, the autocentric subrou­tines can be regulated and controlled more safely and easily. One can, as it were, choose the meta­motivational state with the mat­ching emotions and emotio­nal value (hedonic tone) and adjust better to the requirements of the moment. The effect of this is that both the gratitude (for benefitting from the interaction) and the feeling of virtue (for doing much for the other) will occur more often. Thus the emotions with a low hedonic-tone (e.g. the feeling of guilt or rancour) will occur less frequently. "Gratitude" and "virtue", occurring next to each other (and mixed with each other), thus strengthen both types of pleasant feelings (= synergy). This synergy in which opposite ways of experiencing social relationships occur together, differs in an important respect from the telic and paratelic synergies as discussed above. There is more than one person involved. Synergy in trans­actional emotions implies the interests of another person. By enlarging the ''reciprocity'' of the interaction, the net benefit can become more attractive for both par­ties. Transactional synergies also occur regularly in interac­tions in which there are two opposite levels of meaning: on the one hand a (social) context which provides security, familiarity and predictability and on the other hand the content of the social contact which provides tension and has the effect of raising arousal. The context must offer a sense of security and familiarity, so that a paratelic state is facilitated. The content of the contact then may induce arousal and excitement and this will be the case with events that are related to negative COEX systems (for instance: talking about your own fears and intimate prob­lems). The exciting areas (in a paratelic state) are namely exactly those areas where there is still a great deal to be learned (negative COEX systems).<br/> In summary: by the simultaneous occurrence of the restful, certain context with the exciting, thrilling content of the social contact, a synergic effect is brought about which is experienced as extremely pleasant in the paratelic state. It is important that initially the safety of the context is prominent for otherwise a telic state would be facilitated and the arousal would be experienced as threatening. When the con­text is safe enough, the excitement of the content may be evoked by matters which are related to negative COEX systems. Synergy which is based on the reciprocity of the social interaction, can influence the relationship in two ways. In the first place, it can increase arousal for the ''content'' of the contact at the moment synergies occur. So on the ''proximal'' level (at the moment that synergies occur) the contact can be extra exciting. In the second place, having a reciprocal relationship can lead ''ultima­tely'' to a feeling of ease, relaxation and rest in combination, and thus lead to a ''restful'' context. And this context in itself forms the basis for more synergies. Synergies could also occur with the person in the autocentric state, but the likelihood is smaller because of the state of his or her social means. The person in fact needs social attention (social means) and the distribution of this attention will not occur easily. The well-known (but unpro­ven) principle that a relationship functions the best when there is giving and taking, is clearly supported by intro­ducing this notion of synergy. Conside­ring the evolutionary background of social interactions, this is not surprising. Considering the "egoism" of the genes, it is impossible for one of the parties to always give more than the other, without dissatisfaction occuring. (Of course one can think of cultural influences which promote an unequal distribution, but from the biological point of view we expect dissatisfaction with such a distribution.) One implication of the above for clinical practice must now be obvious. A client in a low energy state will often be in an autocentric state and hence be economical with the social attention he or she pays. But it is exactly this economizing that diminishes the benefits of the client's social interactions, for instance because no synergies can arise. The responsibility of the therapist must then be to create such a climate that (1) the client is offered the possibility to settle down in the relations­hip with the therapist and (2) the client is encoura­ged to gradually invest a little more social attention, so that a reciprocal interaction will become possible again. In this way the client will also be offered the opportunity to accumulate ener­gy. In the literature on synergetic effects and on how relationships might develop in the optimum case, a number of conditions are mentioned for the establishment of such a relationship. === 8. Conditions for Synergetic Effects === {{level|3}} Various authors put forward a number of different conditions for "good" relationships. Three such authors will be discussed in order to illustrate the predictions the CEL-model makes and to show how the mentioned conditions match the theory. Postle (1988, in his publication on: "...the results of enquiries into how synergy, high energy creative col­laboration, can best be promoted...", arrives at a number of interpersonal skills required for syner­getic effects. He distinguishes two types of interpersonal skills. Interpersonal skills can be focussed on (1) being able to communicate clearly and make choi­ces, and on (2) regulating emotions and fee­lings. When, in the groups Postle was working with, no attention was paid to the second type of interpersonal skills, behaviours recurred which resulted in pola­rization on the division of the group into parties and also led to sudden changes in moods and feelings of the members of the group. This occurred especially when the members of the group were enthusiastic and wanted to devote themselves to the purpose of the group (for in­stance, making a T.V. production). Postle then states that when members of the group are very enthusiastic and as a consequence are strongly aroused it is extremely difficult to maintain co-operati­ve behaviour. As soon as self-interest emerged, the result was that co-opera­tion suddenly ended, resulting in conflicts, argu­ments and mutual hostility. Postle (1989) considered the second type of interpersonal skills to be very important for synergetic effects. In other words, the level of the emotional competency of the individual members of the group has to be considera­bly high for synergetic effects to be established in situations in which the emotions are strong. The emotional competency put forward by Postle (the conditions for synerge­tic effects) requires that a person "...will be: :* able to freely express both positive and negative feelings. :* able to hold on to feelings when appropriate. :* able to tolerate the expression of others. :* aware of the transference and countertransference and diligent in seeking it out and dealing with it (transference means to interpret the present situation in terms of earlier experiences) :* aware of the significant patterns of their state-specific learning and how they are manifest in present time." {{Harv|Postle|1989|p=12}} Another author who mentions conditions for an opti­mum social contact in which both parties are able to develop personally, is Swensen (1977). He deals with the con­ditions for interpersonal contacts which are characterized by: :"...promoting the growth and development of the people with whom (one) relates." {{Harv|Swensen|1977|p=46}} He concludes among other things that the development of the ego, as was defined by Loevinger (1966, 1970) (who also emphasizes emotional competency in her concept of the development of the ego), is a variable of persona­lity which for a large part determines how people treat each other. When an individual stimulates others in their development and growth, this person transcends tole­rating in­dividual differences to: :"...cherishing individual differences. He has transcended conflict and reconciled the polarities. He has put it all together." {{Harv|Swensen|1977|p=46}} Rogers (i.a. 1976, Dutch edition) identifies, final­ly, three basic conditions for a certain kind of relati­onship in which the other will discover in himself the capacity to use this relationship for his own personal development. These basic conditions are: genuineness or authenticity, unconditional acceptance and empathy. The question which now arises is how this information relates to the model which has been developed here, where allo- and autocentric states and the rever­sals in between them play an important role. To recapitulate: for synergetic effects (1) the contact must be reciprocal and (2) the context of the contact must provide security whereas its content must be exciting. These conditions, and for that matter also the conditions mentioned by the other authors, should either serve the reci­procity of the contact or they should create a basis or context which offers security and safety. The reciprocity is in our view stimulated when an individual is: real; empathetic; able to express both negative and positive feelings; able to trust and persist in his/her own feelings if they are appropriate in the contact at that moment; able to tolerate other people's means of expression and not only to tolerate, but also to cherish them. Being real and empathical has the important effect that the strokes which are exchanged, are more "effective" (the stroke is more easily recognized and tunes in to the needs of the "receiver"). When strokes are more effective, the result is that a person more often has the feeling that he/she receives attention. And this has a posi­tive influence on the stroke-reserves. The ability to express both negative and positive feelings results in the individual into being available for the other for strokes and it becomes more clear now how this functions in the individual. In addition the strokes will then often be more effective. Being able to persist in your fee­lings when they are valid and approprate to the situation, means that one provides clarity about oneself while at the same time standing up for one's own feelings, so that the other can, in turn react appropriately. Cherishing individual differen­ces has the effect that the difference between the individuals is not considered to be distur­bing but rather as inspiring for further contact. The above mentioned conditions render the contact generally more exciting and are thus pleasant when both persons are in a paratelic state. These conditions which the individual needs to fulfill in order to build up reciprocal contact, can also be seen to define the context. The other conditions mentioned in our view also promote the establishment of a safe context. The conditions Postle fur­ther mentions highlight the nuances in a person's behaviour, so that it can better be applied in the right place and can be expe­rienced as less problematic and threatening. All in all most conditions seem to influence the experienced safety of the context. This is, regarding the energy dependent basis of development, in our view no surprising result. The context of the contact obviously influences the degree to which and the ease with which a person can settle down (see Bowlby's research, 1977, p. 41). This implies that social contacts influence the learning spirals as described in chapter 1. === 9. Social Contacts and Positive or Negative Learning Spirals === {{level|3}} The facilitating effect of "good" social relationships on development lies, according to the CEL-model, especially in the security and the relaxation the contact offers. When suffi­cient security and safety originate from such a context, the content of the social interaction can be more exciting and envigorating. The security of the context results in a stronger sense of control. Having the sense that one can control the situation well means that (provi­ded that this really is the case) the individual can more often easily relax at the moment he or she is in a telic state. Moreover, the very feeling of having the situation under con­trol implies safety and hence diminishes arousal. Being able to settle down more often has the effect that the the individual more often has the opportunity to replenish the energy resources and to process and "digest" the expe­riences. Replenishing the energy supply means that the individual will be in the paratelic state more often and will build up, in an explorative way, an surplus of experience. Such a surplus results "automa­tically" in neces­sity-orientated behavioural strategies (see chapter 1) and hence in a more efficient and economical represen­tation of reality. This means, in turn, that an individual will be better able to organize his social contacts in such a way that they regularly produce security, re-assurance, relaxation, etc. The reverse may, however, also be true. A social contact can also have a stagnating influence on the individual learning process. What tends to have gone wrong concerns, in principle, the security a contact can offer. This may for in­stance occur when both parties feel that they are not understood by the other (for example, because, the conditions of authenticity and empathy are not fulfilled). Rogers (1976, p. 265) mentions that the greater the extent of communicated incongruity, the more the relationship which emerges will contain the following elements: further communication with the same qualities; less accurate understanding, decreasing psychological "adjustment", and therefore more defensive behaviour and rigidity, worse functioning on both sides; and finally mutual disappointment in the relationship. Or in terms of the CEL-model: the context of the relationship offers too little security so that the likelihood that a parate­lic state is induced, diminishes. Moreover, the reciprocity of the contact is not initiated. The contact easily results in tension and because the context offers too little security, the person normally is not in a paratelic state and the tension will be experienced as unplea­sant. Being more often tense in a telic state means that one can less often relax when this is needed. And less relaxation often implies that there will be a diminished supply of energy. Less energy results in more frequent telic behaviour, and moreover, the tension of the contact will more often be experienced as unpleasant. Less energy also results in less paratelic states and so less explora­tion will be undertaken in exciting and new situations and attention will be paid to others less often. In this way, no surplus of (social) experience sur­plus will accumulate and the person will continue to use sufficiency-orientated recipes. The person has an inaccurate and ineffi­cient represen­tation of the relevant surroundings and the behavioural reper­toire shows deficiencies accordingly (see also chapter 1). Such a clear-cut "one-way traffic" in the direction of a good or a bad development will mostly be more ambiguous, as in the meantime other relationships and other situations can also assert their in­fluence. Still, it is good to realize that in a short period of time an individu­al can, in spite of, or better still despite his or her social contacts, end up in a negative learning spiral. This seems to be specifically relevant when a person needs ''extra'' time to process a life-event (for in­stance, the loss of a partner). Rogers mentions in the work quoted above yet another important aspect of relationships, namely that ''both'' parties in a relationship start to function less well because of what he calls communicated incongruity. He means that the par­ties in a relationship influence each others psycholo­gical "adaptation". === 10. "Contagiousness" of Interpersonal Psychological Skills and Adaptation === {{level|3}} As in the paragraph on the conditions for syner­getic effects, we will first mention a number of examples from the literature and then discuss these from the point of view of the CEL-model. The examples also serve to illustrate the concept of contagiousness of psychologi­cal adaptation, and are not intended as an exhaustive list or as profound analysis. Hoevenaars and Van Son (1989, p.108) state that with the exception of marriage conflicts, all connections between assumed causal factors (life-events, stress, social support and expressed emotion) and depression can be reduced to epiphenomenal relationships. Why conflicts in marriage-relationships are a prediction of depression is unknown.<br/> Considered from the CEL-model, such a connection between laborious relationships and other problems relating to psychological adaptation is obvious. The marriage partners, whose relationship is not sufficiently reciprocal and offers too little relaxation, disturb each other's optimum motivational sequence and this easily results in a reduced psychological adap­tation in the broad sense and a chronically reduced sense of well-being (for example in depression). Another example of contagiousness is the case of a so-called "folie a deux", where psychotic symptoms (usually delusions) are passed on from a psychotic person to a "healthy" person (Freedman et al., 1975). It even happens that several persons are involved in an induced psychosis. Goduco-Agalar and Wintrob (1964) mention a `folie à famille'. The eldest daughter "infected" the entire fami­ly, with the result that they, all seven together, beat an aunt to death in a state of religious frenzy. This contagiousness of psychotic symptoms only occurs in exceptional circumstances in which (a) the psychotic person is dominant and (b) the persons interact very closely with each other for a long period of time, relatively isolated from others. Even then the delusions remained within the limits of what is possible and they were based on events from the past or on similar expectations (Lase­que and Falret, 1877, in Freeman et al., 1975). In the case of a folie a deux two separate, but related things happen. The people concerned not only influence each other's psychologi­cal adaptation, but the cognitive contents also turn out to be contagious. This contagiousness of cognitive contents will not be further discussed here. Both examples originate from the realm of psychiatric aid and serve here to illustrate the concept contagiousness of psycho­logical "adaptations". They are clear because they both had a pronounced effect. Nonetheless, in our view, it is suf­ficient to study one's own relationships in order to recognize the contagiousness of moods and emotions in particular. But also the feeling of loosing energy in certain contacts is for most people a not un­familiar phenomenon. Such phenomena occur according to the CEL-model in particular (we repeat) when the contact is characterized by misunderstanding (strokes are not effec­tive) and tension, while both are in a telic state. For example, when one party constantly tries to demand attention and the other constantly has to give. Especially when both persons are in an autocentric state, they will not be able to relate. An example which, in our view, clarifies how difficult it is to remain in an allocentric state, while the person one spends time with, is mainly is in an auto­centric state, is the relationship between client and therapist. Especially the "burn-out" phenomenon (Edelwich, 1980) is clarifying. Newman and Newman (1979, p.430) give a description of what such a burn-out can mean: :"In daily work interactions, human service professionals often encounter situations that are emotionally arousing, frustrating, and perhaps personally threatening. In response to these intense experiences some people begin to take a very cynical, derogatory view of the people they are hired to help. (...) They begin to experience physical symptoms, increased use of drugs, marital conflict, and needs for solitude or detachment from all social contacts. (...) In this and other examples of stagnation, the person loses sight of the potential for nurturing, education or guiding others and becomes trapped in the struggle to protect the self." The fact that especially the psychiatric relief worker is a "victim" of this kind of burn-out can in our view easily be explained by way of the CEL. The therapist, according to the CEL-model, must be able to build up a contact which satisfies the basic conditions which were discussed in the previous chapter. This means that the thera­pist must himself have sufficient energy at his disposal to absorb the emotional arousal and the frustration (Newman and Newman, 1979) in the paratelic state. If this cannot be done, the therapist must regularly have the oppor­tunity to replen­ish his/her energy resources. Otherwise his or her motivational sequence may get more and more upset with all the consequences this entails. Van der Molen (1981) formulates this as follows: :"Getting deeply and emotionally involved in other people's severe psychological problems and emotional disturbances - one of the prerequisites for therapeutic success -, takes an awful lot of emotional energy, warranting quite frequent periods of emotional recovery in order to maintain a proper motivational balance ...." Especially these necessary periods of rest are frequently curtailed because of the average number of clients a therapist is supposed to see each day. Interpersonal contagiousness of psychological adapta­tion cannot only be explained from the CEL-model, but is even specifically predicted. Other predictions of the CEL-model con­cern the learning spirals as described in the previous paragraph and the possibility of synergies. The most obvious next step in our view is to check what can be found in the literature in the field of social contacts and the influences thereof on the learning process. In other words, to check whether the predic­tions which can be sifted from the CEL-model can indeed be traced in the research literature. To that end the research on social support seems most relevant. === 11. Social Support: Data from Effectivity Research and what has been missing up till now === {{level|3}} What predictions can be derived from the CEL-model in relation to social support? Owing to the influence of social contacts on the learning process in both a facilita­ting, positive direction as well as in a stagnating, negative direction, it may be expected that both outcomes indeed can be found in the results of the research in the field of social support. In order to check this, first and foremost a distinction should be made between the direct effects and the buffer effects of social support (Thoits, 1985; Cohen and Wills, 1985; Marcelissen, 1987; Buunk, 1988). Such a distinction must be made because this is also done in the literature on social support and because such a distinction can also be traced in the research data. Buffering effects occur when the social support reduces the negative psycho­logical effects of unpleasant events and/or chronical difficulties in a person's life, whereas this support does not influence psychological symptoms when there are no stress­ful circumstances (Cassel, 1976; Cobb, 1976; Kaplan et al., 1977; see Turner, 1983, for a survey of the research on buffering effects). Others (for in­stance Thoits, 1982, 1983) maintain that the changes themselves in social support already function as stressors. These changes are called direct effects of support. Finally, there are a number of studies (Dean and Ensel, 1982; Henderson et al., 1980; Husaini et al., 1982) which have found both effects (di­rect - and buffering -). In our view we can conclude from this cumulation of empirical material that both effects do indeed occur. Direct ''and'' buffer effects ''can'' mediate psychological consequences of stressful circumstances. The prediction was, however, that the reverse could also be the case: negative effects of social support should also be found in the results of the effectivity research. Buunk et al. (1988, pp.23-24) observe the following: :"It is further remarkable that regular reports of ''negative'' connections between (direct effects of) social support and well-being are (...). The results in relation to the possible buffer function of social support with stress at work, are even less convincing than those in relation to the direct effects." So these predictions of the CEL-model in relation to the ef­fects of social support are also valid. For many a support scheme this is not a very en­couraging result, as an explicit attempt is made in such cases to promote social support in such a way that it facilitates development. The main reason why nega­tive effects of social support are also found is that little is known about the mechanism of supportive processes and therefore it remains unclear what precisely has to be done and when. As Thoits says: :"We currently lack an understanding of supportive ''processes''." and :"... we know little about what aspects of support are really supportive, and from whom, through what mechanism, and under what conditions support can be beneficial (or harmful)." {{Harv|Thoits|1985|p=52}} And Buunk et al. (1988, p.23) come to the same conclusion, i.e.: :"Little systematic research has been done on psychological mechanisms which can explain the direct and buffer function of social support." So not only the results of the research on social support seem to support the predictions of the CEL model, but in our view this model can also contribute to the stimula­tion of systematic research on the mechanisms behind social support. The CEL model specifically allows predictions to be made concerning the question when support can be effective and when not. The CEL helps to fill in gaps in our understanding of the mechanisms and effects of social support interactions. === 12. Summary and Conclusions === {{level|3}} In this chapter, an extension was presented of the Cognition-Energy-Learning model. In order to be able to draw up a number of conditions for the evolution of social processes, we started from an ethological point of view. This enabled us to draw up a model of social interactive processes. This model i.a. implies a bistable or­ganization of social interactions. These two basic motivational states correspond with the allocentric and the autocentric state, as described by Apter. In the "allocentric" state the individual is not so much oriented towards personal social gains, but rather identifies him/herself with the other. The benefits for the other are then the primary determinant for the hedonic tone. In the "autocentric" state the reverse is true; the benefits of the interaction are experienced and appreciated as pleasant when the person himself is the receiver. The interplay between social interactions and the dynamic state of the learning process was further elucidated in the light of transactional and somatic drivers (motivations) and emotions. By including a social exchange unit ('''strokes''') to Apter's explanation of transactional emotions and discussing the implications thereof, a number of processes were clari­fied which until now had not been explained sufficient­ly. Examples are synergetic effects, contagiousness of psychological adaptation and the processes behind social support. Synergy can facilitate the individual learning pro­cess, but this will only take place when the person involved is in a paratelic state. The influen­ce of a social contact on the learning process proceeds, according to the CEL model, mainly through the certainty, security and relaxation which the contact can or cannot provide. In other words, if a contact influences the alternation between paratelic and telic states, the contact will influence the development. This can be an influence which facilitates psychological adaptation, but it also can be an influence obstructing this adaptation. From the research literature on social support it is not clear which processes do what. The CEL model as developed here allows us to make predictions about the question when social support can be effective and when absolutely not, and thus contributes to a useful definition of social support. Contagiousness of psychological adaptation, was also discussed. Here it also holds that this contagiousness occurs because individuals can influence each other's energy state and hence each other's metamoti­vational states. In view of the conditions that a social contact must fulfill in order to facilitate develop­ment, predictions can be made about the relationship be­tween a therapist and a client. According to the CEL model the security a contact can offer is the most impor­tant predictor of success and this is also an important con­dition for a therapeutic relationship. It was argued that the content of a contact can be more exciting, also through effects of synergy, when the context of that contact also offers more security. According to the CEL model, this has consequences for the success rate in psychiatric relief work. If we may assume that talking about intimate problems contributes to pro­cessing and digesting them, a rela­tionship offering the space (in terms of energy), needed for paratelic states to emerge, will contribute to attracting relevant experiences and to the processing thereof. This happens more or less automatically because the areas of experience which were represented as exci­ting also are the areas which contribute maximally to development once they are provided with necessity-oriented cognitive representations. In terms of Vygotsky (in Parreren and Carpay, 1980) it can be said that the exciting areas are the potential areas of further development. In these areas one can learn most fruitfully. Is the context not secure and relaxing enough, the CEL model predicts that the client will prefe­r not to broach the relevant areas of experience, in conversations or otherwise, or at least will find it very difficult to do so. Another aspect of the CEL model as developed so far, is that predictions can be made about for example the attribution of emotional labels to objects, situations and experiences. In view of Czapinksi`s re­search (see chapter 1) it may be expected that the mass of experiences that are not directly interesting, will "end up" in a diffuse, slightly positive cognitive background field. Only the experiences with a pronounced emotional "colour" are pro­cessed well or represented as problematic areas of ex­perience. The advantage of such a representa­tion system is that, as soon as there is a surplus of energy, one can ex­periment in the areas which are known to be problematic areas of experiences. And these are exactly the areas that can provide the newest and most relevant information. Finally we provide a short recapitulation of all implications of the model. In the first place, the CEL model indicates how the learning process depends on a person's energy balance. Moreover, this also explains how the lear­ning process is controlled by emotions. Subsequently, from the detailed description of the learning process, predictions can be infered concerning cognitive processes. The way in which the experiences are represented (in COEX systems) as well as the gradual shifts in those representations are described. It is further clarified how a certain cognitive representation, with concomitant behaviour-procedural characteristics (neces­sity- or suf­ficiency-oriented recipes) leads to specific types of behavi­our. The CEL moreover allows detailed predictions about the possibilities of intervening in the development of a person by redirecting the basis of this development, energy management. Thus a model was developed describing how social interactions are regulated, again through the emotions. Therefore, units of social exchange were introduced, "strokes". All in all the CEL model is an attempt to integrate a number of phenomena which generally belong to distinct and more or less unrelated areas of research. The reported phenomena range from ethological and biolo­gical influences through motivation and learning processes to cognitive representations and social interactions. The research, discussed here in relation to the CEL model was collected more or less ad hoc, since little research has as yet especially been set up for testing hypotheses stemming from this model. From the previous chapter it should however be clear that the CEL model more than adequately allows substantial predictions to be made that can be tested empirically. == References == {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1976 | title=Negativism in adolescence. The Counsellor | pages=23, 24, 25-30 }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1979 | chapter=Sexual behaviour and the theory of psychological reversals | editor1-last=Cook | editor1-first=M. | editor2-last=Wilson | editor2-first=G. | title=Love and Attraction | place=Oxford | publisher=Pergamon Press }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1982 | title=The experience of motivation. The theory of psychological reversals | place=Londen | publisher=Academic Press }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | chapter=Experiencing personal relationships | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Murgatroyd | editor2-first=D.F.S. | title=Reversal Theory: applications and development | pages=161-178 | place=Cardiff | publisher=University College Cardiff Press | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | chapter=Experiencing personal relationships | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Murgatroyd | editor2-first=D.F.S. | title=Reversal Theory: applications and development | pages=161-178 | place=Cardiff | publisher=University College Cardiff Press | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1988 | chapter=Reversal theory as a theory of the emotions | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Kerr | editor2-first=J.M. | editor3-last=Cowles | editor3-first=M.P. | title=Progress in Reversal Theory | pages=43-62 | place=Amsterdam | publisher=Elsevier Science Publishers | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Ban | first=T.A. | title=Conditioning and psychiatry | place=London | publisher=Allen and Unwin | year=1964 }} {{Citation | last=Barash | first=D.P. | title=The hare and the tortoise: culture, biology, and human nature | place=New York | publisher=Penguin Inc. | year=1986 }} {{Citation | last=Batson | first=C.D. | contribution=Prosocial motivation: is it ever truly altruistic? | periodical=Advances in Experimental Social Psychology | issue=20 | pages=65-117 | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last1=Batson | first1=C.D. | last2=Dyck | first2=J.C. | last3=Randall Brandt | first3=J. | last4=Batson | first4=J.G. | last5=Powell | first5=A.C. | last6=Mc.Master | first6=H.R. | last7=Griffitt | first7=C. | contributation=Five studies testing two new egoistic alternatives to the empathy-altruism hypothesis. | periodical=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology | issue=55 (1) | pages=52-77 | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Berne | first=E. | title=Beyond games and scripts, selections of this major writings | place=New York | publisher=Ballantine Books | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Bertness | first=M.D. | contribution=Pattern and plasticity in tropical hermit crab growth and reproduction | periodical=American Naturalist | issue=117 | pages=754-773 | year=1881 }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first=J. | year=1977 | title=The making and breaking of affectional bonds | periodical=British Journal of Psychiatry | issue=130 | pages=201-210, 421-431 }}<!-- TODO: Verify this reference --> {{Citation | last1=Boyd | first1=R. | last2=Richerson | first2=P.J. | title=Culture and the evolutionary process | place=Chicago | publisher=The University of Chicago Press | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Buck | first=R. | contribution=Prime theory: an integrated view of motivation and emotion | periodical=Psychological Review | issue=92 | pages=389-413 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Butler | first=R.A. | year=1953 | contribution=Discrimination learning in rhesus monkeys to visual exploration motivation | periodical=Behavior Research and Therapy | issue=3 | pages=245-250 }} {{Citation | last=Butler | first=R.A. | year=1954 | contribution=Incentive conditions which influence visual exploration | periodical=Journal of Experimental Psychology | issue=48 | pages=19-23 }} {{Citation | last=Butler | first=R.A. | year=1957 | contribution=The effect of deprivation of visual incentives on visual exploration motivation in monkeys | periodical=Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology | issue=50 | pages=177-179 }} {{Citation | last1=Buunk | first1=B. | last2=Yperen | first2=N. van | last3=Janssen | first3=P. | title=Een nieuwe blik op angst en affiliatie: sociale ondersteuning en stress in organisaties | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Campbell | first=D. | contribution=On the genetics of altruism and the counterhedonic in human culture | periodical=Journal of Social Issues | issue=28 | pages=21-37 | year=1972 }} {{Citation | last=Cannon | first=W.B. | title=Bodily changes in pain, hunger, fear and rage | place=New York | publisher=Appleton | year=1932 }} {{Citation | last=Cassel | first=J. | contribution=The contribution of the social environment to host resistance | periodical=American Journal of Epidemiology | issue=104 | pages=107-122 | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Cobb | first=S. | contribution=Social support as a moderator of life stress | periodical=Psochosomatic Medicine | issue=38 | pages=300-314 | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last1=Cohen | first1=S. | last2=Wills | first2=T.A. | contribution=Stress, social support and the buffering hypothesis | periodical=Psychological Bulletin | issue= 98 (2) | pages=310-357 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Positive and negative asymmetry at group and individual level: further evidence and a new interpretation | periodical=Polish Psychological Bulletin | issue=13 (2) | pages=153-158 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Negative bias in psychology: an analysis of Polish publications | periodical=Studia Psuchologiczne | issue=22 (2) | pages=25-53 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Interpersonal communication, informativeness of evaluations in interpersonal communication: effects of valence, extremity of evaluations and ego-involvement of evaluator | periodical=Polish Psychological Bulletin | issue=7 (3-4) | pages=155-164 | year=1986 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Informational aspects of positive-negative asymmetry in evaluations | title=Paper delivered in the Small Group Meeting on Social Cognition | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last1=Daly | first1=M. | last2=Wilson | first2=M. | title=Sex, evolution and behavior | edition=2nd | place=Belmont | publisher=Wadsworth Publishing Company | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=R. | year=1976 | title=The Selfish Gene | place=Oxford | publisher=Oxford University Press }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=R. | year=1986 | title=The Blind Watchmaker | place=London | publisher=Penguin Group }} {{Citation | last1=Dean | first1=A. | last2=Ensel | first2=W.M. | contribution=Modelling social support, life events, competence, and depression in the context of age and sex | periodical=Journal of Community Psychology | issue=10 | pages=392-408 | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last=Edelwich | first=J. | title=Burn-out: Stages of disillusionment in the helping professions | place=New York | publisher=Human Scientific Press | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last=Egan | first=G. | title=The skilled helper | place=Monterey | publisher=Brooks/Cole Publishing Company | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last1=Freedman | first1=A.M. | last2=Kaplan | first2=H.I. | last3=Sadock | first3=B.J. | title=Comprehensive textbook of psychiatry/4 | place=Baltimore | publisher=Williams and Williams | year=1975 }} {{Citation | last1=Goduco-Agular | first1=C. | last2=Wintrob | first2=R. | contribution=Folie à famille in the philippines | periodical=Psychiatric Quarterly | issue=38 | pages=278 | year=1964 }} {{Citation | last=Gorp | first=J. van | contribution=Quantity and quality of strokes | editor-last=Stein | editor-first=E. | title=TA, The state of the art, a European contribution | pages=77-89 | place=Dordrecht | publisher=Foris Publications | year=1984 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1972 | title=Varieties of transpersonal experiences: observations from L.S.D. psychotherapy | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=4 | pages=45-80 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1973 | title=Theoretical and empirical basis of transpersonal psychology and psychotherapy: observations from L.S.D. research | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=1 }}<!-- TODO: Doesn't correspond to reference in other article --> {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1976 | title=Realms of the Human Unconscious. Observations from L.S.D. Research | place=New York | publisher=Dutton }} {{Citation | last=Hamilton | first=W.D. | contribution=The genetical evolution of social behaviour. I & II | periodical=Journal of Theoretical Biology | issue=7 | pages=1-52 | year=1964 }} {{Citation | last1=Henderson | first1=S. | last2=Byrne | first2=D.G. | last3=Duncan-Jones | first3=P. | last4=Scott | first4=R. | last5=Adcock | first5=S. | contribution=Social relationships, adversity, and neurosis: A study of associations in a general population sample | periodical=Journal of Psychiatry | issue=136 | pages=574-583 | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last1=Hoevenaars | first1=J. | last2=Son | first2=M.J.M. van | chapter=Gedragstheorieën over depressiviteit | title=Directieve therapie | pages=108-126 | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=Hornstein | first=H.A. | title=Cruelty and kindness: A new look at aggression and altruism | year=1976 | publisher=Prentice Hall }} {{Citation | last=Hornstein | first=H.A. | title=Promotive tension and prosocial behavior: A Lewinian analysis | year=1978 }} {{Citation | last=Hornstein | first=H.A. | title=Promotive tension: Theory and research | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last1=Husaini | first1=B.A. | last2=Newbrought | first2=J.R. | last3=Neff | first3=J.A. | last4=Moore | first4=M.C. | contribution=The stress-buffering role of social support and personal competence among the rural married | periodical=Journal of Community Psychology | issue=10 | pages=409-426 | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last=Jung | first=C.G. | chapter=The aims of psychotherapy. In "The practice of psychotherapy" | title= Collected Works | volume=16 | publisher=Routledge and Kegan Paul | place=London | year=1954 }} {{Citation | last1=Kaplan | first1=B.H. | last2=Cassel | first2=J.C. | last3=Core | first3=S. | contribution=Social support and health | periodical=Medical Care | issue=15 (Supplement) | pages=47-58 | year=1977 }} {{Citation | last=Kohlberg | first=l. | chapter=Stage and sequence: the cognitive-developmental approach to socialization | editor-last=Gostlin | editor-first=D.A. | title=Handbook of socialization theory and research | place=Chigaco | publisher=Rand Mc.Nally | year=1969 }} {{Citation | last1=Krebs | first1=K.r. | last2=Ryan | first2=J.C. | last3=Charkov | first3=E.l. | contribution=Hunting by expectation or optimal foraging? | periodical=Animal Behaviour | issue=22 | pages=953-964 | year=1974 }} {{Citation | last=Lack | first=D. | title=Population studies of birds | place=Oxford | publisher=Clarendon Press | year=1966 }} {{Citation | last=Lakke | first=J.P.W.F. | title=Inleiding in de neurologie | place=Lochem | publisher=De Tijdstroom | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last1=Lasèque | first1=C. | last2=Falret | first2=J. | contribution=Folie à deux folie à communiquée | periodical=Annual Med. Psychol. | issue=18 | pages=321 | year=1877 }} {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | title=Positive- negative evaluative asymmetry and human cognitive biases (paper) | place=Helsinki | year=1985 }} <!-- paper --> {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | title=Action involvement and action control | year=1986 }} {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | chapter=On objective and subjective anchoring of cognitive acts | editor1-last=Baker | editor1-first=W.J. | editor2-last=Mos | editor2-first=L.P. | editor3-last=Rappard | editor3-first=H.V. | editor4-last=Stam | editor4-first=H.J. | title=Recent trends in Theoratical Psychology | place=New York | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last=Lewin | first=K. | title=Field theory in social science: selected theoretical papers | editor-last=Cartwright | editor-first=D. | place=New York | publisher=Harper & Row | year=1951 }} {{Citation | last=Marcelissen | first=F.H.G. | title=Gangmakers in the stressproces | place=Leiden | publisher=NIPG/TNO | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last=Mazák | first=V. | title=Prehistoric man: The dawn of our species | place=Prague | publisher=Artia (for the Hamlyn Publishing Group Limited) | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last=Molen, van der | first=P.P. | title=Anxiety, joy and the dynamics of personal growth: on the process of learning in the play and struggle called life | id=HB-77-324-EX | place=Rijks Universiteit Groningen | year=1977 }} {{Citation | last=Molen, van der | first=P.P. | chapter=[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] | editor1-last=Wind | editor1-first=J. | editor2-last=Reynolds | editor2-first=V. | editor3-last=Corlay | editor3-first=R. | title=Essays in human social biology | volume=2 | pages=189-211 | year=1983 | place=Brussels | publisher=V.U.B. Study Series }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1984 | title=Bi-stability of emotions and motivations: An evolutionary consequence of the open-ended capacity for learning | periodical=Acta Biotheoretica | issue=33 | pages=227-251 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1985 | chapter=Learning, self-actualization and psychotherapy | editor1-first=M.J. | editor1-last=Apter | editor2-first=D. | editor2-last=Fontana | editor3-first=S. | editor3-last=Murgatroyd | title=Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments | pages=103-116 | place=Cardiff, U.K. | publisher=University College Cardiff Press }} {{Citation | last=Montgomery | first=K.C. | contribution=Exploration behavior as a function of 'similarity' of stimulus situations | periodical=Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology | issue=46 | pages=129-133 | year=1953 }} {{Citation | last=Murgatroyd | first=S.J. | contribution=A new perspective on srises counselling | periodical=British Journal of Guidance and Counselling | issue=9, (2) | pages=180-193 | year=1981 }} {{Citation | last1=Myers | first1=A.K. | last2=Miller | first2=N.E. | contribution=Failure to find a learned drive based on hunger; evidence for learning motivated by 'exploration' | periodical=Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology | issue=47 | pages=428-436 | year=1954 }} {{Citation | last1=Newman | first1=B.M. | last2=Newman | first2=P.R. | title=Development through life: A psychological approach | place=Homewood | publisher=Dorsey Press | year=1979 }} {{Citation | last1=Parreren | first1=C.F. | last2=Carpay | first2=J.A.M. | title=Leerpsychologie en onderwijs 4: Sovjetpsychologen over onderwijs en cognitieve ontwikkeling | place=Groningen | publisher=Wolters Noordhoff | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last1=Piliavin | first1=J.A. | last2=Piliavin | first2=I.M. | title=The good samaritan: Why does he help? | place=University of Winconsin-Madison | publisher=Unpublished manuscript | year=1973 }} {{Citation | last1=Piliavin | first1=J.A. | last2=Dovidio | first2=J.F. | last3=Gaertner | first3=S.L. | last4=Clark | first4=R.D. | title=Emergency intervention | place=New York | publisher=Academic Press | year=1981 }} {{Citation | last=Postle | first=D. | title=Synergy: creativity in interpersonal relations, mapping the terrain of cooperation | place=The Wentworth Institute | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=Rogers | first=C.R. | title=Mens worden, de visie van een psychotherapeut op persoonlijke groei | place=Utrecht | publisher=Bijleveld | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Shapiro | first=H.L. | title=Man, culture, and society | place=London; New York | publisher=Oxford University Press | year=1981 }} {{Citation | last=Swensen | first=L.H. | chapter=Ego development and the interpersonal relationships | editor-last=Nevill | editor-first=D.D. | title=Humanistic psychology, new frontiers | place=New York | publisher=Gardner Press | year=1977 }} {{Citation | last=Thoits | first=P.A. | contribution=Life stress, social support, and psychological vulnerability: Epidemiological considerations | periodical=Journal of Community Psychology | issue=10 | pages=341-362 | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Thoits | first=P.A. | chapter=Social support and psychological well-being: theoretical possibilities | editor1-last=Sarason | editor1-first=I.G. | editor2-last=Sarason | editor2-first=B.R. | title=Social Support: Theory, Research and Applications | place=Dordrecht | publisher=Martnus Nijhoff Publishers | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Tinbergen | first=N. | contribution=On aims and methods of ethology | periodical=Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie | issue=20 | pages=410-433 | year=1963 }} {{Citation | last=Tinbergen | first=N. | contribution=On war and peace in animals and man | periodical=Science | issue=160 | pages=1411-1418 | year=1968 }} {{Citation | last=Trivers | first=R.L. | contribution=The evolution of reciprocal altruism | periodical=Quarterly Review of Biology | issue=46 | pages=35-37 | year=1971 }} {{Citation | last=Turner | first=R.J. | chapter=Direct, indirect, and moderating effects of social support upon psychological distress and associated conditions | editor-last=Kaplan | editor-first=H.B. | title=Psychological stress: trends in theory and research | place=New York | publisher=Academic Press | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Wever | first=D. | title=Biopsychologische aspecten van gemotiveerd gedrag | publisher=Ongepubliceerd | place=Rijks Universiteit Groningen | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=White | first=R.W. | contribution=Motivation considered: The concept of competence | periodical=Psychological Review | issue=66 | pages=297-333 | year=1959 }} {{Citation | last=Williams | first=G.C. | title=Adaptation and natural selection | place=Princeton, N.J. | publisher=Princeton University Press | year=1966 }} {{Citation | last=Wynne-Edwards | first=V.C. | title=Animal dispersion in relation to social behaviour | place=Edinsburgh | publisher=Oliver and Boyd | year=1962 }} ==Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject== {{Citation | last1=Dennen, v.d. | first1=J.M.G. | last2=Molen, v.d. | first2=P.P. | year=1981 | title=Violent Aggression as a Social Unskill: Notes on the Psychopathology of Everyday Life | place=Polemological Institute, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) | }} {{Citation | last1=Molen, v.d. | first1=P.P. | last2=Dennen, v.d. | first2=J.M.G. | year=1981 | contribution=Striving, Playing and Learning: An Ethologists View on Aggression and the Dynamics of Learning in the Play and Struggle called "Life" | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-81-551-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} <!-- Presented at the First Congress of the European Section of the International Society for Research on Aggression (I.S.R.A.), sept.1981, at Strassburg, France, and at the Second Meeting of the European Sociobiological Society (E.S.S.), febr.1983, at Leusden, Netherlands --> {{Citation | last1=Maarsingh | first1=B. | last2=Molen, v.d. | first2=P.P. | year=1990 | contribution=Energie en Strokes: de Wisselwerking tussen de kwaliteit van sociale relaties en de individuele ontwikkeling | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-90-1004-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} {{Citation | last1=Molen, v.d. | first1=P.P. | last2=Dijk, v. | first2=C. | last3=Maarsingh | first3=B. | last4=Stoelhorst | first4=P. | year=1990 | contribution=Naar een Cognetief-Energetisch Leermodel; over de bi-stabiele organisatie van emoties en het effect daarvan op de ontwikkeling van copingvaardigheden en cognitie; een integratie van de theorieën van Lazarus, Apter, Van der Molen en Lewicka | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-90-1012-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} 5x4otc0nq843aj0lkscgzyhk0738pkb 0 50 279 2007-12-16T00:11:58Z BigSmoke 1 [[Energy and Strokes: how the quality of relationships influences the process of learning and individual development]] moved to [[Energy and Strokes]]: The shorter title will make linking ''a lot'' less painful. If we have the luxury of a shorter title (m wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Energy and Strokes]] f2z5k0mnd1z8wdwzrraj2ttxk4sud2k 0 51 6797 6796 2017-01-17T13:24:36Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki <center> STATE UNIVERSITY GRONINGEN - HEYMANSBULLETIN - HB-91-1030-EX <big><b>Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning model (C.E.L.) (2)</b></big> Presented for the fifth international conference on<br/> Reversal Theory, June 21-25, 1991 at Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.A.<br/> (second part) </center> ''' Introduction''' {{Level|2}} This report describes the C.E.L. (Cognition-Energy-Learning model) which is based on a number of established psychological theories. This model is integrative in the sense that it describes different classes of behaviour, of personal insights and of ex­periences that are generally regarded as distinct areas of psychological research. Examples are: emotions, motivation, cognitive representa­tion of experiences, coping behaviour and the ethological concept of the efficient allocation of energy. The importance of this model lies, therefore, firstly in the opportuni­ty it provides to classify all those different psychological phenomena in a logically coherent and consistent way. In addition, the model provides a ''basic ex­planation'' of learning behaviour, as it refers back to the evolutionary basis of behaviour. In other words: it is possible to indicate ''why'' effective coping behaviour develops and also ''why'' this development may stagnate. Coping means here: behaviour that is geared to mastering a problem situation. Subsequently, the model explains on the one hand the con­nection between emotions and motivation and on the other hand the way in which the cognitive representation of ex­periences is laid down and how it gradually shifts and changes. In each chapter of this treatise, one theoretic ap­proach of a specific phenomenon will be discussed and any lacunae, gaps or specific problems of the theory concerned, will be identified. We shall then attempt to solve these problems in the next chapter, adding an additional piece of theory. This way, four theories will be discussed, all of which show hiatuses in some specific respects. The basis of this treatise is Lazarus' classical theory. According to Lazarus (in Bond and Rosen, 1980), stress arises when a person notices that environmental requirements demand too much of his/her available resources. Lazarus states that stress situations do not necessarily have to be experienced as negative. It is, however, often the case; when a person expects that his or her abilities and resources for dealing with specific environmental requirements are insuffi­cient, he or she will probably expect damage or loss. Such situations may be experienced as extremely threaten­ing. On the other hand, great demand may be exerted on a person in terms of adaptability while that person still thinks he or she can handle the situation well. Such situations might be regarded as challenges, regarding the opportunity to gain advantages or more control or is affecting personal growth. Adequate reactions in such situations may then influence that person's well-being very positively. Thus, stress situations are not always experienced as negative, but depend on the inter­pretation by the person in question. When a person experiences stress, he or she may develop strategies to limit damage, or even profit from the situation. In literature this is called coping. With regard to the inter­pretation of stress situations, Lazarus (1980) states that it is a problem that too little is known about which situations are felt to be threatening or challenging, and when that happens and by whom. This hiatus can neatly be filled by Apter's Reversal theory (chapter 2). In this theory two so-called meta-motivational states are proposed. These metamotivational states determine how a person perceives a specific situation and the type of behaviour with which he of she will react to it. However, one disadvantage of Apter's theory is its descriptive nature and the fact that it does not account for a connection between the dynamics of motivation and the learning processes mentioned above. Van der Molen's learning model, described in chapter 3, does provide this connection and is thus able to explain how these learning processes are maintained. In this model the "contagious nature" of learning ex­periences is described too. That is, a learning experience that is badly dealt with, increases the likelihood that future learning experiences in similar areas of experience will also be badly dealt with which means that it is likely that the area concerned will stay and always will be proble­matical. (the reverse applies to learning experiences which are dealt with successfully). The cognitive interpretation or emotional "labelling" of similar areas of experience (for example "exci­ting" or "boring") always depends on a person's metamotivational condition. Van der Molen's model describes how metamotivational conditions affect learning pro­cesses. The model does not yet, however, adequately describe how these conditions influence cognitive contents. Lewicka's model of antagonistic cognitive styles (chapter 4) does discuss this aspect. In this model two mechanisms are described which are alternately active in a person (comparable to Apter's theory). Which of the two mechanisms is active at a specific moment, determines what type of infor­mation a person will seek in the first place and also determines how cognitive information will be structured. By combining and integrating the theories mentioned (chapter 5) we have been able to develop a model that not only explains the growth of coping strategies, but also explains the relation between the dynamics of emotions and motivation on the one hand and the way in which cognitive contents are effected and develop on the other hand. We have called this model the Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (CEL). This will be exemplified with empirical information about the coping behaviour of teachers (Romkes, 1988, chapter 6). == Chapter 1: Lazarus' coping theory == {{Level|3}} In this chapter Lazarus' theory (e.g. 1980, 1984) of coping behaviour is discussed. The most important ideas of this theory are summarized and at the end of the chapter we show that the theory contains a number of gaps with regard to the process of learning and the development of coping skills. === Transactions between persons and their environment === {{Level|3}} Lazarus (in Bond and Rosen,1980) calls his approach to stress and coping behaviour cognitive-phenomenological. Emotions and stress are regarded as products of cognitive activity, relating to the way in which a person assesses and evaluates his or her relation with the environment. Lazarus emphasizes that there is a continuous relationship between persons and their environment. On the one hand there are people with individual values, beliefs, skills, etc. On the other hand there are situations, with varying requirements, limi­tations and facilities. Together they form a dynamic system in which there is a continuous process of mutual influence and change. Lazarus states that there is a ''transaction'' between persons and their environment which changes (adapts / trans­forms) constantly in the course of time. === The concept of appraisal: assessment of the environment === {{Level|3}} In Lazarus' theory the term ''appraisal'', that is to say the cognitive assessment by a person of a (real, imaginary or expected) trans­action, is central. Lazarus distinguishes between ''primary appraisal'', ''secondary appraisal'' and ''reappraisal''. "Primary appraisal" refers to the process in which a person assesses whether and how a particular transaction will influence his or her own well-being. Such assessments can take three forms, irrelevant, positive or stressful. A person considers a situation to be stressful when he or she perceives that there are situational requirements that make a great demand on his or her adaptability and on the resources he or she possesses to respond to these demands. Appraisal of a situation as stressful can be divided into sub-types: * '''damage/loss'''; for example when a partner dies, loss of physical functions, loss of self-respect. * '''threat'''; expected or feared damage or loss which has not yet materialized. * '''challenge'''; growth opportunity, acquisition of control or advantage. Lazarus states that there is too little known about when and by what kind of people a situation is felt to be threatening rather than challenging (and vice versa). However, Lazarus does provide some information about these aspects: :"A working hypothesis about the causal antecedents of threat and challenge is that the former is more likely when a person assumes that the specific environment is hostile and dangerous and that he or she lacks the resources for mastering it, while challenge arises when the environmental demands are seen as difficult, but not impossible to manage, and that drawing upon existing or acquired skills offers a genuine prospect for mastery." (in Bond and Rosen, 1980, p. 48). This leads us to the second type of transaction assessment. The above quotation not only deals with appraisal of the situation and environmental demands, but also with a person's own possibilities to react adequately. Lazarus calls the latter "secondary appraisal", i.e. appraisal of the personal and social means a person has at his or her disposal, the effectiveness of a particular strategy of behaviour in the situation, as well as the possibility that new problems will be created as a result of one's own actions. With regard to transactions in which persons and environ­ment influence each other, we can see that primary and secondary appraisal also affect each other. A situation which was originally seen as threatening, can for example be seen as less threaten­ing when a person realises that damage can probably be prevented by adopting a particular strategy of behaviour. Lazarus calls this "reappraisal": a change in the original appraisal of a transaction, resulting from feedback from effectuated outcomes from this transaction, as a result of the person's actions, or by a (mere) re-thinking of the nature of this transaction. So appraisal is also a dynamic process in which changes take place constantly in the course of time and in which appraisal of the situation and one's own possibilities is constantly adjusted. Finally, we must observe that appraisal does not only mean rational assessment of the transaction, but also the quality and intensity of a person's emotional feedback on the transaction. For example, it is more likely that a positive assessment of a situation will cause a positive emotional reaction, such as joy or satisfaction. It is likely that a situation that is assessed as threatening will evoke negative emotions, such as fear or anger. In such cases a person feels that he/she is unable to react adequately to the demands that he or she are facing in a specific situation. In other words, he or she feels that they are beyond his or her coping activities. Let's pay some attention to the concept of ''coping''. === Coping === {{Level|3}} Lazarus gives the following definition of the term coping: :"We regard coping as problem-solving efforts made by an individ­ual when the demands he faces are highly relevant to his welfare (that is, a situation of considerable jeopardy or promise), and when these demands tax his adaptive resourses." (in Coelho, 1974, p. 250-251). Coping activities can have two functions. First, a person can try to improve the situation by changing his or her own behaviour or environment. Secondly, a person can try to control emotions evoked by stress, so that morale and social functioning will not be influenced. Lazarus calls this ''palliation'', using a temporary measure to alleviate stress, such as denying, intellectualising or avoiding negative thoughts; in this way the situation itself does not change, but the individual makes sure that he or she feels better. Thus coping activities are not always rational or realistic, but can also be very irrational, primitive or rigid. Lazarus states that both kinds of coping are important; according to him realistic problem solving and primitive defensive mechanisms are two sides of the same coin. Lazarus distinguishes four types of coping activities: (a) ''Information seeking'': investigating the characteristics of a stressful situation in order to gain the knowledge necessary to make a correct coping decision, or to be able to assess threat or damage differently. On the one hand, seeking information can form a firm basis for an individual's action, on the other hand it can make this person feel better, by rationalising or supporting a previous decision; this is called "palliation". (b) ''Direct action'': action taken by an individual to handle a stressful situation, directed towards himself or herself or at the environ­ment, depending on environmental demands and personal goals. (c) ''Inhibition of action''; suppression of action impulses that may otherwise cause damage, for example because they are morally or socially not acceptable, or because they can cause physical damage. (d) ''Intrapsychic modes'': cognitive processes aimed at regulating emotions which arise as a result of stressful situations. As with other coping activities, they can be aimed at incidents from the past (for example the reinterpretation of a traumatic ex­peri­ence), or at future events (for example denying that a particular situation may become dangerous). Usually they are aimed at increasing the feeling of well-being of this individual; therefore, succesful intrapsychic coping activities may restrict the number of active attempts an individual makes to control his of her environment. Lazarus admits that his rather rough division of coping activities is a rudimentary classification system; and indeed, a number of significant aspects are lacking. For example, it does not include any details about possible coping feedback and any antecedent conditions or results of different types of coping behaviour. There is still too little known about which situations evoke which types of coping behaviour. Moreover, Lazarus states that motivational and emotional aspects of coping receive relatively little attention in psychological studies. The developmental aspects of coping behaviour are also still unclear, and according to Lazarus studies of these aspects are essential in order to be able to understand the coping process more clearly. === Gaps in Lazarus' theory === {{Level|3}} Lazarus has developed a clear and understandable theory with regard to certain central concepts, such as the transaction between persons and their environment, the individual's appraisal of a transaction, emotional response on this appraisal and several types of coping activities. However, it is still not clear what exactly is the nature of the processes described. Some lack of clarity remains which Lazarus himself in fact also admits. Lazarus states, for example, that it is not clear which situations are experienced as threatening and not as a challenge, and by which persons (and vice versa). In the theory little is said about what kind of factors are important for acquiring coping behaviour and how the behavioural repe­toire a person has at his or her disposal to respond to environ­mental demands, may develop in the course of time. In the next chapter we will show how Apter's Reversal theory can provide an answer to a number of the queries mentioned above. == Chapter 2: Apter's Reversal Theory == === A supplement to remedy Lazarus' theory === {{Level|3}} One of the deficiencies observed in Lazarus' theory can be remedied by supplementing it with Apter's Reversal theory. The Reversal theory provides a (descriptive) answer to the question relating to the various ways in which people react to the same, or similar, situations. The Reversal theory states that as far as human motivation is concerned people are in one of two metamotivational states. The way in which a situation is experienced depends on the state a person is in at a particular moment. The two states can be distinguished by the level of arousal that is preferred. ''Arousal'' is defined in this theory as being mentally and physically prepared for action. === The organisation of motivation according to Apter === {{Level|3}} The ''Reversal theory'' has been developed by Apter and Smith (1975; see also Apter, 1984). The theory deals with the way in which people experience motives for their actions and descibes the process of changes in motivation. In this theory an in­dividual is regarded as a complex "machine" that uses the environment for his or her own aims. This "machine" can behave according to different "programs" which determine the way in which the environ­ment is experienced. The idea that one action can be performed with different motives is central. For example, a person may ride a bicycle, because he or she has to attend a meeting. This is a determined action. Here, riding a bicycle represents the means by which a goal can be achieved. However a person can also ride a bicycle "just" for pleasure. In this case a person acts according to the program "wanting to be active", and cycling is a goal in itself. Thus, there are two possible states in which a person can be. These states are characteristic of the way in which an act, in this case "cycling", is experienced. In the case of the meeting this act is purposive. In this situation cycling is not an act undertaken to create stress or excitement; here the aim is to fulfill a particular task. In other words: to remove the tension that is caused by being obliged to fulfill this task. In the second case cycling is an action which in itself evokes particularly pleasant excitement. For this reason the Reversal theory rejects a simplistic-homeostatic interpretation of human motivation in which there is just one optimal state of balance that individuals are seeking. This state of balance particularly refers to ''one optimal level'' of arousal. According to the homeostatic way of thinking, individuals will always try to achieve one optimal level of arousal and/or to remain at this level. However, the Reversal theory assumes that at times a low level of arousal is aimed and at other times, a high level of arousel. Therefore Apter introduces the concept of ''bi-stability''. This means, for example, that people may or may not feel fine at a low or a high level of arousal. As the examples mentioned above show, at times one's aim may simply be the performance of a particular task and the act is not meant to raise the level of arousal. At other times a person may seek excite­ment, in which case the same or a similar act can suddenly become exciting (arousal increasing). To illustrate these ideas we can consider a number of situations in which different levels of arousal are experienced. Generally (but not necessarily), there is a high level of arousal when a person watches an exciting film. One can imagine that this excitement can be both pleasant and unpleasant. For example, when a person has been working all day and the work was very boring, a movie picture can provide a welcome state of e­xcitement. On the other hand, when a person has just been threatened in the street, the tension caused by the movie may be too much for him or her. In this situation a hot bath may be preferred as it is more likely to provide relaxation. Thus, there is a desire for a low level of arousal. The same hot bath may evoke boredom (in Apter's terms) in someone who has not done anything all day long. Therefore, it is important here that a particular level of arousal is not inadvertently connected with the person's well-being. These examples indicate that a person can feel good or not, depending on the level of arousal sought at that moment, in other words: depending on the metamotivational state a person is in at that moment. The level of arousal is always evoking a ''subjective experience''. In other words: an exciting experience for one person, may be boring to another. === Bi-stability of emotions and motivation === {{Level|3}} We have shown that there are two possible states of preference as far as the level of arousal is concerned. Firstly, there is the state in which a person aims at a low level of arousal and performs purposive action. This state is called arousal-avoidance or the ''telic state'' (telos is Greek for goal or purpose). In this state a low level of arousal is experienced as pleasant, Apter (1982) calls this "relaxation". A high level of arousal is experienced as unpleasant and is called "fear" by Apter. Secondly, there is the state in which a person aims at a high level of arousal and shows unpurposive action. This state is called the arousal-seeking or ''paratelic state'' (literally translated from Greek, paratelic means "without aim" or "goal-less"). In this state a high level of arousal will be experienced as pleasant "excitement", whereas a low level of arousal causes an unpleasant feeling: "boredom". These two states, telic and paratelic, differ as far as the experience of purpose, time and intensity is concerned (Apter, 1982; Mur­gatroyd, 1978, 1983). This is shown in table 2.1. The telic or paratelic state is as it were a frame for particular behaviour (Goffman, 1975). The states mentioned refer to the way in which the motivation of behaviour is experienced. For this reason they are called ''metamotivational states''. These states determine how experiences are labelled (see table 2.2, following next page). At any moment in time a person is always in one of these two states. The period of time in which a person can be in a particular state varies from a few seconds to some days (Walters, Apter and Svebak, 1982). <pre> Table 2.1 Characteristics of the telic and paratelic states ╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ In the telic state there are: ║ ╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ ║ - purposive action ║ ║ - imposed purposes ║ ║ - attempts to complete actions ║ ║ - secure and routine behaviour ║ ║ - looking for experience and safety ║ ║ - orientation to the outside world ║ ║ - behaviour aimed at the future ║ ║ - planned activities ║ ║ - activities that are a means to a purpose ║ ║ - preference for low intensity experiences ║ ║ - a high level of realism ║ ║ - preference for a low level of arousal ║ ╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ ║ In the paratelic state there are: ║ ╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ ║ - process behaviour ║ ║ - avoidable and freely chosen "purposes" ║ ║ - attempts to extend activities and to make them continue ║ ║ - exploration ║ ║ - experimenting with behaviour ║ ║ - looking for news and excitement ║ ║ - a here-and-now experience ║ ║ - activities that are aims in themselves ║ ║ - activities that are spontaneous and free ║ ║ - a preference for high intensity experiences ║ ║ - imagination and exaggeration ║ ║ - preference for a high level of arousal ║ ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ </pre> [[Image:Pleasant and unpleasant experiences of high and low arousal.png|framed|none|Table 2.2 The variable meaning of the experienced level of arousal]] === The reversals to the different states === {{Level|3}} We will now describe how a reversal from one state to another can take place. Reversals take place involuntarily, although a person may be capable of getting into a situation in which a reversal into one or another direction becomes likely. The frequency with which reversals take place differs from person to person and is, moreover, dependent on the situation a person is in (Blackmore and Murgatroyd in Apter, 1980). The Reversal theory describes several conditions that can lead to a reversal. Most important are "contingencies"; aspects of a person or of the environment change in such a way that a reversal is triggered. For example, if a particular drug is used, if a visitor arrives unexpectedly or in an emergency situation. The second condition that can lead to a reversal is called "satiation". It is assumed that a reversal becomes more likely when the period of time in which a person is in a particular metamoti­vational state increases. A person then becomes more sensitive to signals from the environment or from himself or herself that can lead to contingencies. The different conditions influence each other, and can make reversals more or less likely. Table 2.2 and figure 2.1 show that a reversal from one state to another changes the meaning given to the level of arousal experienced. A reversal from the paratelic to the telic state, while a person experiences a high level of arousal, will result in a change from excitement to anxiety. A reversal from telic to paratelic, while a person experiences a low level of arousal, will result in a change from relaxation to boredom. [[Image:Reversal system of antagonistic motivations.png|framed|none|Figure 2.1. Apter's Reversal model (from: Apter, 1985)]] <!-- XXX: In the original document, the top part of this figure is not used; make another version of the image? --> === Other possible sequences === {{Level|3}} Figure 2.1 shows the way in which the process of interchanging emotions and motivation ''often'' takes place. However, another "direction" may be followed. For example, a person may remain in a state of anxiety for a long time, because he or she cannot relax suffi­ciently. This can happen to a person who is not completely in control of (a) particular situation(s). In this case it is unlikely that after some time a person will look for a state of excitement. It is also possible that the entire sequence of emotions (the butterfly figure) in figure 2.1 rises or falls along the vertical axis (Apter 1982). This indicates that a person feels mainly well or not well respectively. The first can take place when a person has many skills, and can handle all kinds of different situations well. This person will not experience boredom in the strict sense, because the unpleasant stage of the paratelic state will soon change into exploration or into other activities that cause excitement or/and which increase the hedonic tone. When, following a period of rest and/or relaxation a person reaches "satiation", he or she will not remain in a state of boredom (unpleasant), but will soon find opportunities to perform one or another paratelic action which will be experienced as pleasant. The butterfly in the figure may be at a lower level when a person is often anxious, or when he or she is chronically bored. Referring to Apter's model this situation can be explained by an inability to reach relaxation. As this person is unable to relax sufficiently for example, owing to an absence of skills, he or she will soon become (once more) over-aroused and anxious when he or she is in an exciting situation. That is, such situations become more threatening when a person can experience fewer moments of relaxation (Apter 1982). Such a person will, therefore, sooner experience the reversal from the paratelic to the telic state. In other words: a person will relatively quickly get from the state in which the situation was exciting (paratelic) into the state in which the situation becomes frightening (telic). He or she will be relatively often in stages of low hedonic tone, while the periods of pleasant tension or pleasant excitement will be experienced less often. This person, there­fore, will explore for shorter periods and less often. As we shall explain further in chapter 5, such situations have serious consequences for the development of the process of learning. In our view, chronic boredom can be considered as a symptom of a situation in which mainly unpleasant moods alternate. As soon as there is satiation of the telic state, there will unconscious­ly be a reversal to the paratelic state. However, before arousal-searching, expansive behaviour gets going well, there will often be a reversal to the telic state. The (un­conscious) fear of risky exploration has become so strong that the paratelic meta­motivational condition itself has been affected and is experienced as threatening. As a result such a person changes constantly from anxiety (telic) to boredom (paratelic) and the other way round, while his or her mood does not improve in hedonic tone. The person finds it difficult to "really" relax, because he or she finds it difficult to make a "real" effort. For this reason, such a person will in general experience boredom, rather than relaxion. === Towards a completion of Apter's theory === {{Level|3}} Although Apter's theory provides more insight into the different ways in which people can react to the same, or similar situations, some questions are still left unanswered. Firstly, the Reversal theory is only descriptive. It provides no insight into the underlying dynamics of the processes described. In other words: it is not clear how and why the reversals between the two states take place. Moreover, the theory does not provide a satisfactory causal explanation for the presence of the different states and reversals. Secondly, Apter describes his model as a symmetric model. This means that reversals from telic to paratelic, and reversals from paratelic to telic can be the result of contingencies, but also of satiation. A non-symmetric model is however more likely. We will show this in the next chapter. == Chapter 3: Van der Molen's Energy-Learning Model == === A supplement to Lazarus and the Reversal theory === {{Level|3}} In chapter 1 we have pinpointed certain gaps in Lazarus' theory. One problem is that too little attention is paid to emotional and moti­vational aspects of human behaviour. As a result, there is still very little known about which kind of situations are experienced as threaten­ing and which are seen as a challenge (and vice versa), and by whom. In chapter 2 we have further discussed this in a descriptive way. We have stated that telic and paratelic states are metamotivational frames of behaviour that also explain the connection between threat and chal­lenge. In this chapter we shall discuss this further and highlight another gap in Lazarus' theory, namely the developmental aspects of coping behaviour. The metamotivational states (telic and paratelic) will be approached from an ethological perspec­tive; the importance of an optimal allocation of energy is emphasized. The concept of "energy" may be defined here from a psycholo­gical as well as from a physiological viewpoint. We shall discuss this further in 3.2. In chapter 2 we have also described two gaps in Apter's theory which will be filled in this chapter. Firstly, the mainly descriptive nature of Apter's theory will be given more explanatory power by focussing on the energy apects of metamoti­vational states. Secondly, the influence of contingencies and the influence of satiation on reversals in Van der Molen's model will be described as non-symmetric, whereas Apter describes his theory as a symmetric model. === An open-ended learning system === {{Level|3}} In his model ''Van der Molen'' (1983, 1984, 1985; Van der Molen, Van der Dennen, 1981) emphasizes that, basically, we have an "open-ended" learning system: "This is the ability to acquire a behavioural repertoire which is specifically tailored to the environmental situation an in­dividual happens to live in" (Van der Molen, 1984, p. 1). The learning abilities of an individual are optimally utilized, when his or her behaviour is organised in such a way that a surplus of energy is directly invested into extending and refining his or her be­havioural reper­toire. From a psychological perspective, when there is a surplus of energy, there is readiness and gumption to enter new situ­ations and to show explorative behaviour. Such behaviour may increase the survival value, particularly when certain experiences can subsequently be utilized in stressful situations and in emergencies. Therefore, skills have to be trained in situations with a high level of arousal. And situations which evoke a high level of arousal are particularly those in which risks will (have to) be taken. Thus, an open-ended learning system will provide a maximum survival value when the following conditions are fulfilled: firstly, there should be a tendency to look for situations that involve a high level of arousal when there is a surplus of energy, and, secondly, there should be a tendency to look for situations that reduce the level of arousal as soon as the suplus of energy is ex­hausted, or when there is an emergency. Although we will not discuss the neuro­physiological aspects of human behaviour extensively in this report, it is sensible in this context to discuss the findings of Van Rooijen (1976), Archer (1978) and Laborit (1978) briefly. Their studies have shown that there is a neurophysiological "emergency-system" which is activated as soon there is a risky situation or an emergency. This system enables a person to show adequate reactions (very) promptly; alertness is temporarily increased and motor actions can be carried out very quickly. Evidence shows that long-lasting or frequent activation of this system has a negative influence on learning processes, because too much of the neural capacity will then be reserved for keeping this emergency system in action. In addition the energy supply is also heavily taxed in such situations. For this reason there will have to be a reversal to another, more relaxed state after some time which enables the person to refill the energy supply. This is only possible when there is (relatively) little physical or mental exertion. These characteristics imply a bi-stable system in which the preferred level of arousal depends on the metamotiva­tional state (see chapter 2 and Apter 1982). In the paratelic state, i.e. when there is a surplus of energy, a person will prefer a high level of arousal. On the other hand, in the telic state, when the surplus of energy is exhausted, or when there is direct danger, the organism will seek relaxation. This will at first require energy output but the final and desired result is a lowered level of arousal. Figure 3.1 shows the reversals between the different states. [[Image:Reversal system of antagonistic motivations.png|framed|none|Figure 3.1. Apter's reversal model]] <!-- XXX: There's no a. and b. in this diagram; there is in the source doc; do we care? --> By relating the learning system directly to the energy available, Van der Molen (1983, 1984, 1985) describes the way in which the paratelic and telic states alternate ideally. In the period of relaxation, energy is supplemented and acquired. When the energy supply has increased sufficiently (in other words: when there is satiation of the telic state) the individual will become bored and will, (once more) seek an exciting situation. In this state a high degree of arousal will be experienced as pleasant. However, when the surplus of energy is exhausted, there will be a reversal from the paratelic to the telic state. In this way, by looking for an easier or a comfort­ing situation or by controlling the fearful situation (i.e. after achieving relaxa­tion), the person can replenish the energy supply. Given the tendency to look for situations which are accompanied by a high level of arousal, there will be experimen­tation in the paratelic state with new or otherwise arousal-increas­ing skills and situations. In this way the behavioural repertoire will be tested, extended and refined. If the system functions well, the telic and the paratelic states will automatically and regularly alternate. Now the second gap in Apter's theory has been filled. The explanatory principle Van der Molen adds, is that a bi-stable system of motivation contributes directly to the chances of a learning organism to survive, by using its surplus of energy as efficiently as possible. Bowlby (1977) has shown empirically that regular periods of relaxation are of crucial importance for the ability and readiness to explore new situations. In his studies he describes that a child, exploring an unknown situation, regularly returns for a moment to a trusted person (in Bowly's case the child's mother). In this way the child can relax and acquire energy for the next bout of exploration. Many types of behavioural deficiencies, such as chronic fear, can develop, when the periodic need for relax­ation and reassurance cannot be met. === Learning spirals === {{Level|3}} On the basis of positive and negative learning spirals, Van der Molen (1984) explains how a behavioural repertoire develops. If the sequence relaxation - boredom - excitement - fear - relaxation and so on occurs often enough, this indicates that, generally speaking, there have been sufficient possibilities, whether or not self-crea­ted, to achieve relaxation in time and to replenish energy deficits. An individual will then develop an adequately functioning behavioural repertoire in which the various skills are integrated well. A person will then also be able to handel emergencies better and to relax easier and more quickly, so that after some time he or she will be able and ready again to explore, etc. This is called a ''positive learning spiral''. [[Image:Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on proper rhythms of telic paratelic alternations.png|framed|none|'''Figure 3.2.''' The two types of learning spirals (Van der Molen, 1984) according to which acquiring and refining the behavioural repertoire will be the result of positive learning spirals, and a rigid stereotyped way of reacting a consequence of negative learning spirals.]] However, when there are not enough moments of relaxation, too little energy can be built up with the result that the in­dividual will explore less and will show telic behaviour more frequently. In this way the person will acquire fewer new skills and practise "old" skills less often. This is called a negative learning spiral (see figure 3.2). This model has a peculiar consequence. It predicts namely that skills tend to grow in clusters. Following Grof (1972, 1973, 1976), Van der Molen calls such clusters "clusters of condensed experience" or "COEX-systems" (see figure 3.3). Grof gives the following definition of a COEX-system: "A COEX-system can be defined as a specific constella­tion of memories consisting of condensed experience (and related phantasies) from different life periods of the individual. The memories belonging to a particular system have a similar basic theme or contain similar elements and are associated with a strong emotional charge of the same quality. The nature of these systems varies considerably from one COEX-system to another". Grof distinguishes positive and negative COEX-systems, depending on the emotions related to the cluster. Van der Molen (1983, 1984, 1985) explains the reason for such a clustering of areas of experience. When particular situations have been explored many times and the experiences have been dealt with and digested adequately, there is a positive COEX-system in which various types of skills are included. Often these skills can be applied to other, but similar and related situations, so that those situations too can be more easily controlled and managed. In this way positive ex­periences tend to catalize the positive experiencing of similar, comparable areas and thus cause a positive COEX-system to grow. Experiences that have been dealt with badly tend to grow in clusters too. That is, when in a particular situation there is little exploration, and as a result little practise with particular relevant skills, it is difficult to get the situation under control, and thus to relax. The likelihood that new skills will be acquired is then also very low, so that the next time the individual is in the same, or in a similar situation, he or she will more likely have another proble­matic experience. This increases the likelihood of telic behaviour (flight or avoidance behaviour) in similar situations, which causes even less experimenting. An example of a negative cluster is the behaviour of someone who does not dare to enter into contact with people anymore as a result of his or her shyness. This causes the fear for this kind of situation to grow, because the familiarity with these situations decreases continuously, and, moreover, the person is unable to adequately develop other skills for which he or she needs help from others (school assignments, for example). In this way it is likely that the individual will become caught up in a ''negative learning spiral'' in which new ex­periences are no longer used for learning but only intensify the existing, inade­quate, avoidance behaviour. It is difficult to escape from such a spiral. The most important (and necessary) condition for this is the ability to achieve relaxa­tion which is a prerequisite for dealing with experiences and for the replenishment of energy. Only then (careful) explorations of the frightening area can begin, with the possibility that this leads to fewer negative or even to positive experiences. If a number of areas which have been dealt with succesfully, for which skills have been developed, are closely related to an area of experience that has been dealt with badly, they may sometimes serve as a "refuge" when situations threaten to become frightening. Through retiring into such a refuge the necessary relaxation can then be acquired. It is important to keep in mind that a positive COEX-system does not necessarily consist of pleasant experiences. Positive COEX-systems, and in particular ''important'' COEX-systems, develop through a proper reprocessing and digestion of formerly negative experiences. A negative COEX-system consists of negative experiences that ''have been dealt with badly'' and have been (re-)processed and digested insufficiently. The develop­mental aspects which play a role in acquiring and extending coping skills and which have not further been developed by Lazarus, are thus discussed and explainedd in detail by Van der Molen. [[Image:Outcome of the growth of positive and negative COEX systems.png|framed|none|'''Figure 3.3.''' Hypothetical example of the growth of positive (+) and negative (-) systems of COndensed EXperience in the field of experiences (from: Van der Molen, 1984).]] === The asymmetry of the Reversal model === {{Level|3}} At the beginning of this chapter we have mentioned that Apter presents his theory as a symmetric model. Van der Molen (1984) indicates that contingencies in particular cause a reversal from paratelic to telic, and that satiation is one of the primary causes of a reversal from telic to paratelic. Van der Molen places emphasis on one particular sequence, that from relaxation to boredom, from boredom to excitement, from excite­ment to fear, and from fear back to relaxation. The reversal from telic to paratelic behaviour is here a reversal from relax­ation to boredom. According to Van der Molen, this reversal will usually be the result of satiation. The reason for this concerns energy; we have discussed at the beginning of this chapter, that the capacities of an open-ended learning system are optimally utilized if any surplus of energy is invested in gathering more experience. A reversal from the paratelic to the telic state, on the other hand, is caused in particular by contingencies. With reversals from paratelic to telic, Van der Molen places emphasis on the sudden transition from excitement to fear. By looking for arousal-increasing situations in the paratelic state, risks are taken and a greater likelihood exists that a particular situation will suddenly get out of hand owing to contingencies which cause a reversal from paratelic to telic behaviour. === Conclusions === {{Level|3}} In this chapter we have described Van der Molen's learning model which provides us an insight into the way in which the learning system is unconscious­ly kept going as long as there is a regular surplus of energy. We have observed that energy levels form the basis for the telic and the paratelic states and considered the emotional and motivational aspects of coping behaviour. Moreover, the developmental aspect of coping behaviour is explicitly discussed in Van der Molen's model, in the form of descriptions of positive and negative learning spirals and the clustering of related areas of experience. The concept of positive and negative COEX-systems can also be regarded as a first initiative to roughly categorize cognitive contents. Finally, we have discussed why Van der Molen regards satiation as a prime reason for the reversals from telic to paratelic and contingen­cies as the main cause of reversals from paratelic to telic. === Gaps in the Energy-Learning model === {{Level|3}} What is still lacking in this model, is a more detailed description of the way in which emotional and motivational states are related to ''cognitive contents''. This aspect will be addressed in the next chapter as we discuss Lewicka's antagonist model of cognitive styles. == Chapter 4: Lewicka's model of Antagonist Cognitive Modes == === A supplement to Van der Molen's learning model === {{level|3}} In chapter 3 we have described Van der Molen's discussion of the emotional and motivational aspects of the learning process. Lewicka's model (1987, for example) in which there are two antagonistic modes of cognitive information processing, provides a description of the cognitive aspects. We will show how this model supplements Van der Molen's model. Lewicka distinguishes two types of behavioural regulation, the mechanism of ''action-control'' and the mechanism of ''action-involvement'' respectively. Like Apter's theory, Lewicka's theory too states that an individual is always in one of the two regulationary modes; there are two antagonistic mechanisms of cognitive functioning which alternate in time. === Action-control and action-involvement === {{level|3}} The mechanism of action-control instigates actions, aiming at the achievement of a particular objective (com­parable to the telic state). Lewicka states that there are particular "''activity-external comparison standards''" which means that the achievement of an external objective is central and that the activity itself is not the objective of the individual. The mechanism of action-control is controlled by a ''principle of negative feedback''; thinking of a particular standard (the objective), the individual assesses his or her situation. A discrepancy between the actual and desired states is experienced as unpleasant and causes instrumental behaviour (correct­ing mistakes, if any, and minimalising the discrepancy), until the objective in view has been achieved. Lewicka calls this "''con­trolling''": the objective regulates the be­haviour of the in­dividual. The most important function of the mechanism of action-control is to maintain the level of organisation the individual has achieved. However, if an organism is to be able to grow, he or she must be capable of creating entirely new objectives (by him or herself), for example in order to be able to adapt to changing or still unknown environmental demands. The mechanism of action control itself is therefore not suffi­cient. For this, the alternative or antagonist mechanism of ''action-involvement'' is essen­tial. The mechanism of action-involvement encourages the in­dividual to take actions which are not instrumental or purposive: in fact the individual's activity is an aim in itself (comparable to the paratelic state). Although sometimes there seems to be a particular external objective, this is often random and more like an "excuse" for the activity, than that the person really tries to achieve that objective. The motivation for the activity is the activity itself. The mechanism of action-involvement is controlled by a ''principle of positive feedback''. The factors that cause the behaviour and maintain it lie in the behaviour itself; this is a process of self-amplification: the behaviour intensifies itself. The function of the mechanism of action-involvement is the production of new, so far unknown, results of behaviour, or the further exploration of activities that have been tried out before. In this way the individual will not only be able to obtain more information, but also indications about promising directions of future activities. Lewicka calls this "''directing''" which means that the behavioural results themselves are guidelines for future behaviour. Since the behaviour is not directed at established goals, the activities of the individual in the action-involve­ment mode are often very unpredictable. Table 4.1 provides a summary in catchwords of the main differences between the two mechanisms of regulation described by Lewicka. {|style="border: 1px solid; border-collapse: collapse;" cellpadding="2" |+'''Table 4.1.''' A summary of the differences between the action-control mode and the action-involvement mode !style="border: 1px solid;" |Action-Control !style="border: 1px solid;" |Action-Involvement |- |Purposive action |Activity "for the activity" |- |Controlled by a negative feedback principle |Controlled by positive feedback principles |- |Controlling: purpose regulates the behaviour |Directing: behavioural results themselves are guidelines for sub-sequent behaviour |- |Function: maintaining the achieved level of organisation (balance) |Function: taking the individual to a higher level of organisation (development) |} Table 4.1 shows once more that there is much similarity between the mode of action-control and the telic state and between the mode of action-involvement and the paratelic state. According to both Lewicka and Apter, the motivation for activity is central: they distinguish between activity aimed at a particular external objective and activity as an "objective" in itself. The difference between Apter's and Lewicka's approaches lies in how they further work out this distinction into two modes of behaviour. Apter discusses in particular the motivational and emotional aspects concerned. Lewicka, on the other hand, discusses in particular the cognitive aspects. In our view both theories can be combined to form a more complete picture of the alternation of behavioural modes. This will be explained in the remainder of this chapter. First we will discuss what Lewicka calls evaluative standards which, according to her, are operative in the action-control mode. === Evaluative standards of comparison in the action-control mode === {{level|3}} In the mechanism of action-control there are two forms of evaluative standards of comparison: on the one hand positive standards which indicate what a person ought to do (for example particular assessment criteria an achievement has to meet), on the other hand negative standards which indicate which limits cannot be passed (for example particular social standards which indicate what types of behaviour cannot be regarded "decent"). Lewicka calls them "''standards of goodness''" and "''stan­dards of badness''" respectively. The two types of standards are not entirely symmetric which means that a categorisation of a result as "not good" does not imply that this result is regarded as "bad" (and vice versa). There is a third category possible which is "non-sub­stantial" which means: neither good, nor bad (see fig. 4.1). [[Image:Lewicka standards of goodness.png|framed|none|'''Figure 4.1: Schematic reproduction of various categorizations of possible results'''<br /> (Explanation: In the field of possible results, area A represents the results that are categorized as "good", area B the results that are regarded as "bad". The remaining possible results, area C, are of the category "non-substantial".)]] Lewicka (1985) states that if certain standards of goodness are difficult to attain (for example rigid social rules of behaviour or idealised criteria for achievements), it is hard for a person to reach that standard. An example of this is a person who is in a very rigid environment, such that he or she must con­tinuously take part in particular activities in order to be appreciated. In such situations there is hardly any opportunity for non-purposive behaviour and a reversal to the mode of action-involvement is not very likely. When there are rigid, strictly defined and narrowly limited standards of badness which means that there is a small number of categories appraised as "bad" and thus a large number of "non-substantial", a person can very easily avoid "bad" behaviour. At first this may bring about a feeling of relief, as it is very clear what is not "al­lowed", but this situation may eventually also lead to boredom which, according to Van der Molen's learning model, makes a reversal to the mode of action involvement more likely. An example is the story of Adam and Eve in Paradise; everything was allowed, except eating apples from the Tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil. The rest of the story we know. Within the mode of action-control the activities an individual is engaged in are either instrumental actions of ''approach'' aimed at producing results categorised as "good" by positive standards of comparison, or instrumental actions of ''avoidance'' aimed at avoiding results categorised as "bad" by negative standards of comparison. The functional conditions are ''efficiency'' and ''minimization of mistakes''; the least effort and the least costs for achieving a positive, or for avoiding a negative result, the better. === Criteria of evaluation in the action-involvement mode === {{level|3}} According to Lewicka the criteria of evaluation in the action-involvement mode are quite different. Lewicka uses the informative contents of activities as criteria. The search for a maximum of information is then the guideline for the choice of behavio­ur. "A catagorisation as "good" applies to all those alternatives of behaviour that provide an individual with new infor­mation and reduce uncertainty", Lewicka states. Apparently Lewicka somewhat contradicts herself here, because in the definition of the mechanism of action-involvement she states that actions are brought about which do not aim at a par­ticular objective. However, later on, she states, as we have described above, that the individual in the action-involvement mode aims at obtaining new information and reducing uncertainty. So apparently there is postulated an aim for a particular objective. In our view this problem can be solved when the parallel between the action-control mode and the telic state on the one hand and between the action-involvement mode and the paratelic state on the other hand is regarded more closely. As we have previously mentioned, behaviour in the action-involve­ment mode is maintained by factors stemming from the activity itself. It remains unclear, however, what kind of factors are involved here. Apter explains this by his assumption of striving for pleasant tension as a general motive for behaviour in the paratelic state. If this idea is accepted as a supplement to Lewicka's theory, we can say more about whether purposive behaviour does or does not exist in the mode of action-involve­ment. === Proximal and ultimal purposes in the action-involvement mode === {{level|3}} In our view, it is important to make a clear distinction between the ''proximal'' and the ''ultimal'' purposes of behaviour in the action-involvement mode. The term "proximal purpose" refers to the objective at which the person aims at the moment of the activity. Contrary to the mechanism of action-control, there is no external objective in the mechanism of action-involvement, but there is activity because of the activity itself; the (proximal) "objec­tive" of the person is the behaviour that provides pleasant tension. The ultimal objective of similar activities corresponds with the function of Lewicka's mechanism of action-involvement: it enables the person to acquire new experiences, to learn from them and thus enhances growth which in turn means the achievement of a higher level of cognitive organisation. A person is not aware of this ultimal objective at the moment the very activities take place. When Lewicka mentions be­havioural alternatives with a high informative value which are categorized as "good", this must be interpreted as "good" with regard to the ultimal objective of the mechanism of action-involve­ment. The criteria the person applies at the moment of the activity itself, will not have any bearing on the informative value of the activity, but on the importance of the activity for the person, that is on the possibily that it may provide pleasant tension. The ultimal advantages of action-involvement behaviour make it evolutionarily advantageous that this behavioural mode exists in which arousal-rising and pleasure in the action itself are the proximal "goals" (see Van der Molen, 1983). We can perhaps go further than Lewicka in answering the question which kind of activities have the greatest informa­tive value. On the one hand, these are of course activities in areas of experience that are new and unknown to a person. Exploration of such areas is less likely in the action-control mode because a person then rather prefers to rely on familiar objects. New and unknown areas involve the risk of unexpected, unpleasant things happening. This leads to tension which is experienced as unpleasant in the mode of action-control. According to Van der Molen's learning model however, it is exactly unfamiliarity that produces tension which makes exploration ''inviting'' in the action-involvement mode. Activities that are closely related to areas categorized as "bad" may in the action-involvement mode also be experienced as "interesting". In the action-control mode the person tries to avoid such areas as much as possible and aims at achieving results categorized as "good". In our view "good" areas are not interesting in the action-involvement mode: they are familiar and do not create any tension. Approach­ing the "bad", risky areas, on the other hand, is exciting and, what is more, it has the (ultimal) advantage that the limits of these risky areas are explored and thus become more distinctly defined for the person. This will ultimately be of advantage to his or her freedom of movement: if the borders between what "is possible" and what "is not possible" are clear, this will be of advantage to the person whenever the mechanism of action-control is activated again and he or she tries to prevent "bad" results. As we have stated above, Lewicka's ideas concerning the informa­tive content of activities can be extended and explained by adding the concepts "proximal" and "ultimal" goals. Following the informative content of activities, we shall discuss in the next paragraph in more detail how such information is processed cognitively. === "How", "Why" and "What" questions, sufficient and necessary conditions === {{level|3}} Lewicka (1987) states that there are three basic questions a person can ask: the question "''How?''", the question "''Why?''" and the question "''What?''". As an example she gives a logical implication: P ════> Q, in which P is seen as the action-premise (the condition) and Q as the action-outcome (the result). The three questions that may be asked with regard to this implication are: # ''How'' can you make Q happen? # ''Why'' did Q happen? # ''What'' will happen if P? According to Lewicka the first two questions are "closed-ended", because the result Q has already been specified. This specifica­tion can be based on a criterion of "goodness" or on a criterion of "badness". The appraisal of the expected result determines to a great extent which particular question the individual will ask in partic­ular. The fact is that when the results have been appraised as positive­, people are particularly interested in the question "how" these results may be achieved. If the results, on the other hand, have been appraised as negative, the "why"-question is especially interesting (Wong & Weiner, 1981; Weiner, 1984). Lewicka relates these questions to the concept of "sufficient" and "necessary" conditions. We will first explain what is meant by these "sufficient" and "necessary" condi­tions. Sufficient conditions are those conditions that have to be met to achieve a particular result. When a person wants to boil an egg for breakfast, for example, a list of sufficient condi­tions could look like this: # Fill a pan with water. # Put in the egg. # Put the pan onto the cooker and turn on the gas. # When the water boils, wait another four minutes. # Turn off the gas and pour off the water. When these conditions have been met, the person will indeed get his egg boiled. However, this is not the only way to boil an egg. It could be boiled in an old can on a campfire, for example. A series of sufficient conditions, therefore, indicates how a particular result can be achieved, but this does not imply that when these conditions are not met, the result cannot possibly be achieved in another way. A necessary condition is a condition that has to be met, because there is no other way in which a particular result can be achieved. The necessary condition in the example of boiling an egg could be: "Heat the egg to a tempera­ture that is above the coagulation tempera­ture of the egg white, until the heat has spread throughout the egg". The way in which the egg is heated is not specified, as in fact this is unimportant. Only the fact that the egg is heated for some time is important; otherwise it will never be boiled. Departing from the necessary conditions for a particular result, it is often possible to generate various series of sufficient conditions. As mentioned above, when the results have been appraised as positive, people particularly aim at finding sufficient condi­tions to achieve this result which means that they are par­ticularly interested in the question: "''How'' can I make sure the result will be achieved?". So there is a strategy of "approach", aiming to achieve desirable results. When the results have been appraised as negative, on the other hand, people particularly aim at finding the necessary conditions for these results. Only if someone knows ''why'' an unpleasant result comes about, will he or she be best able to effectively avoid the necessary condition(s) for this result and thus to avoid the unpleasant result itself. This is in fact a strategy of avoidance, aimed at preventing undesirable results. There is a great difference between these two types of information processing. To find ''sufficient'' conditions for a result, a "''sufficiency-oriented method''", it is in principle sufficient to know that a particu­lar result will come about after meeting one particular condition or combination of conditions. Then the person will be able to remember this simplistic connection and knows that meeting those conditions again will be sufficient to get the same result again. Seeking ''necessary'' conditions, a "''necessity-oriented method''" implies a greater investment of time and energy. To distil the necessary conditions from the various sufficient conditions for a particular result, more experience and skill is needed, as well as a certain degree of experimenting and the cognitive processing of acquired ex­periences. Only by examining several conditions separately, will it be possible to find out whether they are essential for a particular result and, if so, why. This investment of time and energy (proximal costs) has, however, some (ultimal) advantage which is the possibility to make the cognitive structure concerned more economical, sparse and logically coherent. As it becomes clear "why" a particular result occurs, it can be obtained or avoided more effectively. The large quantity of suffici­ent conditions is then, in fact, reduced to a smaller number of necessary conditions. From these necessary conditions, relatively strong and efficient rules can be distilled, so that an individual does not need a separate list of sufficient conditions for each result. In this way a large number of answers to the "how"-question can be replaced by a single answer to the "why"-question. === The "what"-question in the action-involvement mode === {{level|3}} As we have stated, a certain amount of experimenting is needed to develop a necessity-oriented method. New, additional knowledge about the results of behaviour must be acquired. At this stage the "what"-question will be important. According to Lewicka the "what"-question is "open-ended", because there is no previously specified result. This question will in particular emerge during the exploration of novel areas; there will be experiment­ing with behavioural alternatives, without aiming at previously determined results. In other words: activities will be engaged in, just to investigate their effects. Referring to our learning model, it will be clear that the "what"-question will emerge in particular during the state of action-involvement (comparable to the paratelic state); experimenting is attractive in this state, because the unfamiliarity of the result will be seen as exciting and pleasant. We have to observe that the appraisal of the expected results has a significant influence on whether the person does or does not put much effort into developing a necessity-oriented method. That is to say, the interests of the person on a proximal level play an important part here which means the interests the person is aware of at the moment of the activity itself. In the action-involvement mode those interests are the achie­vement of pleasant tension. Exploring of and experiment­ing with the limits of areas categorized as "bad" or problematic­, causes considerable tension: after all there is a chance that there will be a less pleasant result. Exploring areas categori­zed as "good" (or well processed and digested) provides hardly any tension: the only thing that may happen is that an expected pleasant result will not take place. However as the person will generally have one or more sufficien­cy-oriented methods for achieving desirable results, he or she can always make sure those results will be achieved, should it be necessary when an emergency arises. When a person wants to explore things, seeking (pleasant) tension, these areas are rather unattractive and his or her attention will almost automatically be attracted to the more interesting, because unfamiliar, areas that may be related to an area that has been dealt with well, but at the very least are related to the more risky areas, categorized as "bad". === Pleasant and unpleasant results, necessary and sufficient conditions, acceptance of chances of mistakes and cognitive "bias" === {{level|3}} In the action-involvement (paratelic) mode, attention is automa­tic­ally drawn to a further exploration of the conditions of results. When the results are pleasant, the consequences for the cognitive processing system are entirely different from if the results are unpleasant. As we have stated in paragraph 4.6, working with necessary conditions is the most efficient. Acquiring "sufficient" behavioural strategies is less compl­icated and quicker to realise, however. To that end the "why"-question does not have to be examined intensively. Any answer to the "how"-question will do. Therefore, if an additional investment in time and energy is made, needed to grow from sufficient behavioural strategies to knowledge of necessary conditions, it will in general be invested in the first place in ''un''pleasant results, in order to determine their conditions more accurately. When examining pleasant results it is of course more efficient to know the necessary conditions, but in those cases it is less crucial, because there are fewer risks. Indeed, any sufficient conditions will meet the purpose, that is, to achieve pleasant results. There is another problem, however. In practise it is in general impossible to make accurate predictions about be­havioural results. The cognitive models of reality we create are just approaches. The higher the required degree of accuracy, the more experience and information has to be invested. All cognitive models have a particular degree of uncertainty. Which uncertain­ties will be minimized in the first place, depends to a great extent on the nature of the expected results. Table 4.2 gives a summary of the possible antecedents and results in the case of pleasant and in the case of unpleasant results. This table is a free modification of Lewicka's (1985). To be perfectly clear, we have made a separate table for pleasant and unpleasant results respective­ly. However, as far as terminology is concerned, these tables differ a little from Lewicka's. The fact is that it is not always clear what Lewicka means with the terms "positive" and "negative", because she uses them in two different ways. Lewicka uses, for instance, the terms "positive outcome" and "positive hit". In the first term "positive" means: positively appraised or appreciated. For clarity's sake we have chosen the term ''pleasant'' for positively appraised results and ''unpleasant'' for negatively appraised results. Of course we have not changed terms like "positive hit" and "negative hit", because these are established terms from the disciplines of logic and mathematics. When departing from the idea that people generally try as hard as possible to avoid disappointments, the table makes clear why some specific cognitive strategies are more likely to occur in connection with some specific results than others. Each cognitive strategy of course also harbours its own chances of mistakes and "bias". If any ''unpleasant'' results can occur, a person will generally try to avoid them. ''Disappointments'' arise when there are unpredicted unpleasant results (false negative, "type II" mistake). We know that when the probability of a Type II mistake is made as small as possible, the probability of a "Type I" mistake will, as a consequence, increase (see for example Nijdam & Van Buuren, 1983). In this case a "Type I" mistake is a ''pleasant surprise'' for the individual: an unpleasant result was predicted, but it did not take place. At the level of the behaviour of the individual this means, that during the action-control mode (in which unpleasant results are actively avoided), the individual will take a large "safety margin"; not only will the area be avoided for which there are clear negative standards of appraisal, but also the areas that are closely related. The chance of a Type II-mistake reduces this, but the area that has been avoided will usually be larger than is really necessary. This is shown in figure 4.2. <pre> Table 4.2: Survey of possible mistakes in information processing, depending on the evaluative appraisal of the result ╔══════════════════════╦════════════════════╗ Unpleasant ║ H ║ non-H ║ results ║ (unpleasant T ║ (unpleasant T ║ ║ will occur) ║ will not occur) ║ ╔══════════════╬══════════════════════╬════════════════════╣ ║ T ║(A) ║ (C) ║ ║ ║ positive hit ║ false negative or ║ ║ ║ ║ Type II-mistake ║ ║(unpleasant T ║ (unpleasant as ║ (unpleasant, but ║ ║ occurs) ║ predicted) ║ not predicted) ║ ║ ║ p(H ∩ T) ║ p(non-H ∩ non-T) ║ ╠══════════════╬══════════════════════╬════════════════════╣ ║ non-T ║ (B) ║ (D) ║ ║ ║false positive or ║negative hit ║ ║ ║Type I-mistake ║ ║ ║(unpleasant T ║(not unpleasant, ║(not unpleasant, ║ ║ does not ║although predict- ║as predicted) ║ ║ occur) ║ed) p(H ∩ -non-T) ║p(non-H ∩ non-T) ║ ╚══════════════╩══════════════════════╩════════════════════╝ ╔══════════════════════╦════════════════════╗ Pleasant ║ H ║non-H ║ results ║ (pleasant T ║ (pleasant T ║ ║ will occur) ║ will not occur) ║ ╔══════════════╬══════════════════════╬════════════════════╣ ║ T ║ (A) ║(C) ║ ║ ║positive hit ║false negative or ║ ║ ║ ║Type II-mistake ║ ║ (pleasant T ║ (pleasant as ║(pleasant, but not ║ ║ occurs) ║ predicted) ║predicted) ║ ║ ║p(H ∩ T) ║ p(non-H ∩ T) ║ ╠══════════════╬══════════════════════╬════════════════════╣ ║ non-T ║(B) ║ (D) ║ ║ ║false positive or ║negative hit ║ ║ (pleasant T ║Type I-mistake ║ ║ ║ does not ║ (not pleasant, al- ║not pleasant, ║ ║ occur) ║though predicted ║as predicted ║ ║ ║p(H ∩ non-T) ║p(non-H ∩ non-T) ║ ╚══════════════╩══════════════════════╩════════════════════╝ "Necessity" of H for T: p(H|T) = A/ (A + C) "Sufficiency" of H for T: p(T|H) = A / (A + B) </pre> One result of this safe strategy is, that during the action-control mode particular areas will remain unexp­lored and thus unfamiliar to the individual. Such large safety margins can only be rendered superfluous by a further elucidation of the necessary conditions for the unpleasant result. Its borders then become narrower, sharper and more accurately defined (see figure 4.2). In terms of figure 4.1: the acquisition of more necessity-oriented information reduces the size of the "no good" areas and increases the available be­havioural manoeuvering space. On the other hand, as we have said before, vaguely defined borders provide pleasant tension in the action-involvement mode and such areas which were rather avoided in previous, action-control modes, will become more attract­ive and may be explored more closely. [[Image:Avoidance of unpleasant results in the action-control mode.png|framed|none|'''Figure 4.2: Avoidance of unpleasant results in the action-control mode''']] When an individual may expect positive results he or she will follow quite a different strategy. A ''disappointment'' would mean here that a pleasant result is predicted, but does not take place (false positive, "Type I" mistake). The individual will try to avoid this as much as possible. Minimizing the probability of a Type I mistake implies that the probability of a Type II mistake will increase which is the chance that there will be a pleasant result, although it was not predicted; an ''unexpected surprise''. In the action-control (telic) mode the individual will probably choose for a safe strategy : starting from one or another familiar sufficient method the individual will aim at achieving the pleasant result, without taking risks. The area of behavioural options the individual then aims at is most likely to be smaller than is really necessary. This is shown in figure 4.3. It is clear now that adhering to a single existing sufficient method in the action-control mode limits the be­havioural repetoire of the individual; he or she will rarely experiment with other strategies of behaviour than the one that is familiar and tested, for fear of not achieving the expected, pleasant result. However, in the state of action-involvement experimenting with alternative strategies is attractive. Especially close to the areas cate­gorized as "good", the individual can always benefit from the familiar sufficient method in case of an emergenc­y. This means that there will probably be less tension than might arise close to an area categorized as "bad". After further exploration, the "safe" area can thus be extended by supple­menting more sufficient methods. Should the individual eventually succeed in generating a necessity-oriented cognitive representation of this pleasant result, even more degrees of safety, as all sufficient conditions would also be defined by implica­tion. [[Image:Aiming at pleasant results in the action-control mode.png|framed|none|'''Figure 4.3: Aiming at pleasant results in the action-control mode''']] Both with pleasant and unpleasant results, necessity-oriented cognitive models will allow the greatest freedom of movement and beha­vioural efficiency. The area of unpleasant results (see figure 4.2) will be smaller and the area of pleasant results (see figure 4.3) will be larger. It is clear, however, that the need to invest more energy in obtaining "necessary" cognitive connections will be strongest in the case of unpleasant results. In chapter 3 we have shown that in fact this is what really takes place. The problematical areas of experience produce most arousal (because of the possibly unpleasant results) which makes these areas more attractive in the action-involvement (paratelic) mode when there is enough energy to invest in exploration. As a consequence, in such problematical areas there will relatively quickly be enough experience and information available to achieve cognitive structures of "necessity" at a higher level of abstraction and integration. === Summary and conclusion === {{level|3}} In this chapter we have discussed how Lewicka's theory can supplement Van der Molen's learning model. The cognitive aspects of the learning process have been discussed and integrated, in order to create a more comprehensive model. We have discussed the difference between action-control and action-involvement and the parallels with the telic and paratelic states. Subsequently the evalua­tive criteria that are active in the action-control mode have been discussed. With regard to the evaluative criteria in the action-involvement mode it appeared that a relatively easy supplement (similar­ity with the paratelic state and the differ­ence between proximal and ultimal objectives) sufficed to remove an apparent contra­diction in Lewicka's theory. Finally we have discussed the way in which the evaluative appraisal of possible results determines the kind of information an individual seeks, the strategy of behaviour that will probably be chosen and the kind of cognitive mistakes that can be made in processing information. In the next chapter we will show how these theories complement each other in such a way that a dynamic model emerges that includes the most important aspects of the learning process, that describes cognitive growth and which can be utilized in many areas of research and practical application. By way of summary, table 4.3 shows the most important character­istics of the action-control and the action-involvement modes. <pre> Table 4.3: Survey of action-control and action-involvement ╔═══════════════════════════════╦═════════════════════════════╗ ║ ACTION-CONTROL ║ ACTION-INVOLVEMENT ║ ╠═══════════════════════════════╬═════════════════════════════╣ ║ Purposive activity and ║ Activity as an "aim" in ║ ║ instrumental behaviour ║ itself ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ Principle of negative ║ Principle of positive ║ ║ feedback ║ feedback ║ ║ "controlling" ║ "directing" ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ Function: maintaining the ║ Function: achieving a ║ ║ level of organisation ║ higher level of organisa- ║ ║ ║ tion ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ In particular in an environ- ║ In particular in an envi- ║ ║ ment with stringent standards ║ ronment with stringent ║ ║ of goodness ║ standards of badness ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ Approach-strategy towards ║ Exploration when pleasant ║ ║ pleasant results ║ results occur less probable║ ║ ║ ║ ║ Stategy of avoidance towards ║ Exploration particularly ║ ║ unpleasant or unknown ║ around unfamiliar or un- ║ ║ results ║ pleasant results ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ For pleasant results: ║ Independent of the kind of ║ ║ "How?"-question, ║ results: "What?"-question ║ ║ For unpleasant results: ║ (exploration/experimenting)║ ║ "Why?"-question ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ Proximal and Ultimal goals ║ Proximal goal: obtaining ║ ║ are the same: to bring and ║ pleasant tension; Ultimal ║ ║ keep the environment under ║ goal: gaining entirely new ║ ║ control (survival and restor- ║ experiences, as a condition║ ║ ing the balance of energy) ║ for development ║ ╚═══════════════════════════════╩═════════════════════════════╝ </pre> == Chapter 5: An integration of Lazarus', Apter's, Van der Molen's and Lewicka's theories == In this chapter we will describe how one coherent model can be constructed from the theories discussed. This model describes and explains more than each theory separately. We have called this model the Cognition-Energy-Learning model (C.E.L). The model shows how development and learning can be examined from a perspective of energy potential. The cognitive and emotional aspects that play a part in the learning processes, are also accounted for in this model. === Energy dependence of motivation and emotions === {{level|3}} In the previous chapters we have shown that there is a distinction between telic and paratelic phase. In the telic phase, the behaviour is directed by a particular goal, avoiding fear and seeking safety, for example. In the paratelic phase, on the other hand, the behaviour is a goal in itself; behaviour takes place "just for fun". Thus, in this phase tension is experienced as pleasant and exciting, while in the telic phase it is experienced as frightening and unpleasant. A condition for paratelic behaviour is a surplus of energy which can be spent on exploring and on trying out new things. Telic behaviour takes place at the moment the surplus of energy becomes exhausted or when an emergency arises. What has been stated above, makes clear that the energy dependent basis of motivation and emotion is extremely important; the motivational state of an individual depends strongly on the energy that a person has at its disposal. The consequence is a strongly dynamic character of the organization of motivation; motivation and emotion change constantly in the course of time. In the telic phase a person will try to get his or her situation under control. Bringing a situation under control will at first take energy, but once the situation is under control the individual can benefit from familiar skills which cost (rela­tively) little energy (see chapter 3). In this way the individual can relax and assemble new energy which can be spent in the following paratelic phase. In the telic phase rest and relaxation are aimed at. Once relaxation has been achieved and the individual has recuperated enough energy, there will be a motivational reversal; then rest is no longer regarded as pleasant, but rather as dull and boring. In this paratelic phase a high level of tension is aimed at, until a reversal to the telic state (owing to fatigue or to an emergency) occurs again and the person tries to get the situation under control in order to be able to relax subsequently. This system of reversals can be understood by regarding the utilization of energy, which is the basis of the behaviour of the individual. There have to be reversals to the telic state; a person cannot constantly show paratelic behaviour, as the energy required will be exhausted at a certain moment. Moreover, endless explorative and arousal-seeking behaviour will cause difficulties sooner or later which in turn may cause an emergency situation which in turn will ''force'' a reversal. The trigger for these types of reversals has to be sought on a very proximal level. On the other hand, the evolutionary reason for the existence of this reversal system between telic and paratelic states has to be sought at the ultimate level; that is, an organism will have the best yield in terms of survival value when the energy, gained during phases of relaxation in the telic mode, will subsequently be spent in paratelic modes for acquiring novel, additional experiences, that serve for the extension of one's own be­havioural repertoire (Van der Molen, 1984). === Problematical and non-problematical experiences === {{level|3}} In chapter 3 we have described Van der Molen's model and sequences in which the telic and paratelic modes should alternate ideally. This sequence is: boredom - (explorative behaviour) - excitement - fear - (reversal to the telic state and seeking rest) - relaxation - (with eventually a reversal to the paratelic state) -boredom - etc. Should this sequence actually take place in a regular pattern, the result would be optimal; in the paratelic phase the individual explores the environment and that way he or she gains new experiences, using the skills acquired previously. When these skills prove insufficient and the situation threatens to get out of hand, there will be a reversal to the telic phase and the individual will seek control of the situation. On the one hand these periods of rest are necessary for recovery of the balance of energy and on the other hand newly acquired skills and experiences can be processed and integrated with earlier experiences during such periods of rest. This implies that after a series of reversal cycles the individual may be at a higher level of cognitive organisation than before. In this way the individual grows and learns from his or her experiences in the course of time. There will not always occur such ideal sequences of telic and paratelic phases. A person may for instance not be able to relax optimally in the telic phase. This is often the case if he or she does not have the adequate skills or coping strategies to get the situation under control. In this way the situation remains frightening, the person does not relax sufficiently and thus does not get the opportunity to gain new energy which is a condition for another paratelic phase. The situation will probably be explored less quickly (paratelic) and there will be no experimenting with skills which would enable the individual to behave adequately in this situation. And since no new experiences are acquired in that area of experience from which the person could learn, he or she will remain at a lower level of functioning and there is a high probability of accumulations and fixations of simplistic avoidance behaviour. In that way a cluster of badly mastered areas of experience may grow. What has been stated above makes clear that for the individual some specific areas of experience can be problematic­al, while at the same time other areas are non-problematical. Problematical areas of experience are those areas for which no, or only a few, adequate coping strategies have been developed; the area has not been dealt with well. For the non-problematical areas of experience, adequate coping strategies have indeed been created; these areas have been dealt with well. In chapter 3 (following Grof 1972, 1973), areas of experience that have been dealt with badly were called "negative COEX-systems", and areas that have been dealt with well were called "positive COEX-systems". Table 5.1 shows what these positive or negative COEX-systems imply. {|style="border: 1px solid; border-collapse: collapse;" cellpadding="2" |+'''Table 5.1.''' Characteristics of positive and negative COEX-systems<br />(Systems of COndensed EXperience) !style="border: 1px solid;" |Negative COEX-systems !style="border: 1px solid;" |Positive COEX-systems |- |style="border-right: 1px solid;" |Flight/fight responses |Stay/play responses |- |style="border-right: 1px solid;" |Behavioural rigidity |Flexibility of reactions |- |style="border-right: 1px solid;" |Stereotyped reflexes |Creative responses |- |style="border-right: 1px solid;" |Unskills |Skills |- |style="border-right: 1px solid;" |Phobias and neuroses |Mastery of |- |style="border-right: 1px solid;" |Consciousness block (unconscious repressions) |Awareness of |} === Emotional labeling of experiences as pleasant and unpleasant === {{level|3}} At the beginning of this chapter we stated that it depends to a great extent on the metamotivational state of a person whether he or she experiences a situation as pleasant or un­pleasant. Problematical areas of experience that have not been dealt with well will cause tension. In the telic state this will be experienced as un­pleasant and frightening and there is a high likelihood of avoidance behaviour. The person will seek areas of experience that have been dealt with well; in those areas the person is able to control the situation and thus to relax. In the telic state, areas that have been dealt with well can be a "refuge" which is helpful when the person gets into a frighten­ing situation. In the paratelic phase this is of course not the case. In this phase the areas that have been dealt with well are experienced as boring and thus as less pleasant because they do not longer provide arousal. It is the problematical areas that are attrac­tive in this phase because there can still be some experimenting and an element of risk is involved; this provides pleasant arousal (compare chapter 4). At the beginning of chapter 3 we have discussed the biological relevance of the telic and the paratelic states. From what has been stated above it becomes again clear that both phases are necessary in order to function well. In the telic state the individual is able to relax, once he or she has succeeded in getting the situation under control, and will thus be able to gain new energy and to integrate the newly gained experiences into his or her existing cognitive system. This system enables the individual to remain at a particular level of functioning. In the paratelic phase new or problematical situations (and in the telic phase situations that are ex­perienced as fearful) will be explored and new situations can be investigated. By continuously exploring a situation that has not yet completely been digested and controlled, and by dealing with those experiences and digesting them, this situation will lose its connotation as frightening and the individual will learn which strategies are adeqate in that situation and which are not. Thus the paratelic phase is also an indispensable condition for the growth of the individual. Thus, we can state that the proximal goal of the telic phase is: seeking rest and relaxation. The ultimal goal is: maintaining a certain level of functioning. The proximal "goal" of the paratelic phase is experiencing pleasant arousal (by way of non-direct purposive behaviour). However, the ultimal goal is creating the conditions for achieving a higher level of function­ing. At this point we can once more emphasize an important characteristic of the way in which the reversals from one phase to another come about. In chapter 2 we have stated that we must not hold fast to the idea of a symmetrical model. The reversals from paratelic to telic will mainly be the result of an emergency or of fatigue, while the reversals from telic to paratelic will particularly take place as a result of "satia­tion". In this respect Apter's theory has therefore also been supplemented. === Cognitive development === {{level|3}} In chapter 4 we have stated that there is much similarity between Lewicka's mode of action-control and Apter's telic state, and between the mode of action-involvement and the paratelic state. Apter emphasizes the motivational and emotional aspects of reversals in particular, while Lewicka places emphasis on the cognitive aspects. We shall now describe how the two theories can supplement each other and thus provide a more complete description of the processes involved. Lewicka mentions "standards of goodness" and "standards of badness"; particular standards that indicate what kind of behaviour has to be aimed at and what kind of behaviour can better be avoided (see chapter 4). Czapinski (1986, 1987) completes this with his study of the appraisal of experiences which indicates that people generally show a mild "positivity bias". This means that generally experiences have a mildly positive connotation (except when they have a specific and very strong connotation). Therefore, according to Czapinski, there is a lightly positive background in the cognitive representation of ex­periences in which the negative areas of experience are particularly important. Departing from these ideas, we are now able to say more about cognitive development. Figure 5.1 shows the combination of these ideas. [[Image:Cognitive representation of areas of experience.png|framed|none|Figure 5.1: Cognitive representation of areas of experience<br /><tt>(++)</tt> areas that have been digested well<br /><tt>(--)</tt> problematic areas<br /><tt> (+)</tt> mildly positive background]] <!-- <pre> ╔═══════════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ + + ║ ║ + ++ ║ ║ ++ -- -- ║ ║ ++ + -- ║ ║ ++ ++ -- -- + ║ ║ ++ + -- ║ ║ + + + ║ ╚═══════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ Figure 5.1: Cognitive representation of areas of experience (+ +) areas that have been digested well (- -) problematical areas + mildly positive background </pre> --> This figure strongly resembles the figure in which Van der Molen showed Grof's theory of COEX-systems (see chapter 3), but is more detailed. The development of the cognitive system can now be described as follows. The areas of experience with the unpleasant connotations, that is the areas that have not yet been properly dealt with well and digested yet (- -), will be arousal-increasing and cause tension. In the telic state the areas that have been digested well (+ +) are attractive because they are controlled in such a way, that in an emergency a state of relaxation can easily be achieved. We will refer to these areas with the term "refuges". In the paratelic state, it is par­ticularly the areas that have not been digested properly yet which will be attractive because in that state tension is experienced as pleasant. We now make the assumption that in the paratelic state the borders of the exciting areas are explored, which means that those areas will be explored first, that are closer to the area for which there is a "standard of badness" and for which there is a relatively high probability of an unpleasant surprise. On a proximal level only (pleasant) tension and excitement are sought. However, as a result of such explora­tions, the limits of the areas that have been digested badly will gradually move; as a result of positive experiences parts of the problem area are nibbled away and are bit by bit turned into areas that have been dealt with and digested well. In this way the individual learns and is able to develop further. On an ultimal level the paratelic state certainly has a goal, namely the acquisition of the new experiences necessary for further development. What finally happens in the optimal case on a logical-cognitive level, is that, based on the experiences gained from exploration, a comprehensive neces­sity-oriented method of a higher level of abstraction will be constructed out of and in place of the existing sufficiency methods (see chapter 4). One prerequisite is, however, that between the actions sufficient time and rest can be gained to digest new experiences and to integrate them. A simple example may clarify this. Imagine: John is walking in the woods. He enjoys the scenery and relaxes completely. Occasionally he climbs a fence to walk a little in the pastures or in a part of fenced woodland. Suddenly, from behind the trees a horse gallops towards him and John does not even think, but runs as fast as he can. Somehow he manages to get away and not until later does he wonder what exactly has happened. First he does not dare to go into the woods again, but after some time, when he has calmed down, it does seem exciting to him (paratelic) and he decides to stay near the fences so that he will be able to escape by climbing a fence, should this be necessary (refuges in frightening situations). In this way John explores the situation and finds out in which area of the woods the horse is and which part of the woods and which pastures he must try to avoid. The tension of walking decreases more and more because he now knows exactly where to be on his guard. So, finally, having arrived at a complete picture of the forest and the pasture schedules, the motivation to explore the woods in the paratelic state is lost. In this example John is unpleasantly surprised and is at first frightened in the woods. However, once he has explored the situation, a sufficiency-oriented method ("If I walk in the same area as I did before, a horse may gallop towards me at a given moment") will be changed into a necessary-oriented method ("Only if I climb that particular fence, will the horse gallop towards me"). As a result, John's freedom of movement has increased because it is obvious that the area to be avoided has been restricted. This is shown in figure 5.2. [[Image:Avoidance exploration and reduction of an unpleasant area of experience.png|framed|none|'''Figure 5.2:''' Avoidance, exploration and reduction of an unpleasant area of experience (after positive experiences)]] What happens is that an area of experience which is first experienced as problematical (unpleasant in the telic phase) is gradually reduced because its limits are explored (in the paratelic phase) and there may be positive experiences on that fringe. To speak in Grof's terms, the purpose of paratelic behaviour on an ultimate level is to change as many negative COEX-systems into positive COEX-sytems as possible. In other words, the target is to exchange less efficient sufficiency-oriented methods, related to experiences that have been dealt with and processed badly, for highly efficient necessity-oriented methods which are in par­ticular related to experiences that have been digested well. It now becomes clear why experiences tend to grow in clusters. When particular situations have been explored many times and the experiences have been dealt with and digested well, the COEX-system is a positive one in which all kinds of new skills have been acquired which can often also be applied to other, related situations. Generally, in such an area of experience the individual is in a ''positive learning spiral''. Experiences that are dealt with and processed badly, also tend to grow in clusters in a similar way; in such cases there is a fair chance that the next time the individual gets into the same, or a similar or related situation, he or she will have another problematic experience. This increases the probability of telic behaviour in similar situations, with the result that there will be less experimenting. In this way the individual will easily get into a ''negative learning spiral'' in a similar area of experience. New experiences are no longer used for learning but only intensify and extend the existing, relatively in­efficient behaviour. [[Image:Safety margins in the telic state.png|framed|none|'''Figure 5.3:''' Safety margins in the telic state. <br />The dotted lines mark the safety margins in the telic state. The risky areas become larger, the safe areas (or refuges) smaller.]] <!-- <pre> ╔═════════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ + + ║ ║ ++ + ++ ║ ║ ++ ++ -- -- ║ ║ ++ + -- + ║ ║ ++ -- -- ║ ║ + + -- ║ ║ -- + ║ ║ + ║ ╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ '''Figure 5.3:''' Safety margins in the telic state The dotted lines mark the safety margins in the telic state. The risky areas become larger, the safe areas (or refuges) smaller. </pre> --> In terms of figure 5.1 this means that, given such an accumulation of bad experiences, the cognitive representations of the refuges (+ +) will remain relatively restricted and small and for the cognitive represen­tation of the problematical areas (- -) there are relatively increasing and less efficient margins. In the case that there are no necessity-oriented methods of great precision and a high degree of abstraction, and thus relatively many methods are of the sufficiency type, the limits shown in figure 5.1 are less favourable in the telic state. The refuges of areas that are dealt with well will be limited, because the sufficiency-oriented methods are too much restricted, whereas for the areas that are dealt with badly, the safety margins are too large. Thus the individual has relatively little freedom of movement. In such a negative learning spiral a negative COEX-system will expand increasingly, owing to an accumulation of avoidance reactions which are primarily based on methods of suffi­ciency. They can be generated relatively quickly but they also involve relatively large safety margins, with the consequence that a relatively great part of the area of experience will be con­sidered as risky. It is extremely difficult to escape from such a negative learning spiral. A prerequisite for this is the ability to attain the relaxation, necessary for the digestion of the accumulated experiences. Should a number of ex­periences that have been dealt with and digested well, verge on an area that has been dealt with badly, they may sometimes serve as refuges, when situations become too frightening. This may then provide the required escape, safety and rest. It is now possible to relate all this to Lazarus' theory as described in chapter 1. In our view, the appraisal of a par­ticular situation or transaction depends to a great extent on the metamotivational state of an individual. A transaction that is appraised as stressful will often be regarded as threatening in the telic state, whereas in the paratelic state it is more likely that the same transaction will be seen as a challenge. When a person is in a positive learning spiral in which positive COEX-systems are acquired and extended, and new experiences and skills are digested well, new situations are likely to be experienced as positive and regarded as challenges. That is, the individual has noticed that owing to his or her arsenal of skills, he or she is very well capable to anticipate many kinds of situations and to get them under control. Not only is this a good basis for acquiring new skills but it also allows for relaxation and the conviction that novel situations can adequately be dealt with as well. However, in the case of a negative learning spiral in which negative COEX-systems expand and the individual gets trapped in his or her own inadequate behaviour, entirely new situations will rather be seen as threatening. This increases the likelihood that the individual will hold on more tenaciously to particular - inadequate - behavioural strategies, so that it becomes increasingly likely that he or she will fail again. This makes clear that it is very difficult to make a distinction between an appraisal of the situation itself (Lazarus: ''primary appraisal'') and of one's own abilities to deal with that situation (''secondary appraisal''). These two aspects are strongly intertwined. The appraisal of a transaction always depends on previous experiences, on acquired skills, and on the meta­motivational state of an individual. We have shown that this state may (sometimes quickly) change. This is called ''reap­praisal''; the original appraisal of the transaction changes. According to Lazarus, such a change is caused by feedback about changes in the transaction because of actions taken by the individual, or by reconsidering the nature of the transaction. We are now able to supplement Lazarus' ideas. In our view the appraisal of a transaction depends to a great extent on the metamotivational state of the individual at that very moment. A change of this appraisal means that there has been a meta-motivational reversal to another state. Such a reversal may take place because of "contingency" (a particular event takes place) or because of "satiation" (because a person has been in one and the same state for a long time). The two causes mentioned by Lazarus can be cate­gorized under "contingency": the transac­tion changes as a result of actions taken by the individual and the changing situation forces a reversal, or the interpretation of the transaction changes because of cognitive processes (think­ing), which may also cause a reversal. Hence, our cognition-energy- learning model does not only supplement Lazarus' ideas, in this respect adding reversals through "satiation", but it also provides a description and an explanation of the dynamics of the underlying cognitive processes. === Cognitive mistakes === {{Level|3}} Finally, we pinpoint and discuss a few systematic mistakes which can be made when a person cognitively processes information. Lewicka shows that the questions an individual asks, depend to a great extent on the appraisal of the possible outcome of a trans­action. In the telic state (or action control mode) the in­dividual tries at all costs to avoid unpleasant outcomes, and it then becomes very favourable and practical to have a necessity-oriented method available. If the outcome is pleasant, however, the realisation of that outcome is of primary impor­tance; "the way in which" becomes less important and a sufficiency-oriented method generally suffices. However, this does not apply to the paratelic (action-involvement) mode. Generally, an individual tries as hard as possible to prevent disappointments (see chapter 4, table 4.2). In the case of an unpleasant outcome, a disappointment means that it has previously been predicted that a particular unpleasant result will not take place, but that it happens anyway. It is important for the individual to keep the probability of this type of mistake (type II, or "false negative") as low as possible. However, we know from logic and statistics that when the probability of one type of mistake is kept as low as possible, another type of mistake will necessarily occur more often. Thus, when the probability of a Type II-mistake is minimized, Type I-mistakes will occur more often. When a Type I-mistake, or "false positive", occurs, it is predicted that the result will be unpleasant, but this is not the case. It is now likely that this type of mistake will be taken less seriously than the previous one, because this means that there is a pleasant surprise. Therefore, relatively little attention will be paid to this. As a result, good luck is virtually ignored in a problematic area of experience whereas disappoint­ments are regarded as extremely important. This pattern of cognitive processing takes place in particular when there are mainly telic states with a (too) low frequency of paratelic states. Not only is attention then fixed on possible negative results, but the (too) low frequency of paratelic states produces an excess of methods of sufficiency, with relatively large safety margins around the areas to be avoided, and relative­ly narrow limits of areas of experience that are safe and digested well (also as a result of safety margins that are wider than is strictly necessary; see figure 5.3). As a result, this pattern of experiencing and processing results in a strong (and in a sense "uncontrolled") growth of negative COEX-systems which may possibly even affect the already existing, positive COEX-systems. Should this pattern continue, then the probability of telic avoidance reactions in the area of experience concerned will become higher and the probability of paratelic exploration lower and lower. In the end, even the slightest confrontation with the area of experience concerned, even when outsiders do not consider this as threatening, will be experienced as frightening, the consequence of which will be a continued and uncontrolled growth of the negative COEX-system. === The neurotic paradox === {{Level|3}} A connection with the so-called '''neurotic paradox''' is evident here. Eysenck (1979, p. 185) provides the following description of this paradox: :"In many neuroses we not only fail to observe the expected extinction of the uninforced "Conditoned Stimulus", but we find an incremental (enhancement) effect, such that the unreinforced Conditioned Stimulus actually produces more and more anxiety ("Conditioned Response") with each presentation of the Con­ditioned Stimulus. [...] In neuroses, [...] in the majority of cases there is some sort of insidious onset, without any single event that could be called "traumatic" even by lenient stan­dards." Paying too much attention to disappointments and virtually ignoring good luck is one of the reasons why the neurotic behaviour persists. Van der Molen (1983, 1984, 1985) gives another reason (see also chapter 3). He explains how in the proximity of a negative COEX-system, tension increases very easily, while it is exactly in these areas that there are very few "refuges" in the form of adequate strategies of behaviour which may be utilized to keep the tension under control. In the telic state this increased tension is experienced as extremely unpleasant. What is more, the limits of an area that has been digested badly are still rather vague owing to the fact that little or no exploration has occured. The area is not clearly defined and restricted, has rather "fuzzy" boundaries, and may easily increase in size which further increases the probability of unpleasant ex­periences. When we bear in mind that disappointments tend to receive more attention than the occurences of good luck, it is clear that one easily becomes trapped in a negative learning spiral in which neurotic behaviour is intensified, negative experiences accumulate and little is learned from positive experiences. === Summary and conclusions === {{Level|3}} Having integrated Aper's, Van der Molen's an Lewicka's studies we have been able to provide in this chapter an overall picture of the dynamics of our learning processes. Based on these various theories, a Cognition-Energy-Learning model has been developed in which the most essential aspects of the learning process are explained. First, the energy dependency of learning was discussed. The alternating preference for a high or a low level of arousal produces the motivation for two essential aspects of learning: on the one hand, the acquisition of novel and unfamiliar experiences, and on the other hand, reserving time and energy for the structuring and processing of this experience and information. The alternation of the telic and the paratelic states thus keeps the learning process going. Experiences can be problematical or non-problematical. Depending on the metamotivational state a person is in, an area of experience can be experienced as pleasant and attractive, or as unpleasant. Problematical areas (that is to say, areas for which no adequate behavioural strategies have been developed) will be avoided as much as possible in the telic state: in the paratelic state, on the other hand, these areas can be a source of (pleasant) tension and thus be attractive for exploration. In this way the individual will be able to gain piecemeal experiences in areas that are (relatively) unfamiliar. Such experiences are a prerequisite for development to a higher level of organisation of the individual. Non-problematical areas of experience will not be sought in the paratelic state, as they do not provide any tension and are thus considered as "boring". However, in the telic state these areas are essential for relaxation. Only if a certain degree of rest is acquired regularly, will the individual will be able to digest his or her experiences optimally. In certain situations an ideal sequence of telic-paratelic reversals is impossible for a person. When such a situations lasts too long and the person cannot reach more agreeable situations, this leads to a negative learning spiral in which the individual more and more resorts to stereotyped and less efficient ways of reacting. Then it becomes increasingly more likely that the negative, problematical experiences in a particular area of experience will extend to other areas as well. For this reason we speak about the "contagiousness" of experiences. However, this contagiousness also applies to positive experiences that have been digested well and which are thus non-problematic­al. When an individual is in a positive learning spiral, he or she continuously acquires new skills which can also be applied in other areas of experience. In this way the likelyhood of positive experiences will generally increase. Contagiousness of the way in which learning experiences are processed, in the favourable and in the unfavourable sense, is applicable therefore in the first place in areas of experience that are functionally related. In the second place, the contagiousness is applicable in all areas of experience in their totality. Finally, we have discussed in this chapter how the be­havioural strategy a person is choosing depends on the appraisal of the possible outcome. When the outcome is pleasant, an approach strategy will be applied in the telic state to ensure the outcome will be achieved as effectively as possible. When the outcome is unpleasant, a strategy of avoidance will generally be applied. However, negative outcomes form a source of possibly pleasant tension in the paratelic state which produces the motivation to further explore them. In this way more information can be gathered and optimally processed in the course of time so that the already existing (easily obtained) '''sufficiency oriented methods''' can increasingly be replaced by a '''necessity-oriented method''' (which is more difficult to generate). This enables the in­dividual to attain a '''higher level of cognitive organisation and efficiency''' and to function more effectively. However, should the ability to relax be absent (chronically), the person may become caught up in an accumulation of problematical experiences. This explains, for example, the often persistent growth of neuroses and phobias. The problem of the neurotic paradox, indicated by Eysenck, for example, can be easily explained when regarded from the point of view of our Cognition-Energy Learning model. The Cognition-Energy-Learning model discussed thus far describes, in the first place, the influence of the energy state of a person on his or her motivational state. That motivational state is governed by emotions. It further states that the sequence of motivational states has implica­tions for the way experiences are cognitively represented. Considering Csapinski's studies, we can expect that the majority of the experiences which are not directly interesting, are sedimented in a vague, slightly positive cognitive background. Only the expe­riences with an explicit emotional "color" are represented as areas that have been digested well or as problematical areas. The advantage of such systems of representation is that, as soon as there is a surplus of energy, a person can experiment in those areas which are registered as problematical. Those areas of experience are exactly the areas which can provide most new and relevant information. Both the way in which experiences are represented (in COEX-systems) and the gradual shifts in that representation are described, and, moreover, it is clarified, how a particular represe­ntation with concomitant proce­dural aspects (necess­ity- or sufficiency-oriented methods), leads to specific types of behaviour. However, all this still concerns a very rough classifi­cation into cognitive main categories. In fact it comes down to the difference between experiences that have been processed and digested well and ex­periences that have not been digested well, to the difference between ex­periencing this as pleasant and as un­pleasant and between combinations of these two opposites. The Cognitive-Energetic Learning model may also be supple­mented with the influence of the quality of social interactions on the dynamic state of the learning process. This can render a considerable extension and specification of the cognitive main categories mentioned. Moreover, such an extension enables us to make predictions about the way in which social interactions may influence the growth of a person because they interfere with the way energy is invested in the learning process. However, this extension lies beyond the confines this report and will be described in another report (see Maarsingh, 1990). In the next chapter we will give an example from practice of our Cog­nition-Energy-Learning model. == Chapter 6: An illustration of the Cognition-Energy-Learning Model from a practical problem area == === The didactical behavioural repertoire of the inexperienced teacher === {{Level|3}} In this chapter an illustration of the Cognition-Energy-Learning model will be given, based on experiences of teachers who have just started teaching (Romkes, 1988). This concerns exclusively inexperienced teachers who regard the learning process as problematical. The state of learning of the inexperienced teacher, apart from personality, is closely related to the extent to which he or she has been able to deal with previous experiences from educational learning situations (training) and to gain an adequate didactical behavioural repertoire. However, it is important that this repertoire of coping skills develops and and that it can be modified as soon as problems arise in the classroom. According to Vonk (1983), the problems of table 6.1 are encountered most frequent­ly. === The most commonly encountered problems that have to be dealt with by inexperienced teachers, in sequence of importance === # Keeping order # Motivating pupils # Dealing with differences between pupils # Appraisal of learning performances # Relations with parents # Organisation of the class # Too few/inadequate means for teaching # Handling children with problems # Too much working pressure (lack of time) # Relations with colleagues # Teaching plans # Having command of various didactical skills # Knowledge of school regulations and customs # Determining the starting situations of pupils # Inadequate professional skills The problems mentioned in table 6.1 regularly produce a high level of arousal. A teacher will experience stress when this state of increased arousal lasts too long. The duration of stress depends on the didactical behavioural repertoire of a person. When this behavioural repertoire is inadequate, a person will be in a state of stress for a longer period of time. That is, it is difficult for such a person to achieve the phase of relaxation owing to the lack of well-controlled skills which are necessary for controlling stressful situations (see chapter 3). When such a situation (of stress) lasts too long and the stress experience is not digested well, a ''negative learning spiral'' may arise in which ''fear and avoidance behaviour'' accumulate (see chapter 5). An example of a school situation in which there is a high level of arousal is given in the following report of a lesson given by an inexperienced teacher (Wubbels en Creton 1974): :"The class enters noisily. It is cold. The pupils are jumping up and down in order to become a little warmer. You walk into the classroom and try to have the children take their seats. But before you have managed to do so, you are rummaging in your bag. A few moments later the same happens again. You tell a pupil to sit down, but before he sits down you walk back. You are in the centre in front of the class and look into the classroom. In the meantime everyone has sat down. The pupils are still shouting. You walk towards Fred, a trouble­maker. You address a few pupils. It is becoming quieter now. "Will everyone take his books, please?" A number of pupils are shivering and making a noise. "I have marked the dictations and the results are very bad". They all laugh. "And what I further have to say about the dicta­tion....", the pupils are talking again now and you have to shout very loudly to make yourself heard. You wait some time and address a few pupils: "Mark, Martin" and finish with "Do not throw them away immediately". You give everyone their work back. Everyone is shouting. "Damn I have got a D". "I have a C". "Hurray, I have a B". "And what do you have?" There are many unsatisfactory marks, many of them are D's. The pupils are indignant. Some pupils walk to your desk to complain, but you do not listen and send everyone back. A girl, who is really indignant, is sitting in front of you. For not writing a hyphen and for not writing one word as one word, you have deducted two whole points. They think it ridiculous. There is so much noise, that you can hardly make yourself heard. "Yes", you scream and turn red. They keep on protesting loudly. It is an enormous mess. You walk towards your desk and sit down demon­stratively, as if you want to call it a day. "Can the ones with the insufficiency marks do the dictation again?". "No!", you shout back. This example shows that this teacher does not command those types of behaviour (coping skills) which would make the situation more manageable for her. The result is that she tries to command respect. Managing the class and not being troubled by stress become main aim in all. This is shown by her preference for an authoritarian way of dealing with the class and her rigid attitute with regard to the educational responsibility. This behaviour implies an attitude in which achieving control of the situation is central. The teacher is now mostly in the ''telic'' state and has trouble to regularly reach ''paratelic'' states. The way in which she (temporarily) achieves her goal, and is thus able to reduce her level of arousal, consists of showing aggressive or avoidance behaviour. Both agression and avoidance provide relaxation for a moment; when the teacher shouts, the class will be quiet for a moment and also when she adopts a reserved attitude and forgets her pedagogic responsibiliy for a moment, she experiences less stress for a short period of time. In both cases she has temporarily managed ''to get away'' from the threatening situation, but this situation is not ''controlled'', in other words: she has ''not developed adequate coping skills''. In the short term this avoidance behaviour is rewarding, but structurally the situation has not changed at all. As the teacher cannot relax sufficiently, her energy supply cannot easily be replenished. As a result she will be less often in the paratelic state, and so she will be unable to try the new, and (possibly) risky behaviour very frequently which could eventually lead to adopting useful new behavioural techniques and to acquiring new skills and flexibility. And it is precisely this lack of adequate skills which prevents her from controlling this situation. In such a situation there is a ''negative learning spiral'' in which behaviour becomes increasingly stereotyped and rigid (see chapter 3 and chapter 5). In such a spiral, more and more short-term solutions are found to deal with problematical situ­ations and novel behaviour is not experimented with sufficient­ly. In such cases it is unlikely the behavioural repertoire will expand optimally. === Cognitive representations of problematical teaching situa­tions of inexperienced teachers === {{Level|3}} In a problematical teaching situation, two types of ''cognitive representation'' may arise (the remarks mentioned were reported in subsequent interviews). First: extreme and fixed negative thoughts about oneself: "I do not have sufficient command of the pro­fession", "I am not good at organizing", "I am not good at managing children", etc. Secondly: extreme and fixed negative thoughts concerning others: "The pupils are annoying", "The colleagues are not nice", etc. From interviews with inexperienced teachers with problems it appeared that the following types of ''bias'' in the cognitive and perceptive representation of the teaching situation may occur (Romkes 1988). First: ''generalisation'', for example: 'all pupils are annoying'. This exemplifies that the teacher uses sufficient conditions, rather than necessary conditions at such a moment (see chapter 4); i.e. the teacher does not attempt to discover the exact cause of the problems, but is satisfied with simplistic and stereotyped rules of thumb. Secondly: ''deletion'', for example when one's own role is left aside: "the pupils are so annoying". In the third place: ''transformation'', when the teacher no longer notices the individual differences between pupils, and regards the class undifferentiated. These cognitive "mistakes" can also be described in terms of Lazarus' theory (see chapter 1). That is, problems with ''primary and secondary appraisal'' are concerned here and as a result a related lack of coping strategies. As far as the primary appraisal is concerned, the first instinctive appraisal of the situation is important. When the teacher is too tense in dealing with the situation, he or she will tend to use a rough and ready recipe, such as aggressive behaviour, when dealing with problems. === Changes in the behaviour of the inexperienced teacher === {{Level|3}} It is now clear that unless the pupils do not change their behaviour, the situation will not improve unless the teacher behaves differently. According to our learning model this is only possible once she has sufficient energy surplus to reconsider the class situation and to experiment with other kinds of behaviour. In other words, the teacher has to develop other skills that enable herself to relax and/or she has to teach less frequently and to organize more breaks and time off for relax­ation and recovery. In this way she will be able to invest a surplus of energy in paratelic, and thus experimental and explorative, behaviour. When a particular type of behaviour proves succesful, this can be integrated in the repertoire of skills already at her command. This may, for example, include taking the needs of pupils into account more often which may produce moments of relaxation during the lessons, both for teacher and pupils, and also time for explanations, questions, etc. For example, the supervisor could instruct the teacher to pay less attention to the pupils' command of the language, and to pay more attention to topics not directly related to the subject. This could involve conversations about experiences in the weekend, for example. Such behaviour can be rewarded in the form of good teamwork with the pupils which in turn can provide relaxation (and thus energy) for both the teacher and the pupils. As a result both teacher and pupils will be able to manifest paratelic behaviour and hence will be able to experiment in order to find the best way of teaching, and of being taught. The phase of relaxation is extremely important for replenishing energy supplies and for the integration of ex­periences. It is essential that the inexperienced teacher has enough moments of relaxation during, or after work. According to the learning model only through a regular alternation of the telic and the paratelic states an adequate didactic be­havioural repertoire can develop. === A positive learning spiral === {{Level|3}} There is a ''positive learning spiral'' (see also 3.3) when behaviour of control and manipula­tion (telic) and behaviour relating to challenges and explora­tion (paratelic), alternate. The telic state aims at achieving goals (for example to teach from a particular chapter). In the paratelic state there is space to handle the pupils different­ly and to try out novel approaches. When the teacher is alternately in the telic state and the paratelic state, he or she is able to gain experiences which are necessary in order to discover and elucidate the necessary conditions for negative incidents, so that these incidents can be avoided or solved more easily the next time (see chapter 4 and chapter 5). On a proximal level, paratelic behaviour consumes large amounts of energy, but the ultimal result is that it saves energy later on. The inexperienced teacher is then able to develop more adequate coping strategies which enable her to be in a state of relaxation more regularly. This makes it possible for her to replenish the energy supply more often and more thoroughly. Romkes (1988) has shown that successful teachers are not always aware of the coping strategies they use. This is not surprising when you realise that it is not necessarily desirable to act consciously or to seek the necessary conditions for negative incidents consciously as long as the teaching responsi­bility is met satisfactorily. If the learning process proceeds well, much of the experience and information needed for a further expansion and refinement of the behavioural repertoire is collected unvoluntarily and automatically. === Conclusions === {{Level|3}} From this illustration it may be clear that the Cognition-Energy-Learning model can be applied well to situations such as teaching. The model provides insight into the way in which in­experienced teachers can become trapped in a negative learning spiral when there are too few moments of relaxation. This implies that in teaching situations, less attention should be paid to teaching the content of the subject as thoroughly as possible by drumming it in repeatedly, and that more attention should be paid to finding ways of achieving enough moments of relaxation. This relaxation is essential for replenishing the energy supply, and it is the surplus of energy that allows experimental and ex­plorative behaviour in manifest. Such behaviour brings a flexible attitude towards the teaching situation with it. And this flexi­bility enables the teacher to discover which teachingstrategy (at which moment) is the most satisfactory and effective. == References == {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1982 | title=The experience of motivation. The theory of psychological reversals | place=Londen | publisher=Academic Press }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | chapter=Experiencing personal relationships | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Murgatroyd | editor2-first=D.F.S. | title=Reversal Theory: applications and development | pages=161-178 | place=Cardiff | publisher=University College Cardiff Press | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1988 | chapter=Reversal theory as a theory of the emotions | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Kerr | editor2-first=J.M. | editor3-last=Cowles | editor3-first=M.P. | title=Progress in Reversal Theory | pages=43-62 | place=Amsterdam | publisher=Elsevier Science Publishers | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Archer | first=J. | contribution=Animals under stress | periodical=Studies in Biology | issue=nr. 108 | place=London | publisher=Arnold | year=1978 }} {{Citation | editor1-last=Bond | editor1-first=L.A. | editor2-last=Rosen | editor2-first=J.C. | title=Competence and coping during adulthood | place=Hanover | publisher=University Press of England | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first=J. | year=1977 | title=The making and breaking of affectional bonds | periodical=British Journal of Psychiatry | issue=130 | pages=201-210, 421-431 }}<!-- TODO: Verify this reference --> {{Citation | editor1-last=Coelho | editor1-first=G. | editor2-last=Hamburg | editor2-first=D.A. | editor3-last=Adams | editor3-first=J.E. | title=Coping and adaptation | place=New York | year=1974 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Interpersonal communication, informativeness of evaluations in interpersonal communication: effects of valence, extremity of evaluations and ego-involvement of evaluator | periodical=Polish Psychological Bulletin | issue=7 (3-4) | pages=155-164 | year=1986 }} {{Citation | last1=Dienstbier | first1=R.A. | last2=Hillman | first2=D. | last3=Lehnhoff | first3=J. | last4=Hillman | first4=J. | last5=Valkenaar | first5=L. | contribution=An emotion-attribution approach to moral behavior: interfacing cognitive and avoidance theories of moral development | periodical=Psychological Review | pages=82, 249-315 | year=1975 }} {{Citation | last=Eysenck | first=H.J. | year=1979 | title=The conditioning model of neurosis | periodical=The Behavioral and Brain Sciences | issue=2 | pages=155-199 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1972 | title=Varieties of transpersonal experiences: observations from L.S.D. psychotherapy | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=4 | pages=45-80 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1973 | title=Theoretical and empirical basis of transpersonal psychology and psychotherapy: observations from L.S.D. research | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=5 | pages=15-54 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1976 | title=Realms of the Human Unconscious. Observations from L.S.D. Research | place=New York | publisher=Dutton }} {{Citation | last=Hoffman | first=M. | contribution=The development of Empathy | editor1-last=Rushton | editor2-last=Sorrentino | title=Altruism and helping behavior | pages=41-64 | place=Hillsdale | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last=Kameya | first=C.I. | title=The effect of empathy level and role-taking training upon prosocial behavior | publisher=University of Michigan | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Laborit | first=H. | contribution=The biological and sociological mechanisms of aggression | periodical=International Social Science Journal | issue=30 (4) | pages=727-749 | year=1978 }} {{Citation | last=Lazarus | first=R.S. | contribution=The stress and coping paradigm | editor1-last=Bond | editor1-first=L.A. | editor2-last=Rosen | editor2-first=J.C. | title=Competence and coping during adulthood | place=Hanover | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last1=Lazarus | first1=R.S. | last2=Averill | first2=J. | last3=Opton | first3=E. | contribution=The psychology of coping: issues of research and assessment | editor1-last=Coelho | editor1-first=G. | editor2-last=Hamburg | editor2-first=D.A. | editor3-last=Adams | editor3-first=J.E. | title=Coping and adaptation | place=New York | year=1974 }} {{Citation | last1=Lazarus | first1=R.S. | last2=Folkman | first2=S. | title=Stress, appraisal, and coping | place=New York | publisher=Springer | year=1984 }} {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | title=Positive- negative evaluative asymmetry and human cognitive biases (paper) | place=Helsinki | year=1985 }} <!-- paper --> {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | title=Action involvement and action control | year=1986 }} <!-- unpublished article --> {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | chapter=On objective and subjective anchoring of cognitive acts | editor1-last=Baker | editor1-first=W.J. | editor2-last=Mos | editor2-first=L.P. | editor3-last=Rappard | editor3-first=H.V. | editor4-last=Stam | editor4-first=H.J. | title=Recent trends in Theoratical Psychology | place=New York | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | contribution=Towards a pragmatic perspective on cognition | periodical=Polish Psychological Bulletin | issue=3 | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=Maarsingh | first=B.M. | title=Energie en strokes, doctoraalscriptie, Groningen, Vakgroep Ontwikkelingspsychologie Rijks Universiteit Groningen, 1990 }} {{Citation | last=Molen, van der | first=P.P. | chapter=[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacit y for learning]] | editor1-last=Wind | editor1-first=J. | editor2-last=Reynolds | editor2-first=V. | editor3-last=Corlay | editor3-first=R. | title=Essays in human social biology | volume=2 | pages=189-211 | year=1983 | place=Brussels | publisher=V.U.B. Study Series }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1984 | title=Bi-stability of emotions and motivations: An evolutionary consequence of the open-ended capacity for learning | periodical=Acta Biotheoretica | issue=33 | pages=227-251 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1985 | chapter=Learning, self-actualization and psychotherapy | editor1-first=M.J. | editor1-last=Apter | editor2-first=D. | editor2-last=Fontana | editor3-first=S. | editor3-last=Murgatroyd | title=Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments | pages=103-116 | place=Cardiff, U.K. | publisher=University College Cardiff Press }} {{Citation | last=Murgatroyd | first=S.J. | chapter=Introduction to Reversal Theory | editor1-first=M.J. | editor1-last=Apter | editor2-first=D. | editor2-last=Fontana | editor3-first=S. | editor3-last=Murgatroyd | title=Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments | pages=103-116 | place=Cardiff, U.K. | publisher=University College Cardiff Press }} {{Citation | last1=Nijdam | last2=Van Buuren | title=Statistiek voor de Sociale Wetenschappen, deel 2 | publisher=Samson Uitgeverij | place=Alphen aan den Rijn | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Rooijen | first=J. | title=Vlucht, en verwante begrippen in biologie en psychologie | periodical=internal report, Dept. of Ethology | place=Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Holland | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Seiffge-Krenke | first=I. | chapter=Formen der Problem-bewaltigung bei besonders belasteten Jugendlichen | editor1-last=Olbrich | editor1-first=E. | editor2-last=Todt | editor2-first=E. | title=Probleme des Jugendalters | place=Berlijn | year=1984 }} {{Citation | last=Weiner | first=B. | contribution=Spontaneous causal thinking | periodical=Psychological Bulletin | issue=97 | pages=74-84 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last1=Wong | first1=P.T. | last2=Weiner | first2=B. | contribution=When do people ask why questions and the heuristics of attributional search | periodical=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology | issue=40 | pages=650-663 | year=1981 }} == Other publications on this subject == {{Citation | last1=Dennen | first1=J.M.G. | last2=Molen | first2=P.P. van der | year=1982 | contribution=Striving, Playing and Learning: A Novel Conceptual Model of Coping Skills | periodical=Aggressive Behavior | issue=8 | pages=233 }} {{Citation | last1=Dennen | first1=J.M.G. | last2=Molen | first2=P.P. van der | year=1982 | contribution=Striving, Playing and Learning: A Novel Conceptual Model of Coping Skills | periodical=Psychological Abstracts | issue=69(3) | pages=4956 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1984 | title=Bi-stability of emotions and motivations: An evolutionary consequence of the open-ended capacity for learning | periodical=Acta Biotheoretica | issue=33 | pages=227-251 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | title=Reversal Theory, Learning and Self-Actualization (abstract of paper, given at the International Symposium on Reversal Theory, Powys, Wales, Sept, 1983) | periodical=Bulletin of the British Psychological Society | issue=37 | pages=46 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1985 | chapter=Learning, self-actualization and psychotherapy | editor1-first=M.J. | editor1-last=Apter | editor2-first=D. | editor2-last=Fontana | editor3-first=S. | editor3-last=Murgatroyd | title=Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments | pages=103-116 | place=Cardiff, U.K. | publisher=University College Cardiff Press }} {{Citation | last=Molen, van der | first=P.P. | chapter=[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacit y for learning]] | editor1-last=Wind | editor1-first=J. | editor2-last=Reynolds | editor2-first=V. | editor3-last=Corlay | editor3-first=R. | title=Essays in human social biology | volume=2 | pages=189-211 | year=1983 | place=Brussels | publisher=V.U.B. Study Series }} {{Citation | last=Molen, van der | first=P.P. | contribution=Anxiety and Pleasure: Application of Reversal Theory to Learning (abstract) | year=1985 | periodical=Reversal Theory Society Newsletter | issue=1(1) | pages=20 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1986 | contribution=Reversal Theory, Learning and Psychotherapy | periodical=British Journal of Guidance and Counselling | issue=14(2) | pages=125-139 }} == Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject == {{Citation | last1=Dennen, v.d. | first1=J.M.G. | last2=Molen, v.d. | first2=P.P. | year=1981 | title=Violent Aggression as a Social Unskill: Notes on the Psychopathology of Everyday Life | place=Polemological Institute, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) | }} {{Citation | last1=Molen, v.d. | first1=P.P. | last2=Dennen, v.d. | first2=J.M.G. | year=1981 | contribution=Striving, Playing and Learning: An Ethologists View on Aggression and the Dynamics of Learning in the Play and Struggle called "Life" | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-81-551-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} <!-- Presented at the First Congress of the European Section of the International Society for Research on Aggression (I.S.R.A.), sept.1981, at Strassburg, France, and at the Second Meeting of the European Sociobiological Society (E.S.S.), febr.1983, at Leusden, Netherlands --> {{Citation | last1=Maarsingh | first1=B. | last2=Molen, v.d. | first2=P.P. | year=1990 | contribution=Energie en Strokes: de Wisselwerking tussen de kwaliteit van sociale relaties en de individuele ontwikkeling | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-90-1004-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} {{Citation | last1=Molen, v.d. | first1=P.P. | last2=Dijk, v. | first2=C. | last3=Maarsingh | first3=B. | last4=Stoelhorst | first4=P. | year=1990 | contribution=Naar een Cognetief-Energetisch Leermodel; over de bi-stabiele organisatie van emoties en het effect daarvan op de ontwikkeling van copingvaardigheden en cognitie; een integratie van de theorieën van Lazarus, Apter, Van der Molen en Lewicka | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-90-1012-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} 5746wjenawaif7xrhwtfdcb03e82g4v 6 52 307 2008-01-15T17:36:22Z BigSmoke 1 This table is based on Apter, 1982, page 52 <!-- FIXME: full reference --> A very similar figure is [[Media:The telic and paratelic mode in relation to means-ends time and intensity.png]] wikitext text/x-wiki This table is based on Apter, 1982, page 52 <!-- FIXME: full reference --> A very similar figure is [[Media:The telic and paratelic mode in relation to means-ends time and intensity.png]] sg7og6rrruo7tpsyllwpqt3kn65eqb7 2008-01-15T17:36:22Z BigSmoke 1 This table is based on Apter, 1982, page 52 <!-- FIXME: full reference --> A very similar figure is [[Media:The telic and paratelic mode in relation to means-ends time and intensity.png]] Summary_of_the_telic_and_paratelic_states.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Summary_of_the_telic_and_paratelic_states.png 73430 4l9y0rjnr1eqhon9adpmx1g5d8gbyjl Summary_of_the_telic_and_paratelic_states.png 1 56 347 2008-01-20T23:14:43Z Baby Boy 2 New page: == Please change the display title of this page == I want [[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] to change the title of this page for me or I won't stop whining before the Universe implodes. --~~~~ wikitext text/x-wiki == Please change the display title of this page == I want [[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] to change the title of this page for me or I won't stop whining before the Universe implodes. --[[User:Baby Boy|Baby Boy]] 16:14, 20 January 2008 (MST) oq9ymszro5tmo7wxuoe1txp0ge64335 0 57 6107 6062 2016-03-25T14:45:06Z Baby Boy 2 /* Goals of foundation */ wikitext text/x-wiki This wiki is brought to you by the [[Omega Research Foundation]]. You might also be interested in our [http://blog.omega-research.org/ Weblog]. =='''Goals of foundation'''== The '''Omega Research Foundation''' has been established to boost awareness of human possibilities and the future human potential. Therefore our foundation supports research in the area of human development and psychological and social functioning. Its focus is in particular on the possibility of a major transition of society as has been predicted and described in the course of history by many sources from many cultures. Such a transition has for instance been labeled by the paleontologist Teilhard de Chardin as “Point Omega”. Apart from messages from historical prophets and clairvoyants there appears to be surprising scientific support for the idea that humanity is at the brink of a major evolutionary and developmental psychological shift. The Omega Research Foundation’s focus is on such (novel) scientific data regarding such a shift. Besides supporting relevant scientific research, the foundation also stimulates and organizes the wide distribution of all relevant information regarding the psychological and social mechanisms involved in this transition, evoking the widest possible involvement and support. The '''Omega Research Foundation''' has been established to boost awareness of human possibilities and the future human potential. Therefore our foundation supports research in the area of human development and psychological and social functioning. Its focus is in particular on the possibility of a major transition of society as has been predicted and described in the course of history by many sources from many cultures. Apart from messages from historical prophets and clairvoyants there appears to be surprising scientific support for the idea that humanity is at the brink of a major evolutionary and developmental psychological shift. The Omega Research Foundation’s focus is on such (novel) scientific data regarding such a shift. Besides supporting relevant scientific research, the foundation also stimulates and organizes the wide distribution of all relevant information regarding the psychological and social mechanisms involved in this transition, evoking the widest possible involvement and support. ==''' Short term targets '''== During the past couple of years the Foundation has been active expanding its Wiki. Contents of the Omega Research Wiki have gradually but constantly been growing. Scientific publications were added as well as not previously published commentaries on research projects, aimed at a broader readers public. Most recently an article has been added, "A guided tour through the Omega-Research Wiki", aiming to explain how the various contributions on this Wiki fit together and what are the implications of the materials that have been brought together here. At this moment priorities are with improving the text of A guided tour through the Omega-Research Wiki and the publication of a number of scientific research articles that were previously published elsewhere. Another task for the near future is improving the donation facilities that should help finance further research and publication activities of the foundation. Until this day all work for the foundation has been performed without any substantial remuneration for the work being done. ==''' Financial information '''== Since thus far all activities for the foundation have been contributed without remuneration, and since the donation strategy has not yet been operational until now, there are no relevant cash flows to be reported until this day. Once the donation strategies have been made operational, the foundation will publish yearly balance sheets and further relevant financial data. =='''Further information on the Omega Research Foundation'''== * '''Chamber of Commerce Code: 41010600''' * '''RSIN, Fiscal ANBI nr.: 8166.43.854''' * '''Adress regular mail: Molenweg 15, 9761 VB Eelde, The Netherlands''' * '''E-mail: popko@sicirec.org''' * '''Web address: wiki.omega-research.org/Omega_Research_Foundation ''' * '''Tel.nr.: #31-50-3096926''' * '''Chairman: J.J. van der Molen, Poitiers, France ''' * '''Secretary/Treasurer: P.P. van der Molen, Eelde, The Netherlands''' == [[Omega Research:Site support|'''How to contribute''']] == ** Help spreading information ** Donations, tax free ** Legacies ** Volunteers oeaqmz24ym9ot1bb0irvrpuo0f939j9 0 58 1758 1398 2010-04-26T19:52:32Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki This page is still under construction. For an abstract see: ''[[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world |Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world]]''. Contents: * [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world]] (under construction) ** [[The evolution of Gene-structures and of Meme-structures]] (to be added) ** Consequences of the difference in speed of the gene- and the meme-evolution (to be added) ** [[Existential friction: Homo sapiens at the interface between the gene- and the meme evolution]] (to be added) ** The evolutionary stability of mass-neuroticism (to be added) ** Mechanisms that safeguard mass-neuroticism (to be added) *** Selection for Sociability and Population Cycles; the cause for periodic conflict and disaster (to be added; refer to separate article below) *** [[Genetic pollution precluding social stability]] (under construction) *** Overcrowding (to be added) ** Religions as power structures (to be added) ** [[Contemporary weakening of the foundations of Power Structures]] (under construction) 13ms4m612tz17v0if2bjdgctury9s49 0 59 369 368 2008-01-22T01:29:38Z BigSmoke 1 Added section wikitext text/x-wiki Rowan is the person who founded this wiki (after having started the [http://blog.omega-research.org/ Researching Point Omega Weblog] first.) His relation to the research here is that his dad, [[Popko Peter van der Molen|Popko]], is the researcher responsible for most of the materials presented on this wiki. Rowan was born April 8th in 1982. == Other projects == Some other projects with which Rowan is involved are: * [http://wiki.hardwood-investments.net/Main_Page Hardwood Investments Wiki] - About teak and other forestry investments. * [http://www.paldap.org/ LDAP Wiki] - About LDAP directories. h5qc7ylr7tzw1bxslz7pud239u8d2rb 6 61 4099 377 2012-07-22T09:47:43Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[File:Experience of arousal in telic and paratelic state.png]]":&#32;Changed “low lovel” into “low level” wikitext text/x-wiki This table is also present in [[Media:Telic and paratelic pleasantness of different arousal levels.png|another figure]]. The difference is that "Fear" is called "Anxiety" in the other figure. hlwmptfhe4jz0feinzbwd6aj7qgenuf 2008-01-26T21:23:44Z BigSmoke 1 This table (except "Fear" is called "Anxiety") is also present in [[Media:Telic and paratelic pleasantness of different arousal levels.png|another figure]]. Experience_of_arousal_in_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 20120722094743!Experience_of_arousal_in_telic_and_paratelic_state.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20120722094743%21Experience_of_arousal_in_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 19288 oklykwihurnmm8xvyu401msb90kzcwj archive/20120722094743!Experience_of_arousal_in_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 2012-07-22T09:47:43Z BigSmoke 1 Changed “low lovel” into “low level” Experience_of_arousal_in_telic_and_paratelic_state.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Experience_of_arousal_in_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 19228 oklykwihurnmm8xvyu401msb90kzcwj Experience_of_arousal_in_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 6 62 4100 378 2012-07-22T11:32:52Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[File:Reversals between telic and paratelic state.png]]":&#32;Added text to describe reversals and telic/paratelic actions. wikitext text/x-wiki This figure is almost identical to [[Media:Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png]]. The original paper version of this version has additional dotted lines along the inside of the butterfly's wings. 21obci0ai0oxrxp2r6cu62zywbep62q 2008-01-26T22:27:38Z BigSmoke 1 This figure is almost identical to [[Media:Reversal_system_of_antagonistic_motivations.png]]. The original paper version of this version has additional dotted lines along the inside of the butterfly's wings. Reversals_between_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 20120722113252!Reversals_between_telic_and_paratelic_state.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20120722113252%21Reversals_between_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 66656 5ylx59bxdci9fcii0qytuqjdifk5s5b archive/20120722113252!Reversals_between_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 2012-07-22T11:32:52Z BigSmoke 1 Added text to describe reversals and telic/paratelic actions. Reversals_between_telic_and_paratelic_state.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Reversals_between_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 67611 5ylx59bxdci9fcii0qytuqjdifk5s5b Reversals_between_telic_and_paratelic_state.png 6 63 386 2008-01-26T23:28:36Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2008-01-26T23:28:35Z BigSmoke 1 Cognitive_representation_of_areas_of_experience.png 20080126235722!Cognitive_representation_of_areas_of_experience.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20080126235722%21Cognitive_representation_of_areas_of_experience.png 27347 hj180z3fho9io0v56f197w615qj6v3a archive/20080126235722!Cognitive_representation_of_areas_of_experience.png 2008-01-26T23:57:22Z BigSmoke 1 Cognitive_representation_of_areas_of_experience.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Cognitive_representation_of_areas_of_experience.png 38398 ci7e0so7npugetm7uth4y4ho28fj80u Cognitive_representation_of_areas_of_experience.png 6 64 388 2008-01-27T21:05:06Z BigSmoke 1 This figure shows first the avoidance, then the exploration and then the reduction of an unpleasant area of experience. The reduction (third stage) happens after a positive experience in the second (exploration) stage. wikitext text/x-wiki This figure shows first the avoidance, then the exploration and then the reduction of an unpleasant area of experience. The reduction (third stage) happens after a positive experience in the second (exploration) stage. 91t3j1il3ueollkjqeus5zmcpgz5dck 2008-01-27T21:05:06Z BigSmoke 1 This figure shows first the avoidance, then the exploration and then the reduction of an unpleasant area of experience. The reduction (third stage) happens after a positive experience in the second (exploration) stage. Avoidance_exploration_and_reduction_of_an_unpleasant_area_of_experience.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Avoidance_exploration_and_reduction_of_an_unpleasant_area_of_experience.png 19856 njbnyocfvacb9bqgt03rvs335bmunqm Avoidance_exploration_and_reduction_of_an_unpleasant_area_of_experience.png 6 65 390 2008-01-27T21:20:59Z BigSmoke 1 This is the same figure as [[:Image:Cognitive representation of areas of experience.png]] with dotted lines to indicate safety margins within the telic state. wikitext text/x-wiki This is the same figure as [[:Image:Cognitive representation of areas of experience.png]] with dotted lines to indicate safety margins within the telic state. 8140v59mym8pjra36ep4l471odw79x2 2008-01-27T21:20:58Z BigSmoke 1 This is the same figure as [[:Image:Cognitive representation of areas of experience.png]] with dotted lines to indicate safety margins within the telic state. Safety_margins_in_the_telic_state.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Safety_margins_in_the_telic_state.png 47113 6eetp1v5uyhpxf3cqavsdgrpkvbm57h Safety_margins_in_the_telic_state.png 6 66 4102 392 2012-07-22T11:57:11Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[File:Somatic and transactional emotions.png]]":&#32;Arrows wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2008-01-27T21:53:18Z BigSmoke 1 Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 20080127215611!Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20080127215611%21Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 19418 n0wlxda4kz194ergvxdw7e1tb9q1oci archive/20080127215611!Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 2008-01-27T21:56:11Z BigSmoke 1 Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 20120722115711!Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20120722115711%21Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 30141 se0bay0mj0zpqhq25btu6wpu7xkle9q archive/20120722115711!Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 2012-07-22T11:57:11Z BigSmoke 1 Arrows Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 31826 se0bay0mj0zpqhq25btu6wpu7xkle9q Somatic_and_transactional_emotions.png 10 67 1407 416 2009-08-16T11:23:56Z BigSmoke 1 category wikitext text/x-wiki '''The content (text, figures, tables and layout) of this page is still in the process of being copied from the original publication. Please stick with us while we're banging away at our keyboards.''' <includeonly>[[Category:Articles being copied]]</includeonly> aer7qhn6fibe8p33clf073l3ybjlgwl 0 68 6660 6644 2016-12-25T19:46:08Z Baby Boy 2 /* Towards "Amathology" or the science of ignorance */ wikitext text/x-wiki '''On "Amathology" or the Science of Ignorance''' '''(**)''' == Summary == [[File:Self-blindness_poster (2).png|800px]] == Evolution of Intelligence == {{Level|1}} There is something peculiar about the emergence of intelligence in the evolution of species. What we can see is that in different phyla in the animal kingdom some form of intelligence has developed. Such intelligence includes a capacity to analyse complex situations soberly and creatively, to apply logic to problem solving, to summarize and categorize experiences systematically and efficiently, to utilize an efficient system of information storage and to utilize some measure of abstraction in assembling experiences (thus moving from sufficiently-oriented behavioural responses, to necessity-oriented behavioural responses; for more information about this - cognitive - aspect of intelligence, see [[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model_(1)#6._Cognitive_Development|here]]'''(***)''' and [[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model#Summary_and_conclusions|here]] '''(***)'''). In short, intelligence evolved to increase the efficiency in problem solving and to improve the ability to explore the environment. Since such levels of intelligence have developed in quite different phyla, the tendency in evolution for intelligence to develop, apparently happened in the different phyla independently from one another. In fact it looks like the emergence of intelligent capacities is something "inherent in evolution", as if the mere occurrence of evolution already implies that sooner or later intelligence will emerge. It is not so strange or exceptional that throughout the animal kingdom the emergence and development of intelligence has occurred several times, independently from one another, as parallel evolutionary developments. Parallel evolutionary developments do happen more often. The development of visual capacities, seeing, is another of the numerous examples of such independent parallel developments in different phyla. In the animal kingdom we do find several different optical constructions doing the job. We can compare for instance the quite different technical approaches in the insect eye(s) system (facet-eyes) with the vertebrate's eye, with which we are all familiar. Also, we can compare the mollusk's eye with the vertebrate eye. In each of those two phyla, the problem of focussing is solved in a quite different and characteristic way. In mollusks focusing is realised by moving the lens closer or further away from the retina, just as we do when focusing with a camera. In our own vertebrate eyes however, the lens cannot be moved forward and backward and the problem is solved by changing the focus distance of the lens itself. The form of the lens is changed, which is possible because the lens is made up of liquid in a sack, that can be contracted or be flattened by small muscles around its perimeter. Solving the vision problem apparently was such an evolutionary advantage, that it could happen several times in evolution, independently from one another, with every time a somewhat different technical solution. Something similar we see with locomotion. We can easily recognise a great variety of locomotion methods, each forming a different answer to an evolutionary need. Compare for instance the different solutions found in worms, millipedes, spiders, snakes, kangaroos, horses and man. Intelligence is something similar. If we compare the nervous system of an octopus, a mollusc, with that of a vertebrate, we see a completely different approach of developing an efficient information processing device. Still, both approaches in the end came up with comparable intellectual capacities, in monkeys as in octopuses. There is one other peculiar feat about the issue of intelligence. And that is that we humans seem to be quite a bit more intelligent than any of the other intelligent animal species. Our intelligence is sticking out conspicuously. We seem to be the real champions of intelligence in the animal kingdom. However, this is also somewhat puzzling. Among the intelligent species we humans are an exception in that our intelligence has surpassed quite considerably the ordinarily found intelligence levels. What is more, if we look at the other species' intelligences more closely, we find that all other intelligences have reached more or less equal levels of understanding, cognitive abstraction and logical thinking. If we look at the intelligent faculties of for instance crows, parrots, primates, whales or octopusses, we see that the intelligence reached does not differ very much in general level. This is somewhat surprising, since these different species from altogether different phyla, presumably have developed intelligence in very different time periods in evolution. Still, they all seem to have consolidated a certain general level of intelligence, and to have stopped there, no matter how much more time was available in their evolution to develop intelligence further. In summary, these different intelligences have developed independently from one another, they are based on altogether different basic nerve structures, each in their own individual way facilitating intelligence, and they all have stopped increasing intelligence, once they had reached a certain specific level. In cases where more evolutionary time was available, this did not result in higher intelligence levels being reached in the mean time until now. (We humans seem to be the only exception.) The only way we can explain this peculiar phenomenon, is that there seems to be some sort of general maximum to the development of intelligence in any species. Could it be that intelligence, higher than that specific level, normally is not an E.S.S. (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy) ? If we look more closely at the organisation of behaviour, at the proximate mechanisms, we can indeed find arguments why "too high" intelligences in general will be self-defeating, and therefore will weed themselves out. == Proximate and ultimate causes of behaviour == {{Level|2}} Behavioural tendencies, the innate structure of feelings and sensitivities, of preferences and reflexes, have evolved in such a way that they help the individual to have its genes contribute to the next generations as much as possible. "Why" that goal is realised, is the ''ultimate'' reason for the behaviours in question. At the ''proximate'' level however, the reasons for a certain behaviour are quite different. These reasons have to do with the satisfaction of certain, specific feelings and cravings. An animal does not eat to grow and in the end to procreate. No, it is eating because it feels hungry and eating stills the craving for food. Satisfaction is derived from a full stomach, not from a future capacity to score higher on procreation, based on sufficient energy being stored in the body. The latter is the ultimate reason for eating, but it is in no way of any concern to the individual itself "on the spot". An individual only bothers with the proximate reasons. Likewise, a male seeking sex, does so because of a sex craving and the satisfaction that copulation brings forth. It is not the thought of future pregnancy of a partner, the birth of young from a partner or the future parenthood that is driving the male to seek sex with a female. In fact, looking at ourselves, at Homo sapiens, in men the very thought of the future results of having sex with a female, may often strongly reduce the urge to have sex instead of stimulate it. Thinking of the consequences may in fact have a strongly sobering effect. In summary, our behaviour is organised in such a way that proximal tendencies make us behave in a way that satisfies innate urges and needs, while having ''as an involuntary collateral effect'' an increase of the likelihood to contribute to the next generation. Evolution realises its goals by selecting for proximate urges and tendencies that make the animals in question behave in such a way that they involuntarily maximize mother nature's ultimate goal, procreation. For a proper understanding of the situation it is important to understand well this relationship between the proximate and ultimate reasons for behaviour. However, there is a catch. Since the ultimate goals are "collateral" effects of urges and tendencies at the proximate level, and since these proximate behavioural tendencies have evolved primarily in a non-intelligent setting, a novel capacity to intelligently invent more efficient ways to satisfy the proximate needs and urges, may change the proximate behaviours in such a way that the urges are satisfied more efficiently, but by means of behaviours that have changed so much that the involuntary collateral ultimate (procreational) results are being bypassed and thus are not fulfilled. What is more, the intelligence can be used to figure out more precisely what are the collateral secondary ''costs'' of certain proximate urges and cravings and can be used to figure out how to satisfy these cravings without paying the price of the traditional and "natural" collateral costs. Avoiding the collateral costs however, often also reduces the ultimate procreational results of those collaterals. In general, if a species applies its intelligence on its own behaviour, it may discover how to circumvent the collateral secondary disadvantages of its strivings. Behaving in a more clever way therefore is likely to reduce procreational results. In general, evolution is therefore likely to prevent cleverness to reach too high levels. Intelligence should not be able to meddle with the own personal and social behaviours. In short, behaving too intelligently presumably is literally killing for evolutionary success. Apart from sexual behaviour, similar considerations hold for other forms of social behaviour, like warning-for-danger behaviour, loyalty to group-defense, dealing with group habits and group standards for maintaining group membership and an incrowd status. An intelligent individual may achieve the targets and goals of the cravings and needs in question, while avoiding cleverly the collateral costs and risks, that serve(d) to increase the inclusive fitness of the group in question. He or she may find ways to secure group membership and social acceptance while avoiding taking the normal risks involved in gaining group recognition and as a consequence losing some inclusive fitness. In a similar way social animals have scores of tendencies, emotions, feelings and reflexes in other fields of behaviour that yield the best procreational results if they are carried through without reserve and without (clever) changes and modifications. Merely thinking such behaviours over is already likely to reduce procreational results. Again, intelligence above a critical level will reduce the number of offspring. Intelligence above that certain level is therefore not an E.S.S. (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy). In general, what intelligence normally tends to bring about is a further clarification and elucidation of proximate costs and revenues while at the same time reconsidering or skipping altogether the automatic reflexes that secure ultimate evolutionary effects. These are the reasons why we presume that ordinarily there is an evolutionary maximum to intelligence. == Breaking out of the customary intelligence ceiling == {{Level|1}} So, what we see is that intelligence may / might be used to find alternative – easier - shortcuts to short term satisfaction. And such (alternative) shortcuts are quite likely to outflank the collateral behavioural effects of those primordial instincts, collaterals that serve procreational purposes, for which reasons those instincts (proximate reflexes) were evolutionarily selected for in the first place. So, intelligence, applied to our own behaviour, therefore quickly leads to sterile behaviour, no matter how satisfactory from a personal emotional (very proximal) point of view. Our hominid ancestors however, still less intelligent at that time in evolution, were living in circumstances where a high intelligence did indeed yield very high premiums. Complex communication skills for instance would increase the effectiveness of group hunting tremendously. Better communication and other advantages of intelligence would enable those hominids to become far more effective hunters. However, a too high intelligence, higher than the "intelligence ceiling", would on the other hand yield detrimental procreational effects if applied to the own (social) behaviour. Therefore, with a higher intelligence, evolving wherever in the animal kingdom, sooner or later there is an equilibrium between on the one hand the general usefulness of intelligent capacities, a multi-purpose general behavioural tool, and the danger of such intelligence leading to finding alternative short cuts for the satisfaction of proximal urges and desires, thus bypassing the original "traditional" behaviours for the performance of which those urges evolved in the first place. Proximal urges and the concomitant behaviours with ultimate evolutionary goals, can be cut loose and separated in that way, thus diminishing the behaviours with clear procreational effects, that the urges in question were evolved for. This equilibrium represents the ordinary maximum to the evolution of intelligence. Any higher intelligence in principle becomes self-defeating. Our hypothesis is this: mother nature finally came up with a solution for this ordinary stalemate evolutionary situation. It invented in our hominid ancestors '''a specific awareness block regarding the own behaviour'''. That way the higher than normal intelligence cannot produce any more the collateral damage of undercutting the crucial functional links between the personal proximal urges and desires and the originally linked behaviours that produce a high procreational yield. Once this specific "'''Blindness for the Self'''" was emerging, the evolution of intelligence could carry on, also beyond the aeons old upper limit or upper ceiling as applicable in all other "intelligent" animal species. If this hypothesis is correct, a superior capacity for language and for complex communication and for tool making only could develop in our human ancestors "in exchange for" blindness for the Self. Such a "blindness for the Self", in short, has the following function. It serves to prevent the invention of novel short cuts between proximal urges in our behaviour and the desired outcomes. Such short cuts would namely destroy the functional links between the proximal organization of our behaviour with all the emotional urges implied, and the original ultimate evolutionary goals of such behaviours. Whereas very satisfactory to the individuals in question, such short cuts would impair their full participation in procreational efforts, which in turn would make the short cut capacity (superior intelligence) go extinct again. Therefore a higher intelligence is in principle self defeating in the evolution of any species, unless it is combined with "Self-blindness". In humans intelligence could only rise above that certain level after, or rather while, such a specific provision had been built into, or rather happenened to become built into, our behavioural system, making sure that such high intelligence only could be applied to any type of problems in life as long as it would not be applied to the bearer's own behaviour. '''Built in blindness and well consolidated ignorance towards the self''' have therefore been the key to the evolution of higher human intelligence. == Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness == {{Level|2}} So, we have a peculiar situation in Homo sapiens. We can put a man on the moon, we can dive to the bottom of the deepest oceans, we have produced Hydrogen bombs, but . . . . . . we cannot think clearly in front of a mirror. Very strange indeed ! But now we can at least understand how this strange situation came about. Quite obviously, we seem not to be capable of understanding our own behaviour, let alone organize it intelligently in a useful way. It seems for instance far more easy to organize war involuntarily than to organize lasting peace. This failure to understand our own behaviour can indeed also be corroborated by psychological research from the last half century. It appears indeed that human beings possess an uncanny capacity to not-see how they are functioning themselves. We are struck with a very strong form of blindness for our own emotions, motivations and feelings. Of course, we do have some sort of notion of what we feel, what we see and what we want, but, as an overwhelming avalanche of scientific psychological research shows, these personal, internal notions differ greatly from reality. (See for instance: Bateson, 1972,1979, Dixon, 1976, Laing, 1967,1969,1970, a recent overview article on research about failing Self-Insight from [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2702783 Ehrlinger et al. 2008] and a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases list of cognitive biases] on Wikipedia) What is more, human beings in fact spend surprising amounts of energy and brain capacity to mystify and hide their own behaviour from sober and intelligent investigation, by themselves as well as by each other (see the chapter on [[Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality|the Good-Bad dimension in personality research]] for massive research data on this phenomenon). Evidently, it appears that this typical blindness, blocking our awareness and thinking power in certain areas, does have a significant evolutionary advantage. This human blindness apparently is an ESS, an Evolutionarily Stable Strategy. One of the areas where this blindness is very conspicuously present is in social relations and the way social roles develop and are distributed. The ruling awareness blocks for one’s own behaviour, one’s emotions and motivations, make human beings in particular blind for how they interact socially. For more on this phenomenon of “Social-Role Blindness” and for exploring some examples of how this works and what are its consequences for the present as well as for our future, click [[The biological instability of social equilibria|here]]'''(***)''' . '''In summary, the human species is peculiarly unable to think clearly about its own behaviour. Our intelligent capacities are effectively blocked regarding our personal and social functioning. ''' == Cultural props for Self-Blindness == {{Level|1}}So, what we see is a recent development in human evolution, since some one or two million years, that made possible an explosive development of intelligence, but ...... at the cost of incorporating a striking human blindness for the self, in turn strengthened by a culture favouring and strengthening such self-blindness. As pointed out above, it can easily be shown experimentally that human beings are quite unawares of the way they socially interact and how their capacity to understand matters is effectively blocked to give ample space to primordial social reflexes. Moreover, social and personal blindness is culturally supported by massive and multidimensional organized ignorance and superstition. Cultural influences, strengthening and consolidating human blindnesses, are very strong indeed. Let's for instance consider the thinking about the very subject of this Wiki, the understanding of the general situation of humanity. The understanding of the general situation of humanity, the working of its fate, its history and its future, is namely strongly coloured by "where human thinking can go and where it may not". The difference between what we understand and what remains a mystery to us is not so much determined by the technical knowledge that we already have and that we could make use of, but is primarily determined by where our thoughts are allowed to proceed and where our thoughts are not allowed to proceed, where they are being blocked by taboos. When people talk about superstition, they generally refer to medieval or even older situations when people used to believe in witches, fairy tales, gnomes, and a heaven full of gods. In short, superstition is supposed to be something of past eras. However, this is not how the situation really is. The difference with the past is not that we used to rely on superstition and now not any more, the difference is that we now simply are ruled by ''other'' sets of superstition than in previous times. But it is still superstitions that rule our lives, not significantly less than ever before. It is a peculiar human characteristic that we only can recognize superstitions from the past that have been overcome and have been replaced by “new” insights, but that we stay fully unaware of the superstitions that rule our lives today. The world as we “see” it, the way we look at ourselves and the way we look at other, foreign people, is in fact very much determined by intricate systems of fantasy, superstitious beliefs and unproven “certainties” that we, together, are supposed to believe in. In each culture we find different sets of “belief systems”, that are ruling society and also rule the so called “knowledge” it harbours. The function of the various prevailing superstitions is to enhance confusion in human beings, to decrease the likelihood of soberly understanding the (social) situation and thus to decrease the likelihood of finding ways to escape from neurotic fears and slavery. As long as confusion and fear are the result, any fairy tale, at difference with reality, will do. Other than that, the contents of superstitions can be virtually anything. They don't need to match reality anyway. One other important function of superstition is that it provides the "incrowd" carriers of the superstition in question with a specific cognitive "nest odour". It helps people discriminate between incrowd and foreigners. The right superstition, or "belief" represents the right "odour" and helps to determine to which individuals one owes loyalty and which individuals may be considered "fair game". (For more about the function of the varieties of superstition see [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Cultural_power_structures_using_Good_and_Evil_as_an_effective_blinding_tool|there.]]'''(*)''') What all prevailing belief systems have in common, is that, in all their cultural variety, at least they also help to block awareness of the own behavioural tendencies and reflexes regarding the self and regarding social interactions. Thus they help to secure that also in humans the primordial, aeons old animal like behavioural systems keep running as they always, throughout evolution, were supposed to run, unhampered by intellectual meddling and modification. (For more information about the relation between (social role) blindness and human culture [[The_biological_instability_of_social_equilibria#Social-role_blindness|see there]]'''(***)'''). In fact, in each of us, and for each of us, a lot of energy and time is continuously spent to strengthen the blocking of our awareness of these crucial functions in our own thinking. ''But, ....... nowadays ....... the more factual information is becoming readily available, the more difficult it becomes to maintain misinformation, ignorance and blindness. In modern times, this cultural system of keeping us humans stupid, of securing collective blindness, is taking an increasing lot of time and energy and is gradually becoming more and more unstable because of the rapid development of technical achievements and novel information facilities. Increasing transparency increasingly undermines superstition and with that the technical foundations of human slavery.'' == Point Omega == {{Level|1}}Making a few steps back and looking again, it would indeed seem unavoidable that at some point in time, in a not too far future, the paradox of a high intelligence, paired to not understanding oneself, becomes technically too unstable to continue. The innate propensity for Self-Blindness may stay in place, because genetically determined, but the culturally enhanced part of our blindness is ever more difficult to maintain, in the light of ever more growing assaults of scientifically based information about our own functioning. It would, also from an evolutionary point of view, seem probable that at some point in time Intelligence will come to ''understand its own evolutionary structure'' at which point in time the intricate and complex system of inborn ''and'' organised blindness and stupidity will collapse. It then simply has become too unstable. We therefore postulate a Point Omega (term borrowed from Teilhard de Chardin) in the near future, when the present system collapses, when collective ignorance cannot artificially be maintained any longer and understanding of self and social relationships breaks out of its cultural fetters and then starts to spread like a prairie fire, releasing at the same time unparalleled amounts of energy, boosting in turn this process itself. It will probably function as a sort of chain reaction resulting in an explosion of awareness and clarity. The unexpectedly sudden and explosive timing of such a breakthrough can be concluded from, on the one hand the large quantities of social energy that can be spared, once the need for maintaining the cultural fetters of blindness and misinformation can be suspended, and on the other hand from the structure of positive feed back loops in the engine of our learning process, the Cognition-Energy-Learning system (C.E.L.) (see [[Energy_and_Strokes#10._.22Contagiousness.22_of_Interpersonal_Psychological_Skills_and_Adaptation|here]] for more details '''(***)'''). == Where do we stand ? == {{level|2}} Human culture has arrived at a point where we can control nature to such an extent that we do not run the risks any more that formerly were determining life and fate of each and every individual. We have now learned to fight and win any conflict with large predators, with cold, with heat, floods, drought, starvation, and even with almost all contagious diseases. In principle, technically speaking, any healthy individual now could live until old age in peaceful circumstances, were it not for mankind itself providing fatal risks for oneself and for each other. This evolutionary "achievement" resulted as a consequence in Homo sapiens being its own most important predator. This can for instance be shown by investigating what percentage of deaths is caused by intraspecific agression as compared to such cause of death in other species. Recent (2016) research by José Maria Gómez from Granada University shows that indeed aggression between humans is an important selection force, accounting for more deaths than is the case in other species. Evolutionarily, mankind has apparently become its own primary source of risk, its own most important selection force. As a consequence, the main direction of selection has changed dramatically since some hundreds of thousands of years. In more recent times, since around 10.000 years ago, another major shift occurred with respect to evolutionary forces determining the fate of humanity. This shift can be verified also by recent DNA research that shows that the speed of change of the human DNA has increased tremendously since the beginning of this most recent period of human evolution, the beginning of agriculture. In fact, the human species has arrived at a quite peculiar situation. Seen from the point of view of our most basic instincts, our most basic feelings, wishes and desires, we have, in our modern world, developed the technical means and tricks to fulfil each and every wish, stemming from our inmost primordial systems of emotions and motivations. We could in principle all be "happy" and safe. However, as it appears, reality is quite different. We have become our own predators and any large scale civilization is in fact just some postponement of selection pressure, that is taking its toll anew at any occasion when things run out of control. As has been said by philosophers before, civilization can in practice be regarded as a conspiracy against evolution, human evolution. Civilization is always just a shortlasting postponement of selection pressure. In any culture, periods of peace and prosperity don't last very long. Evolution has to take its course, and it does, also in us cultured humans. At such moments in time, wars break out and starvation, diseases, migration waves, genocides and other disasters make evolution recover lost terrain. Then evolution again effectuates its selection pressure in the typical, novel, human evolutionary direction and does away with cumulated genetic pollution, incurred in periods of relative peace. (For more information about the effects of genetic pollution in animals as well as in man, see [[The_effects_of_genetic_pollution_on_political_structures_and_human_history|here]].('''**''') This is how mother nature ascertains that evolutionary processes continue, even under conditions of human civilizations. Only, this repeated process of catching up evolutionary selection pressures, coming with wars, genocide, etc. etc., is getting more and more dangerous for humanity's survival. Let's take one step back. Looking at the present human situation from the outside, it seems highly peculiar that we can fly through the air with hundreds of people at a time in one machine, that we can sail the seas in vessels harbouring tens of thousands of people, that we can plan and cultivate food for a hundred times or more people than are living in the areas in question, that we can put a man on the moon and dive down into the deepest oceans and return to tell what we have seen, that we can look into the universe into distances so far away that it is difficult to imagine what such distances mean, distances, travelled by light in millions of years, that we understand the most elementary particles of matter to the point where we can put together nuclear bombs and nuclear energy plants, we can annihilate the whole of the human world population within one day, and still, and still, ................ we cannot think clearly in front of a mirror, as the above paragraphs argue. How strange ! Looking at the human situation with some sobriety, the urgency of our situation hits us in the face. It would seem that this urgency will force humanity, sooner rather than later, to step back and have a proper look at itself, which is likely to trigger more awareness and to undermine the culturally organised stupidity and blindness. It is this sense of urgency, especially pressing in periods of disaster and mayhem, that will eventually facilitate the breaking of our cultural fetters and therewith trigger the Point Omega chain reaction. The potential energy for feeding this explosion of awareness has by now grown to gigantic proportions indeed. Therefore our guess is that it is most likely that the suddenness, the speed and the overwhelming massiveness of the Point Omega transition will take mankind by surprise. In that process the innate human propensity for Self-Blindness will rather suddenly become transparent, will lose its sting and will no longer determine our collective lives. == Point Omega and Self-Blindness == {{level|2}} Let's summarise the effects of social-role-blindness and self-blindness up till now, during the transition and after Point Omega. '''Until now, Self-Blindness and Social-Role-Blindness result in''': * Socially, we act like animals, especially where things matter very much. * Nepotism * Tribalism * Fears continue and are not understood. Thus human beings are more easily locked up in neurotic systems permanently. '''The relevance for the Point Omega transition''': * Breaking awareness blocks / intelligence blocks is of crucial importance. * Awareness of the own personal motivations opens strategic moves for change and for escape from neurotic imprisonment. * This awareness and the breaking of the intelligence blocks is crucial antidote against the power structures in charge. '''After Point Omega''': * Innate propensity for Self-Blindness will still be there, because this quarter million years old condition is part of our genetic make up. * The cultural props enhancing and stabilising Self-Blindness will lose their influence. * Cultural support to overcome and compensate the innate tendencies for Self-Blindness will be developed and gradually will become more effective. * The awareness of our innate propensity for Self-Blindness will grow and become more stable in time and will help individuals to overcome this blindness. * The various cultural props that used to support Self-Blindness will be recognised as such and be considered as an interesting characteristic of a historical phase in human evolution, that has now been overcome for good. * These "after point Omega effects" will help individuals to spare enormous amounts of energy. That, in turn, will free energy and time to spend on supporting other people and that will facilitate also in those other people the likelihood to escape from neuroticizing structures and to reach higher levels of self-actualization. And the latter will have a contagious effect on the individuals around. So, what we can expect to happen soon after the switching point of Point Omega, is a social-psychological chain reaction, producing very quickly a completely different world with a totally different social environment. And because this is basically a chain reaction on "software" level, it will happen much quicker than people can imagine or can anticipate. ( For more information, click here: [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Social-role blindness|Social Role Blindness]]'''(***)'''). The above list in bullets in short indicates the relationship between Self-Blindness and Point Omega. If we take into consideration the mechanisms of learning processes and the meta-motivational states involved, as elaborated in [[The_evolutionary_stability_of_a_bi-stable_system_of_emotions_and_motivations_in_species_with_an_open-ended_capacity_for_learning|other articles on this Wiki]]'''(***)''', then we can reach a deeper level of understanding the role of Self-Blindness in this evolutionary phase of mankind. In terms of [[Striving,_Playing_and_Learning|Reversal Theory]]'''(***)''') and the [[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model_(1)|C.E.L.]]'''(***)''' the situations before Point Omega and the situation after Point Omega in relation to Self-Blindness appear as follows in detail. == Before Point Omega: == {{Level|1}} In the majority of people the Telic Meta-motivational State is strongly dominant. Therefore these people are goal-oriented and rarely enjoy the moments of life itself, emotionally aware of the flow of events. Such people, before Point Omega the majority, have a strong need for structure and purpose, because that is what goal-orientedness is all about. They rarely dwell in the "here and now" and find it difficult to live with purposelessness, which is rather a characteristic of the paratelic state. Evolution is basically, intrinsically, goal-less. Chance and necessity determine direction in evolution, also in our own evolution. The direction comes from within, not from outside. There cannot be an outside source of direction to evolution. Evolution is a blind and automatic selection process creating relatively stable structures in a changing environment, changing also by evolution itself. It is basically open ended, permanently creating itself. Therefore evolution is a threatening perspective to telic dominant people. Evolution does not provide a specific "destiny" as a conceptual anchoring point. Therefore reality feels too "naked" to most people to bear. Being full of fears, neuroses and misery, people are stuck with the basic question: "what then is the purpose of all this ''suffering''?" Reality can therefore not easily be known by telic dominant people, who cannot live with purposelessness. They ''have'' to cling to something solid and fixed. Because of the above, if one is a telic dominant person, which is mostly the case until Point Omega, there is a strong need, a craving for "purpose". And being social creatures, this then comes in the form of a strong emotional need for shared and fixed ideas about the "purpose" of (one's own) existence, even if these ideas are highly improbable or rather are basically just fairy tales. Any fixed idea, no matter how stupid or crazy, seems to be desirable above no idea at all. “Purpose” of the suffering gives emotional support and perspective, no matter how false the purpose giving "goal" is in reality. However, technically speaking, superstition is in principle unstable in a field of (growing) knowledge. In power structures ignorance is preferred above intelligent insight. Ignorant people can easier be manipulated and controlled. However, intelligent insights make continuation of superstition difficult. Intelligent enquiry causes instability of fixed ideas about our “goals” and “purpose”, because they are not based on reality, but on wishful thinking and superstitious indoctrination. Thus: successful societies cherish and protect superstition and ignorance. Otherwise they are not an ESS. For power structures it pays off to invest energy in keeping people stupid and prevent them from conducting intelligent enquiry. These amounts of energy, spent for that purpose, can be huge. Choosing another perspective, taking a cognitive point of view, telic dominance implies a propensity for sufficiency-oriented recipes and world views. Such ideas and views do not contain a high level of sparsity and of logical coherence and stability, but rather a multitude of ad hoc recipes without much coherence and interrelatedness. Incongruence of ideas is not so much of an emotional problem there. As such, such sufficiency oriented pictures of the world can easily contain ideas and concepts that appear superstitious, simpleminded and dumb, at least they appear so to more stable personalities. Before Point Omega, in our time, the views of the world show an enormous richness and cultural variety, be it that in general they lack truthfulness and efficiency. == After Point Omega: == {{Level|1}} Telic dominance will diminish and paratelic states will be more prevalent. Need for externally indicated purpose will therefore dwindle away and exiting unpredictability and richness of possibilities will be enjoyed instead of being feared. No need for communal tales of purpose any more, no need for superstition any more, no need for blocking of intelligence any more, no artificially stabilized massive stupidity any more. The cumbersome and complex systems to maintain blind ignorance and superstition, consuming huge amounts of time and energy, have become superfluous. That way much energy is freed for creative purposes and for stabilizing growth and development and understanding. At the cognitive level, there is more and more dominance of necessity oriented models of reality, models that are more sparse, more coherent and more stable in time. At Point Omega a run-away positive feed back loop starts, causing an unprecedented exponential growth of human intelligence and understanding. In summary, the removal of awareness blocks, and the freeing of huge amounts of intelligent capacities and energy, will cause a massive chain reaction in many fields of functioning. This we may label as the Point Omega chain reaction. One of the many effects will be that we will gain deep and detailed knowledge of and insight in evolutionary processes, also our own. This will enable mankind to creatively influence and steer evolution in humans. For that reason we will finally emerge from our gradual '''evolution towards''' more and more '''consciousness''' into a process of '''conscious evolution. ''' == Towards "Amathology" or the science of ignorance == {{Level|2}} In view of the data as presented in this chapter, it would be worthwhile, and it would certainly pay off in terms of understanding the nature of mankind's most important contemporary predicaments, to establish a scientific research discipline on the mechanisms and effects of Social Blindness- and Self-Blindness. This could greatly enhance a better understanding of all the various cultural mechanisms (meme sets) that have kept us stupid until now and it might help to "grease" the way to a Point Omega transition. We could label such a research discipline as "Amathology", from the Greek word "Amathos" or "ignorance". In psychological and in philosophical literature one can find ample illustrations and examples of typical human blindnesses, particularly where notions about the self are at stake. See for instance the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases list of cognitive biases] on Wikipedia, being the focus of many research activities. One of the following articles on this Wiki, [[Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality]], may constitute a part of the scientific research in the field of "Amathology". Another issue for "Amathology" research could be attempts to solve the following scientific "bet". ''The above considerations would predict that in the past millennia in many strata of human societies there may have been a selection power in favour of limited intelligence and limited conceptual capacities. Such a tendency would help stabilize existing power structures and their mind block mechanisms and thus confer survival value to the power structure / culture in question and to its carriers. This effect should possibly have been there from the start of the agricultural revolution, some 10,000 years ago, until today. ''(It is OK if a small minority of top dogs is intelligent. However, the masses had better be stupid !)'''' It should be possible to find ways to verify or falsify this postulate. This might for instance among other things be an explanation for the archaeological finding that the skull content / volume of present day men is slightly lower than skulls from some 10.000 years ago, whereas the speed of DNA-changes in man has increased tremendously during that period. This finding of decreased skull content, combined with recent research data showing a strong relationship between frontal cortex skull content and intelligence and the genetic basis thereof (see for instance [http://www.loni.ucla.edu/~thompson/MEDIA/NN/Press_Release.html Thompson et al., 2001]), would suggest that verification of the above postulate should be possible. Other Amathology research targets: The theory on this Wiki predicts among other things that large quantities of energy and thinking capacity are being spent on maintaining and corroborating blindness for ourselves and blindness for our assessment of other people's behaviour. From personality psychological data it should be possible to derive proof that much of the personality psychological tools are being used for hiding, rather than soberly assessing and predicting the own and each other's behaviour. A hypothesis to be tested could be that: ''An important part of all personality descriptive adjectives etc. are not correlated with any actual behaviour, but are used to maintain a colouring of the personality characteristics with strikes of goodness versus strikes of badness, thus inducing and stabilizing an attitude of support for or of resistance against the rated person in question. Sober and objective assessment of persons' behaviour is thus replaced by cognitively hiding the actual behaviours in question and by the creation of an emotional foundation for the already existing social role relationship between rater and ratee. Intelligent objective assessment is thus replaced by unhampered primordial social reflexes. ''This good-bad dimension in personality research is so overwhelmingly important that it can be found in multivariate statistical analyses as the unrotated first principal component in factor analysis. The largest part of the correlations between personality descriptive adjectives is therefore not describing any actual behaviour or actual personality characteristics at all, but is just a tool for cognitively protecting primordial, primitive social reflexes against sober intellectual investigation. It should be possible to calculate from basic correlation matrices of personality descriptive adjectives and from basic physiological data on blood streams to the human head, how much of human energy is on average spent on maintaining a specific blindness towards own and other people's characteristics in order to protect crucial social reflexes from being understood intellectually.'''' If this can be shown as postulated, it can serve as proof of the enormous evolutionary importance of human blindness for the Self. Such a finding would have tremendous bearing on how humanity views itself and also would have bearing on how we choose to proceed from here as a species. Another hypothesis that could be tested in a discipline of "Amathology" could be on the role and function of human Self-blindness for fueling the cyclic changes in social structures. A hypothesis to be tested could be: ''Population cycles in Lemmings and other small rodents have their counterpart in cyclic changes in human social structures and have the same behavioural-genetic basis.'' ''The evolutionary function and role of these cyclic changes is in the periodic re-shuffling of genes in the gene pool, in the colonization of thus far uninhabited areas, etc.'' ''In Homo sapiens these same cyclic changes can be observed and these cyclic forces can only keep operating by virtue of a strong Self-Blindness in us humans, protecting the unhampered social selection forces ruling the primordial in-crowd / out-cast social reflexes, motoring these social cycles. It should be possible to show that the genetically based behavioural dimension on which these selection forces operate is close to specific established personality dimensions in personality psychological literature and it should be possible to show where this personality dimension is located in the multidimensional adjective space.'' It would be worthwhile to cooperate in this research with biological researchers investigating the genetic roots of such personality differences in other social mammal species. Another hypothesis to be tested under the flag of "Amathology" could be about the Cognition-Energy Learning model (the C.E.L.), being a novel learning paradigm next to behaviourism and humanistic growth psychology and explaining both, and being able to effectively describe and predict the present evolutionary situation of mankind. A hypothesis could be: ''According to the CEL, rhythm and timing of experiences are more important than the outcome of the learning events. Strongly aversive experiences can have neuroticizing or rather strengthening effects on the subjects, depending on the timing and the rhythm of the experiences. The same aversive experience can produce heroes or neurotic cowards depending on the timing of the experiences. Proof for this hypothesis could be derived from simple and quick experiments with small mammals.'' It should be possible to find similar phenomena in human personality psychological literature. Another hypothesis to be derived from the CEL models in this Wiki could be about the effects of ''positive feed-back loops in 2 directions: the neurotic direction and the self-actualization direction. One prediction from this model would be that the usual neurotic human psychological condition can in principle be reverted into a collective state of actualization of all innate potentials, as soon as a critical % of humans has entered actualized states.'' The famous B.J. Kouwer wrote a book on personality "Het spel van de persoonlijkheid: Theorieën en systemen in de psychologie van de menselijke persoon" (1963), that has become a bible for a whole generation of personality researchers at Groningen University. Kouwer eloquently points out the illusory character of much of the daily used personality concepts and illustrates how we delude ourselves and each other with those terms, believing in the non-existent solidity of what we consider "personality". It would be worthwhile to write a sequel to Kouwer's famous work in view of the data that we have derived from the articles on this Wiki. The Kouwerian point of view in that light is for 100% correct and applicable to the first unrotated principal component in factoranalytic personality research. The remainder of the personality vocabulary refers to real behavioural variables. However, most of the personality descriptive adjectives do have some or much correlation with the Good-Bad dimension, being the first unrotated principal component. Therefore the Kouwerian aspect, the virtual aspect, for some part sticks to almost all personality descriptive adjectives. But that is not the whole story. The contributions on this Wiki enable us to discriminate more clearly between what is purely Kouwerian and what is based in real behaviour that can be objectively determined. It should be possible to show that by partialling out the correlations with the first unrotated principal component, the Good-Bad dimension, a collection of "real" personality dimensions remains. This would enable us to show which parts of our conceptual personality tools should be regarded with great caution and it could tell us how the Kouwerian view and principles can help us to construe a comprehensive model of personality, clean of the all pervading human tendency to indulge in primordial and automatic social reflexes that form a veil over any sober assessment of our own and of each other's behavioural characteristics. Etc., etc. == Summary == For a summary return to the [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence#top|first page]] of this article. 5oadzblpzx3pqwb41i0r9j82e4w5rhn 6 69 429 428 2008-01-29T20:25:51Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[Image:Lewicka standards of goodness.png]]" wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2008-01-29T20:24:04Z BigSmoke 1 Lewicka_standards_of_goodness.png 20080129202551!Lewicka_standards_of_goodness.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20080129202551%21Lewicka_standards_of_goodness.png 19254 iqb40w78rf53uf3ykx3teycv8uggqtc archive/20080129202551!Lewicka_standards_of_goodness.png 2008-01-29T20:25:51Z BigSmoke 1 Lewicka_standards_of_goodness.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Lewicka_standards_of_goodness.png 19414 ezlx8t82plzlpuyx03mzu9qh8nptkmh Lewicka_standards_of_goodness.png 6 70 431 430 2008-01-29T21:06:21Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[Image:Avoidance of unpleasant results in the action-control mode.png]]" wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2008-01-29T20:57:49Z BigSmoke 1 Avoidance_of_unpleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png 20080129210621!Avoidance_of_unpleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20080129210621%21Avoidance_of_unpleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png 7418 pj54er246uvmb4oep0ub25p5cm7k1h2 archive/20080129210621!Avoidance_of_unpleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png 2008-01-29T21:06:21Z BigSmoke 1 Avoidance_of_unpleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Avoidance_of_unpleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png 10844 7lrxeunyi0kjj1f2913js3w9vlkcdwm Avoidance_of_unpleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png 6 71 432 2008-01-29T21:08:28Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2008-01-29T21:08:28Z BigSmoke 1 Aiming_at_pleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Aiming_at_pleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png 10027 davil6zl0zi770ks60km75cswz92zjm Aiming_at_pleasant_results_in_the_action-control_mode.png 0 72 6749 6064 2017-01-11T13:37:04Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki '''List of literature and references''' (Items in '''bold''': commentaries available on this Wiki) {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | chapter=Experiencing personal relationships | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Murgatroyd | editor2-first=D.F.S. | title=Reversal Theory: applications and development | place=Cardiff | publisher=University College Cardiff Press | year=1985 | isbn=0-906649-74-X }} {{Citation | last=Barash | first=David P. | title=Sociobiology and Behaviour | year=1977 | publisher=Elsevier North-Holland, Inc. | place=New York }} {{Citation | last=Bateson | first=Gregory | title=Steps to an Ecology of Mind | year=1972-1981 | publisher=Ballantine Books | place=New York }} {{Citation | last=Bateson | first=Gregory | title=Mind and Nature, a necessary unity | year=1979-1980 | publisher=Bantam Books | place=Toronto, New York, London }} {{Citation | last=Bettelheim | first=Bruno | title=The Informed Heart: Autonomy in a Mass Age | year=1960 | publisher=Avon Books }} {{Citation | last=Bettelheim | first=Bruno | title=The Children of the Dream | year=1969 | publisher=MacMillan | isbn=0025105906 }} {{Citation | last=Blackmore | first= S. | year=2000 | title=The Meme Machine | publisher=Oxford University Press }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first= J. | year=1969 | title=Attachment and Loss, Vol.1: Attachment | publisher=Basic Books | place=New York }} {{Citation | last=Bregman | first=Rutger | year=2013 | title=De geschiedenis van de voortuitgang | publisher=Bezige Bij | isbn=9023477545 (10); isbn: 9789023477549(13) }} {{Citation | last1=Brown | first1=Lester R. | title=World on Edge | place=New York | publisher=Norton & Company | year=2011 | isbn=(/download pdf:) www.earth-policy.org }} {{Citation | last1=Brown | first1=Lester R. | title=We kunnen nog kiezen | place=Haarlem | publisher=Maurits Groen mgmc | year=2011 | }} {{Citation | last1=de Chardin | first1=Pierre Teilhard | title=Le Phénomène humain | place=Paris | publisher=Éditions du Seuil | year=1960 | }} {{Citation | last1=de Chardin | first1=Pierre Teilhard | title=Het verschijnsel mens | place=Utrecht/Antwerpen | publisher=Aula, Het Spectrum | year=1960/1963 | }} {{Citation | last=Connor | first=Steve | year=2012 | title=Human intelligence 'peaked thousands of years ago and we've been on an intellectual and emotional decline ever since' | periodical=The Independent | issue=2012-12-06 }} {{Citation | last=Crabtree | first=Gerald R. | year=2012 | title=Our Fragile Intellect. Parts I&II | periodical=Trends in Genetics | issue=29(1) | pages=1-6 }} {{Citation | last=Cuénot | first=Claude | publisher=Prisma Boeken (translation of: "Teilhard de Chardin", Editions du Seuil, Paris, 1963)| place=Utrecht/Antwerpen | title=Teilhard de Chardin, leven, werk, visie | year=1967 }} {{Citation | last=Darlington | first=C.D. | title=The Evolution of Man and Society | publisher=George Allen and Unwin | place=London | year=1969 }} {{Citation | last=Darlington | first=C.D. | title=De evolutie van mens en maatschappij | publisher=Het Spectrum | place=Utrecht/Antwerpen | year=1973 }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=Richard | title=The Selfish Gene | publisher=Oxford University Press | isbn=0 19 857519 X | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=Richard | title=The Extended Phenotype. The long reach of the gene | place=Oxford, U.K. | publisher=University Press | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=Richard | chapter=Viruses of the mind | editor-last=Dahlbohm | editor-first=B. | title=Demystifying Mind | place=Oxford | publisher=Blackwell | year=1993 }} {{Citation | last='''Dawkins''' | first=Richard | title=[[The God Delusion]] | place=U.K. | publisher=Bantam Press | year=2006 | isbn=0 593 05548 9 }} {{Citation | last='''Dawkins''' | first=Richard | title=[[The God Delusion|God als Misvatting]] | place=Nederland | publisher=Nieuw Amsterdam ''Uitgevers'' | year=2006 | isbn=978 90 468 0594 7 }} {{Citation | last=Dennen | first=Johan M.G. van der | title=[[The Origin of War]]: The Evolution of a Male-Coalitional Reproductive Strategy | year=1995 | publisher=Drukkerij Volharding | place=Groningen | isbn=9074528066 }} {{Citation | editor1-last=Dennen | editor1-first=Johan M.G. van der | editor2-last=Falger | editor2-first=V. | title=Sociobiology and Conflict | publisher=Chapman and Hall | place=London | year=1990 | isbn=0412337703 }} {{Citation | last=Dennet | first=Daniel C. | title=Consciousness Explained | year=1991 | publisher=Little, Brown & Co | isbn=0-316-18065-3 }} {{Citation | last=Dennet | first=Daniel C. | title=Consciousness Explained | year=1992 | publisher=Black Bay Books | isbn=0-316-18066-1 }} {{Citation | last=Dennet | first=Daniel C. | title=Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life, Ch.12 | year=1995 | publisher=Simon & Schuster | place=New York | isbn=0-684-82471-X }} {{Citation | last=Dennet | first=Daniel C. | title=Freedom Evolves | year=2003 | publisher=Viking Books | isbn=0-670-03186-0 }} {{Citation | last=Dijk | first=J.J.M. van | title=Dominatiegedrag en geweld; een multidisciplinaire visie op de veroorzaking van geweldmisdrijven | publisher=Dekker & v.d.Vecht | place=Nijmegen | year=1977 | isbn=90 255 9867 6 }} {{Citation | last=Dixon | first=Norman F. | title=On the Psychology of Military Incompetence | year=1976-1984 | publisher=Jonathan Cape Ltd. | place=London }} {{Citation | last=Dobzhansky | first=Th. | title=Genetic Diversity and Human Equality | year=1973 | publisher=Basic Books, Inc. | place=New York }} {{Citation | last=Dobzhansky | first=Th. | title=Mens, intelligentie en erfelijkheid; genetische verscheidenheid en menselijke gelijkheid | year=1974 | publisher=Lemniscaat | place=Rotterdam | isbn=90 6069 200 4 }} {{Citation | last1=Ehrlich | first1=Paul R. | last2=Ehrlich | first2=Anne H. | title=Can a collapse of global civilization be avoided? | url=http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/280/1754/20122845.full | year=2013 | periodical=Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences | issue=280; no. 1754 20122845 }} {{Citation | last1=Ehrlinger | first1=Joyce | last2=Johnson | first2=Kerri | last3=Banner | first3=Matthew | last4=Dunning | first4=David | last5=Kruger | first5=Justin | pages=pp.98-121 | title=Why the Unskilled Are Unaware: Further Explorations of (Absent) Self-Insight Among the Incompetent | url=http://www.ncbi.n lm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2702783/ | year=2008 | periodical=Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes | issue=105; no. 1 }} {{Citation | last1=Eisenstein | first1=Charles | title=The Ascent of Humanity (The Age of Separation, the Age of Reunion, and the convergence of crises that is birthing the transition) | url=http://www.ascentofhumanity.com/description-of-the-book.php | year=2013 | isbn=-13: 978-1583946367 }} {{Citation | last1=Gardner | first1=Dan | title=Future Babble: Why Expert Predictions Are Next to Worthless, and You Can Do Better | place=New York, USA | publisher=Dutton, Penguin Group | year=2011 | isbn=101 46775 4 }} {{Citation | last=Girard | first=René | title=De Zondebok | publisher=Uitgeverij Kok Agora | place=Kampen | year=1986 | isbn=9024275342 }} {{Citation | last=Girard | first=René | title=Wat vanaf het begin der tijden verborgen was | publisher=Uitgeverij Kok Agora | place=Kampen | year=1990 }} {{Citation | last1=Grafen | first1=A. | last2=Ridley | first2=M. | publisher=Oxford University Press | place=Oxford | year=2006 | title=Richard Dawkins: How a Scientist Changed the Way We Think }} {{Citation | last='''Gray''' | first=John | title=[[Straw Dogs, Thoughts on Humans and Other Animals]] | publisher=Granta Books | place=London | year=2002 }} {{Citation | last='''Gray''' | first=John | title=[[Black Mass, Apocalyptic Religion and the Death of Utopia]] | publisher=Penguin Books | place=London | year=2007 }} {{Citation | last=Groen | first=J.J. | chapter=Tederheidstekort als oorzaak van ziekte | pages=pp.10-30 | editor1-last=De Groot | editor1-first=A.D. | editor2-last=Kruyt | editor2-first=J.P. | title=Tederheid | place=Meppel, The Netherlands | publisher=Boom | year=1990 }} {{Citation | last1=Grof | first1=Stanislav | last2=Halifax | first2=Joan | publisher=Souvenir Press | place=London | year=1977 | title=The Human Encounter with Death }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=Stanislav | publisher=Clarke, Irwin & Company Ltd. | place=Toronto/Vancouver | title=Realms of the Human Unconscious; Observations from L.S.D. Research | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Handy | first=Charles | publisher=Arrow, Random House | place=UK | title=The Hungry Spirit, Beyond Capitalism: a quest for purpose in the modern world | year=1998 | isbn=0 09 922772 X | isbn=(13) 978-0099-22772-4 }} {{Citation | last=Harari | first=Yuval Noah | publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform | title=From Animals into Gods: A Brief History of Humankind | year=2012 | isbn=1478237856, 9781478237853 }} {{Citation | last=Harris | first=Judith Rich | publisher=The Free Press | title=The Nurture Assumption: Why Children Turn Out the Way They Do | year=1998 | isbn=0-684-84409-5 }} {{Citation | last=Hitchens | first=Christopher | publisher=Hachette Book Group, Twelve Books | place=New York | title=God Is Not Great: The Case Against Religion | year=2007 | isbn=978-0-446-57980-3 | }} {{Citation | editor-last=Kirton | editor-first=Michael J. | title=Adaptors and Innovators: Styles of creativity and problem-solving | year=1989 | publisher=Routledge | place=London | isbn=0415024242 }} {{Citation | editor-last=Kouwer | editor-first=Benjamin J. | title=Het spel van de persoonlijkheid: Theorieën en systemen in de psychologie van de menselijke persoon | year=1963,1978 | publisher=Bijleveld | place=Utrecht | isbn=90 6131 234 5 }} {{Citation | last1=Kramer | first1=Joel | last2=Alstad | first2=Diana | year=1993 | title=The Guru Papers: masks of authoritarian power | isbn=1-883319-00-5 | publisher=Frog Ltd. | place=Berkely, California }} {{Citation | last=Kuhn | first=Thomas S. | title=The Structure of Scientific Revolutions | year=1970 | publisher=Union of Chicago Press | place=Chicago }} {{Citation | last=Kuijer | first=Guus | title=Het geminachte kind | publisher=De Arbeiderspers | place=Amsterdam | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last=Laing | first=Ronald D. | title=Toestanden, vert. v. Knots | Publisher-Boom | place=Meppel | year=1970 }} {{Citation | last=Laing | first=Ronald D. | title=Knots | Publisher=Tavistock Publications | place=London | year=1970 }} {{Citation | last=Laing | first=Ronald D. | title=Self and Others | url=http://books.google.com/books?id=N7h2MVMPlYoC | publisher=Routledge | year=1969 | isbn=0415198194 }} {{Citation | last=Laing | first=Ronald D. | title=Het zelf en de anderen | publisher=Boom | place=Meppel | year=1970 }} {{Citation | last=Laing | first=Ronald D. | title=The Politics of Experience | publisher=Penguin Books | place=Hammondsworth, England | year=1967 }} {{Citation | last=Laing | first=Ronald D. | title=De Strategie van de ervaring | publisher=Boom | place= Meppel | year=1969 }} {{Citation | last=Maslow | first=Abraham H. | title=Self-Actualizing People: A Study of Psychological Health | publisher=Grune & Stratton, Inc. | year=1950 }} {{Citation | last=Maslow | first=Abraham H. | editor1-last=Lowry | editor1-first=Richard J. | title=Dominance, Self-Esteem, Self-Actualization: Germinal Papers of A.H.Maslow | place=Monterey, California, USA | publisher=Brooks/Cole Publ.Cy. | year=1973 | isbn=0-8185-0087-5 }} {{Citation | editor1-last=Masters | editor1-first=Roger D. | editor2-last=Gruter | editor2-first=Margaret | title=The Sense of Justice. Biological Foundations of Law | place=Newbury Park | publisher=Sage Publications | year=1992 }} {{Citation | last=Milgram | first=Stanley | title=Obedience to Authority; an experimental view | publisher=Harper & Row, USA; Tavistock Public. Ltd., London | year=1974 | isbn=0422745804 }} {{Citation | last=Monod | first=Jacques | title=Le hasard et la nécessité | year=1970 | publisher=Editions du Seuil | place=Paris }} {{Citation | last=Monod | first=Jacques | title=Chance and Necessity: An Essay on the Natural Philosophy of Modern Biology | year=1971 | url=http://dannyreviews.com/h/Chance_and_Necessity.html }} {{Citation | last=Monod | first=Jacques | title=Toeval en onvermijdelijkheid, proeve van een natuurfilosofie van de moderne biologie | year=1971 | publisher= Bruna & Zn | place=Utrecht/Antwerpen | isbn=90 229 71805 5 }} {{Citation | last=Morris | first=Donald R. | title=The Washing of the Spears | year=1966/1973 | publisher=Cardinal Books / Sphere Books | place=London | isbn=0 351 17400 1 }} {{Citation | last=Norenzayan | first=Ara | title=Big Gods: How Religion Transformed Cooperation and Conflict | year=2013 | publisher=Princeton University Press | isbn=9780691151212 (e-book)isbn:9781400848324 }} {{Citation | last=Quinn | first=Daniel | title=Beyond Civilization: Humanity's next great adventure | year=1999 | publisher=Three Rivers Press | place=New York }} {{Citation | last=de Ridder | first=Wim | title=De Wereld Breekt Open | year=2011 | publisher=Pierson Education Benelux | isbn=9789043021746 }} {{Citation | last=de Ridder | first=Wim | title=Applying Memes in Foresight | year=2011 | url=http://www.google.nl/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.futuresstudies.nl%2Fuploads%2FApplying%2520memes%2520in%2520foresight%2520febr2011.doc&ei=_OiCVNv2MJP5aoGegvAI&usg=AFQjCNGjDtpuO9fTf66y1UBQUE0wSY1C8A&sig2=Jx7gWQefiv-3Kzax1XY6FA&bvm=bv.80642063,d.d2s }} {{Citation | last=de Ridder | first=Wim | title=De Ontdekking van de Toekomst: Wat we al weten, is niet te geloven | year=2014 | publisher=Vakmedianet | place=Deventer | isbn=9789462760028 }} {{Citation | last=Röder | first=Else Lucia | title=Rearing Conditions and the Acquisition of Phobic Behaviour in Monkeys | year=1990 | publisher=Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen | place=Nijmegen }} {{Citation | last=Ruiz | first=Don Miguel | title=The Four Agreements: a practical guide to personal freedom | publisher=Amber-Allen | place=San Rafael (CA) | year=1997 }} {{Citation | last1=Russel | first1=Claire | last2=Russel | first2=William | title=Apen & Mensen: over de escalatie van het geweld | publisher=De Arbeiderspers | place=Amsterdam | year=1968/1970 | isbn=90 295 3680 2 }} {{Citation | last1=Russel | first1=Claire | last2=Russel | first2=William | title=Violence, Monkeys and Man | publisher=MacMillan | place=London | year=1968 }} {{Citation | last1=Sapolsky | first1=Robert M. | title=Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers; The Acclaimed Guide to Stress, Stress-Related Diseases, and Coping | publisher=St. Martin's Griffin | place=New York | year=1994/2004 | isbn=978-0-8050-7369-0 }} {{Citation | last=Scheurmann | first=E. | title=Der Papalagi, die Reden des Südseehäuptlings Tuiavii aus Tiavea | year=original: etwa 1927; diese Herausgabe: 1977/1979 | publisher=Tanner und Stachelin Verlag | place=Zürich }} {{Citation | last1=Shermer | first1=Michael | title=The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies; How we Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths | place=New York | publisher=Times Books | year=2011 | isbn=978-0-8050-9125-0 }} {{Citation | last1=Shockly | first1=William Bradford | title=Shockly on Eugenics and Race; composed by Roger Pearson | place=Washington D.C. | publisher=Scott-Townsend Publishers | year=1992 | isbn=1-878465-03-1 }} {{Citation | last=Slurink | first=Pouwel | title=Natuurlijke Selectie en de Tragiek van de Menselijke Idealen; een Naturalistische Rechtvaardiging en Kritiek van Ethische Noties | year=1989 | publisher=Eburon | place=Delft }} {{Citation | last=Sterelny | first=K. | chapter=The Perverse Primate | pages=pp.213-223 | editor1-last=Grafen | editor1-first=A. | editor2-last=Ridley | editor2-first=M. | title=Richard Dawkins: How a Scientist Changed the Way We Think | place=Oxford, U.K. | publisher=Oxford University Press | year=2006 }} {{Citation | last=de Swaan | first=Abram | title=Compartimenten van vernietiging. Over genocidale regimes en hun daders | year=2014 | publisher=Prometheus / Bert Bakker | place=Amsterdam }} {{Citation | last='''Tarlo''' | first=Luna | title=[[Sorcerer's Apprentice, my life with Carlos Castaneda#Teachers and Gurus and the corruption of power|The Mother of God]]: A mother's account of her experience as a disciple of her own son, a well-known American guru, and of her struggle to free herself from his control | year=1997 | publisher=Plover Press | place=New York }} {{Citation | last=Teilhard de Chardin | first=Pierre | title=title: same | year=1963 | publisher=Editions du Seuil | place=Paris }} {{Citation | last1=Thompson | first1=Paul M. | last2=Cannon | first2=T.D. | last3=Narr | first3=K.L. | last4=van Erp | first4=T.G.M. | last5=Poutanen | first5=V.P. | last6=Huttunen | first6=M. | last7=Lonnqvist | first7=J. | last8=Standertskjold-Nordenstam | first8=C.G. | last9=Kaprio | first9=J. | last10=Khaledy | first10=M. | last11=Dail | first11=R. | last12=Zoumalan | first12=C.I. | last13=Toga | first13=A.W. | title=Genetic Influence on Brain Structure | year=2001 | url=http://www.loni.ucla.edu/~thompson/MEDIA/NN/Press_Release.html | periodical=Nature Neuroscience | issue=4; no. 12 | pages=1253-1258 }} {{Citation | last=Tiavea | first=Tuiavii of | title=The Papalagi, speeches by Tuiavii of Tiavea, a samoan chief; collected by E. Scheurmann | year=1976 | publisher=Real Free Press Int. | place=Amsterdam }} {{Citation | last=Tiavea | first=Tuiavii of | title=De Papalagi, redevoeringen van het Zuidzee-opperhoofd Tuiavii uit Tiavea | year=1980/1992 | publisher=Heureka | place=Weesp, Netherlands | isbn= 90 6262 331 x }} {{Citation | last='''Tolle''' | first=Eckhart | title=[[A New Earth]]: Awakening to your life's purpose | year=2005 | publisher=Penguin Books | place=London | isbn=0-141-01782-1 }} {{Citation | last=Unknown author | first=(? Friedrich II Von Hohenstaufen (1194-1250)?; Erasmus (1469-1526)?; Bernardino Ochino (1487-1564)?; Guillaume Postel (1520-1581)?; Baruch de Spinoza (1632-1677)?; Johannes Joachim Müller (1661-1733)?, 1688) | title=Over drie bedriegers, Mozes, Jezus, Mohammed; earlier titles: De tribus impostoribus; Traité des trois imposteurs, Moïse, Jésus-Christ, Mahomet; De imposturis religionum, | year=2008; earlier versions: 1598, 1688, | publisher=Voltaire bv | place=Den Bosch | isbn=978 90 5848 074 3 }} {{Citation | last=de Valk | first=Giliam (in cooperation with Johan Niezing| title=Research on Civilian-Based Defence | year=1993 | publisher=SISWO publikatie 368 | place=Amsterdam | }} {{Citation | last='''Verburgh''' | first=Kris | year=2007 | title=[[Fantastisch, over het universum in ons hoofd]] | publisher=Uitg. Houtekiet | isbn=9052409846 }} {{Citation | last=Waard | first=Fransje de | title=Spirituele Crises, Transpersoonlijke psychologie als perspectief | isbn=978 90 232 4281 9 | year=2007 | publisher=van Gorcum | place=Assen }} {{Citation | last=Waard | first=Fransje de | title=Spiritual Crisis, Varieties and Perspectives of a Transpersonal Phenomenon | isbn=978 1845 402013 (see Contents and Intro [[Fransje de Waard (2010), Spiritual Crisis, Varieties and Perspectives of a Transpersonal Phenomenon|here]])| year=2010 | publisher=Imprint Academic Philosophy Documentation Center | place=Charlotteville, VA, USA }} {{Citation | last='''Wallace''' | first=Amy | title=[[Sorcerer's Apprentice, my life with Carlos Castaneda]] | isbn=1-58394-076-6 | year=2003 | publisher=North Atlantic Books | place=Berkeley, California, USA }} {{Citation | last=Wilson | first=Edward O. | title=Sociobiology: The new synthesis | year=1975 | publisher=Belknap Press, Harvard Univ. Press | place=Cambridge, Massachusetts | isbn=0-674-81621-8 }} {{Citation | last=Zimmer | first=Carl | title=Where Did We Come From?: An Intimate Guide to the Latest Discoveries in Human Origins | year=2005 | publisher=ABC Books | isbn=0-733-31647-6 ; isbn-13=978-0733316470 }} 450f30hcrkb23e8b5nb0yb7nb6neitr 0 73 5879 5878 2014-09-11T14:08:45Z Baby Boy 2 /* Point Omega: intelligence finally understanding itself */ wikitext text/x-wiki <big>'''Comments on Kris Verburgh's Fantastisch! (Fantastic, about the universe in our head)'''</big> On Kris Verburgh's website, there's also a [http://www.krisverburgh.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=15 detailed description] of the book with links to online book stores. Fantastisch! not only deals with the universe, or Darwin, or the brain, but unifies all three realms of research into one fantastic story, covering fourteen billion years, in order to give an answer to the question: what does it mean to be human ? Fantastisch! deals with the emergence of life, about the evolution theory, about how the brain works, consciousness, thinking computers, quantum mechanics and religion. Due also to recent scientific discoveries, Fantastisch! also wants to answer the last, ultimate question: does a supreme being exist? Is there more than just matter and energy? To that end the author introduces a new concept, the context story, built on three pillars, to enable the reader in that way to reach his/her own ultimate decision by him/herself. Fantastisch! not only deals with science, but is also a philosophical and spiritual book, trying to evoke feelings of wonder, just as the capacity to put ourselves into perspective. That way the reader is triggered to experience reality in a new and different way. Kris published this book in 2007. It contains a general overview of the world we live in and the way we humans tic. It is scientifically sound and thorough, but nevertheless quite easy to read and to grasp by a broad public. It is in fact the most attractive and comprehensive treatise on the how and the why of our existence hat I ever encountered. Written by a 21 years old student from Belgium, it is fresh and clean, not contaminated by any of our contemporary ruling systems of belief and superstition. Kris is a free-thinker and it shows. He also shows to be remarkably erudite and his depicting of the world is rather exhaustive and complete in view of what is known as of today and what is scientifically well established. Still, in spite of the completeness of Verburgh's picture, based on what is scientifically known, we would like to add at least two important notions that we consider crucial for a complete understanding of the human position in this world at this time. These two notions will increase the power of Kris' comprehensive overview even further and will give humanity even better tools to take its own future into its own hands, to the advantage of all. Before discussing these two additional chunks of information, we'll quote some paragraphs of Kris' book that illustrate the general line of his thinking. == Quote from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head" == What would be the result if we now put together our capacity for fantasy, for self-conceit and for gullibility? The result is not ''Homo sapiens'' or the wise man, but ''Homo fantasia'' or man, extolling itself in gullible fantasies. (Those who know Latin will note that fantasia is not a correct Latin word, but Homo fantasia probably wouldn't care: it sounds good.) Maybe you think I am exaggerating. After all, man seems more 'wise' than 'full of fantasies'? For sure, man is endowed with enormous cognitive skills. But these skills blind us to such an extent that we end up believing that man merely is 'wise'. The insight that we are peculiarly sensitive to dreams and illusions, in my view is an important discovery. People are beings that are willing to die for their 'truths'. If we then note that we are not designed to know the ultimate truths and that we very readily believe all sorts of un-truths, then this entails quite some revelation. This explains many phenomena in our society that we can find all over the place, from horoscopes in newspapers till the capacity to let ourselves be carried away to other fantasy worlds by looking at some tiny letters on paper or pictures on large cinema screens. Thus, Homo fantasia is a species, mad for fantastic stories and made-up creativity. Moreover, we are a species the members of which like to overestimate themselves, indulging in pride and vanity. We are creatures who believe that we are the purposefully created products of a superior being, thinking that after death we are fully entitled to live on for ever, trying to find a meaning behind everything, frantically searching continuously for spectacular experiences that might lift us out of daily reality, highly upward into heaven. We are creatures that are staying permanently in a rush of unconscious self-aggrandizing illusions, who believe that they are predestined for playing a role in grand affairs. This sense of universal megalomania can even be found in great philosophers. == The Context Story == (Quote from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") The context story is a concept, composed of knowledge, accumulated by innumerable researchers. It is a pattern of thinking, strong enough to show, even without experimental proof, that many made up ideas of Homo fantasia are merely fantasy indeed, from ancestral ghosts and gods to our descendants, who will influence the destiny of the universe. The context story is based on three pillars: a cosmological, an evolutionary and a neurological pillar. These pillars each consist of the most important scientific discoveries of the past centuries and are putting mankind with two feet on solid ground again. The cosmological pillar tells us about the emergence and the development of the universe and the way it works. This shows us that we do not need a God to create the universe, earth and life on it. This pillar tells us how the universe emerged from nothing and could create innumerable stars without using any energy for the process. This "emergence from nothing" does not violate the laws of physics and comparable processes can even be demonstrated to occur in the laboratory. The cosmological pillar covers billions of years of cosmological evolution. That evolution started with the big bang, spreading around gases. Gases out of which stars condensated. Stars, that subsequently created new chemical elements. Elements like Iron and Silicium, from which materials subsequently planets were born, new worlds on which life could develop and prosper, like Earth. The second pillar, the evolutionary pillar, covers the emergence and the subsequent evolution of life. This contains the mighty story of atoms that cluster together, down to collections of molecules that can duplicate themselves. That primordial and simple form of life would gradually become more and more complex until it finally became able to think about itself. Also here, there is no need for a God. Not to create life, not to make life evolve and not even for putting morality, creativity or language in alive beings. The third pillar is the neurological pillar. This is about the human brain and about how it works. Mind and body are not two separate affairs, but it is the body that produces the mind. The neurological pillar tells us about the innumerable nerve tracts and neurons, strung like looms in our head, weaving the magnificent patterns that form our consciousness. The neurological pillar states clearly that immaterial and intangible feelings are the inextricable result of the firing of neurons under our skull, the movements of innumerable chemical substances in our brain and the incessant interaction with the world within and outside of us, through the five senses and many more sensors. There is no ghost in the machine. The soul is the machine itself. All in all the context story describes the place of humanity in the universe. That story is humbling, but it is a fascinating story about humanity and the universe, telling about a history, not centuries old, but billions of years. The context story is about the human race, which is a cosmological product. A beautiful, magnificent, but inadvertant by-product from the stars. A being that, together with its fellow beings, is swarming on a small speck of dust, floating in an endlessly deep black abyss. The context story tells us that there were no gods and ghosts needed to create this universe and, in the end, sentient and thinking beings. And, what is more important, how these gods and ghosts basically are products of a mind that in turn is the result of hundreds of millions of years of evolution. It also tells us about solar systems being born and falling apart into dark cinders, about how life forms develop on any world and perish again, about how beings are being born to die. Some of these sentient beings are capable of sincere goodness, because morality is a property which is part of nature. Just like art, creativity and intelligence. Human beings are capable of experiencing beauty, in the form of heavenly music or memorable words, and the context story tells us why this is so. This mighty story however, does not intent to reduce everything to the firing of neurons below our skull, and annihilate every tremendous feeling by explaining it in terms of chemicals and electric currents. The context story is the fascinating story of brains that produce creativity, memories and feelings. And about how a hundred thousand billion of neuronal connections can succeed in producing these heavenly gifts. How can one speak of 'reduction' when speaking about the human brain, a structure containing an equal amount of synapses as there are stars in thousands of galaxies? There is a universe in each of our heads. This book is but one big summary of this context story. == Knowledge versus Belief == (Quote from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") Knowledge and belief are diametrically opposed to one another. A believer needs to ignore quite a lot of knowledge to reach congruence of his world view with his belief. The concept of the context story just adds to that problem. Believers are saying that it is impossible to proof whether gods do or do not exist, but in the context of the cosmological, evolutionary and neurological pillars gods are no more than one other invention of ''Homo fantasia''. Some people have found a way to defend themselves against that all too meddlesome human knowledge. They exclaim that belief surpasses science. They know quite well that gods and such were not quite necessary to make us, or even the universe, appear. Therefore they say that those gods in fact do not need to explain that sort of scientific facts, because such an explanation is already covered by the laws of nature themselves. Gods stand far above this universe and the laws of nature. But, why then still believe in gods who have nothing to do with this universe and thus with ourselves? Why not better call God nature in view of the fact that laws of nature control the movements of every atom and the course of every light beam in this universe? == A beautiful world == On a cosmic consciousness, on transiency, happiness, self-knowledge, creativity and purpose (Quote from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") What a horrible universe, isn't it? We are living in an endless universe that does not care about us whatsoever and with billions of conspecifics we are trapped on a stony speck of dust, surrounded by dark, icy cold emptiness, without any hope to ever surpass earth or the universe, because man is the product of a purposeless evolution which is fully guided by coincidence. We live to die and then there is nothing left forever. No heaven, no eternal hunting fields, not even hell. And then, what in fact is a human being? Nothing more than a survival machine of the genes, a chemical vessel at the mercy of those same genes, that are the result of an evolution that only revolves around egoism, cruelty, aggression and sex. Of course, this cannot be right. This should not be right, because without gods, heavens and other dreams this universe and life itself are completely useless. This is an unbearable thought. Therefore we say that logics, knowledge and science do not prove anything. They just describe things without specifying how we wish reality to look like. Because, we say, our vision surpasses reality. But, then there is the context story. That context story considers all these grand ideas of humanity, his longing for eternal life, godliness, or the magic mysticism, still hidden in all that undeveloped knowledge, as not fitting in the 'context' of what we already know about reality. And science not just destroys the grand dreams. It ruins also the small ones. Science wants to reduce everything to the movements of atoms. Emotion and love have become just a matter of neurotransmitters and spiritual experiences are reduced to the operations of neurons. Science is nihilistic, reductionist materialism, stealing the beauty from the world, cutting and dissecting it in cold laboratory light. But enough of those histrionics. This chapter is about purpose, happiness, spirituality and how to find them in a universe that, according to some, only has a purpose if they can believe in their own creative concoctions. But also without gods and other universal purposes this universe still does have incomprehensibly much purpose, splendour and beauty. What knowledge and science take away, they give back in another form. == Universal consciousness == (Quote from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") This exciting view on the universe and on ourselves is the result of so called cold scientific discoveries, pushing humanity from its pedestal, but at the same time it puts humanity back on another pedestal. Man, or rather '''the universe, thinking about itself'''. The more people cooperate, help each other, educate each other and thus discover more and more, the more we come to know about ourselves, about nature, about matter and consciousness, and about the destiny and future of the universe. Thus, mankind represents a thinking layer around earth, a kind of brain in which every other human being communicates like a neuron with tens of thousands of other human beings, through language. == Purpose == (Quote from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") .................. That is a reason why we are searching so frantically for grand purpose that should surpass our life. The purpose of life is a product of fantasy-man, trying desperately to free itself from the bony skull, enclosing his mind. Apart from this fantasy-thinking there is also this intentional thinking, which explains our instinctive need for purpose. The world around us is full of purposes and therefore we think that also the universe itself should have a purpose. Besides, our minds have been created to think in causal terms. We do think that all phenomena do have a cause. And in case there is no cause, we prefer to dream up a cause. There must be something behind all this? Understanding ''why'' we, as members of ''Homo fantasia'', like to think that life has purpose, in fact is quite revealing. That insight pierces all those legends, myths, religions and theories saying that our mind is exalted and our destiny special. We now grasp the universe. A universe as it is. == Why this strong need for purpose ? == ('''Comments''' on "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") According to other contributions on this Wiki (see: [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|Impersonal power structures ruling our world]]) there is a very clear reason for this all overruling human tendency to attach purpose to every phenomenon it encounters. This reason is in the over-dominance of the telic, or goal-oriented meta-motivational state. This overdominance of the telic state has been plaguing humanity since some ten thousand years, but should not be considered an innate human condition that cannot be overcome. This telic over-dominance can be considered the consequence of the state of mass neurosis we are living in today, which is an unavoidable, but transitory state in our evolution. As explained in the chapter about [[Point Omega (summary)|Point Omega]] humanity most probably is at the brink of mass enlightenment, after which telic overdominance will give way to a restoration of a healthier meta-motivational equilibrium. That will then automatically make the all overruling need for purpose, a fruit of telic, goal directed thinking, dissolve. That, in turn, will automatically make the need for gods, myths and religion disappear, creating space instead for authentic spiritual awareness or cosmic consciousness for all. So, what we see here in ourselves nowadays, is the final stage of a typically human mass delusion of dreamed up purposes. This is an inextricable and unavoidable characteristic of the present phase of evolution we are in these days, which state will however eventually disappear. This evolutionary phase has been necessary and unavoidable, but will most likely disappear shortly, together with all concomitant religions and other paraphernalia of involuntary purpose needs and resulting run-away fantasies. All these fantasies require enormous amounts of personal and collective energy and keep us blindfolded for reality. Once we manage to shed these fantasies and delusions, humanity will get back on its feet, with two feet on solid ground, back into real life. That will release unheard of amounts of energy, personally as well as collectively, not needed any more to maintain all these artful concoctions and belief-systems requiring enormous energies to be maintained against a perpetual avalanche of reality, besieging the cherished fairy tales. At the same time the customary state of mass neurosis will then dissolve, releasing even more time and energy to be spent on more positive and creative purposes. This transition is called Point Omega in the words of Teilhard de Chardin. In view of what is explained in the chapter about [[The significance of the Point Omega transition|the significance of the Point Omega transition]], this prediction is not the fruit of exaggerated religious fervour, but rather the ending of all that, heralding a new, less neurotic and more pleasant and creative phase in human evolution. == Ego, science and spirituality == (Quote from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") The happier we wish to be, the more we need to forget that we exist. A person is for instance carried to the highest spheres of happiness when he is so involved in a creative work (of art) that he is forgetting the time and also himself. At such a moment it is only thát piece of work that counts. The notion of a self, which is mostly a hindrance for this type of experiences, is on the other hand of course a necessity to function properly in daily life. The "I" is a tool of the brain for making simulations of the future. In order to know what you will do, you in fact better first imagine what to do. For instance, when thinking about going to the supermarket, you very briefly imagine how in fact to walk towards it. Depending on the pleasant or unpleasant feelings you get from this simulation, you will decide whether you will go there or not. But in order to make this simulation, you need a notion of self: you need the notion that the being entering the supermarket is you. A notion of 'me' is therefore quite handy for knowing what to do in the future. Disadvantage however is that the "me" can also be a source of stressful thoughts: 'tomorrow I need to do this', 'if I say such and such, what will they think of me?', 'if only I can achieve that, then I'll be happy', etcetera. Somebody who wishes to lead a happy and useful life [Verburgh concludes], would do good to suppress that notion of 'me' as much as possible, by thinking as little as possible about oneself and to live as much as possible in the 'now', in order to live with less concerns and to enjoy more the moment itself, the here and now. In case that all-pervading 'me' disappears as much as possible to the background, a person is less egoistic and egocentric. And that can only be to the advantage of our fellow human beings. The more we live in the now, the less we fear death. Being dead is something in a far, future period that we will not experience anyway: for after all no one can be aware of being dead. And why be afraid for something that we will never experience? Of course it is not possible to switch off our sense of self completely and forever. It will always be there, sometimes pushed back completely to the background when we lose ourselves in a tremendously gratifying experience, and sometimes in the foreground when we are overstressed because of all the goals we want to achieve, social obligations we have to meet, and future situations that might cause problems. On this planet there are probably quite a number of beings that do not have a 'me', a self awareness, like babies, and probably also mammals like cats and dogs. These beings probably experience the world in a different, almost spiritual, way. When a baby sees a flower, then he does not experience that flower as something outside of himself, because there is no 'himself'. There is not a 'me' in the centre of the world. That flower and the world around him, are the total experience of the baby. The world encompasses all being. It is not me ''and'' the world, but the 'me' then ''is'' the world. Of course it is difficult for us to experience that feeling, because, while growing up, a notion of 'me' sneaks into our ripening brain; fertile soil in which agitated thoughts and inflated ego's can grow. The monk of the previous chapter comes closest to what a baby feels all day long, by switching off his sense of 'me'. Or, to say it in the words of the neuro-scientist and Nobelprice winner Gerald Edelman: ''A mystic is a person trying to think like a dog''. The less 'me', the more we can merge in pleasant experiences, the more we lose sight of the passing of time, the less we are concerned about the future, and the less egoistic we are. The disappearing 'me', altruism, creativity and self-knowledge melt together into the sense and purpose of being. They are intricately intertwined. The egoistic and coercing 'me' that turns us into eternal seekers who never are satisfied, is the antipode of this. We are most happy whenever we are forgetting that 'me' and merge with the world around us. This does not always need to happen through meditation, through self reflection, or by seeking solitude, but may happen by simply now and then stopping and considering the wondrous reality around us and our place in it. That way we are talking about a different type of spirituality, fed by science and knowledge. Science is not reductionistic, since our knowledge turns reality into the most magnificent work of art in existence. == Why the evolution of intelligence needs / needed this phase of mass delusion and superstition == ('''Comments''' on "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") This Wiki can add important bits and pieces to the magnificent grand picture that Kris Verburgh presents us in his Magnum Opus "Fantastic, about the universe in our head". Adding these extra chunks of information, the [[Point Omega (summary)|total picture]] of us humans in this universe becomes even more clearly understandable and transparent. It adds even more logical consistence and simple directness to our understanding of it all. In particular it can add understanding of the typically human, seemingly eternal, problems we have with grasping our own behaviour and in particular the human propensity for religion and other forms of mass delusion (see: [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness]]). In the chapter, quoted above, Kris deals with the 'ego'. The ego of course is an indispensable part of our picture of the world, since it depicts the position of the thinking individual in it. As such it is an essential cognitive tool. However, in discussions and writings about human behavioural problems, neuroses, spirituality etc., the term 'ego' refers to the (over)dominant role the ego usually plays in daily human life, a role that can be labelled rightfully as "sick". In that customary use of the term 'ego', it stands in particular for a cluster of behavioural patterns that go with neurotic, and truncated behaviour, the un-intelligent expression of primordial social reflexes of aggression and fear and for the concomitant phobia's and behaviour blocks that go with a too permanent fear motivation. Verburgh remarks that there is a (cor)relation between on the one hand a prominent ego, stress, neuroses and unhappiness and on the other hand religious narrowmindedness. Parallel to that there is a correlation between on the one hand unawareness of ego and on the other hand altruism, happiness and authentic spirituality. What Kris does not clarify, is the causal relationships that produce these correlations. How does it all work and why is this so ? This Wiki explains these correlations, where they stem from and how it exactly works. What came first: the chicken or the egg? What came first: neurotic unhappiness and fear or the ego? What came first: mass neuroses or religion? This Wiki explains those correlations by referring back to the human evolutionary context. It is shown that these phenomena, no matter how unpleasant and malfunctional they may seem at first sight, do serve a distinct purpose in the evolution of intelligence, of ''any'' evolving intelligence that is. In fact, there are two pieces of information needed to complete the picture, two novel ideas to put it all in a comprehensive and logically consistent grand perspective. These two notions are: 1) The hereditary [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|knack in humans for self-delusion and blindness for the self]], needed evolutionarily for intelligence to expand, and 2) The around 10.000 year old rule of [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|power structures]] on the Meme-level, controlling human societies, causing mass neurosis. Once clarified, the total mechanism predicts also that we may expect a major shift in human evolution shortly, causing a transition into a next evolutionary phase in humans, which transition we may label with Teilhard de Chardin's term [[Point Omega (summary)|Point Omega]]. == Fear and superstition versus the rapture of reality; about science and spirituality == (Last page from "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") Science does not reduce reality and it's goal is not to destroy human emotions. On the contrary, science makes reality richer and more intriguing. We not only derive wonder and entertainment from movie pictures, computer games, exciting stories, disco's or good books. No movie director, writer or composer could ever have produced the idea of inventing colors, the skies, birds, brooks, time, trees and solar systems. All this is of another order of magnitude, this is the result of billions of years of time passed, spread out over a space of billions of light years distance. All equally incomprehensible as wondrous. The simple, ordinary reality is, through our knowledge, the greatest work of art in existence. And the nicest of it all is that all this did not need to be. Your and my life were not necessary at all, but still we are here. If evolution would have taken a slightly different course, or if your parents would not have felt lust at some particular point in time, then you would not have been here. And, given the fact that they were turned on at that specific moment in time, then there were billions of ways in which the DNA could combine, that was in the two cells that merged to the one cell from which you developed. So, there were billions of different possibilities, and you are but one of them. Still, you are yourself and for a while you may be a spectator of this grand, eternal cosmic vista. After more than hundred and thirty million centuries, a lump of atoms has woken up, calling itself 'me', that may be testimony for some decades of something tremendous. That is verily a splendid gift. The most cherished gifts are after all those gifts that were not necessary; that are just given to you, not because it is a special day or because you did something special. This honour with which we are bestowed, can be experienced every day of our life. In a sense we lead thirty thousand lives, because every morning, every time we wake up and that consciousness creeps in through our eyes, we may wonder again about reality, about how this society of ours operates, in the middle of stars and galaxies. Every breath, every sigh, every picture on our retina, is a present that was not necessary, and that feeling does not fade away easily. The more we know about the world around us, the stronger this feeling of awe and gratitude will be. Gratitude towards a universe surpassing every form of human comprehension, but in which in the middle of emptiness and stars, there is also room for us. As living, conscious organisms we exist on a different level than that emptiness and the dead materials that form the bulk of the matter this universe is made of. Our body, and our mind, are the greatest privilege we can imagine. In comparison with all that dead matter, our situation as conscious beings is the same as humans compared to gods. We are gods in comparison to the unconscious rocks and the grasses all around us. We can say that, thanks to the universe in our head, the universe around us is basically already heaven on earth. == Completing the picture of ourselves and of our world == ('''General comments''' on Kris Verburgh's book "Fantastic, about the universe in our head") Kris Verburgh has given us a magnificent overview of our own existence, of the origin and evolution of the world we live in and are part of and the origin and evolution of ourselves. This comprehensive and logically simple and coherent picture is beautifully written and is the best introduction to "everything" we ever read. As explained in the pages above, we need only '''two''' principal concepts to make the total picture even more consistent and complete, at the same time explaining some strange anomalies in our behavioural system that have riddled mankind since centuries and that stay unresolved, also in Kris' work. 1) One of these notions is the fact that humans are peculiarly bad at looking objectively and intelligently at one's own behaviour. There are libraries full of scientific documentation of experiments demonstrating a variety of different aspects of this blindness. This blindness for the self can be seen as an adaptation to an expanding intelligence. Ordinarily, in the evolution of species one sees some sort of 'maximum' to intelligence developing in species. This can be seen in many phyla of species on earth. Humanity is an exception, in the sense that in our species intelligence has increased very recently, some odd million years ago, to higher levels. This could only happen after a reflex had been built in, preventing intelligence to be utilized on one's own (social) behaviour. The reason why this was necessary is that intelligence, if too strong, tends to muddle up the relationship between short term purposes of behaviour (proximal causes) and long term purposes of behaviour (ultimate causes). Intelligence in principle gives the opportunity to its possessor to find short cuts to satisfy short term needs (proximal causes) at the expense of the ultimate reasons for the same behaviour. That way the evolutionary purpose of the behaviour in question is not met and this tendency to short cut proximal satisfaction will thus be selected against. Without any further provision that selection always automatically boils down to a selection against intelligence itself, unless there is some special provision to prevent intelligence to be utilized on one's own behaviour. As we can see in other phyla, such a provision has never been available. Look for instance to mollusks (Octopus), to other primates (Chimpanzee, Bonobo, Orang Utan), to crows, to parrots, to whales and dolphins. In all those species intelligence developed independently, but stopped at roughly the same level. Apparently, the development of intelligence is something one may expect as a logical evolutionary phase in any evolving phylum where enough hardware can be built in for generating such intelligence. But also it is apparently a standard evolutionary development, that such a development of intelligence stops at the level where it can in principle start interfering with the ultimate reasons for the evolved innate behavioural tendencies. Proximal cleverness should not disable ultimate purposes. Humans are the only species that has escaped from the usual boundaries of intelligence, but, logically and apparently, only after having developed an effective block on the use of intelligence on the self. We could call this the "self-awareness block" or the "mirror block reflex", because this reflex blocks the intelligence as it were in front of a mirror (if it would have existed). This ancient mirror block reflex, which must be some odd million years old at least, accounts for a wide range of human behavioural peculiarities that have puzzled and concerned people for thousands of years and - almost by definition - to no avail. The unconsciousness regarding our own behaviour has by and large continued in spite of the innumerable serious and tenacious attempts to bring order, sense and civilization in human behaviour. No matter how "civilized", as soon as it really counts, in the end, the savage reflexes always prevail. For more about this typically human tendency to be blind for the self, see "[[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness]]" on this Wiki. 2) The second of these notions is the fact that since the agricultural revolution, some 10.000 years ago, a cultural evolution took off at an increasing speed, causing power structures at the information level, the meme-level, to take over the lead in human evolution. (See also: [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|Impersonal power structures ruling our world]].) This means that since that time we humans are being torn between the requirements from two different levels of evolutionary pression, one requirement from the Gene level and one requirement from the Meme level. Since the evolution at the meme level proceeds much faster than evolution on the gene level, in humans the feelings and emotional tendencies, as ingrained by our premordial genetic behavioural basis (gene level) tend to lag behind in comparison to the requirements from the cultural level, the dictates stemming from the meme level. Our natural tendencies and feelings are therefore naturally not in line with - lagging behind - the demands of our society. And that, of course, produces continuous stress. But this is not the worst part of this evolutionary split ruling human existence. The worst part is that since those 10.000 years the leading evolutionary force is the evolution of power structures on the meme level. Since this evolution is running so much faster than the more basic evolution on the level of genes, it not only exerts a strong evolutionary pull on the human genes, but it also "runs the show". Any human genome that does not fit well the requirements of some winning meme level power structure, will be weeded out one way or the other. This means that by and large we have been selected for all those millennia to be better slaves for the power structures in charge, maybe more stupid, but at least also more docile. Those power structures are basically impersonal, so it is by definition a fallacy to think that some individuals can be in charge at all of such a power structure. The "leaders" or "commanders" or even "dictators" are just better slaves, that can be rewarded better, because they are more valuable to the power structure in question. Therefore the old sociologists saying that "a king is more dependent (on his people) than the people (on their king)" is generally very true. Who wants to be high up in the hierarchy, needs to follow the rules of the system in question better than others can do. But in no way can it be the system of the leading person itself. That's not how it works. The leader serves the system, willy nilly and whether he/she is aware of it or not. The system only cares about the outcome of the leader's behaviour, not about his private fantasies of power and status. The reason why this situation is so unpleasant for human beings, is that these power structures are more interested in malleable, obedient pawns, even when their effective work-output is only limited, than in self-actualized, fully mature humans. The reason is that whereas such self actualizers may be more creative and more effective in what they do, they have the tendency to do what they like, following their innate [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The primordial niche of Homo sapiens and the feelings and emotions "fitting" that environment|("P")]] tendencies, not being very malleable through fear. That makes them less predictable and often less useful than neurotic wrecks would be. The latter may produce a lower effective outcome, but they are at least effectively malleable and programmable for the power structure to be, and they wil 'fit in' properly. This preference of the meme-power-structures for neurotic wrecks is an unavoidable result of the lagging behind of the human genetic evolution to the requirements [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#New demands and requirements since the agricultural revolution|("N"-demands)]] of the evolving meme-power-structures. In other words: "we are biologically not made to be slaves of the modern power structures". Our innate tendencies and emotions [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The primordial niche of Homo sapiens and the feelings and emotions "fitting" that environment|("P"-feelings)]] by definition do not fit modern society (power structures), and that produces stress. Therefore neurotization on a massive scale is a very usual standard trick of any successful modern meme-power-structure. That guarantees that the individuals, the carriers, will do their job, directed by all sorts of fears, even if at a lower individual level of useful output. It also guarantees that a chaos of motivational directions is prevented, for instance in a direction that would be more in line with what humans really like to do. Because that would imply going back to a pre-power-structure era, more 'natural' to human beings, but not what the power structure needs most [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#New demands and requirements since the agricultural revolution|("N"-demands)]]. Trough this strategy of mass neurotization the power structure 'owns' more obedient carriers and can outnumber competing power systems better and can easier multiply, itself as well as its carriers, which is what it is all about. == Point Omega: intelligence finally understanding itself == '''(Final comments)''' With these two additional notions in our hands, the [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|blindness for the self]] and the neuroticizing rule of the [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|meme-power-structures in charge]], we can now tackle and explain much easier a number of intriguing questions that are left after digesting Kris Verburgh's exciting book. The result has led us to a total picture that is so complete on some crucial points, that it not only allows us to fully understand our present position, but also to predict our (near) future. Looking at ourselves, we must say that it is in fact a highly peculiar state of affairs, that we humans are capable of travelling to the moon, of controlling nuclear power, of diving to the bottom of the deep seas, but that we are not capable of regulating our own behaviour, or even approach human behaviour in a somewhat intelligent way. We seem to know a lot more about nuclear physics and astronomy than about the very basics of our own mind and our daily behaviour. We are furthermore a conspicuously superstitious species. Our belief systems are utterly illogical and improbable, but nevertheless human beings stick to them like to some sort of strange addiction. From the above and from what is further explained on this Wiki, we now can understand why this is so. First of all we humans do have an innate tendency to not think intelligently about our own behaviour, nor about each other's behaviour. The evolutionary reason for that intelligence block is clear (see: [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness]]). The needs of the meme-power-structures [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#New demands and requirements since the agricultural revolution|("N"-demands)]] subsequently push us humans in a direction that will maintain a sufficient level of fear and neurosis in its carriers, us humans. Fairy tales and misconceptions relating to our own existence are therefore likely not to be corrected by cool and logic thinking because of the all pervading self blindness in the population. Thus the door is wide open to any made up story, religion or otherwise, that keeps its members in a state of meek slavery, defending and mollifying obedience to the systems in charge. A tendency for superstition of course enhances such tendencies. Therefore it is not very surprising that superstition is or has become such a striking characteristic of mankind. The recent evolution of mankind is therefore very much the evolution of and between competing meme-power-structures and as such a competition between fairy tales and superstitious meme sets that work best to keep the carriers, us, operating within their power system. This description of the state of affairs may seem rather cynical, but unless we start understanding its workings, we will never come to grips with it and we'll stay ignorant and unhappy slaves of the meme-level entities that are really in charge. However, as soon as we have broken the veil of the all pervading blindness and ignorance ruling the human world, our possibilities will be unheard of indeed. After adding the above notions to the already very comprehensive, cool and clear total picture as painted by Kris Verburgh, we have a total view of our existence that will give us the opportunity to make choices that were never before within our reach. It is a natural tendency of us humans, and of any sentient being for that matter, to strive after happiness and to avoid pain. In fact, that striving is what makes us move, as it does in any animal. That implies that, once we see through the mechanisms of the blinding forces of the meme-power-structures ruling our lives, we can change direction together and regain our balance and happiness. That way we can return to the level of emotional balance and happiness that was the birthright of all sentient beings throughout history, throughout evolution. We are designed to experience pleasure, but also pain. But we were not originally designed to be in a practically continuous state of fear and stress, as has become our situation since the agricultural revolution. We can now return to "normal", claiming our primordial birthright to an emotionally balanced life. A life with pleasure and rapture, but also with sorrow and pain, but more or less in emotional (and motivational) balance and with the possiblity to develop into fully grown individuals, actualizing their full potential. The latter has been largely withheld from us since the power structures took over, some 10.000 years ago, and kept us trapped in mass neuroses and fearful obedience. If the above considerations are correct, this misery is likely to come to an end shortly. What basically happens at that moment, is that intelligence finally comes to understand itself fully. We, the carriers of that intelligence, the carriers of the meme sets making this all possible, can now understand how intelligence, and any intelligence for that matter, evolves and what phases it has to go through in its evolution. We now find ourselves at the end of the phase of the organized slavery of the meme carriers (us) harbouring this intelligence. This will be the end of the supremacy of the impersonal meme-power-structures. The repressive, neuroticizing power structures will give way to novel power structures that do not lean that much any more on neuroticized human beings, but rather will lean on other mechanisms to make human beings cooperate with the system they are living in, allowing all individual carriers of those meme-sets to actualize to the full. The way that is experienced by the carriers (us) is a sense of 'freedom'. In the end, all emotional experiences are subject to habituation, but 'freedom' is the way human individuals will experience the transition into the new world. We are standing on the brink. We just need to choose direction, consciously. Once enough people have chosen direction, the rest will follow ever more rapidly and rapidly, because of its contagiousness, like an avalanche, like a nuclear chain reaction. In this case however, not a chain reaction of nuclear annihilation, but a chain reaction of awareness and liberation. Once the critical mass has been reached, it may happen very fast indeed. That is what is labeled as [[Omega Research:About#Point Omega (definitions)|Point Omega]]. ptjkniycl3z2vcp6bki4t7lrrh46nnn 0 74 5524 5523 2013-10-19T09:41:07Z Baby Boy 2 /* Contagiousness of positive learning spirals and psychological health */ wikitext text/x-wiki __NOTOCNUM__ __NONUMBEREDHEADINGS__ <big>'''Comments on Eckhart Tolle's ''A New Earth, awakening to your life's purpose'''''</big> For positive or negative reviews of this book on the Amazon site see: [http://www.amazon.com/review/product/0141017821/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?%5Fencoding=UTF8&showViewpoints=1 Amazon reviews] We consider Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth, awakening to your life's purpose" as a valuable new contribution to our understanding of the human condition and a worthy sequel to his first book "The Power of Now". In our view it is one of the contemporary books that no doubt help to prepare the way to the Point Omega transition. That is why we also discuss it here. Tolle argues that almost all of us are caught in sub-optimal neurotic states all the time. These abominable states pass however for "normal" and he explains in great detail the alternatives that are possible and available to us instead of those perpetual common neuroses. He also presents a number of practical methods to enhance the development in oneself of those more agreeable alternative states of being. As such, it is another guide to enlightenment, and a rather effective guide at that. Tolle's message is also in line with the well known theory of Self-Actualization from Abraham Maslow, also the inventor of the "hierarchy of needs". In order to further increase the beneficial effectiveness of Eckhart Tolle's book, we will give below a number of additional facts and notions that can give the story of "A New Earth" a more complete scientific basis, make it easier to understand fully, and thus in fact make it more effective. We will also discuss some issues that we do interpret in a somewhat different way than Tolle does, in order to make the total picture still more comprehensive and in particular easier to understand from an evolutionary point of view. == Neurotic Normalcy and Reversal Theory == Tolle argues that it is of the utmost importance that people (re)gain the capacity to be in the "here and now" more often and that being more often in the "now" brings about better feelings and better development and growth. He says that being in the "now" produces more awareness and a better understanding of oneself and of one's situation. Being in the "now" stills the ever blabbering radio in one's head and reduces the needs of the ego. In terms of "[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]]" and of our CEL model ([[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|Cognition Energy Learning model]]) what Tolle describes with "being in the now" is basically the Paratelic State, one of the always alternating antagonist emotional - motivational states, whether we are aware of it or not (mostly not). The "Telic" and the "Paratelic" state continuously reverse into one another, but in most people the Telic state (goal directed and re-active) is the most dominant of these two emotional - motivational states. Tolle advertises a shift from living in egoïc states in which the brain is continuously pre-occupied with thoughts about the past or about the future, to living in the "here and now" in which awareness grows and feelings can expand to eventually merge with the whole. From [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]] we can however derive that being in the "here and now" is just one of the two basic meta-motivational states and that both of these two states, the "Telic" state and the "Paratelic" state do need, and always will need, to alternate in order to function properly and to develop properly. One cannot be continuously in just one of these two meta-motivational states and keep growing and developing properly. That just doesn't work. Dynamic alternations between these states are indispensable for a healthy development. Tolle's description of the usual, ordinary state of human beings (neurotic, egoic, full of fears) basically is a description of the usual, ordinary human state of mind, in which the "Telic" state is highly dominant over the "Paratelic" state and in fact to such an extent, that most people have hardly any awareness at all of the characteristics of the paratelic state. Taking into account the dynamics and the mechanisms of the meta-motivational reversal system in human beings and in fact in any animal with a distinct learning capacity, Tolle's message becomes easier to grasp from a scientific point of view and in particular it becomes clear how it exactly operates and why his observations about our sorry condition and his predictions about our unheard of potentials are, surprisingly enough, correct indeed. == "Seeking happiness" versus understanding == Tolle argues that it is best to stop "Seeking Happiness", which is a habit of many people. "Seeking" is the antithesis of happiness. It is a goal directed activity. In seeking a person is therefore automatically busy making up all sorts of stories, which in fact is the cognitive part of the seeking process. It keeps the internal radio going, in most people, alas, almost incessantly. Better, says Tolle, is it to "face what is" instead of to resist and to fight the status quo. "Facing what is" can be done by focussing more on the "here and now". He argues to not give the ever flowing stream of thoughts and ideas too much credit because much of it is based on, or creating, illusions and delusions for the sake of maintaining the ego structures and other fears that rule our lives. By creating distance from the neurotic fear reflexes, awareness may grow, also about the stressy aversive over-reactions to these fears. This may then create space for awareness of what is real about the situation(s) in question and what is not. Identification with the ego structures and pain bodies and the overreactions involved, may then stop. The [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] and [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]] support Tolle's point of view. What in general is dearly missing is enough paratelic states, enough "here and now" and sufficient periods of rest in between the acquired experiences. In that respect the advice from Tolle and the contents of this Wiki are quite well in line. However, there is a practical paradox in this advice of Tolle. What Tolle basically says, boils down to the admonition "Be Paratelic !". It is the equivalent of screaming angrily to a depressed, crying person in distress: "be happy for god's sake !". We all know that it just doesn't work that way. Whereas it seems quite usefull or at least harmless to spend more time in the here and now than is customary in our culture, Reversal Theory and the CEL [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|(Cognition Energy Learning model)]] predict that it is almost impossible to follow that advice of Tolle directly and consciously. == "Trying" to be in the Here and Now, a behavioural paradox == In terms of the [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]], Tolle's advice boils down to "trying to be and stay in the Paratelic State". That however, cannot be done by will and on purpose, because reversing into and out of the Telic and Paratelic metamotivational states is to a high degree involuntary and automatic. If one wishes to spend more time in the Paratelic State one therefore needs to approach the issue in a more indirect and "sneaky" way. The only chance one has to gain results in that direction is to manipulate the emotional and motivational circumstances in such a way that the reversal system of emotions and motivations by itself predictably reverses more often into the paratelic state and if so, more lastingly than is customary. However, that cannot be achieved by any form of "trying" directly, because that in itself will only boost the Telic state with the opposite effect of what one tries to achieve. This is like the commonly known wisdom that the more one tries to be happy, the more certain one can be not to succeed. It is sort of behavioural paradox. As the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] explains, if we want to change anything in the usual appalling state of the human mind, we better start understanding how it all works. Only in that case we can hope to change something structurally and design really effective measures on a large enough scale to have any long term effect at all. In general these methods will be indirect in nature. This is not to say that Tolle's advice is totally useless. On the contrary, for some - rare - people, who are at a particular point in their life, where they have a choice to change directions, it may be the crucial eye opener that they needed at that very point, and then it does have its beneficial effects. Only, for most people in most situations, Tolle's message will not have any practical effect, simply because the people addressed have no way to implement it effectively. Most of the time they are not at some brink, where that little extra push would make all the difference and besides, they basically do not know, or rather, do not feel, what Tolle is talking about. As explained in the article on [[Point Omega (summary)|"point omega"]] on this Wiki, the readiness to understand and implement Tolle's message will arise gradually but automatically on a larger scale because of the gradually changing circumstances we live in. Once that point has been reached for most people, our intelligence will have extended its reach into the very basics of our emotional and motivational make up. Then intelligence will start to understand itself, its own source and functioning, including the seeming paradoxes included in its evolutionary development. Awareness will become aware of itself and that will happen on an impersonal, general scale. One of the effects of that development will be a general readiness of ever more people to understand and follow Tolle's advice. That's how it will work and not the other way around. Trying to approach these mechanisms on just the personal level will not do the trick. Communal awareness of how it works however, will. Understanding will make us free, together and only together. Nothing else will. == More effective recipe to boost the time spent in the Here and Now == Once we understand the mechanisms of emotions and motivations and the dynamic processes involved, what can be done to end up in healthier conditions? According to the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] the underlying cause of being too much of the time in the Telic State (not being able to enjoy being in the here and now often enough), is simply a '''lack of''' useful '''skills'''. Lack of skills causes too many and too strong fears to rule the emotional and motivational states. So, "not dwelling in the here and now" is not itself the source of the problems, but it is just a symptom of another, more basic, underlying cause, which is "too many and too strong fears, triggered and kept alive by lack of relevant skills". The CEL says that a person only can escape from these undesirable states of neuroses and from the "thinking disease" if he or she manages to let the process of gaining ánd digesting useful experiences work properly enough to produce more and better integrated skills, relevant for the living circumstances in question. (Just as mother nature designed it to work, but which, in us, seems to be systematically frustrated, one way or the other.) Therefore it is not necessary that one dwells just in the Paratelic State, as Tolle seems to argue, but rather that the Telic and the Paratelic state alternate in an optimal rhythm. In most of us, the Telic State is over-dominant, causing the process of development to run into the direction of an ever further cumulation of avoidance and fear reflexes, without a proper digestion and integration of the experiences gathered. According to the CEL this produces what Tolle calls neuroses and fear-bodies and what the CEL labels as Negative COEX systems, following the terminology of Stanislav Grof ([[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative clusters of COndensed EXperience|systems of COndensed EXperience]]; see below). A proper alternation of Telic and Paratelic states, with sufficient breaks and pauses in the stress producing situations, would, on the contrary, produce well digested experiences, resulting in a high over-all level of integrated skills. Whereas one cannot wilfully change into the Paratelic State, one can increase the likelihood that reversals into the Paratelic States occur more often. That is, very simply, by applying more breaks and pauses and by re-arranging the circumstances in such a way that less stress is likely to be experienced and if so, less continuously. This means that Tolle's recipe does not work very effectively for most people in most circumstances. Rather, by understanding how these mechanisms work exactly, one could manipulate one's meta-motivational states in a more clever way in order to maximize the occurrences of the Paratelic State, and so enable the system to cure itself automatically, as it has evolved to do. == "Pain Bodies" and "Negative COEX Systems" == Tolle describes the existence and the working of "pain bodies" in the human mind. His advice is to become aware of our pain bodies and, where possible, to not yield to them. That way they would lose their grip on our existence and diminish gradually in strength and effect. Also, Tolle explains that some types of pain bodies are so common, that they can be labelled as "collective pain bodies". Collective pain bodies do have extra strength and power, because they are continuously reinforced from the outside. (Local) cultures in fact consist for a large part of collective pain bodies that are specific for that local culture in question. Digression from the local culture is discouraged of course, and thus taking on the local collective pain bodies and yielding to them is encouraged. Becoming aware of collective pain bodies and overcoming their deleterious influence is therefore of course a strongly communal affair. More detailed explanations of these mechanisms we can find in [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]] and in the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]]. They do strongly support the value of Tolle's descriptions and admonitions. Only, the CEL predicts that for individual people it is not easy to follow Tolle's advice without further technical and social help. Tolle's advice how to tackle pain bodies boils down to approaching one's pain bodies with increased awareness and with a change of habits regarding the pain bodies in question. The latter is obviously a creative move towards the pain body. According to the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] however, there is, as pointed out above, a practical paradox in that advice of Tolle. Pain bodies, or "negative COEX systems" as Grof calls them (see the paragraphs on [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative clusters of COndensed EXperience|systems of COndensed EXperience]] in the article on Reversal Theory and the learning system), are characterized by eliciting fear and avoidance behaviour in the person(s) in question, once they enter the situation to which that particular pain body pertains. In other words, a pain body triggers a reversal from the paratelic state to the telic state, if .... the person not already was in the telic state. This is an involuntary reflex. In the telic state the individual is not able to avoid feelings of fear and concern and cannot approach the situation with creative exploration, which would help to find out about the deeper causes of those fears and concerns. According to the CEL the only way to diminish the influence of negative COEX systems (pain bodies) and stop the disturbing influence they exert on one's life, is to approach them carefully and very gradually from explorations in the paratelic state. But that requires to be often enough in the paratelic state to start with. And to be often enough in the paratelic state, one should first have regained a better balance between the telic and the paratelic state with a sufficient frequency of reversals between them. That can only be (re)gained by introducing sufficient periods of rest and recovery in between the periods of action. That implies short breaks in between the action bouts, pauses, holidays, vacations, etc. In a majority of cases it would ideally imply long periods of pause or vacation in order to regain some minimal measure of balance again where there (re)emerges emotional space for a reversal to the paratelic states. Unless there is some sort of basic equilibrium in which paratelic states can emerge frequently enough, there can be no hope on recovery from the influence of the pain bodies (negative COEX systems). The [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] shows that to tackle pain bodies effectively there are better approaches possible than Tolle's recipe of noticing, becoming aware and then trying to not yield to them. By understanding the mechanisms involved more clearly and in more detail, we can design better and more effective approaches by including a clever management of the balance in the emotional - motivational reversal system. Whereas more indirect, it is a more effective approach, since it is based on a deeper understanding of how it works / we work. == Necessary conditions for recovery == As explained in the paragraphs above, Tolle says that the method to tackle any type of ego-neurosis or some pain body is to become aware of the stressy aversive over-reactions to it and in that way to make space for awareness of what is real about the situation in question and what is not real but just personal fantasy. Identification with the pain body in question and the concomitant over-reactions then may diminish and eventually stop altogether. As we have seen, the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] says that on top of what Tolle advertizes, it is of crucial importance that the balance between the occurrence of the Telic and the Paratelic state is restored. Only in that way there can be a structural and lasting change through a lastingly restored process of digestion and integration of experiences. As soon as there are sufficient paratelic states again, brought about by sufficient pauses, periods of rest and medium term and long term breaks, the energy balance can be restored, triggering the automatic and more frequent emergence of paratelic states. The paratelic states in turn, will produce more and deeper awareness of what is going on. A side effect of these more frequent paratelic states is that a person dwells in the Here and Now more of the time. It is important to note that the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] predicts that without the restoration of a proper telic / paratelic balance, Tolle's recipe will certainly not work. In other words, producing sufficient pauses and periods of rest and repair in order to make more paratelic states emerge, is a necessary condition, a prerequisite to make recovery towards sanity happen at all. The reverse does nót hold. Tolle's recipe of becoming aware of the pain body (negative [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative clusters of COndensed EXperience|COEX system]]) is nót a necessary condition for recovery. In case the telic / paratelic balance is restored, repair is fully automatic, whether one is aware of the cognitive contents of the pain body or not. The [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] predicts furthermore that, once the telic / paratelic balance is restored, the first target(s) to be approached for further exploration and reconnaissance, are chosen automatically and involuntarily. It may not be the same, perceived, pain body in question. However, the reversal system of emotions and motivations guides the acquirement of new additional experiences and the proper digestion and integration thereof automatically into the direction of those realms of experience that are most relevant emotionally, but that also, at the same time, are of a level of seriousness that can still be handled. Otherwise, such experiences are not yet experienced as intriguing in the paratelic state, but still as frightening. Eventually, the pain body in question may be approached in subsequent paratelic reconnaissance actions, after the reconnaissance and digestion of neighbouring areas of experience, followed by better processes of digestion and integration, due to a better telic-paratelic balance and sufficient periods of rest and emotional repair. In such a case the pain body in question will be repaired indirectly, later in time, but in a structurally more stable and permanent way. What is more, in case Tolle's recipe is applied, and it seems to work in spite of a still improper talic / paratelic balance, then the CEL predicts that the dissolution of the pain body in question, for instance by cognitive conviction and rationalization, is very likely to be replaced by one or more other, new pain bodies instead. On the other hand, becoming aware of the unreal and exaggerated reactions to a specific pain body, may break the chain of over-reactions and stress that are the cause that minor external affairs are the source of emotional turmoil and chronic energy drains. That, in turn, may help restore the telic / paratelic balance, making space for the dissolution of more negative [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative clusters of COndensed EXperience|COEX systems]] (pain bodies and ego-structures). All in all, adding knowledge about our reversal system of emotions and motivations and the cognition-energy-learning model ([[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]]) to Tolle's work, makes the message stronger and more effective, being based on a still deeper level of understanding the underlying mechanisms. == Asking the right questions == Having arrived at the point of understanding Tolle's message better and on a deeper level of understanding, with help of [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]], we still should answer the question of why on earth we humans usually find ourselves in a condition in which the Paratelic Meta-motivational State seems to be relatively suppressed and malfunctioning (being very little in the here and now and if so, not being aware of it). According to [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]] and to the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]], continuously alternating between the paratelic state (the here and now) and the telic state (goal directed and re-active) is needed for a proper development which is in fact our birthright. According to our basic design, we humans should be in the Here and Now quite regularly and in fact during an important part of the time. How then can it be that a whole species functions sub-optimally? Not just a few failures and defective specimens but virtually the whole human race. This assertion sounds outragious and highly improbable at the very least. How can it be evolutionarily stable to function far below one's innate capacities? Translated in terms of Tolle's message: why is it that human beings mostly have lost their capacity to be in the "now" regularly and to enjoy broad and sharp awareness of everything ? If Tolle is right, then it is very strange that such an attractive and in many many respects superior state of mind has not always been the standard rather than the exception. Evolutionarily, this seems impossible, or at least unheard of. == Self-blindness, the price we paid for higher intelligence == The why of this unpleasant state of the human species is explained on this Wiki in the article [[Point Omega (summary)|"Point Omega"]]. Since the emergence of a superior level of intelligence in early hominids, an awareness block regarding our own behaviour was built into our (hardware) system making it utterly difficult to apply our newly gained intelligence to steer and modify our own (social) behaviour. Without such an intelligence block against the application of intelligence on our own behaviour, intelligence could never have evolved to its present level in humans. (See the article on [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|"'''Self Blindness'''"]] on this Wiki.) == Another evolutionary novelty: the Reign of the Meme Power Structures == Apart from and on top of the emergence of Self-Blindness, more recently another handicap for the human species emerged. The agricultural revolution released the development of ever stronger power structures, which are basically information (software) packages, competing evolutionarily with one another. Therefore, since some 10.000 years, humans have been subjected to a very strong selection pressure to be able to function as agents of such impersonal power structures, rather than as individuals in their own right (in the classical evolutionary sense). These demands were quite different from the demands stemming from living in the social context of families and hunting bands. From then on we were selected as Meme-carriers, rather than as members of a species in its own right, as was still the case with our hominid ancestors. It can be shown that the '''neurotic''', egoïc, unaware state of mind, battered continuously by an '''incessant flow of compulsive thought processes''', is an unavoidable result of the selective pressure on human beings during the last 10.000 years, which selection to a high degree makes use of the typically human propensity for blindness regarding its own behaviour (see [[Point Omega (summary)|Point Omega]] and [[The significance of the Point Omega transition]]). For these power structures the predictability and malleability of neurotic people is far more important than whether her carriers do produce a high, creative output each. Successful power structures therefore always have to consist of mentally sick people, ......... us. We are not only blind, since some odd million years or so, but also, since the agricultural revolution of some 10.000 years ago, neurotically sick. == Explaining the "how" and "why" of Point Omega == The combined contributions on this Point Omega Research Wiki render an integrated picture that explains the how and the why of the present human condition of truncated behaviour patterns, mass neuroticism and concomitant misery. Also, after explaining the precise workings of the mechanisms involved, it also allows us to predict that, as Tolle says, by now humanity is in a position to escape from the clusters of the meme-power-structures that rule our existence since thousands of years. The reason why these novel possibilities are just now emerging, is also explained in detail on this Wiki (see [[Main Page]]). This Wiki is therefore in strong support of Tolle's ideas that mankind is capable by now to launch itself out of misery and into a new world of unprecedented possibilities. What this Wiki adds to Tolle's story is a more detailed and thorough understanding of the [[Point Omega (summary)|how and why]] of this novel and promising situation in human evolution. It also explains why this new possibility never was available before and on the other hand also why it unavoidably had to come some time in the future, which moment in time is most likely "now", the days we are living in, or pretty soon at the very least. The various technical developments that are undermining and dissolving the foundation of the power structures are discussed and explained in detail in the last chapter of the article on "[[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world]]" on this Wiki. It is also explained there why these foundations of the miserable mass neurotization of mankind could never be challenged successfully before on a lasting basis. == Why are our chances to be in the Here and Now improving these days? == From the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] we have learned that what is crucial for a proper pattern of development, is regular reversals between Telic and Paratelic states. This is only possible in case sufficient periods of relaxation and rest occur in between the periods of struggle and strife. In such favourable circumstances the Paratelic state more frequently emerges, implying that one finds oneself more frequently in the here and now, which is a secondary result of it. Also, it produces more relevant skills and subsequently less continuous states of fear and anxiety. Ego structures and "fear bodies" (Tolle) are less prominent in that case and are not being reconfirmed and enhanced regularly. On the contrary, those negative COEX systems will gradually be subject to explorative reconnaissance of its aversive elements, then experienced as "intriguing", and a more proper digestion of the underlying experiences. As a consequence they will then gradually dwindle in size and influence. Tolle states that in his view times are changing and that these days the ease with which people can successfully try to live more in the here and now, is on the increase. He says that it is easier and easier to escape from the ordinary neurotic cramps and states of perpetual fear. However, Tolle does not indicate why this should be so, apart from noting that in his own experience there seem to be more and more people, although still a minute minority, who apparently do reach enlightened states, having escaped from the ordinary fear-ridden states of being. We think that Tolle is right in this assessment of the situation. However, this is in our view still not very convincing as an explanation '''why''' the human situation is on the improve. ==== Self-Blindness ==== The present Wiki tries to answer that question of the "why" more clearly. The contributions on this Wiki aim at providing a more complete and thorough picture of the Why and the How of our present situation and at allowing us to predict more precisely what we could expect to develop next. It is explained why in recent human evolution, somewhere in the last one million years or so, there emerged a specific blindness for our own behaviour. That is, our intelligence may be applied to all sorts of problems at hand, but not on anything pertaining to our own social and motivational reactions. Otherwise, intelligence would interfere with the evolutionary ultimate goals of our behavioural organization. And that would be self-defeating in evolutionary terms and therefore not an ESS (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy). The latter can be seen as the very reason why in other phyla in the animal kingdom intelligence never rose above a certain level, although in many very different phyla (e.g., primates, whales, parrots, molluscs) intelligence rose to a certain, just not dangerous, level (dangerous for evolutionary purposes and methods of behavioural organisation). (For details see the article on [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|Self-Blindness]]). ==== Neuroticizing Power Structures ==== Besides, it is pointed out on this Wiki that since the agricultural revolution, ever larger power structures emerged, based on cultural packages of knowledge and instruction (Meme-sets). These started an evolution of their own and at a much higher speed than the ordinary evolution of the flesh and blood and the underlying Gene Pools. In other words: a novel software evolution (of Memes) took the lead over the classic hardware evolution (of Genes). Since that time, some 10.000 years ago, we humans are evolutionarily torn between two evolutionary strands, our physical (slow) evolution and our cultural (fast) evolution, each with its own rules and demands. It can be shown that it is in the interest of the impersonal power structures in charge (the meme structures at the brink of the evolutionary frontier) that we humans are artificially kept in a state of permanent fear. That is why the human race seems to be ruled by massive neuroses and why so called Self-Actualization (Maslow) is the great exception rather than the rule. This situation is in fact quite the reverse of what one finds in any other animal species, and can therefore be seen as a strikingly strange evolutionary paradox of the human race. (For details see the article on the [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world|Power Structures]] ruling our human world.) ==== Weakening fetters ==== Having shown that the human race is saddled with 1) a specific Blindness for the own behaviour, and 2) with Power Structures in charge who keep us in permanent fear and neuroses, it can also be shown that this unpleasant state of affairs at present is losing its foundations. In fact, after analysing the various variables in the human psyche and its social life, the prediction follows that we can expect a collapse of the influence of the power structures over human behaviour, leading to a massive release of psychological and also physical energy and a transition which could be labeled as point Omega (after Teilhard de Chardin). Presenting the scientific argumentation for these mechanisms, this Wiki provides a''' '''[[Point Omega (summary)|better "explanation"]] for this notion of a new type of human world being near, than Tolle does. However, this Wiki does indeed strongly support and advocate the correctness of Tolle's very message. == Contagiousness of positive learning spirals and psychological health == In the above it is argued that Tolle's recipe to be more often in the here and now is easily said, but not so easily done, unless one understands the underlying dynamics of emotions and motivations (according to the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]]) and thus can apply some more tactical and strategical strategems. An important factor that keeps human beings tightly bound in collective neuroses and cramps is in the contagiousness of mental states and conditions. Psychological health is very contagious, but on the other hand, so is neuroticism and fear. The technical reason for this contagiousness is further explained in the paragraphs 9 and 10 of the article on [[Energy and Strokes#2.10. "Contagiousness" of Interpersonal Psychological Skills and Adaptati­on|Energy and Strokes]]. Tolle describes collective pain bodies and collective ego's and the strong delusive binding power these structures do have on our behaviour. On the other hand, also the enlightened collectives do have the same - in this case positive - contagiousness for personal development. This will create, at some point in time, a vortex for collective consciousness that will accelerate a planetary shift. The [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] explains the how and why of this contagiousness in both directions. For an individual it is very difficult to escape from the customary unpleasant psychological condition, prevalent in one's social surroundings. The CEL describes in detail how the social mechanisms suck every escapee back into the swamps of mass neuroses. Only very energetic and powerful individuals do have any chance at all to escape. And moreover, they should also have been very lucky from the start to begin with, having enjoyed a relatively low level of stressful and neuroticizing influence during their upbringing and development. No wonder that just a very low percentage of human beings manages to escape from the prison of ordinary cramps and fears and manages to enter the world of Self Actualization. On top of all these prerequisites they must have become aware, one way or the other, that there is more in terms of possibilities than the eye meets according to common knowledge. If that doesn't coincidently happen, a person is not likely to escape, even in case he or she has enough energy, intelligence and a favourable history. == Point Omega == '''About a necessary condition to make Tolle's recipe work for any individual''' For this reason Tolle's advice is not likely to harvest very much results for any specific individual, if not already for some other reasons there is in the person a heightened likelihood to end up in positive learning spirals as described in the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]]. And this holds for the advice and the admonitions of most guru's and teachers as well. As argued in the article on [[Contemporary weakening of the foundations of Power Structures|Point Omega]] on this Wiki, our culture has ended up these days in a situation in which the structures, that have kept us humans bound in misery for so long, are wavering, and in fact are collapsing faster and faster. This novel situation is likely to create so much extra space in terms of human development potential, that for each individual the chances to escape are significantly improving. In terms of the CEL: the likelihood of managing to establish more optimal rhythms of Telic / Paratelic alternations is heightened. This will raise the percentage of self actualizers in the population and therefore we are gradually getting closer to a point where the contagiousness of positive learning spirals through social support is becoming stronger than the contagiousness of fears and neuroses. That very point we may call [[Contemporary weakening of the foundations of Power Structures|Point Omega]], following Teilhard de Chardin. Our conclusion can be that by these changing circumstances the likelihood of Tolle's New Earth is gradually becoming higher because of the contagiousness of the positive learning spirals and psychological health. Changing technical circumstances in our modern world gradually increase the chances for any individual to escape from the neuroticizing fetters and enter a process of self-actualization. Once the percentage of enlightened people has reached a critical point, the contagiousness of mental health and sanity will gain the upper hand over the contagiousness of fears and neuroses. From that point on a chain reaction will make Tolle's prediction come true and a New Earth will materialize, involuntarily and inescapably. == Enlightenment dependent on grace or on action ? == Tolle says that the process of awakening to your inner purpose, the process in which thinking and awareness separate, the establishment of consciousness without thought, is basically an act of grace, not of will. One cannot "make" it happen, nor can one prepare oneself for it. The [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] on the other hand, describes and explains ''why'' it is that, ordinarily speaking, striving, in whichever way, indeed does not bring one closer to the restoration of a healthy telic / paratelic balance, and thus to restoration of healthy growth and development, end thus to the dissolution of the overwhelming control of negative COEX systems (pain bodies and ego structures) and thus to the eventual emergence of enlightenment. The point is that the act of striving corroborates, rather than weakens a sick telic / paratelic balance. On the other hand, the [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]] renders such improved insight and understanding of the processes involved, that one can, through a necessarily indirect approach, very well repair the telic / paratelic balance, reboot the natural process of repair and recovery, boost the process of growth and development and create a state in which, sooner or later, the grace, Tolle speaks about, must strike and will strike. Bottom line of [[Point Omega (summary)|what the CEL predicts]] is that, once understanding of all these basic mechanisms of emotions and motivations has become sufficiently widespread and known, the structures that keep us bound in misery, in ignorance and in telic over-dominance, will lose their stability, collapse and give way to mass enlightenment. Once a critical mass has been reached, the striking of that grace will become the rule, rather than the exception. The [[Point Omega (summary)|good news from the CEL]] therefore, is that we ourselves can very well take action to help bring that point, point Omega, closer. Just (re)organize your life in such a way that paratelic states are likely to arise more frequently and do the same for other people. All the rest will follow automatically. That's all there is to it. It seems too simple to be true, but this is what the CEL predicts. 722lhsn9a8mq9wom4v305wkp3s5ps9k 0 75 1406 1404 2009-08-16T11:22:27Z BigSmoke 1 /* To-do */ wikitext text/x-wiki This page is for information for people who are contributing to this wiki. == To-do == * Transcribe [[The biological instability of social equilibria#Bibliography|bibliography]] of ''[[The biological instability of social equilibria]]''. * Find a digital source of ''[[Striving, Playing and Learning]]''. * Put ''[[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]]'' on-line hc7qe7rl5mouwmtdoix2lsjj8o24ae1 10 76 2618 2455 2011-04-13T20:31:35Z BigSmoke 1 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/178.18.115.67|178.18.115.67]] ([[User talk:178.18.115.67|Talk]]) to last revision by [[User:Baby Boy|Baby Boy]] wikitext text/x-wiki '''Sorry for the baddy English in this article. We are working on improvement.''' <includeonly>[[Category:Articles with Baddy English]]</includeonly> 4e11r69sirqtb2zi4idobjc8c8vf5ql 14 77 2615 2505 2011-04-13T20:28:07Z BigSmoke 1 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/194.95.59.223|194.95.59.223]] ([[User talk:194.95.59.223|Talk]]) to last revision by [[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] wikitext text/x-wiki These are articles where the English could use some attention. They're probably translated from Dutch by a drunken monkey with a broken electronic translator. pv9yi4n4v3furpmlpadey5hkgwwsli3 2 78 1394 525 2009-07-15T10:10:10Z Baby Boy 2 rowan wikitext text/x-wiki * [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=Energy_and_Strokes&diff=292&oldid=290 Myrna's proefvertaling] * Rowan's user page: [[User:BigSmoke]] ([[User talk:BigSmoke|talk]]) 5z8q5fppq5rzb10sq1tta9sr7t42zy1 3 79 2235 1428 2011-01-23T14:15:42Z BigSmoke 1 /* User:Eschaton */ new section wikitext text/x-wiki == Myrna's initiële verbeteringen van Energy and Strokes == PP, [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=Energy_and_Strokes&diff=292&oldid=290 dit] is een link naar Myrna's initiële verbeteringen aan het Engels in ''[[Energy and Strokes]]''. Dan hoef je het niet opnieuw te vergeten. --[[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] 22:47, 5 April 2008 (UTC) O.K. Heel nuttig. Veelmaals dank. BB == Digital source of Striving, Playing and Learning == BB, If you want to have a version of ''[[Striving, Playing and Learning]]'' online here, you should try to find a digital source of this publication. It's not among your old collection of floppy disks. --[[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] 11:18, 16 August 2009 (UTC) Zal ik z.s.m. gaan doen. BB == Is your article about self-blindness unpublished? == The article called ''[[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]]'' on this wiki seems to have never been published before. However, the article text states otherwise. You should clarify this. --[[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] 11:31, 16 August 2009 (UTC) :I've already removed the template that said that the text was in the process of being copied. --[[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] 11:32, 16 August 2009 (UTC) Zoek ik uit. PP == User:Eschaton == Baby, The name of the user who made all the temporary is [[User:Eschaton|Eschaton]]. Below are some links to the articles he added. (The links point to the articles as they were before he deleted them.) * [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=Eternal_youth&oldid=1989 Eternal youth] * [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=Elysium&oldid=1982 Elysium] * [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=The_end_of_locality&oldid=1999 The end of locality] * [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=The_Mystical_Marriage&oldid=1977 The Mystical Marriage] * [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=The_Omega_Point&oldid=1996 The Omega Point] * [http://wiki.omega-research.org/index.php?title=Novelty_theory&oldid=1983 Novelty theory] 46gt0ok4mxhh5o4ynb630jnz1qalajk 0 81 684 2008-04-22T21:56:56Z Baby Boy 2 [[A New Earth, Awakening to your life's purpose]] moved to [[A New Earth]] over redirect wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[A New Earth]] 9qkshwi85mq4g099pbgx2mnu426iglo 0 82 6069 6068 2016-03-24T17:51:15Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki <center><b><big>Donations and gifts: your support is important to us</big></b></center> __TOC__ The '''Omega Research Foundation''' has been established to boost awareness of human possibilities and the future human potential. Therefore our foundation supports research in the area of human development and psychological and social functioning. Its focus is in particular on the possibility of a major transition of society as has been predicted and described in the course of history by many sources from many cultures. Such a transition has for instance been labeled by the paleontologist Teilhard de Chardin as “Point Omega”. Apart from messages from historical prophets and clairvoyants there appears to be surprising scientific support for the idea that humanity is at the brink of a major evolutionary and developmental psychological shift. The Omega Research Foundation’s focus is on such (novel) scientific data regarding such a shift. Besides supporting relevant scientific research, the foundation also stimulates and organizes the wide distribution of all relevant information regarding the psychological and social mechanisms involved in this transition, evoking the widest possible involvement and support. For the realization of our goals we are fully dependent on contributions from third parties like gifts, donations, sponsoring and legacies. You can support the Omega project by: ;[[#Copy this wiki (our version of 'CopyRight')|Copying this Wiki]] : Spread sober awareness widely ;[[#One time gift|A one time gift]] : The quickest way to support us just now. ;[[#Becoming a Donor / Benefactor|Becoming a Donor / Benefactor]] : Monthly or yearly support ;[[#Gifts at regular intervals with maximum tax benefits|Gifts at regular intervals]] : Support us with the best tax advantages ;[[#Legacies|A legacy]] : Register financial support by legacy to us through a notary public {|border="1" cellpadding="4" |+ Summary of possibilities for donating to Omega Research Foundation |- | !One time gift !Benefactor/Donor !Series of Tax deductible Yearly Gifts !Legacies |- !align="right"|Minimum amount |any amount |€ 5 /month or € 25 /year |in case of € 250 /year or more: no costs for notary public | |- !align="right"|Taxes |deductible with a minimum |deductible with a minimum |deductible in total |no inheritance tax |- !align="right"|Method of payment |Paypal / credit card or bank transfer |authorization of automatic transfers through Paypal |through notary deed<br />minimum of 5 years, in equal yearly gifts |through notary public in last will |- !align="right"|To where and how |to ABN/AMRO bank account number NL 65 ABNA 0 57 07 92 592 of Omega Research Foundation / "gift" |automatic through Paypal |authorized automatic transfers and sent per mail, legalization by notary public of signature, + copy of passport |to ABN/AMRO bank account number NL 65 ABNA 0 57 07 092 592 of Omega Research Foundation / "gift" |- !align="right"|Quid pro quo |colspan="4"|if over € 1.000 donated, option to be included in published list of benefactors |- !align="right"|Other | | | |expires automatically after decease |} == Copy this wiki (our version of 'CopyRight')== We make regular dumps of the complete wiki as it is at certain points in time. You can download [http://wiki.omega-research.org/dump-without-history.xml this dump]. Then, if ever this wiki is taken off-line by some angry third party, a recent copy of the entire Wiki is still available elsewhere and can continue its development from some other place. For that reason we advise you, after downloading this dump, to distribute it among your trusted friends who like to support you in this act of information-transparency-insurance, and who are capable of installing [http://www.mediawiki.org/ MediaWiki] and the dump to a mirror site. In that way you help to secure the indestructability of the information, assembled and developed on this Wiki and so to stabilize a lasting transparency of information about the root issues of human existence and survival. Thus you help to consolidate the emergence of point Omega and to secure the foundation of conscious human evolution. '''Help humanity to survive in a more agreeable way, [http://wiki.omega-research.org/dump-without-history.xml download now] ! ''' == Tax deductable == The Omega Research Foundation is an organization for the common good. This implies that gifts, donations and sponsoring from companies as well as from private persons are [[tax deductable]]. For private persons from The Netherlands there is a difference in tax deductablity between 1) a one time gift or donation and 2) a fixed series of donations (“periodieke schenking”). == One time gift == The quickest way to support our project is a one time gift on line. Through this site you can transfer an amount of Euro 25 or any other amount. Give your support now ! [https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_donations&business=bigsmoke%40gmail%2ecom&item_name=One%20Time%20Gift%20to%20the%20Omega%20Research%20Foundation&item_number=Omega&amount=25%2e00&no_shipping=0&no_note=1&tax=0&currency_code=EUR&lc=NL&bn=PP%2dDonationsBF&charset=UTF%2d8 https://www.paypal.com/en_US/NL/i/btn/btn_donateCC_LG.gif] You can also transfer your contribution to: Bank acoount nr.: NL65ABNA 0 57 07 92 592 with ABN/AMRO Bank of the Omega Research Foundation, declaring “Gift”. (BIC code: ABNANL2A) == Becoming a Donor / Benefactor == You can become a Donor or Benefactor of the foundation from €5 per month or €25 per year on. That way you support our work for the enhancement and the understanding of Point Omega. The easiest and quickest method to become a monthly or yearly Donor is through PayPal. You also can become a Donor by filling out the [[application form for monthly or yearly donations]]. In that case however, the minimum amounts are € 25 /month and € 100 /year because of extra administrative costs. Change of address can be sent to us by e-mail. Cancellation of donorship can also be communicated by e-mail. Our e-mail address is [mailto:support@omega-research.org support@omega-research.org]. == Gifts at regular intervals with maximum tax benefits == In case you wish to support our work in the most tax deductable way, then you may decide for a periodic gift during a series of years through a notary deed. The advantage of this method is that in The Netherlands the tax authorities will reimburse part of your gift by making the amounts involved fully deductible from income tax without any limit. The only requirement is that the gifts are being paid in equal yearly sums during at least five years. In case you wish to utilize this method with at least €200 per year, we offer to arrange the notary deed in question, free of charge. In that case you proceed as follows: * Fill out the [[proxy form for donations]] through a notary deed, signed by yourself and (in case applicable) your partner. Make a copy for yourselves; * Have your signature legalized by a notary public of your choice; * Send the proxy in an envelop to: Omega Research Foundation, Molenweg 15, 9761 VB Eelde, The Netherlands; * Add a copy of your passport, driving licence or identity card and also of your partner (if applicable). Within four weeks the official deed (act of donation) will be prepared by the notary public and will be sent to you through us. The act of donation serves as proof for tax deductability (for The Netherlands under the heading of ‘periodieke giften’). We advise to also keep a copy of the bank transfer statement. The act of donation expires after decease. Your descendants therefore do not inherit obligations. For further information about donating you may contact us through e-mail: [mailto:support@omega-research.org support@omega-research.org]. == Legacies == It is possible to appoint the Omega Research Foundation as (one of) your inheritor(s) or to donate a specific amount as a legacy. That way you support our Omega Research Project also after your decease. The Omega Research Foundation is an organization for the common good. This implies that legacies are not due to taxation. For further information about legacies you may contact us through e-mail: [mailto:support@omega-research.org support@omega-research.org]. == Registration of donorship == Donors may choose to be included in the published list of benefactors of the Omega Research Foundation. In case the total amount donated is € 1.000 or more, the donor's name can be included in the [[Benefactors of the Omega Research Foundation|list of benefactors]], which is published in order of donated amounts. Donors can have their names removed from the list at any time. gvj3r80wu9pj69przgyzrio4icxb6cm 0 88 5551 2633 2013-11-14T16:22:53Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki The '''goal of this Wiki''' is to help put an end to the eternal plagues of humanity, like war, genocide, wholesale rape, the destruction of our environment, etc. These eternal plagues seem to be part of the very fabric the human species is made of. It seems to be inseparable from our biological and psychological make up. Throughout human history, some people have become aware of the "normalcy" of these disastrous events. In a way, human politics and organizations are designed to fight these very plagues. It is however also evident, that all these attempts have been to no avail, if not producing in the end more, rather than less, strife, mayhem and mass murder, providing rather the ultimate pretext for it. One way to look at this seemingly hopeless situation, is to describe civilizations as "conspiracies against evolution". That viewpoint implies that the above mentioned disasters are mother nature's methods to recover and restore selection pressures, which have only been postponed locally for some period of time by "civilization". The more successful, just and fair a civilization and the longer the postponement of selective forces, the more massive and lethal the recuperative and corrective events of mother nature will be. No matter which way one looks at these eternal plagues of humanity, this Wiki's goal is to lay bare the deepest roots of organized murder and destruction, enabling mankind at last to take the sting out of the very common cause of war, genocide and mass destruction. The cure is in becoming aware of the innate and the organized blindnesses regarding our own functioning. In that sense this emerging awareness is the finishing touch, the final boost to human enlightenment, that started in the eighteenth century, pushing us now over the treshold of a totally new era in the evolution of Homo sapiens. As this Wiki argues, this will be the era in which the human species consciously will steer its own evolution, rather than unconsciously be the "passive" victim of it. 648721rafzpmyrrdycad4zm2wg32ajb 1 90 841 818 2008-06-24T21:20:40Z Baby Boy 2 [[Talk:This site argues that it is not so important that we exchange "belief systems" for science, but rather that we exchange fear for curiosity]] moved to [[Talk:This site argues that it is not so important that we exchange "belief systems" for "science wikitext text/x-wiki As a newbie, I think ... It would be nice for the newbies if specialist terms were links to explanations of those terms. 3fccqo5hrryaytxja1w9rspixwr230e 0 91 825 2008-06-24T20:28:03Z Baby Boy 2 [[To finally put an end to war, destruction, genocide and wholesale rape.]] moved to [[To finally put an end to war, destruction, genocide and wholesale rape]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[To finally put an end to war, destruction, genocide and wholesale rape]] r17mdfsn3nix9dndudle4ahnnbln6p6 0 92 831 2008-06-24T21:03:09Z Baby Boy 2 [[The end of the second intermediary phase before any evolving intelligence reaches maturity and full deployment.]] moved to [[The end of the second intermediary phase before any evolving intelligence reaches maturity and full deployment]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[The end of the second intermediary phase before any evolving intelligence reaches maturity and full deployment]] n77jn2wngexow4ynydk3cmuc6arl3mm 1 94 842 2008-06-24T21:20:40Z Baby Boy 2 [[Talk:This site argues that it is not so important that we exchange "belief systems" for science, but rather that we exchange fear for curiosity]] moved to [[Talk:This site argues that it is not so important that we exchange "belief systems" for "science wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Talk:This site argues that it is not so important that we exchange "belief systems" for "science", but rather that we exchange "fear" for "curiosity"]] m6u6hpb9zasu2xmlqut6lmzh9szdd12 0 95 6629 6628 2016-12-17T09:55:03Z Baby Boy 2 /* Power structures utilizing "jet-lag" effects in human evolution */ wikitext text/x-wiki '''{{level|2}} (on the power of Good and Evil since the agricultural revolution;''' '''a consequence of “jet-lag” in recent human evolution)''' (by Popko P. van der Molen, sept./oct. 2008) == "Amathology", an introduction == {{level|2}} This article is about what we could label as "amathology", the science of ignorance. It deals with the following 15 interrelated items: * The realm of human ignorance. * The special purpose and function of the human ignorance about oneself. * The fuzzy world of ethical norms in a field of Self-blindness. * The forbidden fruit: the knowledge of Good and Bad as a cornerstone of human unhappiness. * The illusory character of notions of Good and Evil. * The crucial function of the knowledge of Good and Evil for blinding human awareness about its own behaviour, social- and otherwise. * The amounts of physical energy needed to keep illusory notions of good and bad functioning in the human mind. * The major difference between newly emerging spiritual movements and established great religions. * The big lie: the evolutionary necessity for any great religion to block anything which would lead to the very essence of what religions pretend to bring. * Great religions as surviving power structures binding human beings in ignorance and slavery instead of liberating them from neurotic misery. * Great religions using "Good and Evil" illusions as a basic tool for inducing, consolidating and exploiting the deep confusion about our ethics. * Evolutionary "jet-lag"; [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world|the human species torn between the slow evolution of the genes and the fast evolution of the memes.]] * P-feelings versus N-demands; emotions and feelings from our Primordial evolutionary history versus the New requirements and dictates from our membership of present day power structures that rule our world. * The unavoidable friction between P-feelings and N-demands in humans. * The evolutionary dictates for the evolution of meme structures; the prerequisites of [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world|power structures]]. * How religions and other power structures utilize this elementary friction in the human mind and soul to enhance ignorance and to strengthen confusion about the behaviour of oneself. * How ignorance helps to trigger the emergence of guilt and perpetual neurotic fears, caused by conflicting P-feelings and N-demands. These 15 issues will be addressed below. Discussions about the following item can be found in a previous chapter on this Wiki. * The evolutionary necessity of the typical [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|human blindness for the Self]] and the evolutionary history of this subject-specific awareness-block. The below chapter deals with the same issue, but discusses the various aspects in more detail. {{level|2}} Human culture has arrived at a point where we can control nature to such an extent that we do not run the risks any more that formerly were determining life and fate of each and every individual. We have now learned to fight and win any conflict with large predators, with cold, with heat, floods, drought, starvation, and even with almost all contagious diseases. In principle, technically speaking, any healthy individual now could live until old age in peaceful circumstances, were it not for mankind itself providing fatal risks for oneself and for each other. Evolutionarily, mankind has become its own primary source of risk, its own most important selection force. As a consequence, the main direction of selection has changed dramatically since some tens of thousands of years. This shift can be verified also by recent DNA research that shows that the speed of change of the human DNA has increased tremendously since the beginning of this most recent period of human evolution, the beginning of agriculture. In fact, the human species has arrived in a quite peculiar situation. Seen from the point of view of our most basic instincts, our most basic feelings, wishes and desires, we have, in our modern world, developed the technical means and tricks to fulfil each and every wish, stemming from our inmost primordial systems of emotions and motivations. We could in principle all be happy and safe. However, as it appears, reality is quite different. We have become our own predators and any large scale civilization is in fact just some postponement of that novel direction of our selection pressure, taking its toll anew at any occasion when things run out of control. As has been said by philosophers before, civilization can in practice be regarded as a conspiracy against evolution, human evolution. Civilization is always just a shortlasting postponement of selection pressure. In any culture, periods of peace and prosperity don't last very long. Evolution has to take its course, and it does, also in us cultured humans. At such moments in time, wars break out and starvation, diseases, migration waves, genocides and other disasters make evolution recover lost terrain. Then evolution again effectuates its selection pressure in the typical, novel, human evolutionary direction and does away with cumulated genetic pollution, incurred in periods of relative peace. Looking at this situation from the outside, it seems highly peculiar that we can fly through the air with hundreds of people at a time in one machine, that we can sail the seas in vessels harbouring tens of thousands of people, that we can plan and cultivate food for a hundred times or more people than are living in the areas in question, that we can put a man on the moon and dive down into the deepest oceans and return to tell what we have seen, that we can look into the universe into distances so far away that is difficult to imagine what such distances mean, distances, travelled by light in millions of years, that we understand the most elementary particles of matter to the point where we can put together nuclear bombs and nuclear energy plants, and still, and still ............ we do not seem capable to organize our societies in such a way, that we can live in relative personal peace and security. == No-go areas for our intelligence == {{level|2}} Obviously, we seem not to be capable of understanding our own behaviour, let alone organize it in a mutually useful way. It seems far more easy to organize war than to organize peace. This failure to understand our own behaviour can be corroborated by psychological research during the last decades. Indeed it appears that human beings possess an uncanny capacity to not-see how they are functioning themselves. We are struck with a very strong form of blindness for our own emotions, motivations and feelings. Of course, we do have some notion of what we feel, what we see and what we want, but, as an overwhelming avalanche of scientific psychological research shows, these notions differ greatly from reality. (See for instance: Bateson, 1972,1979, Dixon, 1976, Laing, 1967,1969,1970, just to mention a few out of a vast sea of scientific research data) In fact, human beings spend surprising amounts of energy and brain capacity to just mystify and hide their own behaviour from sober and intelligent investigation, also by themselves. Evidently, it looks as if this typical blindness, blocking our awareness and thinking power in certain areas, does have a significant evolutionary advantage. This human blindness is apparently an ESS, an Evolutionarily Stable Strategy. In this treatise we will discuss some aspects of this blindness and explain the importance of this specific ignorance. Especially, we will focus on a central issue in this blindness, the notion of Good versus Evil and on the highly illusory character of it. Of course, we humans know and are aware of what is good for us and what is harmful or bad for us. In general, what we need biologically, is what we like and we consider those things we need as "good". Reversely, what is harmful to us, we consider and label as "bad". So far so good, nothing out of the ordinary. Any monkey or other animal can be shown to harbour similar notions. However, in humans something has become fishy in these matters, especially where good and bad refer to ethics, to what we ourselves should or should not do. The idea of what is most basic about Good and Bad or between Good and Evil, being at the centre of our cultural heritage, brings confusion and mystification rather than clarity about what to do and what to avoid. Notions of Good and Bad produce massive fears and neuroses, rather than clarity, tranquillity and peace. How come? This chapter deals with the how and why of Good and Bad in us humans and with the evolutionary source of the sticky confusion in these matters. The notion of Good and Evil is the most central issue in any modern human culture and it can be shown that human beings invest massive amounts of time and energy on maintaining its functioning. At the same time it can be shown that these notions, or at least crucial parts of it, are illusory and serve confusion rather than clarification. In fact, Good and Evil can be seen as the central and basic instruments of keeping the human species locked up in blindness. That way they safeguard the possibility of a further evolution of human intelligence and, what is more, also strengthen the forces that bind present day humans in miserable slavery in the hands of meme-level power structures, that are nowadays in charge of our evolution. == The confusing role of established religions == {{level|2}} The three or four present day monotheistic religions in the world, Islam, Christianity, Judaism and, in a sense, Buddhism, have in common a very central and basic tenet saying that “one should not do unto others what one would not wish to be done unto oneself” or “treat other people as you would like to be treated yourself”. This central tenet appears to us a very “good” and useful admonition. However, history, and present day newspapers as well, show us that these great religions also have been the reason, or at least the pretext, for large scale killing, wholesale rape and untold further atrocities on a rather continuous basis. Still, these religion’s official basic tenets and goals are like the quotes above, only to be associated with love, care, peace and unselfish interest in the other, with positive, supportive commitment. Apparently, what the great religions seemingly (try to) teach us is quite at variance with daily, worldwide practice in human society, and often also with the practice of the great monotheistic religions themselves. In the pages below we will try to explain this seeming contradiction and investigate its evolutionary roots and its meaning and significance for the present day human situation. == The primordial niche of Homo sapiens and the feelings and emotions "fitting" that environment == {{level|2}} First of all we should pay some attention to what happened with the human situation since the agricultural revolution, which started just some 10.000 years ago. From an evolutionary point of view this is quite a short period of time. Since primordial times, long before the agricultural revolution, human ancestors have been subject to evolutionary selection forces which have resulted in a behaviour pattern, well suited to survive the niche of Homo sapiens and its predecessors. Stemming from earlier hominids, they did already have a behavioural repertoire, shaped and polished by many millions of years of natural selection, well fitted to the circumstances they lived in. What this means in practice on a personal level, is that one’s feelings and reflexes are such that they automatically result in behaviour with optimal survival value. Feelings and reflexes, likes and dislikes, are built into the system in such a way that they automatically trigger the behaviour in an evolutionarily useful direction. Emotions of course go up and down (otherwise a creature would not move), but generally our ancestors were, like any other species on this planet, well in harmony with their environment of which they were a well integrated part. Our ancestors lived well in balance with the rest of it. For this discourse we will call this set of Primordial requirements, needs, feelings and reflexes the '''“P”- feelings''' (the P of Primordial). Recently however, i.e. since some 10.000 years, survival pressure and selection pressure have taken a radically different direction for the species Homo. But until that moment in human evolution, our behavioural system was adapted to and was functioning smoothly in an environment and a social setting, not very different from any other socially living hominid. Each hominid species had its own niche, but all living in balance and in harmony with nature. We were functioning in small or moderately large groups of family and relatives, dealing with surrounding nature and with the other group members. Practically all of our behaviour, of our emotions and motivational systems, is designed for and well adapted to those tasks, to survive and procreate under those circumstances. == New demands and requirements since the agricultural revolution == {{level|2}} However, as is further explained [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world|elsewhere]] on this Wiki, the agricultural revolution, brought with it the rule of large '''power structures'''. Organisational structures, wielding unprecedented amounts of power over and influence on people, took over the evolutionary lead. Since such power structures are not based on genes but on memes, their mutual competition for resources and their evolutionary struggle was suddenly happening on a very different time scale than anything that came ever before in evolution. The evolution of power structures and organizational formulas happens at the meme-level, the level of software so to speak, whereas the classical evolution, the one we all stem from, is an evolution between sets of genes, an evolution on the hardware-level, the usual stuff. In order to change and evolve, meme-sets only need little time, just the time it takes to spread some news to other people or to change somebody’s mind. Memes therefore do not need to wait until their carriers have procreated physically, handing down the memes to one’s progeny during the upbringing of the young. That way the selection process would take a considerable number of generations at least. The software however, doesn’t need to wait for the hardware turn over, but carries on at its own, much higher, speed and in turn pulls the hardware selection along, no matter how far the latter is lagging behind. We humans, Homo sapiens, are thus the carriers of information bits on these two different levels. That does have some peculiar consequences for us. Because of the difference in time scale between the gene evolution and the meme evolution, between hardware evolution and software evolution, we human beings need to accommodate the requirements of both evolutionary pressure systems simultaneously. Otherwise we cannot survive and participate in and contribute to the next generations. Both sets of demands and requirements have to be met, or we will be selected out and done away with. The large and complicated power structures that are in charge these days put demands on us humans, that are therefore completely new in evolutionary terms. We have to function in enormously much larger social networks than what our early ancestors were accustomed to and emotionally were rigged up for. We also need to deal with a lot more, continuous, change of circumstances than any earlier hominid ever was confronted with and was adapted to. Furthermore we have to deal with required obedience to organizational systems and principles, rather than just to specific persons, whereas we are only emotionally rigged up for the latter. We have to be willing to live in cages, more or less luxurious, rather than enjoy the evening camp fire and the feel of wind, water, plants and soil, which, as a compensation, we seek in our “holidays”. Etc., etc. For this discourse we will call this set of New, secondary requirements and the subsequent needs, feelings and reflexes, installed and stimulated by the complex power systems in charge, as the '''“N”- demands''' (the N of New). == Friction between P-feelings and N-demands; "Primordial" versus "New" (the evolutionary Jet-Lag) == {{level|2}} Because in these last 10.000 years our genes did not yet have the time to adapt sufficiently to the strongly changed artificial environment we live in, our (old) behavioural tendencies and reflexes, the P-feelings, are not suited well for our present day existence. The demands of the power structures in charge, the N-demands, do not yet match well with our feelings and emotions, the P-feelings. This implies, that, no matter what we do or try, we cannot, in general, organise things in such a way that we feel we are “at place”. We could achieve this in the eras before the agricultural revolution, but not now any more. It has in principle become impossible. That does not mean that not some stray individuals could achieve a relative harmony and happiness with their present day life, but it means that such happiness and balance with the environmental situation is the exception, rather than the rule, for modern human beings. The bottom line is that that what we feel deeply inside, the P-feelings, is at variance with the demands of the structures we live in and depend on, the N-requirements. Human beings are therefore subject to two competing grand sets of directives for our behaviour. One grand set is what feels natural and harmonious, stemming from primordial times, and to which we are genetically fully adapted, and another grand set, evolutionarily novel, taking care of the demands of the power structures in charge, which set of directives often feels to us however as unnatural or “bad”. From this opposite and often conflicting pair of demands and requirements, sayings emerge like: “Power corrupts”, Befehl ist Befehl and also the blindness of governmental organizations and similar Kafka-like phenomena, seemingly not caring about the innate feelings of their carriers, us humans. By and large, modern society sucks, and there is no other way, simply because of the delay in the human hardware evolution in comparison to the much faster evolution of the software programs, ruling human societal structures these days. Dreaming of “ideal” societies therefore is useless. The ideal is not available any more. We simply lost it with the agricultural revolution. The demands by the meme-power structures, the N-needs, always surpass and differ from what our behavioural inclinations would suggest and trigger by themselves, the P-needs. And that discrepancy translates itself directly and unavoidably into a certain measure of stress and unhappiness. The power systems require us to do a whole range of things we would never do by ourselves, if we would still be living outside of modern meme level power structures. Hence the (for us) eternal tension within our own behavioural system. After the second world war, induced by the atrocities during the war, finally some curiosity emerged again after the possible sources of the striking frictions in the human behavioural and normative systems. One finally recognized that there were some disquieting incongruities in human normative thinking and feeling, that may lead to unheard of atrocities and disasters. Research was conducted to investigate the influences from political and cultural power structures controlling our behaviour against inborn reflexes of love, compassion and concern for our fellow human beings. For instance, Milgram’s experiments with obedience to authority illustrate these effects very clearly (Milgram,1974) and have been discussed widely in those years. Only the very strong and stubborn managed to defy imposed authority and refused to torture their victims in the name of the "Good cause". It is the meek and the well adapted persons on the other hand, who are the best carriers for the power stuctures in charge, and who tend to follow the rules, no matter what. They are the most likely to press the torture button or pull the trigger to wretch compliance and obedience from the victims. == Some basic requirements for successful power structures == {{level|2}} The power structures at the level of memes control our lives these days, simply because their evolution outruns by far the classic evolution of physical bodies, the animal kingdom. Let's focus on these power structures. [[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world|Elsewhere]] on this Wiki we have commented upon the reason why this meme level evolution has become the dominant factor in our lives. In order to understand the consequences, let's consider what are the requirements for meme-power-structures to be an ESS, an evolutionarily stable strategy. To answer that question we can safely make a number of basic assumptions. 1) First, the power structure should collect and condense enough power over lots of human individuals and make them compete successfully with other meme-power-structures over resources. Large numbers help, as do collective hitting power and personal subservience to the system. 2) Second, the power structure should harness the energy and activity of its carriers into parallel directed subservience to the system, but without loosing too much of its member’s basic energy potential in the process. They may very well be subdued into malleable neuroticism and misery, but not to the point of a complete break down, because then all useful output of the individuals would stop. 3) Third, in order to compete effectively with other power structures, it should make its members claim and gain as much of environment, space and resources as possible, at the expense of the carriers of competing power structures, cultures and creeds. Expansion and proselytizing are therefore highly adaptive evolutionary tools for meme power structures to survive and reproduce. Having determined these three basic requirements for power structures to be evolutionarily successful, we can now distinguish a number of mechanisms and rules applied by power structures to achieve the above mentioned 3 basic requirements. The first requirement suggests that a power structure should contain enough rewards and threatening punishments, enough carrots and sticks, for the human carriers of the system to attract and convince large enough numbers of people to join and comply with it and additionally to keep those converts within the system for good. The stick can have the form of various types of punishment for defection. These rewards and punishments should also be strong enough to overcome the negative effects of the tension and friction between the P-feelings and the N-demands. Otherwise not enough people will "buy" the story. To achieve goal number 2, a power structure may, in order to re-direct energy and output into directions for the benefit and growth of the power structure itself, the N-demands, apply so much repressive techniques, blocking the “natural” tendencies of human beings, its carriers, that the individuals lose even up to 50% or perhaps even 90% of the potential individual energy and action-ouput. Losing that much behavioural output is not a problem, as long as not all of the output is quenched. However, again, if the harnessing and subductive forces do quench all energy in a limited number of its carriers, that is not an evolutionary problem either. A percentage of 1 or 3 of suicides in a population is a price, well acceptable for better controlling the remaining 97%. That much stress and strain in the carriers (us humans) is permissible. To achieve goal number 3, a power structure can apply a culture of proselytizing, either through creed or through other cultural dictums, or may apply genocidal actions and wars to acquire more "Lebensraum" and other resources. It was certainly not a privilege of the Third Reich to adopt such strategies, only, these days such strategies are customarily disguised and hidden from sight in a "civilized" way, but they are the leading hidden agenda's, ruling the show, nevertheless. There is no other way, that is, at least there never '''was'''. == Where evolution is leading us == {{level|1}} A result of the dominating influence of the power structures in charge is that the general direction of recent human evolution is a moving away from Eden, from our Primordial state of living as our hunter-gatherer ancestors were used to. We are moving away from a state of relative harmony between environment and behavioural tendencies and feelings. We are pulled away from that original state and evolutionarily pushed into adaptations to large power structures, adaptations that our genetic evolution cannot achieve quickly enough to produce a “good fit” between our emotional make up and the power systems ruling our days. In fact, looking at the details of the political power struggles throughout human history, this model would predict that the more unpleasant power systems tend to win, or at least the power structures that succeed best in harnessing human’s primordial feelings and tendencies and replace them with the needs and requirements of the system, that are often felt by us humans as “inhuman”, but unavoidable. (“Lex dura, sed lex”, as the Romans already stated, and without it the state would collapse.) On the other hand, the less stress a system induces, while still succeeding to invoke obedience, the better and the less loss of productivity and of human lifes. Therefore the best tricks of the system are those that cause human beings to follow the rules without being aware too much of the price they are paying. As explained above, and in more detail [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|elsewhere]] on this Wiki, Homo sapiens is not so very “sapiens”, in that special mechanisms have been built in, that block the use of our intelligent facilities on our own personal and group behaviour. It does not need further explanation that this facility is being utilized to the full by the power structures in charge and that any method to strengthen this specific and peculiar blindness for the self, is applied. We can therefore safely assume that the most successful cultures on earth are also those that induce and strengthen these typical blindnesses best, where possible, paired to great intelligence and analytic power. The more specific this blindness is for strictly the own, human, behaviour, the more room there is for a further development of general intelligence and analytic power, without endangering the power structure requirements and also without hampering reproductive contributions. == The evolutionary importance of blindness for self and the illusion of Good and Bad == {{level|1}} Power structures of course derive advantage from concealing that they “steal” human well being and happiness. And the best way to conceal that is to strengthen the already typically human blindness for the own behaviour, reflexes and feelings and subsequently to use that area of murky perception for inducing the dictums, norms and rules that the power structure needs. However, the latter are norms and rules that would tend to induce aversive feelings in its carriers, us modern humans, in particular in case these dictums and rules could be perceived clearly and undistortedly. To achieve this required level of blindness, a basic trick and cornerstone of all existing large power structures is the central notion of “Good and Bad” and of “primal sin”. As is shown [[Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality|elsewhere on this Wiki]], the Good and Bad dimension is one of the most conspicuous and striking features of the human system of assessment and judgement. We do spend enormous amounts of time and energy to keep this illusive notion of "Good and Bad" upright and kicking. It does direct human normative systems and rules of behaviour and channels our social behaviour as well. In fact, that dimension of "Good and Bad" takes care of the consolidation of our social relations and social predictability. It helps us to socially "stay in place" and it automatically makes us act as to try keeping other people socially "in place" as well. <small>{{level|3}} (- For the mathematically oriented behavioural scientists among us: in the euclidian space of behavioural interactions, judgements and self-assessments, analyses of our verbal repertoire show something peculiar. In the analyses of the covariances between the words, labels and phrases, in factor analysis the first principal component before rotation is always the dimension of "Good versus Bad" or something closely related. And strikingly, this apparently most important assessment tool is not related whatsoever with any actual behaviour. It is only related with how the observer or judge is, for personal reasons beyond his own understanding, emotionally colouring in cognitively the behaviours he observes. (See [[Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality|here]] for more detailed information about this most important but illusory personality dimension.)-)</small> == Quantity of physical energy, invested in maintaining blindness and illusion == {{level|2}} From these personality psychological research data it appears that it must apparently be of great evolutionary importance that our cognitive system spends so much processing capacity and time on maintaining the notion of Good versus Bad and the blindness for the Self coming with it. Evidently being the most important of all dimensions of human assessment and social judgement, this cognitive dimension also consumes a considerable part of the energy consumption in our brain. Our brain is one of the most energy consuming parts of our body. Our carotid arteries are relatively wide compared to those of other, closely related, species. We humans spend the greater part of our time on thinking. And a considerable part of that thinking time is spent on thinking about our own and other people's behaviour and what it means to us. Being socially living mammals this is of crucial and vital importance to us. As the above mentioned factoranalyses of the conceptual tools of that thinking show, the larger part of all that energy is spent on the first principal component of all those concepts and ideas, taking care of colouring in what we see and think with the delusive colours of "Good", "Bad", "pro- and con-". This underlines again empirically the great biological and evolutionary importance of this dimension of Good and Bad. == The illusory aspects of the Positive/negative or Good/Bad dimension == {{level|2}} Strikingly however, as pointed out above, it can also be shown from ethological research on humans, that this Good-Bad dimension, being one of our major tools of social behaviour, does not correlate whatsoever with actual behaviour, at least not as perceived by the rater. Of course the notions of good and bad are quite useful in describing what is good for our health and survival and what is harmful. As such there is no problem and it shall be clear that such notions must be of crucial importance for our communication about what to avoid and what to strive after. However, there has evolved a catch in us humans. Applying these notions of Good and Bad on our own behaviour and on the behaviour of others appears to be a tricky business. Rather than just labelling other individuals as Good or Bad, which certainly also happens, we humans tend to colour any judgement or qualification with either a positive, wished for variety of that judgement, or to colour it in with a negative, not wanted variety of the same descriptive qualification. For instance, a boss who is renowned to be a very effective and strong leader, issuing clear directives to his subordinates, in general is perceived and judged quite differently by different types of subordinates. A subordinate who is always compliant with the directives in the department and has no difficulty in following clear and strict instructions from above, is more likely to describe the style of management of the boss in question in positive terms like "strong, energetic, dynamic, bold and charismatic", whereas a subordinate who has difficulties in adapting to the existing rules and limitations of the department and who may be at the verge of being dismissed as "not sufficiently in compliance with company needs and directives", is more likely to describe that same style of management of the boss rather as "bossy, insensitive, dictatorial, repressive, autocratic and despotic". Listening to both types of judges, one would not expect them to describe the same person (that boss) in the same working situation. (For more information about these cognitive reflexes distorting our judgement of other individuals and of ourselves, see the article on [[The biological instability of social equilibria|Social Role Blindness]].) In a similar vein, people in love describe their partner in positive , flowery terms, whereas that same partner will be described in very negative terms once the relationship has broken up. Typically, the judging person will ascribe that to a dramatic change in the behaviour of that partner, but in general the judgee has not changed that much as the change of judgement suggests. For the persons issuing those judgements, it is almost impossible to objectively recognize the importance of the changes in their own perception. Without being aware of it, we humans are in fact applying a "double" toolbox of qualifications, carrying positive sets of qualificative descriptions and negative sets of qualificative descriptions. Whereas such positive or negative qualifications, in fact, in reality, often refer to the same actual behaviours, we human judges, applying these judgement sets, are not aware that the positive or negative colourings of these judgements are just our own imagination. We are not aware that the positively judged behaviour is actually the same as the negatively judged behaviour, even in cases where we can show experimentally that the behaviour in question is or was exactly the same. So, apart from being very simple and useful tools for describing what items in our environment are harmful or beneficial to us, the Good and Bad differences also serve to colour all types of descriptive qualifications of one's own and other people's behaviours. In fact, by that mechanism, we are utilizing double sets of descriptions for behaviour. At the same time, we ascribe reality value to those positive and negative descriptions, beyond the actual objective assessment of what kind of behaviour has or shall occur. In other words, we, as judges, do not know that the qualifications we apply for ourselves and other people, express in particular whether we are in favour of that person, or not. We utilize a complete descriptive set of behaviours and characteristics on the positive side as well as a complete descriptive set of behaviours and characteristics on the negative side. But we do hold the differences between those two sets for actual behavioural differences, which they are not. Those differences just and only exist in our heads. The only effect they have on us, is that they do consolidate and stabilize our attitude to the judged persons in question. These positive-negative labels stabilize in that way our social relations, dividing the people around in people we like and people we do not like. Our preferred social distance is thus "fixated" in terms of (imaginary) fixed characteristics of the ratee. In that way these double judgement sets obscure reality from our sober perception and what in fact happens is that primordial social reflexes of attraction and repulsion are consolidated and stabilized by the colouring in of our cognitive social world, protecting them from intelligent investigation and understanding. In summary, the positive - negative colouring in of judgements and assessments of behaviour, which we could label as '''the Good versus Bad dimension''', just serves to subjectively colour our perception of behaviour and is thus merely a tool of directing our own reactions on behaviour. Instead of helping to sort out reality, it serves to mask reality and blocks a clean and sober understanding of the behaviours observed. In other words, the evidently most important tool we humans utilize for assessing our own and each other’s behaviour is a tool that primarily serves for enforcing our blindness for behaviour. Apparently, it evolutionarily pays off for us humans to spend a major part of our intellectual activity and our energy on this '''blinding tool of mystification and delusion'''. By this arrangement our primordial social reflexes keep operating sufficiently, without being hampered by intellectual interference. (For a further elucidation and scientific analysis of the role of this Good-Bad dimension in the overall system of the perception of personality differences, see: [[Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality]]) == Cultural power structures using Good and Evil as an effective blinding tool == {{level|1}} In short, the knowledge of Good and Bad is in human culture a central and very important notion, but it serves a dual function. This dimension not only serves for labelling and knowing what is beneficial and what is harmful to us. It also is utilized as the basis of illusions and of a powerful distortion of reality. Reality itself does not bother with Good and Bad, but only with principles of survival and evolution. Is behaviour effective or not? And if so, for what? When used however for the distortion of perceived reality, this holds in particular for the application of Good and Bad on our '''own''' behaviour. In that area it functions as an effective veil, hiding the real significance of our own behaviour, making space for the unhampered expression of our primordial social impulses, without any intelligent manipulation modifying or hampering the aeons old reflexes. Little wonder that the major religions on this earth have the notion of Good and Bad as central themes in their teachings, and also do have in common that they mix up and conceal the millennia old tension between the P-feelings and the N-needs (see [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Friction between P-feelings and N-demands; "Primordial" versus "New"|above)]]'''(**)'''. They make distinctions between these two categories of motivations by and large invisible and indistinguishable. Instead, they help to mix up these two categories of feelings and directives, turning them into a thoroughly mixed, incomprehensible tohuwabohu of half-truths, outright lies, primordial emotions, system directives and some bits and pieces, borrowed from reality. The most successful cultures make sure that from this incomprehensible broth the system directives come out as dominating, invisibly and imperceptibly, the actual behavioural output. And the inextricable mesh of notions, beliefs and impulses thus effectively protects the seat of these system instructions and directives from intelligent investigation. Otherwise one might figure out that what is demanded from us, goes counter to what we really would want. The chaos is simply too big and too much emotionally loaded to be approached consciously. Besides, all of us have been trained painstakingly to shy away before we enter this danger zone. And, subsequently, religion offers itself deceptively as a soothing comforter in this neuroticizing swamp of delusions and fears. As a consequence, religions, once they have become successful (but not necessarily before or during their emergence!) serve the dual role of firstly (1) inducing and consolidating a complete confusion and delusion about ourselves and our deepest and most important feelings (for which we do already have an inborn knack since the time our intelligence started to expand some quarter or so million years ago; see [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|elsewhere]]'''(**)''' on this Wiki). Doing so, they launch us into worlds of conceit, fairy tales and lies. Secondly (2) in our misery they offer us comfort and save havens for the most urgent recovery needed, promising a better life later and promising other improvements that do however never need to come. The most cynical of these types of lies is of course the fairy tale of an afterlife. Given the incredible gullability of this intelligent species of Homo sapiens, one cannot but admit that this is the best con trick that evolution could possibly have played on us. It is without doubt one of the best meme tricks evolved that help keep us down in miserable slavery of the meme level power structures in charge, seducing us suckers with claims that only "they" hold the keys for a better (after)life ("they" being the Gods or the religious and/or political authorities, the representatives of the impersonal power structures in charge). == Power structures utilizing "jet-lag" effects in human evolution == {{level|1}} So, what is actually the case from an evolutionary point of view, is that the meme level power structures that nowadays determine our human existence, exploit to the full the tension that exists in our human behavioural system, the tension between the P-feelings and the N-needs. These are the two sets of instincts, basic urges, emotional reflexes, learned instructions and other cultural dictums we are dealing with. These two basic sets are to a large extent each others opposites, because they stem from different sources and serve different goals. The P-feelings stem from primordial times. They harbour the most basic instincts and emotional reflexes and are geared quite perfectly to humanity's original way of life "in the wild". The newly developed N-needs stem from the demands and requirements of large organizations, going with the power structures at the meme level. They only came into existence since some 10.000 years. They harbour less basic instincts and more learned instructions and cultural rules. Since the meme evolution runs so much faster than the classic gene evolution, the genetic adaptations to the requirements of the meme-power-structures, the N-needs, lags behind in comparison to the behavioural organization of the P-feelings. The human species is thus suffering from a sort of evolutionary "jet lag". This means that there will unavoidably exist a permanent field of emotional tension between the aeons old human reflexes and feelings (P-feelings) and the modern needs stemming from the organizational requirements (N-needs). By such a continuous emotional friction, each person is naturally more prone to confusion and stress. This present day cultural source of confusion unavoidably adds to the already much longer existing characteristic of the human species that we are by and large blind for our own behavioural organization. As explained in further detail [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|elsewhere on this Wiki]], Homo sapiens is, for good evolutionary reasons, saddled with an uncanny capacity to avoid understanding its own or other people's behaviour. These two sources of blindness and confusion, added together, opened the road for the meme-power-structures in charge to further increase the ignorance about the own behaviour by maximizing and adding up the confusion from the "jet lag" in our evolution to the already existing blindness and ignorance regarding ourselves. In this light it is also not surprising to find that under the power structures a whole range of mechanisms and techniques have developed that help to inflict and maintain a '''high level of neuroticism and fears''' in human beings. That again increases stress and lack of awareness and thus even better prevents humans to investigate their own behaviour intelligently. That way the power structures have two great advantages. One is that the chances are further reduced that human beings will intelligently investigate the power structure's influence on and their power over human behaviour. The other is that the utter internal confusion as to the own behaviour opens the road to a more precise and farther reaching instruction and programming of the human beings manning the power structures in question. In evolutionary terms: the above mentioned amplification of our specific human blindness, ignorance and confusion also opens the road for the evolution of more "pure intelligence", because the potential evolutionary instability of intelligence is better shielded off and compensated for that way. == Good and Evil, how great religions consolidate their power == {{level|1}} In the light of the above considerations it is therefore not surprising any more to find that the confusing notion of Good and Evil is utilized by any power structure to further confuse its carriers and enhance their utter malleability. This blinding tool makes use of the already for at least some quarter to half a million years inbred tendency to be blind for the own behavioural reflexes and provides an excellent opportunity to mix the power structure instructions and admonitions inextricably with the already incomprehensible mesh of personal motivational impulses, thus preventing detection of the lies and false promises that are unavoidable attributes of these instructions from the meme-power-structures. Because of the "jet-lag" in human evolution namely, the power structures cannot but cheat and lie about their effects on personal well being. What people really want deep inside is what successful power structures can never provide, because they made us move away from our original niche in the first place. The Good and Evil tool provides an effective method to help inflict feelings of guilt and failure in people. In complex societies people are trained to be aware that they are falling short of expectations and of the formal requirements. They are basically taught that they are "no good". In general, after socialization, the vast majority of people in any modern society has entered a state of average neuroticism and perpetual fear of failure. In this state of mind the idea of Good versus Evil plays a crucial role. One has been taught that one is full of evil, an evil that has to be combatted fervently from the inside. And the outside, of course, is prepared to help with that arduous task. By teaching that a whole range of primordial impulses and reflexes (P-feelings) are sinful, bad or even evil and that contrary to that a number of requirements from the power structure demands (N-needs) are "good", although deep inside they feel like "difficult" or "not fitting well", the confusion is complete, the fear of failure is further entrenched and malleability is further secured. Any successful power structure therefore strengthens its power and influence and its survival chances compared to competing power structures, if it manages to monopolize the notions of Good and Evil and to fill out the specifications of Good and Bad for its carriers, us human beings. For that reason we can conclude that it is quite understandable that in all major religious systems, that by sheer size and influence can be regarded as successful power systems, no matter what their pretended spiritual background may be / have been, the ideas of Good and Evil have been monopolized, while at the same time inflicting utter confusion and feelings of guilt and failure regarding the own behavioural impulses and feelings. Without such mechanisms of fraud, deceit, lies and psychological destruction, a large religious structure can never survive, without them it can never be an E.S.S. (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy). == The tale of Adam and Eve, the result of eating the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil == {{level|2}} In spite of needing to maximize confusion in their carriers about the carrier's own behaviour(al impulses), a number of great religions harbour the tale of Adam and Eve, who were thrown out of paradise after eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and bad. This tale is in fact a very adequate summary of what has been delineated in the pages above and what is the most basic condition of mankind. What the tale summarizes is what happened since the beginning of the agricultural revolution, some 10.000 years ago, when meme-level power structures took over the lead in human evolution and we humans had to get adapted to the basic requirements of such power structures, the "N-needs". From that point in time on, we humans started to suffer from the friction between our primordial P-feelings and the newly imposed N-needs (For more details about "P-feelings" and "N-demands" see [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22|here]]). The N-needs brought with them the illusory, but very strong notions about "good" and "evil", growing on the tree of the tale. What followed was ever more confusion and stress and a massive spreading of fear and neuroticism, gradually becoming the norm, rather than the exception. In short, humanity fell out of Eden, out of Paradise. The implication was not so much a falling away from intelligent thinking. The superior intelligence of Homo sapiens had already been blocked against tampering with the own behaviour for hundreds of thousands of years. Those specific awareness blocks already were in place in a relatively organic and harmonious way. No, when the agricultural revolution started it was rather a process of being drowned ever further into swamps of fear, intimidation and organized lies. Escaping from mass neuroticism became ever more difficult. Humanity fell out of Eden in a very real sense. In a very real sense life has become hell for us since that time. So, on the one hand these great religions refer to and harbour the feeling deep within that something has gone tremendously wrong and that there is potentially available a very different option in our human behavioural repertoire of possibilities, an option that we lost somewhere in our history. On the other hand the religions tell us that the loss of that much more pleasant option has been our own fault, is due to our own failure, thus imposing a very deep feeling of guilt into our hearts and minds. Understanding the above, it shall be clear that putting the blame on us humans is very far from the truth indeed. As we pointed out elsewhere on this Wiki, the emergence of the meme-level power structures taking over the evolutionary lead, was unavoidable, once the evolution of human intelligence had reached a certain level. It was unavoidable and a consequence, to happen sooner or later, of the very existence of an intelligence of that level. So, there never has been, nor could there exist, any responsibility on our side for any of this happening. So, putting this particular blame for being thrown out of Eden on our necks, is just one - but a very powerful one - example of how power structures keep us subdued in neurotic misery, how they keep us malleable and predictable carriers of the power structure's memes in question. This illustrates quite clearly how parts of the truth of our situation are absorbed in an intricate system of fairy tales and lies and are converted into a tool of confusion and enslavement rather than being used as tools for bringing truth and understanding as they all pretend to do. ==Summary: "amathology", the science of ignorance, as a crucial tool for our survival == {{level|1}} Taking all considerations from the previous pages together, we end up with the following grand picture of the present human condition. *Since at least a quarter to one million years in the species Homo a special faculty came into development, being a specific blindness for the own and each other's behaviour. That blindness prevented the intellectual faculties to find short cuts to satisfaction at the expense of procreational reflexes. It functions as a safeguard and a watertight partition between the proximate and the ultimate reasons for our behaviour, which was necessary to clear the road to a further evolution of higher intelligence. (see also [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]] on this Wiki)''' (**)''' *As carriers of the meme level power structures, human beings have to respond to the requirements of both worlds, the "gene"-world and the "meme"- world. We human beings have on the one hand been evolutionarily tailored to the requirements of our biological history and the "natural" niches coming with that. That accounts for how our feelings, emotions and reflexes are organized (P-feelings). That determines what feels good and what feels bad to us, deep inside. However, since some 5.000 to 10.000 years, we also have to respond to the requirements of the power structures we happen to live in. Those requirements (N-needs) are often difficult to match with our primordial feelings and reflexes. These requirements (N-needs) are of a much more recent history and hardly could have been translated yet in genetically established basic tendencies and reflexes. *The time lag between the gene level evolution and the meme level evolution and the partly incompatible demands from these two realms, inevitably cause perpetual frictions in the human motivational system between the P-feelings and the N-needs. This we can call a "jet-lag" effect in human evolution. *This "jet-lag" brings with it unavoidable frictions and tensions, causing more neurotic and fractured behaviour and therefore enhances the already for millions of years present and genetically fixed and determined specific blindness for the Self. The power structures in that way serve as amplifiers for the typically human blindness for Self. *The amplified blindness for Self opens the road to an even more enhanced evolution of human intelligence, without endangering procreational forces and the output of progeny. *Power structures that utilize the human blindness to the full and also exploit the stressing and neuroticizing effects of the evolutionary "jet-lag" in human development, will be more likely ESS' (Evolutionarily Stable Strategies). They can achieve that by enhancing confusion about the own behaviour and the best way to do that and to stabilize its effects, is to monopolize notions of Good and Bad, Good and Evil, etc. *Large organized religions are good (but not the only) examples of how such power structures operate and how they monopolize notions of Good and Evil, and how they boost and consolidate human confusion and ignorance. They inflict feelings of guilt and other root feelings that keep people bound in perpetual fears and neuroses. What adds to the confusing effects of great religions, is that they invariably have developed from movements aiming at liberating people from exactly those neurotic states of perpetual fear. In fact, they always claim to bring what in reality they make sure to block off. For evolutionary reasons, which reasons also rule the survival of meme power structures, once a spiritual movement has reached a certain size, it can only win the battle for survival with competing meme power structures, if it exploits the inborn human blindness for the Self and also exploits the conflicts and confusions stemming from the "jet-lag" effects between the P-feelings and the N-needs. Only that way a large religion can develop into a powerful meme structure and win from its meme level competitors. *The notion of Good versus Bad and Evil is a tricky area of cognition. It is a basic tool for veiling our own behaviour from sober and intelligent investigation. It is distorting effectively what we think to perceive about ourselves and about other people. It protects our primordial social reflexes and makes them operate unhampered by intellectual manipulation. *It can be shown that the Good-Bad dimension, although largely illusory, is such an important part of our cognitive system, that utilizing and maintaining its function takes a considerable part of our time and energy consumption in the brain. That underlines the utter evolutionary importance of this typical human blindness for the Self. Whereas this blindness at first sight may seem utterly disfunctional, the above considerations make clear why this faculty of selective ignorance does have an important evolutionary function and why evolutionary forces have caused us humans spend so much time and energy on staying stupid in these crucial areas of social and cognitive functioning. *Because of the globalization of risks and dangers threatening the human race, the classical mechanisms of warfare, starvation and genocide, helping the evolutionary processes to recuperate after prolonged periods of civilized and peaceful coexistence (postponements of evolution), are becoming too dangerous for the species as a whole, to be allowed to continue unchecked. These habits tend to become lethal for the species as a whole, not just for the groups of people who were to be eliminated by the blind evolutionary forces ruling our existence. In the situation we have arrived at as a species, we cannot but start to understand how all these mechanisms work and subsequently set out an intelligent path to survival. One thing shall be quite clear from these considerations: without a full and thorough understanding of these mechanisms and of their evolutionary origin, there can not be a final survival of humanity. We have to leave the road of ignorance and overcome our genetically and culturally ingrained tendencies to fool ourselves and each other. If we wish to survive, we do have to change direction. We do have to come to our senses and achieve a liberation of our intelligence, before it is too late. Ten to one that we will manage! We simply have no choice. 3kme6tcpd5dy1hv3k1p7cjjo0jmst3g 0 96 1104 1101 2008-10-10T21:47:03Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki For further reading about Hans van der Dennen's research on the origins of warfare etc. one may refer to his [http://rint.rechten.rug.nl/rth/dennen/dennen.htm website] and for other information about his person to: [http://www.rug.nl/rechten/informatievoor/medewerkers/persoon/def/dennenjmgvander the R.U.G.(University) website]. See also: http://www.antenna.nl/nvmp/200208.htm 5up6r3w5ox9zisg1s3kzjzdc42ijxpg 0 97 1157 1156 2008-10-21T04:29:23Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki This page is still under construction. For the time being you may refer to a summary of part of this information at [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|"Impersonal power structures ruling our world"]]. 5du5ibl6hg6w5rh0zbcd3c0kwp48n56 6 99 1181 2008-11-13T21:38:09Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2008-11-13T21:38:09Z BigSmoke 1 Two_dimensions_of_social-role_behaviour.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Two_dimensions_of_social-role_behaviour.png 18995 dle36qkhji5q09f6fyo02yuyro7uhyn Two_dimensions_of_social-role_behaviour.png 6 100 1187 1186 2008-11-13T22:14:49Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[Image:Extraversion and sensation seeking dimensions.png]]": corrected a little accident wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2008-11-13T22:01:33Z BigSmoke 1 Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 20081113221257!Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20081113221257%21Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 35590 p6678jrw363hz9bozxtmmwqimgn1nvb archive/20081113221257!Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 2008-11-13T22:12:57Z BigSmoke 1 Replaced Feji with Feij Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 20081113221449!Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20081113221449%21Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 4216 olaxc1s31drjaab6q7b8514wfsc0mrn archive/20081113221449!Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 2008-11-13T22:14:49Z BigSmoke 1 corrected a little accident Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 35622 qi7zqq9r33xerrkcj4bqawwjzrgga6u Extraversion_and_sensation_seeking_dimensions.png 6 101 1188 2008-11-13T22:46:55Z BigSmoke 1 Changes in time of the avarage characteristics of the prevalent social group structures and their incrowd members. wikitext text/x-wiki Changes in time of the avarage characteristics of the prevalent social group structures and their incrowd members. 1m5pn78rnbyskwflad6bvqa3ludzn4t 2008-11-13T22:46:55Z BigSmoke 1 Changes in time of the avarage characteristics of the prevalent social group structures and their incrowd members. Changes_in_time_of_social_group_structures.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Changes_in_time_of_social_group_structures.png 25423 7vk6myhvfg4hkpezxv3a7yjlkg4ykbc Changes_in_time_of_social_group_structures.png 6 102 1193 1192 2008-11-14T00:48:16Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[Image:Social turn-over cycles.png]]": Improved version wikitext text/x-wiki Turn-over cycles in terms of personality characteristics and institutional functioning. hz0uwdbhmki7pajj14amwn3dz16c76y 2008-11-14T00:36:30Z BigSmoke 1 Turn-over cycles in terms of personality characteristics and institutional functioning. Social_turn-over_cycles.png 20081114004816!Social_turn-over_cycles.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20081114004816%21Social_turn-over_cycles.png 72692 d8e69k78xd98imtg1jy6kt2k521wunw archive/20081114004816!Social_turn-over_cycles.png 2008-11-14T00:48:16Z BigSmoke 1 Improved version Social_turn-over_cycles.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Social_turn-over_cycles.png 72804 9x5wpklp7gpu420kqlnckrrrs2iwxdu Social_turn-over_cycles.png 1 103 1202 2008-11-23T19:22:33Z BigSmoke 1 New page: What do you think? Please let us know. wikitext text/x-wiki What do you think? Please let us know. req97ldjbzbocay6xzy9v1gkgl7qtt3 0 104 6515 6514 2016-11-20T11:33:19Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki * [http://www.atheisme.startpagina.nl atheisme.startpagina.nl] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO_VRr033Y4&feature=related# World Megatrends, by Adjiedj Bakas] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmwVYPMj_vo# The Future of Faith, by Adjiedj Bakas and Minne Buwalda] * [http://www.bakas.nl# Website of trendwatcher Adjiedj Bakas] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj7kTWnSpCY# "Beyond the Crisis" by Adjiedj Bakas] * [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Abolition_of_Work# Bob Black: "The Abolition of Work" (a 1982 essay on the attitude towards work before and after Point Omega i.e. from a Telic dominant perspective towards a Paratelic dominant perspective; technical terms added)] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgqjLMESS78&NR=1&feature=fvwp# The Truth About British DNA Ancestry] (About the large part of Basque-like DNA in Britain today and the relatively modest contributions from Celtic, Latin and Germanic sources.) * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPOfurmrjxo Carlin: george-carlin-about-religion] (Religion is Bullshit) * [http://www.richarddawkinsfoundation.org Dawkins: Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science] * [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBDE756EACB7FA9D5# Education Animation (RSA Animates)] * [http://www.survivalinternational.org/films/there-you-go# Enforcing development on tribal people; a satirical animation] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A&feature=share# Enslavement, About the history of ...] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Avd1EgAHnD8 Eisenstein, Charles: De-Schooling Ourselves] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-QA2rkpBSY# Exponential growth, Understanding of ..] (About the problems we have with understanding limits to growth) * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBENjCPS8LI&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL# Brandon Flowers: Only the Young] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=TQmz6Rbpnu0&NR=1# The girl who silenced the world for 5 minutes] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDHJ4ztnldQ&feature=email God:] (10 Questions about God) * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7D-4ZoF8oE# The late Robert Graham's Genius Sperm Bank for humans; BBC documentary] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITTxTCz4Ums Harris, Sam on death, meditation, mindfulness and religion] (Death and the Present Moment) * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj9oB4zpHww Harris, Sam on "Science can answer Moral Questions"] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpXURisuli4 Harris, Sam: Fearless among Peers] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6hffN0LFbs# Chris Hedges:" Days of Destruction Days of Revolt" June 29th 2012 Seattle] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3cGNG26wbY# Chris Hedges vs Sam Harris: Debate on Religion] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hH6UynI5m7Y# Chris Hedges on obedience and rebellion against the powers in charge: 'Obey': Film Based on Chris Hedges' book 'Death of the Liberal Class' ] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gW-0by_hZYI&feature=related# Human Ancestry - Made Easy] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsMvo0UTgMQ Human fate, the] (Movie picture on how mother nature strikes back at regular times) * [http://viooz.co/movies/2425-idiocracy-2006.html# Idiocracy; an artist's movie impression of the future deterioration of human intelligence] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBJDGzzrMyQ Journey of Man: a genetic Odyssey] (A Genetic Analysis of the Descent of Man) * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK8z0qDtE2g&feature=share# John D. Liu: Encouraging case of Chinese ecological repair project] * [[Help to Escape from Religion|Religion: Help to Escape from Religion]] * [http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html# Ken Robinson: Why schools kill creativity] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U# Ken Robinson: RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms] * [http://www.ted.com/talks/sir_ken_robinson_bring_on_the_revolution.html# Ken Robinson on the revolution in education the world badly needs] * [http://www.ted.com/talks/hans_rosling_shows_the_best_stats_you_ve_ever_seen# Rosling, Hans shows stats about where we are in the world and where we go] * [http://www.ted.com/talks/hans_rosling_religions_and_babies# Rosling, Hans on the demographic transition worldwide, religion or not] * [http://www.ted.com/talks/hans_rosling_reveals_new_insights_on_poverty# Rosling, Hans: New insights on poverty (TED Talk)] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bqMY82xzWo&list=PLBDE756EACB7FA9D5&index=2# Renata Salecl: RSA Animate - The Paradox of Choice; on the psychological structure of nowadays slavery] * [http://dotsub.com/view/26520150-1acc-4fd0-9acd-169d95c9abe1# Enno Schmidt & Daniel Häni: 1.5 hour video on the idea of a basic income; in German with English reading] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AC7ANGMy0yo&list=PLBDE756EACB7FA9D5&index=5# Taylor, Matthew: RSA Animate - 21st Century Enlightenment; on the importance of collective awareness of who we are and where we stand] * [https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=535463889920570&id=100004273053106# Thrive Movement 2-hours video] * [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRcARFxZweU# Conversations of Oprah Winfrey with Eckhart Tolle, also about his book "A New Earth"] * [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7065205277695921912# Zeitgeist addendum; on power structures ruling our world] * [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7065205277695921912#docid=3932487043163636261 The Zeitgeist Movement (presentation)] * [http://www.thezeitgeistmovement.com The Zeitgeist Movement website] 74m9fspl5oq9mifpp29plbh7uh6irlm 0 105 6487 6486 2016-11-15T17:59:16Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki Under construction '''Chapters to be added:''' Bij schrijven van deze pagina's eerst doorlezen: The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history * Civilization as a conspiracy against evolution. * To finally put an end to war, destruction and wholesale rape. * Corruption as the default social structure. ** Democracy as a (rare) binding formula for complex structures of cooperation. ** Normalcy of slavery and suppression. * Genetic pollution and corruption as one of its automatic effects. * Advantages and disadvantages of corruption. ** tribal level / family level. ** less efficient in case of large scale. * Two reasons for the need of continuous selection pressure and the impossibility of lasting stability. ** Countering the usual genetic deterioration. ** Proceeding evolution and concomitant changes. *** Memes versus Genes: a novel population genetic situation in human beings, rendering extra selection pressure in novel directions. 2f6tojxo0vxt55u9820wh58h53r0vdc 0 106 6070 5494 2016-03-24T19:16:42Z Baby Boy 2 /* Discussion */ wikitext text/x-wiki Heymans Bulletin HB-81-532-EX, State University of Groningen (RUG), 1981. by Popko P. van der Molen and Agnes A. de Graaf. '''PERSONALITY OF MICE AND MEN''' '''(Re-arranging Personality Dimensions in a Six-dimensional Adjective Space)''' ''* The preparation of this paper has been made possible by the kind and patient support of the department of Personality Psychology of the Rijks Universiteit Groningen. For computational assistance the writers are indebted to Frank Brokken, Haring Land, Jos ten Berge and Hans Hommes.'' ''Suggestions for improving a first and second draft were given by Jos ten Berge, Haring Land, Annemarie van der Molen, Hans van de Velde and especially by Boele de Raad. Margi Rothengatter corrected the worst mistakes in our use of the English language.'' == Abstract == {{level|2}} As Brokken (1980), following Goldberg's (1977) approach, has shown, the greater part of the correlations between personality descriptive adjectives, as used in daily language, may be represented by means of a six-dimensional vector space. In this study the suggestions of Guilford & Hoepfner (1969), Cattell & Sullivan (1962) and Gorsuch (1974) amongst others, have been followed, namely that if generally agreed upon external criteria are available, a criterium rotation may render factors ( -and labels- ) to span the resulting 6-dimensional personality-adjective space in a way more convenient for experimentation and manipulation than a simple (- rotated or unrotated -) principal component solution could possibly be. Criteria from model of personality trait dimensions and social-role dimensions and their interrelations, as derived from experimental research on animal behaviour, are used in this study to replace 6 orthogonal factors of personality descriptive adjectives by some 9 dimensions, each of which represents either a temperament trait, a social-role dimension, or some sort of skill. The resulting dimensions are correlated in many instances and can easily be fitted in a systematic theory of personality dynamics. It is argued that this finding supports the hypothesis that the major part of the most conspicuous personality dimensions in men is due to the mere fact that humans are socially living mammals. Finally, some implications are briefly discussed which follow from applying this dynamic model of personality dimensions to human behaviour. == Introduction == {{level|3}} This paper deals with dimensions of interindividual differences in personality or 'traits'. In traditional personality psychological research it has long been prevailent strategy to obtain basic data from individual subject scorings on tests or other variables that are a priori considered relevant for measuring 'traits'. Such a strategy is therefore ultimately bases on 'a priori's' concerning the relevance of certain sets of tests. As a consequence classical personality-psychological research has been strongly criticized, especially concerning these 'a priori's' (e.g. Mischel, 1976; Hogan e.a., 1977). In recent years, some psychologists have tried to avoid the shaky ground of these 'a priori's' by using ''exhaustive'' lists of personality-descriptive adjectives and ratings of individuals on these adjectives as basic material (Brokken, 1978; Hofstee, 1977; Goldberg, 1978). The factors resulting from factor analysis on such data can directly be interpreted by their strongest loading adjectives. In fact, such dimensions are vectors in a personality-descriptive adjective-space. ''(Somewhat similar approaches have been applied before. Cattell's 16PF (personality factors) were ultimately based on reduction of an exhaustive set of trait names too (Allport and Odbert, 1936; Cattell e.a., 1970; Buss & Poley, 1976, pp. 71-77). In the present study it is prefered to deal directly with a primary, exhaustive and unreduced adjective space, rather than with a third- or fourth- degree derivate of it, especially since computational facilities for handling such enormous sets of data have recently become available.)'' Having decided that a particular n-dimensional euclidian space is a proper representation of the considered set of data, another problem arises. The problem of determining which position of personality factors is most convenient. Guilford & Hoepfner (1969) remark: ''"It should be agreed that the aim of those who apply factor analysis for the purpose of discovering scientific constructs in psychology should be to achieve psychological significant factors, which can be replicated, which fit into systematic psychological theory, and which can be investigated meaningfully by other methods. Only in this way can there be general unambiguous communicability that science requires."'' When dealing with a general and rather exhaustive trait space, generally agreed upon external criteria to determine where to put our labels of reference are mostly not available. Therefore internal criteria are used such as. e.g., varimax rotation of principal components. But, as Guilford (1975) states: ''"It is probably commonly known that the most disturbing deficiency of factor analysis is its indeterminancy - the lack of any completely dependable criterion as to where to place the reference axes. And when mathematical specifications for simple structure are written in the form of analytical rotation models (e.g., varimax or promax), the model may not fit psychological reality."'' Were generally agreed upon external criteria available, a criterium rotation might render factors ( -and labels- ) to span the resulting n-dimensional personality space in a way, more convenient for experimentation and manipulation (Guildford & Hoepfner, 1969; Elshout e.a., 1975). (''For a clear demonstration of these principles on relatively simple data, i.e. measures of books or coffee cups, refer to Overall (1964), Cattell and Dickman (1962) and Cattell and Sullivan (1962).)'' However, when we reach for such external criteria, some difficulties arise. Personality dimensions refer to differences in personality. Differences in personality stem from a variety of variance-sources (Cattell, 1950; Hettema, 1967; Smid, 1975). To begin with, differences in personality refer to differences in judgment by other people. Important sources of variance can furthermore be found in the domain of innate properties, the domain of environmental influences on development, the domain of social roles, etc. and at the same time all these sources of personality-variance may be expected to interact with her. If a personal model is to be of maximum use from an experimental and pragmatic viewpoint, it would be most convenient if it contained orthogonal factors ( -and labels to describe them- ) each of which relates exclusively to just one of these sources of personality. However, this is impossible for the following reasons. Suppose for instance that certain innate properties account for an important part of personality-variance (e.g., genetical factors influencing physical strength). Then almost by definition these genetic factors for strength will also influence: a) the probability that an individual adopts certain social roles; b) the probability of profiting by learning from or suffering irrepairably from environmental influences; c) the probability of evoking certain judgments from other people; d) etc. When a strong individual has to compete for a dominant position with weak individuals, the chances of success are unequal. The acquired dominant position will determine in its turn part of the individual's behaviour. In the same way, strong individuals will be better able to learn from harsh environmental influences and avoid the suffering of irrepairable damage, thus increasing their chances of becoming more skillful. This in turn determines part of the individual's behaviour. In this way correlations between genetical factors and other types of personality-sources will prevail and the same probably is true mutatis mutandis for other combinations of personality sources. This implies that it will be impossible to find pure genetical personality factors, pure developmental personality factors, pure social role factors, etc., that vary independently from one another. In other words, having found an n-dimensional trait-space that describes the correlations between personality descriptive adjectives, and having found an efficient description of the n-dimensional space by an orthogonal simple structure treatment of its principal components, we can almost be certain that each of these resulting orthogonal factors contains elements of many classes of personality-sources, therewith rendering the model sub-optimal from an experimental and manipulative point of view. Perhaps a more attractive approach is one in which external rotation criteria are obtained from experimental data (Armstrong, 1967; Gorsuch, 1974; Guilford & Hoepfner, 1969). If such criteria are available, orthogonal factors from a simple structure procedure may be replaced by (correlated) canonical factors each of which relates to some major (set of) personality sources and which can be experimentally manipulated and verified. In this paper we will summarily present a model of personality dimensions and personality dynamics, as may be derived from animal and human behavioural studies ('Model of the dynamics of personality dimensions in mice and other socially living mammals'). External criteria, as derived from that model, are used to replace 6 (orthogonal) principal dimensions of the dutch personality descriptive adjective space, as explored and described by Brokken (1978), by correlated dimensions. It will be argued that the resulting dimensions fit more satisfactorily into the above mentioned systematic theory of personality differences and can therefore more readily be employed in meaningful experimentation and manipulation. == Dutch Personality Descriptive Adjectives == {{level|3}} Brokken (1978) developed and investigated an exhaustive list of (1204) dutch personality descriptive adjectives. Ratings on these adjectives were obtained from 200 self and 200 partner raters each of whom used the complete list of 1204 adjectives to rate him/her self or a partner. The ratings on these adjectives were factor analysed and varimax-rotated for self- and for partner-raters separately. Subsequently the two sets of factors were subjected to a two- sided orthogonal Procrustes rotation. After this procedure Brokken found a one-to-one correspondence between six pairs of self- and partner-factors with Phi('''φ''')-coefficients of about .80 or higher. Cattell's (1952) scree test for determining the number of factors to be maintained also suggested six dimensions to be a useful number. These six dimensions were interpreted as is shown in table 1. Brokken (1978, pp. 51-52) comments on the position of his factors: "''It should be noted that the labels for the factors are only very general ones, capturing the tendency of meaning of each factor at most. Frequently, rather unexpected adjectives appear which suggests that other, aesthetically more appealing positions of the factors may be found. In the present study, in which the prediction of variables is a central issue, aesthetically appealing positions of the factors are relatively unimportant because such positions do not increase the predictability of other variables by the factors. Furthermore, as three of the five Norman factors are presented in the factors in their current position while another factor (Conscientiousness) is represented by the factors Dominance and Orderliness, it was decided to postpone new rotations to future research."'' ''(The Norman factors Brokken refers to in this quotation are 'Surgency (or Extraversion)', 'Agreeableness', 'Conscientiousness (or Dependability)', 'Emotional Stability' and 'Culture'. With these five dimensions of trait ratings Norman (1963) summarized the structure he found in the use of traits for describing oneself and others.)'' table 1: '''Some high and low loading adjectives on Brokken's six orthogonal dimensions''' <div style="display: inline-block;"> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Factor one: '''''Agreeableness or Social Desirability''''' |- | vriendelijk | friendly |- | gastvrij | hospitable |- | eerlijk | honest |- | trouw | faithful |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|''versus'' |- | kwaaddenkend | suspicious |- | onvriendelijk | unfriendly |- | klagerig | complaining |- | stiekum | underhand |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Factor two:<br /> '''''Sprightliness''''' |- | zonnig | sunny |- | aktief | active |- | levenslustig | sprightly |- | monter | brisk |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|''versus'' |-| | teruggetrokken | withdrawn |- | lusteloos | listless |- | passief | passive |- | stil | quiet |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Factor three:<br /> '''''Dominance''''' |- | dominant | dominant |- | hard | hard |- | zelfverzekerd | self-assured |- | onvermurwbaar | unrelenting |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|''versus'' |-| | volgzaam | docile |- | bedeesd | bashful |- | voorzichtig | careful |- | timide | timid |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Factor four:<br /> '''''Orderliness or Preciseness''''' |- | secuur | accurate |- | nauwkeurig | accurate |- | precies | precise |- | degelijk | sound |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|''versus'' |-| | onnauwkeurig | inaccurate |- | slordig | slovenly |- | ordeloos | disorderly |- | slonzig | sluttish |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Factor five:<br /> '''''Conformity and Stability''''' |- | alledaags | plain |- | bezadigd | staid |- | oerdegelijk | ultra-steady |- | emotieloos | unemotional |- | doodkalm | cool |- | kritiekloos | uncritical |- | gehoorzaam | obedient |- | slaafs | slavish |- | conventioneel | conventional |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|''versus'' |-| | opstandig | rebelliuous |- | depressief | depressive |- | prikkelbaar | irritable |- | emotioneel | emotional |- | kritisch | critical |- | creatief | creative |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Factor six:<br /> '''''Introversion - Extraversion''''' |- | gesloten | incommunicative |- | rustig | quiet |- | introvert | introverted |- | bedaard | calm |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|''versus'' |-| | kletserig | chatty |- | praatgraag | talkative |- | opvliegend | short-tempered |- | spontaan | spontaneous |- |} </div> . == Model of the Dynamics of Personality in Mice and other Socially Living Mammals == '''Mouse behaviour.''' {{level|3}} Van der Molen (1972, 1981a) collected ethological data on the social behaviour of male house mice, which were living group-wise together for some months in large (150 x 75 cm) observation cages, supplied with food and water ad libitum. The data were analysed by means of an R-type factor analysis in order to be reduced to a limited set of behavioural trait dimensions. In order to rotate the resulting principal components in a useful and meaningful way, rotation criteria were obtained from additional experiments with social roles. These experiments indicated the importance of: - Three basic types of social roles: '''α''' (dominant), '''β'''(compliant subordinate) and '''ω''' (outcast), i.e. at least two orthogonal dimensions, and - Interindividual differences in: 'Level of relevant social '''skills''''. Rotation of the principal components was subsequently performed in such a way that the factors were either interpreted as social- role factors or as within-role variation between individuals. The analysis resulted in two social role factors and two factors of within-role differences between individuals. The two social role factors accounted for the differences between '''α''', '''β''' and '''ω''' -males and were labeled as ''''Dominant versus subordinate'''' and ''''Socially accepted versus outcast''''. The two personality factors of within-role variance were labeled as ''''Active versus inactive'''' and ''''Explorative and Self-willed versus Social and Compliant''''. Although a good distinction was thus obtained between role-differences and other individual differences, orthogonality of factors had to be abandoned in favour of operational and functional clarity. No R-type factor was extracted that could account for the differences in social skill, a dimension which was experimentally shown to be of some importance. Not finding this factor was probably due to the fact that the experimental design in question was poorly suited for measuring differences in skills in so far as they are related to social roles. In mice, such differences in skill are expressed through differential probabilities of obtaining the most desired social roles, whereas our ethological raw data were obtained within one social role for each individual. A dynamic model of personality structures was designed to account for the derived behavioural trait dimensions and their intercorrelations, for differences in skill, and for the experimental results of manipulation of social roles (fig. 1). Explaining in detail how this dynamic model was arrived at, is beyond the scope of this paper. A full account of its construction is given elsewhere (Van der Molen, 1981a, ch. VI). Here we shall just indicate the model's most elementary features. The model allowed for dependency (obliqueness) between dimensions of social behaviour and traits of temperament, thus allowing for functional (cor)relations between these two categories of personality dimensions. In addition, the axis' of reference in the domain of temperament traits were chosen in such a way, that their significance for the distribution of social roles was clear a-priori. The model was in accord with the assumption that the inter-individual variance in '''three''' independent and genetically determined qualities is of particular importance for the development of the observed behavioural differences between individuals. These congenital quality-dimensions were called ''''Basic energy level'''' (1), ''''Basic need for social contact and interaction'''' (2) and ''''Basic need for having one's way'''' (3). These three dimensions of basic qualities were suggested to represent together the same three-dimensional trait space as the set of three basic qualities called ''''Basic activity level'''' (8), ''''Stability'''' (7) and ''''Self-will versus compliance'''' (6) (figs. 1 & 2). This latter trait dimension was of particular importance for understanding the relations between social-role dimensions and dimensions of temperament. The 'balance between self-willed and compliant tendencies' (6) was defined as the predisposition to assume an outcast '''ω''' -role, rather than a subordinate '''β''' -role. This basic trait was considered to be expressed in overt behaviour as the personality dimension 'Explorative versus social' (6). According to our model the basic trait 'Basic activity level' (8) is expressed in overt behaviour as the trait dimension ''''Active versus inactive''''(8). The basic congenital trait 'Stability'(7) is expressed at the level of overt behaviour as the likelihood of acquiring 'Useful skills'(11) given certain circumstances. But it was also indicated that accidental circumstances (12) do play a crucial role in the acquirement of 'Relevant skills'. This model also stresses that the trait dimensions at the level of overt social role behaviour, viz. 'Dominance' (9) and 'Being socially accepted versus outcast' (10), mainly depend on '''accidental social circumstances''' (12) and that the congenital basic traits determine only to a limited extent an individuals chances of adopting one role or another. Many dynamic interactions between the trait dimensions are operating by way of the individual level of 'Relevant skills' (11). Therefore this 'Relevant skills' dimension is considered to play a central and crucial role in the dynamics of mouse personality . A further characteristic of the model is its functional description of the interdependence between the various trait dimensions. These interdependencies predict i.a. correlations between the various trait dimensions (table 2). {|class="mice-and-men table2" |+Table 2. Correlations between the behavioural trait dimensions as derived from the theoretical model |- ! scope="col" | ! scope="col" width="50px" | ! scope="col" width="50px" |(9) ! scope="col" width="50px" |(10) ! scope="col" width="50px" |(8) ! scope="col" width="50px" |(6) |- ! scope="row"| dominant/subordinate ! scope="row"| (9) | | | | |- ! scope="row"| accepted/outcast ! scope="row"| (10) | 0 | | | |- ! scope="row"| active/inactive ! scope="row"| (8) | + | 0 | | |- ! scope="row"| explorative/social ! scope="row"| (6) | + | - | 0 | |- ! scope="row"| skill ! scope="row"| (11) | + | + | + | 0 |- |} == Application of the model of personality dynamics to other species == Van der Molen (1981a) compared the above described set of behavioural trait dimensions with data from behavioural research on a score of other species. He concludes that these behavioural trait dimensions are also well suited to describe behavioural differences between individuals of other social mammal species. Also in the case of Man, many well established personality-psychological trait dimensions (as found by e.g., Cattell, 1946, 1950; Eysenck, 1953, 1967; Strelau, 1974; Buss e.a., 1973; Buss & Plomin, 1975) and social-psychological trait dimensions (as found by e.g., Leary, 1957; Foa, 1961; Schaefer, 1971; Benjamin, 1974) appear to fit the above described model. However, some of the trait dimensions which regularly emerge in psychological literature are not represented by that model of mouse behaviour. One of these dimensions is generally labeled as 'Positive versus Negative', 'Appreciation', 'Social Desirability' or 'Evaluation'. It is often the most conspicuous dimension in trait ratings of social interactive behaviour. In ethologically based research on human behaviour such an evaluation dimension is however not found. Therefore this dimension is only considered to be relevant for research on human behaviour provided it is based on trait ratings and questionnaires.(In the following this dimension shall be indicated as 'Appreciatedness'. It is meant to express the degree of being appreciated by the rater(s) in question.) Other dimensions which were not represented in Van der Molen's (1981 ) model of mouse behaviour are the interpersonal variation in 'sensitivity' and '''various dimensions of acquired 'Skills'''', some of which may be indicated as 'Stability' in one or another (set of) situation(s). In order to apply the dynamic model of mouse personality to other socially living mammals (including man), these dimensions were added following investigation of their relation with the dimensions already included in the model. This resulted in a hypothetical general model of temperaments and social behaviour and their dynamic interactions. It is beyond the scope of the present paper to review this model in detail, but fig.1 may provide an impression of the dimensions (boxes) and their interrelations (arrows). Fig.2 and fig.3 summarize the causal relationships between traits of temperament and the probability of assuming the various social-role types (the cosines between vectors being proportional to their intercorrelations). [[File:Dynamics of temperaments and social behaviour.png|framed|none|'''Figure 1.''' Model of the dynamics of temperaments and social behaviour.]] [[File:Social-role types and skills.png|framed|none|'''Figure 2.''' Probabilities of phenotypic social-role types and skills relative to temperament traits]] [[File:Social-role types and skills (simple).png|framed|none|'''Figure 3.''' Probabilities of phenotypic social-role types and skills relative to traits of temperament (cosines between vectors being proportional to their intercorrelations).]] == Method and Results == '''Comparing the dynamic personality model with the correlation structure in the set of 1204 personality descriptive adjectives''' {{level|3}} Five (out of more than seven) '''dimensions from Van der Molen's model of personality dynamics''' are labeled with 20 items each from '''Brokken's set of 1204 dutch personality descriptive adjectives'''. No more than five dimensions from the model of personality dynamics were used, in order to be able to check whether substraction of the influence of these five dimensions from Brokken's factors would render a residue containing the remaining dimensions from the model of personality dynamics. The correlations between the thus constructed five scales are subsequently computed from Brokken's raw material, viz. 400 x 1204 (self and partner) rating. These correlations appear to be congruent with the predictions from the experimental model of personality dynamics. Brokken (1978) factoranalysed the correlations between his 1204 items and obtained six orthogonal factors of personality adjectives. The i'''nfluence of the''' above mentioned '''five scales is substracted from''' the scores of Ss. on '''Brokken's six orthogonal dimensions''', and it is shown that the '''residual''' scores on Brokken's six dimensions can also be represented by such '''factors as are predicted by the model of personality dynamics.''' '''Constructing adjective scales for 5 dimensions from Van der Molen's model''' {{level|3}} In order to check similarity between the dimensions of the dynamic model of personality as presented in paragraph 3 and Brokken's six dimensions of dutch personality descriptive adjectives as described in the last paragraph, five trait dimensions from Van der Molen's model of personality dimensions (fig. 1) were each labeled with 20 adjectives from Brokken's (1978) list (table 4) considered representative of the trait in question. This resulted in five scales of 20 adjectives each. (For a justification of this number of 20, see the additional remarks in the note on page 20 ). No more than five (out of more than seven) personality dimensions from the model of personality dynamics were used - as explained in paragraph 2 - in order to subtract the 'influence' of these five scales from Brokken's six dimensions and subsequently to check whether the residue of his data did indeed contain the remaining dimensions from the dynamic model. ''(That the most conspicuous dimensions of personality ratings in the domain of Dutch personality descriptive adjectives are comparable to those in the American language may be gathered also from Hofstee's comparison of Brokken's and Norman's data. Hofstee (1977) reduced the number of adjectives (1204) to some 400 and combined them into small clusters (scales) of about three adjectives. The scores of the subjects on these clusters were calculated from Brokken's materials and subsequently used as basic data for a factoranalytic procedure. Thus he was able to produce in the ratings which were used in Brokken's study, a remarkable replication of the five Norman factors.)'' table 4: '''Adjective labels for five dimensisons of Van der Molen's model of personality dynamics''' (of each scale of 20 Dutch adjectives, 10 representative items have been translated) <div style="display: inline-block;"> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Dimension (9): '''''Dominant versus Subordinate or Ascendancy''''' |- | + dominant | |- | + zelfverzekerd | (self confident) |- | + autoritair | (autoritarian) |- | + resoluut | (resolute) |- | + zelfbewust | (self assured) |- | + vastbesloten | |- | + zeker | |- | + heerszuchtig | |- | + ondernemend | (enterprising) |- | + onbedeesd | |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - schuchter | (shy) |- | - timide | (timid) |- | - verlegen | (bashful) |- | - beschroomd | |- | - bleu | |- | - bedeesd | |- | - onzeker | |- | - terughoudend | |- | - schroomvallig | (diffident) |- | - teruggetrokken | (retiring) |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Dimension (10):<br /><br />'''''Accepted versus Outcast''''' |- | + makkelijk | (easy going) |- | + gezagsgetrouw | |- | + toegeeflijk | (lenient) |- | + schappelijk | |- | + duldzaam | (tolerant) |- | + overbeleefd | (too polite) |- | + minzaam | |- | + halfzacht | |- | + braaf | (virtuous) |- | + poeslief | |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - moeilijk | (difficult) |- | - onhandelbaar | (unmanageable) |- | - onaangepast | |- | - apart | |- | - opstandig | (rebellious) |- | - tegendraads | (contrary-minded) |- | - vrijgevochten | (undisciplined) |- | - zonderling | |- | - abnormaal | |- | - sarcastisch | |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Dimension (11):<br /><br />'''''Skilled''''' |- | + handig | |- | + efficient | (efficient) |- | + geslepen | (sly) |- | + bekwaam | (competent) |- | + accuraat | |- | + creatief | (creative) |- | + geniaal | |- | + gehaaid | |- | + strijdvaardig | |- | + praktisch | (practical) |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - onhandig | (clumsy) |- | - onnozel | (soft-headed) |- | - inaccuraat | |- | - chaotisch | |- | - sullig | |- | - paniekerig | |- | - oppervlakkig | |- | - bekrompen | (narrow-minded) |- | - onbeholpen | (awkward) |- | - onverstandig | (unwise) |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Dimension (1,8):<br /> '''''Energetic versus Inactive''''' |- | + energiek | (energetic) |- | + actief | (active) |- | + levenskrachtig | (vigorous) |- | + vitaal | |- | + bedrijvig | |- | + levendig | (lively) |- | + vief | (dapper) |- | + kwiek | (spry) |- | + levenslustig | |- | + monter | |- | + dynamisch | |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - futloos | (spiritless) |- | - lusteloos | (listless) |- | - inactief | (inactive) |- | - duf | |- | - traag | |- | - langzaam | |- | - passief | (passive) |- | - tam | |- | - rustig | |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Dimension (6):<br /> '''''Explorative and Self-willed versus Social and Compliant''''' |- | + eigengereid | |- | + eigenwillig | (self-willed) |- | + eigenzinnig | (headstrong) |- | + creatief | (creative) |- | + superindividueel | |- | + nonconformistisch | (nonconforming) |- | + inventief | (inventive) |- | + gereserveerd | |- | + onverstoorbaar | |- | + progressief | (progressive) |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - volgzaam | (docile) |- | - gewillig | |- | - kritiekloos | |- | - alledaags | |- | - conventioneel | (conventional) |- | - sociaal | (social) |- | - babbelziek | |- | - praatziek | |- | - extrovert | (extroverted) |- | - gezellig | |- |} </div> The scores of Brokken's 400 subjects on the thus constructed five scales and the correlation between the scales were calculated from his raw data. These correlations were compared with the predictions from the dynamic model (see table 1). As table 3 shows, the correlations between the adjective scales were reasonably well in accordance with the predictions from the dynamic model of personality traits. This indicates that the process of labeling the dimensions of our dynamic personality model with dutch personality descriptive adjectives did not seriously violate the correlation-structure between these adjectives as established in the dutch language. {| class="mice-and-men table3" |+ Table 3. Correlations between adjective scales as compared with the predictions '''(0, --, +)''' from the theoretical model |- ! scope="col" colspan="2" class="corner" | Adjective Scales ! scope="col" width="50px"| (9) ! scope="col" width="50px"|(10) ! scope="col" width="50px"|(1,8) ! scope="col" width="50px"|(6) |- ! scope="row"| Dominant versus Subordinate ! scope="row"| '''(9)''' | | | | |- ! scope="row"| Accepted versus Outcast ! scope="row"| (10) | width="50px"| '''(0)''' -0.19 | | | |- ! scope="row"| Activity, Energy ! scope="row"| (1,8) | '''(+)''' +0.60 | '''(0)''' +0.10 | | |- ! scope="row"| Explorative and Self-willed versus Social and Compliant ! scope="row"| (6) | '''(+)''' +0.22 | '''(--)''' -0.53 | '''(0)''' +0.12 | |- ! scope="row"| Relevant Skills ! scope="row"| (11) | '''(+)''' +0.46 | '''(+)''' +0.05 | '''(+)''' +0.62 | width="50px"| '''(0)''' +0.35 |- |} ''(One of the most conspicuous differences between the predictions in fig. 2. and the calculated correlations between the adjective-scales is the correlation between 'Dominance' (9) and 'Explorative versus Social' (6), which appeared to be somewhat low (''' ̂ϱ'''((9),(6)) = + 0.22). This is probably due to the fact that in mice the exploration- and patrolling-activity is a typical '''α'''-job, rendering a high species-specific correlation between those two traits.'' ''This might not however be the case in man. Besides, the adjective labels for the scale 'Explorative and Self-willed versus Social and Compliant' (6) are aimed especially at that basic trait ( = predilections on the level of temperaments), thus reducing correlations, if any, between this trait-scale and actually assumed social roles.'' ''The lower than expected correlation between 'Skills'(11) and 'Acceptedness1(10) is due to the specific aspects of skills chosen here. Other skill dimensions (see table 7) appear to be correlated more strongly with 'Acceptedness'(10).)'' A multiple regression analysis was carried out between each of Brokken's six adjective-factors and the above mentioned scales, viz. : — 'Activity, Energy', — 'Explorative, (Thing-oriented,) self-willed versus Social, Compliant', — 'Relevant skills (in general)', — 'Dominant versus Subordinate', and — 'Accepted versus Outcast'; (see table 8). The five scales of 20 adjectives each, appeared to account for 44% (= mean squared multiple correlation or (non-symmetric) index of redundancy; Steward & Love, 1968) of the variance of the scores on Brokken's six dimensions. == Investigation of the residual scores on Brokken's 6 dimensions == {{level|3}} In order to investigate the part of the score variance on Brokken's six factors which had not been accounted for by these five scales, the 'influence' of the five scales on Brokken's six dimensions was partialed out and the resulting residual scores on these six dimensions of Brokken were factoranalysed. If the hypothesis of similarity between Brokken's adjective space and Van der Molen's personality dimensions holds, it should be possible to predict from Van der Molen's model, which conspicuous personality-dimensions were left in the residue of Brokken's dimensions after substractions of the influence of the five scales. According to the model of personality dynamics (fig. 1) the former five scales did not account for the trait dimension 'Sensitivity versus basic stability' (5,7) and for the evaluation-dimension 'Appreciatedness' (13). It furthermore predicts that a variety of 'Skill'-dimensions could probably be discerned in detailed analyses. The following dimensions of personality would therefore be expected in the residual scores: -- 'Sensitivity versus Basic Stability'; -- 'Appreciatedness'-, 'Positive versus Negative'-, or 'Evaluation'-dimension; -- Some dimensions of 'Skills'. After carrying out factor analysis of the residual scores as indicated above, the highest and lowest loading adjectives for each of six principal components were investigated, which rendered interpretations as shown in table 5. table 5: '''Percentages of explained variance and interpretation of the six unrotated principal components of the residual scores''' <div style="display: inline-block;"> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |- | | '''% explained variance;''' | ''' and interpretation''' |- | 1. ! scope="col" | 31.3 | sensitivity vs stability |- | 2. ! scope="col" | 26.0 | appreciatedness |- | 3. ! scope="col" | 22.0 | orderliness |- | 4. ! scope="col" | 11.8 | composure, self-possession (introvert stability and introvert skills) |- | 5. ! scope="col" | 5.2 | male-female stereotype |- | 6. ! scope="col" | 3.7 | strength of will (extravert stability and extravert skill) |- |} </div> The third, fourth and sixth principal component of the residue ('Orderliness', 'Self-possession' and Strength of Will') may be considered as specific dimensions of skills. The fifth principal component of the residue ('Male-female Stereotype') is the only one which was not predicted from fig. 1. But its interpretation is self-evident. The fifth and sixth principal components may hardly be considered relevant. The percentages of variance they accounted for, were 5.2 % and 3.7 % respectively. These two dimensions accounted together for about 9 % of the residual variance and for roughly an extra 3 % of the total variance in Brokken's six orthogonal dimensions. We might therefore choose to restrict ourselves to four principal components of the residual scores, viz. : -- 'Sensitivity' -- 'Appreciatedness' -- 'Orderliness' -- 'Composure, Self-possession' (= Introvert Stability and Skill) These interpretations of the principal components of the residue accord with the predictions and consequently support the hypothesis that Van der Molen's (1981 ) model of personality dynamics is to a great extent congruent with the correlation structure in the exhaustive set of Dutch personality descriptive adjectives as described by Brokken (1978). ''(Another argument in favour of omitting the last two principal components is the fact that their adjective-scales correlate with the other dimensions in a similar way as the scales for 'Self- Will' (6) and 'General Skills' (11) respectively (refer to table 7 ). This suggests that the last two principal components of the residue ('Male-Female Stereotype' and Strength of Will') merely represent modifications of 'Self-will versus Compliance' (6) and 'General Skills' (11), and may therefore - within the six-dimensional adjective space - adequately be represented by the latter two dimensions. Should one prefer to retain all six principal components of the residual scores instead of only four, the fourth and sixth principal component ('Introvert Skills and Introvert Stability' and 'Extravert Skills and Extravert Stability') could be rotated over 45°, thus rendering their sum and difference viz., the dimension 'Stability and Skills' and the dimension 'Extraverted versus Introverted'. The dimension of 'Stability and Skills' is correlated +.64 with the scale 'Skilled' (11) from table 4 and fig.l. The dimension 'Extraverted versus Introverted' is correlated +.62 with the scale 'Active, Energetic' (1,8) and +.48 with the scale for 'Dominant' (9) from table 4 and fig.l. These two dimensions have been included in table 7 and in table 8 in their unrotated (scale 9 and 11) as well as in their rotated (scales 12 and 13) form.)'' == Constructing adjective scales for four additional dimensions of personality == {{level|3}} For each of the six principal components of the residual scores on Brokken's six dimensions a scale was developed, consisting of 20 representative adjectives, chosen from the adjectives with the strongest loadings on the principal component in question. In order to obtain the highest possible explanatory power of these scales, they were composed of those items from the set of 1204 adjectives, which loaded strongest on the principal components in question. A multiple regression analysis showed that these six scales, together with the original five adjective scales, accounted for 78.5 % of the score variance on Brokken's six dimensions. Apparent synonyms were subsequently dropped in order to construct scales which could give within 20 adjectives the broadest possible representation of all types of strong loading adjectives for each factor in question. Table 6 contains this second version of the adjective scales for each principal component of the residual scores on Brokken's six factors. In order to check the extent to which the explanatory power of the scales had been reduced by replacing synonyms (but higher loading) adjectives, another multiple regression analysis was carried out with this second version. This time the six scales, together with to original five adjective scales, accounted for 73 % of the score variance on Brokken's six dimensions, that is (73/78.5) x 100 % = 93 % of the amount of variance that could be accounted for by the version with the highest explanatory power. table 6: '''Adjective labels for six principal components of the residual scores on Brokken's six factors (after subtraction of the influence of five scales from Van der Molen's model''' (of each scale of 20 Dutch adjectives, 10 representative items have been translated) <div style="display: inline-block;"> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+First Princ. Component:<br /><br /> '''''Sensitivity''''' |- | + hypergevoelig | (hypersensitive) |- | + sensitief | (sensitive) |- | + kneuterig | |- | + ludiek | (playful) |- | + teergevoelig | (susceptible) |- | + fijnbesnaard | |- | + aandoenlijk | |- | + kinderachtig | |- | + begerig | (greedy) |- | + aanpapperig | |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - ongevoelig | (callous) |- | - gevoelloos | (unfeeling) |- | - onverschillig | (indifferent) |- | - gewoon | |- | - zelfstandig | (independent) |- | - humorloos | (devoid of humour) |- | - crimineel | |- | - doodnuchter | |- | - nihilistisch | |- | - geëmancipeerd | |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Second Princ. Component:<br /><br />'''''Appreciatedness''''' |- | + warmvoelend | |- | + karaktervol | |- | + sportief | (sportsmanlike) |- | + aardig | |- | + aangenaam | (agreeable) |- | + zelfstandig | |- | + sympathiek | (congenial) |- | + goed | |- | + teder | (tender) |- | + trouw | (faithful) |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - aanpapperig | |- | - aanmatigend | |- | - glad | |- | - onsympathiek | (uncongenial) |- | - blufferig | (boastful) |- | - gluiperig | (skulking) |- | - slecht | (bad, evil) |- | - onaangenaam | |- | - onplezierig | (unpleasant) |- | - kinderachtig | |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Third Princ. Component:<br /><br />'''''Orderliness''''' |- | + vitterig | |- | + zwaartillend | (pessimistic) |- | + vlijtig | |- | + nauwgezet | |- | + precies | (precise) |- | + pietepeuterig | (finicky) |- | + overijverig | |- | + ordelievend | (orderly) |- | + ijverig | (industrious) |- | + paniekerig | |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - nonchalant | |- | - ruimdenkend | (broadminded) |- | - ongedisciplineerd | (undisciplined) |- | - onbekommerd | |- | - soepel | (flexible) |- | - onnauwkeurig | |- | - slordig | (slovenly) |- | - ruimhartig | |- | - ordeloos | (disorderly) |- | - onbevangen | |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Fourth Princ. Component: '''''Composure, Self-possession (introvert stability and -skill)''''' |- | + gesloten | |- | + rationeel | (rational) |- | + stoicijns | (stoic) |- | + stabiel | (stable) |- | + bezonnen | |- | + onverstoorbaar | |- | + doodnuchter | (quite sober) |- | + kalm | (calm) |- | + evenwichtig | |- | + beheerst | |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - ongeremd | |- | - impulsief | (impulsive) |- | - onbeheerst | (uncontrolled) |- | - rumoerig | |- | - babbelachtig | |- | - overdreven | |- | - aanstellerig | (affected) |- | - dartel | (frisky) |- | - heethoofdig | |- | - onbesuisd | (rash) |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Fifth Princ. Component:<br /> '''''Male-female stereotype; Complicated versus simple''''' |- | + onverzettelijk | |- | + sceptisch | (sceptical) |- | + mannelijk | (masculine) |- | + analytisch | |- | + obstinaat | (obstinate) |- | + diepzinnig | (profound) |- | + depressief | |- | + verbitterd | |- | + zwaarmoedig | (melancholic) |- | + complex | |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - vrouwelijk | (feminine) |- | - bijgelovig | (superstitious) |- | - romantisch | |- | - goedig | |- | - moederlijk | (maternal) |- | - simpel | (simple) |- | - oppervlakkig | |- | - gelovig | |- | - burgerlijk | |- | - gelukkig | (happy) |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Sixth Princ. Component:<br /> '''''Strength of will (extravert stability and -skill)''''' |- | + wilskrachtig | |- | + vurig | (fiery) |- | + fel | |- | + welgemoed | |- | + rechtdoorzee | |- | + doelbewust | (purposefull) |- | + stabiel | (stable) |- | + gevat | |- | + zonnig | (sunny) |- | + strijdlustig | (aggressive) |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | - onstabiel | (unstable) |- | - levensmoe | (world-weary) |- | - moedeloos | |- | - wilszwak | |- | - achterbaks | |- | - depressief | (depressed) |- | - bekrompen | (narrow-minded) |- | - neerslachtig | |- | - ontoegankelijk | |- | - onmededeelzaam | (uncommunicative) |- |} </div> '''Overlap between Van der Molen's and Brokken's dimensions''' {{level|3}} As has been observed, the five mutually correlated adjective-scales which were directly derived from the model of personality dynamics accounted for about 44% of the score-variance on Brokken's (1978) first six principal dimensions of personality descriptive adjectives (this is 56% of the score-variance that could be explained by the set of eleven 20-items adjective scales with the highest explanatory power). Multiple regression analyses showed that by adding adjective scales, derived from the first four principal components of the residue, the amount of explained variance could be raised to 90% of that maximum. And by adding the two scales which were derived from the last two principal components of the residual scores, a total amount of 70% + 3% = 73% of the variance could be explained (this is 93% of the score-variance that can maximally be accounted for by the set of eleven 20-item adjective scales with the highest explanatory power). Speaking in terms of (abstract) 'personality dimensions' rather than in terms of factors or scales, we might summarize these findings by saying that the '''five mutually correlated dimensions''' from Van der Molen's model of personality dynamics '''accounted for''' about '''56% of Brokken's six orthogonal dimensions''' of personality descriptive adjectives, and '''that all personality dimensions from the postulated model of personality dynamics''' (see figs. 1, 2 and 3), in which 'Relevant Skills' (11) is specified by the three Skill-dimensions 'Skill in General', 'Orderliness', and 'Self-possession', '''account together for''' about 90% of Brokken's six dimensions of personality descriptive adjectives; and thus for about '''90% of the six most conspicuous orthogonal dimensions of Dutch personality-descriptive adjectives'''. ''(One may wonder why no small adjective scales could be developed with more '''explanatory power''' than 78.5 %. To start with, none of the 1204 adjectives loaded stronger than between .40 and .70 on any of Brokken's six dimensions. (His six dimensions accounted roughly for only one third of the score variance of all 1204 personality descriptive adjectives). Fixing the '''number of adjectives on 20 per scale''' therefore puts a certain upper limit to the amount of score variance on Brokken's dimensions that those scales can possibly account for. The amount of explained variance can therefore only be raised higher than 78.5 % by increasing the number of adjectives per scale. But for concision's sake we limited ourselves to 20 items per scale.)'' == Correlations between personality dimensions == {{level|3}} Of the six 20-item adjective scales representing the principal components of the residue, and of the former five scales which were derived directly from Van der Molen's (1981) dynamic model, the mutual correlations were calculated and also the correlations of all 1204 adjectives with each of the scales. (In table 8, the 30 highest - and 30 lowest correlated adjectives are listed for each scale). Because of the relative unimportance of the fifth and sixth principal components (scale 10 and 11), the correlations between the first 9 scales are most interesting. (See table 7) Table 7: '''Estimated correlation coëfficients between the adjective scales''' {|class="mice-and-men table7" |- ! width="10px"| Adjective scale number ! width="90px"| Dimension number from fig.3-5 ! width="200px"| Interpretation ! width="50px"| (9) ! width="50px"|(10) ! width="50px"|(1,8) ! width="50px"|(6) ! width="50px"|(11) ! width="50px"|(13) ! width="50px"|(5,7) ! width="50px"|(11) ! width="50px"|(11,7) ! width="50px"| ! width="50px"|(11,7) ! width="50px"|(11,7) |- | 1 | (9) | Ascendancy; Dominance versus Subordinance | || || || || || || || || || || || |- | 2 | (10) | Acceptedness vs being Outcast | -0.19 | || || || || || || || || || || |- | 3 | (1,8) | Acitivity; Energy | +0.60 | +0.10 | | | | | | | | | | |- | 4 | (6) | Explorative and Self-willed; Individualism vs Social Compliance | +0.22 | -0.53 | width="50px"| +0.12 | | | | | | | | | |- | 5 | (11)| | Relevant Skills in general | +0.46 | +0.05 | +0.62 | width="50px"| +0.35 | | | | | | | | |- | 6 | (13) | Positive vs Negative Appreciatedness | +0.21 | +0.33 | +0.52 | +0.06 | +0.48 | | | | | | | |- | 7 | (5,7) | Oversensitivity vs. Stability | -0.26 | +0.05 | +0.01 | -0.12 | -0.13 | +0.03 | | | | | | |- | 8 | (11) | Orderliness | -0.09 | +0.14 | -0.00 | -0.02 | +0.26 | -0.05 | +0.08 | | | | | |- | 9 | (11,7) | Composure; Introverted Skills & Stability | +0.01 | +0.22 | -0.06 | +0.30 | +0.34 | +0.23 | -0.37 | +0.19 | | | | |- | class="hsep" colspan="15"| |- | 10 | | Masculinity vs Femininity | +0.14 | -0.54 | -0.15 | +0.51 | +0.07 | -0.16 | -0.11 | -0.00 | +0.10 | | | |- | 11 | (11,7) | Strength of Will; Extraverted Skill & Stability | +0.65 | +0.14 | +0.76 | +0.08 | +0.60 | +0.52 | -0.11 | -0.06 | +0.11 | -0.17 | | |- | 12 | (11,7) | Stability Skills | +0.45 | +0.24 | +0.48 | +0.25 | +0.64 | +0.51 | -0.32 | +0.09 | +0.74 | -0.05 | +0.75 | |- | 13 | | Extraversion vs Introversion | +0.48 | -0.06 | +0.62 | -0.16 | +0.20 | +0.22 | +0.19 | -0.19 | -0.66 | -0.21 | +0.68 | +0.02 |- |} The social role dimensions 'Dominance versus Subordinance' (9)and 'Accepted versus Outcast' (10) span a two-dimensional space (''' ̂ϱ'''((9),(10)) = - 0.19) and the Evaluation dimension 'Positive - versus Negative Appreciatedness' (13) is only weakly correlated with 'Dominance' (9) and 'Acceptedness' (10) (''' ̂ϱ'''((9),(13)) = + 0.21; ''' ̂ϱ'''((10),(13)) = + 0.33; the numbers between brackets and the subscripts refer to the numbers of the dimensions in figs. 1 to 3). Furthermore, the three basic-temperamental-trait dimensions 'Activity, Energy' (1,8), 'Sensitivity' (5) and 'Self-will versus Compliance' (6) span a three-dimensional space: their inter-correlations are negligible (''' ̂ϱ'''((1,8),(5,7)) = - 0.01; ''' ̂ϱ'''((1,8),(6)) = 0.12; ''' ̂ϱ'''((5,7),(6)) = - 0.12). Conspicuous correlations are present however between dimensions from the basic-trait domain on the one hand and dimensions from the social-role domain on the other. The level of 'Activity (Energy)' (1,8)and the level of 'Skills' (11) are positively correlated with 'Dominance' (9), and the level of 'Self-will versus Compliance' (6) is negatively correlated with 'Accepted versus Outcast' (10) (''' ̂ϱ'''((1,8),(9)) = 0.60; (''' ̂ϱ'''((9),(11)) = 0.64; ''' ̂ϱ'''((6),(10)) = - 0.53) This is in accordance with the causal relations obtained from the dynamic model of personality (fig. 1 to 3). The Appreciatedness (Positive versus Negative) (13) dimension - like the Dominance (9) dimension - is positively correlated with Activity (Energy) (1,8) and with Skill (11), (''' ̂ϱ'''((1,8),(13)) = 0.52; ''' ̂ϱ'''((11),(13)) = 0.48). This agrees with Van der Molen's (1981a) proposition that a high level of energy and skills tends to be converted in a dominant position and/or in attaining positive appreciation. Fig. 1 suggests a strong dependence between the 'Appreciatedness (Positive versus Negative)' (13) dimension and the social role dimension 'Dominance' (9) and 'Accepted versus Outcast' (10). That model does not however predict that these dependencies render strong correlations. The fact is that it also depends on the social role of the rater himself whether the ratee's social-role behaviour is positively or negatively appreciated (Van der Molen, 1981a , chapter eight: '''α''''s appreciate '''β''''s above '''ω''''s, but '''ω''''s appreciate '''ω''''s above '''β''''s, and '''β''''s appreciate '''α''''s more than '''ω''''s do). The correlation between 'Appreciatedness (positive versus Negative)' (13) and 'Dominance' (9) and 'Accepted versus Outcast' (10) are indeed but weak (''' ̂ϱ'''((9),(13)) = 0.21; ''' ̂ϱ'''((19),(13)) = 0.06) Finally, the level of 'Skills' (11) is positively correlated with the basic level of 'Activity, Energy' (1,8) (''' ̂ϱ'''((1),(11)) = 0.62) This is also in accord with figs. 1 to 3. The congruence between these estimated scale-correlations and the predicted relations between the dimensions of figs. 1 to 3, also supports the idea that Brokken's six-dimensional adjective-space may be adequately represented by the correlated personality dimensions from Van der Molen's general model of personality dynamics. '''Unambiguity of the axis' of reference''' {{level|3}} It should furthermore be noted that the interpretation of the residual factors and of the final adjective scales in terms of correlated adjectives appeared to be rather unambiguous in comparison with Brokken's six orthogonal adjective dimensions (see table 7 and 8). This could be an argument - an argument of clarity - for replacing the six orthogonal adjective-dimensions by this set of some nine correlated adjective-dimensions. This can be added to the argument that the latter set allows for functional relationships between these dimensions. == Discussion == '''Number and 'raisons d'être' of personality dimensions ''' {{level|3}} Personality dimensions as found in mice were attributed to the fact that mice are a socially living species. The model of personality dynamics as developed for mouse behaviour was, after some refinements and extensions, suited for describing human behaviour as well. This suggests that '''the most conspicuous human personality dimensions are merely a necessary result of Man being a social species'''. (Van der Molen, 1981 , ch.nine) This is not to imply that the dynamic model of personality dimensions as depicted in figs. 1 to 3 contains '''every''' imaginable trait dimensions, social-role dimensions and skill dimension that could possibly be the necessary result of existing as a social species. The three genotypic trait dimensions of fig. 1 were derived i.a. from the notion of three basic functional conflicts, viz.: the conflict between 'Need for Social Contact and Interaction' (2) on the one hand, and 'Self-will' (3) on the other hand; the varying equilibrium between available 'Energy'(1), and the 'General Level of Needs or Sensitivity' (5); the varying equilibrium between harsh environmental circumstances and selection for a high 'Basic Level of Activity' and 'General Capacities' on the one hand, and genetic degeneration on the other hand. Whereas these functional conflicts may be the most conspicuous, a much greater number of such basic conflicting mechanisms may of course be considered. Such considerations hold even a fortiori for the number of 'Skill'-dimensions. Although our original model (fig. 1) contained merely one general dimension of 'Relevant Skills', a minimum number of three Skill-dimensions emerged in comparing the dynamic personality model with Brokken's six-dimensional space of personality descriptive adjectives. In more detailed analyses however, there may be a considerable increase in the number of useful orthogonal dimensions of Specific Skills (Cattell, 1971). '''Obliqueness of factors and predictions''' {{level|3}} Our model contains '''non-orthogonal personality dimensions'''. This is a disadvantage if one considers the mathematical elegance and handiness of the model or its concision. We did however maintain oblique factors, in order to enable us to integrate descriptions of '''functional (causal) relationships''' between the various personality dimensions. The obliqueness of dimensions suggests in fact many testable hypotheses. The model predicts for instance which personality dimensions can be manipulated and how this could be achieved. For example: a. The dimension of ''''Social Desirability'''' is considered as a '''social''' '''tool''' on the - typically human - cognitive level. Since the score on this dimension indicates the relative social position of the rater towards the ratee (attraction or repulsion) the score may be manipulated by simply choosing raters who are in a different social role, relative to the ratee. Whereas low correlations were found between 'Positive versus Negative Appreciatedness' (13) and the social role dimensions 'Dominance' (9) and ' Acceptedness' (10) (''' ̂ϱ'''((9),(13)) = 0.21; (''' ̂ϱ'''((13),(10)) = 0.33)) the model of personality dynamics predicts strong correlations between the 'Appreciatedness' (13) dimension and interactions between the social-role scores of rater and ratee. In other words: the correlation between 'Appreciatedness' and social roles may be low, but that will probably change as soon as the social roles of the raters, relative to the ratee, are also taken into account. b. The two dimensions ''''Dominant versus Subordinate'''' and ''''Accepted versus Outcast'''' indicate '''social role types'''. Social roles are only defined in relation to specific other individuals in specific circumstances. Therefore a completely different score on these dimensions may be obtained simply by having the ratee's rated by raters who know them from completely different areas of social life. c. Apart from these three dimensions, the dimension of ''''Relevant Skills'''' may also be manipulated. This can be achieved by either enhancing personal '''growth''', or by blocking it through too many or too few difficult experiences (Van der Molen, 1981b). d. The model also indicates which dimensions are considered as basic personality traits (or ''''temperaments'''') and which dimensions are not. The former traits can by definition not be manipulated. They are however correlated with the traits from the level of social roles and skills because they determine the likelihood that an individual assumes certain roles and acquires certain skills in certain circumstances. Therefore such 'temperament'-traits can only be measured from overt behaviour when corrections are included for actually assumed roles and actually acquired skills. e. An individual's social-role behaviour depends on the way in which the available social niches (roles, which can possibly be adopted) have been divided and developed in his particular group(s). And his social role influences the expression of his temperament on the level of overt behaviour. When on the other hand a group of individuals is considered, the latter biasing effects are averaged out and therefore it is predicted that differences in average temperamental condition (congenital basic traits) are easier to trace as between-populations and as between-groups-variance than as between-individuals-variance. ''''Good/bad' and social-role-reflexes''' {{level|3}} Most of the dimensions discussed so far relate either to congenital basic traits or to some kind of social role or skill. The only one dimension which does not relate to one or another observable behaviour of the rated person in question is the '''Evaluation-dimension 'Positive - versus Negative Appreciatedness''''. This dimension relates to the attitude of the rater rather than to the attitude of the ratee. It depends on, but is certainly not identical with, the social roles and the (social) skills prevalent between the rater and the ratee. The 'Appreciatedness'-dimension is a typical human attribute, supported by widespread evidence (Horst, 1968; Benjamin, 1974). When forming an opinion concerning other people, humans apparently focus strongly on this dimension, which '''serves as a tool''' for the individual in his struggle to assert his position in the socio-dynamic processes '''at the level of social roles'''. Benjamin (1974) points out that classifying the social-role behaviour of Ss. is only possible after correcting the data for the influence of this dimension of 'Appreciation of Social Desirability'. Van der Molen (1981a) postulates that for claiming and sustaining social roles, individuals tend to focus on 'Appreciation' of the ratee instead of on unbiased 'estimation' of a ratee's qualities. Individuals thus activate a mechanism which actually serves to obscure opportunities for pure assessment of other peoples qualities. The tendency to be blinded by 'Appreciation' causes involuntary social reflex mechanism of repulsion and attraction to operate fully, without being disturbed by sober and intelligent use of the human faculty to assess other people's qualities. He concludes: ''"In this way primitive mechanisms of social selection can operate without being disturbed by our intellectual faculties. They may thus motor migrations and population cycles in man, just as in other socially living mammals."'' The ability to avoid being trapped by the tendency to indulge in Positive versus Negative Evaluation therefore is likely to be a prerequisite for manipulating population- and group-cycles at will. And since human population- and group-dynamics tend to be worked out nowadays on the level of (nuclear) war, genocide and economic strangling techniques, the skill of controlling such population-dynamic forces might be a prerequisite for man's survival. == Conclusion == {{level|2}} Personality dimensions can roughly be divided into three categories: traits of temperament; dimensions of skills; and dimensions of social-role behaviour. A positive/negative-evaluation dimension can eventually be added to the latter category. Which of these categories will primarily be represented in any set of empirical or experimental data, depends on the point of departure and the focus of interest of the research in question. As a consequence, psychological personality dimensions as emerging from different (sub)disciplines often seem rather different or bear no relation to one another at all. Data on personality dimensions from the whole area of psychological research may however be integrated into a functionally meaningful model in the following way. 1. In the first place one has to allow for dependency (obliqueness) between dimensions of social behaviour and traits of temperament, thus allowing for functional (cor)relations between these categories proper. 2. In the second place one has to select axis' of reference in the domain of temperament traits in such a way, that their significance for the distribution of social roles is clear a-priori. To that end one may select the dimensions of social-role behaviour in such a way that the axis' of reference primarily describe: - the differences between dominant and subordinate behaviour, - the differences between 'incrowd'- and 'outcast'-behaviour, - and in the case of ordering data from trait ratings one may add a dimension which describes differences in the degree of being appreciated positively/negatively. A functional relation between the domain of social-role behaviour and the domain of temperament traits may subsequently be expected if one of the trait dimensions is defined as the predisposition to assume an outcast '''ω'''-role rather than a subordinate '''β'''-role, or as the 'Balance between self-willed and compliant tendencies'. This trait dimension, and the two dimensions 'Basic energy level' and 'Basic sensitivity or reactivity level' together span a three-dimensional trait space. This set of three orthogonal axis' of reference may be considered equivalent to the set of three orthogonal temperament traits 'Basic activity level', 'Basic stability level' and 'Self-willed versus compliant tendencies', the latter set being a rotation of the former. Given some tendency to strive for control and social dominance within each individual, a positive correlation may be expected between the 'likelihood of acquiring dominance' and the temperamental conditions 'high basic activity' and 'high basic stability', and similarly between the 'likelihood of acquiring dominance' and a 'high level of acquired skills'. Whereas the thus established three-dimensional trait space may be represented by a set of three orthogonal personality-trait dimensions - as may the space of social role differences - personality dimensions of the trait category can in general not be considered orthogonal to personality dimensions of the social-role category. Interpersonal differences in skill levels can be viewed as intermediates between trait differences and social role differences. Skill-dimensions may subsequently be expected to correlate with personality dimensions of both the trait- and the social-role-category. It was shown in this paper that if one integrates personality dimensions from the realm of temperament traits, from the realm of social-role behaviour, and from the realm of skill-dimensions, in the above described way, the resulting model of personality dynamics is consistent with common sense knowledge of personality, as sedimented in the day to day use of personality descriptive adjectives. table 8: '''Strongest correlated adjectives for each of the 11 final 20-item adjective scales''' (Scale numbers '''(between brackets and bold)''' refer to the dimension-numbers in fig.1 and fig.2) (Scales 12 and 13 are a rotated version of scale 9 and 11. The scores on the first 9 scales account for about 90% of the score-variance on Brokken's six dimensions of personality descriptive adjectives that can maximally be accounted for by 11 adjective scales of 20 items each) <div style="display: inline-block;"> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 1, Dimension '''(9)''':<br /> '''Dominant versus Subordinate or Ascendancy''' |- | dominant | energetic | +0.49 |- | vastbesloten | determined, dedicated | +0.50 |- | welbespraakt | fluent, voluble | +0.51 |- | dominant | domineering | +0.52 |- | zelfbewust | self-confident | +0.53 |- | ondernemend | enterprising | +0.54 |- | besluitvaardig | resolute | +0.54 |- | resoluut | determined | +0.57 |- | zeker | confident | +0.68 |- | zelfverzekerd | self-assured | +0.68 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | onzeker | insecure | -0.69 |- | verlegen | shy, bashful | -0.68 |- | schuchter | coy, timid | -0.67 |- | bedeesd | bashful, diffident | -0.65 |- | timide | timid | -0.64 |- | weifelachtig | hesitant, indecisive | -0.61 |- | blue | timid, bashful, shy | -0.59 |- | beschroomd | timorous, diffident | -0.58 |- | schuw | withdrawn, retiring, shy | -0.58 |- | besluiteloos | irresolute | -0.54 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 2, Dimension '''(10)''':<br />'''''Accepted versus Outcast''''' |- | toegeeflijk | lenient, indulgent | +0.42 |- | braaf | virtuous | +0.42 |- | goedig | good-natured, kind | +0.44 |- | normaal | normal | +0.44 |- | duldzaam | tolerant | +0.45 |- | gemoedelijk | jovial, good-natured | +0.45 |- | gehoorzaam | obedient | +0.46 |- | beleefd | polite | +0.49 |- | goedmoedig | kind-hearted | +0.50 |- | gezagsgetrouw | dutiful | +0.50 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | opstandig | rebellious | -0.60 |- | tegendraads | contrary | -0.55 |- | dwars | obstinate, contrary, cross-grained | -0.54 |- | onaangepast | unadaptable | -0.53 |- | rebels | rebellious | -0.51 |- | sarcastisch | sarcastic | -0.50 |- | zonderling | eccentric, strange | -0.49 |- | weerspannig | recalcitrant | -0.48 |- | onhandelbaar | unmanageable | -0.47 |- | moelijk | difficult | -0.46 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 3, Dimension '''(1,8)''':<br /> '''''Energetic versus Inactive''''' |- | opgewekt | cheerful | +0.61 |- | levenskrachtig | vigourous | +0.62 |- | dynamisch | dynamic | +0.63 |- | bedrijvig | industrious | +0.64 |- | kwiek | nimble | +0.65 |- | levendig | lively | +0.65 |- | ondernemend | enterprising | +0.66 |- | vitaal | vital | +0.68 |- | actief | active | +0.70 |- | energiek | energetic | +0.72 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | lusteloos | listless | -0.63 |- | traag | indolent, sluggish | -0.60 |- | futloos | unenergetic | -0.60 |- | passief | passive | -0.59 |- | inactief | inactive | -0.57 |- | duf | tedious, stuffy | -0.54 |- | langzaam | slow | -0.53 |- | sloom | lethargic | -0.52 |- | apathisch | apathic | -0.52 |- | saai | dull | -0.50 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 4, Dimension '''(6)''':<br /> '''''Explorative and Self-willed versus Social and Compliant''''' |- | creatief | creative | +0.34 |- | vrijgevochten | undisciplined | +0.34 |- | kritisch | critical | +0.37 |- | inventief | inventive | +0.38 |- | eigenwillig | wilful, self-willed | +0.41 |- | eigengereid | arbitrary | +0.45 |- | superindividueel | very individualistic | +0.47 |- | non-conformistisch | nonconformist | +0.48 |- | individualistisch | individualistic | +0.49 |- | eigenzinnig | headstrong, obstinate | +0.52 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | volgzaam | docile | -0.50 |- | babbelziek | garrulous | -0.42 |- | babbelachtig | babbling, chattering | -0.41 |- | praatziek | talkative | -0.36 |- | kritiekloos | uncritical, undiscriminating | -0.35 |- | gewillig | tractable, willing | -0.35 |- | goedgelovig | gullible, credulous | -0.34 |- | gehoorzaam | obedient, servile | -0.34 |- | alledaags | ordinary, plain | -0.34 |- | onkritisch | uncritical, credulous | -0.34 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 5, Dimension '''(11)''':<br />'''''Skills in general''''' |- | accuraat | accurate, precise | +0.49 |- | actief | active | +0.49 |- | besluitvaardig | resolute, decisive | +0.51 |- | energiek | energetic | +0.52 |- | vindingrijk | resourceful | +0.52 |- | praktisch | practical | +0.54 |- | doortastend | energetic | +0.55 |- | vastberaden | determined | +0.55 |- | handig | competent, handy | +0.56 |- | efficient | efficient | +0.58 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | inaccuraat | inaccurate | -0.55 |- | onhandig | incompetent, clumsy | -0.53 |- | slap | spineless, weak | -0.49 |- | onverstandig | unwise | -0.49 |- | onstandvastig | unsteadfast, unstable | -0.49 |- | sullig | foolish, soft | -0.48 |- | chaotisch | chaotic | -0.48 |- | onoplettend | inattentive | -0.48 |- | klunzig | clumsy, oafish | -0.48 |- | onbeholpen | awkward | -0.47 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 6, Dimension '''(13)''':<br /> '''Appreciatedness''' |- | geschikt | decent | +0.51 |- | fair | fair | +0.54 |- | karaktervol | distinguished | +0.54 |- | warmvoelend | warm(-hearted), sympathetic | +0.55 |- | plezierig | pleasant | +0.56 |- | goed | kind, good(-natured) | +0.59 |- | prettig | pleasant, nice | +0.60 |- | aangenaam | agreeable | +0.60 |- | aardig | nice | +0.62 |- | sympathiek | congenial | +0.64 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | onsympathiek | unsympathetic | -0.54 |- | onaangenaam | disagreeable | -0.53 |- | onplezierig | unpleasant | -0.51 |- | huichelachtig | hypocritical | -0.51 |- | slecht | bad, evil, wicked | -0.49 |- | stiekem | underhanded | -0.48 |- | achterbaks | double-faced, secretive, sneaky | -0.46 |- | gemaakt | affected | -0.46 |- | onaardig | unkind | -0.45 |- | antipathiek | objectionable | -0.45 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 7, Dimension '''(5+7)''':<br />'''''Sensitivity versus stability''''' |- | gevoelig | sensitive | +0.47 |- | sensibel | susceptible | +0.47 |- | teerhartig | tender-hearted, soft-hearted | +0.47 |- | sentimenteel | sentimental | +0.49 |- | overgevoelig | oversensitive, thin-skinned | +0.50 |- | sensitief | sensitive | +0.52 |- | fijnbesnaard | finely-strung | +0.53 |- | aandoenlijk | impressionable, sweet | +0.49 |- | hypergevoelig | hypersensitive | +0.60 |- | teergevoelig | sussceptible, tender | +0.61 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | doodnuchter | down to earth | -0.40 |- | nuchter | sober, level-headed | -0.30 |- | stabiel | stable | -0.25 |- | ongevoelig | insensitive | -0.25 |- | gewoon | plain, ordinary | -0.22 |- | zelfstandig | independent | -0.22 |- | doodkalm | cool | -0.22 |- | emotieloos | emotionless | -0.20 |- | evenwichtig | stable | -0.20 |- | gevoelloos | unfeeling | -0.19 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 8, Dimension '''(11)''':<br /> '''''Orderliness''''' |- | ijverig | industrious, diligent | +0.52 |- | net | neat | +0.53 |- | ordelievend | orderly, law-abiding | +0.54 |- | zorgvuldig | careful | +0.56 |- | ordelijk | orderly, neat | +0.58 |- | accuraat | accurate | +0.59 |- | secuur | precise | +0.60 |- | nauwkeurig | accurate | +0.60 |- | nauwgezet | conscientious, scrupulous | +0.64 |- | precies | precise | +0.67 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | slordig | slovenly, careless | -0.61 |- | ordeloos | disorderly | -0.58 |- | onnauwkeurig | inaccurate | -0.58 |- | nonchalant | careless, nonchalant | -0.52 |- | wanordelijk | disorderly | -0.51 |- | ongedisciplineerd | undisciplined | -0.46 |- | inaccuraat | inaccurate | -0.46 |- | onbekommerd | carefree, unconcerned | -0.45 |- | gemakzuchtig | ease-loving, easy-going | -0.39 |- | nalatig | negligent, neglectful, careless | -0.38 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 9, Dimension '''(11+7)''':<br /> '''''Composure, self-possession (introvert stability and -skills)''''' |- | bezonnen | level-headed, staid | +0.42 |- | doodnuchter | down to earth | +0.44 |- | doodkalm | cool | +0.45 |- | nuchter | sober, level-headed | +0.46 |- | stabiel | stable | +0.47 |- | bedaard | calm, collected, composed | +0.49 |- | beheerst | composed | +0.54 |- | evenwichtig | (well-)balanced, steady | +0.55 |- | rustig | quiet | +0.57 |- | kalm | calm | +0.59 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | rumoerig | noisy | -0.58 |- | onbesuisd | rash | -0.57 |- | ongeremd | uninhibited | -0.54 |- | impulsief | impulsive | -0.53 |- | onbeheerst | uncontrolled | -0.53 |- | babbelachtig | talkative | -0.52 |- | heethoofdig | hotheaded | -0.51 |- | babbelziek | tattling, garrulous | -0.51 |- | lawaaierig | noisy, uproarious | -0.51 |- | kletserig | chatty | -0.50 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 10:<br />'''''Male-female stereotype''''' |- | non-conformistisch | nonconforming | +0.35 |- | cynisch | cynical | +0.38 |- | individualistisch | individualistic | +0.38 |- | onaangepast | unadaptable | +0.39 |- | obstinaat | obstnate | +0.41 |- | mannelijk | manly | +0.41 |- | diepzinnig | profound, abstruse | +0.43 |- | sceptisch | sceptical | +0.44 |- | analytisch | analytical | +0.47 |- | complex | complex | +0.54 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | vrouwelijk | womanly | -0.48 |- | moederlijk | motherly | -0.48 |- | gelovig | religious, believing, pious | -0.39 |- | meisjesachtig | girlish | -0.37 |- | blijmoedig | cheerful, jovial | -0.37 |- | zonnig | sunny | -0.37 |- | blij | joyful, happy | -0.35 |- | gehoorzaam | obedient | -0.34 |- | opgewekt | cheerful,buoyant | -0.34 |- | burgerlijk | middle-class | -0.34 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 11, Dimension '''(11+7)''':<br /> '''Strength of will (Extravert stability and -skill)''' |- | zonnig | sunny | +0.57 |- | levenskrachtig | vigorous | +0.57 |- | monter | brisk, sprightly | +0.58 |- | vrolijk | gay, cheerful, merry | +0.58 |- | zeker | self-assured, secure | +0.58 |- | optimistisch | optimistic | +0.59 |- | stabiel | stable | +0.59 |- | blijmoedig | cheerful, jovial | +0.59 |- | wilskrachtig | strong-willed, energetic | +0.61 |- | opgewekt | cheerful, buoyant | +0.64 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | neerslachtig | down-hearted, dejected, depressed | -0.66 |- | moedeloos | despondent | -0.65 |- | gedeprimeerd | depressed, low-spirited | -0.61 |- | depressief | depressive | -0.61 |- | wilszwak | weak-willed | -0.61 |- | zwaarmoedig | melancholic | -0.60 |- | onevenwichtig | unbalanced | -0.57 |- | onstabiel | unstable | -0.57 |- | instabiel | unstable, labile | -0.57 |- | onzeker | insecure | -0.57 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 12, Dimension '''(11+7)''':<br />'''''Stability and skill''''' |- | besluitvaardig | resolute, decisive | +0.51 |- | wilskrachtig | strong-willed | +0.52 |- | realistisch | realistic | +0.52 |- | kalm | calm | +0.53 |- | standvastig | steadfast | +0.54 |- | vastbesloten | dedicated, determined | +0.54 |- | vastberaden | firm, determined | +0.55 |- | zeker | secure | +0.57 |- | evenwichtig | balanced, steady | +0.70 |- | stabiel | stable | +0.71 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | onstabiel | unstable | -0.66 |- | instabiel | unstable | -0.64 |- | onevenwichtig | ill-balanced, unbalanced | -0.64 |- | moedeloos | despondent | -0.58 |- | labiel | unstable, labile | -0.57 |- | onstandvastig | indetermined, unsteadfast, unstable | -0.56 |- | neerslachtig | down-hearted, dejected | 0.55 |- | besluiteloos | indecisive | -0.54 |- | onzeker | insecure | -0.54 |- | wilszwak | weak-willed | -0.54 |- |} </div> <div style="display: inline-block;"><!-- Zet deze regel voor je tabel als ie geen volgende regel moet beginnen --> {|style="border:1px solid black;" |+Scale 13:<br /> '''''Extraversion versus introversion''''' |- | geestdriftig | enthusiastic | +0.53 |- | open | frank, honest | +0.53 |- | onstuimig | impetuous, boisterous | +0.54 |- | rumoerig | noisy, riotous | +0.54 |- | spraakzaam | talkative, chatty | +0.55 |- | ongeremd | uninhibited | +0.55 |- | openhartig | frank, ingenuous | +0.56 |- | uitbundig | effusive, exuberant | +0.56 |- | spontaan | spontaneous | +0.58 |- | mededeelzaam | communicative | +0.60 |- !colspan="2" style="font-weight: normal;"|'''''versus''''' |- | gesloten | reserved, uncommunicative, unapproachable | -0.61 |- | zwijgzaam | reticent | -0.54 |- | stil | quiet | -0.54 |- | onmededeelzaam | uncommunicative | -0.50 |- | teruggetrokken | retiring, withdrawn, aloof | -0.47 |- | introvert | introverted | -0.47 |- | terughoudend | reserved, aloof | -0.46 |- | ontoegankelijk | unapproachable | -0.44 |- | stroef | stiff | -0.40 |- | bedaard | composed, calm, collected | -0.40 |- |} </div> == References == Allport, G.W., Odbert, H.W. (1936): 'Trait names, a psychological study', Psychological Monographs, 47(1). Armstrong, J. Scott- (1967): 'Derivation of Theory by Means of Factor Analysis' or 'Tom Swift and His Electric Factor Analysis Machine', American Statistician, 21 (5), pp. 17-21. Benjamin, L. Smith- (1974): 'Structural analysis of social behaviour', Psychological Review, 81, pp. 392-425. Brokken, F.B. (1978): 'The Language of personality', Thesis, Rijks Universiteit Groningen. Buss, A.H. Plomin, R., Willerman, L. (1973): 'The inheritance of temperaments', Journal of Personality, 41, pp. 513-524. Buss, A.H., Plomin, R.A. (1975): 'A temperament theory of personality development', New York: Wiley. Buss, A.R., Poley, W. (1976): 'Individual Differences Traits and Factors', New York: Gardner Press. Cattell, R.B. (1946): 'The description and measurement of personality', New York: Yonkers, World Book Comp. Cattell, R.B. (1950): 'Personality: A systematic Theoretical and Factual Study', New York: Mc Graw-Hill. Cattell, R.B. (1952): 'Factor analysis', New York, Harper & Bros. Cattell, R.B., Dickman, K.A. (1962): 'A dynamic model of physical influence demonstrating the necessity of oblique simple structure', Psychological Bulletin, 59, pp. 389-400. Cattell, R.B., Sullivan, W. (1962): 'The scientific nature of factors: A demonstration through coffee cups', Behavioural Science, 7, pp.184-193. Cattell, R.B., Eber, H.W., Tatsuoka, M. (1970): 'Handbook for the sixteen personality factor questionnaire', Champaign, 111.: Institute for Personality and Ability Testing. Cattell, R.B.(1971): 'Abilities: their Structure, Growth and Action', Boston: Houghton Mifflin Cy. Elshout, J.J., van Hemert, N.A., van Hemert, M. (1975): 'Comment on Horn & Knapp: On the subjective Character of the Empirical Base of Guilford's Structure-of-Intellect Model', Tijdschrift voor Onderwijsresearch, 1(1). Eysenck, H.J. (1953): 'The structure of human personality', London: Methuen. Eysenck, H.J. (1967): 'The biological basis of personality' Springfield: Thomas. Epstein, S. (1979): 'The stability of behaviour: On predicting most of the people much of the time', Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37(7), pp. 1097-1126. Foa, U.G. (1961): 'Convergences in the analysis of the structure of interpersonal behaviour', Psychological Review, 68, pp. 341-353. Goldberg, L.R. (1978): 'Attribution of Trait-Descriptive Terms to Oneself as Compared to Well liked, Neutral, and Disliked Others', Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36 (9), pp. 1012-1028 Gorsuch, R.L. (1974): 'Factor Analysis', W.B. Saunders Cy. Guilford, J.P., Hoepfner, R. (1969): 'Comparisons of varimax rotations with rotations to theoretical targets', Educational and Psychological Measurement, 29, pp. 3-23. Guilford, J.P. (1975): Factors and Factors of Personality', Psychological Bulletin, 82(5), pp.802-814. Hettema, P.J. (1967): 'Trekken, processen en persoonlijkheidstests', Nederlands Tijdschift voor de Psychologie, 22, pp. 618-641. Hofstee, W.K.B., Tomas, A. (1976): 'Cognates, Cultures and Crap: Attemps to find English Translations for Dutch Personality Descriptive Adjectives', internal report, Groningen: Dept. of General Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen. Hofstee, W.K.B. (1977): 'Preliminary steps in structuring the set of 1204 Dutch personality descriptive adjectives' Heymans Bulletin HB-77-302-IN, Dept. of Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen Hogan, R., De Soto, C.B., Solano, C. (1977): 'Traits, tests and personality research', American Psychologist, 32, pp. 255-264. Horst, P. (1968): 'Personality: Measurement of dimensions' San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.  Leary, T. (1957): 'Interpersonal diagnosis of personality', New York: Ronald Press. Mischel, W. (1976):'Personality and assessment', New York, Wiley, 1968, 1976. Molen, P.P. van der (1972): 'Faktoranalytisch onderzoek naar gedragsvariaties tussen huismuismannetjes', internal report, Dept. of Behavioural Genetics, Rijks Universiteit Groningen, Netherlands. Molen, P.P. van der (1977): 'Uitspraken over muizen: Een differentieel-ethologische analyse van het sociale gedrag met bijzondere aandacht voor agressie' , Heymans Bulletin HB-77-308-IN, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen. Molen, P.P. van der (1981a): 'Dimensions and Dynamics of Personality from Mice to Men; A Biologists view on personality', Heymans Bulletin HB-78-401-EX, Psychol. Dept., Rijks Universiteit Groningen. Molen, P.P. van der (1981b): 'Striving, Playing and Learning' or 'Aggression and the Dynamics of Learning in the Play and Struggle called Life', Heymans Bulletin, Dept. of Psychology, University of Groningen, Netherlands. Norman, W.T. (1963): 'Toward an adequate taxonomy of personality attributes: Replicated factor structure in peer nomination personality ratings', Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 66, pp. 574-583. Overall, J.E. (1964): 'Note on the scientific status of factors', Psychological Bulletin, 61, pp. 270-276. Osgood, C.E., Suci, G.J. and Tannenbaum, P.H. (1957): 'The measurement of meaning', University of Illinois Press, Urbana. Schaefer, E.S. (1971): 'From circular to spherical conceptual models for parent behaviour and child behaviour', In J.P. Hill (ed.): 'Minnesota Symposia on Child Psychology', 4, Minneapolis: Union of Minnesota Press. Smid, N. (1975): 'Schets van een persoonlijkheidsleer als psychologie van het oordeel,' Heymans Bulletin HB-75-174-EX,Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen. Steward, D., Love, W. (1968): 'A general canonical correlation index', Psychological Bulletin, 70, pp. 160-163. Strelau, J. (1974): 'Temperament as an expression of energy level and temporal features of behaviour', Polish Psychological Bulletin, 5, pp. 119-127. 151rixnuii433xn417az3iddaz1eyiw 0 107 5500 5499 2013-08-27T22:42:28Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki '''<big>Personality Traits in Terms of Social-Role Probabilities</big>'''<br /> '''An innovative theoretical essay on the possibility of overcoming the chaotic diversity in personality theories''' by Popko P. van der Molen presented at the Third European Conference of Personality Gdansk, Poland, Sept. 23-26, 1986. (Registered as Heymans Bulletin HB-86-815-EX, State University of Groningen (RUG), Jan. 1987) ---- [some figures still to be added] ---- '''Keywords :''' * abilities and skills * adaption vs. innovation * anchoring dimensions * dominance (styles) * energy level * genetic vs. environmental factors * personality traits * person- vs. thing-orientedness * reactivity * rotations (oblique + orthogonal) * self-will vs. compliance * stability vs. over-sensitivity * social roles subordinacy (styles of) Author's note: This study was supported by the ANO-foundation (Netherlands). Dissemination of the ideas as presented in this paper was supported by the Hendrik de Visser Fund. For useful comments and critique I am much indebted to Paul van Geert, Sarah Hampson and Guus van Heck. == Short Abstract == {{level|1}} Social Psychology and Personality Psychology have developed into separate disciplines. Personality psychologists seldom ask questions about the way social roles are distributed and come into existence and social psychologists rarely explore the influence of temperamental differences and other basic personality traits on the way social roles develop. Focussing on the interface between these two research traditions, we can find anchoring points for factor rotations which can bring order to the unmanageable multiformity of classification systems, categorizations and theoretical approaches in personality- and social psychology. To that end some personality dimensions are defined on the level of congenital predispositions as well as in terms of social role distribution. They are, in fact, biologically based personality traits, defined in terms of the probability of obtaining specific social roles (-scores). The use of such doubly defined personality dimensions as reference points can produce considerable conceptual and theoretical advantages for both the social-role and the trait domain. It can help us to integrate both disciplines without leading to desultory complexities. == Abstract == {{level|2}} Social Psychology and Personality Psychology have developed into separate disciplines. Therefore it is not very usual for personality psychologists to ask questions about the way social roles are distributed and come into existence, neither for social psychologists to explore the influence of temperamental differences and other basic personality traits on the way social roles develop. This paper deals with some advantages to be derived from focussing on the interface between these two research traditions. Research data on the causal factors of the distribution of social roles were reviewed. Some of those causal factors appeared to have their roots at the level of temperamental- and other biologically based personality traits. The principal social-role dimensions "Dominance versus Subordinance" and "Incrowd versus Outcast" were found to be interrelated with dimensions from personality-psychological research, e.g.: the Adaption/Innovation, the Satellizer/non-satellizer, the Conformity, and the Person- /Thing-orientedness dimensions. It appeared that some personality dimensions can be defined on the level of congenital predispositions as well as in terms of social role distribution. They are, in fact, biologically based personality traits, defined in terms of the probability of obtaining specific social roles (cores) - no matter the fact that social role distributions are found to be primarily dependent on environmental factors (and on environment-trait interaction effects). Using such doubly defined personality dimensions as reference points may be helpful in solving a number of problems. 1.) For the old debate in the research on personality dimensions about where to put the axes of reference in final (higher order) rotations, external criteria are generated. 2.) For the debate as to whether one should allow for obliqueness or insist on orthogonality, such doubly defined dimensions suggest in detail where orthogonality is advantageous and where obliqueness is obligatory for maximizing functional and conceptual clarity. Orthogonality may, for the sake of concision, be maintained within the realm of "biologically based predispositional traits" and within the realm of "social role differences", but between these realms proper, personality factors should be allowed to correlate, because the two realms are by definition functionally interrelated. 3.) Since such doubly defined personality dimensions demarcate the boundary between those sources of personality differences, they are also helpful in classifying established personality dimensions as to these categories. 4.) The demarcation and interrelation between these two disciplines being elucidated further, they can be integrated more easily without leading to desultory complexities. Such an integration could produce considerable conceptual and theoretical advantages for both disciplines. It is argued that a similar approach is possible at the interface between on the one hand temperamental traits like sensitivity, reactivity and basic energy level, and on the other hand the probability and direction of optimal learning processes, resulting in various personality characteristics at the level of skills and abilities. The latter category of personality differences in turn pertains to probabilities of acquiring desired social role positions like e.g. dominance. . . . == '''PERSONALITY: A MULTI-PERSPECTIVE ISSUE''' == {{level|2}} Social Psychology and Personality Psychology have developed into separate disciplines. Personality psychologists seldom ask questions about the way social roles come into existence and are distributed and social psychologists rarely explore the influence of temperamental differences and other basic personality traits on the way social roles develop. However, since these disciplines proper are strongly interrelated, both dealing with individual differences, there is a considerable overlap in the dimensions, studied in each domain. As a result, there is, in the field of personality theories, an almost unmanageable multiformity of classification systems, categorizations, and theoretical approaches. Some of them supplement each other, or may be considered as partly overlapping and redundant. Others seem to compete, or even to be mutually exclusive. For the present disquisition we need to distinguish aspects of social interactive behaviour as far as they are primarily dependent on time- and place-specific role distributions, from behavioural aspects with strong conge¬nital roots and from behavioural aspects which primarily depend on processes of learning and development. To that end we shall utilize a preliminary classification of personality dimensions in the following categories: 1. ) Social-role dimensions, refering to differences in the way people interact socially; personality dimensions stemming from social psychological research can mostly be considered as belonging to this category; differences between individuals with regard to these dimensions are often found to be strongly situation-dependent. Reviews of this category of personality research can for instance be found in Leary (1957),. Foa (1961), Wiggins (1979,1982) and Kiesler (1982,1983). 2. ) Traits of temperament, refering to the most stable differences between persons, often shown to have strong congenital roots. Personality-trait psychologists traditionally used to be interested in these aspects of personality in particular. This area of research is represented by a considerable number of "schools" and traditions. Other than in the realm of social interactive beha¬viour, there is little consensus here with regard to which axes of reference are to be considered most important. Moreover, most of the traditions in this realm cherish at least some personality dimensions which are evidently a mix of the presently applied three conceptual categories of personality differences. In the research traditions of Cattell, Eysenck, Strelau, Buss and Plomin, to mention a few, a major part of the personality dimensions under investigation is representative for the category "traits of temperament". 3.) Skills and abilities, sensitive to learning, training and education. Dimensions in this category emerge from research on learning and education as well as from research on personality differences in general. They are the most changeable and malleable category of personality differences. These three categories primarily differ in stability over time and in the ease with which the personality characteristics in question can be influenced from the environment. In most research groups or university departments the research efforts are focussed exclusively on one of the major broad categories. That is to say, all dimensions under investigation are often either interpreted as traits of temperament, or as social-role aspects, or as skills and abilities, depending solely on the perspective from which the research group in question operates. When scrutinized more closely however, it is often rather difficult - especially in the case of orthogonal personality dimensions - to determine unambiguously for each dimension under investigation, whether it is indeed primarily to be considered a "trait of temperament", a "social role dimension", a "skill", merely a dimension of "judgment", unrelated to actual behaviour, or as a combination of these. == Interpretation of Personality Factors; Ambiguity and Confusion == {{level|3}} One of the reasons for the apparent ambiguity of the classificatory status of many personality factors can be found in the fact that the various main sources of personality differences are strongly inter(cor)related. Suppose for instance that certain innate properties account for an important part of personality-variance (e.g., genetical factors influencing physical strength). Then these genetic factors for strength will also influence: a) the individual's chances of taking up certain social roles, b) the likelihood of profiting by learning versus suffering irrepairably from certain environmental influences, c) the probability of evoking certain judgments from other people, etc.,etc. When a strong resourceful individual is competing with weak individuals for a dominating position, chances of success are clearly unequal. And after a social role distribution has been established and consolidated, a dominant position will in itself determine part of the individual's behaviour and thus also the experiences and skills to be acquired later on. Apart from social role positions, strong and resourceful individuals will be more able to learn from harsh environmental influences, to avoid the suffering of irreparable damage, and thus to better their chances of becoming more skillful. This in turn influences the individual's behaviour and its chances for success. In this way correlations between genetical factors and other sources of personality-differences will prevail. And the same is mutatis mutandis likely to hold for other combinations of personality sources. All this means that it will be essentially impossible to find purely genetical personality factors, purely developmental personality factors, purely social role factors, etc., which are all mutually orthogonal to one another. The various main sources of personality differences being basically inter- (cor)related, we may still - staying within one realm, say, within the realm of trait-differences or the realm of social-role differences - choose to work with orthogonal factors within that area. But even then - limiting ourselves to one of the main realms of personality and also limiting ourselves to orthogonal factors another problem arises. Having decided that a particular n-dimensional euclidian space is the most proper representation of the data under consideration, there is still the problem of determining which position of personality factors is most convenient. Guilford & Hoepfner (1969) remark: ''"It should be agreed that the aim of those who apply factor analysis for the purpose of discovering scientific constructs in psychology should be to achieve psychologically significant factors, which can be replicated, which fit into systematic psychological theory, and which can be investigated meaningfully by other methods. Only in this way can there be general agreement upon factorially discovered constructs and thus the unambiguous communicability that science requires."'' When dealing with a general and rather exhaustive trait space, generally agreed upon external criteria to determine where to put our labels of reference are generally not available. Therefore, internal criteria are used such as e.g., a varimax rotation of principal components. But, as Guilford (1975) states: ''"It is probably commonly known that the most disturbing deficiency of factor analysis is its indeterminacy - the lack of any completely dependable criterion with regard to where to place the reference axes. And when mathematical specifications for simple structure are written in the form of analytical rotation models (e.g., varimax or promax), the model may not fit psychological reality."'' Were generally agreed upon external criteria available, a criterium rotation might render factors (and labels) to span the resulting multi-dimensional personality space in a way, more convenient for experimentation and manipulation (Guilford et al., 1969; Elshout et al, 1975). (For a clear demonstration of these principles on relatively simple data, i.e. measures of books or coffee cups, refer to Overall (1964), Cattell & Dickman (1962) and Cattell & Sullivan (1962).) Below we will attempt to deal with this general problem of searching for hard and generally acceptable external rotation criteria. But first let us rehearse the methodical problems encountered up to this point. == Oblique versus Orthogonal Axes of Reference == {{level|3}} In attempting to summarize huge and complex data on personality differences, it seems attractive, for reasons of sparsity and mathematical elegance, to work with orthogonal factor rotations of principal component solutions. If we choose for orthogonality, we are still burdened with the problem of where to put the axes of reference. Moreover, paradoxically, mathematical independence appears not to guarantee independence in terms of (functional) interpretation. Orthogonal personality factors are in fact often interpreted as and labeled with concepts that can theoretically and experimentally be shown to be clearly functionally interconnected and correlated. This seems to imply that these conceptual factors have been "forced" into orthogonal positions by the rotation methods applied, and that their orthogonality is not warranted by psychological reality. This problem is especially relevant between personality factors stemming from different main sources of personality variance, for instance between genetically based trait factors and social-role dimensions, or between these two types of personality factors and factors of skills and abilities. In other words, having found an n-dimensional data-space describing the correlations in a rather exhaustive set of personality variables, and having found an efficient description of the n-dimensional space by an "orthogonal simple structure treatment" of its principal components (e.g., "varimax"- rotation), we may almost be sure that each of these resulting orthogonal factors contains elements of many classes of personality-sources at the same time, thereby rendering the model sub-optimal from an experimental and manipulative viewpoint. Eysenck's system of higher-order personality factors may serve as an example. His Neuroticism and his Extraversion dimension both appear to be a blend of very different personality aspects. Extraversion for instance, is associated with the social-role aspect dominance as well as with the tempera¬mental attitude of person-orientedness (sociability) (Eysenck, 1953; Buss & Plomin, 1975). Extraversion, as a term in daily personality descriptive language, also appears to be correlated with levels of skill (Reeder et al., 1977). Furthermore, Eysenck's operationalization of Extraversion appears to be correlated with high activity levels (Feij, 1978; 1979,et al), while a high activity level may in itself be regarded as a basic trait which is important enough to be maintained as a separate dimension. The latter consideration has indeed been taken into account in the factorial personality models of many investigators. (See e.g., Heymans, 1932; Cattell, 1950; Thurstone, 1951; Guilford, 1959, 1975; Mehrabian, 1972,(ch.8); Strelau, 1974a and Buss & Plomin, 1975; For a review refer to e.g., Mischel, 1976 or Feij, 1978). This confusing of various behavioural dimensions with individual differences in sheer basic activity level is characteristic for the realm. For one thing, a dominant social-role position may boost the level of overt activity, just as being trapped in an outcast- or scapegoat-like social position may considerably reduce it. Basic activity levels are therefore strongly mixed with secondary role-determined activity levels (Strelau, 1974a, p. 121). Another difficulty with the activity aspect in personality research stems from the above mentioned habit of focussing on varimax solutions when applying factor analysis. The varimax criterium pushes the axes of reference towards the most dense clusters of behavioural labels, whereas behavioural labels tend to be attached to certain activities rather than to certain "flavours" of activities. Therefore varimax factors tend to represent certain types of styles and of activities, each mixed with a high activity and energy level, rather than one pure activity factor plus factors of activity flavours. As a consequence, a separate dimension "general activity level" often appears to be missing in factor analytic studies on personality in which no further a-priori rotation criteria are applied than varimax- or similar statistical criteria. This is the more disturbing, because energy is as it were the all-important exchange currency in nature. Life is a continuous struggle for materials and energy which are needed for maintenance, growth and propagation. Within every species there is a continuous selection going on, the "fittest" individuals propagating more successfully than the "unfit". One of the bottlenecks in the race for fitness is the ability to generate enough energy, even with a minimum of resources. Lack of energy produces losers and the process of losing in its turn causes more lack of energy. Therefore we must assume that a factorial model of personality is incomplete without a dimension which purely describes differences in the level of energy and/or activity. == Questionnaires versus Dictionaries == {{level|3}} Another critique on approaches as discussed above, refers to the use of questionnaires and the way they are developed and statistically "refined". Questionnaire batteries tend to suffer from the "Baron von Munchhausen syndrome". The more they are used and refined, the more the test items are made to fit together statistically, the more "one-pointed" is their measuring capacity, and the more doubt there can be raised with regard to their being representative for the whole area of personality differences in general. This has led many investigators to the "lexicographic" approach in which virtually the complete realm of personality descriptive terms is included in empirical research for the dimensions underlying their utilization in daily life (See e.g., Baumgarten, 1933; Allport & Odbert, 1936; Norman, 1963; Brokken, 1978; John et al., 1984, 1986; Hampson et al., 1986). Norman's "Big Five" are a well known result of such an approach (they are commonly labeled "Surgency or Extra version", "Agreeableness", "Conscientiuousness or Dependability", "Emotional Stability" and "Culture"). These five dimensions represent an orthogonal rotation of the first five principal components of the correlations in the daily use of all personality descriptive adjectives (Norman, 1963). These factors have also in part been replicated in similar research outside of the English speaking world (Brokken, 1978, on dutch personality descriptive adjectives). The "big five" can, to a greater degree than eclectically chosen questionnaire batteries, be considered representative for the whole realm of personality differences, at least as sedimented in daily language. But here the disadvantages of orthogonality also apply. The adjectives loading high on each factor are at best blends of conceptually very diverse personality aspects. Brokken (1978, pp.51 -52) comments: ''"It should be noted that the labels for the factors are only very general ones, capturing the tendency of meaning of each factor at most. Frequently, rather unexpected adjectives appear which suggests that other, aesthetically more appealing positions of the factors may be found ....... As three of the five Norman factors are presented in the factors in their current position [orthogonal varimax rotation of principal components] while another factor (Conscientiousness) is represented by the factors Dominance and Orderliness, it was decided to postpone new rotations to future research."'' We shall return to the interpretational vagueness of these Norman-factors below, and discuss ways to avoid their ambiguity. Again, all these problems and arguments point toward the replacement of orthogonal factors from a simple structure procedure by (often oblique) canonical factors, each relating to some major (set of) personality source(s) which can be experimentally manipulated and verified. The problem with this single-line recipe however, is that not enough definite, well established, external criteria can be found which render clear criterium rotations and canonical factors, and which are at the same time sufficiently acceptable as reference points for most investigators in the field of personality research. After all, having relinquished the demand for orthogonality, the above men¬tioned problem of determining enough rotation criteria has increased to power n! Therefore we would need such enormous amounts of generally agreed-upon and experimentally verifiably rotation criteria as to be virtually impossible. Cattell's 16 PF set (Cattell et al., 1957,1970), while ultimately based also on a rather exhaustive set of trait names, is exemplary in this respect. Orthogonality was relinquished in favour of interpretational and conceptual clarity, aiming at a reduction of ambiguity of the factors itself. The wide spread tendency to stick to a limited number of orthogonal personality dimensions is criticized by Cattell as "indulging in a simple man's paradise of over-simplification". However, relinquishing orthogonality increases the degrees of freedom dramatically and puts a heavy burden on the investigator in terms of arguments about which particular axes of reference to choose from the multitude of possibilities. In his case too, the international scientific community as a whole has in no way been convinced that the particular anchoring points in the space of personality data, as eclectically chosen by Cattell and coworkers, and resulting in their 16 PF system, are most desirable in terms of interpretative, manipulative, and experimental advantages. At present, the status of the 16 PF system is therefore "just one arbitrary personality system amongst many others" (Buss & Poley, 1976). Because of all these ambiguities, many authors have pointed out that an approach in which external rotation criteria are obtained from experimental data seems more attractive (Armstrong, 1976; Gorsuch, 1974; Guilford & Hoepfner, 1969). Only then would we be able to avoid the Scylla and Charybdis of on the one hand the ambiguity of blended orthogonal higher-order factors and on the other the indeterminacy of too many degrees of freedom of oblique factors. To be of maximum use such experimental data should result from genetic experiments, from experiments with social roles, etc., etc., while at the same time being related to the set of personality(-descriptive) variables under consideration. In addition, such experiments should of course deal with sufficiently important and representative aspects of personality. == '''RECIPE: FEWER DEGREES OF FREEDOM IN SPITE OF SOME OBLIQUENESS OF FACTORS''' == {{level|3}} If we could find temperamental trait factors which do have implications for what happens at the social role level, i.e. which determine biases in the distribution of social roles, then such temperamental personality factors would not only tell us something about the temperamental personality aspects, but would also, and at the same time, tell us something about the relative likeli¬hood of individuals to drift into certain social role positions. Since individual differences in social role behaviour are very much influenced by external variables, biologically based temperamental aspects can never of course fully determine what will manifest at the level of social interactive behaviour. However, the distribution of social roles is very much a complex stochastic process, depending on accidental, changing circumstances and on myriads of minor moments of choice. And it is in these moments of choice that tempera¬mental biases exert their systematic influence. If we could find such temperamental trait factors which determine biases in social interactive behaviour, then they would represent an interface between the realm of social interactive (role-)behaviours and the realm of tempera¬mental traits. They would therefore specify functional and causal relations between specific aspects of temperament and certain specific aspects of social role differences, thus specifying oblique relations between dimensions from these two realms of personality differences. This would help us to avoid the serious interpretational confusion which is to be expected with factors that are orthogonal to one another and that are stemming from different source areas of personality variance. We would know precisely where to allow for obliqueness without having to give up the sparsity of orthogonal factors elsewhere. Using such personality factors as anchoring points for rotations would therefore reduce the degrees of freedom, while at the same time allowing for correlations and functional relations between specific personality factors. This strategy can be summed up in the following way: a) Allow in principle for obliqueness if necessary, but only between personality factors from different main sources of personality variance, and particularly where experimental evidence with respect to their functional relations is available; b) For the sake of sparsity insist on orthogonality between factors within each separate domain of personality differences (congenital traits of temperament; skills and abilities; social interactive and role behaviour); and c) Choose the anchoring points for rotations not within the various realms of personality differences, but between them, at their interfaces. == Differences with Previous Attempts at Integration == {{level|3}} Before continuing our search along these lines, it seems proper to point out how and why this approach differs from some other, previous, attempts to integrate the overwhelming multitude of factorial personality models and theories. In the realm of social-role behaviour or, more generally, in the realm of interpersonal behaviour characteristics, there is a long tradition of attempts to integrate the various empirical and experimental findings (Leary, 1957; Foa, 1961,1965; Lorr & McNair, 1965; Smith-Benjamin, 1974,1979,1982; Wiggins, 1979,1982; Kiesler, 1983). One of the most interesting results of this tradition is the so called "circumplex structure". This is a two-dimensional summary model of social interactive behaviour in which dominance (or ascendancy) and love/hate (or mutual acceptedness) are generally found to be the principal axes. The present study has a broader perspective in that it tries to create an integrated picture of these dimensions of interpersonal behavioural styles together with their relation to basic temperamental traits, processes of learning and concomitant ability-dimensions. The results of the above mentioned research tradition can however, as shall be shown below, very well be incorporated in our approach. The emphasis in our approach on the issue of orthogonal versus oblique factors and the essential impossibility of finding satisfactory interpretations for orthogonal final factors resulting from mathematical rotation criteria such as varimax etc., is similar to the approach of Guilford (e.g., 1959, 1975, 1969 et al.). Guilford tries to overcome the oversimplified way in which factorana-lysis is ordinarily applied, by discriminating between different levels of personality factors which are hierarchically organized (like in Pawlik's (1968) integrative approach), and by developing target-criteria for procrustes rotations through which meaning and unambiguity of the final factors is maximized. This study is different in that we first tried to explain '''why''' orthogonality of factors thwarts any functional and conceptual clarity automatically, and second, try to indicate precisely which factors should a-priori be allowed to correlate and also because of which causal relations, and which sets of factors had better be kept orthogonal. Apart from these traditions of integrative research, there have frequently been efforts to escape from these dilemmas by introducing a completely novel classification system for personality factors. In general, the idea is to elucidate the functional relations between the various personality dimensions, having determined the - up to that moment "hidden" - qualities of each personality dimension in terms of the novel classification system. Royce (1983; see also Royce & Powell, 1983 and Powell & Royce, 1982) for instance, uses a categorization in terms of functional units (sensory-, motor-, cognitive-, affective-, value- and style-) in order to re-assess and further specify the status of established first-, second- and third-order factors of personality. The result is a model in which most personality aspects are redefined and reformulated in terms of their novel concepts, producing considerable conceptual complications in which one easily loses track of the original problems. Our approach, in contrast, has no need of novel concepts. Instead, it first analyses why conceptual and functional clarity of factors in integrative personality models is in general so low. This is ascribed primarily to failing to take into account the effects of conditional relations between the different major classical domains of personality, congenital basic traits, abilities and skill dimensions, and the social-interactive domain. The solution is not sought in the abolishment of established categories, but in specifying how we should handle them creatively without going astray. Note: Another critique on Royce and Powell's approach is the way they interpret the motivational and affective components involved. Their theoretical model leans heavily on concepts of homeostatic regulation (Revelle,1983). At various places their interpretations are at variance with recent developments in the theory of motivation and affect (Apter, 1976,1982; Apter et al.,1985; v.d. Molen, 1985,1986a). == '''AN ANCHORING POINT IN THE REALM OF SOCIAL-INTERACTIVE BEHAVIOUR''' == {{level|3}} In summarizing studies and reviews of social psychological research two more or less orthogonal dimensions generally emerge as the most important points of reference (Wiggins, 1979,1982; Kiesler, 1982,1983). One of these may be labeled "Ascendancy" or "Dominant versus Submissive" and the other dimension "Acceptance versus Rejection", "Love versus Hate" or "Positive Affiliation versus Hostility" (dimensions [9] and [10] in fig.l). Specifically, the following interpretations emerge in factoranalytic studies: "Dominance versus Submission" and "Love/Positive versus Hate/Negative/Hostility" (Leary, 1957; Foa, 1961; Lorr & McNair, 1965; Hare, 1972); "Assertiveness" and "Sociableness" (Borgatta, 1963); "Authority" and "Solidarity" (Gouman, Hofstee & de Raad, 1973); "Authority/Control" and "Affection/Intimacy" (Sampson, 1971); "Aggressive Dominance" and "Affiliation/Sociability" (Golding & Knudson, 1975). And these factoranalytic dimensions of social behaviour may be found on the verbal level as well as on the non-verbal level of behaviour: "Positiveness" (affiliative behaviour) and "Dominance vs. Submission" (relaxation) are two of the most conspicuous dimensions which Mehrabian (1972) found in his R-type factor-analytic studies on non-verbal social behaviour in man. (Refer to van der Molen (1979) for a comparison of the use of R-, Q- and other types of factoranalysis in observational behaviour studies.) Peabody (1970) points at a very basic distinction between the two axes spanning this two-dimensional domain. One of them represents "asymmetrical" interactions, whereas the other describes "symmetrical" interactions. Relations involving "love/hate" or "affiliation" (dimension [10]) tend to be symmetrical - i.e., involving similar characteristics for the two parties - and relations involving "power" (dimension [9]) tend to be asymmetrical - i.e., involving dissimilar characteristics for the two parties - (see also Wiggins, 1982 and Kiesler, 1983 for recent reviews of research on this aspect). Note: In the trans-specific behavioural literature the symbols '''α''', '''β''' and '''ω''' are generally used for: dominant role ('''α'''), compliant and tolerated subordinate role ('''β'''), and non-compliant, non-tolerated type of subordinate, leading to an outcast role ('''ω''')). == Styles of Dominance == {{level|3}} In order to gain more insight into the possible relationship between these dimensions of social role behaviour and congenital traits of temperament, we have to take a closer look at how these two social-role dimensions work out (see fig.l). Let us first therefore focus on how the "Affiliation" ("Sociableness") dimension [10] has to be interpreted at the High-Ascendancy/Dominance side of the "Dominant versus Submissive" axis [9]. [[File:Two dimensions of social interactive behaviour.png|framed|none|'''Figure 1.''' Two dimensions of social interactive behaviour. In the trans-specific behavioural literature, the symbols α, β and ω are generally used for: dominant role (α), compliant and tolerated subordinate role (β), and non-compliant, non-tolerated type of subordinate, leading to an outcast position (ω). The numbers of the dimensions are the same as in the other figures. They were taken from v.d.Molen & de Graaf (1979), see table 1.]] Dominating individuals may behave in an easy-going way towards their companions or they may not. On the one hand a dominating person may exert a lot of aggressive dominance, bullying his subordinates all the time, on the other hand he may act as a sort of "controller" who governs social relations by social skill, sustained by appreciation from his companions, rather than by aggressive intimidation. This polarity in possible dominance styles is so general that it has also frequently been reported in animal research ''(See for instance the empirical and experimental findings about differences in dominant behaviour in e.g., langurs by Poirier (1970), stumptail macaques by Bertrand (1969), in japanese monkeys by Itani et al.(1963) and by Yamada (1966), in mountain gorillas by Fossey (1972), and in chimpanzees by Reynolds & Luscombe (1969))''. Differences of this sort between dominant individuals have been described in a number of species including man by Chance & Jolly (1970) and Wilson (1977,pp.311-313), and in Man by e.g., Lippitt & White (1958) and Krech et al. (1962,ch. 12). Gibb (1969), Strayer & Strayer (1976), Hold (1976), and Sluckin & Smith (1977) report such differences in dominance-styles of children, and of adolescents (Savin-Williams, 1977). Hold labels these differences thus (p. 194) : ''" , there are two opposite leadership styles, called by Gibb (1969) "leadership" and "domination". With leadership, authority is spontaneously accorded by fellow group members whereas with domination there is little or no shared feeling or joint action and authority derives from some extra-group power."'' Benjamin(1974,1979) and Golding & Knudson (1975), evaluating and revising earlier theories (Leary, 1957; Schaefer, 1965), construct a three-dimensional structural analytic model of interpersonal behaviour in which "differences in dominance style" is one of the crucial dimensions. In their model this dimension is labeled "aggressive dominance" versus "autonomy" and is suggested to depend on a sort of social learning. Individuals may learn to or be trained to behave less dependent and more autonomous, thus overcoming negative and aggressive dominant behavioural tendencies towards (dependent) subordinates. Similar differences are labeled as "authoritarian" versus "democratic" leadership in a survey by Krech et al. (1962). Kirton (personal comm., 1986) also distinguishes different types of leaders, "innovators" and "adaptors". The latter tend to be more in line with group norms, traditions and established working methods. They can more often be characterized as "consensus-leaders" than the former type of leaders, the "innovators". Innovators have a tendency to be abrasive and insensitive at the social level, causing a great deal of unintentional havoc and conflict involuntarily. This type of leader is much like Rogers' "creative loner" (Kirton, 1976; Rogers, 1959). Kirton's research has shown a personality-temperamental basis to exist behind these differences in leadership style, among other things in terms of cognitive style differences (Kirton, 1986). We shall return to this temperamental aspect further below. {| |+Table 1. |- |align="right"| [1] || Basic Energy Level |- |align="right"| [2] || Basic Level of Urges for Social Contact and Interaction |- |align="right"| [3] || Basic Level of Urges for Non-Social Needs; Self-Will |- |align="right"| [5] || Sensitivity (general level of drives and urges) |- |align="right"| [6] || Self-Will versus Compliance; Thing-Oriented versus Person-Oriented; Balance between [3] and [2] |- |align="right"| [8] || General Activity Level (influenced by Basic Energy Level [1] and social role aspects ([9] and [10]) |- |align="right"| [9] || Dominance, Ascendancy |- |align="right"| [10] || Acceptedness, Incrowd versus Outcast |- |align="right"| [11] || General Level of Skills and Abilities |- |align="right"| [13] || Appreciatedness; Positive versus Negative Evaluation Dimensions |} . == Styles of Subordinacy == {{level|3}} Having reviewed these aspects of dominance, we shall now take a closer look at subordinacy and the varying forms it may assume. Variation between subordinate roles in terms of tolerance and accepted-ness, in terms of incrowd-outcast differences, and so forth, are reported from social psychological research as well as from research on other socially living mammal species. In general, it appears that individuals who do not manage to attain a dominant role ('''α'''-position in fig.l) may either stay in a subordinate position while adapting to existing rule, or tend to lose their in-crowd position. Accepted (incrowd-)subordinates ('''β'''-position in fig.l) may gradually grow into a semi-outcast or outcast position ('''ω'''-position in fig.l). Such outcast-like subordinates are potential migrators, running all the risks implied ('''ω — > α''' ; or '''ω - >dead'''), whereas the better accepted incrowd-type subordinates, who show a better adaption to existing hierarchical pressures eventually may succeed the dominant(s) present in case of death or otherwise incapacitation of the latter ('''β —> α'''). Especially in relation to dispersal mechanisms operating through young individuals, such differences in social-role types have frequently been observed (Wilson, 1977; Barash, 1977). ''(Similar descriptions have been given for e.g., deermice (Healey, 1967), free-living populations of black rats (Ewer, 1971,pp. 135-137), free-living lions (Bertram, 1975) rhesus monkeys (Vandenbergh, 1966), free-living japanese monkeys (Itani et al., 1963; Yamada, 1966) and by Eisenberg et al.(1972) for a number of primate species.)'' Bertrand (1969) reports the occurrence of "scapegoats" in stumptail-macaques and de Waal (1975) in java monkeys. The latter reports that high ranking individuals often formed alliances against the lowest ranking adults or adolescents although each of the highranking monkeys clearly dominated the scapegoat in question also without any help of others. De Waal (1975,p.530) suggests: ''"...., one might suppose that higher-ranking groupmembers "work off their mutal irritations and tensions"in that way. In other words: the (inevitable) confrontations between them facilitate aggressiveness, which is not expressed in aggressive actions between each other, but ((inevitable) confrontations between them facilitate aggressiveness, \which is not expressed in aggressive actions between each other, but/ in cooperative aggression (re)directed at subordinates which serve as "scapegoats"." Whatever the reason for this "mobbing against scapegoats" may be, it certainly magnifies the differences between '''β'''- and '''ω'''-type subordinates. == The "Accepted versus Outcast" Dimension == {{level|3}} The differences between "outcast-type" and "in crowd-type" subordinate roles (dimension [10] in fig. 1) can also be recognized in human behaviour (e.g., Hold (1976) on different role-types of low ranking children in kindergartens; Esser et al. (1965) on psychiatric patients in a ward; and Jackson (1959, in Sampson, 1971), Scheflen & Scheflen (1972) and Milgram (1974) on adults in general). '''β'''- and '''ω'''-type subordinate roles in humans tend to be very much situation dependent and can change from place to place and moment to moment. In his study on obedience to authority and conformity to group norms, Milgram (1974) on purpose stretched the readiness of subjects to comply with the authority in question to the breaking point and investigated the factors which influenced the moment at which compliance would change into disobedience. He explains that in relation to the hierarchical setting they are in, people may be in different frames of mind, one of which he calls the "agentic state" and the other "autonomy". The former state of mind, in which the person in question is emotionally integrated into a larger organizational structure, may suddenly change into autonomy and he calls such a change "critical shift". It is apparently this "critical shift" which is of central importance in the processes that determine whether an individual in a particular situation sustains a compliant '''β'''-role or eventually starts drifting towards an '''ω'''-position. Milgram thus depicts the emotions which prevail during such a "critical shift": "''For most people, it is painful to renege on the promise of aid they made to the experimenter. While the obedient subject shifts responsibility for shocking the learner onto the experimenter, those who disobey accept responsibility for destruction of the experiment. In disobeying, the subject believes he has ruined the experiment, thwarted the purposes of the scientist, and proved inadequate to the task assigned to him. But at that very moment he has provided the measure we sought and an affirmation of humanistic values. The price of disobedience is a gnawing sense that one has been'' ''faithless. Even though he has chosen the morally correct action, the subject remains troubled by the disruption of the social order he brought about, and cannot fully dispel the feeling that he deserted a cause to which he had pledged support. It is he, and not the obedient subject, who experiences the burden of his action."'' and when the subject stays in the "agentic state" and meets the authority's expectations: " '' , the subject fears that if he breaks off, he will appear'' ''arrogant, untoward, and rude. Such emotions, although they appear small in scope alongside the violence being done to the learner, nonetheless help bind the subject into obedience. They suffuse the mind and feelings of the subject, who is miserable at the prospect of having to repudiate the authority to his face. The entire prospect of turning against the experimental authority, with its attendant disruption of a well-defined social situation, is an embarrasment that many people are unable to face up to.In an effort to avoid this awkward event, many subjects find obedience a less painful alternative."'' == The Significance of "Outcasts" for Social Structures == {{level|3}} Whereas these data demonstrate the reversability of the distinct subordinate role attitudes, individuals may also assume extreme '''β''' or '''ω'''-type subordinate roles of a more permanent character. White & Lippitt (1960) and Scheflen & Scheflen (1972) describe the process of creating chronic "scapegoats" (extreme '''β'''-types) as a fundamental process in the functioning of human social groups. They describe the physical as well as the cognitive and communicative aspects of the processes that lead to either getting stuck in a superdependent immobilized "scapegoat"-role or to becoming "outcast" ('''ω''')-type). In their opinion chronic superdependent immobilized persons tend to neuroticism by accepting guilt and assuming the scapegoat role and thus getting stuck in cumulating "double-binds" (Laing, 1967,1970; Watzlawick & Fish, 1973), whereas anti-social types tend to deny guilt, generally refuse to be immobilized in a scapegoat role and tend to stay socially mobile, although in peripheral social roles. Parallel to what de Waal (1975) suggested in the case of java monkeys, Scheflen & Scheflen (1972) explain how in their opinion every human social group or society generates automatically its own neurotic "scapegoats", deviates and outcasts as a necessary by-product of continuous consolidation and reaffirmation of internal cognitive values and social order. Such marginal social roles serve for the society in question as a necessary external frame against which the internal social values and role criteria may be projected and by which the "shoulds" and "should not's" for all its members are continuously exemplified (Erikson, 1966). This view suggests that neuroticism is the opposite of anti-social, peripheral, outcast-like behaviour and the only way to escape from both of these extreme role patterns seems to lie in the acquisition of large doses of social skills. Only (social) skills enable a subordinate to develop a bearable modus vivendi with the authorities in question, without becoming rigidly absorbed in cumulating double-binds and neuroses. == Interpersonal Circles in Human (Social) Psychological research == {{level|3}} The above description of Dominance / Ascendancy versus Subordinancy and Incrowd versus Outcast spanning a two-dimensional space of social role patterns in socially living species in general, has its equivalent in the Interpersonal Circle tradition in social psychological research. From Leary (1957), through Kiesler (1982,1983) and more recent social psychological authors, research data have been summarized in their Interpersonal Circles, of which we give two examples here. **************** Hier Interpersonal Circle plaatje invoegen (.pdf # 246, 248)********************** *************** Hier Circle van Donald J. Kiesler invoegen (.pdf # 245)********************** == Situation-Dependence of Social Roles == {{level|3}} These descriptions of varying styles of subordinacy and the data about varying styles of dominance give us a more precise idea of the morphology of social roles. However, the possible connection between these two dimensions of social role behaviour and congenital traits may as yet still be unclear. Moreover, the distribution of social roles is very much situation-dependent. Wilson (1977,p.294), in his sociobiology book, reviews a host of research data on social role differences in man and other socially living mammals. He points out that, whereas it may seem that dominance orders can be fully characterized if we are given knowledge of the finite set of characteristics that determine individual competence: size, age, hormone-mediated aggressiveness, and so forth, up to and including the subtle components of personality, this turns out not to be the case. Mathematical analysis has revealed that the observed degrees of orderliness and stability of many of the hierarchies in chicken flocks and other animal groups cannot be easily explained even with a full knowledge of the determinants and their correlations with fighting ability. Chase (1973,1974) views the formation (of a dominance order) as a magnification process in which combinations of ability and luck increasingly drive some animals downward in rank while lifting others upward. Aggressive animals will seek out others, while more timid ones will consistently avoid confrontations. Repeatedly successful encounters increase the probability of success in later encounters, and make a contest with a timid animal still more of a mismatch. Accidental events, such as fatigue on a certain day or a chance blow, will start an animal upward or downward. The dominance order will stabilize as all of the pairwise encounters become strongly asymmetric, with one contestant clearly dominating another, and the order approaches one of the few available stable states at or near linearity." Similar considerations hold for the differen¬ces between an accepted subordinates role and an outcast position. == Relation with the domain of Basic Traits of Temperament == {{level|3}} No matter how important accidental circumstances and chance events are for the establishment of social roles, congenital differences between individuals can still be of considerable importance. This is particularly so because the latter influences are consistently in the same direction over long periods of time. If we could specify a congenital trait factor influencing the likelihood of an individual to drift into an outcast or out-group position ('''ω''') if unable to acquire a dominant position ('''α'''), as opposed to the likelihood of ending up in an accepted in-crowd or in-group position of compliant subordinacy then we could specify a functional relation between the social role domain and the domain of congenital traits, provided such a factor would, to some extent, indeed have genetic roots.This would then render us one of the anchoring points in the multidimensional space of personality characteristics, required to overcome the chaotic diversity and indeterminacy of existing personality dimensions. It would in fact be an anchoring dimension in the trait space of congenital factors, enabling us to carry out meaningful (orthogonal) rotations in this sub-space of personality. At the same time it would represent a specific bias with respect to the trait space of social role factors in that this congenital trait dimension would contain information about the likelihood of ending up in the various social-role positions. The congenital trait dimension in question would thus be proportional to p('''ω|'''not-'''α'''), which equals l-[p('''β'''|not-'''α''')]. And this then implies a specific correlation with the dimensions from the social role domain. The domain of social role dimensions and the domain of congenital trait dimensions would thus be interconnected in a clear and functionally meaningful way. In the following paragraphs we shall investigate if such a trait can indeed be found in personality psychological research literature. == '''SELF-WILLED AND THING-ORIENTED VERSUS SOCIAL AND COMPLIANT''' == {{level|3}} From a theoretical point of view, we might get closer to identifying a suitable anchoring dimension by focussing on the balance within individuals between two groups of basic biological needs, viz., the need for having one's own way in fulfilling one's non-social personal needs [3], and the need for social contact and interaction [2] (see Fig.2). And it is the balance, within the individual, between these two sets of very essential biological urges which determines whether in a certain setting the individual will more often choose to sacrifice some of his personal freedom in favour of social peace, or rather will choose to take some social conflict and struggle for granted in order to fulfill his individual needs on the non-social level. In the course of time such behavioural biases then will tend to work out as the different social role types indicated above. The internal balance between the two above mentioned sets of biological urges may be labeled as "self-will versus compliance" and also as "individualistic and thing-oriented versus social" [6] (= [3]-[2]). The latter functionally follows from the former, since relatively weak urges for social closeness and interaction imply a relatively high frequency of individualistic and thing-oriented behaviour. We can put this line of reasoning in a scheme like this: ******************* Tabel-figuur hier invoegen uit de presentatie v. Stockholm (.pdf # 244)***************************** == Research Evidence: Person- versus Thing-orientedness == {{level|3}} The plausibility of such an anchoring point in the domain of temperament traits is indeed corroborated by a substantial amount of personality-psychological literature on similar or closely related dimensions. Abrams and Neubauer (1976) report for instance that human infants differ considerably in the way they divide their attention between persons and objects. This trait dimension which they called "thing versus human oriented-ness" was manifest as early as in the second month of life. They write: ''"Evidence from this and other studies support the view that the tendency toward preference originates in the early caretaker-infant interaction. This interaction is a product of both congenital and environmental determinates."'' - and - ''"The more thing-oriented child shows a greater freedom in exploration " '' [[File:Two sets of basic biological urges and their balance.png|framed|none|'''Figure 2.''' Two sets of basic biological urges ([2] and [3]) and their balance [6].]] Therefore this dimension of "Thing versus Human orientedness" (or Sociability) can also be labeled as "Explorative versus Social". Abrams & Neubauer (1976) suggest furthermore that learning processes are shaped in a way which is different for each type of child: ''Training issues are characterized essentially as "tasks" for the more thing-oriented child; for the human-disposed infant, they are characterized as acts in the spectrum of approval or disapproval. Task-orientation and achievement-orientation soon move on toward still further proclivity for exploratory preoccupations and work interests in the first group; ...........; the second group becomes more involved with situational activities replete with role assignments and thrusts toward fantasy.'' ''Playing "house" typifies the latter ........... If earlier impressions were that the more thing-oriented children are more outer- directed, by the third year of life they appeared more inclined to be motivated by inner determinants and resources, a distinction which seems to persist thereafter. .......... The dispositions of infants are re-enforced in the milieu, as implements in evolving strategies are cycled back into the psychologic system and thus inevitably emerge as traits of character.'' Hold (1976) reports that children who rank high in the attention structure tend to set initiatives instead of complying to the initiatives of other children and that they prefer to play alone when the leading role was already taken by another high-ranking child. It seems that these children do not like to be commanded by other children. This runs parallel to the meaning of the suggested anchoring dimension, which is that self-willed individuals are more prone to become either dominants or "loners" than '''β'''-type compliant subordinates. Hold's findings therefore also suggest that such self-willed individuals are prone to become more thing-oriented and less social, since "loners" are by definition less sociable. == Satellizers versus Non-satellizers, Adaptors versus Innovators == {{level|3}} A similar contrast is found by Edwin McClain (1978) in his study on the behaviour of adult women. He discerns between females (e.g., feminists) who are dominated by a need for independence and females (e.g. nonfeminists) who are dominated by a need for affiliation. McClain, like Ausubel (1952), points out that two basically opposing patterns of maturation occur in the parent- child relationship during a youngster's early years. He terms the resulting personality types as "satellizers" who tend to adapt to existing rules, versus "nonsatellizers" who tend to behave in a more individualistic way. ''"The satellizing child establishes her life orbit about her parents, whom she perceives as the benign source of all that is good in her life. In contrast, the nonsatellizing child rejects this kind of dependency because she believes that her welfare lies in her freedom to choose her own course" (McClain, 1978, p.436).'' The material of McClain's study was derived from behaviour of women. Kirton (1976,1978) investigated the balance between adaptiveness and innovativeness in adults in general. The K.A.I. (Kirton Adaption Innovation Inventory) was developed as a psychometric instrument for these investigations. Kirton based his instrument on the notion that a person confronted with a problem has a choice: he can do things "better" or "more" to solve the problem (adapt) or he can do things "differently" (innovate). Doing things "better" implies the acceptance of the old framework, while doing things "differently" means breaking accepted patterns. The "adaptor" is right at home in bureaucracies, which tend to become more adaptor-oriented as time goes on, whereas the natural position of high "innovators" seems to be out on a limb. Kirton's work is of special significance for the performance of leaders (Kirton, 1961,1977; Thomson, 1980). He shows that innovators tend to become initiating and directing "task"-leaders whereas adaptors tend to become consideration- oriented "maintenance-specialists" of social relations. This is in line with differences between leader-types as described by e.g., Bales (1953), Halpin & Winer (1957), Thibaut & Kelly (1959) and Krech et al. (1962). Innovativeness may further be considered as a (by some people) positively appreciated creative variant of non-conformism and disobedience. "Conformity" as defined by Krech et al. (1962) is related to the trait dimension "Thing- oriented and Self-willed versus Social and Compliant". They conclude that some people are more resistant to group pressures and demands (the hard-core independents and the deviants) than are others (the easy conformists) (ib., p.486), and that their findings offer strong support for the proposition that conformity tendencies are significantly related to enduring personality factors in the individual" (ib., p.527). The relevance for our anchoring point becomes especially clear where they define Conformity as a "trait of the person" as opposed to Conformity as a "trait of the situation" (or social-role dimension in our words). ''" ....... conformity might be thought of as a "trait of the situation".'' [and] ''There are also marked individual differences in general readiness to conform, over a wide variety of situations. These differences ..... reflect conformity as a "trait of the person". This distinction between conformity as reflecting the conformity-inducing properties of a situation and as reflecting the conforming propensity of a person should be kept well in mind. Much of the controversy and misunderstanding about the facts and theories of conformity stems from a confusion of these two aspects of conformity"'' (Krech et al., 1962, p.507). == Data from Factoranalytic Personality Research == {{level|3}} Of particular interest for this anchoring point is of course the eventual existence of such a dimension in factoranalytic personality research. Feij (1978) compares the trait models of Heymans (1932), Eysenck (1953), Zuckerman (1974), Strelau (1974ab) (See on these matters also Strelau, 1983 and Strelau et al., 1981) and Buss et al. (1973,1975), amongst others. These authors often use different classes of subjects and prefer different final rotations of their resulting factorial models. Nevertheless, some of their dimensions closely resemble our dimension "Self-willed & Individualistic & Thing-oriented & Explorative" versus "Compliant & Social" [6]. Heymans' dimension "primary versus secondary" is related with sociability and impulsiveness (Feij, 1978), as are Eysenck's and Feij's dimensions of "Extraversion" (Buss & Plomin, 1975; Feij, 1978). A high score on Zuckerman's (1974) and Feij's (1978; 1979,et al.) dimension of "sensation seeking" indicates a strong need for change, exploration and new experiences, a tendency towards indepen-dence of other people and an anti-authoritarian attitude, while "low sensation seeking" implies a tendency to comply with conventional values and rules. Feij (1978) stresses that extreme sensation seekers may on the one hand be anti-social, drop-out delinquents, but may on the other hand be unconventional but fully accepted creative innovators (p.293). This resembles the statement made in one of the previous paragraphs, that highly Self-willed individuals tend either to become drop-outs('''ω''') or accepted innovators in the focus of attention ('''α''''s) and that individuals with a low Self-will tend to assume '''β'''-roles compliantly. Buss 6c Plomin's (1975) dimension "Sociability" indicates a strong need to be together with others, a high responsiveness towards others and a predilection for social interaction above non-social reinforcers (Feij, 1978). Also in most other factoranalytic classification systems a dimension may be discerned which is related to our concept of "Self-willed and thing-oriented versus Compliant and Social". In Cattell's Sixteen-Personality-Factor set for instance, the dimension labeled as "Liberalism" (Qj) is supposed to measure an underlying tendency toward nonconformity and independence versus a need for affiliation (Cattell, Eber & Tatsuoka, 1970; Karson & O'Dell, 1976; McClain, 1978). == Genetical Aspects == {{level|3}} Various writers point out that a genetical basis of "sociability" and related dimensions has been repeatedly established (Eysenck, 1967; Vandenberg, 1967; Buss et al., 1973,1975; Feij, 1978; Claridge et al., 1973; Eaves 6c "Eysenck, 1975; Wilson, 1977; Plomin 6c Rowe, 1977,1979). In Feij's integrative research on data from Eysenck, Zuckerman, Strelau, Buss, Plomin and others, his final factor model has two more or less orthogonal dimensions of which a hereditary component has been demonstrated and which seem related to our anchor- dimension "Self-willed, Individualistic, Thing-oriented, Explorative versus Compliant, Social" ([6] in fig.3). Feij labels them as "Extraversion" (like Eysenck's dimension to which it is strongly related), respectively as "Sensation Seeking" (like Zuckerman's dimension). His topological system does not include a genetically based dimension "Activity" as do e.g., Buss 6c Plomin's (1975) or Strelau's (1983; 1981 et al.) systems, but both these dimensions of Feij may be conceived of as correlated with "Activity" because a high activity enhances a higher score on either scale (Feij, 1978; 1979, et al). Therefore Feij's two dimensions "Extraversion" and "Sensation Seeking" appear to be similar to the above mentioned anchor-dimension [6], together with the dimension "Activity-level"[8] (see Fig.3). == '''AT THE INTERFACE BETWEEN THE SOCIAL-ROLE- AND THE BASIC TRAIT DOMAIN''' == {{level|3}} In summary, we may conclude that in psychological literature, data can indeed be found which support the view that the (partly genetically based) dimension "Thing-oriented/Explorative/Individualistic versus Social/Person-oriented/Com- pliant" or in more basic terms "Self-Willed versus Adaptive" (dimension [6] in Fig.2 and Fig.3) is a useful anchoring point in the domain of temperament traits, in particular because it also has clear implications for and correlates in the realm of social-role dimensions. A high score on this trait dimension implies a higher than average likelihood to end up in outcast -like ('''ω'''-like) subordinate positions rather than in accepted incrowd-type subordinate positions ('''β'''-like) [formalized: 0.5 < p('''ω|not-α''') = l-[p('''β'''|'''not-α''')] < 1.0]. This anchoring point can thus bring about an easier and better defined integration of personality constructs from the social-interactive domain with those from the congenital trait domain. [[File:Feij extraversion and sensation seeking.png|framed|none|Feij's dimensions "Extraversion" ([8]-[6])and "Sensation Seeking" ([8]+[6]), the balance between them [6], and their relation with the "General Activity Level" [8].]] ***************** Hier de figuur van .pdf # 249 ************************* Constructs such as Leary's (1957) and Schaefer's (1959,1965,1971) circumplex-structures of social behaviour or as Benjamin's (1974,1979) multilayer-circumplex structures can thus be integrated in a meaningful way with dimensions from the trait-domain, while the anchoring point directly predicts correlations to be expected between factors from the two domains. [[File:Social-role types and skills (simple).png|framed|none|'''Figure 4.''' Probabilities of phenotypic social-role types and skills relative to traits of temperament (cosines between vectors being proportional to their intercorrelations).]] Fig.4 tentatively depicts how this anchoring dimension, interfacing the social role space with the space of congenital traits, specifies the (cor)relations between the two spaces. It shows the two before mentioned dimensions from the social-role space ("Dominance/Ascendancy versus Subordinacy"[9] and "Acceptedness/Incrowd versus Outcast/Peripheral"[10]) as projected (dotted lines) on a two-dimensional part of the congenital trait space (solid lines). The (congenital) trait dimension "Self-Willed/Innovative versus Compliant/Adaptive"[6] is in this figure not coinciding precisely with the projection of the social-role dimension "Acceptedness"[10]. This is because a high congenital basic level of, for instance, energy is also considered to enhance the likelihood of attaining preferred social role positions ('''α''', or, if that role is no longer available, '''β''' rather than '''ω'''). It should furthermore be noted that the "projections" of the social-role dimensions have to be interpreted as indicating relative social-role probabilities. Since accidental environmental circumstances naturally determine the actual distribution of social roles to a high degree, these social-role probabilities can never be close to 100%. For instance: the angle in fig.4 between the dotted line "Acceptedness"[10] and the solid line "Compliance"[6] being 30°, does not mean that the correlation between scores for "Compliance/Adaptiveness" and the likelihood of scoring high on "Acceptedness" is equal to cosine 30° (= ½√3 = 0.866), but rather that it equals (1-E) * cosine 30°. The correction factor (1-E) then expresses the fact that the environmental influences (E; 0<E<1) are always responsible for a major part of the variance in the realm of social roles. == Variability of Correlations between the Different Realms of Personality == {{level|3}} In order to avoid misconceptions about the nature of the "interface" between these two realms of personality and to clarify what the projection in fig.4 of one realm on the other indicates conceptually, we should also stress the following. The maximum height of the correlations to be expected between congenital traits and social-role characteristics depends of course on the variations in the environment (which means that (1-E) is not a fixed factor, but is in itself also strongly environment-dependent). In the case that the environmental influences are very much the same for everybody, the variable "E" is low and thus the strength of the correlation between "Compliance"[6] and "Acceptedness"[10] goes up. If the environmental influences are more variable from person to person, the variable "E" is high, the factor (1-E) low, and thus the correlation in question is low. This variable "E" is also meant to include social environmental influences. Already existing social role structures also strongly influence an individual's future social role options. It is one of the specific peculiarities of social-role differences, that they are strongly dependent on already existing social structures. The change from one social role pattern into another is stochastic in character. Distribution of social roles is more dependent on all-or-none processes than is the variability on other personality characteristics. The implications of this anchoring point at the interface between the social-role and the temperamental trait domain were applied (v.d.Molen & de Graaf, 1979; v.d.Molen, 1984) in order to improve the interpretation of Brokken and Hofstee's dimensions, which, like Norman's Big Five, were based on an exhaustive set of personality descriptive adjectives (Brokken, 1978). At the beginning of this paper these studies were mentioned as examples of an approach in which the often debated biases of personality psychologists, each capitalizing on particular sets of traditionally favoured questionnaires, were effectively bypassed. Up to this moment however, the dimensions based on this "lexicographic" approach have suffered from orthogonality and the subsequent ambiguity of meaning. The relations as summarized in fig.4 were (together with similar postula¬tes about the consequences of energy and activity levels on abilities and skills and on social role distributions ''(For the sake of concision we do not expatiate here on these dimensions of basic energy and activity level and their inter(cor)relations with abilities, skills and social role aspects. The interested reader may refer to v.d.Molen (1984b and 1986b))'' utilized to specify particular cases of obliqueness to be allowed for. The result was compared with the conventional orthogonal factor solutions. It was shown that utilization of the proposed anchoring dimensions could render a final factor solution in which the dimensions within each domain could indeed be kept orthogonal to one another, and in which the correlations between factors from different domains were indeed as predicted. The resulting factors showed far less ambiguity and were therefore much easier to interpret than the factors from conventional all-orthogonal solutions. [[File:Social-role types and skills.png|framed|none|'''Figure 5.''' Probabilities of phenotypic social-role types and skills relative to temperament traits]] == '''CONCLUSION: ADVANTAGES OF THE PROPOSED ANCHORING DIMENSION''' == {{level|2}} It was pointed out in the first paragraphs that, in order to discover the underlying structure in the chaotic variety of personality dimensions currently in use, a minimum requirement is to distinguish properly between: 1) social role aspects, which are highly dependent on accidental social circumstances, 2) basic traits with a congenital basis, which are the most stable personality aspects, and 3) dimensions of learned skills and abilities, which are the result of interactive effects between congenital characteristics and a great variety of environmental influences. One has to be aware that which of these categories will dominate in any set of empirical or experimental data, depends on the bias and the focus of interest in the research in question. In practice, psychological personality dimensions as emerging from the same (sub)disciplines often seem rather different or even not related to one another at all, while dimensions, emerging from rather diverse disciplines, often show considerable overlap in meaning. The total picture of current traditions in personality psychological research therefore gives a rather incoherent and chaotic impression. In the beginning of this paper it was pointed out that in our search for an over-all picture of personality dimensions we would, while limiting ourselves to orthogonal final factor solutions, never be able to find a functionally and conceptually clear final picture. Nor would we be able to succeed while relying on oblique factor solutions without having target criteria specifying the correlations to be expected and implying at the same time a specification of the functional relations leading to these correlations. It was pointed out that in theory the most promising method would be to combine these two strategies selectively, yielding a maximum of sparsity by insisting on '''orthogonality''' where possible - '''within the separate personality domains''' -, and yielding a maximum of functional and conceptual clarity by allowing in a precisely specified way for '''correlations between''' these '''domains.''' This led us to conclude that data on personality dimensions from the whole area of psychological research can be integrated into a functionally meaningful and inclusive model by the following approach: 1.) In the first place, allow for dependency (obliqueness) between dimensions of social behaviour and traits of temperament, thus allowing for functional (cor)relations between these categories proper; 2.) In the second place, choose such axes of reference in the domain of temperament traits, that their significance for the distribution of social roles is clear a-priori. To that end one can begin by selecting main axes of social-role behaviour which primarily describe: The differences between dominant and subordinate behaviour (ascendancy), The differences between "incrowd/affiliation"- and "outcast/rejection" behaviour, (And in the case of ordering data from trait ratings one may add a dimension which describes differences in the degree of being positively/negatively appreciated or "evaluation dimension", which is a function of social role operations.) A functional relation between the domain of social-role behaviour and the domain of temperament traits is then to be expected if one of the trait dimensions is defined as the predisposition to assume an outcast '''(ω-)'''role rather than a compliant subordinate ('''β'''-)role, or as the "Balance between Self-willed and Compliant tendencies". From the last paragraphs (see also fig.4) the major advantages of the proposed anchoring point may now be clear. It is not just some canonical axis in the classical sense, that only can be utilized once for a classical target rotation. Rather, this anchoring dimension indeed serves as a rotation target twice, once for the realm of social-role dimensions and one more time for the realm of congenital basic traits. Moreover, it does indeed predict by implication causal relations between a factor from the basic trait level ("Self-willed and Thing- oriented versus Compliant and Sociable" [6]) and factors from the social role domain ("Dominance or Ascendancy"[9] and "Acceptedness"[10]), thus predicting, or rather, prescribing their intercorrelations. This proposed anchoring dimension thus illustrates that the requirements for overcoming the present chaos and confusion of tongues in the area of personality research, are not necessarily Utopian. [[File:Anchoring dimensions.png|framed|right|'''Figure 6.''' Anchoring dimensions.]] == Summary in bullets == '''Principal categories of behavioural differences between individuals''' # (congenital) basic traits of temperament #* '''genes''' * (environment) # skills and abilities #* genes * '''environment''' # social positions (- role behaviour)<br />(incl. +/- evaluation dimension; agreeableness) #* (genes) * learning * '''accidental circumstances''' #* dictionary approach #* questionnaire - versus observational approach 1., 2. and 3. differ in: <ol style="list-style-type: lower-alpha;"> <li>source (causal mechanism)</li> <li>possibility of manipulation</li> <li>traditional methods of investigation</li> <li>persistence in time (stability)</li> </ol> * What investigators find experimentally and cherish, seems to depend on their point of departure, point of view, local traditions, etc. * personality dimensions from the different psychological sub-disciplines (trait-theory, social psychology, developmental psychology, etc.) often seem rather incompatible with one another. * even within sub-disciplines various different personality theories exist which seem hardly compatible with one another. '''PROBLEMS :''' * Confusion of tongues; too many local traditions. * Personality Factors often a Mix of : ** Role-, Trait-, and Ability-aspects; ** Contamination between these Main-Categories of Personality. * Orthogonality of factor-solutions often a Mathematical "Artifact". * Orthogonality between: ** trait- and role-factors, ** trait- and skill-factors, ** role- and skill-factors, ::: often Theoretically Impossible *Final Rotations (even if orthogonal) very Arbitrary. *If Obliqueness allowed: Rotations even móre Arbitrary! [[File:Personality domains.png|framed|right|'''Figure 7.''' Seperate, but inter(cor)related personality domains.]] '''SOLUTION : Integration of various personality domains by:''' * distinguishing clearly between: ** dimensions of social role differences .. ** dimensions of skills and abilities * choosing the axes of reference in the temperament domain in such a way that their significance for the distribution of social roles is clear a-priori. (this settles for both domains the classic problem of where to put the axes of reference) * allowing for dependency (obliqueness) between dimensions from the social role domain and dimensions from the trait domain, etc. Each anchoring dimension then defines: * one basic temperament trait dimension, * one dimension from the social-role and/or the abilities and skills domain, * the inter(cor)relation between them. Thus some oblique relations are specified, while at the same time the over-all indeterminacy is greatly reduced! '''ANCHORING DIMENSIONS:''' # "thing-oriented versus social" #* "self-willed versus compliant" #* P(ω|not-α) versus P(β|not-α) #* Probability(outcast non-dominant) versus P(incrowd non-dominant) # "basic energy level" #* P(skills & abilities) #* P(α) versus P(ω U β) #* P(ascendancy) [[File:Dynamics of temperaments and social behaviour.png|framed|none|'''Figure 8.''' Model of the dynamics of temperaments and social behaviour.]] {| |+Table 1. |- |align="right"| [1] || Basic Energy Level |- |align="right"| [2] || Basic Level of Urges for Social Contact and Interaction |- |align="right"| [3] || Basic Level of Urges for Non-Social Needs; Self-Will |- |align="right"| [5] || Sensitivity (general level of drives and urges) |- |align="right"| [6] || Self-Will versus Compliance; Thing-Oriented versus Person-Oriented; Balance between ![3] and ![2] |- |align="right"| [8] || General Activity Level (influenced by Basic Energy Level ![1] and social role aspects (![9] and ![10]) |- |align="right"| [9] || Dominance, Ascendancy |- |align="right"| [10] || Acceptedness, Incrowd versus Outcast |- |align="right"| [11] || General Level of Skills and Abilities |- |align="right"| [13] || Appreciatedness; Positive versus Negative Evaluation Dimensions |} == Other publications on this subject == v.d.Molen, P.P. (1979): "The Ethology of Interindividual Differences; a contribution from the boundary between personality psychology and ethology", Acta Biotheoretica, 28(2), pp. 123-134; also available as Heymansbulletin HB-78-379-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.). v.d.Molen, P.P. (1981): "Ethologische Analyse van Gedragsverschillen tussen Individuen; Wat er te halen valt in het Grensgebied tussen Persoonlijkheidspsychologie en Ethologie", Nederlands Tijdschrift v.d. Psychologie etc., 36(7), pp.517-529; ook beschikbaar als " Differentiele Ethologie; Pleidooi voor een Onderzoeksstrategie", Heymansbulletin HB-77-321-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.). '''Research Reports and Prepublications:''' v.d.Molen, P.P. (1972): "Onderzoek naar Individuele Gedragsverschillen tussen Mannetjesmuizen met behulp van Factoranalytische Technieken", doctoral report, Dept. of Behavioural Genetics, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.), 86 pp. v.d.Molen, P.P. (1977): "Uitspraken over Muizen; Een Differentieel-Ethologische Analyse van het Sociale Gedrag met Bijzondere Aandacht voor Aggressie", Heymans¬bulletin HB-77-308- IN, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.). v.d.Molen, P.P. & de Graaf, A.A. (1979): "Personality of Mice and Men" Heymansbulletin HB-78-402-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.). v.d.Molen, P.P. (1980): "Dimensions and Dynamics of Personality from Mice to Man; A Biologist's View on Personality", Heymansbulletin HB-78-401-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.), (draft). v.d.Molen, P.P. & de Graaf, A.A. (1981): "Personality of Mice and Men; Re-arranging Personality Dimensions in a Six-dimensional Adjective Space", Heymansbulletin HB-81-532-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.), revised edition of HB-78-402-EX. v.d.Molen, P.P. (1984): "An Attempt to Overcome the "Alchemistical" Chaos in the Field of Personality Theories", Heymansbulletin HB-84-703- EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.), presented at the Second European Conference on Personality, Bielefeld, W.-Germany, May 1984. v.d.Molen, P.P. (1986): "Personality Traits in Terms of Social-Role Probabilities (An innovative theoretical essay on the possibility of overcoming the chaotic diversity in personality theories)", Heymansbulletin HB-86-815-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.), presented at the Third European Conference of Personality, Gdansk, Poland, Sept. 1986, and at the Fourth European Conference on Personality, Stockholm, Sweden, June 1988. '''Forthcoming:''' v.d.Molen, P.P. (19..): "Personality Revisited from a Biologist's Point of View; Towards an Integrated Theory of Personality", 150 pp. == References == Abrams, S., Neubauer,P.B. (1976): "Object Orientedness: The Person or the Thing", The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 45(1), pp.73-99. All port, G.W., Odbert, H.S. (1936): "Trait-names: A psycholexical study", Psychological Monographs, 47 (1, whole No.211). Apter, M.J. (1976): "Some data inconsistent with the optimum arousal theory of motivation", Perceptual and Motor Skills, 43, pp. 1209-1210. Apter, M.J. (1982): "The experience of motivation: a theory of psychological reversals", London: Academic Press. Apter, M.J., Fontana, D., Murgatroyd, S. (1985): "Reversal theory: applications and developments", Cardiff, U.K.: University College Cardiff Press. Armstrong, J. Scott- (1976): "Derivation of theory by means of factor analysis" or "Tom Swift and his electric factor analysis machine", American Statistician, 21(5), pp. 17-21. Ausubel, D.P. (1952): "Ego maturation and the personality disorders", New York: Grune & Stratton. Bales, R.F. (1953): "Interaction process analysis", Reading, Mass.: Addison- Wesley. Barash, D.P. (1977): "Sociobiology and Behaviour", New York: Elsevier. Baumgarten, F. (1933): "Die Charaktereigenschaften", Beitrage zur Charakter- und Personlichkeitsforschung: Monograph 1, Bern: Verlag A. Francke. Benjamin, L. Smith- (1974): "Structural analysis of social behaviour", Psycholo¬gical Review, 81, pp. 392-425. Benjamin, L. Smith- (1979): "Structural Analysis of differentiation failure", Psychiatry, 42, pp. 1-23. Benjamin, L. Smith- (1982): "Use of structural analysis of social behaviour (SASB) to guide intervention in psychotherapy", in J.C. Anchin & D.J. Kiesler (eds.): "Handbook of interpersonal psychotherapy", Elmsford, N.Y.: Pergamon. Bertram, B.C.R. (1975): "The social system of lions", Scientific American, May 1975, 232(5). Bertrand, M. (1969): "Behavioural repertoire of the stumptail macaque, Macaca speciosa", Basel: Scheltema & Holkema. Borgatta, E.A. (1963): "A new systematic interaction observation system: Behaviour Scores system (BSs System)", Journal of Psychological Studies, 14, pp.24-44. Brokken, F.B. (1978): "The language of personality", thesis, State University Groningen. Buss, A.H., Plomin, R., Willerman, L. (1973): "The inheritance of temperaments", Journal of Personality, 41, pp. 513-52. Buss, A.H., Plomin, R.A. (1975): "A temperament theory of personality development", New York: Wiley. Buss, A.R., Poley, W. (1976): "Individual Differences: Traits and Factors", New York: Gardner Press. Cattell, R.B. (1950): "Personality: A systematic theoretical and factual study", New York: McGraw-Hill. Cattell, R.B., Saunders, D.R., Stice, G. (1957): "The sixteen personality factors questionnaire", Champaign: Inst. Pers. & Ability Testing. Cattell, R.B., Sullivan, W. (1962): "The scientific nature of factors: A demonstration through coffee cups", Behavioral science, 7, pp. 184-193. Cattell, R.B., Dickman, K.A. (1962): "A dynamic model of physical influence demonstrating the necessity of oblique simple structure", Psychological Bulletin, 59, pp. 389-400. Cattell, R.B., Eber, H.W., Tatsuoka, M.M. (1970): "Handbook for the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire", Champaign: Institute for Personality and Ability Testing. Chance, M.R.A., Jolly, C. (1970): "Social groups of monkeys, apes and men", London: Cape. Chase, I. D. (1973): "A working paper on explanations of hierarchy in animal societies", unpublished manuscript, cited by E.O. Wilson, 1977, p.29^. Chase, I.D. (1974): "Models of hierarchy formation in animal societies", Behavioral Science. Claridge, G.A., Canter, S., Hume, W.J. (1973): "Personality differences and biological variations: a study of twins", New York: Pergamon Press. Eaves, L., Eysenck, H.J. (1975): "The nature of extra version: A genetical analysis", Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 32, pp. 102- 112 Eisenberg, J.F., Muckenhirn, N.A., Rudran,R. (1972): "The relation between ecology and social structure in primates", Science, 176, pp.863-874. Elshout, J.J., van Hemert, N.A., van Hemert, M. (1975): "Comment on Horn & Knapp: On the Subjective character of the Empirical Base of Guilford's Structure-of-Intellect Model", Tijdschrift voor Onderwijs-research, 1(1). Erikson, K. (1966): "Wayward puritans: A study in the sociology of deviance", New York: Wiley. Esser, H., Chamberlain, A.S., Chappie, E.D., Kline, N.S. (1965): "Territoriality of patients on a research ward", in 3. Wortis (ed.): "Recent advances in biological psychiatry", vol.7, pp. 36-44. Ewer, R.F. (1971): "The biology and behaviour of a free-living population of black rats (Rattus rattus)", Animal Behaviour Monographs, vol. 4(3), pp. 127-174. Eysenck, H.J. (1953): "The structure of human personality", London: Methuen. Eysenck, H.J. (1967): "The biological basis of personality", Springfield: Thomas. Feij, J.A. (1978): "Temperament: onderzoek naar de betekenis van extraversie, emotionaliteit, impulsiviteit en spanningsbehoefte", Amsterdam: Academic Press. Feij, J.A., Orlebeke, J.F., Gazendam, A., Van Zuilen, R. (1979,1981): "Sensation seeking: Measurement and Psychophysiological Correlates", Paper presented at the international conference on "Temperament, need for stimulation and activity", Grzegorzewice, Poland, September, 1979: and in 3. Strelau, F.H. Farley, A. Gale: "Biological Foundation of Personality and Behaviour", New York: Hemisphere Press, 1981. Foa, U.G. (1961): "Convergences in the analysis of the structure of interpersonal behaviour", Psychological Review, 68, pp. 341-353. Foa, U.G. (1965): "New developments in facet design and analysis", Psychological review, 72, pp. 262-274. Fossey, D. (1972): "Living with mountain gorillas", in R.P. Marler (ed.); "The marvels of animal behaviour, pp. 209-229. Gibb, C.A. (1969): "Leadership, handbook of social psychology", vol, 4, (G. Lindzey and E. Aranson, eds.), Reading, Mass: Addison-Wesley, pp. 205-282. Golding, S.L., Knudson, R.M. (1975): "Multivariable-multimethod convergence in the domain of interpersonal behaviour", "Multivariate Behaviour Research, oktober 1975. Gorsuch, R.U. (1974): "Factor analysis", W.B. Saunders Cy. Gouman, C., Hofstee, W., de Raad, B. (1973): "Dimensies van omgangsvormen; een exploratie binnen een inventaris van "omgangswerkwoorden", Internal report, I. P.O., Rijks Universiteit Groningen, Nederland. Guilford, J.P. (1959): "Personality", New York: McGraw-Hill. Guilford, J.P., Hoepfner, R. (1969): "Comparisons of varimaxrotations with rotations to theoretical targets", Educational <5c Psychological Measurements, 29, pp. 3-23. Guilford, J.P. (1975): "Factors and Factors of Personality, Psychological Bulletin, 82(5), pp. 802-814. Halpin, A.W., Winer, B.J. (1957): "A factorial study of the leader behaviour descriptions", in R.M. Stagdill & A.E. Coons (eds.): "Leader behaviour: its description and measurement", Bur. Bus. Res. Monogr. 88 Columbus: Ohio State Univers. Hampson, S.E., John, O.P., Goldberg, L.R. (1986): "Category breath and hierarchical structure in personality: Studies of asymmetries in judgments of trait implications", Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, pp.37-54. Hare, A.P. (1972): "Four dimensions of interpersonal behaviour", Psychological Reports, 30, pp. 499-512. Healey, M.C. (1967): "Aggression and self-regulation of population size in deer- mice", Ecology, 48, pp. 377-392. Heymans, G. (1932): "Inleiding tot de speciale psychologie", Haarlem: Bohn. Hold, B.C.L. (1976): "Attention structure and rank specific behaviour in preschool children", in M.C.R. Chance & R.R. Larson: "The social structure of attention", London: 3ohn Wiley. Itani, J., Tokuda, K., Furuya, Y., Kano, K., Shin, Y. (1963): "The social construction of natural troops of Japanese monkeys in Takasaki-yama", "Primates, 4(3), pp. 1-42. John, O.P., Goldberg, L.R., Angleitner, A. (1984): "Better than the alphabet: Taxonomies of personality-descriptive terms in English, Dutch, and German", in H. Bonarius, G. Van Heck and N. Smid (eds.): "Personality psychology in Europe: Theoretical and empirical developments", (pp.83-100), Lisse: Swets & Zeitlinger. John, O.P., Hampson, S.E., Goldberg, L.R. (1986): "Is there a basic level of personality description?", Eugene, Oregon: Oregon Research Institute. Karson, S., O'Dell, J.W. (1976): "A guide to the clinical use of the 16 PF", Champaign: Institute for Personality & Ability Testing. Kiesler, D.J. (1982): "Interpersonal theory for personality and psychotherapy", in J.C. Anchin & D.J. Kiesler (eds.): "Handbook of interpersonal psychotherapy", Elmsford, N.Y.: Pergamon. Kiesler, D.J. (1983): "The 1982 interpersonal circle: a taxonomy for complementarity in human transactions", Psychological Review, 90(3), pp. 185-214. Kirton, M.J. (1961): "Management initiative", London: Acton Society Trust. Kirton, M.J. (1976): "Adaptors and Innovators: a description and measure", Journal of Applied Psychology, 61(5), pp. 622-629. Kirton, M.J. (1977): "Adaptors and Innovators and superior-subordinate identification", Psychological Reports, 41, pp. 289-290. Kirton, M.J. (1978): "Adaptors and Innovators in culture clash", Current Anthropology, 19(3), pp. 611-612. Kirton, M.J. (1986): "Adaption-Innovation: a theory of cognitive style", in K. Gronhaug & G. Kaufmann (eds.): "Innovation: A Crossdisciplinary Perspective", John Wiley. Krech, D., Crutchfield, R.S., Ballachey, E.L. (1962): "Individual in Society; A. Textbook of Social Psychology", New York, London, Toronto, etc.. Laing, R.D. (1967): "The politics of experience", Hammondworth, Penguin. Laing, R.D. (1970): "Knots", London: Tavistock. Leary, T.F. (1957): "Interpersonal diagnosis of personality", New York: Ronald Press. Lippitt, R., White, R.K. (1958): "An experimental study of leadership and group life", in E.E. Maccoby, T.M. Newcomb, and E.L. Hartley (eds.): "Readings in social psychology", (3rd ed.), New York: Holt. Lorr, M., McNair, D.M. (1965): "Expansion of the interpersonal behaviour circle", Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2, pp. 823-830. Mc Clain, E. (1978): "Feminists and nonfeminists: contrasting profiles in independence and affiliation", Psychological Reports, 43, pp.435-441. Mehrabian, A. (1972): "Nonverbal communication", Chicago/New York: Aldine-Atherton. Milgram, S. (1974): "Obedience to authority", London: Tavistock Publ. Mischel, W. (1976): "Personality and Assessment", New York: Wiley (1968-1976). Molen, P.P. van der, de Graaf, A.A. (1979): "Personality of mice and men; a comparison of a dynamic model of personality dimensions as derived from animal behaviour with the structure in the domain of Dutch personality descriptive adjectives", Heymans Bulletin HP-78-402-EX, Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen, Netherlands. Molen, P.P. van der (1979): "The ethology of inter-individual differences; A contribution from the boundary between personality-psychology and ethology", Acta Biotheoretica, 28(2), pp. 123-134. Molen, P.P. van der (1984): "An attempt to overcome the "alchemistical chaos in the field of personality theories", paper presented at the Second European Conference of Personality, Bielefeld, W.-Germany, may 1984, Heymans Bulletin HB-84-703-EX, dept. of Psychlogy, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Netherlands. Molen, P.P. van der (1985): "Learning, self-actualization and psychotherapy", in M.J. Apter, D. Fontana and S. Murgatroyd (eds.): "Reversal theory: applications and developments", pp. 103-116, Cardiff, U.K.: University College Cardiff Press. Molen, P.P. van der (1986a): "The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning", in J. Wind and V. Reynolds (eds.): "Essays in human sociobiology", vol.2, pp. 189-211. Molen, P.P. van der (1986b): "Personality traits in terms of social-role probabilities", paper presented at the Third European Conference of Personality, Gdansk, Poland, sept. 1986, Heymans Bulletin HB-86-815- EX, dept. of Psychology, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Netherlands. Norman, W.T. (1963): "Toward an adequate taxonomy of personality attributes: Replicated factor structure in peer nomination personality ratings", Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 66, pp.574-583. Overall, J. E. (1964) "Note on the scientific status of factors", Psychological Bulletin, 61, pp. 270-276. Pawlik, K. (1968): "Dimensionen des Verhaltens: Eine Einfuhrung in Methodik und Ergebnisse factoren-analytischer psychologischer Forschung", Bern, Stuttgart: Verlag Hans Huber. Peabody, D. (1970): "Symmetry and asymmetry in interpersonal relations -with implications for the concept of Projection", Journal of Personality, 38(3), pp. 426-434. Plomin, R., Rowe, D.C. (1977): "A twin study of temperament in young chil¬dren", "The Journal of Psychology, 97, pp. 107-113. Plomin, R., Rowe, D.C. (1979): "Genetic and environmental etiology of social behaviour in infancy", Developmental Psychology, 15(1), pp.62-72. Poirier, F. E. (1970): "Dominance structure of the Nilgiri Langur (Presbytis johnii) of south India", Folia Primatologica, 12(3), pp. 161-186. Powell, A., Royce, J.R. (1982): "Cognitive information processing: the role of individual differences in the search for invariants", Academic psychology Bulletin, 4, pp. 255-289. Reeder, G.D., Brewer, M.B. (1979): "A schematic model of dispositional attribution in interpersonal perception", Psychological Review, 86, pp.61-79. Revelle, W. (1983): "Factors are fictions, and other comments on individuality theory", Journal of Personality, 51(4), pp. 707-714. Reynolds, V., Luscombe, G. (1969): "Chimpanzee rank order and the function of displays", in C.R. Carpenter (ed.): "Proceedings of the Second International Congress of Primatology", Basel: Karger, pp. 81-86. Rogers, C.R. (1959): "Towards a theory of creativity", in H.H. Anderson (ed.): "Creativity and its cultivation", New York: Harper. Royce, J.R. (1983): "Personality integration: a synthesis of the parts and wholes of individuality theory", Journal of Personality, 51(4), pp. 683-706. Royce, J.R., Powell, A. (1983): "Theory of personality and individual differences: factors systems and processes", Englewoods Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall. Sampson, E. E. (1971): "Social psychology and contemporary society", New York: Wiley. Savin-Williams, R.C. (1977): "Dominance in a human adolescent group", Animal Behaviour, 25, pp. 400-406. Schaefer, E.S. (1959): "A circumplex model for maternal behaviour", Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 59, pp. 226-235. Schaefer, E.S. (1965): "A configurational analysis of children's reports of parent behaviour", Journal of Consulting Psychology, 29, pp. 552-557. Schaefer, E.S. (1971): "From circular to spherical conceptual models for parent behaviour and child behaviour", in J.P. Hill (ed.): "Minnesota Symposia on Child Psychology", 4, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Scheflen, A. & A. (1972): "Body language and social order", New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Sluckin, A.M., Smith, P.K. (1977): "Two approaches to the concept of dominance in preschool children", Child Development,48, pp. 917-923. Strayer, F.F., Strayer, J. (1976): "An ethological analysis of social agonism and dominance relations among preschool children", Child Development, 47, pp. 980-989. Strelau, J. (1974a) "Temperament as an expression of energy level and temporal features of behaviour", Polish Psychological Bulletin,5, pp. 119-127. Strelau, J. (1974b): "Experimental investigations of the relations between reactivity as a temperament trait and human action", paper presented at the International Conference on "Temperament and Personality", Warshau, Poland, oktober, 1974. Strelau, J. (1983): "Temperament, personality, activity", London, New York, etc.: Academic Press. Strelau, J., Farley, F.H., Gale, A. (1981): "Biological Foundation of Personality and Behaviour", New York: Hemisphere Press, 1981. Thibaut, J.W., Kelley, H.H. (1959): "The social psychology of groups", New York: Wiley. Thomson, D. (1980): "Adaptors and innovators: a replication study on managers in Singapore and Malaysia", Psychological Reports, f7, pp. 383-387. Thurstone, L.L. (1951): "The Dimensions of Temperament", Psychometrica, 16, pp. 11-20. Vandenbergh, J.G. (1966): "Rhesus monkey bands", Natural History, 75, pp. 22- 27. Vandenberg, S.G. (1967): "Hereditary factors in normal personality traits (as measured by inventories)", in: "Recent advances in Biological Psychiatry", Vol. 9, Plenum Press. de Waal, F.B. M. (1975): "The wounded leader; A spontaneous temporary change in the structure of agonistic relations among captive 3ava-Monkeys (Macaca fascicularis)", Netherlands Journal of Zoology, 25(4), pp.529- 549. Watzlawick, J.H., Fish, R. (1973): "Change", Palo Alto. White, R.K., Lippitt, R. (1960): Autocracy and democracy; An experimental inquiry", New York: Harper & Brothers. Wiggins, J.S. (1979): "A psychological taxonomy of trait-descriptive terms: the interpersonal domain", Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, pp.395-412. Wiggins, J.S. (1982): "Circumplex models of interpersonal behavior in clinical psychology", in P.C. Kendall & 3.N. Butcher (eds.): "Handbook of research methods in clinical psychology", New York: Wiley. Wilson, E.O. (1977): "Sociobiology, The new synthesis", Cambridge, Massachu¬setts: Harvard University Press. Yalom, I.D., Green, R., N. (1973): "Prenatal exposure to female hormones", Archives of General Psychiatry, 28, pp.554-562. Yamada, M. (1966): "Five natural troops of Japanese Monkeys in Shodishama Island", Primates, 7, pp. 313-362. Zuckerman, M. (1974): "The sensation seeking motive", in B.A. Maher (ed.): Progress in Experimental Personality Research, Vol.7, New York: Academic Press. 3gr45v7l37i6f5fdcff3osu2ivdtyf6 10 108 1272 2008-12-09T23:00:37Z 212.204.135.100 New page: <hr style="border: none; background: inherit; height: {{{1}}}em;" /> wikitext text/x-wiki <hr style="border: none; background: inherit; height: {{{1}}}em;" /> rd8gr9cdiidnekfjd9uystlgpe7j6mb 0 109 6646 6645 2016-12-24T16:36:38Z Baby Boy 2 /* Effect of the "double standard" */ wikitext text/x-wiki This chapter is under construction. -- weed out doubles -- -- referenties nog achteraan toevoegen; ook toevoegen aan de grote referentie-lijst achteraan -- -- nog paragrafen mergen -- == Introduction == {{level|2}}It is a common layman's misconception that personality differences only occur among human beings. In animals differences in behaviour between individuals occur in a similar way. And in the case of socially living animals, our closest kin in evolution, the differences in behaviour between individuals are very similar to what is found in humans. The personality-dimension which is the focus of this article, the "Good-Bad", "Positive versus Negative" or "Appreciatedness" dimension, is the only major personality dimension that is exclusively human. Peculiarly, precisely this dimension is virtual and in a sense not real. It does namely not refer to or relate to any actual behaviour of the rated person, but instead just refers to the relationship between the rater and the ratee. In short, the only exclusively human personality dimension does not describe any actual behaviour or any real personality characteristic. Still, as we will see, this virtual dimension plays a central and crucial role in our understanding of human personality and of the dynamics between the various personality dimensions. As described in more detail in other chapters ''(see [[Personality_Traits_in_terms_of_Social-Role_Probabilities;_an_innovative_theoretical_essay_on_the_possibility_of_overcoming_the_chaotic_diversity_in_personality_theories#AN_ANCHORING_POINT_IN_THE_REALM_OF_SOCIAL-INTERACTIVE_BEHAVIOUR|"Personality Traits in terms of Social-Role Probabilities]]; an innovative theoretical essay on the possibility of overcoming the chaotic diversity in personality theories"'''(***)''', and also see [[Personality_of_Mice_and_Men;_re-arranging_personality_dimensions_in_a_six-dimensional_adjective_space#Discussion|"Personality of Mice and Men"]] and [[Escaping from Chaos: Temperamental Personality Traits in terms of Social-Role Probabilities|"Example 1"]] in "Escaping from Chaos: Temperamental Personality Traits in terms of Social-Role Probabilities")'', the Good-Bad dimension appears on the one hand to be the largest, mathematically most important of all personality dimensions but on the other hand is merely a subsidiary function of two major dimensions of interpersonal behaviour or social-role behaviour. More precisely, it refers not to actual social role behaviour of the rated person, but results from the relationship between rater and ratee. It describes the characteristics of how social roles (actual behaviours) are worked out and are stabilized in time between these two parties. More specifically, this virtual Good-Bad dimension emerges from interactions between dominant and subordinate group members and between incrowd and outcast group members. In other words: the virtual Good-Bad dimension '''is''' '''a tool''' for our social-interactive behaviour, but '''not''' the behaviour itself. == Social Interactions, two dimensions of the multi-dimensional personality space == {{level|3}} To set the stage for a closer investigation, let's have a look again at the two above mentioned social role dimensions describing the major varieties of social behaviour, "Dominance versus Subordinancy" and "Incrowd versus Outcast". In summarizing studies and reviews of social psychological research two more or less orthogonal dimensions generally emerge as the most important points of reference (Wiggins, 1979,1982; Kiesler, 1982,1983). One of these may be labeled "Ascendancy" or "Dominant versus Submissive" and the other dimension "Acceptance versus Rejection", "Love versus Hate" or "Positive Affiliation versus Hostility" (dimensions [9] and [10] in fig.1). Specifically, the following interpretations emerge in factoranalytic studies: "Dominance versus Submission" and "Love/Positive versus Hate/Negative/Hostility" (Leary, 1957; Foa, 1961; Lorr & McNair, 1965; Hare, 1972); "Assertiveness" and "Sociableness" (Borgatta, 1963); "Authority" and "Solidarity" (Gouman, Hofstee & de Raad, 1973); "Authority/Control" and "Affection/Intimacy" (Sampson, 1971); "Aggressive Dominance" and "Affiliation/Sociability" (Golding & Knudson, 1975). And these factoranalytic dimensions of social behaviour may be found on the verbal level as well as on the non-verbal level of behaviour: "Positiveness" (affiliative behaviour) and "Dominance vs. Submission" (relaxation) are two of the most conspicuous dimensions which Mehrabian (1972) found in his R-type factor-analytic studies on non-verbal social behaviour in man. (Refer to van der Molen (1979) for a comparison of the use of R-, Q- and other types of factoranalysis in observational behaviour studies.)*****''(deze referenties nog toevoegen achteraan)''******* Peabody (1970) points at a very basic distinction between the two axes spanning this two-dimensional domain. One of them represents "asymmetrical" interactions, whereas the other describes "symmetrical" interactions. Relations involving "love/hate" or "affiliation" (dimension [10]) tend to be symmetrical - i.e., involving similar characteristics for the two parties - and relations involving "power" (dimension [9]) tend to be asymmetrical - i.e., involving dissimilar characteristics for the two parties - (see also Wiggins, 1982 and Kiesler, 1983 for recent reviews of research on this aspect). (The numbers between brackets refer to the dimensions in fig. ......... ******************) ******** Ongeveer hier diverse plaatjes ****************** Fig.1 about here; komt uit "Personality Traits in terms of ..." (Acceptedness * Ascendancy) Wellicht beter: Fig.1 uit Stockholm voordracht 1988 (bevat nummering uit periodiek systeem) From social-psychological literature the following 2 examples are given of 2-dimensional circumplex structures showing the relationships between social-psychological attitudes and characteristics. Hier 2 figuren uit de Stockholm presentatie; "The 1982 Interpersonal Circle" en Fig. 2 van Donald Kiesler (Location of IAS, ICL, IBI and IMI segments on the 1982 Interpersonal Circle) Als vóór-laatste hier de circumplex figuur uit "Escaping from Chaos: ....." Note: In the trans-specific behavioural literature the symbols '''α''', '''β''' and '''ω''' are generally used for: dominant role ('''α'''), compliant and tolerated subordinate role ('''β'''), and non-compliant, non-tolerated type of subordinate, leading to an outcast role ('''ω''')). These 2 major dimensions of social behaviour characteristics are part of the total realm of personality dimensions. See fig. ........ (periodiek systeem)******(hier invoegen)************. The total of the realm of personality differences encompasses also hereditary/congenital dimensions and dimensions of learned behaviour and skills. (See fig. ....(zelfde)........)(See other chapters for more details)*****************''(Verwijzing hier)''****************. For understanding the coherence and the dynamic functional relationships between the many personality dimensions, a good understanding of these 2 major social-role dimensions and the dynamic relations thereof is of crucial importance. Without such understanding, no clarity can be obtained. And part of that understanding pertains to the cognitive tool emerging from social-role interactions, the virtual Good-Bad dimension of personality. == Styles of Dominance == {{level|3}}In the chapter [[Personality_Traits_in_terms_of_Social-Role_Probabilities;_an_innovative_theoretical_essay_on_the_possibility_of_overcoming_the_chaotic_diversity_in_personality_theories#AN_ANCHORING_POINT_IN_THE_REALM_OF_SOCIAL-INTERACTIVE_BEHAVIOUR|"Personality Traits in terms of Social-Role Probabilities"]] different personal styles of dominance and different personal styles of subordinacy are discussed. Both in dominant and in subordinate individuals one finds behavioural differences between individuals in either a more socially accepted direction or in a more outcast-like direction. In order to gain more insight into the possible relationship between these dimensions of social role behaviour and other personality dimensions, like for instance congenital traits of temperament, we have to take a closer look at how these two social-role dimensions work out (see fig.1(???)******* above). Let us first therefore focus on how the "Affiliation" ("Sociableness") dimension [10] has to be interpreted at the High-Ascendancy/Dominance side of the "Dominant versus Submissive" axis [9]. Dominating individuals may behave in an easy-going way towards their companions or they may not. On the one hand a dominating person may exert a lot of aggressive dominance, bullying his subordinates all the time, on the other hand he may act as a sort of "controller" who governs social relations by social skill, sustained by appreciation from his companions, rather than by aggressive intimidation. This polarity in possible dominance styles is so general and basic that it has also frequently been reported in animal research (See for instance the empirical and experimental findings about differences in dominant behaviour in e.g., langurs by Poirier (1970), stumptail macaques by Bertrand (1969), in japanese monkeys by Itani et al.(1963) and by Yamada (1966), in mountain gorillas by Fossey (1972), and in chimpanzees by Reynolds & Luscombe (1969)). Differences of this sort between dominant individuals have been described in a number of species including man by Chance & Jolly (1970) and Wilson (1977,pp.311-313), and in Man by e.g., Lippitt & White (1958) and Krech et al. (1962,ch. 12). Gibb (1969), Strayer & Strayer (1976), Hold (1976), and Sluckin & Smith (1977) report such differences in dominance-styles of children, and of adolescents (Savin-Williams, 1977). Hold labels these differences thus (p. 194) : ''" , there are two opposite leadership styles, called by Gibb (1969) "leadership" and "domination". With leadership, authority is spontaneously accorded by fellow group members whereas with domination there is little or no shared feeling or joint action and authority derives from some extra-group power."'' Benjamin(1974,1979) and Golding & Knudson (1975), evaluating and revising earlier theories (Leary, 1957; Schaefer, 1965), construct a three-dimensional structural analytic model of interpersonal behaviour in which "differences in dominance style" is one of the crucial dimensions. In their model this dimension is labeled "aggressive dominance" versus "autonomy" and is suggested to depend on a sort of social learning. Individuals may learn to or be trained to behave less dependent and more autonomous, thus overcoming negative and aggressive dominant behavioural tendencies towards (dependent) subordinates. Similar differences are labeled as "authoritarian" versus "democratic" leadership in a survey by Krech et al. (1962). Kirton (personal comm., 1986) also distinguishes different types of leaders, "innovators" and "adaptors". The latter tend to be more in line with group norms, traditions and established working methods. They can more often be characterized as "consensus-leaders" than the former type of leaders, the "innovators". Innovators have a tendency to be abrasive and insensitive at the social level, causing involuntarily a great deal of unintentional havoc and conflict. == Styles of Subordinacy == {{level|3}}Having reviewed these aspects of dominance, we shall now take a closer look at subordinacy and the varying forms it may assume. It is in these differences between subordinate styles that the most crucial keys can be found for a thorough understanding of ''all'' personality differences and the dynamic relations between them. And this includes an understanding of the working of the virtual "Good-Bad" dimension. Variation between subordinate roles in terms of tolerance and acceptedness, in terms of incrowd-outcast differences, and so forth, are reported from social psychological research as well as from research on other socially living mammal species. In general, it appears that individuals who do not manage to attain a dominant role ('''α'''-position in fig.1(???*********)) may either stay in a subordinate position while adapting to existing rule, or tend to lose their in-crowd position. Accepted (incrowd-)subordinates ('''β'''-position in fig.1(*******??)) may gradually grow into a semi-outcast or outcast position (ω-position in fig.1(*******??)). Such outcast-like subordinates are potential migrators, running all the risks implied ('''ω''' — > '''α''' ; or '''ω''' - >dead), whereas the better accepted incrowd-type subordinates, who show a better adaption to existing hierarchical pressures eventually may succeed the dominant(s) present in case of death or otherwise incapacitation of the latter ('''β''' —> '''α'''). Especially in relation to dispersal mechanisms operating through young individuals, such differences in social-role types have frequently been observed (Wilson, 1977; Barash, 1977). (Similar descriptions have been given for e.g., deermice (Healey, 1967), free-living populations of black rats (Ewer, 1971,pp. 135-137), free-living lions (Bertram, 1975) rhesus monkeys (Vandenbergh, 1966), free-living japanese monkeys (Itani et al., 1963; Yamada, 1966) and by Eisenberg et al.(1972) for a number of primate species.) Bertrand (1969) reports the occurrence of "scapegoats" in stumptail-macaques and de Waal (1975) in java monkeys. The latter reports that high ranking individuals often formed alliances against the lowest ranking adults or adolescents although each of the highranking monkeys clearly dominated the scapegoat in question also without any help of others. De Waal (1975,p.530) suggests: ''"...., one might suppose that higher-ranking groupmembers "work off their mutal irritations and tensions" in that way. In other words: the (inevitable) confrontations between them facilitate aggressiveness, which is not expressed in aggressive actions between each other, but in cooperative aggression (re)directed at subordinates which serve as "scapegoats"."'' Whatever the reason for this "mobbing against scapegoats" may be, it certainly enlarges already existing differences between '''β'''- and '''ω'''-type subordinates. == Good-Bad labeling for the consolidation of Social Roles == {{level|3}}Having thus reviewed the various morphs to be found in the realm of social interactive behaviour and the meaning of the summarizing 2-dimensional circumplex model of social behaviour, we can conclude that evidently individuals may move from one social role into the other, but that nevertheless at any specific time and place an individual tends to behave according to a certain specific social morph. These different social roles or social positions do have a certain stability, at least at any one time and place. For that reason such social-role patterns also emerge as part of the personality differences domain. As can be derived from social-psychological and from ethological literature, it appears that in humans such social role characteristics follow similar dynamic rules as in other socially living mammals. Also, they are effectuated and consolidated by the same automatic reflexes. This means that reflexes of attraction and repulsion and the concomitant aggressive behaviours operate in humans in a similar way as in other social mammals. And that in turn implies that the results of these social reflexes are not hampered by cognitive processes like sober assessment of the other person's factual behavioural characteristics, i.e. of his or her "personality". To see what this means in practice, we can take a closer look at what happens cognitively in the field of attraction and repulsion between individuals interacting in the social-psychological sphere. Referring to the figure ........... **********************(eenvoudig circumplex-figure from Escaping from chaos) above(???*******), the way the different social role-players perceive and judge each other can show us something interesting. An '''α'''-male is regarded differently by an '''ω'''-type subordinate than by a '''β'''-type subordinate, even if the '''α''''s behaviour is the same. An '''α''''s organizational and directive talent may be regarded by an incrowd '''β'''-type subordinate as "thorough and supportive", while the Omega-type subordinates describe the same '''α'''-behaviour as "nosy" and "insistent". It very much depends on the social role of the rater how this behaviour of the rated '''α''' is labeled. Similarly, certain, conformative behaviour of a '''β'''-subordinate may be experienced and judged by one individual, another '''β''', as "realistic" and "reliable", whereas the same behaviour is experienced by an '''ω'''-type subordinate as "cowardice" and "indifferent". In fact, for describing any set of social behaviour, we have a double set of adjectives at our disposal, one set with a positive connotation and one set with a negative connotation. The positive set is for instance utilized when an '''α''' judges a '''β''' subordinate or a '''β'''-type judges another '''β'''-subordinate. And the negative set is utilized when an '''α''' judges an '''ω'''-type subordinate or a '''β''' subordinate judges an '''ω'''-type subordinate or when an '''ω''' judges his '''α''' counterpart. What is important to note here, is that the differences in social roles between rater and ratee determine whether the personality characteristics are experienced and labeled in a "positive" way or in a "negative"way. So, in that way the Good-Bad colouring does not refer to actual behaviour, but to the social relationship between rater and ratee. In summary, an important personality dimension, which does not relate to one or another observable behaviour of the rated person in question is the Evaluation-dimension 'Positive - versus Negative Appreciatedness'. It's score depends on, but is certainly not identical with, the respective social roles and the (social) skills prevalent between and within the rater and the ratee. From literature it appears that the 'Appreciatedness'-dimension is a typically human attribute, supported by widespread evidence (Horst, 1968; Benjamin, 1974). When forming an opinion concerning other people, humans apparently are leaning strongly on this dimension, which in reality serves as a tool for the individual in his struggle to assert his position in the socio-dynamic processes at the level of social roles. Benjamin (1974) points out that classifying the social-role behaviour of Ss. is only possible after correcting the data for the influence of this dimension of "Appreciation" or "Social Desirability". Van der Molen (1981a) postulates that for claiming and sustaining social roles, individuals tend to focus on 'appreciation' of the ratee instead of on "unbiased estimation" of a ratee's qualities. Individuals thus activate a mechanism which actually serves to obscure opportunities for pure assessment of other peoples qualities. The tendency to be blinded by 'Appreciation' causes involuntary social reflex mechanism of repulsion and attraction to operate fully, without being disturbed by sober and intelligent use of the human faculty to assess people's qualities. He concludes: ''"In this way primitive mechanisms of social selection can operate without being disturbed by our intellectual faculties."'' In this chapter we are primarily discussing the importance of this '''blindness for behavioural reality''', to figure out what it means for how personality dimensions interact, come about and are structured, but its importance is reaching further. It is also crucial for being able to understand population cycles and the concomitant sources of periodic large catastrophes (see [[The biological instability of social equilibria|here('''***''')]] for more information). The ability to avoid being trapped by the tendency to indulge in Positive versus Negative Evaluation therefore is likely to be a prerequisite for manipulating population- and group-cycles at will. And since human population- and group-dynamics tend to be worked out nowadays at the level of (nuclear) war, genocide and economic strangling techniques, the skill of controlling such population-dynamic forces might be a prerequisite for man's survival. In view of the above, this also requires that mankind will manage to transcend the dictates of the primitive Good-Bad social reflexes and blindness. == The Good-Bad dimension as blinding tool protecting social behavioural reflexes == {{level|3}}So, what we see here is that the "Good-Bad" personality dimension not only does '''not''' refer to any real behaviour, but that it works as a blinding tool, hiding our own social reflexes from our intellectual faculties. In fact, the Good-Bad colouring of our judgements enables the primordial social reflexes to operate without being modified by intelligent thinking. Strikingly, this blinding tool is the largest and one of the most important dimensions of personality. It roughly coincides with the first (unrotated) principal component of personality descriptive adjectives, covering about ........... (look up)************ % of all covariance. Besides, a major part of all personality descriptive adjectives shows some correlation with this first principal component, which means that most of these adjectives have to some degree a positive or a negative flavouring or bias. The consequence thereof is that for most types of personality characteristics there roughly is a double set of descriptive adjectives, a positive set and a negative set. In the euclidian space of behavioural interactions, judgements and self-assessments, analyses of our verbal repertoire show that in factor analyses of the covariances between the words, labels and phrases, the first principal component before rotation is always the dimension of "Good versus Bad" or something closely related. And, as pointed out above, this apparently most important assessment tool is not related whatsoever with any actual behaviour. It is only related with how the observer or judge is, for personal reasons beyond his own understanding, emotionally colouring in cognitively the behaviours he observes. Apparently, in human evolution it has been more important to protect social-interactive reflexes from intelligent manipulation than assessing soberly any major real personality characteristics. In other words, our cognitive faculties are first of all utilized to establish a blindness for our own social behaviours and only subsequently can be utilized to assess each other's behaviour. Blinding comes first, sober assessment comes last. This specific blindness for social role behaviour is just part of a more general tendency to be blind to one's own and to each other's behaviour. This is more extensively discussed in the chapter "[[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]]". In that chapter it is also pointed out that the reason for this Blindness to the Self is to prevent Intelligence from interfering with the own personal behavioural reflexes and why this is so. == Breaking out of the customary intelligence ceiling == ✰ <level 1> As elaborated on in [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|the above mentioned chapter]], blindness evolved to enable us to break out of the customary intelligence ceiling as found in other intelligent species. It is pointed out there that intelligence may / might be used to find – easier - shortcuts to short term satisfaction. And such shortcuts are quite likely to outflank the collateral behavioural effects of those primordial instincts, collaterals that serve procreational purposes, for which reasons those instincts were evolutionarily selected for in the first place. So, intelligence, applied to our own behaviour, therefore quickly leads to sterile behaviour, no matter how satisfactory from a personal emotional (very proximal) point of view. Our hominid ancestors however, still less intelligent at that time in evolution, were living in circumstances where a high intelligence did indeed yield very high premiums. Complex communication skills for instance would increase the effectiveness of group hunting tremendously. Better communication and other advantages of intelligence would enable those hominids to become far more effective hunters. However, a too high intelligence, higher than the "intelligence ceiling", would on the other hand yield detrimental procreational effects if applied to the own (social) behaviour. There was, in those pre-human ancestors of ours, a strong structural conflict situation between proximate reasons for behaviour and the ultimate reasons for the same behaviour. Therefore our hypothesis is this: mother nature finally came up with a solution for this stalemate evolutionary situation. It invented in our hominid ancestors a specific awareness block regarding the own behaviour. And once this specific "Blindness for the Self" was emerging, the evolution of intelligence could carry on, also beyond the aeons old upper limit or upper ceiling as applicable in all other "intelligent" animal species. If this hypothesis is correct, a superior capacity for language and for complex communication and for tool making only could develop in our human ancestors "in exchange for" blindness for the Self. Built in blindness and well consolidated ignorance towards the self have therefore been the key to the evolution of higher human intelligence. And if our hypothesis is correct, this condition for a higher intelligence would hold for any form of intelligence, evolving wherever in the universe. With this in mind we can now understand why in the realm of personality descriptive adjectives there exists such an important part that serves to protect social reflexes from being hampered by intelligent interference. That part is the Good-Bad colouring of personality descriptive adjectives, just virtual, not real, but nevertheless of crucial importance. == Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness == {{level|2}}So, for evolutionary reasons, we have a peculiar situation in Homo sapiens. We can put a man on the moon, we can dive to the bottom of the deepest oceans, we have produced Hydrogen bombs, but . . . . . . we cannot think clearly in front of a mirror and we cannot soberly assess each other's social behaviour. Very strange indeed ! But now we can at least understand how this strange situation came about. In summary, it is quite obvious that we are not capable of understanding our own behaviour, let alone organize it in a mutually useful way. It seems for instance far more easy to organize war involuntarily than to organize lasting peace. This failure to understand our own behaviour can indeed also be corroborated by vast quantities of psychological research from the last half century. It appears that human beings possess an uncanny capacity to not-see how they are functioning themselves. We are struck with a very strong form of blindness for our own emotions, motivations and feelings. Of course, we do have some sort of notion of what we feel, what we see and what we want, but, as an overwhelming avalanche of scientific psychological research shows, these personal, internal notions differ greatly from reality. (See for instance: Bateson, 1972,1979, Dixon, 1976, Laing, 1967,1969,1970) What is more, human beings in fact spend surprising amounts of energy and brain capacity to mystify and hide their own behaviour from sober and intelligent investigation, by themselves as well as by each other. And the first principal component of all personality descriptive adjectives is one of the results thereof. Evidently, it appears that this typical blindness, blocking our awareness and thinking power in certain areas, does have a significant evolutionary advantage. This human blindness apparently is an ESS, an Evolutionarily Stable Strategy, and the first principal component of all personality descriptive adjectives is part of this E.S.S. It may be virtual and unreal, but it is evolutionarily very important nevertheless. In the chapter [[Self-blindness_in_humans_as_prerequisite_for_the_evolution_of_advanced_intelligence#Towards_.22Amathology.22_or_the_science_of_ignorance|"Self blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence"]] it is therefore argued to establish a research discipline of "Amathology" or the science of ignorance. Figuring out how precisely this Blindness ESS works out in the realm of personality psychology, should in fact be one of the main targets of Amathology. == Physical energy spent on maintaining blindness and illusion == {{level|2}}*********** Dit qua energie beter specificeren, b.v. halsslagader % bloed *********** '''(Is dit dubbel ????)'''*************** From these personality psychological research data it appears that it must apparently be of great evolutionary importance that our cognitive system spends so much processing capacity and time on maintaining the notion of Good versus Bad and the blindness for the Self coming with it. Evidently, being the most important of all dimensions of human assessment and social judgement, this cognitive dimension also consumes a considerable part of the energy consumption in our brain. Our brain is one of the most energy consuming parts of our body. Our carotid arteries are relatively wide compared to those of other, closely related, species. We humans spend the greater part of our time on thinking. And a considerable part of that thinking time is spent on thinking about our own and other people's behaviour and what it means to us. Being socially living mammals this is of crucial and vital importance to us. And as the above mentioned factoranalyses of the conceptual tools of that thinking show, the larger part of all that energy is spent on the first principal component of all those concepts and ideas, taking care of colouring in what we see and think with the delusive colours of "Good", "Bad", "pro- and con-". This underlines again empirically the great biological and evolutionary importance of this blinding dimension of Good and Bad. == In summary (???)== An important part of all personality descriptive adjectives etc. are not correlated with any actual behaviour, but are used to maintain a colouring of the personality characteristics with strikes of goodness versus strikes of badness, thus inducing and stabilizing an attitude of support for or of resistance against the rated person in question. Sober and objective assessment of persons' behaviour is thus replaced by cognitively hiding the actual behaviours in question and by the creation of an emotional foundation for the already existing social role relationship between rater and ratee. Intelligent objective assessment is thus replaced by unhampered primordial social reflexes, serving primordial evolutionary targets for our species. This good-bad dimension in personality research is so overwhelmingly important that it can be found in multivariate statistical analyses as the unrotated first principal component in factor analysis. The largest part of the correlations between personality descriptive adjectives is therefore not describing any actual behaviour or actual personality characteristics at all, but is just a tool for cognitively protecting primordial, primitive social reflexes against sober intellectual investigation. It should be possible to calculate from basic correlation matrixes of personality descriptive adjectives and from basic fysiological data on blood streams to the human head, how much of human energy is on average spent on maintaining a specific blindness towards own and other people's characteristics in order to protect crucial social reflexes from being understood intellectually. == Other evolutionary advantages of blindness for self and the Good-Bad or Appreciatedness dimension of personality == {{level|1}}Power structures of course derive advantage from concealing that they “steal” human well being and happiness. And the best way to conceal that is to strengthen the already typical human blindness for the own behaviour, reflexes and feelings and subsequently to use that area of murky perception for inducing the dictums, norms and rules that the power structure needs. However, the latter are norms and rules that would tend to induce aversive feelings in its carriers, us modern humans, in particular in case these dictums and rules could be perceived clearly and undistortedly. (********** dit dubbel ???)********To achieve this required level of blindness, a basic trick and cornerstone of all existing large power structures is the central notion of “Good and Bad” and of “primal sin”. As shown in this chapter, the Good and Bad dimension is one of the most conspicuous and striking features of the human system of assessment and judgement. We do spend enormous amounts of time and energy to keep this illusive notion of "Good and Bad" upright and kicking. It does direct human normative systems and rules of behaviour and channels our social behaviour as well. In fact, that dimension of "Good and Bad" takes care of the consolidation of our social relations and social predictability. It helps us to socially "stay in place" and it automatically makes us act as to try keeping other people socially "in place" as well. == The illusory aspects of the Positive/negative or Good/Bad dimension == {{level|2}}Strikingly however, as pointed out above, it can also be shown from ethological research on humans, that this Good-Bad dimension, being one of our major tools of social behaviour, does not correlate whatsoever with actual behaviour. Of course the notions of good and bad are quite useful in describing what is good for our health and survival and what is physically harmful. As such there is no problem and it shall be clear that such notions must be of crucial importance for our communication about what to avoid and what to strive after. However, there has evolved a catch in us humans. Applying these notions of Good and Bad on our own behaviour and on the behaviour of others appears to be a tricky business. Rather than just labelling other individuals as Good or Bad, which certainly also happens, we humans tend to colour any judgement or qualification with either a positive, wished for variety of that judgement, or to colour it in with a negative, not wanted variety of the same descriptive qualification. For instance, a boss who is renowned to be a very effective and strong leader, issuing clear directives to his subordinates, in general is perceived and judged quite differently by different subordinates. A subordinate who is always compliant with the directives in the department and has no difficulty in following clear and strict instructions from above ('''β'''-like), is more likely to describe the style of management of the boss in question in positive terms like "strong, energetic, dynamic, bold and charismatic", whereas a subordinate who has difficulties in adapting to the existing rules and limitations of the department and who may be at the verge of being dismissed as "not sufficiently in compliance with company needs and directives", is more likely to describe that same style of management of the boss rather as "bossy, insensitive, dictatorial, repressive, autocratic and despotic". Listening to both types of judges, one would not expect them to describe the same person (that boss) in the same working situation. (For more information about these cognitive reflexes distorting our judgement of other individuals and of ourselves, see the [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|article on Social Role Blindness]].) In a similar vein, people in love describe their partner in positive, flowery terms, whereas that same partner's characteristics will be described in very negative terms once the relationship has broken down. Typically, the judging person will ascribe that to a dramatic change in the behaviour of that partner, but in general the judgee has not changed that much as the change of judgement suggests. For the persons issuing those judgements, it is almost impossible to objectively recognize the importance of the changes in their own perception. == Effect of the "double standard" == {{level|2}} Without being aware of it, we humans are in fact applying a "double" toolbox of qualifications, carrying positive sets of qualificative descriptions and negative sets of qualificative descriptions. Whereas such positive or negative qualifications in fact often refer to the same actual behaviours, we human judges, applying these judgement sets, are not aware that the positive or negative colourings of these judgements are just our own imagination. We are not aware that the positively judged behaviour is actually the same as the negatively judged behaviour, even in cases where we can show experimentally that the behaviour in question is or was exactly the same. (For more information about this type of research, see the chapter on [["Good and Bad, an illusory dimension as the cornerstone of human personality"]].) So, apart from being very simple and useful tools for describing what items in our environment are harmful or beneficial to us, the Good and Bad differences also serve to colour all types of descriptive qualifications of one's own and other people's behaviours. In fact, by that mechanism, we are utilizing double sets of descriptions for behaviour. At the same time, we ascribe reality value to those positive and negative descriptions, beyond the actual objective assessment of what kind of behaviour has or shall occur. In other words, we, as judges, do not know that the qualifications we apply for ourselves and other people, express in particular whether we are in favour of that person, or not. We utilize a complete descriptive set of behaviours and characteristics on the positive side as well as a complete descriptive set of behaviours and characteristics on the negative side. But we do hold the differences between those two sets for actual behavioural differences, which they are not. Those differences just and only exist in our heads. The only effect they have on us, is that they do consolidate and stabilize our attitude to the judged persons in question. In that way these double judgement sets obscure reality from our sober perception and what in fact happens is that primordial social reflexes of attraction and repulsion are consolidated and stabilized by the colouring in of our cognitive social world, protecting them from intelligent investigation and understanding. In summary, the positive - negative colouring in of judgements and assessments of behaviour, which we could label as the Good versus Bad dimension, just serves to subjectively colour our perception of behaviour and is thus merely a tool of directing our own reactions on behaviour. Instead of helping to sort out reality, it serves to mask reality and blocks a clean and sober understanding of the behaviours observed. In other words, the evidently most important tool we humans utilize for assessing our own and each other’s behaviour is a tool that primarily serves for enforcing our blindness for behaviour. Apparently, it evolutionarily pays off for us humans to spend a major part of our intellectual activity and our energy on this blinding tool of mystification and delusion. == The tale of Adam and Eve, the result of eating the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil == {{level|2}}In spite of needing to maximize confusion in their carriers (us) about the carrier's own behaviour(al impulses), a number of great religions harbour the tale of Adam and Eve, who were thrown out of paradise after eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and bad. This tale is in fact a very adequate summary of what has been delineated in the pages above and what is the most basic condition of mankind. What the tale summarizes is what happened since the beginning of the agricultural revolution, when meme-level power structures took over the lead in human evolution and we humans had to get adapted to the basic requirements of such power structures, the "N-needs". From that point in time on, we humans started to suffer from the friction between our primordial P-feelings and the newly imposed N-needs (for more details about "P-feelings" and "N-needs" see [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22|here]]). The N-needs brought with them the illusory, but very strong notions about "good" and "evil", growing on the tree of the tale. What followed was ever more confusion and stress and a massive spreading of fear and neuroticism, gradually becoming the norm, rather than the exception. In short, humanity fell out of Eden, out of Paradise. The implication was not so much a falling away from intelligent thinking. The superior intelligence of Homo sapiens had already been blocked against tampering with the own behaviour for hundreds of thousands of years. Those specific awareness blocks already were in place in a relatively organic and harmonious way. No, when the agricultural revolution started it was rather a process of being drowned ever further into swamps of fear, intimidation and organized lies. Escaping from mass neuroticism became ever more difficult. Humanity fell out of Eden in a very real sense. In a very real sense life has become hell for us since that time. So, on the one hand these great religions refer to and harbour the feeling deep within that something has gone tremendously wrong and that there is potentially available a very different option in our human behavioural repertoire of possibilities, an option that we lost somewhere in our history. On the other hand the religions tell us that the loss of that much more pleasant option has been our own fault, is due to our own failure, thus imposing a very deep feeling of guilt and fear into our hearts and minds. Understanding the above, it shall be clear that putting the blame on us humans is very far from the truth indeed. As we pointed out elsewhere on this Wiki, the emergence of the meme-level power structures taking over the evolutionary lead, was unavoidable, once the evolution of human intelligence had reached a certain level. It was unavoidable and a consequence, to happen sooner or later, of the very existence of an intelligence of that level. So, there never has been, nor could there exist, any responsibility on our side for any of this happening. So, putting this particular blame for being thrown out of Eden on our necks, is just one - but a very powerful one - example of how power structures keep us subdued in neurotic misery, how they keep us malleable and predictable carriers of the power structure's memes in question. This illustrates quite clearly how parts of the truth of our situation are absorbed in an intricate system of fairy tales and lies and are converted into a tool of confusion and enslavement rather than being used as tools for bringing truth and understanding and - possibly - liberation. Hier ergens opnieuw de figuur met het periodiek systeem van pers.heids dimensies er in zetten (= #13) == Personality: virtual versus real == {{level|3}}In 1963 Benjamin J. Kouwer published "Het spel van de persoonlijkheid: Theorieën en systemen in de psychologie van de menselijke persoon". In that famous work he concluded among other things that something like "personality" did not exist. Under scrutiny, "Personality" ended up being not much more than an effect of social interaction between people, the result of a sort of social "game". He explains that a psychological researcher can peel off layer after layer of what seems like a notion of personality differences and that after having explained one layer, another layer emerges, inviting further research by the researcher and also not surviving under scrutiny as a real thing. So he shows that one can peel off all the personality layers, ending up with empty hands. There is no final "kernel" of "real" personality. As shall be clear from the previous pages, we are of the opinion that reality in the realm of personality differences looks somewhat different. Kouwer's view indeed is well applicable to the most important of all principal components in factoranalytic analyses of personality differences. The Good-Bad dimension, dimension #13 in figure ............. (******), needs to be understood well before anyone can hope to understand the whole of the world of personality differences. Dimension #13 may be virtual and not referring to real behaviour, but it is a crucial factor, needed to understand the dynamics of social role distributions and to understand the role of the underlying temperamental personality differences. So, referring to fig. .............. above, dimension #13 is purely Kouwerian. Besides, the dimensions of social role patterns, #9 and #10, are also Kouwerian, in the sense that they refer to behavioural characteristics that are only stable in certain situations at certain times. Social roles of a person differ and change in time and are always defined and limited to certain specific situations or places. So, these personality differences are real, yes, but they are not very stable characteristics of a person. People want to and need to utilize these notions of social role differences, but in the Kouwerian process of peeling off layers of "personality", these two dimensions also end up on the pile of peels. Subsequently, #11 in figure ....... refers to the - various - skill dimensions. One may read this as one general dimension of general skill level, just to ponder the function this #11 dimension has in the interactions between the various sources of personality. However, in factoranalytic analyses more than one dimension of skills tend to emerge. Anyway, focussing on one or on more skill dimensions, this part of personality differences also tends to end up on Kouwer's pile of peels. Learned skills are something else than congenital trait differences. However, fig. ............. shows that after partialling out dimensions #13, #9, #10 and #11(multiple), some (3) dimensions remain that look very much like what one would consider to be congenital differences in temperament (## 6,7 and 8, equivalent to ##1,2 and 3 or to ##1,5 and 6, depending on the preferred rotation). And whereas these temperamental trait dimensions only account for a minor percentage of all covariances analysed, they do form the functional and theoretical basis of all personality differences, from which basis all the other dimensions, skills (#11), social roles (#9 and #10) and including the virtual Good-Bad dimension #13, are emerging. Concluding, Kouwer(1963) suggested that all personality dimensions could be peeled off successively, leaving an empty hole in the end. On this Wiki it is argued that this Kouwerian look mainly applies to the (virtual) Good-Bad dimension, often the first unrotated principal component in factor-analyses, but not to the remainder of the personality dimensions. The social role dimensions may not be very stable, but they are quite real and functionally clear to understand. The Skill dimensions also are real, though also not the same as congenital traits. The remaining 3 dimensions of temperamental traits may be just a minor % of the personality domain, but they are real and congenitally fixed, fulfilling all the requirements of personality that Kouwer did not find. All in all, it stays a striking finding that the Good-Bad dimension, the largest dimension of all, is just virtual. This underlines once more how important it is for Homo sapiens to spend so much time and energy in the blinding of intelligence in relation to the social role interactions. This can only be because for evolutionary reasons it was of such crucial importance that Homo sapiens would continue to follow his primordial instincts regarding the reflexes between the alpha, bèta and omega roles. And that indeed is the effect of dimension #13. On the one hand we may conclude that personality dimension #13 is virtual and not real and that it is the final result of congenital trait differences, of learned skills and of social role interactions and that it describes as an end result the interactions between judge and judgee, not referring at all to any actual behaviour of the rated person. But, for understanding the whole of the personality domain and for understanding in particular the dynamic relationships between the various classes of personality differences, it is indispensable to first understand the working of this virtual Good-Bad dimension. This illusory personality dimension is indeed the cornerstone of any understanding of personality. 1t1uq23q3b9q2mrkig17euvs2ry15lg 0 110 1323 2009-01-04T11:00:00Z Baby Boy 2 New page: This page is still under construction. For the time being you may refer to the summary: [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|Point Omega]]. wikitext text/x-wiki This page is still under construction. For the time being you may refer to the summary: [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|Point Omega]]. day6fj29nf0oi6j887tum3x8ckav20x 0 111 1340 2009-01-04T14:43:22Z Baby Boy 2 New page: Under construction wikitext text/x-wiki Under construction ph84ddo3wqkhrnv4a4e6qlyj57ctf74 0 112 1347 2009-01-23T09:10:59Z 94.212.231.126 New page: blah blah __TOC__ == Section a == dfdf == Section b == dfdf == Section c == dfdfd wikitext text/x-wiki blah blah __TOC__ == Section a == dfdf == Section b == dfdf == Section c == dfdfd fl481uz93pf56foz72zo818es75nfiq 0 113 1371 1370 2009-05-14T03:04:20Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki Anyone with a genuine interest in these matters is invited to contribute and improve the contents of this Wiki. Our general goal is to help lift mankind to its next higher level of existence. Copyright is to be interpreted as "don't copy wrong". 7mktw9qere37yo7p9zfsu7zg2u8ygp6 0 114 5880 3357 2014-09-11T14:18:12Z Baby Boy 2 /* Religion imposing non-understanding */ wikitext text/x-wiki <big>'''Comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion"'''</big> On Dawkins's website, there's also a [http://search.barnesandnoble.com/bookSearch/isbnInquiry.asp?isbn=0593055489 description] of this book (ISBN 0-906649-74-X) of his with links to online book stores. == Introduction == (from Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") This recent book by Richard Dawkins is another milestone in the battle of enlightened minds against customary superstition in this world, a beacon for determined seekers for truth who are trying to find their way in a sea of ignorance and misconceptions. Dawkins analyses the central role that religion plays in forming, maintaining and consolidating common belief systems, no matter how improbable, deluded and harmful these belief system seem to be from an intelligent point of view. With the eloquence of a professional writer and the thoroughness of a seasoned scientific researcher, he presents the phenomenon of religious beliefs in all its ramifications in and its disquieting effects on human society. It is, as it always was, generally accepted knowledge, that "nowadays" we do live in an enlightened society and that superstition and organized ignorance are weird phenomena from the middle ages, from our immature past. As Dawkins eloquently shows, this is a grave misconception. Superstition and aggressively organized ignorance rule our present, just as they ruled our past, with all their disastrous consequences. Dawkins suggests to utilize the word God with greater care, because the way many scientists use that word in a special, metaphorical pantheistic sense, is aeons away from the intervening, miracle performing, thought reading, sins punishing, prayers granting God of the bible, of the priests, mullahs and rabbis and from the customary usage of the word. Dawkins points out that religion helps to keep our minds closed to the mechanisms behind many of the eternal plagues of mankind, like war, genocide, suppression, starvation and, nowadays, the worldwide destruction of our environment. In his introduction he describes how utterly difficult it is for intelligent people to insist on understanding instead of yielding to mindless superstition, how difficult it is to avoid being ostracised for just seeking truth. In particular in well known great leaders of mankind in science and in politics it is often well visible how seriously such people have been or still are struggling with the overwhelming aggressiveness of the superstitious belief systems they have to live and work in and in which they have to survive one way or the other. As an example Einstein is quoted, saying: "I belief in Spinoza's God who reveals itself in the harmonious order of all that exists, not in a God that meddles with the fate and destiny of mortal beings." And Bertrand Russell is quoted, saying: "The overwhelming majority of prominent intellectuals doesn't belief in the christian faith, but they conceal that fact in public in order not to lose their income". Such battered, intelligent souls find crucial and badly needed support in contacts with other intelligent persons who find themselves in the same minority position. Dawkins says that he took the effort to write this book, among other reasons, to encourage intelligent people to "come out of the closet" and stop hiding their real convictions, making it easier for other intelligent fellow sufferers to find the badly needed support and encouragement to resist the overwhelming and devastating pressure of organized stupidity. He hopes that sooner or later a chain reaction in the right direction may occur, once a certain "critical mass" of intelligent people, insisting on the truth, has been reached. This is in line with what is described on this Wiki about the critical mass leading to Point Omega, [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|the next major change in human evolution]](*). == Climbing Mount Improbable == (from Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") One of the recurring issues in discussions with theists is their argument that complex biological phenomena and complex physical functions never can have evolved gradually, because they consist of too many parts that only function together and not separately and that therefore a gradual growth towards such a multifaceted complexity cannot well be conceived. Dawkins tackles this argument with what he labels as "the parable of Climbing Mount Improbable". Imagine a mountain with one very steep side, that is impossible to climb, whereas the other side of the mountain is a gradual slope giving an easy access to the top. (On) that top is a complex organ, for example an eye or the protozoan whip-rotor propulsion apparatus (flagella). Regarding the complexity of such organs as impossible to develop spontaneously, is like looking at the organ at the top from the steep side of the mountain. From that side, it is impossible to climb the mountain from the abyss and leap to the top in one big jump. Evolution however, follows the easy route around the mountain and reaches the top along the gradual slope: piece of cake! The combination lock of life is a mechanism that works through the principle of "cold, cold, warmer, hot". Real life always is looking for the gradual slopes at the other side of Mount Improbable, whereas creationists see nothing but the discouragingly steep side. The principle of climbing the gradual slope instead of trying to jump along the steep abyss is so utterly simple, that one almost asks oneself why it took so awfully long before a Darwin appeared with that discovery, revealing the self-evident. (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") However, we should ask here the right questions. We should note that it is not so much Darwin's insights that were so remarkable, but rather the striking and massive ignorance that he was challenging. How on earth could such massive stupidness exist for such a long time ? Imagine an extraterrestrial intelligence discovering earth and mankind. Then it would be quite difficult to explain that a species (our own) that on the one hand is capable of setting up complex organizations, can produce aircrafts for hundreds of passengers, huge submarines, and vessels diving to the deepest ocean floors, and that has put nuclear power into operation, is on the other hand showing such a staggering ignorance, such a massive stupidness regarding anything about its own behaviour. Such stupidness seems quite incompatible with the very apparent intelligence levels as are shown in the other walks of life. [[Further reading|K. Sterelny]] is one of the authors who are bringing this strange discrepancy to our attention. He challenges his scientific colleagues, and also us in general, to find an answer to the question why on earth human beings have reached such a high level of intelligence while at the same time being so strikingly stupid and silly. It would indeed seem quite difficult to explain this discrepancy to some visiting extraterrestrials. Unless ............. these strangers would have grasped the general evolutionary rules for intelligence whenever it would emerge anywhere in the universe. (And they probably would have by the time they would have acquired enough skills and knowledge to be able to contact other intelligences far away in the universe. They would simply asses our situation as "being incidently in one of the well known and unavoidable, but passing and short lived, stages of the evolution of intelligence".) In this Wiki it is explained why this utter delay in the discovery of the obvious, this incomprehensible level of collective stupidity and blindness, lasting until today, could occur, why it is that such striking examples of massive misconception and ignorance are so persistent and what is the evolutionary role and function of it. It is shown [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|here]], that this blindness phase in human evolutionary history is logical and necessary and could never have been avoided. It is shown also how such blindnesses exert their evolutionary function and in which way they will eventually lose their function and be overcome and how they will disappear from human existence in the next phase of our evolution. This will happen very very slowly and gradually in terms of genetical predispositions, but rather sudden in terms of phenotypical expression. == Religion imposing non-understanding == (from Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") Dawkins points out that creationists have produced in the course of time a continuing stream of examples of complex organs that should presumably be impossible to be conceived of as the result of gradual evolution. However, until now never one of such proposed examples has stood up to scrutiny. Every single one of them proved to be explainable by the usual evolutionary mechanisms of gradual changes and development. Darwin already pointed out that if at any time only one such example could be found, which could not logically be explained with the usual evolutionary principles and rules, that such one example in one stroke would nullify his evolutionary theories. In fact, such an example would be world news and would attract the immediate attention of hordes of scientists. But, such a thing never happened. As a consequence, the evolutionary ideas of Darwin and his colleagues still prevail, in spite of the uneducated ravings of creationists and such. Dawkins points out furthermore that in these cases it is in particular organized religion that feels threatened by evolutionary thinking and that organized religion emphatically teaches to be happy with non-understanding and with settling for the religion's own childishly simplistic pictures of the world. (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The confusing role of established religions|On this Wiki(**)]] we show that organized religion does indeed induce non-understanding regarding many aspects of human life, and especially the more important and evolutionary aspects. In that way religion is one of the major tools with which human beings are kept unawares of the very basics of their very existence. In fact, this unawareness is an expression of the evolutionary requirement for humans: to be by and large unable to think clearly about their own behavior. Organized religion very well helps to do just that. It thus keeps us religious humans procreating rather automatically, unhampered by too much insight in consequences, possibilities and alternatives. In turn, this is also conducive for a further expansion of the religion in question, which in reality and implicitly is that meme set's evolutionary "goal". == Unbelievable evolution ? == (from Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") The evolutionary changes or transitions that have most strongly challenged scholars to find the evolutionary ways along which these transitions could come about are the following three events: 1) The emergence of Life itself from inanimate matter; 2) The emergence of the Eukaryotic cell; 3) The emergence of Awareness. Creationists focus in particular on these transitions in evolution, propagating the notion that it is highly improbable that these transitions could result from gradual evolutionary changes, because they each represent a too large and complex change to be explicable through gradual and logical changes in inanimate and in animate matter resulting in a new level of organizational complexity. Dawkins mobilizes the idea of the '''"anthropic principle"''' to tackle these presumed evolutionary improbabilities. He brings forward that these transitions may be or may have been very improbable, but that they are nevertheless not completely impossible. By virtue of the law of large numbers it is then just a matter of sufficient time for such an improbable change to happen nevertheless. And because we happen to live on a planet where evidently these changes did happen, we may conclude that the transitions in question were not too improbable to happen sometime somewhere. And it is of course implicit that we are in exactly that place. (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") We agree with the notion that the above mentioned three transitions in evolution must be very rare events and that much time is involved before such events eventually will emerge. In that sense we can understand the use of the "anthropic principle" argument. On the other hand we feel that these transitions, given enough time, do have to occur sooner or later anyway. Life can be regarded in its most original and primitive form as a configuration of inanimate matter that coincidentally finds itself in a form that enhances the same configuration to occur more often. Such a configuration in fact is then self-enhancing or catalyzing itself to be formed, making such a configuration just a little bit more probable than other, alternative configurations. Such a small difference in probabilities is already enough to start an evolution in inanimate molecules towards a gradual approach of something we would be able to recognize as "self-duplicating molecules" which can be regarded as the first step towards what we recognize as "life". Such a first configuration as a starting point may be rare to occur, but given enough time is is also inevitable that it will occur somewhere someplace. Jackes Monod wrote excellent books and articles on this same consideration in the early seventies, one of his famous titles being [http://dannyreviews.com/h/Chance_and_Necessity.html "Chance and Necessity"]. Bottom line is that no matter how improbable it may seem that life emerges from inanimate matter, it will most certainly and unavoidably happen if the physical circumstances are favorable enough and given enough time. So there is, logically speaking, absolutely no need for postulating the hand of some "God" in order to be able to explain the existence of live matter. So if people adhere to religious fairy tales and such it is apparently not because of a necessity to explain the existence of our world, but rather for other personal reasons, most of which are not very honorable and in fact often are quite destructive for the persons involved or for their environment. == The emergence of "awareness" == (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") Similar considerations hold for the other two much debated transitions. The emergence of "awareness" is one of them. In a similar vein it can be argued that awareness is something quite different from the more basic forms of individual behavioral organization as can be found in larger numbers of more primitive species. At least, that is the argument of creationists, trying to find arguments for needing the hand of an external "creator" or God. However, similar to Monod's arguments, it can be shown that awareness automatically has to occur, once an internal information processing system, e.g., the animal's brain, has evolved far enough to make considerations and calculations on a "meta"-level possible. By then, "awareness" will result inevitably. And successively, so will "self-awareness" follow as soon as the next level of complexity and sophistication has been reached in evolution, simply because further development into that direction pays off evolutionarily. These evolutionary transitions at first sight seem to be difficult to explain in terms of gradual evolutionary adaptations, and - naturally - they are embraced by creationists to defend the need for their God to be indispensable for explaining life as we find it. However, [[Point Omega (summary)|On this Wiki(*)]] it is argued that these are in fact logical and inevitable phases in evolution that most certainly will occur in one form or the other, given enough time. Therefore they do not need any God or other fairy tale to become logically understandable. == The "intelligence barrier" in evolution == (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") So, the above mentioned transitions, from inanimate matter to life, and then to complex cells, and then to awareness, are inescapably occurring phases in the evolution of matter and of life. Besides, it is also argued on this Wiki that the level of "self- awareness" sooner or later automatically leads to higher levels of intelligence. And arriving at a certain level of intelligence is another of such seemingly "impossible" evolutionary steps. This Wiki is dealing with the fact that evolution, moving from more general moderate levels of intelligence to the level of intelligence of Homo sapiens, needed to bridge an evolutionary threshold, that, for very good evolutionary reasons, normally puts a limit to the level of intelligence and awareness in any evolving species. This evolutionary block on intelligence has up till now not yet been pointed out in public among evolutionary scientists, but it is not difficult to explain. Normally, in any species intelligence becomes self defeating in case it rises above a certain level (see [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|here(*)]] for further explanation). The mechanism of this threshold is the reason why in a variety of phyla, whales, mollusks, parrots, corvidae, primates, etc., intelligent capacities have evolved, completely independently from one another, but that in all of the species involved the development of intelligence always stopped at more or less the same level. Apparently, there is a natural maximum to intelligence. That maximum level is around where self-reflection is becoming possible and meta-decisions about the own behavioral strategies are coming within reach. Only Homo sapiens (apparently) escaped from this quite logical evolutionary block and developed a higher level of intelligence than any species in any of the other phyla did. On this Wiki it is explained what made this escape, Homo habilis becoming Homo sapiens, possible. The trick is in the development of a very specific block on human intelligence, namely on all aspects of the own psychological functioning, regarding the Self as well as regarding personal and social relations. Such a specific block on the utilization of intelligence in certain fields of functioning, takes the sting out of the normal evolutionary block on the further development of intelligence, because this block prevents a higher intelligence to have its usual negative effect on procreational capacity. [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|Elsewhere on this Wiki(**)]] it is explained how such an evolutionary block on high intelligence normally works. == The "anthropic principle" argument: coincidentally it is "us" == (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God delusion") From an evolutionary point of view it is purely coincidental that the conquest of the intelligence barrier has been taken by Homo and not by some species of whales or octopuses or crows. In that sense Dawkins' "Anthropic Principle" [[The God Delusion#Unbelievable evolution ?|(see above)]] can be applied. We humans are the most intelligent species on earth, because, whereas both phyla were ready for it, coincidentally that trick occurred in a primate and not in some octopus species. Otherwise clever octopuses would now be studying the behavior of a variety of primates instead of us humans studying the behavior of mollusks. This Wiki is dedicated to spreading awareness about the present day situation of Homo sapiens in that we are standing at the brink of a next transition, point Omega, in which humanity will collectively quite suddenly overcome the cultural programming that boosts and enhances the already genetically built in blocks of intelligence regarding the own behavior. What we will enter then is an evolutionary phase in which the average human individual will develop much better and further than what has been considered "normal" until today. That realization will result in an enormous leap forward in the expression of the already inborn and readily available human intelligence. This will in fact produce such a huge and sudden leap in intelligence actually being expressed, that it is phenotypically an obvious discontinuity in our evolution. == The evolutionary leap of Point Omega == (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God delusion") If creationists would have known about the difficulty of our evolution moving from the previous, more common, level of intelligence of say, 1 to 2 million years ago, towards our present and in particular our future level of intelligence, creationists would certainly have embraced this transition as "impossible to explain evolutionarily". As is shown above ([[The God Delusion#Climbing Mount Improbable|Climbing Mount Improbable]]), that would be completely wrong because although indeed showing a rather sudden and strong leap in phenotypic intelligence, it is all based as usual on very gradual processes of selection and mutation. In fact, on this Wiki it is shown that this development of human intelligence is a good example of how in evolution some phenotypic achievements (may) occur in sudden leaps, simply because for a full deployment certain already built in design characteristics have to be overcome in order to make the novel characteristic express itself fully. For such transitions evolution does not show a smooth and gradual series of changes, but happens in sudden bursts and leaps. Fodder for creationists it seems, but as this Wiki shows, the phenomenon of creationists and other deluded souls are themselves part of the cultural strengthening of the awareness blocks regarding the self, that have been built into the genetic basis of our behavior before the explosive development of human intelligence could start in the first place. Once we all understand the why and how of the existence of "creationists" and all other cultural tricks that keep our already innate self-blindness securely in place, the typically human stupidity will finally understand itself and as a consequence a rather sudden explosion of higher intelligence will grab the whole of humanity. It will be a highly contagious process that nobody can escape from and that nobody in his right mind would want to escape from anyway. In the transition phase it will be primarily the so called "privileged" and powerful, not yet aware that they in particular have all along been taken for a ride, who will resist the awareness to spread. But they will not any more be able to prevent the transition from happening. They will still be a majority, but their majority will have lost its critical mass. At that point in time the minority of enlightened souls will have reached its own critical mass, triggering a chain reaction from that point on, resulting in a mass transition that we call Point Omega. == Usefulness of Religion == (from Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") Dawkins points out that much research has been done to compare the moral and ethical attitudes of religious people as compared to non-religious people. Many institutions, political parties and religious authorities would relish the idea that religion breeds moral and ethical behavior. However, such a correlation, let alone a causal explanation, has never been found. On the contrary, the massive number of attempts to find such an effect, paired to the failure to do so, is an overwhelmingly strong evidence that such a relationship does not exist indeed. If there is any relationship at all, it is rather the other way around. It has been shown by a number of researchers that in our modern and relatively prosperous societies there clearly exists a positive correlation between religious belief and zeal and the frequency of criminal behavior. Also, religion tends to give shape, coordination and direction to human evil behavior. It makes evil behavior more massive and therefore much more dangerous and destructive. Dawkins quotes Blaise Pascal (1670) saying that "One never commits evil deeds so happily and thoroughly as when instigated by religious conviction". And this seems a very accurate and true statement, valid until today. Baseline of Dawkins' comments is that religions are not serving any positive and useful goal in boosting and preserving human "goodness" and in controlling human destructiveness and other evil behavior and that we could better do without these delusive and confusing mind sets. (comments on Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion") But, as one can ask, if religious delusions are so utterly useless, why then are they so common and influential in any modern human society ? Why would such anomalies exist if there was not one or other evolutionary advantage on some level of functioning ? The whole situation looks like an evolutionary anomaly. On this Wiki we defend the notion that religious fervour and zeal do indeed have a specific purpose. Only, they are not useful to the individuals themselves. The individual carriers of these religious notions clearly do have an impaired capacity to see the truth and to grasp the important mechanisms of social life in a sober and coherent way. Cognitively and also in terms of personal flexibility and personal opportunities they are at a strong disadvantage as compared to individuals with a more sober and intelligent mind set. They do carry an enormous load of confusing rubbish with them all their lives. On the other hand the religious zealots may enjoy a more solid embedding in the prevalent culture and derive safety and security from their apparent adaptation to societal norms and requirements. But that then only comes at the high personal price of loss of personal freedom and self sufficiency. Besides, such advantages would also hold in case the communal belief systems were not so full of superstition and lies. As is described on this Wiki, religious zeal and fervour, yes, what is more, the advantage of religious delusions and blindness, yes even the advantage of blocking intelligence and thus reducing the potential useful output of the individuals, do indeed have a high evolutionary advantage. What seems unbelievable and self contradictory on the level of individual functioning and what seems an anomaly from the evolutionary perspectives of human beings, becomes quite logical and "natural" if [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|seen from the perspective of the evolution of "power structures"(*)]], Power Structures being the meme set entities that rule our evolution since the agricultural revolution. It is also shown on this Wiki that this situation, this anomaly of human intelligent faculties being hampered and constricted by all overruling and powerful meme sets of delusion and collective blindnesses and superstitions, no matter how useful they may be from the perspective of the present evolution of "power structure meme sets", are only a [[The significance of the Point Omega transition|transitory state in human evolution(*)]], or rather in the evolution of any hypothetical intelligence in the universe, and that humanity, for purely technical reasons, is at the brink of the next giant evolutionary (phenotypic) leap into a future without further needing religions or any other system of "collective blinding". In that for us humans novel situation our intelligent faculties will no longer be hampered, limited and controlled by the present all pervasive power structures, but can be exploited to the full of their potential, causing an as yet unexpected and for most people unbelievable take off of a truly enlightened society. It is also shown on this Wiki that, because of the underlying mechanisms of the [[Energy and Strokes: how the quality of relationships influences the process of learning and individual development#Chapter 2. An Extension of the Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|contagiousness of human development and social interactions(***)]], this transition, [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|Point Omega(*)]], will happen rather suddenly and at a surprising speed. alajxi593lu402p6c0ab39250bvtutt 0 115 1393 1392 2009-07-15T10:04:51Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki * Name, date of contribution, amount, [http://example.com/ beschrijving] kph13tyc7dorvblg4u9qnofjlpc68qk 0 116 6768 6767 2017-01-16T16:58:31Z Baby Boy 2 /* 5. Positive and Negative Learning Spirals */ wikitext text/x-wiki '''On aggression and the dynamics of learning in the play and struggle called 'life'''' '''By [[Popko van der Molen|Popko P. van der Molen]] & [[Hans van der Dennen|Johan M.G. van der Dennen]]''' Presented at the 1978 Congress of the "Ethologische Gesellschaft" at Basel and at the First Congress of the European Section of the International Society for the Research on Aggression (I.S.R.A.) at Strassburg, sept. 1981. == Table of Contents: == Summary<br/> [[#1. Critical recovery periods, an Experiment|1. Critical recovery periods, an Experiment]]<br/> [[#1.1 Hormonal Feedback|1.1 Hormonal Feedback]]<br/> [[#1.2 Recovery Intervals and Learning|1.2 Recovery Intervals and Learning]]<br/> [[#2. Some models of agonistic behaviour|2. Some models of agonistic behaviour]]<br/> [[#2.1 The Conflict- or Ambivalence Hypothesis|2.1 The Conflict- or Ambivalence Hypothesis]]<br/> [[#2.2 The Psychohydraulic Model: the Catharsis Hypothesis|2.2 The Psychohydraulic Model: the Catharsis Hypothesis]]<br/> [[#2.3 Aggression and Emergency Behavior|2.3 Aggression and Emergency Behavior]]<br/> [[#2.4 Aggression,and Behavioral Reduction versus Behavioral Expansion|2.4 Aggression,and Behavioral Reduction versus Behavioral Expansion]]<br/> [[#3. The Reversal Hypothesis|3. The Reversal Hypothesis]]<br/> [[#4. An Additional Hypothesis: Integration of Theories on Aggression and on Learning|4. An Additional Hypothesis: Integration of Theories on Aggression and on Learning]]<br/> [[#5. Positive and Negative Learning Spirals|5. Positive and Negative Learning Spirals]]<br/> [[#6. The Use of the 'Aggression'-Label as an Element of the Agonistic Repertoire|6. The Use of the 'Aggression'-Label as an Element of the Agonistic Repertoire]]<br/> [[#7. By way of Conclusion|7. By way of Conclusion]]<br/> == '''Summary''' == {{level|2}}A novel model on the dynamics of learning is presented which bears particular significance to the notion of (violent) aggressiveness. It suggests, among other things, that aggressive behavior cannot be properly understood whithout considering the basic dynamics of learning involved, without recognizing the shifting balance between 'striving and playing' and without recognizing the prevailing balance between social skills and 'unskills'. If any of these aspects are not considered, 'Aggression' or 'aggressiveness' will tend to be viewed as a separate phenomenon in its own right - which is unfortunately a widespread habit, not only in daily life, but also among the very investigators of the subject. The very use of labels such as 'Aggressiveness' and 'violence' keeps our attention trapped and hampers awareness of the underlying dynamic behavioral processes . In the first half of this paper some well-known models of aggression are critically reviewed and some of the basic concepts are subsequently integrated with theories of learning and with the 'reversal' hypothesis of antagonistic motivations, which replaces the optimum-arousal theory. An additional hypothesis on the long-term regulation of attention then completes the emerging model of learning. A model which stresses the antagonism between the possible growth of stereotyped and inflexible emergency reactions, and the long-term growth of varieties of subtle and flexible coping-response patterns (skills). The proposed model conflicts with many classical learning-conditioning concepts in that it predicts that the prevailing emotional (telic/paratelic, or centripetal/centrifugal) balance determines whether certain aversive and/or ambivalent stimuli result in the long run in attraction or in repulsion. == 1. Critical recovery periods, an Experiment == {{level|3}}In a series of experiments (Van der Molen, 1979, 1981]), approximately 60 male housemice of the CPB's strain were weaned and isolated at the age of 21 days. Subsequently they were introduced every day or every other day into an unfamiliar observation cage, populated by a group of resident mice showing territorial aggressive behavior towards strangers. Being outnumbered by at least four to one and being on foreign territory, a trainee never had a chance to win and therefore was beaten up every time when introduced, and often slightly wounded. After 5 to 10 days of training, these trainees would immediately show avoidance behavior when being introduced, even when not under attack by any resident mouse at all. There seemed, however, to be some sort of critical training frequency, i.e., if the periods of rest in isolation between the training introductions were too long, the effect of the whole training was the opposite of what was intended in the first place. If an 'experienced animal' or an experienced 'fleeing' trainee was introduced once every week or once every other week instead of every day, he would tend to put up skilled resistance. Such a male did not attack residents, but refrained from 'fleeing frantically' and appeared to 'stand firm' when necessary. By manipulating only the 'training frequency', trainees could be transformed from inexperienced males into either 'fearful fleeing males' or 'skilled fighters'. It should be remembered that neither type of trainee ever won a fight. During every introduction in their training period they had to fight against heavy odds. 'Skilled fighters' simply managed to hold out and fight back now and then without 'running for their lives' frantically. With the procedure described above trainees became either more skilled in fighting or more fearful than inexperienced males. Furthermore, in-experienced males varied more in their reaction patterns than did either of the two classes of trainees. Once a male had become a 'skilled fighter' it was very difficult to reshape him into a 'fearful fleeer' again. Apparently the same type of experience can lead to different learning processes, depending on the input frequency of the experience. The one direction in the learning spiral (deviation-amplifying mutual causal process: Maruyama, 1963) leads to stereotyped and intensive avoidance reactions; the other direction leads to increased skill in offering resistance. Thus the temporal pattern of experience appears to be of great importance for its ultimate effect. Besides, individual mice differed in their critical digestion time for this type of experience; for the CPB's strain males in question it varied between 2 and 6 days. In general, males with a background of 'normal' social experience were rather well able to hold out against avalanches of territorial aggression. A 'normal' social history apparently provided ample opportunity for these mice to 'digest' their aggressive encounters in such a way that they became skilled in dealing adequately with agonistic social situations. The following conclusions were drawn from these experiments: (1) Male housemice can easily be trained in such a way that they perform a uniform type of avoidance behavior when introduced into a strange environment, inhabited by resident mice. (2) The training required for turning an inexperienced male into a 'coward' is almost the same as the training needed to turn him into a 'hero'. The only difference is that in the former training schedule less 'digestion time' is available for every experience than in the latter. (3) This 'critical digestion time' varies somewhat between individuals, and depends i.a. on their life-history. == 1.1 Hormonal Feedback == {{level|3}}A possible explanation of (part of) the phenomenon of 'critical frequencies of experience' may be found in the influence of fearful experiences on the endocrine system. Fear reduces for instance the testosterone level and with that probably the tendency to put up resistance when provoked (Bermond, 1977). Long training intervals allow this and other hormone levels to return to normal, but when the intervals between the fearful experiences are too short, the effects accumulate, thus rendering the individual inclined to flee instead of putting up resistance when challenged again. A considerable amount of experimental evidence is available to support this idea. For instance, Eleftheriou & Church (1968) demonstrated that in mice the blood plasma levels of LH, LH-RF and FSH decreased after aggressive encounters. The hormonal changes in losers appeared to be cumulative in contrast to the hormonal changes in winner-mice. Rose et al. (1972) demonstrated similar hormonal effects in rhesus monkeys. Many investigators (e.g. Bronson et al., 1973; Leshner, 1975; Schuurman, 1981, and in: Wiepkema & Van Hooff, 1977) found that aggressive encounters brought about stronger physiological changes (i.a., in blood sugar level) in losers than in winners. In more anthropomorphic terms: A conflict or encounter which elicits emergency reactions and raises anxiety in the subordinate may well represent an ordinary - eventually exciting - matter of routine to the dominant. All this means that apart from opposite conditioning effects of aggressive encounters on winners and losers on the neural level, a stable behavioral divergence between the social roles is still further enhanced and consolidated by different hormonal adaptations (Leshner, 1975). Similar effects have also been demonstrated in humans. Kreuz et al. (1972) conducted physio¬logical studies on trainees in a military camp and found that in periods of high tension, stress and extremely hard work, their testosterone level decreased considerably and recovered only gradually after relaxation. == 1.2 Recovery Intervals and Learning == {{level|3}}Apart from the hormonal feedback as depicted above, differential 'learning' processes on the neural level are involved as well (Leshner, 1975). Because animals in a Bèta-role and animals in an Alpha-role experience aggressive encounters in a different way (losing and winning resp.), different neural information is stored and processed. Besides, as e.g. Buchholtz (1978) and Trincker (1966) point out, there is a great functional and physiological difference between short-term memory storage and long-term memory storage. And there are limits to the amount of experiences of a certain type pro time unit that an individual can sucessfully digest and transform into (greater) long-term skills. This phenomenon has been established in a wide range of species from insects (Gross, 1978) to Man (Buss, 1973, pp. 278-280). The neural and hormonal feedback systems function synergistically. Whereas in lower developed species hormonal changes are relatively important, we may expect that in neurally higher evolved species neural mechanisms of adaptation will be relatively important in comparison with the purely hormonal mechanisms. == 2. '''Some models of agonistic behaviour''' == {{level|3}}Below, a general model is construed that covers adaptational mechanisms of various complexities and various functional levels, hormonal as well as neural, and including the higher learning processes in Man. In order to arrive at that model, we first proceed with reviewing some current models on aggression and on agonistic behaviour in general. For it is assumed that in particular those learning processes are of paramount importance for the individual, that lead to skills in dealing with agonistic encounters, other aspects of role-conflict, etc. == 2.1 The Conflict- or Ambivalence Hypothesis == {{level|3}}Somewhat oversimplified, this hypothesis states that agonistic and related behaviors are the product of activation of, and interactions between, two major antagonistic 'drives1 or 'tendencies': the attack- or approach-tendency and escape- or withdrawal-tendency. Many courting behaviors may similarly be considered as the product of activation and interactions of 3 tendencies, viz. the attack-, escape- and sex-tendency (see e.g., Tinbergen, 1952; Baerends et al., 1955; Kruijt, 1964; Hinde, 1966; Baerends, 1975). 'Approach' and 'withdrawal' behaviors may shade off into one another through intermediate - compromise - types of response, depending on the balance between the attack- and escape-tendency. Such compromise movements or postures are often postulated to be the evolutionary origin of a communicative signal or display. If the basic tendencies are highly activated, the antagonist behavior types tend to change in a more sudden and dramatic way than if they are moderately activated. In the former case attack may suddenly change into escape and escape may suddenly (catastrophically) change into attack. This state of affairs may graphically be presented and mathematically described with the aid of the bistable models from the mathemathical branch of catastrophe theory as presented by e.g. Thorn & Zeeman (1974) and Zeeman (1976) (see Fig. 1). This model of agonistic behavior, however, accounts only for short-term changes in mood and behavior. No predictions are implied that reach beyond the particular agonistic setting under scope. The catharsis hypothesis, on the other hand, is primarily concerned with long-term predictions. [[File:Topological Model of Agonistic Behaviour.png|none|framed|'''Fig. 1. Topological Model of Agonistic Behaviour:''' ''Aggression in dogs can be described by a model based on one of the elementary catastrophes. The model assumes that aggressive behaviour is controled by two conflicting factors, rage and fear, which are plotted as axes on a horizontal plane the control surface. The behaviour of the dog, which ranges from attacking to retreating, is represented on a vertical axis. For any combination of rage and fear, and thus for any point on the control surface, there is at least one likely form of behaviour, indicated as a point above the corresponding point on the control surface and at the appropriate height on the behaviour axis. The set of all such points makes up the behaviour surface. In most cases there is only one probable mode of behaviour, but where rage and fear are roughly equal there are two modes: a dog both angry and fearful may either attack or retreat. Hence in the middle of the graph there are two sheets representing likely behaviour, and these are connected by a third sheet to make a continuous, pleated surface. The third or middle sheet, shown shaded, has a different significance from the other two sheets: it represents least likely behaviour, in this case neutrality. Towards the origin the pleat in the behaviour surface becomes narrower, and eventually it vanishes. The line defining the edges of the pleat is called the fold curve, and its projection onto the control surface is a cusp-shaped curve. Because the cusp marks the boundary where the behaviour becomes bimodal it is called the bifurcation set and the model is called a cusp catastrophe. If an angry dog is made more fearful, its mood follow* the trajectory 'A' on the control surface. The corresponding path on the behaviour surface moves to the left on the top sheet until it reaches the fold curve; the top sheet then vanishes, and the path must jump abruptly to the bottom sheet. Thus the dog abandons its attack and suddenly flees. Similarly, a frightened dog that is angered followes the trajectory 'B'. The dog remains on the bottom sheet until that sheet disappears, then as it jumps to the top sheet it stops cowering and suddenly attacks. A dog that is angered and frightened at the same time must follow one of the two trajectories at 'C'. Whether it moves onto the top sheet and becomes aggressive or onto the bottom sheet and becomes submissive depends critically on the values of rage and fear. A small change in the stimuli can produce a large change in behaviour: the phenomenon is divergent.'' (Zeeman,1976; By permission of 'Scientific American' and W.H. Freeman & Cy., San Francisco)]] == 2.2 The Psychohydraulic Model: the Catharsis Hypothesis == {{level|3}}The catharsis hypothesis, when applied to aggression (Lorenz, 1950; Leyhausen, 1967; Eibl-Eibesfeldt, 1975), states that the longer an individual has not shown aggressive behavior, the easier aggressive behavior is evoked by external stimuli. Eventually the aggression-deprived individual will even start to seek opportunities to direct his aggressive behavior towards something or other and thus release his internally stored 'aggressive energy', ultimately to the point of releasing it 'in vacuo'. This process can be visualized through what has been called the 'psychohydraulic model', or, less respectfully, the toilet flush model. Whereas this model may be quite adequate for describing some other functions like for example male sexual tendencies or feeding behavior, its use for describing aggressive behavior has become somewhat obsolete (Hinde, 1960, 1966; Manning, 1969; van Dijk, 1977; Zillman, 1979, van der Dennen, 1980; van der Molen, 1981); mainly because little evidence has been found that long-term deprivation of an opportunity to fight causes an increase in the readiness with which fighting can specifically be elicted. Yet appetitive behavior for agonistic interaction can nonetheless be demonstrated in a wide range of species: fish (Thompson, 1963; Rasa, 1971; Sevenster, 1973), birds (Thompson, 1964; Cole & Parker, 1971; Cherek et al., 1973), mice (Lagerspetz, 1964; Tellegen et al., 1969; Legrand, 1970; Tellegen & Horn, 1972; Connor, 1974; Kelsey & Cassidy, 1976; Connor & Watson, 1977), rats (Dreyer & Church, 1970; Taylor, 1975), hamsters (Eibl-Eibesfeldt, 1971), and monkeys (Azrin et al., 1965). But in every case investigated, such alleged appetence for aggressive behavior could equally well be labeled as appetence for certain other functional pattern such as e.g. territorial behavior and/or as attempts of the individual to maintain an optimum level of arousal. ''"Excitement and kinetic activity are shown to be dependent on the external stimulus state of the animals decreasing under conditions of low mean environmental stimulation. These findings indicate that an animal attempts to regulate its internal stimulus state by behavioural means when the component variables of this state have been disturbed by environmental conditions"'' (Rasa, 1971). Sevenster (pers. comm., 1980) arrived at similar conclusions in his experiments with sticklebacks, when evaluating his results on the rewarding effect of opportunities to interact aggressively. He investigated the rewarding properties of each component of the situation of agonistic interaction in question separately, and concluded that it is, in particular, the element of environmental change which works rewarding for the (somewhat arousal-deprived) male stickleback, but only so, if the change in question induces no flight behavior. Parallel to these findings are experimental results as those of Kavanau (1967), who showed poignantly how mice, being forced to respond in stereotyped experimental situations, will give 'incorrect' responses as a means of introducing variability. From all these considerations we may conclude that for understanding function and (long-term) causation of aggressive behavior it is apparently of great importance to include phenomena such as 'boredom', 'excitement- seeking' and 'anxiety' in our models. Specific appetence for aggressive behavior may in fact not exist at all in ordinary natural settings in which plenty of opportunity is available for attaining proper arousal levels. This is also suggested by, for instance, Goodall's (1971) descriptions of the occurrence of aggressive encounters in the daily life of free living chimpanzees. The frequency of intraspecific aggressive behavior varies strongly for every individual and for the whole group in question, and is highest whenever hierarchical relations have become unclear. The readiness to show intraspecific aggres¬sive behavior does not seem to depend at all on the period of time that has elapsed since the last agonistic confrontation, but rather on circumstances which make it difficult to avoid the application of coercive means. The existence of a drive for aggression, irrespective of a functional context, would, in fact, be highly improbable from an evolutionary point of view (Craig, 1918, 1928; Tinbergen, 1956; Hinde, 1960, 1970, 1974; Marler & Hamilton, 1966; Wilson, 1971, 1975; Scott, 1973; Crook, 1973; Schuster, 1978), the rationale of which has been analyzed in game-theoretical and 'Evolutionary Stable Strategy' terms (Hamilton, 1971; Maynard- Smith, 1974, 1978; Maynard-Smith & Price, 1973; Parker, 1974; see also: Wilson, 1975; Dawkins, 1976; Fry, 1980). An individual runs heavy risks every time he engages in aggressive encounters. Therefore it seems good strategy to reserve aggressive behavior for situations in which the risk of damage is sufficiently counterbalanced by a possible raise in the chances of survival and/or propagation of the specific genetic information in question, after successful agonistic action. It would appear that the regularity with which the males of certain species carry out charging displays can be more adequately explained by the 'hierarchico-cybernetic model' with the aggression-system as a low- level subroutine (Baerends, I960; Tinbergen, 1969; van Dijk, 1977) than by an energy model of aggressive motivation (Lorenz, 1963; Rasa, 1971, 1980). == 2.3 Aggression and Emergency Behavior == {{level|3}}Van Rooijen (1976) reviewed models of 'escape-' and 'emergency-' reactions as derived from current ethological and psychological research. In his study he described a general 'emergency-system' which prepares individuals for responding adequately in cases of emergency, and he labels it 'Anticipation of Damage System' (ADS). An essential of van Rooijen's model is the application of a strategy of 'flexibel response'. The more an individual is threatened, the stronger his ADS is activated. The level of activation determines which types of behavior can be expected. Furthermore, individuals can 'learn' which situations are best met with a careful approach and which situations require instantaneous flight or attack. Van Rooijen suggests that the learning processes themselves are probably enhanced most by a moderate activation level of the emergency system. Considerable information uptake- and processing capacity is required for learning, whereas in the most extreme emergency-reaction-modes such as e.g. panicky flight, the full neural processing capacity is probably reserved for ad hoc problem-solving. When the ADS is activated too strongly and/or too continuously, pathogenetic effects emerge, such as neuroses, phobias, psychosomatoses, and even physical disorders (Blythe, 1973). These pathological traits in their turn enhance, through inadequately rigid responses in an ever-varying environment, strong stimulation of the emergency system. Thus vicious spirals ('Teufelskreize') of ever increasing pathogenic effects are likely to occur as long as an individual does not often enough and long enough succeed in reducing the alarming stimuli and the resulting level of arousal. Agonistic behaviors may be fitted into van Rooijen's model in two ways. On the one hand, flight and attack may be final - suddenly and catastrophically occurring - reflexes during high activation of the emergency system. On the other hand, flight and, in particular, attack can be learned and may in fact be optional responses to specific familiar emergency situations. In that case flight and attack may already occur at a moderate activation level of the emergency system, and consequently tend to change more gradually into each other. == 2.4 Aggression,and Behavioral Reduction versus Behavioral Expansion == {{level|3}}Kortmulder's (1974) hypothesis of 'Behavioral Expansion' runs to some extent parallel to van Rooijen's ideas. To the classical postulate of antagonistic attack- and escape-tendencies, Kortmulder adds the antagonism between 'centrifugal' and 'centripetal' tendencies. Full-scale attack and flight are both considered to be centripetal behaviors whereas courtship and, in particular, playful (agonistic) interactions are considered to be more centrifugal types of behavior. The terms centrifugal and centripetal refer to the tendency of expanding the (interactive) behavioral activities, respectively to the tendency of reducing and simplifying the (interactive) behavior situation. Strong activation of the 'emergency system' (van Rooijen) corresponds with 'centripetal tendencies' (Kortmulder), and a weak activation of the 'emergency system' corresponds with 'centrifugal tendencies' of behavioral expansion. When exploring the environment or when playfully interacting with a partner, an individual is supposed to be in a process of 'behavioral expansion' (centrifugal behavioral forces; cf. also Orme-Johnson's, 1973, 'Stay-and-play response'). But when the situation becomes dangerous - for instance when a partner suddenly play-attacks too frighteningly hard - the 'Anticipation of Damage System' is activated and an increased centripetal tendency leads to reduction of the behavioral setting through flight or attack. According to Kortmulder, individuals strive after being in a state of behavioral expansion as often as possible. Through that behavioral state their behavioral repertoire expands and their skill in dealing with the animate and inanimate environment increases through experience. Parallel to Maslow's (1968) behavioral models of men and other primates, Kortmulder (1972, 1974) discerns between (a) animals with a behavioral repertoire which is fully actualized through sufficient periods of behavioral expansion (self-actualizers), and (b) animals who have stayed under the influence of centripetal behavioral forces too often and too continuously and who subsequently show a reduced, 'truncated', and highly stereotyped behavioral repertoire. "''Whereas self-actualizing fishes typically swim around actively also outside reproductive periods, or feed, inferior fishes often stand still for long periods of time, even in the absence of the dominant male. If they move, locomotion is typically, wavering and slow. They often do not feed at all ........ The general behaviour of such inferior fishes is somewhat similar to the behaviour of a sick fish. This is so even in the absence of any visible trace of bodily damage. The above observations suggest that the switch from self-actualizing to inferior behaviour marks the onset of a profound physiological change which is easily reversible when short-lasting but which tends towards irreversibility when submission is prolonged"'' (Kortmulder, 1972). == 2.5 Butterfly Catastrophes == {{level|3}}Taking the models of Kortmulder and van Rooijen into account, we can explain not only the gradual and the sudden changes from fight to escape and vice versa, but also the gradual and sudden changes from play to full-scale agonistic interaction. Thus we may integrate in one model the two different modes of aggressive interaction, viz. the 'rough- and-tumble' and the 'reactive fighting' as may be discerned in many species (rhesus monkeys: Harlow, 1965; chimpanzees: Goodall, 1971; human children: Blurton-Jones, 1967; Hamburg, 1971). Like the mechanisms as postulated by the Conflict- or Ambivalence Hypothesis (see fig. 1), the mechanisms as described above may also be represented graphically (and mathematically) by means of a model from catastrophe-theory. Butterfly catastrophes (Zeeman, 1976) describe tri- stable systems, for instance three such behavioral modes which can shade off into one another, but which may, under certain conditions, also turn into each other in a sudden and catastrophic way (see fig. 2). [[File:Butterfly catastrophes.png|none|framed|'''Fig.2. Butterfly catastrophes:''' ''An increase of danger and provocation induces agonistic behaviour, which is expressed as attack or escape, depending on the equilibrium between fear and anger. When centri¬petal forces do not reach extreme values however, playful interaction is also possible depending on the equilibrium between anger and fear and depending on the previous emotional state, (similar to the explanation of Fig.1). Play is possible in the motivational space indicated by [pocket] ,[vertical lines] and [dotted] in (the bottom sheet of) the figure.<br /><br /> The dotted area indicates three possible behavioural modes. Horizontal lines indicate bistability between attack and escape and vertical lines indicate bistability between play and other behaviour. Catastrophic changes in behaviour may occur in half of the motivational states that are indicated by the lines on the bottom projection, depending on the previous motivational state.'']] One of the parameters of the graph in fig. 2 is the so-called 'butterfly-factor' which determines the size of the pocket in the bifurcation-set. A bigger pocket represents a greater probability of playful and explorative behavior. The 'butterfly-factor' might therefore be used to indicate an individual's skill in dealing with ambivalent motivational situations without having to resort to full-scale attack or flight. In other words: by an increasing butterfly-factor we may graphically represent the long-term effect of adequate frequencies of behavioral expansion, namely the raise in skills which results from the centrifugal behavioral activities of play and exploration. A raise in skills causes in its turn a lower necessity to resort to centripetal behavior and thus a lower .probability of purely agonistic behavior and consequently a further increased probability of playful and explorative behavior. This positive feedback mechanism in learning represents the opposite of the vicious spirals of ever-increasing pathogenic effects mentioned above. Of course, it is also possible to block the positive learning-spiral by denying the individual any reasonable amount of experience, for instance by isolation. Centrifugal moods cannot then simply result in drifting into relevant experiences through lack of environmental possibilities. Individuals which have been isolated during long and crucial periods of their lives, generally exhibit inadequate social reactions (notably, anomalous sexual and agonistic behavior) to a high degree (jungle fowl: Kruijt, 1964; mice: van der Molen, 1979; rats: Peijs, 1977; rhesus monkeys: Harlow, 1961, Nowak & Harlow, 1975; squirrel monkeys: Hopf, 1981). As Kortmulder (1974) points out, courtship may be compared to play in that courtship partners 'learn' to get behaviorally adjusted to, and synchronized with, each other and thus 'learn' to avoid full-scale agonistic behavior towards one another. In the course of the courting process centripetal tendencies gradually give way to centrifugal tendencies until mutual aggression has virtually disappeared and the animals have learned to 'know' each other in playful interaction. Therefore Zeeman's graphical representation might 'mutatis mutandis' be used equally well to describe the interactions between sexual-, approach-, withdrawal-, attack- and escape-tendencies in courtship and the learning processes involved. == 3. '''The Reversal Hypothesis''' == {{level|3}}Kortmulder's hypothesis of 'Behavioral Expansion' was derived from animal behavior. A somewhat akin model was derived from studies on human behavior by Smith & Apter (1975) and Apter & Smith (1979). Kortmulder's antagonistic 'centripetal' and 'centrifugal' tendencies can be found in Smith & Apter's model as 'telic' (goal-directed) and 'paratelic' (behavior-directed) tendencies. Apter & Smith (1979) explain: ''"we shall simply start by stating one of the fundamental postulates of the theory. This is that certain psychological processes, especially certain motivational and emotional processes, exhibit bistability rather than homeostasis (i,e,; unistability). Switching from one stable state to the other in a bistable system can be reffered to as a reversal (hence the name of the theory) and may be brought about by a number of different factors. For example, it is argued that at certain times the individual seeks high arousal which is then felt as pleasant when achieved ('excitement'); at other times he reverses to a state in which he seeks low arousal, at which time high arousal is felt as unpleasant ('anxiety'). In the former case low arousal is felt as unpleasant ('boredom') and in the latter case low arousal is felt as pleasant ('relaxation'). This is summarized in the two hypothetical curves drawn in the accompanying diagram (Fig. 3a), each curve representing the relationship between arousal and affective tone for each of the two stable states. These two states are labeled 'telic' and 'paratelic' respectively. This view of the relationship between felt arousal and affective tone contrasts sharply with that of optimal arousal theory which is a homeostatic theory, although the typical inverted U-curve (shown dotted in Fig. 3a) postulated by optimal arousal theory, can be seen as a special case of the X-curve suggested by reversal theory."'' : [[Image:Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png|frame|none|Figure 3a. (table) The very existence of colloquial labels for our emotions like ''relaxation'', ''boredom'', ''excitement'' and ''anxiety'' illustrates emotional/motivational bi-modality.]] : [[Image:Telic and paratelic pleasantness of different arousal levels.png|frame|none|Figure 3a. (diagram with table) Each hypothetical curve represents the relationship between arousal and affective tone for one of the two stable states. These two states are labels "telic" (goal-directed; from the Greek word "telos" = "goal, end, close") and "paratelic" (behaviour-directed) respectively. (After {{Harvnb|Apter|Smith|1979}}, with permission).]] : [[Image:Reversal between preferred level of arousal.png|frame|none|Figure 3b. At certain times the individual seeks high arousal which is then felt as pleasant when achieved ("excitement"); at other times he reverses to a state in which he seeks low arousal, at which time high arousal is felt as unpleasant ("anxiety"). In the former case low arousal is felt as unpleasant ("boredom") and in the latter case low arousal is felt as pleasant ("relaxation"). (After Apter & Smith, 1979).]] : [[Image:Reversals between telic and paratelic state.png|framed|none|Figure 3c. A commonly occurring Motivational Sequence.]] ".......... ''in the telic system the organism searches for security and safety in order to reduce arousal; in the paratelic system it searches for novelty and surprise in order to increase arousal. The latter is what is normally referred to as exploration. However, calling exploration a drive as it is now done widely, following the work of Butler (1953), Berlyne (1960), and others, implies that to discover new things is arousal reducing. Our claim is the contrary: namely that such discovery increases arousal and, in the paratelic mode, this is in fact pleasurable. This idea therefore constitutes an attack on the assumption that all behavior is governed by principles of drive-reduction'' (Smith & Apter, 1975). The paratelic state is especially important for learning processes: ''"As defined earlier, the paratelic system is concerned with expressing behavior rather than goals and is perhaps seen in its purest state in ''children playing. It presumably arose because it had survival value in the young in allowing behavior to be exercised. In humans such play in the adult may be an example of neoteny which has turned out to be biologically advantageous"'''' (Smith & Apter, 1975). As in the theory of Behavioural Expansion, agonistic behaviors can be fitted very well into the theory of Psychological Reversals. Full- scale attack and flight are typically telic strategies in that they are of a strongly reactive nature, aimed at the achievement of a certain goal (subjugation or expulsion of a competitor, respectively escaping from a danger), and aimed at the reduction of the arousal level and re-stabil- ization of the status quo. Play-fight and social exploration are on the other hand typically paratelic strategies in that they are of a spontaneous non-reactive nature, aimed at raising the level of arousal. == 4. An Additional Hypothesis: '''Integration of Theories on Aggression and on Learning''' == {{level|3}}We postulate an additional hypothesis which allows us to integrate the foregoing theories more fully and which emphasizes the importance of stressful situations for learning. In its simplest form this postulate states that in a stressful situation the individual arrives in a telic state and that in this telic (centripetal) state of emergency reactions, important neural and/or hormonal information is stored within the organism. This information is used automatically in the following non-stressful situation (paratelic state) to steer the growing process in the direction of optimal adaptation to the previously encountered stressful situation. This process of the storage and subsequent processing and integration of information is carried through on an endocrine, neurophysiological and neural level or on either of these levels. Curiosity (paratelic) is steered in the direction of situations in which previously stress (with strong telic tendencies) has been experienced. Expressed at the cognitive level it means that when this learning cycle runs optimally, '''very frightening''' situations gradually change into '''less frightening''' situations and eventually become '''intriguing'''. Having changed from frightening into intriguing, a situation attracts the individual's attention when he is in a paratelic (centrifugal) frame of mind. Thus additional experience with this particular situation is gathered until eventually the situation in question is not intriguing any more but '''evokes boredom''' when the individual is in a paratelic mood. At that stage the situation is of course not frightening any more either and the learning cycle has been completed. We could express this by saying that the stressful experience has been successfully 'digested', and the behavioural repertoire has accordingly 'expanded'. [[File:Redigesting initially aversive experiences.png|none|framed|'''Figure 4''']] The hypothesis developed above implies that frightening and stressful situations can only be successfully 'digested' when they are followed by ample opportunity to arrive in a paratelic (centrifugal behavioural expansive state of mind). A second prerequisite for a proper 'digestion' of experience is opportunity to tentatively reestablish contact with the source of previous trouble when in such a paratelic mood. The adaptational value of such a system stems 'inter alia' from the fact that the learning process can be optimally fitted to varying circumstances and environments. When in a paratelic mood (surplus of energy available) the mechanism of preferential curiosity prevents the individual from wasting its energy and learning capacity on irrelevant objects and problems, but focuses the individual's attention on 'intriguing' environmental aspects which are, or have previously been, potential sources of trouble and stress, and therefore also potential sources of excitement. The hypothesis also emphasizes the '''involuntary nature of learning''': the individual willy-nilly launches itself periodically into trouble through paratelic action, and thus continues to accumulate experience in relevant areas of life. == 5. '''Positive and Negative Learning Spirals''' == {{level|3}}According to the presented hypothesis two learning spirals may be discerned, both of which result from positive feedback loops (see Fig. 5b and 5c). One spiral contains improper alternations of telic and paratelic [[File:Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on proper rhythms of telic paratelic alternations.png|none|framed|'''Figure 5a.''' Positive and negative learning spirals, showing alternations between telic and paratelic states]] [[File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png|framed|none|'''Figure 5b.''' The relation between the reversal system of antagonistic motivations and processes of learning]] states and results in ever more rigid and stereotyped behavior such as either immediate and full-scale flight or indiscriminate attack in agonistic situations, without options for intermediate responses and subtle alternations. The other spiral contains proper alternations of telic and paratelic states and results in an ever growing diversity of adaptational responses (skills). The individual seeks to alternate the telic and paratelic states in an optimum rhythm and the higher his skills, the better he succeeds. Low skills on the other hand decrease the probability of maintaining a proper alternation of telic and paratelic states and thus enhance further attainment of rigid, stereotyped response-strategies instead of a growing diversity of optimal skills. Note that the 2 figures differ in that the favourable option is depicted in the lower half of figure 5a, but in the top half of figure 5b. It is rather arbitrary to place the favourable option at the top or at the bottom of the figure. The implications stay the same. In the figures the favourable of the two options, leading to skills and mastery, is labeled as "positive learning spiral" and the option that leads to fear clusters and neuroticism is labeled as "negative learning spiral". These qualifications refer to the results of the process. From a purely technical point of view however, both feed back loops are cycles of ''positive feed back'', in that in both cases the effect of the cycle is an increase in the likelihood of the same outcome for the next cycle. A favourable outcome stimulates the emergence of more frequent paratelic states, which in turn increases the chances for maintaining an optimum rhythm of telic/paratelic alternations. The outcome increases the likelihood of more optimum rhythms and thus of more mastery. An unfavourable outcome stimulates the emergence of more telic and less paratelic states and that in turn increases the likelihood of more frequent telic states and fewer paratelic states and that in turn increases the likelihood of more simplistic avoidance reactions. And the cumulation of reactive avoidance behaviours increases the likelihood of less than optimal rhythms and thus of more neuroticism and fear clusters. Technically speaking, both options are positive feed back loops, one producing favourable outcomes and the other producing rigidity and unskills. == 5.1 Genetical Aspects and 'Framing' == {{level|3}}Whether an individual manages to deal with a situation successfully or not, depends - apart from learned skills - also on innate (constitutional, temperamental) qualities, like e.g. basic energy level, basic stability level, and specific learning dispositions. We may therefore expect that the rhythm of mood-reversals which is optimal for a certain type of experience differs from individual to individual right from the start. Furthermore, the 'critical frequencies' of experience may be expected to be different for every individual. And in the course of life these innate variations in 'critical frequencies' are further modified and/or amplified by processes of experience and learning. Another way through which genetically determined predispositions come to life is through steering an individual's predilections whenever he is in a paratelic mood and seeks exciting experience. This process is sometimes referred to as 'framing' (Simpson, 1976). As e.g. Waddington (1957) and Bateson (1976) point out when discussing views on behavioral development, it may be highly advantageous to combine concepts of predetermined, self-correcting features of developmental processes with concepts of adult behavior as the product of continuous interaction between the individual and its environment throughout ontogeny. As may be clear by now, the concept of learning as presented in the previous pages provides an excellent opportunity to reconcile such points of view that seemed incompatible in the heydays of the nature-nurture controversy. == 5.2 Growth of Skills versus Growth of Unskills == {{level|3}}Mastering of a certain setting generally implies the mastering of various sub-skills, some of which may be directly transferable as subroutines, required in other situations. Furthermore, acquired subroutines or sub-skills function as (emotional) refuge during the exploration of situations which require new abilities, but in which these subroutines may be applied. Through these two mechanisms, the transfer of subroutines and the improvement of the telic/paratelic balance, a high level of skills in a certain sub-domain enhances the growth of skills in related areas of life. Skills therefore will tend to grow in clusters. But the growth of skills in other, quite different areas of life will be enhanced as well. In short, the presented model explains on the one hand how situation-specific idiosyncracies in skills and unskills come about, and on the other hand predicts that individuals will tend to differ strongly in some overall level of skills. The latter, the general level of actualization of the behavioral repertoire, may, in our terms, also be formulated as the ability to effect a fluent, quick and agile shifting of the telic/paratelic (centrifugal/centrifpetal) equilibrium by able and subtle manipulation of the environment(ally induced aurousal), as immediate response to - even minute - changes in individual needs and motivational states. The reverse side of the possibility of 'general actualization of individual abilities' is the possibility of general malfunctioning. The model predicts that malfunctioning in certain areas of life will enhance the malfunctioning in other areas of life as well. Lack of skills in one sub-setting drains the energy of an individual and evokes telic rather than paratelic behavioral strategies. This will result in less energy being available for investment in other settings and fewer paratelic moods which can result in exploring new options and solutions. Therefore skills enhance growth of further skills and 'unskills' enhance(2) further decrease of skills. Like skills, unskills also tend to grow in clusters, because faulty or deficient subroutines tend to influence the experience in related areas of life in a negative way. Such a cluster of 'unskills' might sometimes be labeled as 'phobia' or a specific form of neurosis, i.e., clusters of frightening and unmastered items, or specific memory constellations or, in the words of Grof (1972, 1973, 1976), negative 'COEX-systems' (systems of COndensed Experience). ''"The gradual successive growth of COEX systems by the mechanism of positive feedback (in the cybernetic sense) described, could account for the latency or 'incubation' period between the original traumatic events and future neurotic or even psychotic breakdowns. Manifest psychopatho- logical symptoms seem to occur at a time when the COEX system reaches a certain critical extension, and traumatic repetitions contaminate important areas of the patient's life and interfere with satisfaction of his basic needs"'' (Grof, 1976). == 5.3 Reversability of 'Unskills' == {{level|3}}As far as learning processes in Man are concerned, most 'unskills' are essentially reversible. Sometimes however, certain learning processes are constrained to specific stages of development. Much of the learning processes in Man is relatively free of this type of constraint (though it is not absent; see e.g. Benjamin, 1979), but in most animal species learning processes are very much dependent on the developmental stage (3) (age). One of the many experimental demonstrations of this principle has been provided by Kruijt (1964, 1971) who showed that certain behavioral unskills in social behavior of the jungle fowl cannot be cured by experience, once a certain stage of development has passed. His 'unskilled' cocks showed a type of social behavior which might very well be labeled as hopelessly neurotic. One of the conspicuous properties of their behavior was an exceptionally high frequency of violent aggression and fleeing during social encounters, at the expense of paratelic, appro¬priate (dis)play and courtship. == 5.4 Displacement and Neuroses versus Psychological Health == {{level|3}}Baerends (1976) discusses the phenomenon of 'displacement' behavior in animals and man. 'Displacement' is a label for functionally irrelevant behavior of an incomplete and ineffective character. He calls attention to the fact that such bursts of functionally irrelevant behavior in animals resemble neurotic symptoms in humans. Neuroses may, in this conception, be considered to be frequently reappearing sequences of stereotyped and irrelevant behavior. We might also describe them as negative COEX-systems or as sets of unskills. Bloomfield et al.(1975) point out that in psychologically healthy individuals 'stay-and-play' responses (Orme-Johnson, 1973) are relatively more prominent than 'fight-or-flight' responses (Cannon, 1929). Psychological health implies so to speak the ability to endure the inevitable frustrations and irritations of everyday life without losing one's poise (Allport, 1961), and without being launched into a 'telic' mood. All-out aggression is therefore less likely to occur in 'self-actualizers' (Maslow, 1954) than in psychologically less healthy people. == 6. The Use of the 'Aggression'-Label as an Element of the Agonistic Repertoire == {{level|3}}Skills do not only influence the type of social role that an individual eventually manages to acquire, they are also of paramount importance for the flexibility with which the social roles in question are performed and adhered to. Psychological health and social skills enhance emancipated as well as emancipating behavior, and thus induce less rigid social role performances. Benjamin's (1974, 1979) circumplex models of primate and human social behavior are based expl icitly on the notion that the style of performance in a dominant - as well as in a subordinate role depends strongly on the level of acquired (social) skills. The individual level of social skills (level of maturity) is, according to her one of the principal dimensions of social behavior. Social skills raise emancipation, acceptedness and autonomy, and diminish social conflict and role-interdependence . Highly stereotyped and interdependent role-aspects such as scapegoat ing and mutual denunciation are therefore less likely to occur between highly (socially) skilled individuals than between psychologically less healthy people. The use of the 'aggression'-lable may serve as an example. On the one hand a high-skilled individual will have to resort to agonistic actions less quickly if he wants to attain a certain social goal, because he will have a wider range of behavioral alternatives at his disposal. On the other hand, processes of mutual denunciation will be less obligatory in high-skilled individuals because of a lower interdependence. The tendency for stereotyped denunciation of the activities of competitors, superiors or critics as 'aggressive' will therefore be less strong, even in the case of strong coercive actions. As far as the labels 'violent' and 'aggressive' are concerned, it is important to note that the behaviors which are indicated by these terms, can be described in positive terms as well. This can be achieved by simply considering the behavior in question from the point of view of a supporter. Any behavior, indicated as 'aggressive' or 'violent', appears to have reasonable components if regarded from a suitable viewpoint, and on the other hand no activity and no industry is, strictly speaking, possible without a certain amount of violence, no matter how little - as the archetypal pacifist Gandhi said. The very subjectivity of the terms 'violence' and 'aggression' is highlighted by the complete chaos in aggression research, as far as the definitions of the basic concepts are concerned (see: van der Dennen, 1980). Calling something 'aggression' implies some degree of derogation and is at variance with pure assessment of the behavior in question. Violence is mostly what others do to us, and aggression is very much in the eye of the beholder. The use of such depreciative, pejorative terms tells us therefore more about the nature of the user than about the behavior described. And in the case that 'violent' or 'aggressive' is used to describe a person, it gives us primarily information as to the (negative, dissociative) social relations between the rater and the ratee. The use of these and similar depreciative and pejorative terms functions as a sort of involuntarily applied cognitive 'tool' on the level of social dynamics and interaction; a tool to create or maintain social distance on the physical or on the cognitive level. This overt or internal-cognitive use of depreciatives establishes and consolidates social distance and alienation in the following way: The label 'aggressive' is used for example in some situation by A to denounce B's coercive actions. As soon as A has done that, he will as a consequence feel 'justified1 in seeking satisfaction for B's deeds. In that way A justifies also the coercive actions which he will subsequently put forth himself to harness, repel or constrain B. And A will probably not be inclined then to label his coercive action against B as 'aggressive'. For his own behavior he will tend, instead, to use a label which sounds more positive, such as 'tough' or 'energetic'. Thus a situation develops or is consolidated, in which each of the competitors considers himself as the 'good', and the other person as the 'bad' guy. And the net result is social distance and dissociation. We could summarize these considerations by pointing out that 'aggression' in everyday parlance cannot be considered a proper and detached description of any behavior. Instead of serving the assessment of behavior, it serves the overruling of any detached appreciation of other persons' behavior by involuntary subjective distortion (4). The use of the term 'aggression' may thus be a tool of the agonistic repertoire itself, serving to create or maintain distance, whether on the physical, the social or the cognitive level. Being an element of the agonistic repertoire, the use of the aggression-label often serves as a sort of emergency reaction on the level of social role behavior. The higher an individual's behavioral skill and mental health, the less he loses detachment and the less he tends to resort to (agonistic) emergency reactions, like using these labels. This is also acknowledged in the aggression theories of the so-called 'third trend' (Maslow, Fromm, Erikson, and others), an offshoot of self-actualization theory. In this 'third trend', emphasis is laid on the negative correlation between an individual's tendency to apply (unnecessarily) violent actions and his level of psychological health and growth. The theory of aggression and learning processes as depicted in these pages may serve to support this axiom of the 'third-trend' investigations and in particular it may serve to explain why such a relationship between psychological growth and violent aggressiveness does exist. == 7. '''By way of Conclusion''' == {{level|2}}The reversal theory, applied to the notion of positive and negative learning spirals as presented in this paper, implies several predictions with respect to patterns of stereotyped 'agonistic' malfunctioning (5). The theory suggests that basic to any cure of an individual set of 'un-skills' is the recovery of a suitable telic/paratelic motivational balance. Only then may the individual establish proper alternations (see Fig. 3) of telic and paratelic states and thus profit from a growing variety of skills which are the result of positive learning spirals. However, in order to recover a suitable telic/paratelic motivational balance, the individual must sufficiently often be able to attain relaxation of anxiety. And this is, as has been previously pointed out, exactly what is lacking in persons with a defective behavioral repertoire, whether or not labeled as 'aggressive' or 'violent'. The more an individual is in need of relaxation and reestablishment of a suitable telic/paratelic balance, the less he is therefore likely to succeed, and the more he will tend to resort to all-out reactive action to escape from sources of over-arousal. And social mechanisms of depreciation and repulsion may subsequently add to difficulties in obtaining relaxation. Whereas all-out reactive aggressive and violent action may appear quite necessary and justifiable to the actor in his 'telic' state, it may appear quite unfair, improper, inadequate or pathological to an onlooker. This mechanism of the need for versus the availability of relaxation (Fig. 3), controlling the very basis of our behavioral growth, constitutes therefore an all-overruling source of '''systematic injustice'''. The better chances for learning are for those already favored. The evolutionary advantage of such a system of injustice may stem from the fact that it amplifies existing differences in quality and thereby intensifies existing selection pressures. Disadvantages on the genetic or cultural level will thus be eliminated more efficiently. However advantageous this mechanism may be from an evolutionary point of view, it thoroughly thwarts any general effort to cure excessive amounts of aggressiveness. Annoying aggressiveness and agonistic 'overshooting' may be viewed as outer manifestations of that amplified selection process. Maladaptive aggressiveness evokes retaliation by others, or at least depreciation. And the very use of terms like 'aggressive' or 'pathological', by actors and reactors alike, enhances such depreciation and dissociation, thus making it even more difficult for the subject to regain social support, relaxation and subsequent paratelic states which are crucial for reestablishing positive learning spirals and the subsequent curing of maladaptive aggressiveness. The common use in daily language of such labels is therefore not just a cognitive trap hampering a proper awareness of what is actually going on on the level of striving playing and learning, but a crucial link in the chain of social interactions which stabilizes social distance, negative learning spirals, and hampers the improvement of the very behavior which was labeled as aggressiveness or violence in the first place. [[File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png|framed|none|'''Figure 6.''' The relation between the reversal system of antagonistic motivations and processes of learning.]] '''Notes: ''' (1) This text has proceeded from a presentation at the 1978 congress of the "Ethologische Gesellschaft" at Basel, which presentation was partly supported by a grant from the "Fonds voor Nationale en Internationale Samenwerking" of the "Biologische Raad". It was presented at the First Congress of the European Section of the International Society for Research on Aggression, at Strassbourg, September 1981. The latter presentation was supported by a grant from the "Hendrik de Visser Fonds" of the Rijks Universiteit of Groningen to the senior author. (2) 'Unskills' is defined here as learned (sub)routines with a high level of stereotypy and a low level of long-term efficiency and effectiveness. 'Unskills' are furthermore considered as fixated emergency-reactions. (3) For well-known experiments with Rhesus monkeys, see e.g. Nowak & Harlow, 1975, or Suomi et al., 1976. (4) To avoid confusion, one can rather resort to using the concept 'coercive power'. Tedeschi et al. (1974) have urged that a distinction be clearly drawn between the exercise of coercive power and the labeling of such action as aggressive by observers. According to these authors, coercion is a means of influence and when a person cannot persuade, bribe, manipulate, or otherwise induce a target to comply with his demands, then the success of influence may depend on the source's ability to restrain, transport, immobilize, injure or destroy the target. Coercion is often the influence strategy, in self-defense, for face-saving purposes, as an act of obedience to authority, in an attempt to reduce negative inequity, or for other reasons. "''Perhaps the most important heuristic of adopting a language of coercive power is that it shifts attention from intrapsychic or biological determinants of behavior to the social causes. Instead of viewing harm doing as a manifestation of pent-up frustrations, Thanatos, or instinct, social psychological processes such as conflict, power, and normative demands for revenge or reciprocity become salient''" (Tedeschi et al., 1977). (5) See van der Dennen (1980) for a survey of the numerous categories of violent aggressiveness and related defective behaviour-patterns as established in current research on psychopathology and aggression. == '''References''' == ALLPORT, G.W. (1961) Pattern and Growth in Personality. Holt, Rinehart & Winston, N.Y. APTER, M.J. & K.C.P. SMITH (1979) Sexual behaviour and the theory of psychological reversals. In: M. Cook & G. Wilson (Eds.) Love and Attraction. Pergamon, Oxford. AZRIN, N.H., R.R. HUTCHINSON & R. McLAUGHLIN (1965) The opportunity for aggression as an operant reinforcer during aversive stimulation. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior 8: 171-180. BAERENDS, G.P. (1960) Ethologie Compendium. Zool. Lab., Univ. Groningen. BAERENDS, G.P. (1975) An evaluation of the conflict hypothesis as an explanatory principle for the evolution of displays. In: G. Baerends C. Beer & A. Manning (Eds.), Function and Evolution in Behaviour. Clarendon Press, Oxford. BAERENDS, G.P. (1976) A tentative model for the causation of neuroses. In: H. van Praag (Ed.), Research in Neurosis. Bohn, Scheltema & Holkema, Utrecht. BAERENDS, G.P., R. BROUWER & H.T. WATERBOLK (1955) Ethological studies on 'Lebistes reticulatus' (Peters) I. an analysis of the male courtship pattern. Behaviour, 8: 249-334. BATESON, P.P.G. (1976) Rules and reciprocity in behavioral developments. In: P. Bateson & R. Hinde (Eds.) Growing Points in Ethology. Cambridge U.P. BENJAMIN, L.S. (1974) Structural analysis of social behavior. Psychological Review, 81: 392-425. BENJAMIN, L.S. (1979) Structural analysis of differentiation failure. Psychiatry, 42, 1: 1-23. BERLYNE, D.E. (1960) Conflict, Arousal & Curiosity. McGraw-Hill, N.Y. BERMOND, B. (1977) Horraonen en aggressief gedrag. In: P. Wiepkema & J. van Hooff (Eds.) Aggressief Gedrag; oorzaken en functies. Bohn, Scheltema & Holkema, Utrecht. BLOOMFIELD, H.H., M.P. CAIN & D.J. JAFFE (1975) TM: discovering inner energy and overcoming stress. Dell Publ., N.Y. BLURTON JONES, N.G. (1967) An ethological study of some aspects of social behaviour of children in nursery school. In: D. Morris (Ed.) Primate Ethology. Aldine, Chicago. BLYTHE, P. (1973) Stress Disease. Baker, London. BRANSON, F.H., M.H. STETSON & M.E. STIFF (1973) Serum FSH and LH in male mice following aggressive and nonaggressive interaction. Physiology & Behavior, 10, 2: 369-372. BUCHHOLTZ, C.'(1978) Die Ethologie in der Lernforschung. Paper Ethologen-treffen, Basel. BUSS, A.R. (1973) A conceptual framework for learning effecting the development of ability factors. Human development, 16: 273-292. BUTLER, R.A. (1953) Discrimination learning by rhesus monkeys to visual exploration motivation. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 46: 95-98. CANNON, W.B. (1929) Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage. Appleton, N.Y. CHEREK, D.R., T. THOMPSON & G.T. HEISTAD (1973) Responding maintained by the opportunity to attack during an interval food reinforcement schedule. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 19: 113-123. COLE, J.M. & B.K. PARKER (1971) Schedule-induced aggression: access to an attackable target bird as a positive reinforcer. Psychonomic Sciences, 22: 33-35. CONNOR, J.L. (1974) Waning and recovery of conspecific aggression in the house mouse ('Mus musculus' L.). Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 87: 215-227. CONNOR, J.L. & P. WATSON (1977) A device for presenting attack opportunity as a reinforcer for operant behavior. Behavioral Research Methods & Instrumentation, 9: 349-352. CRAIG, W, (1918) Appetites and aversions as constituents of instincts. Biological Bulletin, 34: 91-107. CRAIG, W. (1928) Why do animals fight? International Journal of Ethics, 31: 246-278. CROOK, J.H. (1973) Darwinism and the sexual politics of primates. Social Science Information, 12: 7-28. DAWKINS, R. (1976) The Selfish Gene. Oxford U.P., N.Y. van der DENNEN, J.M.G. (1980) Problems in the Concepts and Definitions of Aggression, Violence, and Some Related Terms. Polemological Institute, Univ. Groningen. van DIJK, J.J.M. (1977) Dominantiegedrag en Geweld: een multidisciplinaire visie op de veroorzaking van geweldmisdrijven. Dekker & van de Vegt, Nijmegen. DREYER, P.I. & R.M. CHURCH (1970) Reinforcement of shock-induced fighting. Psychonomic Sciences, 18, 3: 14.7-148. EIBL-EIBESFELDT, I. (1971) Ethology, the biology of behavior. Holt, Rinehart & Winston, N.Y. EIBL-EIBESFELDT, I. (1975) Krieg und Frieden aus der Sichtder Verbaltens-forschung. Piper Verlag, München. ELEFTHERIOU, B.E. & R.L. CHURCH (1968) Levels of hypothalamic luteinizing hormone-releasing factor after exposure to aggression (defeat) in C578BL/63 mice. Journal of Endocrinology, 42: 347-348. FRY, D.P. (1980) The evolution of aggression and the level of selection controversy. Aggressive Behavior, 6, 1: 69-89. GOODALL, J. (1971) Some aspects of aggressive behavior in a group of free-living chimpanzees. International Social Science Journal, 23, 1: 89-97. GROF, S. (1972) Varieties of transpersonal experiences; observations from LSD psychotherapy. Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 1972 (1). GROF, S. (1973) Theoretical and empirical basis of transpersonal psychology and psychotherapy. Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 1973 (1). GROF, S. (1976) Realms of the Human Unconscious; observations from LSD research. Dutton, N.Y. GROSS, H. (1978) Gewohnung beim Beutefang der Larve von Aeschua (Odonata) cyanea. Presentation at the 6th Ethologentreffen, 1978, at Basel. HAMBURG, D.A. (1971) Recent research on hormonal factors relevant to human aggressiveness. International Social Science Journal, 23, 1: 36-47. HAMILTON, W.D. (1971) Selection of selfish and altruistic behavior in some extreme models. In: J. Eisenberg & W. Dillon (Eds.) Man and Beast: comparative social behavior. Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington D.C. HARLOW, H.F. (1961) The development of affectional patterns in infant monkeys. In: B. Foss (Ed.) Determinants of Infant Behavior. Wiley, N.Y. HARLOW, H.F. (1965) Total social isolation: effects on macaque monkey behavior. Science, 148: 666. HINDE, R.A. (1960) Energy models of motivation. Symposia on Social Experimental Biology, 14: 199-213. HINDE, R.A. (1966) Animal Behaviour: a synthesis of ethology and comparative psychology. McGraw-Hill, London (sec. ed. 1970). HINDE, R.A. (1970) The nature and control of aggressive behavior. Paper UNESCO interdisciplinary expert meeting. Paris. (International Social Science Journal, 23(1), 1971). HINDE, R.A. (197A) The study of aggression: determinants, consequences, goals and functions. In: J. de Wit & W. Hartup (Eds.) Determinants and Origins of Aggressive Behavior. Mouton, The Hague. HOPF, S. (1981) Verhaltensbiologische Aspekte normaler und gestorter sozialer Entwicklung bei Primaten. In: Sozialisationsstorungen und Sucht. Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft, Wiesbaden. KAVANAU, J. (1967) Behaviour of captive white-feeted mice. Science, 155: 1623-1639. KELSY, J.E. & D. CASSIDY (1976) The reinforcing properties of aggressive vs. non-aggressive social interactions in isolated male ICR mice ('Mus musculus'). Aggressive Behavior, 2, A: 275-284. KREUZ, L.E., R.M. ROSE & J.R. JENNINGS (1972) Suppression of plasma testosterone levels and psychological stress. Archives of General Psychiatry, 26: 479-482. KRUIJT, J.P. (1964) Ontogeny of social behavior in Burmese red junglefowl ('Gallus gallus spadiceus') Bonnaterre. Behaviour, suppl. 12, whole volume. KRUIJT, J.P. (1971) Ontogenie en gedrag, In: Ethologie, de biologie van gedrag. Pudoc, Wageningen. KORTMULDER, K. (1972) A comparative study in colour patterns and behaviour in seven 'Barbus' species; a progress report. Behaviour, suppl. 19, whole volume. KORTMULDER, K. (1974) On ethology and human behaviour. Acta Biotheoretica, 23, 2: 55-78. LAGERSPETZ, K.M.J. (1964) Studies on the aggressive behavior of mice. Annales Academiae Scientiarum Fennicae, Series B, 131-133. LEGRAND, R. (1970) Successful aggression as the reinforcer for runway behavior of mice. Psychonomic Sciences, 20, 5: 303-305. LESHNER, A.I. (1975) A model for hormones and agonistic behavior. Physiology & Behavior, 15, 2: 225-235. LEYHAUSEN, P. (1967) Zur Naturgeschichte der Angst. In: H. Wiesbrock (Ed.) Die Gesellschaftliche und Politische Rolle der Angst. Europäische Verlagsanstalt. LORENZ, K. (1950) The comparative method in studying innate behaviour patterns. Symposia on Social Experimental Biology, 4: 221-268. LORENZ, K. (1963) Das Sogenannte Böse; zur Naturgeschichte der Aggression. Borotha-Schoeck Verlag, Wien. MANNING, A. (1969) An Introduction to Animal Behaviour. Edward Arnold, London. MARLER, P. & W.J. HAMILTON (1966) Mechanisms of Animal Behavior. Wiley, N.Y. MARUYAMA, M. (1963) The second cybernetics: deviation-amplifying mutual causal processes. General Systems Yearbook, Vol. 8, 1963. MASLOW, A.H. (1954) Motivations and Personality. Harper, N.Y. (-1970). MASLOW, A.H. (1968) Toward a Psychology of Being. Van Nostrand, N.Y. MAYNARD SMITH, J. (1974) The theory of games and the evolution of animal conflicts. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 47, 1: 209-221. MAYNARD SMITH, J. (1978) The evolution of behavior. Scientific American, 239, 3: 136-145. MAYNARD SMITH, J. & G.R. PRICE (1973) The logic of animal conflict. Nature, 246: 15-18. van der MOLEN, P.P. (1979) Dimensions of social behavior in house mice ('Mus musculus'). Manuscript, Univ. Groningen. van der MOLEN, P.P. (1981) Striving, Playing and Learning: aggression and the dynamics of learning in the play and struggle called life. Manuscript, Univ. Groningen. van der MOLEN, P.P. (in prep.) On the dimensions and dynamics of personality from mice to men. Heymans Bulletin, HB-78-401-EX, Univ. Groningen. NOWAK, M.A. & H.F. HARLOW (1975) Social recovery of monkeys isolated for first year of life. I. Rehabilitation and therapy. Developmental Psychology, 11: 453-465. 0RME-JOHNSON, D.W. (1973) Autonomic stability and transcendental meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine, 35, 4: 341-349. PARKER, G.A. (1974) Assessment strategy and the evolution of fighting behavior. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 47, 1: 223-243. PEIJS, G.L.A.M. (1977) Development of Social Behaviour in the Rat. Nijmegen. RASA, D.A.E. (1971) Appetence for aggression in juvenile Damsel fish. Zeitschrift fur Tierpsychologie, Beiheft 7, 1971. RASA, D.A.E. (1980) Ethological aspects of aggressive behaviour. Paper Conference 'Biology of Aggression', Bonas, France, van ROOIJEN, J. (1976) 'Vlucht' en verwante begrippen in biologie en psychologie (Het Schade-anticiperend Gedragssysteem). Internal Report, Dept. of Ethology, Univ. Groningen. ROSE, R.M., T.P. GORDON & I.S. BERNSTEIN (1972) Plasma testosterone levels in the male rhesus: influence of sexual and social stimuli. Science, 178: 643-645. SCHUURMAN, T. (198]) Endocrine processes underlying victory and defeat in the male rat, Thesis, Univ. Groningen. SCHUSTER, R.H. (1978) Ethological theories of aggression. In: I. Kutash et al. (Eds.) Violence: perspectives on murder and aggression. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco. SCOTT, J.P. (1973) Hostility and Aggression. In: B. Wolman (Ed.) Handbook of General Psychology. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs. SEVENSTER, P.A. (1973) Ethologie, de biologie van gedrag. Pudoc, Wageningen. SIMPSON, M.J.A. (1976) The study of animal play. In: P. Bateson & R. Hinde (Eds.) Growing Points in Ethology. Cambridge U.P. SMITH, K.C.P. & M.J. APTER (1975) A Theory of Psychological Reversals. Picton Publ., Chippenham. SUOMI, S.J., M.L. COLLINS, H.F. HARLOW & G.C. RUPPENTHAL (1976) Effects of maternal and peer separations on young monkeys. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 17(2), 101-112. TAYLOR, G.T. (1975) Male aggression in the presence of an estrous female. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 89, 3: 246-252. TEDESCHI, J.T., R.B. SMITH & R.C. BROWN (1974) A reinterpretation of re¬search on aggression. Psychological Bulletin, 81, 9: 540-562. TEDESCHI, J.T., G.G. GAES & A.N. RIVERA (1977) Aggression and the use of coercive power. Journal of Social Issues, 33, 1: 101-125. TELLEGEN, A. & J.M. HORN (1972) Primary aggressive motivation in three inbred strains of mice. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 78, 2: 297-304. TELLEGEN, A., J.M. HORN & R.G. LEGRAND (1969) Opportunity for aggression as reinforcer in mice. Psychonomic Sciences, 14: 104-105. THOM, R, & E.C. ZEEMAN (1974) Catastrophe Theory: its present state and future perspectives. In: A. Manning (Ed.) Dynamical Systems. Springer Verlag. THOMPSON, T.I. (1963) Visual reinforcement in Siamese fighting fish. Science, 141: 55-57. THOMPSON, T.I. (1964) Visual reinforcement in fighting cocks. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 7: 45-49. TINBERGEN, N. (1952) 'Derived' activities: their causation, biological significance, origin and emancipation during evolution. Quarterly Review of Biology, 27: 1-32. TINBERGEN, N. (1954) The origin and evolution of courtship and threat displays. In: J. Huxley, A. Hardy & E. Ford (Eds.) Evolution as a Process. Allen & Unwin, London. TINBERGEN, N. (1956) Fighting and threat in animals. New Biology, 14: 9-24. TINBERGEN, N. (1969) The Study of Instinct. Oxford U.P., London. - TRINCKER, D. (1966) Aufnahme, Speicherung und Verarbeitung von Information durch den Menschen. Veröffentlichungen der Schleswig-Holsteinischen Universitätsgesellschaft Neue Folge, 44. WADDINGTON, C.H. (1957) The Strategy of the Genes. Allen & Unwin, London. WIEPKEMA, P.R. & J.A.R.A.M. van HOOFF (Eds.) (1977) Agressief gedrag; oorzaken en functies. Utrecht, Bohn, Scheltema & Holkema. WILSON, E.O. (1971) Competitive and aggressive behavior. In: J. Eisenberg & W. Dillon (Eds.). Man and Beast: comparative social behavior. Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington D.C. WILSON, E.O. (1975) Sociobiology; The New Synthesis. Harvard U.P., Cambridge, Mass. ZEEMAN, E.C. (1976) Catastrophe Theory. Scientific American, 234, 4: 65-83. ZILLMANN, D. (1979) Hostility and Aggression. Lawrence Erlbaum. Hillsdale N.J. pvz6uoq5wrwot2q1125scb37ec3s00b 0 117 1403 2009-08-16T11:14:30Z BigSmoke 1 Redirected page to [[Popko Peter van der Molen]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Popko Peter van der Molen]] tjhvukeevlbrt8ah9o2scduso03jqif 14 118 1408 2009-08-16T11:24:49Z BigSmoke 1 Created page with 'This category is used to be able to quickly find articles that are still in the process of being copied to this wiki.' wikitext text/x-wiki This category is used to be able to quickly find articles that are still in the process of being copied to this wiki. sag2gz0tjybd0zapjq26rrijnv8tibf 0 119 3767 2927 2012-06-11T05:34:14Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki This is an abstract to ''[[The biological instability of social equilibria]]''. '''Biological Mechanisms Precluding The Establishment Of Social Equilibria:''' '''Social Role Blindness, Population Cycles and Their Effect on The Periodic Emergence of Conflict and Disaster''' Presented at the 1987 Winter Conference of the E.S.S. (European Sociobiological Society) on 1011 Januari in Jeruzalem by [[Popko van der Molen|Popko P. van der Molen]], Dept. of Developmental Psychology, State University of Groningen, Netherlands ---- {{level|2}} In this paper a mechanism is discussed which thwarts any systematic attempts to prevent and put a permanent end to conflicts between social groups and organizations. From the social psychological and personality psychological literature it appears that there are certain aspects of our behaviour which we are remarkably unaware of. And a rational attitude by the actors towards this behaviour usually poses great difficulties. This is for instance expressed in the the ordinary patterns of social attraction and repulsion. The mechanism in question is implemented at the level of learning as well as on the genetic level, and it probably operates in most socially living mammal species. For illustration some experimental and empirical evidence will be provided, from animal- as well as from human psychological research. Basic to this model are the notion of involuntary incrowd-outcast selection reflexes and the notion of a "trait dimension" which may be described as "readiness to comply with a submissive role". This dimension is correlated with a great amount of social behaviour and small amounts of thing-oriented, individualistic and explorative behaviour, and it is by definition of great importance for the distribution of social roles and for the social structure in a group. It determines e.g. the "the likelihood of drifting into an outcast position" versus "the likelihood of assuming a compliant and socially accepted subordinate position". Parallels can be found between this trait dimension and established dimensions from personality-psychological research e.g., Adaption-Innovation, Satellizer versus Nonsatellizer, Conformity, Person- versus Thing-orientedness, etc. The notion that the likelihood of becoming an "accepted" incrowd-subordinate, versus the likelihood of becoming an outcast-type subordinate, is identical to the behaviour trait "Self-willed and Thing-oriented versus Compliant and Social", and that it also can be shown to have a genetic basis, has some remarkable and important consequences. It does imply that within social units there is a continuous selection against self-will and in favour of compliance. But since there must be some overall (genetic) equilibrium in a population as a whole, it also implies that between, or outside of social units, a selection force must exist in the opposite direction. Following this line of thought, a theoretical model of cyclic social changes does emerge, which could account for quite a variety of phenomena, from periodic migration waves in lemmings and other rodents, through problems of ossification in ageing industrial companies and other organizational structures, to the periodic rise and fall of political states. Whereas such periodic changes in social structures bring about a range of unpleasant and catastrophic revolutions at all levels of social organization, they probably have evolutionary significance by periodically enhancing a spatial spreading and a reshuffling of genes. The evolutionary relevance of this mechanism could explain our remarkable lack of rationality and awareness concerning processes of social attraction and repulsion. These mechanisms are for instance responsible for what is probably the most conspicuous dimension in psychological analyses of social behaviour, i.e. the positive/negative or evaluation dimension (e.g. good vs. bad). The idea is discussed that such a specific area of ignorance may have a function in safeguarding socialrole automatisms against rational enquiry. These automatisms, in turn, may be seen as crucial for the maintenance of periodic changes in social structures, including population waves and social turnover catastrophes. Such a theory of social cycles in socially living mammals in general, based on involuntary incrowd-outcast selection reflexes, may in part still be speculative. But its relevance for understanding the deeper roots of population movements and of the automatically and inexcapably arising periodic conflicts between social groups and structures such as clubs, associations, societies, companies, political parties, nations, and so forth, is such, that in the present age of pending large scale conflicts and nuclear disasters we can simply not afford to not investigate its consequences and possibilities. ---- Previous versions of (parts of) this contribution were presented at the European Sociobiological Society Congress of januari 5 & 6, 1985 in Oxford, England, and at the 1981 General Meeting of the New Zealand Genetic Society at Lincoln College, Canterbury. Abstr. published in the N.Z. Genetical Society Newsletter No.7, dedicated to the memory of Cyril Dean Darlington. For more information on this subject click [[The biological instability of social equilibria|here.]] '''(***)''' mhafqqgwpyfrm6tmihxrcleagxqzmjy 1 120 5716 1467 2014-01-08T19:52:00Z BigSmoke 1 Removed Russian bullshit wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 0 121 5826 3475 2014-06-01T07:08:13Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki '''What is the point: Science versus belief or Curiosity versus fear ?''' This Wiki is about awakening to our own reality. It is about science replacing superstition. Our world is full of multiple faced superstitions. We tend to regard the dark middle ages as periods during which culture was full of superstitions. However, we shall argue that this picture is rather naive and that we basically are still living in the middle of a vast and deep sea of superstition. One example is the way religious belief systems operate. They function essentially as solid fortresses of superstition.Whereas the world religions all have been founded on attempts to bring awareness and enlightenment to the people, they invariably end up as strong consolidators of the opposite, more specifically, of mass blindness, dependence and slavery. And in fact, there is no other way, for otherwise a religion would not be an ESS (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy) at the Meme-level and it would then automatically cease to exist. So, automatically and unavoidably any successful mass religion brings the opposite of what it claims. Our awakening, necessary for the final shedding of our mass neuroses and fears and enabling us to enter the dawn of an enlightened civilization, is therefore firmly based on scientific methods and is basically free of the superstitions of organized religious belief systems. But, ............... that is not all. Having shed the organized blindnesses and limitations of institutionalized religions, it is still possible to adhere to a scientific outlook in a very rigid manner. One may rigidly close oneself off from any phenomena that have no scientific explanation (yet). Like: "anything that has not been proven or can be demonstrated scientifically, does not exist". A scientific orientation is not a guarantee for openness. Only curiosity can produce openness. And only an emotionally balanced state can produce a sufficient frequency of curious states. For awakening and discovering the truth, a healthy telic - paratelic balance is therefore indispensable. A scientific outlook is not enough. Only a healthy balance in Telic - Paratelic alternations produces lower fear levels and more curiosity. The prerequisite for entering Point Omega together is therefore not a matter of just embracing the scientific method after discarding superstitious beliefs. It is rather the replacement of fear by curiosity, resulting from a restoration of healthy [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|telic - paratelic balances]]. Once the fear level has come down and curiosity is high, proper telic - paratelic alternations fuel an optimal learning rhythm. Fear for the unknown will then diminish also and the learning system will explore wider realms of the truth. Fearless states can eventually also touch upon spiritual experiences and an emotional merging with the whole. Loss of fear can therefore trigger those spiritual experiences and awareness, that organized religions always claim to bring, but, generally speaking, never do and never can do. Just leaving behind religious superstitions is therefore not the point. Restoring the [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|motivational telic - paratelic balance]] '''''is'''''. That will trigger high curiosity and loss of fear, which in turn will boost the learning system in general. That in turn also opens the road to authentic spiritual experiences without the necessity to first yield to the suppressive powers of institutionalized religion. For thousands of years prophets told us that "the truth can set us free". But, the truth can never be found in organized religions, for they invariably block awareness of oneself and of the truth. The truth can be found however, when fear is low and curiosity is high. Then, automatically, scientific methods and awareness are paired to spiritual awareness and the pitfalls of organized delusion and superstition can be unmasked and avoided. Spiritual awareness then can be recognized for what it really is, without the repressive baloney of organized religions, and stops to be at variance with scientific thinking. At that point of development the readily available spiritual awareness replaces an innate longing for missing belongingness and spiritual hunger. And that makes the person less vulnerable to the seduction of socially accepted organized religion with all their superstition and repression. So, the most basic to the Omega transition is the repair and restoration of a [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|healthy balance in Telic - Paratelic alternations]]. Once a healthy rhythm of reversals has been obtained or restored, all the rest follows automatically, even mass "enlightenment". 6us29ls4u19wr61wx7ryp6ilq5o2aqh 1 122 1518 2010-02-10T16:16:20Z 78.84.6.158 Hi, to all forum members! wikitext text/x-wiki Hi, as you may already found I'm fresh here. Hope to receive some assistance from you if I will have any quesitons. Thanks in advance and good luck! :) 2z8equickapd1l2bygdcioovn0cwkob 0 123 2189 2188 2011-01-14T21:54:10Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki '''List of friendly websites and addresses for people who need help to escape from religion''' ---- '''Atheist resources''' == Australia == • '''Australian Skeptics''' PO Box 268, Roseville, NSW 2069 Telephone: 02 9417 2071 E-mail: [[sceptics@bdsn.com.au]] [[www.skeptics.com.au]] • '''Council of Australian Humanist Societies''' GPO Box 1555, Melbourne, Victoria Telephone: 613 5974 4096 E-mail: [[AMcPhate@bigpond.net.au]] [[http://home.vicnet.net.au/~humanist/resources/cahs.html# Australian Humanist Societies]] == Belgium == • '''Unie Vrijzinnige Verenigingen''' Brand Whitlocklaan 87 1200 Brussels Telephone: (02) 735 8192 E-mail: [[info@uvv.be]] [[www.uvv.be]] • '''Humanistisch Verbond v.z.w.''' Lange Leemstraat 57 B-2018 Antwerp Telephone: (03) 233 7031 Fax: (03) 233 5513 E-mail: [[info@vrijzinnighumanisme.be]] • '''Humanistische Jongeren v.z.w.''' Zelfbestuurstraat 12-14 bus 3 1070 Anderlecht Telephone: (02) 521 7920 Fax: (02) 521 4642 E-mail: [[info@hujo.be]] [[www.hujo.be]] == Canada == • '''Humanist Association of Canada''' PO Box 8752, Station T, Ottowa, Ontario, K1G 3J1 Telephone: 877-HUMANS-1 Fax: (613) 739-4801 E-mail: [[HAC@Humanists.ca]] [[http://hac.humanists.net/# Humanist Association of Canada]] == India == • '''Rationalist International''' PO Box 9110, New Delhi 110091 Telephone: +91-11-556 990 12 E-mail: [[info@rationalistinternational.net]] [[www.rationalistinternational.net]] == Netherlands == • '''De Vrije Gedachte''' Postbus 1087 3000 BB Rotterdam Telephone: (010) 476 8986 E-mail: [[info@devrijgedachte.nl]] [[www.devrijegedachte.net]] • '''Humanistische Alliantie''' Van Asch van Wijckskade 28 3512 VS Utrecht Telephone: (030) 2390189 E-mail: [[infoalliantie@uvh.nl\]] [[www.human.nl]] • '''Humanistisch Verbond''' Visiting address: Sarphatikade 13, Amsterdam Postal addess: Postbus 75490 1070 AL Amsterdam Telephone: (020) 521 9000 Fax: (020) 5219080 E-mail: [[info@humanistischverbond.nl]] [[www.humanistischverbond.nl]] • '''The Brights''' [[www.brights.nl]] • [[www.freethinker.nl]] == New Zealand == • '''Humanist Society of New Zealand''' PO Box 3372, Wellington E-mail: [[jeffhunt90@yahoo.co.nz]] [[www.humanist.org.nz]] • '''New Zealand Skeptics''' NZCSICOP Inc. PO Box 29-492, Christchurch E-mail: [[sceptics@spis.co.nz]] [[http://skeptics.org.nz# New Zealand Skeptics]] == United Kingdom == • '''British Humanist Association''' 1 Gower Street, London WC1E 6HD Telephone: 020 7079 3580 Fax: 020 7079 3588 E-mail: [[info@humanism.org.uk]] [[www.humanism.org.uk]] • '''International Humanist and Ethical Union – UK''' 1 Gower Street, London WC1E 6HD Telephone: 020 7631 3170 Fax: 020 7631 3171 [[www.iheu.org]] • '''National Secular Society''' 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL Telephone: 020 7404 3126 Fax: 0870 762 8971 [[www.secularism.org.uk]] • '''New Humanist''' 1 Gower Street, London WC1E 6HD Telephone: 020 7436 1151 Fax: 020 7079 3588 E-mail: [[info@newhumanist.org.uk]] • '''Rational Press Association''' 1 Gower Street, London WC1E 6HD Telephone: 020 7436 1151 Fax: 020 7079 3588 E-mail: [[info@rationalist.org.uk]] • '''South Place Ethical Society (UK)''' Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL Telephone: 020 7242 8037/4 Fax: 020 7242 8036 E-mail: [[library@ethicalsoc.org.uk]] [[www.ethicalsoc.org.uk]] == United States == • '''African Americans for Humanism''' 3965 Rensch Road, Amherst, NY 14228 Telephone: (716) 636-4869 Fax: (716) 636-1733 E-mail: [[info@secularhumanism.org]] • '''American Atheists''' PO Box 5733, Parsippany, NJ 07054-6733 Voicemail: 1-908-276-7300 Fax:1-908-276-7402 E-mail:[[info@atheist.org]] [[www.atheist.org]] • '''American Humanist Association''' 1777 T Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009-7125 Telephone: (202) 238-9088 Free: 1-800-837-3792 Fax: (202) 238-9003 [[www.americanhumanist.org]] • '''Anti-Discrimination Support Network (ADSN)''' Freethought Society of Greater Philadelphia PO Box 242, Pocopson, PA 19366-0242 Telephone: (610) 793-2737 Fax: (610) 793-2569 E-mail: [[fsgp@freethought.org]] [[www.fsgp.org]] • '''Atheist Alliance International''' PO Box 26867, Los Angeles, CA 90026 Telephone: 1-866-HERETIC E-mail: [[info@atheistalliance.org]] [[www.atheistalliance.org]] • '''The Brights''' PO Box 163418, Sacramento, CA 95816, USA E-mail: [[the-brights@the-brights.net]] [[www.the-brights.net]] • '''Campus Freethought Alliance''' [[www.campusfreethought.org]] • '''Center for Inquiry – On Campus''' [[www.centerforinquiry.net]] • '''Center For Inquiry Transnational''' • '''Council for Secular Humanism''' [[www.secularhumanism.org]] [[www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=aah&page=index]] • '''Freedom From Religion Foundation''' PO Box 750, Madison, WI 53701 Telephone: (608) 256-5800 E-mail: [[info@ffrf.org]] [[www.ffrf.org]] • '''Institute for Humanist Studies''' 48 Howart St, Albany, NY 12207 Telephone: (518) 432-7820 Fax: (518) 432-7821 [[www.humaniststudies.org]] • '''International Humanist and Ethical Union – USA''' Appignani Bioethics Center PO Box 4104, Grand Central Station, New York, NY 10162 Telephone: (212) 687-3324 Fax: (212) 661-4188 • '''Internet Infidels''' PO Box 142, Colorado Springs, CO 80901-0142 Fax: (877) 501-5113 • '''James Randi Educational Foundation''' 201 S.E. 12th St (E.Davie Blvd), Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316-1815 Telephone: (954) 467-1112 Fax: (954) 467-1660 E-mail: jref@randi.org • '''Secular Coalition for America''' PO Box 53330, Washington, DC 20009-9997 Telephone: (202) 299-1091 [[www.secular.org]] • '''Secular Student Alliance''' PO Box 3246, Columbus, OH 43210 Free voicemail/fax: 1-877-842-9474 E-mail: [[ssa@secularstudents.org]] [[www.secularstudents.org]] • '''The Skeptics Society''' PO Box 338, Altadena, CA 91001 Telephone: (626) 794-3119 Fax: (626) 794-1301 E-mail: editorial@skeptic.com [[www.skeptic.com]] • '''Society for Humanistic Judaism''' 28611 W. 12 Mile Rd, Farmington Hills, MI 48334 Telephone: (248) 478-7610 Fax: (248) 478-3159 E-mail: [[info@shj.org]] [[www.shj.org]] == Islamic (International) == • '''Apostates of Islam''' [[www.apostatesofislam.com/index.htm]] • '''Dr Homa Darabi Foundation''' (promotes the rights of women and children in Islam) PO Box 11049, Truckee, CA 96162, USA Telephone: (530) 582 4197 Fax: (530) 582 0156 E-mail: [[homa@homa.org]] [[www.homa.org]] • '''FaithFreedom.org''' [[www.faithfreedon.org/index.htm]] • '''Institute for Secularization of Islamic Society''' Email: [[info@secularIslam.org]] [[www.secularislam.org/Default.htm]] pfylc42air99eztlokjepvmg4gwj4al 0 124 1615 1614 2010-03-22T00:49:25Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki '''Spiritual crisis Varieties and perspectives of a transpersonal phenomenon ''' ''The American comedienne Lily Tomlin once observed with surprise that we call it ‘praying’ when we talk to God and ‘schizophrenia’ when God talks back to us. In this book people speak about inner experiences in which they perceived themselves and the world so differently that they thought they were going mad. Experiences of existential voids, heights and depths, freezing wastes and silences, of pure energy, love and fear, oneness and chaos. They found no explanation in science or religion; traditional standards of normality and morality brought them no further than ‘madness’ and ‘heresy’. From sheer necessity they learned to steer by a sort of inner compass, and began to tap unconventional resources. This gave their experience on balance the depth and dynamism of a spiritual transformation which they would not have wanted to miss.'' ''Since 1994 such spiritual crises have acquired an official place in psychiatric diagnostics, namely as non-pathological episodes. Knowledge and insight fall substantially short, however, both in professional circles and among the public at large. In this book the author shows how transpersonal psychology interprets such crises as the growing pains of human consciousness. This wider perspective transcends the traditional, individual frameworks of the life sciences, parallel to the earlier shift of classical mechanics to quantum physics. At a time that resounds with demands for meaningfulness, and which seems engrossed in a holistic model of reality, this book sets about giving a place within this perspective to the phenomenon of the spiritual crisis. '' Author Fransje de Waard MSc. has a background in applied science and a Masters Degree from the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology in Palo Alto, U.S.A. '''SPIRITUAL CRISIS''', '''VARIETIES AND PERSPECTIVES OF A TRANSPERSONAL PHENOMENON''', Fransje de Waard imprint-academic.com Copyright © Fransje de Waard, 2010 Translated from the original Dutch by Jo Nesbitt The moral rights of the author have been asserted No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without permission, except for the quotation of brief passages in criticism and discussion. Published in the UK by Imprint Academic PO Box 200, Exeter EX5 5YX, UK Published in the USA by Imprint Academic Philosophy Documentation Center PO Box 7147, Charlottesville, VA 22906-7147, USA ISBN 9 781845 402013 A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library and US Library of Congress ‘'''As one tone does not produce a harmony''', '''neither is a truth which stands alone complete.'''’ Emanuel Swedenborg, Arcana Coelestia, 4197 '''This book is dedicated to''': '''those who find themselves in a spiritual crisis and must go to great lengths to emerge whole again'''; '''those who find themselves in a spiritual crisis, but do not find the help that they need'''; '''those who support them in word and deed, with understanding and compassion'''. '''Contents''' Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x Foreword by Dr David Lukoff. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 Emanuel Swedenborg and the Question of Diagnostics . . . . 14 1 The young scientist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 2 Plumbing the depths on all fronts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 3 Celestial visitation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 4 Wildfire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 5 Friction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 6 Lunacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 7 Test of criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 8 An uncomfortable truth? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Diana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Hans. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Josine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 2 The Scientific View: Ego as the Measure of Things . . . . . . . 56 1 The dimensions of a cornerstone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 2 Spiritual fathers of the psychological self-image . . . . . . . . 59 3 Cognition under the microscope. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 4 Freud’s taboo and totem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 5 Nuances and amendments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 6 Pathology in the second person singular . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 7 Madness from the inside out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 8 Doubt, scepticism and transparency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 9 The big question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 10 The subject and methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Frans. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Sandra. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Karin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 3 Window on the Experience of God: The Precincts of the Church . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 1 Mystical empiricism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113 2 Describing the ineffable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 3 Visions in many forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 4 Love and mania. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 5 Divine madness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 6 Conversion and classification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 7 The G-word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 8 Gnosis and orthodoxy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127 9 The God affair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 10 Religious psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 11 Sanctity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 12 The soul goes forth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 13 Fathers of introspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 14 Risks and faulty measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 15 Being and non-being. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 Theo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 Leonor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Jeroen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170 4 The Transpersonal Perspective: The Psychology of Being . . 176 1 Perennial philosophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 2 Secular mysticism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 3 A model of expanded consciousness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180 4 The world according to Ken Wilber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182 5 Transpersonal health. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 6 Pre/trans-confusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 7 Cognition and intuition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 8 Pure consciousness and participation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190 9 Crises of knowing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 10 Transpersonal phenomenology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 11 Peak experiences before and afterdeath . . . . . . . . . . . . 198 12 Kundalini, ecstasy and nightmare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 13 The self increative chaos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 14 Psychosis as immanent experience of God . . . . . . . . . . . 210 15 Mixed bathing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212 16 Quantum speculations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215 Egmont . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220 Mariet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230 Tanja . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Peter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 Sanne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 Ronald. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Dee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 Ferri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 Joyce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285 Afterword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296 Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315 [[Further reading|Further reading; List of literature and references from Point Omega Research]] 6bzfq5gpq10bplw9xebky356a9jl3nm 1 125 1617 1616 2010-04-06T11:12:12Z 90.38.118.51 Blanked the page wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 0 126 3992 3991 2012-06-30T18:35:32Z Baby Boy 2 /* The Intelligence Boundary */ wikitext text/x-wiki <big>'''Comments on Daniel Quinn'''</big> Click here for a [http://search.barnesandnoble.com/bookSearch/isbnInquiry.asp?isbn=0609805363 description] of this book. For links to this book through online book stores click here ( ISBN 0-609-80536-3 ). == Introduction == (on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") This book by Daniel Quinn is challenging us to take a few steps back and look at our own culture from a distance, enough distance to recognize the all pervading stressful and unpleasant characteristics of (our) culture that almost invariably make our days miserable. Without trying to explain why humanity has ended up in this highly unpleasant situation of collective slavery, he clearly explains and illustrates what is our situation and since when in human history this misery started to dominate our lives. He shows how we are living in our culture, as opposed to how we would wish to live, would we have any chance to do so. As in his previous bestselling books, like "Ishmael", "The Story of B", etc., he points out that since the start of the agricultural revolution, some 10.000 years ago, gradually the "takers" took over from the "leavers", as he calls the 2 basic ways for humans to function in our present world. The "leavers" are the types that have chosen to live according to their primordial preferences and basic emotional make up. The "takers" are the types that live more in accordance with what present day culture requires from us. The latter basically live a life of slavery, in vain seeking compensations for their misery through all sorts of methods that our culture teaches us to find desirable. And they are the vast majority in our present day societies. They are "normalcy". People in general don't have the faintest idea that a different attitude towards life and society could be possible at all. They are dimly aware that lots of people run around that do not fit well into society, but do not know that among those less adapted specimens there are also individuals who have "chosen" to stop following the rules of what society demands from us, the "leavers". Let alone that the notion would break through that those "leavers" try to lead a more pleasant and more "fitting" human life, as was the birthright of us all many millennia back. This Wiki adds to the books by Daniel Quinn by [[Point Omega (summary)|explaining scientifically "why"]]'''(*)''' this strange and unpleasant situation could develop and what is more, why the emergence of this phase of misery in human evolution never could have been avoided in the first place, why it is a necessary, be it transitory, state in humanity's existence and evolution. In these pages we will take a small selection of pages of Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure" and explain how his point of view coincides with the contents of this Wiki. What we will add subsequently is [[Point Omega (summary)|the "how and why" of it all]]'''(*)'''. In that way we aim to make Quinn's work more comprehensible and powerful and embed it more firmly in scientific thinking. == The mysterious persistence == (from Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") During our three or four million years on this planet it can hardly be doubted that thousands of cultural experiments have been made among humans. The successes have survived — and the failures have disappeared. People will (ordinarily) put up with being miserable for only so long. It's not the quitters who are extraordinary and mysterious, it's we, who have somehow managed to persuade ourselves that we must persist in our misery whatever the cost and not abandon it even in the face of calamity. (Comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") In the above text Quinn points out that it is rather remarkable that we, the ordinary and "normal" human beings, keep accepting a life of relative slavery that, we feel, does not fit us well. These ordinary (slavery) type of people he labeled elsewhere as "takers", as opposed to what he labeled as "leavers" or, in this text as "quitters". This is quite in line with what is described in this Wiki, "takers" are the majority, having been molded into form by the power structures ruling our societies and our lives, whereas the "leavers" are the rare specimens that have escaped from the fetters of our civilization and who insist on living a life they feel more comfortable with. In this Wiki it is argued that this miserable situation of Homo sapiens is indeed at variance with what would technically be possible for our species, but that this unpleasant situation is only a relatively short phase in our evolution, which phase by now is [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|almost coming to an end]]. Basic to this misery is the following. Since just a few thousands of years the fast evolution on the meme level put power structures in the lead of evolution. This has caused us humans to lag hopelessly behind in terms of where our genome has equipped us for and thus what we would prefer to experience as our social and biological environment. The power structures don't care about our preferences, as long as we survive suitably enough to serve as willing carriers of the meme sets of the power structures in charge. As a result, mankind is emotionally and motivationally squeezed between its slow biological evolution of the genes and the much faster evolution of the memes we carry. Quinn describes that specifically the emergence of power structures, managing and ruling food supplies and food stocks, act as the trigger and the underlying cause of the emergence and consolidation of slavery. That painful friction between our hardware (genes) and "our" software (memes) only will come to an end by the time we humans start to understand the evolutionary characteristics of intelligence in general and our own intelligence in particular and we decide to take our unique situation seriously and act accordingly, finally utilizing our intelligent faculties to the full. For some ten thousand years we have been at the mercy of those impersonal meme level power structures, for which our primordial emotional and motivational make up, our wishes and desires, are merely hindrances in the proceeding evolution of ever more effective and competitive power structures. However, from a purely technical point of view, it would not be necessary that we collectively stay being subjected to the all overruling power of these impersonal meme structures that basically feel "alien" to us. In principle, there is a way out, as is shown on [[Point Omega (summary)|this Wiki]] '''(*)''', and what is more, this way out is most likely unavoidable and will come to pass automatically in due time. == The turn away from tribalism == (from Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") People don't plant crops because it's less work, they plant crops because they want to settle down and live in one place. An area that is only foraged doesn't yield enough human food to sustain a permanent settlement. To build a village, you must grow some crops — and this is what most aboriginal villagers grow: some crops. They don't grow all their food. They don't need to. Once you begin turning all the land around you into crop-land, you begin to generate enormous food surpluses, which have to be protected from the elements and from other creatures — including other people. Ultimately they have to be locked up. Though it surely isn't recognized at the time, locking up the food spells the end of tribalism and beginning of the hierarchical life we call civilization. As soon as the storehouse appears, someone must step forward to guard it, and this custodian needs assistants, who depend on him entirely, since they no longer earn a living as farmers. In a single stroke, a figure of power appears on the scene to control the community's wealth, surrounded by a cadre of loyal vassals, ready to evolve into a ruling class of royals and nobles. This doesn't happen among part-time farmers or among hunter-gatherers (who have no surpluses to lock up). It happens only among people who derive their entire living from agriculture—people like the Maya, the Olmec, the Hohokam, and so on. And on the role of religion in strengthening the power structures that keep us enslaved, Quinn quotes Karl Marx: These are the "consolations" that led Karl Marx to call religion "the opium of the people." This opium carries the masses out of their misery and up into the empyrean of tranquil acceptance. More important, from the viewpoint of the ruling class, this opium keeps them quiet and submissive, the promised inheritance of the meek remaining firmly and forever ''in the future''. (Comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") This also is in line with the postulates of this Wiki. The [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The confusing role of established religions|Wiki explains]] why religions never can grow and prosper if they would keep working for the uplifting and the welfare of the people. Therefore, in fact because of the dictates of evolutionary forces, religions always do the opposite of what they pretend to bring to the people. Otherwise they would not be able to compete with other religious structures and they would disappear. Any spiritual initiative or movement that would fulfill its promises to its people, would very soon lose its clients because self actualized individuals don not need such support of a "superior" system any longer. They are free and don't obey all the rules any more. Therefore all successful religious systems act as (tools of the) power structures and help keeping the population down, also spiritually. Therefore, by definition, religions, if successful, never (can) fulfill their promises, they never can uplift their followers to make them enter into the better life they are longing for, they even never can lead them into spiritual and religious realization, for if they would fulfill such promises, they never could be an ESS (evolutionarily stable strategy) and would as a consequence cease to exist, being replaced by religions that would suit the powers structures in charge better, or even are themselves an essential part of those successful power structures. == Opium of the people == (from Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") When Marx made his famous pronouncement; opium itself was not a drug of the people; so what he was getting at is that religion is the public's cheap narcotic. He could not have guessed, perhaps, that opium itself (in one form or another) would eventually become the opium of the people, despite its cost. As things get worse and worse for us, we're going to need more and more of all the things that give us relief and oblivion and all the things that get us revved up and excited. More religion, more revolution, more drugs, more television channels, more sports, more casinos, more pornography, more lotteries, more access to the Web — more and more and more of it all — to give ourselves the impression that life is nonstop fun. But meanwhile, of course, every morning we must shake off the hangover and forget about fun for eight or ten hours while we drag our quota of stones up the side of the pyramid. And Quinn continues describing his own struggle with carving a passable life out of the societal conditions he has been living in. == Am I building my own pyramid? == The craft I ply today is the one I plied for the companies I just mentioned. I'm not doing anything different for myself than I did for them. The work is the same . . . but I don't think it has anything to do with building a pyramid. The test is this. If you had a billion dollars in the bank, would you go on doing the work you do to make a living? Really, honestly truly? I'm sure about ten percent of the people reading this book would say yes—for example, Steven Spielberg and Bill Gates (who already has his billion but still seems to love his work). I too am among that lucky ten percent. If I had a billion in the bank, I'd go right on writing. There's plenty of room in the world for the ten percent who love their work. My passion is to make a little room in the world for the other ninety percent who don't. I'm not trying to take away the fun that the Spielbergs and Gateses have, I'm trying to open an escape route for the billions who are not having fun, who slog stones up the pyramids not because they love stones or pyramids but because they have no other way to put food on the table. We can give them a break without taking away the break enjoyed by the lucky ten percent—but only if we go beyond this thing called civilization. Quinn continues explaining how he sees that most civilizations in recorded history, like the Maya, the Olmec, the Hohokam, etc., sooner or later quit with "civilization" and returned to the life we were designed for, tribal life. In his view we are the one exception to that tendency in evolution. == Putting the pieces together == The tribal life and no other is the gift of natural selection to humanity. It is to humanity what pack life is to wolves, pod life is to whales, and hive life is to bees. After three or four million years of human evolution, it alone emerged as the social organization that works for people. People like the tribal organization because it works equally well for all members. Wherever civilization emerges, tribalism withers and is replaced by hierarchalism. Hierarchalism works very well for the rulers but much less well for the ruled, who make up the mass of the society. For this reason, the few at the top like it very well and the masses at the bottom like it very much less well. With one exception, the experience of history is that people who make a trial of the hierarchal life ultimately abandon it as unsatisfactory. Some trials were still in progress when we destroyed them, so we can't know how they might have ended otherwise. We're "the one" exception. We're driven to cling to our hierarchical society by a complex of memes that tell us that what we have is unimprovable no matter how much we dislike it, no matter if it devastates the world and results in our own extinction. These memes tell us that what we have is the life humans were meant to have from the beginning and cannot be bettered by any other. == Homo sapiens: at the interface between gene level - and meme level evolution == (Comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") We have a different view than Quinn on the rise and fall of civilizations as have occurred all over the globe during the last 10.000 years or so. In our view Quinn quite accurately describes how the agricultural revolution triggered the dominance of (software) power structures over human life. Thereafter however, the process of software evolution, competition between power structures, started running its own course. Because the software evolution evolves much faster than the evolution at the gene level, there exists in us humans since that time a strong "pull" towards being suitable as carriers of power structure's memes. And as is pointed out [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#Friction between P-feelings and N-demands; "Primordial" versus "New"|elsewhere on this Wiki]], this is causing an unpleasant mismatch between on the one hand what we "like", what our evolution has laid down over millions of years in our genetic make up, and on the other hand what the power structures since some thousands of years demand from us in order to fit in as effective carriers of its memes. So, in our view, our culture is not, as Quinn says, an exception in the sense that most civilizations in human history were sooner or later abandoned by us, its carriers, whereas our own culture has failed to be abandoned by its carriers until the present day. We think on the contrary that since the time agricultural revolution took off, there has been no chance any more on a significant scale for human beings to keep living in tribal structures. In most places in the world that is simply not any longer an evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS). Since thousands of years massive military power is an indispensable ingredient for a meme level power structure to be able to survive for long. And that simply cannot coincide with tribal level organization forms. So, until now we humans did not have any choice as to collectively choose for becoming "leavers" instead of "takers". That choice only will come as soon as humanity has started to grasp the mechanisms of its own evolution and of the inescapable patterns that the evolution of intelligence is putting on our path. [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|This Wiki]] is helping to approach that level of understanding. Quinn gives an example, "Jeffrey", to illustrate and underline the existential emergencies young people can encounter while struggling with the needs of the power structures, the demands that these structures saddle us with and that feel very unnatural to us. == Jeffrey == In My Ishmael I recounted the life of a young man named Jeffrey; loosely based on Paul Eppinger, whose journal was published by his father under the title Restless Mind Quiet Thoughts. Jeffrey was attractive, intelligent, personable, and multitalented, but he couldn't find anything he wanted to do, other than hang out with friends, write in his journal, and play the guitar. His friends were forever urging him to find a direction, get some ambition, and care about something, but of course none of these things can be done at will. He came to believe his friends when they told him he was unusual — peculiar even - in his aimlessness. In the end, despairing of finding the purposefulness that seems to come so easily to others, he quietly and without fuss took his own life. I wasn't surprised to hear from many youngsters who feel exactly like Jeffrey, who know the world is full of things they should want to do — and who imagine that there must be something dreadfully wrong with them for failing to want it. Because I've taken the trouble to study cultures different from our own, I know there's nothing innately human about wanting to "make something" of yourself or to "get ahead" or to have a career, a profession, or a vocation. Notions like these are foreign to most aboriginal peoples, who seem perfectly content to live just the way Jeffrey wanted to live — and why shouldn't they be? == The open tribe == Jeffrey died for lack of a tribe — but not, of course, for lack of an ethnic tribe. Youngsters often tell me they long to run off to join the Yanomami of Brazil or the Alawa of Australia, and I have to explain that tribes like these aren't open to them. Though famously hospitable, they can't afford to take in wide- eyed kids who show up on their doorsteps completely devoid of the skills needed to help the tribe survive. Throughout his wanderings, Jeffrey stayed with people who were making a living of one kind or another — family friends, ex-college chums, their parents, and so on. But, not surprisingly, none of them were making a living tribally; they had jobs, professions, and careers, but these were held individually, so there was no room for Jeffrey in them. They weren't making a living as a collaborative effort, so there was no way to extend their living to him. He was forever a guest, and guests (however charming) inevitably wear out their welcome. In a sense, Jeffrey was unable to find anyone who knew how to give him as little as he wanted. Many youngsters want as little, and if they'll work together tribally, they can get it quite easily. Every tribe has the standard of living its members are willing to support. People like Jeffrey need to live in a world of tribes, and a world of ''open'' tribes. And they aren't alone in this. Far from it, I think. In the text below Quinn rightly points out that our culture has ran out of hand to such an extent, that it now turns much of the global living biomass and irreversably a large part of the world's biodiversity, into ever larger quantities of useless, superfluous human flesh. In that sense the world as a whole appears to be in a very critical stage of illness. The human species, through our civilization, has become a dangerous cancer-like disease for our globe. However, the emergency situations arising from that condition, may eventually also trigger more human leaders to start using their heads, even for understanding the important issues that underlie the "taker" structures ruling our lives. == But is "less harmful" enough ? == Though it's a good and necessary start, being less harmful is not enough. We're in the midst of a food race that is more deadly to us and to the world around us than the Cold War arms race was. This is a race between food production and population growth. Present-day followers of English economist Thomas Malthus (1766-1834), like those of the past, view producing enough food to feed our population as a "win" just as American Cold Warriors saw producing enough weapons to destroy the Soviet Union as a "win." They fail to see that, just as every American "win" stimulated an answering Soviet "win," every win in food production stimulates an answering "win" in population growth. Right now our food race is rapidly converting our planet's biomass into human mass. This is what happens when we clear a piece of land of wildlife and replant it with human crops. This land was supporting a biomass comprising hundreds of thousands of species and tens of millions of individuals. Now all the productivity of that land is being turned into human mass, literally into human flesh. Every day all over the world diversity is disappearing as more and more of our planet's biomass is being turned into human mass. This is exactly what the food race is about: every year turning more of our planet's biomass into human mass. Quinn continues to point out that what he suggests to do is certainly not a return to prehistoric times and structures. Rather, it is applying tribe-like structures of cooperation and working together in the overall context of our complex societies. As an illustration of how such an approach works, he gives the following example from practice. == To distinguish is to know == It's important for me to point out (before others do) that I didn't invent tribal businesses; I just distinguished them from conventional ones and so made them especially visible. Now that you know what they are, you'll probably see them everywhere. In discussion with my seminar, Rennie brought to mind one we know in Portland, Oregon, the Rimskykorsakoffeehouse. This quirky local landmark, the creation of quirky local celebrity Goody Cable, almost has to be experienced to be believed. To take a table is to enter a special world that can really only be adequately described as tribal. When things get especially busy, customers will often be pressed into service to wait tables, and I know of one local author who waits tables one night a week just for the privilege of belonging to the tribe. There are often long lines of people waiting to get in; they like being there because the people working there obviously like being there. ''Tribal people get more out of life.'' Just think. It's taken me thirty thousand words to make those seven sound plausible. And in the chapter below he mentions how ordinary citizens tend to regard groups of "leavers" who work together in tribe-like structures, interesting for many of the young, but generally feared by the established adults. == The civilized hate and fear tribal people == People in traveling shows of every kind are viewed as exciting but dangerous people, people to be shunned when they're off-stage. This is part of their allure, especially for the young. In past ages Gypsies were constantly suspected of stealing children, probably because more than a few children in fact succumbed to the lure of Gypsy life. It's long been suspected that the tribalism of the Jews has contributed to their demonization. And certainly no effort has been spared on our part to destroy the tribalism of native peoples wherever we find them. Their tribalism is the very emblem of their "backwardness" and "savagery." The civilized want people to be dependent on the prevalent hierarchy, not on each other. There's something inherently evil about people making themselves self-sufficient in small groups. This is why the homeless must be rousted wherever they collect. This is why the Branch Davidian community at Waco had to be destroyed; they'd never been charged with any crime, much less convicted — but they had to be doing something very, very nasty in there. The civilized want people to make their living individually, and they want them to live separately, behind locked doors — one family to a house, each house fully stocked with refrigerators, television sets, washing machines, and so on. That's the way decent folks live. Decent folks don't live in tribes, they live in communities. Yet, oddly enough, as soon as you hold up the tribe as something desirable, decent folks will start insisting they're as tribal as any Bushman or Blackfoot. In the following brief chapter Quinn addresses the common idea that the general misery of human beings and human society is stemming from certain shortcomings. The idea is that once we manage to overcome the said human faults and mistakes, things should be much better and life should be better bearable, yes, even pleasant for the majority. He points out instead that what is basically wrong is that we collectively adhere to the wrong formula of civilization and that we better had abandon that unwholesome paradigm and return to a more tribal blueprint of living and working together in groups of manageable size. == Why what we've got is unsustainable == It's a fundamental tenet of our cultural mythology that the only thing wrong with us is that humans are not made well enough. We need to be made of finer materials, to some set of better specifications (provided, perhaps, by greened-up versions of our traditional religions). We just need to be made kinder, gentler, sweeter, more loving, less selfish, more far-sighted, and so on, then everything will be fine. Of course, no one succeeded in making us better last year or the year before that or the year before that or the year before that — or indeed any year in recorded history — but maybe this year we'll get lucky... or next year or the year after that. What I've endeavored to say in all my books is that the flaw in our civilization isn't in the people, it's in the system. It's true that the system has been clanking along for ten thousand years, which is a long time in the timescale of an individual life, but when viewed in the timescale of human history, this episode isn't remarkable for its epic length but for its tragic brevity. In ''Ishmael'' I compared our civilizational contraption to an aircraft that has been in the air for ten thousand years — but in free fall rather than in flight. If we stay with it, we'll crash with it, and soon. But if most of us lighten its load by abandoning it, it can probably stay in the air for a long time (while the rest of us try something that makes better sense). '''Let's bail out and go over the wall!''' Professor of anthropology James W. Fernandez writes, "Anthropologists, unlike philosophers, find that cultural worlds are brought into being by the performance (enactment) of mixed metaphors." (Emphasis added.) So there. I'm happy to mix a few metaphors in the cause of bringing into being a new cultural world. After several hours spent discussing the movement beyond civilization to tribal living, one of the members of my seminar said he still couldn't see how it would serve to make human life more sustainable. We've come a ways since the last time I addressed this issue, so I should probably address it again here. It's a valid and important question. The New Tribal Revolution may give people a better life, but if it doesn't serve to perpetuate our species beyond a few decades, what's the point? Right now there are about six billion of us in what I've called the culture of maximum harm. Only ten percent of these six billion are being maximally harmful — are gobbling up resources at top speed, contributing to global warming at top speed, and so on — but the other ninety percent, having nothing better in sight, want only to be like the ten percent. They envy that ten percent and are convinced that living in a way that is maximally harmful is the best way to live of all. If we don't give them something better to want, we're doomed. '''A systemic change''' The New Tribal Revolution is an escape route from the prison of our culture. The walls of that prison are economic. That is, the need to make a living keeps us inside, because there's no way to make a living on the other side. We can't employ the Mayan Solution—we can't disappear into a life of ethnic tribalism. But we can disappear into a life of occupational tribalism. Will this leave our civilization a smoking ruin? Certainly not. It will diminish it. As more and more people see that going over the wall means getting something better (not "giving up" something), more and more people will abandon the culture of maximum harm — and the more this culture is abandoned, the better. The escape route leads beyond civilization, beyond the thing that, according to our cultural mythology, is humanity's very last invention. The escape route leads to humanity's next invention. But even so, will this next invention give us a sustainable lifestyle? Here's how I assess this. Humans living in tribes was as ecologically stable as lions living in prides or baboons living in troops. The tribal life wasn't something humans sat down and figured out. It was the gift of natural selection, a proven success — not perfection but hard to improve on. Hierarchalism, on the other hand, has proven to be not merely imperfect but ultimately catastrophic for the earth and for us. == The Intelligence Boundary == (Comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") Whereas the further contents of this Wiki amply support the idea of Quinn that humanity is in a cultural situation in which it cannot lead happy lives, a situation that causes most of us to be manipulated into a permanent state of neurotic stress and misery, this Wiki attempts to go one step further and uncover the underlying, inevitable causes of this dramatic state of affairs. [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|On this Wiki]] it is argued that we humans are the unique carriers of a superior level of intelligence, a capacity to comprehend complex matters. One of the tenets [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|defended here]] is that in most phyla in the animal kingdom the development of intelligence is halted once a certain level of intelligence has been achieved. We could call this the ordinary "intelligence boundary". A [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|further tenet]] is that intelligence only could rise above that "intelligence boundary", that general ordinary level at which in most phyla in the animal kingdom a further rise of intelligence is blocked, after a special provision had been built in, a provision that blocks the application of the intelligent faculties in any areas pertaining to the own and to each other's behaviours. The idea is that without such a specific block on the utilization of intelligence, a further evolution and growth of intelligence cannot be an ESS, because in that case clever manipulation of proximate behavioural and motivational mechanisms within the individuals themselves, would undercut the ultimate reasons of the behavioural mechanisms that harbour the very evolutionary reasons of those behavioural systems. And that would exert a negative selection pressure on higher (too high) intelligence levels. In short, normally, in any other phylum, intelligence cannot rise higher than the "intelligence boundary" because then it would start biting its own tail, producing shortcuts in the proximate mechanisms and thus undercutting the very ultimate reasons for which evolution produced those behavioural reflexes, thus diminishing the relative contribution to the next generations, and thus weeding itself out. Only in us humans this ordinary upper limit to intelligence, the "intelligence boundary", has been surpassed, but only after specific blocks on the use of such intelligence, i.e. specific sets of blindness and stupidity, had been built in on a genetic level. We could say that this building in of specific stupidities and blindnesses is The Latest Great Trick of Evolution on this planet Earth. Apparently, mankind could evolve to this high level of intelligence only because we had become so inbelievably stupid and blind. This Wiki thus provides [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|an explanation]] of a series of specific and peculiar, typically human, traits of stupidity and blindness that in itself seem very strange to exist at all. We can design airplanes, we can design rockets that bring us to the moon and back, we can dive into the depths of the oceans, we can harness the enormous forces, hidden in the tiniest of particles, nuclear power. With those powers we could destroy our own and each others lives and the world at that, or we could utilize those powers to generate energy, almost without limits. However, when faced with a mirror, showing our own personal behaviour or the behaviour of our close partners, our thinking faculties automatically and unavoidably switch into the "moron"-state, a state which even seems an insult to a chimpanzee or an octopus. We can achieve all those said technical performances, but we cannot produce even the simplest intelligent thought about ourselves. It is not so much that we appear to be very stupid regarding such subjects, it is rather that we appear to be completely unconscious in such contexts, as if we were deep asleep. How peculiar !! == Jet lag in human evolution == (Comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") However, in view of the basic evolutionary ways behaviour is organized, this specific blindness can be seen as an unavoidable ingredient in any species that is overcoming the usual and general "intelligence boundary". And, in the case of planet Earth, that species happens to have become Homo sapiens. Having explained the how and why of this peculiar state of affairs in the application, or rather the "non application", of human intelligence, [[The evolution of Gene-structures and of Meme-structures|this Wiki further explains]] that sooner or later this higher intelligence would also automatically lead to the start of a software-, a meme-evolution. In us humans this explosion of the meme evolution started some 10.000 years ago. First our intelligence had developed upwards for a couple of millions of years, after said intelligence blocks had been built into the behavioural repertoire of our hominid ancestors. Then, some 10.000 years ago, the meme evolution took over the lead. This period of 10.000 years is very short in evolutionary terms. On the other hand, the software evolution, the meme evolution, runs very much faster than does the gene level evolution. And, like it or not, this causes a strong friction within the human behavioural system, our primordial, millions years old genetic basis of our behaviour being pulled by the novel and very recent demands of the meme level evolution, of which we humans are the carriers. We could say that us humans seem to suffer from some sort of "evolutionary jet lag". What is more, it is shown on this Wiki that the evolutionary competition between sets of meme clusters appears in our society as a struggle between "[[Impersonal Power Structures ruling our world|power structures]]". These power structures can wield more power by manoeuvring us humans into states of permanent neurotic tension. Those neurotic states do reduce the effective output of each individual involved, but the advantage for the power structures is in the increased malleability of the neurotic subjects. The result is that only neuroticizing, unpleasant patterns of civilization can win the evolutionary battles with competing power structures, precluding the survival of societal structures that would seem "ideal" from a general human perspective. == Point Omega == (Comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") On the other hand it is also shown on this Wiki that this highly unpleasant state of affairs is to be a very temporary phase in the evolution of intelligence. 10.000 years is rather nothing in evolutionary terms. It is argued [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|here]] that the mechanisms by which our societal systems, our civilization, the power structures ruling our lives, keep us under control, are losing their firm grip on our behaviour and on our lives. Humanity is reaching the point at which intelligence will start to understand itself. Once that happens, intelligence will break loose, the repression systems of the power structures will lose their grip on our emotional (fear) system and many of the societal control systems that we generally take for granted, will collapse for lack of emotional energy being put in by the subjugated neurotic masses. After all, we humans are the carriers of the meme systems involved and we provide the energy keeping those systems alive. Once intelligence breaks lose, understanding will replace superstition and ignorance and the fuel feeding the power structures that keep us down, will dwindle away by atrophy. [[The significance of the Point Omega transition|On this Wiki it is also shown]] that such a transition will inevitably happen rather sudden, because of the way our learning system is working. Learning is based on the acquisition of relevant experiences and the internal processing thereof. This mechanism is regulated through the Reversal System of emotions and motivations. This reversal system implies that there is a very high contageousness within, but also between individuals. That means that there exists a critical mass in the balance between the percentage of neurotic victims in a population and the percentage of escapees from the supressive power systems, who have re-gained for themselves an optimal rhythm of experiences and emotional-motivational reversals, resulting in an optimal learning process. Once such "self-actualizers" have reached a certain critical mass or percentage of the population, the effect of contageousness will trigger an avalanche of escapees, "leavers" in Quinn's words, entering in optimal rhythms of telic-paratelic switches, resulting in optimal learning cycles, resulting in processes of self-actualization, resulting in replacement of suppressive and detrimental societal structures by supportive, wholesome structures, supporting ever more individuals to escape from the fetters of the power structures that have kept us in slavery for the better part of the last 10.000 years. Because of the technical way these mechanisms operate, this process will run like a chain reaction, hence its unexpected speed once that critical mass has been reached. Seen from an evolutionary perspective, that change will appear like a sudden, instantaneous "reversal", humanity all of a sudden being in a totally different world, that is, socially, emotionally and motivationally. Seen from the perspective of an individual however, that change will appear as a time consuming personal struggle or a series of externally triggered personal events. Nevertheless, the chain reaction aspects, with all their unexpected suddenness, will be undeniably present and obvious. On this Wiki we have named that relatively sudden transition point as [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|"Point Omega"]], after the wording of the archeologist, mystic-priest, philosopher, Teilhard de Chardin. Giving these technical insights in the processes ruling human personal and social behaviour, this Wiki adds to the books of Quinn a further insight in the "how" and "why" of it all. The conclusion is that Quinn apparently is not some deranged nuthead with some personal view and belief system that is probably not describing reality in a completely adequate way. On the contrary, the data on this Wiki support the notion that Quinn is a rare and sharp analyst of the human situation and that we had better take his words and writings seriously, because those ideas of his might very soon prove indispensable ingredients to handle the situations many of us will encounter soon, if not today. In the page below Quinn once more suggests that humanity has to consider seriously the still existing option to live and work according to the old "tribal" patterns that suit our innate reflexes much better. he also suggests that it is, incidentally, just our one present civilization of "takers" that causes the world to now face pending total disaster and collapse. == But why "humanity's" next great adventure? == In ''The Story of B'' and elsewhere I made a great point of establishing the fact that we — the Takers, the people of this culture — are not humanity, and I'll certainly never draw back from that statement. It isn't humanity that is presently converting this planet's biomass into human mass, it's the people of one culture—ours. It isn't humanity that is pressing thousands of species into extinction every year by its expansion, it's the people of one culture — ours. Why then do I describe the New Tribal Revolution as "humanity's" next great adventure instead of "our" next great adventure? The answer is simple: civilization was not "our" adventure. As I've pointed out again and again in this book, civilization was an adventure that many peoples embarked upon. "We" weren't the only ones; we were just the only ones who stuck with it to the point of self-immolation. And if civilization wasn't just "our" great adventure, how could the next great adventure be just "ours"? The New Tribal Revolution isn't intended to be ours alone— anyone can join who wants to, after all. But neither is it compulsory. The old tribalism with which humanity became humanity is as good as it ever was. It will never wear out or become obsolete. Landing on the moon was a great achievement for humanity, but that doesn't mean all humans have to do it. == Did we have any choice? == (comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") The articles on this Wiki suggest that Quinn is wrong supposing that our one present culture is an exception in keeping us members trapped for so long and so thoroughly that we are progressively consuming all the earth's resources, destroying the global ecosystem at an unprecedented pace. He suggests that other complex civilizations at some point in time were purposefully "left" by its members, returning back to tribal and more agreeable ways of life. Contrary to that interpretation by Quinn, this Wiki emphasizes that once the agricultural revolution took place, there was no more a way back, because from that moment on, the meme evolution took over the lead. Experienced happiness of Homo sapiens specimens was not any more the leading force behind evolution, but rather the level of power that meme-power-structures could wield as compared to competing meme-power-structures. From that moment on human happiness and thus the extent to which human society was "fit" for the human emotional make up, was of minor importance as long as the human individuals, the carriers of the ruling meme systems, would not collapse completely in too high percentages. So, even if we can trace in human history certain civilizations, the members of which appear to have quit their culture at some point in time, the conclusion, according to our Wiki, must be that such voluntary events of bailing out collectively, must have been the exceptions rather than the rule, seen from the perspective of the leading evolution and competition of and between the meme-level-power-structures. Since long, since some 10.000 years, human societies did not any more have the option to back out, if not at best somewhere in the undetected periphery of where the mainstream of human evolution was happening. Mainstream human evolution by necessity ended up where we are now, the power structures culminating to the point of not only threatening competing power structures, but even the whole of humanity and the whole of life. In fact, life on earth is dwindling away in an unprecedented pace and indeed, as also Quinn emphasizes, we have not much time left any more to come to our senses and consciously choose another direction. == Understanding ourselves: the Truth will set us Free == (Comments on Daniel Quinn's "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure") Whereas Quinn does not answer the "why" question, [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|this Wiki does]], and by doing that it strives to provide an extra set of tools that will enable us to switch to a higher level of understanding of ourselves and of our collective present situation. The presented data underline that up to this point humanity did not have any choice to escape from the "takers"-type of disasters. The power structures in charge and the evolution proceeding on that level, broadly dictated the course of events, including all the misery, mayhem, genocide and other atrocities and sufferings in human historical times. No conscious human choices could have prevented that, also not a "takers" - "leavers" type of decisions on a local level. The "leavers" generally lost the battle because the power structures in charge during these last millennia simply dictated so. They simply did not have any other options. This Wiki argues however that recent technical developments are presently dissolving the influence of the power structures. Organized ignorance and stupidity are ever more difficult to maintain. That in turn is boosting awareness of a variety of mechanisms on the personal and sociological level that have for ages been covered by the cultural programs that have thus been serving the power structures in charge. And that in turn will reduce the neuroticizing pressure on the masses, giving more space to individual growth and development. That in turn will eventually make us reach certain critical percentages of self-actualizers and escapee "leavers". And that will trigger the [[The significance of the Point Omega transition|Point Omega transition]] as described on this Wiki, which is the rather sudden chain reaction that also will most likely put an unexpected end to the whole fabric of the present day "takers" civilization. Technical developments are the driving force behind this development towards Point Omega. But a better understanding of the mechanisms behind this all, as provided on this Wiki, will make it much easier for understanding individuals to blend in into these transition processes and to avoid in a much easier way the useless struggles and battles that come with the replacing of old patterns by new. One of those old patterns is the "takers" civilization (Quinn's term), to be replaced by "leavers" type of attitudes and structures. The latter can also be labeled as the patterns preferred by "self-actualizers" or enlightened persons. Thus understanding, as provided [[Omega Research:About#Point Omega (definitions)|through these pages]], will reduce the pains of the birth woes giving light to the new world, in which the "takers" attitude will mainly be a tale from history. == Dial-a-tribe == By way of conclusion of this article about Daniel Quinn's book "Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure" we here quote the last page of his book with some connectives. The New Tribal Revolution is nothing if not a great educational experiment; and it can only succeed if we share our wisdom, experiences, and discoveries with regard to making a living tribally. Luckily we have a terrific [new] medium for doing exactly this by way of the internet. At www.newtribalventures.com you can be in touch with like-minded readers ready for involvement in this next great adventure. Those who are not online can reach me at Beyond Civilization, P.O. Box 66627, Houston TX 77266-6627. Your letters are gratefully received and will always be read with interest, but please understand that I can't answer each one individually. http://www.newtribalventures.com/ 6ucm2vcjw0sslodepvo46e314xruzdy 0 127 1714 2010-04-17T20:42:49Z Baby Boy 2 moved [[Beyond Civilization, Humanity's Next Great Adventure]] to [[Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Beyond Civilization, humanity's next great adventure]] 3wnk8tntw3h0ui9coxo2q6phtb6veqm 0 128 1765 1764 2010-04-26T20:11:54Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki This page is under construction. For the time being one may refer to [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit]] or to [[The end of the second intermediary phase before any evolving intelligence, whenever and wherever in the universe, reaches maturity and full deployment|Before any evolving Intelligence Reaches Full Deployment]]. e3fxyh1uokcg491525yd352f48xttur 0 129 1766 2010-04-26T20:14:50Z Baby Boy 2 Created page with 'This page is still to be added. For the time being one may refer to: [[Point Omega (summary)]].' wikitext text/x-wiki This page is still to be added. For the time being one may refer to: [[Point Omega (summary)]]. p5ywly9wii199lwtgzmxoazufsihod0 0 130 6134 6133 2016-03-28T14:05:23Z Baby Boy 2 /* Conclusion */ wikitext text/x-wiki <big>''' by Amy Wallace'''</big> Data: Amy Wallace (2003 / 2007): "Sorcerer's Apprentice, my life with Carlos Castaneda"; Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, Frog Ltd.; ISBN-13: 978-58394-206-1, ISBN-10: 1-58394-076-6. See also: ISBN 1-58394-076-6. == Introduction == '''Amy Wallace''''s book is an excellently written, honest and revealing account of her years with Carlos Castaneda. Castaneda has had a tremendous influence on a generation of students in the western world, on the hippy scene of the 60's and early 70's and on seekers of spiritual achievement and freedom in general. The reason why we discuss this book about Castaneda's life on this Wiki is not because his teachings represent a contribution to scientific thinking about the present state of humanity, for they don't, but rather that Castaneda's followers, like groups of followers of so many guru's and spiritual teachers, have demonstrated a very stereotyped group behaviour, showing us a number of propensities in human social behaviour that also are at the basis for humanity's religious attitudes and habits world-wide since thousands of years. Since religions are an important part of the present day make up of humanity and since it is argued on this Wiki that religious behaviour will show tremendous shifts around the time of what we call the Omega transition, understanding the social behavioural reflexes around gurus and spiritual groups can be of great help to us, because they show our more original tendencies, less (de)formed by cultural conventions than is our ordinary behaviour. '''Amy Wallace''', as a seasoned and gifted writer, has laid bare in this book her own adventures as one of Castaneda's mistresses as well as the mechanisms ruling the group life around this master. All participants of such a group have more or less broken loose from the anchors of established society and together create to some extent a novel type of social structure and fabric with their own rules and habits. Not surprisingly, in such novel structures people fall back on more primitive social and psychological reflexes, the types of reflexes that primordial human societal structures were based on, so to speak a regression to the original, closer to our most inner preferences and tendencies. Therefore, more often than not such groups, forming around a teacher, in spite of their initial ideals, end up in a strongly individualized hierarchical structure in which the guru is treated as all-powerful and infallible, as a super-macho dictator or a clan head or a God. == Teachers and Gurus and the corruption of power == When searching the spiritual literature of the last decades of the 20th century and the new age movements with growth philosophies, one can easily trace similar structures and mechanisms as described by Amy Wallace in the case of the Castaneda clan. In general the teachers end up as self-proclaimed super-heroes with superior powers and capacities and with pretended insight in how seekers can be directed and led to greater wisdom, spiritual achievement and happiness. The followers on the contrary, instead of finding the sought after and promised wisdom and happiness, mostly end up as highly dependent subordinates of the master, often losing their ability to function in ordinary society and thus being effectively "trapped" in the movement of the teacher who tends to exploit them in a most cynical and abusive way, from sexual slavery to being stripped naked of all one's assets. Such teachers or clan heads do that either on purpose, which would be very cynical indeed, or unawares, or a mix between the two, sliding gradually from honest and straightforward idealism to dictatorship and cynical abuse. That gliding process boils down to the ordinary and well known principle of "power corrupts". In these pages we will not go into the details of what Amy Wallace has been describing, because these are factual accounts of what happened and we can add nothing factual to her reports. What we will do here instead is point out a few of the many mechanisms that are typically responsible for those patterns to emerge and develop and that we can find back in almost all of such teacher-follower groups. Subsequently we will explain what typical mistakes and misconceptions are at the basis of those mechanisms and what fallacies they provide, fallacies that such power structures depend and rely on. We will explain which parts of the insights, as presented on this Wiki, have evidently been missing among the people who form such groups of devotees, insights that could have served as inoculations against becoming the victim of such collective delusional structures of slavery and dependence. == Other examples == The author of this page has himself been attending a number of training camps of Andrew Cohen, who has established himself as a contemporary, modern spiritual teacher who has assembled a specific group of followers, "students", around him. Whereas in the initial years of his teaching, Andrew Cohen in general involuntarily produced an unhappy and neurotic attitude in his students, as perceived by onlookers from the outside, in more recent years the psychological condition, resilience and stability of his followers seems to have been steered in a more healthy direction. That indicates that the more recent methods and approach in Cohen's organization(s) (FACE, Moksha Foundation, EnlightenNext) have gradually become more and more supportive of inducing healthy processes of growth and development in his students. Nevertheless, in the yearly retreats in the past, of some weeks at a time, it could be observed that Cohen utilized the same old tricks of internal intelligence networks, trust and treason, reward and punishment, status and hierarchies, to keep the followers under severe control, thus, involuntarily and automatically, increasing an almost irreversible dependence on the master. For those interested, there is an also a very well written record, by Andrew Cohen's own mother, of these group-psychological processes of dependence and subjugation ('''Luna Tarlo: The Mother of God'''). In the early years of Cohen's teaching, his mother stayed in his communes for some years and had a difficult time to wrestle herself loose from the clutches of the all repressive power structures. The general patterns that can be discerned, not always, but almost every time such a movement emerges around some sort of Guru, have been described in a very professional scientific way by '''Joel Kramer and Diana Alstad (1993, The Guru Papers: masks of authoritarian power)'''. Kramer and Alstad describe a large number of basic mechanisms that can time and again be recognized as ruling these group-psychological mechanisms around guru's and spiritual teachers and their followers. In fact, what Amy Wallace describes in the case of Carlos Castaneda and what '''Luna Tarlo''' describes in the case of her own son, can serve as perfect cases to illustrate the laws of social behaviour that rule the power structures around guru's and masters. == Adding two points of elucidation == The materials on this Wiki can serve to introduce more clarity and understanding about the mechanisms that produce these types of group structures, group structures that produce heavy dependence and more often than not block a further healthy development of the individual follower in question, instead of facilitating growth . Kramer and Alstad (1993) already brought forward a host of mechanisms that all contribute to the emergence of these group patterns. Their publications about these issues can be considered as standard works, indispensable to anybody wishing to gain some understanding about these guru group dynamics. Here we will limit ourselves to adding descriptions of some mechanisms that have not been covered by Kramer and Alstad, nor by any other author we know of. Nevertheless, the contributions on this Wiki are in our view adding greatly to gaining insight in the more basic social psychological processes involved. First we will point out a conceptual idea, a "meme", that is completely wrong and is turning things upside down, but that is very persistent in our culture(s) and that serves as a cornerstone of human delusion and error and so helps to bind people in patterns of dependence and helplessness. Once the truth about this particular meme has been discovered, one is far better able to steer clear of unwholesome dependencies and to succeed in finding ways of healthy learning and development. This meme can be labeled as the "'''prescription for description fallacy'''". The other point we wish to make here is about an '''involuntary selection process within social structures''' that makes any social group or organization gradually shift into a certain direction, a direction of more adaptation and subjugation, causing the social structures in question to have only a limited life span. Both points are not generally known yet, but will in the future most likely play an important role in the enlightenment of humanity. Anyway, in particular the first point, about one specific meme screwing up our lives, can immediately be utilized by any interested reader to his or her own advantage. == Mistaking "descriptions" for "prescriptions"== This particular meme or meme set we wish to talk about consists of the following notions and phenomena. ''"If we wish to achieve the frame of mind and the level of (perceived) happiness of a guru, a teacher, or any admired individual, we should try to behave ourselves as they / he / she is doing."'' To almost all of us this statement seems natural and self evident. Additionally, most guru's teachers do not block such behaviour, but are themselves convinced that it can only be advantageous if the followers or students try to change their behaviour by adopting the habits of their leader(s), guru(s) or teacher(s). The idea is that even if it will not bring about the sought after changes completely, then certainly it will also not bring any harm. After all, those behaviours in question are habits of the admired individuals, so how can they be bad? In particular if one does not have a clear idea of how all the processes of development, of human development, of gaining enlightenment or happiness do work in detail, there are not many other options than simply try to imitate the admired persons. However, if one understands the dynamics of emotions, motivations and the processes of learning and development, as we try to bring forward [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#"Trying very hard" and the process of learning|on this Wiki(***)]], it is becoming clear that there is a grave danger in '''mixing up "descriptions" for "prescriptions"'''. Taking "descriptions" of desired states for "prescriptions" may in fact effectively block any road to achieving the sought after states of mind and the natural emergence of the behaviours that are imitatingly copied from the idealized person(s). So, by trying to behave like an "achieved" or otherwise admired person, one is blocking the road to gradually grow into the same frame of mind and level of skills. [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#"Trying very hard" and the process of learning|The harder one tries, the stronger the blocks.(***)]] == "Trying very hard"== There are two important aspects to this "trying very hard to behave like the masters do", that render it ineffective. The first is that the student or follower only has vague ideas as to how the admired person feels and thinks inside. He only has a dim notion about how the admired person's behaviour comes about. So, the behaviours that seem so desirable, may have a completely different meaning to the guru than they have for the student. When behaving in the intended manner, the student may experience completely different feelings, emotions and motivations than does the guru himself. Using an analogy from finding one's way while traveling (in the pre-Tom-Tom, pre-satelite-feed-back, era): if one wishes to move from New York to Chicago, it is not very useful to utilize the Chicago map to find one's way out of New York city. One gets stuck in New York instead of even getting to the highway that is leading west to Chicago. A similar thing happens in case one mistakes "descriptions" for "prescriptions". While imitating the guru, one basically does not have an idea of where those behaviours of the guru stem from. One only can guess and those guesses are mostly completely off the mark. If one wants to travel from New York to Chicago, one needs to have an overview of the whole route. One needs to have a map of the details of both cities, as well as a good map of the highways in between. Without the proper information of the whole route, one gets stuck, sooner or later. With the guru's behaviour, the target situation, it is likewise. Observing the admired behaviour of the guru, one has no clue as to how the guru him- or herself experiences that behaviour and where it stems from. The student does not have a "map" of the guru's frame of mind. So, when imitating that specific behaviour of the guru ("reading the Chicago map"), one can almost be certain that what one brings about in one's own behavioural system is completely different from what is going on inside the guru when he is performing such behaviour (who is in Chicago, not in New York). Instead of getting closer to the frame of mind of the guru (moving towards Chicago), imitating his (external) behaviour makes one get stuck even more in one's own old (internal) behavioural patterns (the New York traffic system). In short, it is more useful to understand (having all the maps at hand) than to imitate (pretending to be like the Guru / studying the Chicago map while wrestling with the New York road signs and traffic detours). What is more, it is not only the mistake of followers to get stuck in all sorts of imitations of the admired persons, it is, more often than not, also induced and stimulated by the guru's themselves. Not only the followers lack understanding of how these things operate, the guru's themselves are in general equally ignorant, no matter their pretense to know and understand it all. So, the tendency to resort to imitating the perceived effects of the states one tries to acquire is stimulated from both sides, leading to double binds and other blocks in development. The average guru or teacher has experienced states of awareness, levels of happiness, rapture and bliss, for shorter or longer periods of time, inducing a wish to share this with his/her fellow human beings. Only, in general they have no idea, or totally inadequate ideas, of how those desirable states came about. So, naturally, they have nothing to resort to than the (incorrect) idea that it might help to get their followers to "learn" the same sort of behaviour thay have acquired in the course of time. As is shown on this Wiki, that is a fallacy, and a disastrously dangerous fallacy at that. So, the message is: "Get the right maps before moving out" or "try to understand your own and each other's behaviour, before you try to change yourself by force". == Telic - Paratelic rhythms == The second mechanism that renders "trying very hard to behave like the masters do" ineffective, is far more basic and far more important than just getting stuck in the wrong descriptions and prescriptions at the wrong place and the wrong time, no matter how frustrating that can be in itself. That second mechanism is in the failure to induce [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Reversal Theory|"paratelic states"(**)]]. How that works and why that is of such crucial importance, is explained in detail [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|elsewhere on this Wiki(***)]]. The bottom line is that the harder one tries, the harder one gets stuck. In many teachings of guru's, spiritual schools and psychological growth systems it is pointed out indeed that "trying too hard" may be counter-effective in blocking the road to achievement and development. For the average guru such notions are not too far away and easily accessible. Nevertheless, more often than not, they also fall for the easily sold formula that the students better had follow the example of the leader. In general that happens primarily for lack of any thorough understanding of how it all works. What else can a guru suggests if he doesn't know shit? He or she would love to help other people to reach and experience their own levels of happiness and achievement, but has no solid ideas about how to do that. Complementary to that, the average follower fosters the notion that the guru, showing much of the admired and sought after behaviour, knows how that behaviour and the state of mind behind it, came about. It is understandable that followers think that way, but it is a completely wrong conclusion. On average the guru's and self proclaimed teachers don't have the slightest idea themselves how they arrived at where they are, which they often prefer to forget, or at least try to conceal from their followers. In general, they also got there just by accident. == What to do == According to [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|other contributions(***)]] on this Wiki, if one wishes to escape from the usual neurotic states of mind and reach more agreeable levels of development and happiness, it is of primary importance to restore the natural flow of experiencing and learning, because the natural learning process has apparently got stuck, as is usually the case in any great society. And to re-establish that natural learning process, one needs to re-establish a proper sequence of alternating telic and paratelic states. [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#"Trying very hard" and the process of learning|"Trying very hard"(***)]] is typically something from the telic state and the telic state is already over-dominant in people who are stuck in neurotic states and structures. Therefore, "trying very hard" should at best be applied only a little part of the time and certainly not as often as possible, as is mostly the (faulty) admonition. If one could stop trying to imitate the admired person(s), stopping to mix up "'''descriptions'''" for "'''prescriptions'''", and stop to apply continuously those prescriptions while "trying very hard", one might end up with a feeling of being left "empty handed", not knowing any more what to do. But, that also would imply that there is time and space to allow other approaches and behaviours to pop up, maybe not looking like the guru's acting, but certainly more coming from within the student and less from without. What is important, is that it are exactly such "empty handed" states and feelings that open the door for the paratelic state to emerge more frequently. And that can [[Point Omega (summary)#Reversal Theory of Emotions and Motivations|be shown to be the most crucial ingredient(*)]] for any improvement of the situation whatsoever. In summary, if one could stop mistaking "descriptions" for "prescriptions" one would lose the major part of the reasons and the tools for "trying very hard" and that would take away much of the usual time consuming power game activities in the teacher-followers relationships. It also would open the road to more original and pro-active behaviour and a more frequent emergence of paratelic states. And the latter in turn will automatically, willy nilly, get the natural processes of learning and development boosted again. Stopping to mistake "descriptions" for "prescriptions" also would put an end to the unwholesome copy-catting of the guru and thus take the fuel out of much of the power games that usually screw up such relationships. It also would stop for instance the seeming validity of a guru's complaint that pupils did apparently not "try hard enough" if they did not achieve the sought after goals that were so "generously" offered by the guru. [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#"Trying very hard" and the process of learning|The theory on this Wiki(***)]] shows that most probably, their problem was that they "tried way too hard" to start with. Once understanding how it all works, it becomes clear that such admonitions from the side of a guru to try better and harder, are in fact the most counter-productive advice one could possibly give. == Beyond feeling lost and confused; space for the excitement of exploration == If we stop mistaking "descriptions" for "prescriptions" we end up with an empty space full of question marks. Suddenly there is an additional need to understand how it all works, to really understand the working of one's own internal psychological processes. Losing the simple recipe of imitation, one has less directives and less direction any more, and only more understanding then can fill the gap. This Wiki is [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki|providing that understanding(*)]], but it does take some studying to grasp it all. It goes namely counter to what we have been trained to believe inside our cultural system. As pointed out [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit#The evolutionary importance of blindness for self and the illusion of Good and Bad|elsewhere on this Wiki(*)]], any large culture relies on a multitude of methods to keep its carriers, us humans, away from thinking soberly about one's own behaviour. The more confusion, the better. The above described confusion between "descriptions" and "prescriptions" is one of the most effective tricks to keep us humans stupid and blind. We, carriers of the contemporary cultures, are generally neuroticized creatures suffering from over-dominance of the telic state. "Prescriptions" very well fit into a telic frame of mind and help to keep one fixed in that state. Following "prescriptions" implies goal directed "telic" behaviour. "Descriptions" on the other hand are motivationally neutral and can be utilized in any motivational state. Also, "prescriptions" suggest certainty and the end of questioning, keeping our nosey curiosity away from our own behaviour, feelings and motivation. And blocking that sort of curiosity is one of the cornerstones of any large repression system and thus the cornerstone of large civilizations. "Prescriptions" also fit better in a master - slave structure than in a democratic structure of more independent members. "Prescriptions" are very suitable to provide quick directives for emergency situations and fight or flight situations. Such directives may not be very accurate, but they are readily available and easy to understand. "Descriptions" on the other hand are better suited for situations of exploration, needing more time to be processed and integrated in broader systems of experience and information, after which they eventually can result in other, newly developed directives for behaviour, but then on a more sophisticated and robust level. It shall be clear that the latter are much more suitable to help students move in the direction of better and quicker development and learning, ever more rapidly learning the skills to cope with the situations at hand. But how on earth would a guru be able to guide his students properly on these essential points as long as he himself does not have a clue of how it all works? By lack of anything better to teach, it then seems easier to have them imitate the behaviours belonging to a completely different frame of mind in the faulty supposition that such imitating will eventually produce the underlying sought after internal states, which .... alas .... it will not. Apart from this mixing up of "descriptions" and "prescriptions", our cultures utilize a myriad of other additional meme-tricks to induce and maintain confusion about our own behaviour. This particular mix up, mixing up descriptions for prescriptions, is just one of the commonest and easiest to recognize in the context as discussed in these pages, the guru - student setting. It is clear that this type of guru-student relationship is one of the many tricks that our cultures may apply to keep us stupid and bound in misery. The cynical part of the story is that in such a guru-student relationship it is pretended that the opposite is going to happen, setting the student free from bondage in ignorant misery, that is, if the student "is doing his best". No result? ................ student's fault! The mechanism is clear. == The excitement of exploration == What should happen instead, according to the theories as explained on this Wiki, is to simply facilitate the emergence of more frequent paratelic states, and all the rest will follow suit. To that end we can take strategic decisions and design effective directives, based on a better insight and knowledge of the underlying behavioural mechanisms. Once we succeed in making space for more frequent paratelic states, our behavioural system automatically and involuntarily starts to restore emotional and motivational balances and by itself automatically starts to seek out those experiences and sub-experiences that are for each individual person at his or her particular developmental phase precisely the most useful experiences needed for an optimal further development towards stability and growth. Eventually, one also will stumble across the skills and mental states, characteristic of the guru and, if still useful, integrate such awareness and skills in one's own life. And that will happen without any conscious steering of the process in specific directions and without the typical "prescriptions" of the guru system in question. Reversely, if one would go by "prescriptions", paired to a rather complete ignorance of how it all works, that would block effectively further growth and development in any direction and therefore, by implication, also in the desired, sought after, direction. Wrapping up this first point of elucidation, the "Mixing up of Prescriptions with Descriptions", we have seen that this sneaky confusion-meme exerts its neuroticising and binding influence in the guru - pupil setting as well as in large societies in general. The guru setting however, which is basically less complex than the fabric of large societies, gives us an easier and more simple case to study and to elucidate the workings of this confusion meme. What we can conclude, in a guru pupil setting as well as in societies at large, is that recognizing and understanding the mechanism of this "confusion meme" may help to create some space within our motivational and emotional system which may help us get "off the hook". Understanding creates space. And emotional space and time is what helps to re-establish the more frequent emergence of paratelic states, which in turn helps to re-establish more proper sequences of alternating telic and paratelic states, which in turn helps to enter more healthy learning cycles, which in turn results in more optimal patterns of development and growth. In passing, such a healthy and autonomous growth process brings about in passing the very achievements and skills that the guru pretended to give or bring about, but almost invariably, never did. As such, the guru setting is a handy magnifying glass for studying society at large. == Selection cycles in the guru setting == The second point of elucidation we want to mention in relation to Amy Wallace's book is about the automatic and involuntary selection processes in social groups and systems. As pointed out [[The biological instability of social equilibria (abstract)|elsewhere on this Wiki(**)]], in any social structure in mammal species there is a continuous selection pressure in favour of sociability and compliance and against self-will, individualism and creative innovation. Being a socially living mammal species ourselves, this also holds for human beings. The result of this automatic selection process is that social structures always have a limited life span. Newly formed social groups and structures start as loose groups of individualistic persons with ample space for personal differences and creative innovation. Such young social groups are therefore still quite flexible and resourceful. In due time the internal selection process will gradually remove the self-willed, creative individuals in favour of the socially adaptive types. The structure will gradually show more social cohesion and internal peace, but at the same time also less and less creative flexibility and innovative possibilities. Eventually the aging social structure will loose its flexibility to such an extent, that its rigour will prevent it from adapting to changing circumstances and make it loose its competitive edge versus competing social structures. Sooner or later that will imply the end of the structure in question. We call such processes of elimination, of loosing the competition battle, "collapse", "bankruptcy" or "revolution". These mechanisms result in the model of population cycles as described [[The biological instability of social equilibria (abstract)|elsewhere on this Wiki(**).]] In a guru system we generally find groups of seeking people, individuals who have broken loose from their societal anchors or are attempting to do so, at least to some extent. The newly formed group contains more than average innovators and curious seekers. So, when such a group of seekers assembles around a guru of some sort, the emerging group structure is freshly in the very initial phases of the population cycles as mentioned above. The message of the guru is new and by definition at variance with common sense knowledge and tradition in the surrounding society in question. The guru setting is therefore a very interesting case for studying the mechanisms of population cycles. [[The biological instability of social equilibria|The theory of population cycles(***)]] predicts that, depending on the level of the internal selection pressure against individualism and unpredictable creativity and in favour of compliant sociability, the structure will become gradually more structured, more fixed, more rigid and more predictable. And the stronger this selection pressure, the more quickly the structure will ossify. Since in a guru system the anchoring in long established societal rules and protective habits is weaker than in the society at large, we may expect that the eventually emerging selective forces can exert their influence more unrestrictedly and less hampered. Also, in such a guru system the followers can relatively easily drop out and turn back to their old society. There is a relatively low treshold to escape and therefore a highly effective selection pressure. For these reasons we may expect relatively short population cycles to occur around gurus. And this is indeed what we can see. What takes centuries in a large society happens in such small groups with a high effective selection pressure within one or two generations. Amy Wallace's accounts shed a clear light on what happened within the clan of Castaneda apprentices and how the rules and habits gradually became more hierarchical, rigid and restrictive. The more rigidity, group consensus and group control start playing a major role, the more creative and innovative individuals will be repelled or expelled and the more the rigidification of the group proceeds. The life cycle of such a group, where the effective selection pressure can be very high, higher than normal, is therefore very short and we can see all phases of the process within our lifetime. In the end the followers, in this case labeled as "apprentices", have to comply with ideas and world views that not only are very different from the world views of the surrounding society, but that are progressively more at variance with reality, reality as can be verified from one's own behaviour and experience. == Selection cycles in society == This Castaneda case is an example of a newly formed small group structure. Looking at similar mechanisms of cyclic social changes in the society at large, we can see that in the ossification phase the fixed ideas and beliefs are striking and quite prominent. If we take a closer look at for instance what a majority of the people in our own society cherish as religious beliefs, we see a staggering avalanche of unbelievable superstitions and misconceptions. The bulk of these superstitions are of such a level of stupidity and ignorance, that it raises the challenging question how on earth any cultural system can manage to keep such unbelievable masses of incredible stupidities upright in the face of continuous barrages of proofs of the fallaciousness of the belief systems in question. (For an eloquent presentation of such striking anomalies in our communal belief systems refer for instance to one of George Carlin's talks: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPOfurmrjxo for video click here]). Looking at it from a distance, the staggering idiocy of belief systems hits our eye. What one then sees is a collection of misconceptions and fallacies of an unbelievable level of deranged crazyness and / or dumb blindness. However, it is much easier to recognize this in a belief system which is not one's own than in a belief system in which one has grown up oneself. For most of us it is therefore much easier to recognize the misconceptions and fallacies of the Castaneda teachings than those of the Roman Catholic Church or any other Christian system of faith. Listening to George Carlin on religion, the idiocies of our own religions are quite striking. They seem to be stronger violations of the obvious reality than those in a small movement like the Castaneda followers. However, the Christian faiths harbour a vast host of tested tricks and seductions for keeping their belief systems upright. And the density and coverage of those tricks, seductions and threats of our common belief systems makes it very difficult for us to look through them or to try an escape. They keep their followers effectively bound in docile submission and artificially induced stupidity. Because of the rather complete coverage of most aspects of life, these common belief systems are very difficult to escape from. Also, the penalties for escaping from a generally accepted belief system are much higher. The forces of being ostracized hurt more. The threshold to escape is, still, much lower in the discussed Castaneda case. It is easier to pull out. Therefore one may expect a much more quick and effective internal selection pressure in the Castaneda case than in the case of widely accepted and established religions, and subsequently a much shorter life cycle. (See [[The biological instability of social equilibria (abstract)|elsewhere on this Wiki(**)]] for the theory of life cycles of social structures.) In order to learn from the relatively simple mechanisms in the relatively young and small guru structures and to infer the implications for the workings of our societies at large, it is useful to summarize the similarities and the differences between the two. * The tricks and tools with which an established religion (religion) binds its carriers (us) are more in number and better tested in practice than the tricks and tools in a young guru system (sect), that still has to prove its survival value. * The penalties for escaping are in general much higher in established religions than in sects, no matter the exotic peculiarities of binding attempts by sects that time and again hit the newspaper headlines. * Selection effects are higher in sects than in established religions and thresholds are lower. Cyclic changes occur therefore more quickly. * The tricks and binding tools in sects are easier to recognize by most people, because they differ from what most people are used to. They stick out as "strange". * Since a new sect purposefully departs from part of the widely established concepts and rules, they tend to rely more heavily on humanity's basic reflexes and tendencies. It is therefore likely that in such a setting we can more easily discern primordial, original human tendencies and characteristics. In any large society with its concomitant dominant religious belief system(s) small scale freshly established innovative belief systems will periodically pop up and exist for some period of time. Most of them disappear after some time, but some of them survive long enough to attract significant attention. There are certain, specific relationships between the large dominant religious systems in a society and such small scale newly emerged sects. One thing is that such sects offer an alternative for the disgruntled members of society. They find an escape from the daily routines in a mass culture, felt as confining and oppressive. Pluriformity of a large society can thus offer some relief to the creative and innovative individuals among its carriers, especially if the sect in question does not form a direct threat to the society's basic structure. In most instances the new sect will enter its own process of growth and formalization. That process leads either to a more open conflict with society at large, or the sect becomes another established part of the pluriform society, adopting its major characteristics, necessary for survival of the society. It becomes another of the religious forms serving the society in question's needs. In cases where this does not result in a basic conflict with the dominant religious structures, two thing can happen, leading the individuals in question back into the womb of society. The innovative individual may grow disappointed with the changes in the new sect into ever more structured and rigid forms, and leave the sect, therewith unavoidably returning to a higher extent back into the old societal structures. Another way the individual(s) return to the basic structures of society at large is in case the sect develops gradually into a (religious) system with roughly the same effects regarding the society at large. The sectarian then is incorporated again, via a detour, into the fabric of the whole. Similar processes can be discerned in political parties. Newly emerging political parties tend to be focussing on some specific issue in society where the adherents want change. If one studies the histories of political parties, similar life cycles emerge. Political parties tend to start as innovative movements of disgruntled individuals and if they survive they invariably end up after some years or decades as main stream political movements and eventually as conservatives. During their life cycle they then have contributed to the political processes, first as marginal idealistic innovators, then as main stream partners in the political main processes and finally as defendants of long established values, habits and traditions. It is always the same old life cycle pattern. == Conclusion == We can see the same processes in political parties, new versus old, as we can see in sects versus established religions. What is attractive in the case of Amy Wallace's book about Carlos Castaneda and his apprentices is that she presents a well documented case of what happened in a relatively simple variety of a social structure, simple because it was freshly emerging and also because it was departing quite far from ordinary societal habits and beliefs. Therefore the tendencies and reflexes occurring among the apprentices can be presumed to be relatively "clean" and close to the basics of Homo sapiens' original behavioural tendencies. If one wishes to study cyclic processes in society as a whole, it is therefore quite interesting to focus on this Castaneda case. It represents as it were a simplified laboratory-case of what happens at a larger and more complex scale in ordinary society as well. Two mechanisms in particular could be added to our understanding of these primordial mechanisms and could be traced in the Castaneda case. One is the cognitive tool of "mixing up prescriptions for descriptions", a meme level trick that functions as a basic tool for any power structure to strengthen its position and survival value. The other is the mechanisms of involuntary selection pressure in social groups and the life cycles of social structures resulting from it. Concluding we can say that in this comment on Amy Wallace's book on Carlos Castaneda and his apprentices we have not so much given an opinion on Amy's writings, other than that it is an excellently written honest and insightful account of her adventures with Castaneda's group. Rather, we have tried here to show how her book can serve as an enlightening illustration of some basic mechanisms that rule the life cycles of such groups, but that also work in a similar though more complex and often invisible way in societies at large. In that way her book can help greatly to understand who we are and where we are at this moment in time. 84syynob9bi6xitr50q5x5jbxb5cdyj 0 131 2097 2096 2010-12-29T09:21:31Z Baby Boy 2 /* Point Omega, another delusive apocalyptic "story", or based on sober scientific assessment ? */ wikitext text/x-wiki This recent book by John Gray, another bestseller, works like a washing machine for contemporary belief systems, superstition and political convictions. Readers of this book should be prepared to see many of their cherished beliefs turned into shreds and to perhaps see their purpose in life and their sense of determination evaporate in thin air. Basic concepts in our culture and our political systems are being subjected here to occams razor and to the sobering effects of objective reason and realism. Gray's discourse should be obligatory reading for politicians and leaders in government. That would help prevent much of the delusions and misguidance that keep making humanity suffer from the hands of their leaders. Below we add a short selection of Gray's texts, showing in a nutshell what he is trying to convey in this book. Subsequently we will point out where, in our case, we differ from Gray's point of view and what we would like to add to his story in order to make the picture more complete and understandable. == Sobriety and realism as an antidote to systems of superstition and to traditional flaws in politics and culture (1)== (quotes from Gray's "Black Mass") It has become a commonplace that Russia's misfortune was that the enlightenment never triumphed in the country. In this view the Soviet regime was a slavic version of 'oriental despotism', and the unprecedented repression it practised was a development of traditional Muscovite tyranny. In Europe Russia has long been seen as a semi- Asiatic country — a perception reinforced by the Marquis de Custine's famous journal recording his travels in Russia in 1839 in which he argued that Russians were predisposed to servility. Theories of oriental despotism have long been current among Marxists seeking to explain why Marx's ideas had the disastrous results they did in Russia and China. The idea of oriental despotism goes back to Marx himself, who postulated the existence of an 'Asiatic mode of production'. Later Marxian scholars such as Karl Wittfogel applied it to Russia and China, arguing that totalitarianism in these countries was a product of Asiatic traditions. As Nekrich and Heller summarize this conventional wisdom: ''Western historians draw a direct line from Ivan Vasilievich (Ivan the Terrible) to Joseph Vissarionovich (Stalin) or from Malyuta Skuratov, head of Ivan the Terrible's bodyguard and secret police force, to Yuri Andropov . . . thus demonstrating that from the time of the Scythians Russia was inexorably heading for the October Revolution and Soviet power. It was inherent in the national character of the Russian people. Nowhere else, these scholars think, would such a thing be possible.'' It is true that Russia never belonged fully in the West. Eastern Orthodoxy defined itself in opposition to western Christianity, and there was nothing in Russia akin to the Reformation or the Renaissance. ........................ Actually, humanity cannot advance or retreat, for humanity cannot act: there is no collective entity with intentions or purposes, only ephemeral struggling animals each with its own passions and illusions. The growth of scientific knowledge cannot alter this fact. ........................ Showing the origins of humanistic beliefs in Christianity does not prove they are mistaken, but it is not only humanist beliefs that are derived from Christianity. It is the whole framework of thought, and when the claim that humans are radically different from other animals is wrenched from its theological roots it is not just indefensible but virtually incomprehensible. Modern humanists think they are naturalists, who view all forms of life - including the human animal — as part of the material universe; but a genuinely naturalistic philosophy would not start by assuming humans have attributes other animals do not. Its point of departure would be that the evolutionary laws that govern other animals also govern humans. What ground — other than revealed religion — could there be for believing anything else? ......................... The French Positivists wanted to replace Christianity by a ridiculous Religion of Humanity; but they understood that religion answered to universal human needs. ........................... During the past twenty years western governments, led by America, have tried to export a version of liberal values to the world. These policies have been distinguished by the nebulous grandeur of their goals, but the overall aim was a mutation in the nature of war and power, which would come about as a result of the universal adoption of democracy. The attempt to remake the international system has had effects similar to those of previous Utopias. The disaster that continues to unfold in Iraq is the result of an entire way of thinking, and it is this that must be abandoned. New thought is needed, but it must renew an old tradition. The pursuit of Utopia must be replaced by an attempt to cope with reality. We cannot return to the writings of the realist thinkers of the past with the hope that they will resolve all our dilemmas. The root of realist thinking is Machiavelli's insight that governments exist, and must achieve all of their goals in a world of ceaseless conflict that is never far from a state of war. Despite the distance between Renaissance Italy and the present, this continues to be true; but the implications of Machiavelli's insight change according to circumstances, and even in their time the realist theories of recent generations were seriously flawed. Yet it is from realism more than from any other school that we can learn how to think about current conflicts. == Realism == (Comments on Gray's "Black Mass") Gray's arguments for acting with sobriety and realism, as an absolute requirement for being able to tackle the larger contemporary international problems effectively, is in line with the goals and targets of this Wiki. What this Wiki adds to this type of discussions, is that a number of notions about human behaviour and the human condition are presented, that have never been presented before, whereas these notions deal with the very core of human characteristics. The notions presented here have been suppressed actively for thousands of years, facilitated by a primordial human propensity for blindness for the Self and social relationship mechanisms. On this Wiki it is argued that it is absolutely indispensable that we overcome these spots of blindness and ignorance if we wish to survive in an acceptable way and that in order to incorporate the information as contained on this Wiki, we will need more sobriety, more curiosity and more intelligence than what is customary. On the other hand it is argued on this Wiki that those prerequisites for our enlightenment on these issues will be fulfilled rather automatically in a not too far future. == Sobriety and realism as an antidote to systems of superstition and to traditional flaws in politics and culture (2)== (quotes from Gray's "Black Mass") Realism is the only way of thinking about issues of tyranny and freedom, war and peace that can truly claim not to be based on faith and, despite its reputation for amorality, the only one that is ethically serious. This is, no doubt, why it is viewed with suspicion. Realism requires a discipline of thought that may be too austere for a culture that prizes psychological comfort above anything else, and it is a reasonable question whether western liberal societies are capable of the moral effort that is involved in setting aside hopes of world-transformation. Cultures that have not been shaped by Christianity and its secular surrogates have always harboured a tradition of realist thought, which is likely to be as strong in future as it has been in the past. In China, Sun Tzu's Art of War is a bible of realist strategy, and Taoist and Legalist philosophies contain powerful currents of realist thinking, while in India, Kautilya's writings on war and diplomacy have a similar place. Machiavelli's writings were a scandal because they subverted the claims of Christian morality. They have not had the same explosive force in non-Christian cultures, where realist thinking comes more easily. In post-Christian liberal democracies it has been political and intellectual elites, more than the majority of voters, that have favoured war as an instrument for improving the world; but public opinion still finds realist thinking distasteful. Can the task of staving off perennial evils satisfy a generation weaned on unrealizable dreams? Perhaps it prefers the romance of a meaningless quest to coping with difficulties that can never be finally overcome. But this has not always been so, and only a couple of generations ago realist thinking enabled western governments to prevail in conflicts far more dangerous than any they have yet had to face in the present century. It was realism rather than secular faith that allowed liberal democracies to defeat Nazism and contain communism. The long secret telegram that George F. Kennan sent to Washington in 1946, which shaped the policy that averted nuclear disaster during the Cold War while preventing the expansion of Soviet power, did not seek to work up a frenzy of rectitude. It urged that the Soviet system be studied 'with the same courage, detachment, objectivity and the same determination not to be emotionally provoked or unseated by it' as a doctor studies an unruly and unreasonable patient. It did not take for granted that the Soviet elites were ruled by ideology, or always reasonable. Instead it warned against being infected by their irrationality: 'The greatest danger that can befall us ... is that we shall allow ourselves to become like those with whom we are coping.' Though the dangers are different, Kennan's style of thinking is urgently needed today. Dealing with terrorism and proliferation is not a job for missionaries or crusaders. The heady certainty of faith, which sees every crisis as a heaven-sent opportunity to save humanity, is ill-suited to dealing with dangers that can never be defused. In times of danger, stoical determination and intellectual detachment are more useful qualities, and at its best realism embodied them. ...................... Realism is an Occam's Razor that works to [optimise] radical choices among evils. It cannot enable us to escape these choices, for they go with being human. ...................... Contrary to the thinking of post-modernists who believe all human values are cultural constructions and reject the idea of human nature, there are some values that reflect universal human needs. But these needs are many and discordant, and universal values can be embodied in different ways. If many types of government have been accepted as legitimate, it is not because humanity has yet to accept the local pieties of Atlantic democracy. It is because there is no one right way of settling conflicts among universal values. The prevention of great evils may involve rationally unresolvable dilemmas, as when reasonable people differ on the aerial bombing of civilian populations in the struggle to defend civilization against Nazism. Rationalist philosophers will ask the meaning of civilization, as if in the absence of a definition it could not be defended, while liberal humanists will say that the necessary restraints are provided by human rights. But the problem is not that we do not agree on moral issues, or fail to enforce human rights — it is that there are moral dilemmas, some of which occur fairly regularly, for which there is no solution. Liberal thinkers view human rights as embodying a kind of universal moral minimum that should be secured before any other goals are pursued. A worthy notion, but it passes over the fact that the components of the minimum are often at odds with one another. Toppling a tyrant may result in anarchy, but propping up tyranny can worsen the abuse of power. Freedom of religion is good, but where it leads to sectarian strife it is self-destroying. A private realm protected from intrusion is part of civilized life, but some incursion into privacy may be unavoidable if other freedoms are to be secure. It is better to accept these conflicts and deal with them than deny them, as liberals do when they look to theories of human rights to resolve dilemmas of war and security. The cardinal need is to change the prevailing view of human beings, which sees them as inherently good creatures unaccountably burdened with a history of violence and oppression. Here we reach the nub of realism and its chief stumbling-point for prevailing opinion: its assertion of the innate defects of human beings. Nearly all pre-modern thinkers took it as given that human nature is fixed and flawed, and in this as in some other ways they were close to the truth of the matter. No theory of politics can be credible that assumes that human impulses are naturally benign, peaceable or reasonable. ............................ == Laws of evolution; blind selection pressures precluding lasting harmony in human relations == (Comments on Gray's "Black Mass") Gray stresses in his books that struggle and strife apparently are indispensable ingredients of human society and that social dilemma's are an innate part of human political life. Since Homo sapiens is also a primate species, be it an intelligent one, stemming forth and being part of evolution, we can never escape from the basic characteristics of evolution in operation. Some scholar from the past once said that "civilization is a conspiracy against evolution" and that remark is quite on target. The more "ideal" a society is organized and the more "just" and "fair" to its members it operates, and the more peaceful it happens to be, the more selective forces within such a society have been suspended. One does not need to be a professor in population genetics to understand that such a situation is inherently unstable, leading to genetic pollution and eventual collapse of the "just and fair" society itself, rendering its members again to the raw and uncontrolled powers of natural selection and competition. Selection pressures and competition unavoidably produce conflict and stress on the personal level, but the same holds for larger groups of people and the power structures ruling human life. Also on the level of large organizations and political structures the same considerations of evolutionary rules and requirements apply. Elsewhere [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|on this Wiki]] it is pointed out that in our species power structures on the level of meme-sets have taken over the lead in our evolution since some 10.000 years. That implies that Homo sapiens since those times is saddled with strife and conflict to the second power. Not only are we subject to the primordial competition and selection forces an individuals are members, a struggle on the level of Memes. on the DNA level, but as organized groups we are also subject to mechanisms of competition and struggle on the level of groups and large organizations, of which hum And on top of all that, there is a built in permanent friction between the selection demands on the DNA, the Gene level end the selection demands on the Meme level. These two evolutionary processes operating at different speed, and us being subject to these two evolutionary processes at the same time, renders humans as being torn between conflicting demands of the two different non-synchronous evolutionary processes. So, yes, we cannot but agree fully with Gray, stating that humanity is convicted to live with insoluble dilemmas and conflicts. Only more insight and understanding, sobriety and courage can help us to acquire some tools enabling us to make rational choices that will improve our chances for survival. == Point Omega: apocalyptic fantasy or realistic perspective ? == (Comments on Gray's "Black Mass") This Wiki is about arguments for the assumption that humanity will at some time in the future, presumably not so far away, move through another qualitative shift in its existence, to be labeled as Point Omega, using the phraseology of Teilhard de Chardin. Reading Gray, we have reasons to scrutinize these ideas, because they are an example of apocalyptic thinking par excellence. This Wiki brings forward arguments about the why of the strong human propensity for teleological thinking (goal directed, [[Existential friction: Homo sapiens at the interface between the gene- and the meme evolution|telic overdominant)]] and thus for all important changes happening in the future, for apocalyptic "stories" as laid down in the traditions of our large religions. Because Homo sapiens is "artificially" brought into telic dominant states by the power structures ruling our lives nowadays, there is an artificially pumped up desire and need for such apocalyptic stories to believe in. That way this Wiki presents additional arguments why Gray's observations are quite adequate and correct and how this typical human propensity, for believing in stupid, simplistic apocalyptic religious and/or political stories, has come about. On the other hand, this Wiki also presents [[Existential friction: Homo sapiens at the interface between the gene- and the meme evolution|arguments]] why the human behavioural repertoire contains possibilities for social group life that are quite at variance with anything we are familiar with today. It is argued that the (evolutionary) mechanisms that keep the present power structures and the concomitant human misery in place, are becoming quickly more unstable, simply because of technological developments that cannot be turned back. It is argued that once intelligence "breaks through", and starts understanding itself, once Homo sapiens understands the rules and laws of the evolution of intelligence and thus the core of its own existence, the break down of a host of cultural mechanisms that keep human beings artificially in states of neurosis and stupidity, in states of blinded slavery, will crumble down and release an unheard of intelligent and creative potential that has been laying dormant in human societies for many millennia. These are two reasons to watch our steps carefully and to think over all arguments pro and con every step at least twice. == Science and/or religion; lessons for politics == (quotes from Gray's "Black Mass") ................... that no change in human institutions can resolve the contradictions of human needs. Human beings may want freedom, but usually only when other needs have been met, and not always then. Tyrants are not only feared, they are often loved. States do not act only to protect their interests; they are also vehicles for myths, fantasies and mass psychosis. Neo-conservatives and liberal internationalists are fond of saying freedom is contagious, but tyranny can also be contagious. During much of the last century dictators were worshipped. It would be a bold prophet who forecast that this could not happen again. .................... In an anarchical world, global environmental problems are politically insoluble. Environmental crisis is a fate humans can temper but not overcome. Its origins are in the power to grow knowledge that distinguishes humans from other animals. The advance of knowledge has enabled humans to multiply their numbers, extend their lifespans and create wealth on a scale that has no precedent. But global warming and energy shortage are results of advancing industrialism, which is also a by-product of scientific progress. The proliferation of means of mass destruction, not only to states but also to forces [that] states do not control, is another of its effects. Today the worry is that nuclear materials may slip into terrorist hands, but tomorrow the fear may be of biological weapons doing so. Genetic science enables humans to intervene in the creation of life, but it will surely be used to wreak mass death as well. It cannot be long before genetically selective devices are feasible that can act as tools of genocide, and when this happens there may be no means of preventing them being diffused across the world. ..................... The belief that history has an underlying plot is central to the millenarian movements, secular and religious, that have been examined in this book. All who belong to these movements believe they are acting out a script that is already partly written. In versions of apocalyptic belief that are avowedly religious, the author of the script is God, with the Devil and assorted demons writing their own lines but finally submitting to the authority of the divine narrator. In secular apocalyptic, the author is that equally elusive figure humanity, battling the forces of ignorance and superstition. Either way, the demand for meaning is met by narratives in which each individual life is part of an all-encompassing story. The dangers of the need for an overarching human narrative are clear. To feel oneself the target of a global conspiracy as the Nazis did may not seem a positive state of mind, but it banishes the lack of meaning, which is a worse threat. Paranoia is often a protest against insignificance, and collective delusions of persecution bolster a fragile sense of agency. The problem is that this benefit is purchased at a high price: a price measured in the lives of others who are forced to act out a role in a script they have not read, still less written. Those who are crushed or broken in order to create a higher humanity, who are killed or mutilated in acts of spectacular terror or ravaged in wars for universal freedom may have ideas about their place in the world altogether different from those they are assigned in the dramas that are being enacted. If universal narratives create meaning for those who live by them, they also destroy it in the lives of others. The sense of having a part in such a narrative is delusive, of course. John of Leyden believed God had called him to rule over the New Jerusalem. Lenin was sure he was expediting the laws of history. Hitler was certain the corrupt world of liberal democracy was doomed. True believers in the free market interpreted the collapse of communism as a sign of an inexorable trend, and neo-conservatives greeted the few years of American supremacy that seemed to follow as a new epoch in history. All of these prophets imagined they had grasped the plot of history and were completing a preordained pattern. In fact, their rise to power was accidental, and only the non-arrival of the Millennium was preordained. Millenarian movements come about as the result of a combination of random events, and when they fall from grace it is as a result of features of human life whose permanence they deny. The history of these movements is scarcely tragic, for those who belong to them rarely perceive the fateful contingencies by which their lives are ruled. They are actors in a theatre of the absurd whose lines are given by chance. ....................... Post-modern philosophies that view science as just one belief-system among many are too silly to be worth refuting at length — the utility of scientific knowledge is a brute fact that is shown in the increase of human power. Science is an instrument for forming reliable beliefs about the world. Religions are also human instruments, but they have other goals. ....................... The collision between science and religion comes from the mistake that both have to do with belief. It is only in some strands of Christianity and Islam that belief has been placed at the heart of religion. In other traditions, religion has to do with the acceptance of mystery rather than catechisms or creeds. Science and religion serve different needs, which though they pull in different directions are equally human. In the contemporary world, science has authority because of the power it confers. That is why fundamentalists ape its claims to literal truth — as in the cartoon science of creationism. Yet creationism is hardly more ridiculous than Social Darwinism, dialectical materialism or the theory that as societies become more modern they become more free or peaceful. These secular creeds are more unreasonable than any traditional faith, if only because they make a more elaborate show of being rational. The most necessary task of the present time is to accept the irreducible reality of religion. In the Enlightenment philosophies that shaped the last two centuries, religion was a secondary or derivative aspect of human life that will disappear, or cease to be important, when its causes are removed. Once poverty is eradicated and education universal, social inequality has been overcome and political repression is a thing of the past, religion will have no more importance than a personal hobby. Underlying this article of Enlightenment faith is a denial of the fact that the need for religion is generically human. It is true that religions are hugely diverse and serve many social functions — most obviously, as welfare institutions. At times they have also served the needs of power. But beyond these socio-political purposes, religions express human needs that no change in society can remove — for example the need to accept what cannot be remedied and find meaning in the chances of life. Human beings will no more cease to be religious than they will stop being sexual, playful or violent. ........................ The chief intellectual obstacle to coexistence among religions is a lack not of mutual understanding, but of self- knowledge. ........................ == The role of religion in contemporary society == (Comments on Gray's "Black Mass") Gray makes an important point here, which is that the human species has a very strong inborn need for religion. In western societies, in our cultures in The West, he says, religion is special in the sense that it competes with science in claiming to be rational, causing a continuous current of conflicts between science and religion, or rather between religion and rationality. Supposedly, this tendency to generate conflicting meme sets is less strong or almost absent in the East. In his view it is of the utmost importance that humanity, and in particular western societies, start recognizing religion for what it is, meme sets that fulfill the needs of human beings that cannot be satisfied by rational scientific thinking, by any rational information generated by scientific methodology. Being fully understood by its carriers, religion will thus be stopped from screwing up politics and other high level management of human societies, without needing to be abolished. It then can keep fulfilling its goals harmlessly, without endangering humanity's potential to survive. As can be underpinned [[Eating from the Forbidden Fruit|elsewhere on this Wiki]], we are of a slightly different opinion. We do agree fully with Gray that the way religion has been and still is used in Christianity, in Judaism and in Islam, has become such a grave danger for humanity that it threatens our very survival. The uncontrolled proliferation of weapons of mass destruction is becoming lethal in combination with political systems that are vulnerable to religious irrationalities. However, we do not agree with the idea that the need for religion is such a strongly innate human basic drive. It is in our view indeed a strong human drive in our days, as it has been already for thousands of years, but a better understanding of the present day human psychological condition, as compared to what are the innate possibilities of the human species, can explain how religious behaviour, and the drives and needs behind it, are to a large extent the result of [[Existential friction: Homo sapiens at the interface between the gene- and the meme evolution|telic overdominance]], which, as is shown [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|on this Wiki]], does not need to last forever. Telic dominance destroys the capacity to play, the capacity to explore, the capacity to learn at an optimal pace. Telic dominance saddles people with an unstoppable urge to find "goals", to grab any clues available that can provide some purpose for one's activities. A typically telic attitude is to settle for the time being for [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#4.6. "How", "Why" and "What" questions, sufficient and necessary conditions|"sufficiency-oriented" models]] and solutions of reality. Normally, such emergency triggered short term solutions for producing models of the situation(s) will in due time, subsequently, be integrated further with other short term sufficiency-oriented models and concepts, and will eventually be replaced by more concise "necessity-oriented" models of reality, models that are more efficient and can better survive later bouts of further exploration and challenge. Telic (over)dominance strongly blocks the production of necessity oriented models of reality and also blocks the full natural tendency for curiosity and psychological growth towards maturity. Telic dominance thus enhances superstition at all levels, combined with a seeming greed for explanatory "stories", no matter how stupid and shortsighted they may seem from an intellectual point of view. On [[Existential friction: Homo sapiens at the interface between the gene- and the meme evolution|this Wiki]] it is argued that the present day overdominance of telic states, together with the resulting high levels of mass neuroticism and reduced intelligence, is the unavoidable but transitory result of the specific evolutionary phase humanity is in. Some millions of years ago our hominid ancestors rather suddenly developed a higher level of intelligence and of speach and communication capacities. This only could occurr after some trick had been acquired which was quite novel in evolution, namely a peculiar, but highly effective block on self awareness, preventing intelligence to be utilized fully on issues regarding the own behaviour and the behaviour of group members. This was necessary to prevent intelligence from reducing fertility, necessary to prevent proximate causes of behaviour to interfere with ultimate reasons for behaviour, because the latter would render a too high intelligence level as self defeating. Only the evolutionary trick of Self Blindness could render higher levels of intelligence becoming an ESS (evolutionarily stable strategy). Then, after having developed over a couple of millions of years an ever higher level of intelligence, combined with ever more efficient levels of Self Blindness, the agricultural revolution set in. That agricultural revolution triggered a strongly increasing evolutionary pressure on the development of ever more sophisticated organizational structures, meme sets giving large groups of people an evolutionary edge over competitors. Since the evolution of meme sets in principle runs much faster than does the old fashioned DNA based physical evolution, the meme level evolution soon took over the lead from the gene level evolution in the Human species. This striking difference in speed causes a friction in the Human species between its genetically programmed "natural" needs and urges on the one hand and the requirements of the ruling meme level power structures on the other hand. Therefore, since that time, we are a "torn" species. Power structures are served best with human beings capable of serving well the impersonal requirements and needs of such power structures themselves, also where that is conflicting with the old natural needs and urges. One trick of power structures to achieve such goals is to render the human carriers of such power structure neurotic. Neuroticism may reduce the useful behavioural output of individual persons, but on the other hand strongly increases possibilities to monitor, control and direct their behaviour to the advantage of the power structure in charge. So Homo sapiens ended up in a situation where in the more "civilized" and powerful parts of the world neurotic states and truncated behaviour became the norm rather than the exception. The already inborn propensity of Human beings to be blind for their own and each others behaviour, feelings and motivations, of course was of great advantage to the powers structure's neuroticizing devices. Organized religion is one of such device, keeping huge masses of people bound in irrational but effective states of ignorance and slavery. As is shown [[Contemporary weakening of the foundations of Power Structures|elsewhere on this Wiki]] such types of mass religion are only possible, are only stable as long as telic overdominance and neuroticism are being maintained. As soon as more healthy levels of telic / paratelic balance and personal growth set in again, people tend to escape from the blinding clusters of organized religion. Such individuals may, almost automatically, then produce high levels of intelligence and creative output, but they are lost for serving the blind pushing power of the power structures they happen to live in. Therefore it is no surprise that the most successful power structures are best versed in suppressing personal development and health, while keeping a majority of their carriers at a moderate, but still useful level of functioning and output. Since large and successful organized religions only can survive in large power structures, they must serve those power structures well and therefore they must, by definition, help keeping their carriers silly and malleable and subordinate to the power structure's impersonal needs. So, by definition again, large organized religions always bring their believers almost exactly the opposite of what they pretend to give, which is spiritual growth and awareness and happiness. On the contrary, they should, in order to be successful, keep their carriers as dumb as possible, as confused as possible, and as insecure as possible, otherwise the power structure they live in would crumble down, ending also the religion in question. The needs of a successful symbiosis between religions and power structures is therefore clear. == Point Omega, another delusive apocalyptic "story", or based on sober scientific assessment ? == (Comments on Gray's "Black Mass") The notion of a Point Omega being at hand shortly in human history would fit seemingly seamlessly in the usual apocalyptic world views of which type of meme sets Gray eloquently lays bare the irrational roots. However, we are of the opinion that on this Wiki it is argued successfully that scientific data are available, suggesting that humanity is indeed at the brink of another qualitative shift in cognitive and social behaviour, equaling the importance of the agricultural revolution, but - rather suddenly - occurring at a very much higher speed. If our point of view is correct and can survive Gray's scrutiny, it also implies that humanity, swapping from a state of telic overdominance to a - natural - state of telic / paratelic balance, will lose its hang for superstitious beliefs, simply because the paratelic state does not produce such an all overriding need for simple but comprehensive "stories" to explain it all. Paratelic states produce curiosity instead and even a liking for uncertainties. A healthy rhythm of telic and paratelic alternations, as mother nature meant us to function, will subsequently produce more "necessity oriented" models of reality, replacing and rendering superfluous the ordinary rough and ready "sufficiency-oriented" models of reality [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model#4.6. "How", "Why" and "What" questions, sufficient and necessary conditions|(for further information click here)]]. Few "necessity-oriented" models can replace very many "sufficiency-oriented" models, rendering a far more reliable and far more efficient overall model of the world. Religion and other superstitious belief systems will then automatically disappear through atrophy and just survive for a limited period of time in the less important corners of the human world, without posing grave dangers to us all and without making a rational approach to governing practically impossible, as is nowadays still the case as Gray very eloquently illustrates in his book. In the last pages of his book Gray mentions: "The chief intellectual obstacle to coexistence among religions is a lack, not of mutual understanding, but of self-knowledge." We fully agree with that statement. It was argued above that already from the time the hominids expanded as hunter gatherers on the African plains and intelligence started to reach higher levels, a specific block was built into our genes, making it very difficult for us to regard our own and each other's behaviour, a characteristic we labeled as [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|"Self-Blindness"]]. This very specific evolutionary "invention" made it possible that intelligence exploded in the case of one of the hominids, producing one strand called Homo sapiens. It was a prerequisite for the evolution of higher levels of intelligence. Self-knowledge is therefore not easy to achieve for human beings, but the theory behind the Point Omega idea points out that the disappearance of telic overdominance will improve the spreading of more rationality, ''even'' in thinking about ourselves and each other. "Necessity-oriented" models will automatically get the upper hand, to the extent that superstition and other "sufficiency-oriented" simplistic ideas will sink back to the level of local folklore. In our view Gray's admonition will thus come true, were it that the religions themselves will stop playing a major role in human history. They will eventually be regarded as unfortunate, but at that time unavoidable, human characteristics from a past era. Time will tell whether the ideas as presented and discussed on this Wiki are valid or that the notion of a Point Omega coming soon is just another of the apocalyptic delusions Gray describes and criticizes so eloquently. pa5cgst4slshn2hydr9e7gbwu8r5ak8 0 132 2194 2077 2011-01-23T08:51:51Z Baby Boy 2 /* The Capacity to See, before and after Point Omega */ wikitext text/x-wiki ''' This philosophical bestseller by John Gray is composed of a collection of essays, rather independent from one another. Some of these essays are of direct relevance to what this Wiki is all about and we will briefly comment on some quotes from Straw Dogs to indicate where the authors of this Wiki stand in relation to Gray's thinking. == Animal Virtues == (Quotes from chapter 3, essay #14 from John Gray's "Straw Dogs") If you seek the origins of ethics, look to the lives of other animals. The roots of ethics are in the animal virtues. Humans cannot live well without virtues they share with their animal kin. This is not a new idea. Two and a half thousand years ago, Aristotle observed the similarities between humans and dolphins. Like humans, dolphins act purposefully to achieve the good things of life, they take pleasure in exercising their powers and skills, and they display qualities such as curiosity and bravery. Humans are not alone in having an ethical life. In thinking this way, Aristotle was at one with Nietzsche, who wrote: ''The beginnings of justice, as of prudence, moderation, bravery - in short, of all that we designate as the '''Socratic virtues''' - are '''animal''': a consequence of that drive which teaches us to seek food and elude enemies. Now if we consider that even the highest human being has only become more elevated and subtle in the nature of his food and in his conception of what is inimical to him, it is not improper to describe the entire phenomenon of morality as animal.'' The dominant Western view is different. It teaches that humans are unlike other animals, which simply respond to the situations in which they find themselves. We can scrutinise our motives and impulses; we can know why we act as we do. By becoming ever more self-aware, we can approach a point at which our actions are the results of our choices. When we are fully conscious, everything we do will be done for reasons we can know. At that point, we will be authors of our lives. This may seem fantastical, and so it is. Yet it is what we are taught by Socrates, Aristotle and Plato, Descartes, Spinoza and Marx. For all of them, consciousness is our very essence, and the good life means living as a fully conscious individual. ........................ Outside the Western tradition, the Taoists of ancient China saw no gap between ''is'' and ''ought''. Right action was whatever comes from a clear view of the situation. They did not follow moralists - in their day, Confucians - in wanting to fetter human beings with rules or principles. For Taoists, the good life is only the natural life lived skilfully. It has no particular purpose. It has nothing to do with the will, and it does not consist in trying to realise any ideal. Everything we do can be done more or less well; but if we act well it is not because we translate our intentions into deeds. It is because we deal skilfully with whatever needs to be done. The good life means living according to our natures and circumstances. There is nothing that says that it is bound to be the same for everybody, or that it must conform with 'morality'. In Taoist thought, the good life comes spontaneously; but spontaneity is far from simply acting on the impulses that occur to us. In Western traditions such as Romanticism, spontaneity is linked with subjectivity. In Taoism it means acting dispassionately, on the basis of an objective view of the situation at hand. The common man cannot see things objectively, because his mind is clouded by anxiety about achieving his goals. Seeing clearly means not projecting our goals into the world; acting spontaneously means acting according to the needs of the situation. Western moralists will ask what is the purpose of such action, but for Taoists the good life has no purpose. It is like swimming in a whirlpool, responding to the currents as they come and go. 'I enter with the inflow, and emerge with the outflow, follow the Way of the water, and do not impose my selfishness upon it. This is how I stay afloat in it,' says the ''Chuang-Tzu. '' In this view, ethics is simply a practical skill, like fishing or swimming. The core of ethics is not choice or conscious awareness, but the knack of knowing what to do. It is a skill that comes with practice and an empty mind. A.C. Graham explains: ''The Taoist relaxes the body, calms the mind, loosens the grip of categories made habitual by naming, frees the current of thought for more fluid differentiations and assimilations, and instead of pondering choices lets his problems solve themselves as inclination spontaneously finds its own direction. ... He does not have to make decisions based on standards of good and bad because, granted only that enlightenment is better than ignorance, it is self-evident that among spontaneous inclinations the one prevailing in greatest clarity of mind, other things being equal, will be best, the one in accord with the Way.'' Few human beings have the knack of living well. Observing this, the Taoists looked to other animals as their guides to the good life. Animals in the wild know how to live; they do not need to think or choose. It is only when they are fettered by humans that they cease to live naturally. As the ''Chuang-Tzu'' puts it, horses, when they live wild, eat grass and drink water; when they are content, they entwine their necks and rub each other. When angry, they turn their backs on each other and kick out. This is what horses know. But if harnessed together and lined up under constraints, they know how to look sideways and to arch their necks, to career around and try to spit out the bit and rid themselves of the reins. For people in thrall to 'morality', the good life means perpetual striving ("telic" in the words of this Wiki). For Taoists it means living effortlessly ("paratelic" in the words of this Wiki), according to our natures. The freest human being is not one who acts on reasons he has chosen for himself, but one who never has to choose. Rather than agonising over alternatives, he responds effortlessly to situations as they arise. He lives not as he chooses but as he must. Such a human being has the perfect freedom of a wild animal - or a machine. As the ''Lieh-Tzu'' says: 'The highest man at rest is as though dead, in movement is like a machine. He knows neither why he is at rest nor why he is not, why he is in movement nor why he is not.' The idea that freedom means becoming like a wild animal or machine is offensive to Western religious and humanist prejudices, but it is consistent with the most advanced scientific knowledge. A.G. Graham explains: ''Taoism coincides with the scientific worldview at just those points where the latter most disturbs westerners rooted in the Christian tradition - the littleness of man in a vast universe; the inhuman Tao which all things follow, without purpose and indifferent to human needs; the transience of life, the impossibility of knowing what comes after death; unending change in which the possibility of progress is not even conceived; the relativity of values; a fatalism very close to determinism; even a suggestion that the human organism operates like a machine.'' Autonomy means acting on reasons I have chosen; but the lesson of cognitive science is that there is no self to do the choosing. We are far more like machines and wild animals than we imagine. But we cannot attain the amoral selflessness of wild animals, or the choiceless automatism of machines. Perhaps we can learn to live more lightly, less burdened by morality. We cannot return to a purely spontaneous existence. If humans differ from other animals, it is partly in the conflicts of their instincts. They crave security, but they are easily bored; they are peace-loving animals, but they have an itch for violence; they are drawn to thinking, but at the same time they hate and fear the unsettlement thinking brings. There is no way of life in which all these needs can be satisfied. Luckily, as the history of philosophy testifies, humans have a gift for self-deception, and thrive in ignorance of their natures (see below for the why and how). == Western virtues versus Taoism, a Reversal Theory perspective == (Comments on John Gray's "Straw Dogs") In the above essay Gray points out an important difference between western Christian thought and eastern philosophies like Taoism. In western Christian thought the best achievable condition is one of high virtue where a "good" way of life has successfully been strived after and achieved. In Taoist thinking on the other hand, the best achievable condition is one of effortlessness, of being able to flow with the current. As explained [[Point Omega (summary)#Reversal Theory of Emotions and Motivations|elsewhere on this Wiki]], if one has knowledge of the basic mechanisms of (human) emotions and motivations and if one is aware of the function of "telic" and "paratelic" states of motivation, it has become clear that western thought does not escape from thinking in telic dominant terms, not understanding the function and usefulness of paratelic states. Taoist thinking on the other hand does manage to incorporate paratelic states in its considerations, be it in different terms and words, and it points out that an achieved and enlightened person generally manages to dwell (sufficiently often) in playfull effortlessness and goal-lessness (which is the meaning of the Greek word [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Reversal Theory|"paratelic"]]). In this way the information on this Wiki can bring deeper insight into the phenomena that Gray brings to our attention and also about the technical details of the underlying mechanisms. Gray furthermore points out that humans have an uncanny tendency for self-deception and a peculiar ignorance about their own functioning. This also makes it possible that the above mentioned awareness of what we call the paratelic states and the desirability of being able to effortlessly flow with the Tao, is virtually absent in our culture. This makes it possible that such basic and elementary characteristics of our own personal behavioural system, behavioural elements that are essentially very simple and easy to understand for anybody who's mind is not blocked, have nevertheless stayed completely out of view in our culture(s). With the [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|information as presented on this Wiki]] we not only can understand how this peculiar blindness for the own behaviour operates in us humans, but also can understand [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|how this peculiar blindness came about]]. It is explained here that any evolutionary emergence of a higher intelligence by necessity has to go through an evolutionary phase of blindness, and that otherwise intelligence cannot grow above a certain level. It is furthermore argued on this Wiki that such a state of personal and collective blindness, in which we are still stuck till over our necks, is also a transitory state and that a different type of functioning is laying in wait for us on the other side of the blindness barrier. By laying bare the technical behavioural details of our intelligent, and not so intelligent, functioning and the motivational mechanisms involved, it is shown that our present state of blindness and thorough confusion already is the dominant state of affairs for over 10,000 years, but that it is basically unstable and is likely to collapse all of a sudden some time in the future [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|(see also here)]]. == Artificial Paradises == (Quote from chapter 4, essay #12 from John Gray's "Straw Dogs" on the role of drugs in present day society) Consciousness and the attempt to escape it go together. Drug use is a primordial animal activity. Among humans, it is immemorial and nearly universal. What then accounts for the 'war on drugs'? Prohibiting drugs makes the trade in them fabulously profitable. It breeds crime and greatly enlarges the prison population. Despite this, there is a worldwide drugs pandemic. Prohibiting drugs has failed. Why then will no contemporary government legalise them? Some say organised crime and the law are linked in a symbiosis that blocks radical reform. There may be some truth in this, but the real explanation lies elsewhere. The most pitiless warriors against drugs have always been militant progressives. In China, the most savage attack on drug use occurred when the country was convulsed by a modern western doctrine of universal emancipation - Maoism. It is no accident that the crusade against drugs is led today by a country wedded to the pursuit of happiness - the United States. For the corollary of that improbable quest is a puritan war on pleasure. Drug use is a tacit admission of a forbidden truth. For most people happiness is beyond reach. Fulfillment is found not in daily life but in escaping from it. Since happiness is unavailable, the mass of mankind seeks pleasure. Religious cultures could admit that earthly life was hard, for they promised another in which all tears would be wiped away. Their humanist successors affirm something still more incredible - that in future, even the near future, everyone can be happy. Societies founded on a faith in progress cannot admit the normal unhappiness of human life. As a result, they are bound to wage war on those who seek an artificial happiness in drugs. == Drugs for and drugs against power structures == (Comments on John Gray's "Straw Dogs") This [[Point Omega (summary)#Impersonal power structures ruling our world|Wiki shows]] that the present state of mankind is governed by power structures on the "meme level". That implies that malleability and obedience of us humans in respect to the power structures in place, is far more important than is personal happiness. Rather, a mild but stable level of unhappiness and neuroticism is the best a power structure can opt for. Therefore, in case a power structure allows for drug use to be incorporated in a local social structure and political organization, then these drugs are likely to help maintain neurotic states rather than help to overcome them. For a power structure, awareness boosters, like e.g., LSD, Peyotle, San Pedro, Ayahuasca, pure marihuana, etc. are dangerous, because they may lift the awareness of the individuals in question over a threshold beyond which the control over such an individual may start to waver and break down. Awareness expanding drugs tend to break the rather unstable prison bars of fear and neurosis and tend to trigger awareness of what is really going on, of what individuals really would wish and would need. They bring awareness of what other levels of well being are possible and how to get there and, what is even more crucial, how one could escape from the fetters of customary unhappy slavery. And that is lethal for the power structures in charge, for thus they would lose their power over their carriers, us humans. Drugs like coffee, cocaine, nicotine and alcohol on the other hand, can easier be incorporated in a thriving power structure, because they diminish awareness rather than boost it or they produce short energy boosts at the expense of later autonomous energy levels. And the latter is conducive to power structures, because that sort of "borrowing" of energy in turn reduces the likelihood of autonomous paratelic states [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Requirements of open-ended learning|(see here)]] and thus stabilizes neurotic states for the long term. And it is precisely a stabilized general neuroticism that power structures and their governments really want, be it unconsciously. Any government not playing along with these rules is likely to undermine its own stability. General well being and stability of power structures do not go hand in hand. Moreover, power structures thrive best if they keep their masses unawares of these mechanisms. By maintaining blindness for the general unhappiness and stressfulness of oneself and everybody around, the power structures prevent their carriers to use their intelligence for questioning their situation. The best slave is a slave who is not aware of his slavery. Drugs use is just one of the examples where this general tendency can be observed. In our societies the information about drugs is therefore in general incomplete, wrong, absent or upside down. The more confusion on these matters, the better. == The Lessons of Japan == (Quote from chapter 5, essay #13 from John Gray's "Straw Dogs" on the inescapable influence of predatory states (power structures)) Japan's rulers were able to shut out the modern technologies that threatened its peace because it had the option of isolation. When Commodore Perry arrived with his black ships in 1853, Japan's rulers knew it had to switch course. By the first decade of the twentieth century it had a modern navy, which destroyed the Russian Imperial Fleet at the Battle of Tsushima - the first time a modern European power was defeated in war by an Asian people. Any country that renounces technology makes itself the prey of others that do not. At best it will fail to achieve the self-sufficiency at which it aims - at worst it will suffer the fate of the Tasmanians. There is no escape from a world of predatory states. == Power structures ................. predatory states == (Comments on John Gray's "Straw Dogs") What is underlined with these quotes from Gray is that human societies in the end are ruled and determined by large power structures and their demands. Only large power structures that are able to compete successfully with their competitor fellow power structures, can survive. Peoples either are wiped out or win, or are subdued and incorporated in another people's power structure, thus making it their own. Whichever way, they have to submit to being neuroticized, to being blindfolded, to being unhappy rather perpetually, in short, to being enslaved thoroughly and forever. That's why and how power structures tend to devour or absorb social structures with less structured unhappiness and a less perfect malleability of its carriers. Whereas these tendencies between societies and states happen on a very unconscious basis, the apparent "behaviour" of the surviving states rightly deserves the epitheton "predatory states" as used by Gray. == Yet Another Utopia == (Quote from chapter 5, essay #18 from John Gray's "Straw Dogs") We can dream of a world in which a greatly reduced human population lives in a partially restored paradise; in which farming has been abandoned, and green deserts given back to the earth; where the remaining humans are settled in cities, emulating the noble idleness of hunter-gatherers, their needs met by new technologies that leave little mark on the Earth; where life is given over to curiosity, pleasure and play. There is nothing technically impossible about such a world. New technologies cannot undo the laws of thermodynamics; but they can be friendlier to the Earth than the old technologies. Microchips allow technology to be partially dematerialised, making it less energy-intensive. Solar power allows energy consumption to be partly decarbonised, reducing its environmental impact. James Lovelock has suggested using nuclear power to counter global warming. E.O. Wilson has proposed that genetically modified foods have a role in a far-reaching programme of conservation and population control. A high-tech Green Utopia, in which a few humans live happily in balance with the rest of life, is scientifically feasible; but it is humanly unimaginable. If anything like it ever comes about, it will not be through the will of ''homo rapiens''. So longer as population grows, progress will consist in labouring to keep up with it. There is only one way that humanity can limit its labours, and that is by limiting its numbers. But limiting human numbers clashes with powerful human needs. The Kurds and the Palestinians see large numbers of children as a survival strategy. Where communities are locked in intractable conflict, a high birth rate is a weapon. In any future we can realistically foresee, there will be many such conflicts. Zero population growth could be enforced only by a global authority with draconian powers and unwavering determination. There never has been such a power, and there never will be. And yet. . . What if a shift in our place in the world were to come about without anyone planning it? What if our designs for the future were moves in a game in which we are only passing players? == Utopia or emerging new reality ? == (Comments on John Gray's "Straw Dogs") The above quote from Gray leaves a rather pessimistic view of our human situation. And, true, history does not give us much encouragement to dwell on more optimistic world views and future possibilities. The naked facts show that human beings live quite unconsciously and seem ages away from being able to make clever decisions about their own future and way of life. Instead, they blindly follow the dictates of the power structures they happen to live in and keep committing the most inane, stupid atrocities and acts of destruction in the name of some "higher common cause". Still, the [[Point Omega (summary)#Self Blindness and Social-role Blindness|data on this Wiki]] show that another viewpoint can be considered. That is the viewpoint of an increasing human intelligence that has been kept harnessed and blindfolded artificially for the purposes of the evolutionary struggle between meme level power structures, the viewpoint that these blinding mechanisms are basically unstable and that by a suddenly exploding awareness level the blindfolds will eventually be torn away and (self)realization will suddenly start to spread all over the human world. As soon as that happens, energies will be automatically withdrawn from fueling the power structures and be directed in more wholesome directions, like figuring out how to maximize human well being instead of maximizing the impersonal power structures in charge. In fact, the issue of overpopulation is one of the recent developments that guides humanity towards an inescapable confrontation with its own staggering irrationality. And whereas power structures in general foster unawareness of the human condition and unawareness of possibilities to improve the human condition, this problem of overpopulation may prove to become such a strong trigger to overcome blindness on this spot that it may eventually serve as a starting point of (self) awareness breaking loose. After all, the current information explosion makes it ever more difficult for power structures to cultivate adequate and stable levels of ignorance. == Simply to See == (Quote, paragraph 5 from chapter 6 from John Gray's "Straw Dogs", final paragraph of his book.) Other animals do not need a purpose in life. A contradiction to itself, the human animal cannot do without one. Can we not think of the aim of life as being simply to see? == The Capacity to See, before and after Point Omega == (Comments on John Gray's "Straw Dogs") "Simply to see" ? Yes we can, yes we will ! This Wiki [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|argues]] that this "simply to see" is indeed a very accurate description of what human evolution inescapably is leading to and why this is so. It is shown why the human condition has been so difficult since some 10,000 years up till now, and why it has been an evolutionary necessity for humanity to go through this phase of blindness, of "not seeing". It is shown that at this stage of human evolution and development the natural flow of evolutionary events will remove the blocks on human intelligence and release all the intelligence laying dormant in the human species for thousands of years. This will cause humanity to collectively escape from the clusters that were unavoidable so long for good evolutionary reasons ............ [[Point Omega (summary)#Point Omega / Mass enlightenment|Point Omega]]. And whereas in the enlightened state, awaiting us after Point Omega, that need for purpose, that need for clear goals, will dwindle away, because the telic states stop being overdominant, the "after Point Omega state" will be characterized by conscious evolution rather than by unconsciously being pulled around by blind evolutionary forces tearing us apart emotionally. Evolution towards more and more consciousness will then give way to conscious evolution [[Omega Research:About#Definitions of "Point Omega"|(see definition)]] without suffering continuously from the urgent need for having a purpose or goal. We will have it, but we will not "need" it any more. f77l8bx8dlj9sj8tlv5vqizhil4fd79 1 134 1954 2010-07-19T01:42:11Z 41.190.16.17 amazing post wikitext text/x-wiki Valuable info. Lucky me I found your site by accident, I bookmarked it. payfoijrwionn2xb2ptl1g2v054rmdy 6 135 1970 2010-09-12T13:34:40Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:34:40Z Eschaton 10 600px-Dendritic_drainage_system.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/600px-Dendritic_drainage_system.jpg 50487 6g0brm29z7dt3ozcv5yqx3u8ixuypbo 600px-Dendritic_drainage_system.jpg 6 136 1971 2010-09-12T13:35:19Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:35:19Z Eschaton 10 Formation_of_clusters_and_large-scale_filaments_in_the_Cold_Dark_Matter_model_with_dark_energy.gif http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Formation_of_clusters_and_large-scale_filaments_in_the_Cold_Dark_Matter_model_with_dark_energy.gif 163947 ggna17js3p0x4bioujkngsrqsmo4z0b Formation_of_clusters_and_large-scale_filaments_in_the_Cold_Dark_Matter_model_with_dark_energy.gif 6 137 1972 2010-09-12T13:35:56Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:35:56Z Eschaton 10 Large-scale_structure_formation.gif http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Large-scale_structure_formation.gif 963666 l0ssdislipj5k78pol4amd2cieoyem5 Large-scale_structure_formation.gif 6 138 1973 2010-09-12T13:36:15Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:36:15Z Eschaton 10 Nested_can.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Nested_can.jpg 43405 87bfcmn482x2ati87sc7w4mrb6x6b6x Nested_can.jpg 6 139 1974 2010-09-12T13:36:35Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:36:35Z Eschaton 10 Proton_continuum.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Proton_continuum.jpg 113024 ivkmafok0o9c2skex7shbms2hsjyyea Proton_continuum.jpg 6 140 1975 2010-09-12T13:36:51Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:36:51Z Eschaton 10 The_shape_of_the_cosmos.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/The_shape_of_the_cosmos.jpg 52018 qnuogdp65og1y0qylgz1pm0hpvg6j1k The_shape_of_the_cosmos.jpg 6 141 1976 2010-09-12T13:42:22Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:42:22Z Eschaton 10 Dendritic_drainage_system.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Dendritic_drainage_system.jpg 50487 6g0brm29z7dt3ozcv5yqx3u8ixuypbo Dendritic_drainage_system.jpg 6 143 1978 2010-09-12T13:51:03Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:51:03Z Eschaton 10 Cosmic_Temperature_Graph.JPG http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Cosmic_Temperature_Graph.JPG 37380 tf8747g88j1nwp3lf9o53c7galfxzx9 Cosmic_Temperature_Graph.JPG 6 144 1979 2010-09-12T13:51:18Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:51:18Z Eschaton 10 Journey_time_as_a_function_of_the_speed.gif http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Journey_time_as_a_function_of_the_speed.gif 6081 2mg1mfobhdw0ndwghz8riagpy8n2552 Journey_time_as_a_function_of_the_speed.gif 6 145 1980 2010-09-12T13:52:07Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T13:52:07Z Eschaton 10 Superconducting_current_flowing_around_an_obstacle.gif http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Superconducting_current_flowing_around_an_obstacle.gif 2514 kvrhzlx279eobtqi9kkfuhtlvtz62ef Superconducting_current_flowing_around_an_obstacle.gif 0 146 2000 1996 2010-09-13T19:44:31Z Eschaton 10 Blanked the page wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 6 149 1984 2010-09-12T14:00:54Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T14:00:54Z Eschaton 10 Adult_and_infant_chimpanzees.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Adult_and_infant_chimpanzees.jpg 37064 9ulomfaveut9s2fmxd95btn1sjovwaf Adult_and_infant_chimpanzees.jpg 6 151 1986 2010-09-12T14:01:24Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T14:01:24Z Eschaton 10 Human_evolution.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Human_evolution.jpg 23810 ok6f9w7sdld59equd2p9qufaeqnture Human_evolution.jpg 6 152 1987 2010-09-12T14:01:38Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T14:01:38Z Eschaton 10 Male_aging.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Male_aging.jpg 66142 tk2jtu5k26jhttcs6urx3oz1zmu6e7q Male_aging.jpg 6 153 1988 2010-09-12T14:01:53Z Eschaton 10 wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2010-09-12T14:01:53Z Eschaton 10 Three_stages_of_human_evolution.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Three_stages_of_human_evolution.jpg 98178 ncc920q1q2g8bz8m1x8e02x54twke5u Three_stages_of_human_evolution.jpg 0 155 1992 2010-09-12T16:09:20Z Eschaton 10 moved [[The end of the world]] to [[The Omega Point]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[The Omega Point]] jtqij1msazmdx903q55eubu2jl8883x 0 156 5718 2005 2014-01-08T19:56:19Z BigSmoke 1 Undo revision 2005 by [[Special:Contributions/Eschaton|Eschaton]] ([[User talk:Eschaton|Talk]]) wikitext text/x-wiki ''(An essay by <span class="plainlinks">[http://eschatopaedia.webs.com/ '''Eschaton''']</span>)'' <blockquote> The end of locality would mean the end of the rationality in physics. [Karl Popper] </blockquote> <blockquote>Science will, in all probability, be increasingly impregnated by mysticism. [Pierre Teilhard de Chardin]</blockquote> Entropy (the number of degrees of freedom) is, in ultimate analysis, the number of dimensions. Space is 3-dimensional and thus is the entropic component of spacetime. Time is 1-dimensional and thus is the negentropic component of spacetime. In accordance with the <span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minimum_total_potential_energy_principle minimum total potential energy principle]</span>, spacetime evolves towards the state of the minimum gravitational potential energy.<br> The gravitational potential energy of a many-particle system, such as the universe, is a function of the particles' spatial separation.<br> Therefore, spacetime evolves from the state of pure space (entropy) to the state of pure time (negentropy, information).<br> Time is 1-dimensional, which means that in the end of the universe's evolution, all protons will be interconnected by electrons serially, so that the ultimate number of bits of information will be equal to <span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddington_number the total number of the protons]</span> (~ 10^'''79'''). This evolution passes in the form of the informational progress of mankind: <blockquote> Thermodynamic entropy and Shannon entropy are conceptually equivalent: the number of arrangements that are counted by Boltzmann entropy reflects the amount of Shannon information one would need to implement any particular arrangement. The two entropies have two salient differences, though. First, the thermodynamic entropy used by a chemist or a refrigeration engineer is expressed in units of energy divided by temperature, whereas the Shannon entropy used by a communications engineer is in bits, essentially dimensionless. That difference is merely a matter of convention. Even when reduced to common units, however, typical values of the two entropies differ vastly in magnitude. A silicon microchip carrying a gigabyte of data, for instance, has a Shannon entropy of about 10^'''10''' bits (one byte is eight bits), tremendously smaller than the chip's thermodynamic entropy, which is about 10^'''23''' bits at room temperature. This discrepancy occurs because the entropies are computed for different degrees of freedom. A degree of freedom is any quantity that can vary, such as a coordinate specifying a particle's location or one component of its velocity. The Shannon entropy of the chip cares only about the overall state of each tiny transistor etched in the silicon crystal—the transistor is on or off; it is a 0 or a 1—a single binary degree of freedom. Thermodynamic entropy, in contrast, depends on the states of all the billions of atoms (and their roaming electrons) that make up each transistor. As miniaturization brings closer the day when each atom will store one bit of information for us, the useful Shannon entropy of the state-of-the-art microchip will edge closer in magnitude to its material's thermodynamic entropy. When the two entropies are calculated for the same degrees of freedom, they are equal. [Bekenstein, Jacob. D. ♦ [http://sufizmveinsan.com/fizik/holographic.html Information in the Holographic Universe] Scientific American, August 2003] </blockquote> <blockquote> *In 2005, information was doubling every 36 months. [[http://www.buckingham.ac.uk/news/newsarchive2009/images/elles-transcript.pdf#page=41&view=FitV Source]] *In June 2008, information was doubling every 11 months. [[http://www.sas.com/offices/europe/ireland/press_office/press_releases/predictiveanalytics08.html Source]] *On 4 August 2010, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said: "Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003." [[http://techcrunch.com/2010/08/04/schmidt-data/ Source]] *By the end of 2010, information will be doubling every 11 hours. [[http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/resources/systems_storage_solutions_pdf_toxic_tb.pdf#page=2&view=FitV Source]] </blockquote> Space is <span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principle_of_locality locality]</span>.<br> Time is <span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonlocality nonlocality]</span>.<br> Therefore, when the amount of bits of information accumulated by mankind becomes equal to <span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddington_number the total number of the protons]</span> (~ 10^'''79'''), the universe will become <span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonlocality nonlocal]</span>. It will happen after 263 information doublings (starting from a single bit): <center>10^'''79''' ≈ 2^'''263'''</center> Even if, by some magic, the doubling of mankind's information will stop accelerating on 31 December 2010 and stabilize at one doubling per 11 hours, it will mean a fully interconnected (<span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonlocality nonlocal]</span>) state of all universe's protons by the summer of the year 2011. <span class="plainlinks">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_warping Reality warping]</span>, time travel, [[eternal youth]]. eljjvz7sm95y7cxpkmwiv95hlppfhna 1 157 2007 2010-09-30T04:57:02Z 95.168.183.233 poker spielen wikitext text/x-wiki I always motivated by you, your views and way of thinking, again, thanks for this nice post. - Murk 6wn6tb8dwttqszta8gfmplmfg8wtt8f 1 158 2008 2010-10-02T19:54:47Z 109.194.147.122 no teme wikitext text/x-wiki I would like to exchange links with your site wiki.omega-research.org Is this possible? 2mfqxd4mlm820zmhcmznhc7j5oatbp9 3 159 2018 2017 2010-11-14T13:37:52Z BigSmoke 1 wikitext text/x-wiki == Welcome to this wiki! == Hi Eschaton, This is a belated message to bid you welcome to this wiki. Welcome! I noticed that upon arrival you've added much in-depth content, only to remove it all later on. Out of curiosity: why did you chose to undo all your personal contributions to this wiki? Thank you for your interest, [[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] 13:37, 14 November 2010 (UTC) fw7i2u5lrbjdnj4cc52y1fw92ptmbnx 0 160 6508 6493 2016-11-15T21:02:34Z Baby Boy 2 /* Time to wake up */ wikitext text/x-wiki (by Popko P. van der Molen, 2010) == The importance of ignorance and superstition == {{Level|2}} Understanding the general situation of humanity, the working of its fate, its history and its future, is strongly coloured by where human thinking can go and where it may not. The difference between what we understand and what remains a mystery to us is not so much determined by the technical knowledge that we already have and that we could make use of, but primarily by where our thoughts are allowed to proceed and where our thoughts are being blocked by taboos. Much of the technical knowledge that we already have for a long time, can only be applied in certain specific areas and may not be applied in other areas, no matter how important these applications are or should be to us. The effect of this situation is that how we think about ourselves and about each other, is strongly coloured by selective blindness, by tradition and by superstition. When people talk about superstition, they generally refer to medieval situations when people used to believe in witches, fairy tales, gnomes, a heaven full of gods, etc. In short, superstition is supposed to be something of past eras. However, this is not how the situation really is. The difference with the past is not that we used to rely on superstition and now not any more, the difference is that we now simply are ruled by other sets of superstition than in previous times. But it is still superstitions that rule our lives, no less than ever before. It is a peculiar human characteristic that we only can recognize superstitions from the past that have been overcome and have been replaced by “new” insights, but that we stay fully unaware of the superstitions that rule our lives today. The world as we “see” it, the way we look at ourselves and the way we look at other, foreign people, is in fact very much determined by intricate systems of fantasy, superstitious beliefs and unproven “certainties” that we, together, are supposed to believe in. In each culture we find different sets of “belief systems”, that are ruling society and the “knowledge” it harbours. In fact, from an evolutionary and human ethological point of view, these belief systems have, since primordial times, been the way human tribes have acquired a special cognitive “smell”, distinguishing them from members of other tribes. Human beings are the thinking animals par excellence and since that thinking capacity evolved in early times, nest smell could be created by differential, specific belief systems, ruling the way its members looked at and perceived their world, but also, as a consequence, how they talked about the world, how they communicated. In human beings, the “nest smell”, or the smell of the tribe, has a very strong cognitive component. From an evolutionary perspective, such cognitive colouring of tribe smells is a novel and uniquely human achievement. Logically speaking however, the implication is that what is characteristic for certain tribes or peoples in terms of how they see the world and themselves, is always superstition and no more than that. For it cannot be that reality is different for different tribes and peoples. Reality, or how the world really ticks, is always the same. So, for us, intelligent human beings, our nest smell is made up of superstition(s), not less now than in medieval and earlier times. We can also turn around these considerations. If it were not for superstitious beliefs, we would lose our specific nest smells and our tribal colours of recognition. We would all smell the same and cognitively look similar all over the world. The only differences would be in incidental local habitual cultural differences, but the way the world would be perceived would be roughly the same everywhere. There can be found several reasons, of which the above mentioned evolutionary need for differing tribal smells is just one, why superstition, ignorance and taboos are so paramount and are so important for human functioning. As an example we will discuss in this paper one specific and important human blindness. It is not about the nowadays much debated differences in religious beliefs and their disquieting extremist dangers, Muslim, Christian or Otherwise, contemporary or historical. Rather, we will discuss here one strong contemporary superstition that still manages to stay out of sight, at least in our own nowadays culture. This example is our specific blindness for the effects of genetic pollution on our own societies and our own lives. == What is genetic pollution ? == {{Level|2}} Evolution of species is based on the gradual but continuous introduction of changes in genetic materials and the continuous testing out in practice what works best in the circumstances given. This fact has, among other things, two important consequences for our present issue. One consequence is that lineages gradually pick up alterations of their genome, that parents do not just hand down one randomly selected half of their genome to their offspring, but that each parent hands down a slightly modified half of his/her genome to each member of the next generation. No matter how strongly we wish to belief in some godly power guiding and directing such evolutionary changes, these slight modifications in the genome being reproduced are basically random. This means that not all the changes introduced are beneficial. In fact, what we know about the workings of genomes, DNA and the way this information translates into living beings, indicates that most of the changes in the genomes being reproduced are disadvantageous, rather than advantageous. Mutations occur rather randomly and only a subsequent selection process can secure a net advantageous effect in terms of increased survival value under certain circumstances. In short, it is the combination of mutations and selection pressure that makes evolution proceed. It is a process that is the very basis of evolution and in fact of the very existence of living matter itself and it always continues. It never stops and it cannot be stopped. This fact is important to keep in mind when considering the consequences for our own existence. What is called genetic pollution is the accumulation of not advantageous or harmful genes in the genome, before a selection process has been able to make these specific genetic changes disappear again from the gene pool. Of course, there is always a certain amount of genetic pollution in any gene pool, no matter how strongly subjected to selection processes. Moreover, what might be labelled as genetic pollution in one environment, could perhaps sometimes be regarded as a genetically useful adaptation in another environment. Generally, the label “genetic pollution” is only utilized in cases where the accumulation of deleterious genes has proceeded thus far in a gene pool, that the average general quality of functioning of its members is on the decrease. Until that happens, the term genetic pollution is not of very much use. The next question is how strong the effects of genetic pollution are and how strong a selection pressure is needed to balance the randomly occurring mutations sufficiently to maintain a certain level of well functioning, in health, general vigour, or otherwise. In population genetic text books one can find how to measure and calculate genetic pollution or genetic load in a gene pool or population. The first step in such procedures is of course defining how to measure certain characteristics and to figure out to what extent such characteristics are disadvantageous and to what extent they are genetically determined. Here we shall not dive into numbers, but limit ourselves to giving some examples from daily practise, showing the power and speed of genetic pollution. That will suffice for the points we wish to make. == Examples of genetic pollution == {{Level|2}} What follows here is rather much common knowledge with stock breeders since over many thousands of years. Nevertheless, this – rather common – knowledge shall be seen to be subject to culturally determined cognitive blocks. Breeders of sheep, goats, pigs, cows, dogs, horses, camels, etc. have found out in very early stages that in order to keep their stock healthy and productive, they needed to exert a rather strong selection pressure in the desired direction. Whenever such selection procedures are suspended or relaxed, the “quality” of the live stock diminishes, not only returning to the more original “wild type”, but also decreasing in quality in more general terms. Stock breeders always are, and always have been, on the lookout for “superior blood” to be included in their live stocks gene pool. Nothing new one would say. What happens in case the purposeful selection pressure is released for some reason or other, can be seen in the cases where some dog or cat race suddenly has become very popular in quickly widening circles of lovers of such a “race”. Two examples out of many are the Scottish Border Colly (Lassy dog) and the German Shepherd Dog. These dog races became very quickly very popular with so many people, that every pup would fetch a much higher price than previously. The immediate effect is a relaxation of selection pressure and the effects on the population as a whole can easily be detected soon. In fact, once the popularity of a certain dog or cat race has increased greatly, the average quality of the animals in question starts to sink and within a limited number of generations it is becoming harder and harder to find any specimen that matches the level of quality that made the race in question popular in the first place. The race in question, having become popular because of certain superior characteristics, soon exists of no more than useless genetic rubble. What is important for us to note here, is that it apparently only takes a limited number of generations to bring about such a deleterious effect throughout the population. And that gives us a practical insight in the strength of the selection pressures that are continuously needed to just maintain a certain level of genetic quality in a population (without considering yet any form of evolutionary progress at all). That required selection pressure is apparently a rather strong pressure indeed. What we can see here is a very basic phenomenon that is so general, that we should take into account that these mechanisms also work in other species, including ourselves. == The F1 trick in cattle breeding == {{Level|3}} Another example of how stock breeders tackle and utilize the principles of genetic pollution is how for instance chicken breeders produce and sell at large so called F1 generation specimens as super-productive egg laying chickens/machines. What they do is to set up different and separate selection lines of chickens that are selected on their egg production. They do this under standard breeding conditions and in order to allow for the maximum speed in selection results, they do not exert much selection pressure on other, more general chicken characteristics, that are not of direct use for egg production. The selection pressure exerted is therefore rather one-sided. By implication the selection pressure on a wide range of other characteristics is being relaxed, were it only for these characteristics hardly coming to expression in the highly artificial breeding conditions that are suitable for maximizing egg production. Whereas in such a way very strong effects can be generated relatively quickly in terms of egg production, the amount of genetic pollution incurred in the process is high. The trick of the chicken breeders now is to utilize the effect of “hybrid vigour” for creating a rather healthy egg laying machine, that however only lasts for one generation, which is considered enough. To that end they combine the results of two such high productive egg laying selecting lines that have been set up independently from one another. Both lines suffer from the same disadvantages of genetic pollution. But, since mutations occur rather randomly, the mutations in the one selection line are rather different from the mutations in the other selection line. In both lines the genomes have become more homozygotic than normal because of an unavoidable measure of inbreeding. That is a consequence of the high selection speed and specific selection pressure sought after. That means that more genes have become homozygotic, coming to full expression. This means that within each selection line, the most deleterious genes have been cancelled out already, having rendered chickens that could not survive in these breeding conditions. The chicken breeders now cross these two selection lines, creating a F1, the first generation offspring from such a cross, that is heterozygous for all those genes that contribute to the genetic pollution. The result is that the two, differently selected for egg laying characteristics, are adding up to a super egg laying capacity, but that at the same time the different concomitant genetic pollution genes are suddenly not homozygous any more, but heterozygous, in many – recessive – cases not coming to expression any more. So, these F1 egg laying machines do not only produce more eggs than either of their parent egg laying selection lines, they also enjoy a higher general health and vigour than either of the two parent lines. That is why selling F1 generation crosses between selection lines is such a good business. It shall be clear that these advantages will for a large part get lost again in successive generations, the F2, F3, etc., because then many genes will recombine again into homozygotic combinations, bringing more and more deleterious characteristics into expression again. Therefore it is common practise to not breed any further with such super-productive (F1) egg laying chickens. Similar procedures are used for producing chickens that take the least time to convert food into chicken flesh. Such selection lines of chickens are in fact so full of deleterious genes, that the poor critters collapse and fall down, once taken out of their specific breeding conditions or once allowed to surpass the – very short – life time limit imposed by industrial requirements. The effects of genetic pollution as a complicating factor in these branches of bio-industry are clear enough, and also how they are overcome for purposes of increased production. The lesson that we can derive from these practical examples is the speed of these processes of genetic pollution and the strength of the selection processes that are needed to counterbalance its negative effects, let alone for making room for evolutionary improvements. == Effects in human society == {{Level|2}} The effects of genetic pollution and the biological prerequisites for keeping a population healthy and viable, have consequences that are very important indeed for how human societies tick. The more a human social organization, a human society, is set up and organized in a "fair" and "just" way, the more all resources are distributed evenly. That implies that also the opportunities for procreation are distributed more evenly. And that implies that selection pressures are being relaxed. So, by necessity, the more just, fair and social a society is run, the more quickly the gene pool in question will suffer from genetic pollution and the more the general condition and resourcefulness of the individuals in that population will decrease. In fact, this mechanism poses a time bomb under any fair and just society and implies an always limited life span. This notion is in line with what one can see in history. Civilizations emerge and disappear, no matter how advanced their levels of technical and organizational know how are as compared to surrounding peoples. At some stage, all these advanced acquirements are not sufficient any more to compensate for the gradually decreasing levels of health and vigour of their population. Population genetic theory predicts that only in case a human society manages to install within its social system an alternative for the suspended forces of natural selection, that society may expect to survive more than just a limited number of generations. Since such possibilities for applying genetic quality management until now never have been available on a technically sufficiently advanced level, history is full of examples where technically and socially highly advanced societies ossify and collapse, being overrun by minorities of more primitive, but more healthy and vigorous neighbouring peoples.<br /> In fact, this has always been the usual pattern in the rise and fall of civilizations. This is not to say that the effects of genetic pollution are the only reason for such limited life spans of civilizations, but it is no doubt a major contributing factor.<br /> Another factor limiting the life span of a culture or civilization is for instance the selection pressure in favour of sociability and against creative individuality, which is automatic and continuous in any social structure, be it of humans or of any other socially living mammal species (see [[The biological instability of social equilibria (abstract)|here]] for more information on this mechanism).<br /> In this paper however, we will limit ourselves to the influence of genetic pollution. One prediction from population genetic theory is that whenever a large group of people has formed into a society with advanced technical and organizational methods and skills, as compared to the way peoples around it are living, there will gradually be a growing gap between the general genetic quality of the average persons within that advanced society and the average persons living among the tribes and - smaller – groups in the periphery, outside of that society. And the more fair, just and social such a society has been organized, the more quickly that gap in population genetic quality will grow and widen. == The end of a civilization == {{Level|2}} At some stage, there will be a balance in power and influence between on the one hand the population of the civilized society, having at their fingertips all sorts of technical gadgets and tools, unknown to the barbarians around, while gradually suffering more and more from genetic disadvantages, and on the other hand the peoples in the periphery around, who have kept being subjected to stronger selection mechanisms and who do not enjoy the myriads advantages of the technical and organizational achievements, but who do not suffer so much from a decreasing level of general health and vigour. As soon as these differing influences are reaching some sort of equilibrium, the central civilization will start having problems in keeping its own wealth for itself and in keeping the barbarians out. Moreover, in such circumstances the technical achievements and to a lesser extent also the organizational technology will gradually be absorbed also by the barbarian people around, gradually diluting their status of primitive barbarians. Once the advantages and disadvantages on one side are reaching an equilibrium with the advantages and disadvantages on the other side, the civilization in question is nearing the final stages of its existence as a distinct civilization. Typically, at some stage the total organizational structure of the “old” civilization will collapse and yield to the pressure from the outside barbarians, who, by that time, will have picked up an important part of the advanced technical characteristics of that civilization in question, adding to their by that time superior genetic make up. Another prediction from population genetic theory is that those civilizations will survive longer, that manage to maintain within their boundaries a comparatively strong level of competition and genetic selection. That means that within its territory the civilization allows for a certain level of unfairness and injustice, making it difficult for the less endowed to participate in the procreational processes. However, such internal selection forces always bring with them a certain measure of internal social stress and unfairness that people naturally will try to mend. So, paradoxically, the better a civilization succeeds in realizing its social ideals of civilization, the sooner the survival of that civilization will come to an end, caused by an unstoppable decrease of genetic quality, differing strongly from that of the “barbarians” around. == Population genetic waves and war == {{Level|2}} What we should keep in mind when considering these socio-political changes in populations, is that two mechanisms always work out in the form of war and massive organized violence. The first is that the emerging and growing civilization establishes itself by converting its technical and genetical advantages over neighbouring peoples in acquiring control over ever larger stretches of land, with or denuded from its original population. That implies war and other forms of organized violence, generally at an ever increasing scale. The second is that by the time, after many generations, an equilibrium is reached between the advantages and disadvantages within, as opposed to without, the civilization, a final collapse of the civilizations structure is to be expected, typically bringing with it a sudden increase in war and genocidal events throughout the territory of the civilization. These are highly unpleasant circumstances to live in, whether the situation in the border regions of the growing civilization, or the situation throughout the realm of the civilization itself, at the time of its collapse. Until now mankind has been able to survive these conflictuous conditions. What is more, genetically speaking, mankind always needed these periodically emerging periods of chaos and disaster to restore genetic selection pressures and to restore a passable level of genetic quality. Also, such circumstances generally resulted in an increased mixing of different gene pools, with all the population genetic advantages and hybrid vigour coming with it. However, humanity has by now reached levels of technical skill and know how that make war literally a world endangering adventure. If mankind wants to survive, it has to come to grips shortly with the underlying pressures usually leading to war, or face massive annihilation at an unprecedented level. == Awareness versus taboos == {{Level|2}} Whereas the above discussed notions are not at the core of our present day cultural heritage, they used to be more common concerns just a couple of generations ago. Among other things by the misdemeanour of the Nazis these notions have been put away in taboo sections of our culture. The above considerations lead however to the conclusion that, in spite of the Nazi-inspired taboo on population genetic thinking on humans, we should effectively address our genetic make up and start to prevent genetic pollution to undermine any attempts to establish lasting fair and civilized societies. We wish to point out here that in that respect we do not need to foster any fears as installed in us by what happened in the Third Reich. By now we do have all technological tools at our fingertips to help people avoid unwanted genetic defects in their offspring. And since the average human being can easily be brought to the point of paying attention to these genetic issues and act accordingly, there is basically no need whatsoever to exert strong pressures from above to enforce a genetic police system. Where it appears possible to seduce people for instance to buy the useless foods that they daily purchase in great quantities, it should be no problem at all to seduce them to follow a healthy management of their own offspring. The level of advertisement needed to achieve that is probably less intensive than the advertisement needed to make them continuously buy unwholesome quantities of junk food. All that is needed is a better level of awareness at all levels of society, breaking this specific veil of ignorance and superstition. == Time to wake up == {{Level|2}} To put it bluntly, humankind can only survive if it addresses effectively not only the unhampered growth of numbers, that is causing the destruction of the world’s ecological heritage, but also the effects of genetic pollution and deterioration, that will unavoidably cause the collapse of any serious attempt to establish a really civilized human community. All the necessary know how is now available. We just need to change focus, breaking taboos and ignorance and embracing awareness. Our civilization is getting global. Let’s take the war producing population genetic sting out, before it destroys us all. We cannot afford to have complete morons sit at the red buttons, which is what unavoidably happens more and more when ever increasing “genetic loads” are smothering any further possibility for adequate and intelligent action. The stark truth is that most of us do behave as, and have been trained to behave as complete morons, adapted with force, under penalty of being ostracized, to systems of collective superstition, blindness and ignorance that block any tendency to come to our senses and take adequate decisions. It is time to wake up. Further delay will become more and more “homo-cidal” to us all. (For a humorous artist's impression of what such relaxed selection pressure on intelligence and the concomitant genetic pollution might bring about in future generations, if unchecked, see the movie picture [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZNMtPPqlHs|"Idiocracy"]] by Mike Judge, 2006) == After Point Omega .................... == {{Level|2}} Let us consider shortly what we may expect on the level of human population genetics after we have "woken up". What will happen after Point Omega ? Increased awareness of our genetic endowment, an increased general level of sober thinking and a strongly improved set of medical tools to assist us in family planning will result in an ever larger percentage of the population procreating consciously and voluntarily. That will increase the frequency couples are utilising genetic counseling for optimal procreational results. In the USA we have seen already a steady increase during the last decades of the use of genetic counseling. And these tendencies are spreading towards Europe and other wealthy regions as well. Governments can easily induce more use of medical techniques for enhancing the quality of the offspring. Therefore it is not needed at all to use much government pressure and force. Nazi-like measures are not needed at all. Modern advertisement techniques are effective enough to help trigger such rational procreational methods to spread among the population at broad. The modern techniques of birth control enable parents to choose the proper time for procreation. These techniques are spreading rapidly all over the world. This has two very important consequences. One is that conscious procreation will stop the growth of overpopulation. If all unwanted children would not get born, the world population would stop to grow and the present overpopulation would come to a halt. The second consequence is that the genetic counseling going with a more conscious procreation would decrease levels of genetic load and pollution. These effects will come automatically and unavoidably, simply because they have become possible and people like their effects. We may expect that contemporary taboos that are still blocking such developments, will gradually lose their power over us. There will be more different effects on the population genetic level that we may expect to emerge after Point Omega. But the above examples will suffice to indicate the trend to be expected. e3o2b6w59f8udzfio7wpfedcs6rla1f 1 162 2236 2011-01-28T16:07:18Z 95.168.183.233 Car Hire Alicante Airport wikitext text/x-wiki Hey, I am checking this blog using the phone and this appears to be kind of odd. Thought you'd wish to know. This is a great write-up nevertheless, did not mess that up. - David ohmopym75wo14e6c3jjnz6dyqguwhcb 0 177 6766 6765 2017-01-16T16:27:04Z Baby Boy 2 /* The C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model), issue #7 */ wikitext text/x-wiki (This chapter is still under construction; figures and pictures are still to be added) (last update: may 2016) (Nog er in verwerken: inhoud van "Eating from the Forbidden Fruit") (indeling in paragrafen en hoofdstukjes anders doen, meer lezersvriendelijk. Indeling aanbrengen als volgt: Inleiding / Hoofdverhaal / Conclusies / Samenvatting) (alle onderdelen hier, hoewel heel kort gehouden, op zichzelf begrijpelijk maken; bijv. d.m.v. de samenvattingen van de uitgebreide hoofdstukken en publicaties) == '''Introduction''' == {{level|1}}'' This Guided Tour chapter is added to this Wiki for your efficiency and comfort. ''It is meant to give you easier access to the basic line of argumentation, without diving immediately in all the details. ''It is the easiest way to get to know the essentials of this Wiki and the easiest way to satisfy your curiosity, being able to choose the level of detail you prefer, while going.'''' '' Humanity finds itself these days in an unprecedented and strange situation, a situation that in many senses is also rather precarious. On this Wiki it is pointed out how peculiar, how strange, how exciting and how dangerous this human situation is today and explains why this situation has come about. It aims at providing a better insight in how we humans function, in how our societies are run and about how we can avoid looming disasters. How can we survive ? And how can we make our fellow beings survive ? The Wiki ends with explaining the transition that mankind will pass through and the how and why of this transition. Most of the research contributions on this Wiki are from the hand of Popko P. van der Molen, who spent most of his life searching for the roots of the major problems mankind is faced with these days. While searching for these roots of the most pressing problems, several lines of scientific research were embarked on that seemed relevant. These various research lines are discussed in detail, each in one of the separate chapters on this Wiki. What emerges after combining the various relevant research lines, is, surprisingly, a total picture that on the one hand highlights some peculiar characteristics of the precarious present human situation and that on the other hand also reveils a number of unavoidable changes that will most likely follow soon. These expected changes are labeled the Point Omega transition, a term, borrowed from the French 20th century jesuit priest Teilhard de Chardin, who coined it for describing a major transition in human development and wellbeing that he expected to come in a not too far future. Whereas this term is borrowed from Teilhard de Chardin, we do not follow Teilhard's own definitions of Point Omega, but develop a new definition, based on novel insights as described on this Wiki. Our approach is secular, non-religious, sober and science-based. It is shown however on this Wiki that the expected (Point Omega) changes are, as Teilhard argued, likely to occur indeed and also are likely to be more profound and strange than any change in the history of mankind we have ever seen before. The Point Omega changes are expected to be more far reaching than any previous invention, be it tool-making, the use of fire, the invention of the wheel or even agriculture. And because of their unfamiliarity these expected changes can only be imagined with great difficulty. This Wiki, and thus this Guided Tour to start with, are meant to make this collection of approaching strange and new phenomena better imaginable. In this Guided Tour we will just mention the various research lines and their conclusions in brief and indicate how the various chunks of information do fit together and lead to more comprehensive conclusions about the human condition and the human fate. For details of each separate set of information, the reader can refer to the separate chapters about each specific issue. Apart from presenting new data which resulted from the above mentioned lines of research, we will also discuss a number of more familiar phenomena, and we will explain how these familiar phenomena can be viewed in a novel way, highlighting the role of each in the present predicaments of humanity. In view of everything that already is known and scientifically established, it should, from a purely technical point of view, and according to the information presented here, in principle not be very difficult to (re-)organize our societies in such a way that the most crucial and common human problems and dangers are overcome and disappear for good. It is argued on this Wiki that the major problem is to mobilize all available knowledge and to remove the taboos and superstitions that, until now, blocked the intelligent use of the knowledge that is available and has in fact been available for quite some time already. === For your efficiency and comfort === The various contributions on this Wiki greatly differ in detail, in length, in depth and in thoroughness of scientific underpinning of arguments and proof. This Guided Tour helps you to choose the sequence of articles that suits you best. Do you want a better overview first or are you looking for a better underpinning of arguments and of presented data? You can follow your preference at any place during this Tour. You may decide to dig deeper into the subject you are immersed in, or, reversely, you may return to the surface and look for a better and broader overview. The Guided Tour will give you such moments of choice during reading and browsing. For your convenience we therefore have marked the articles and contributions with asterixes '''(*), (**), (***)'''. *(★)<level 1> '''Quick and efficient''': Stands for an overview article, short, superficial, quick and efficient. These articles are best to start out with. They are the ones that the Guided Tour brings you first. *(★★)<level 2> '''Some more detail''': Stands for reading one level more deeply. These articles give more thorough argumentation, but do not lead you into the depths of scientific corroboration and into a lengthy underpinning of presented data. *(★★★)<level 3> '''More depth''': Research level; stands for articles with so much detail that you might also find them in scientific publications and papers. The arguments given in these articles are best suited to help you decide whether you buy the viewpoints given or not, but they require more time and scientific patience from the reader. They contain more references to other sources of information. They are less efficient reading, but these are the articles that determine where we stand at the end of the day. In the Guided Tour these are the articles that you are guided to in case your curiosity keeps pressing on and doesn't let you "off the hook". Throughout this Guided Tour we occasionally have put some of the '''basic issues in bold'''. This may be handy for quick scanning the texts while browsing around to find your way to what you prefer to read next. Each person is different. Each has his own concerns and curiosities. This Wiki may grab your attention for different - individual - reasons. * You may visit this Wiki because you are concerned about your personal well being and you have searched the label "enlightenment". * You may have heard of the novel scientific insights (Reversal Theory) about our emotional and motivational make up and wish to find out what advantages these insights might have for you, overcoming the usual human blindness for the self and for our own functioning. * You may also be concerned about the dangers of nuclear (self-)destruction by mankind and want to find out about the roots of war and conflict. Whatever the reason of you visiting this Wiki, all these approaches are dealt with and you will see that of neither of these issues the meaning can be understood without understanding the other issues as well. It is the total, coherent, picture that brings clarity and understanding, an understanding that neither of the separate sets of information could possibly bring by itself alone. Before following your curiosity and dive into the contents of this Wiki, it is good strategy to first check if these novel insights are what you personally really do need. Is this what will suit you ? If you have been reading already the pages with the "Disclaimer" and you have decided you want more, please continue, otherwise we advise to read the Disclaimer first [[Omega Research:General disclaimer|(click here)]]. === On the survival of Homo sapiens === ((plaatje atoombom / paddestoel-ontploffing)) ((plaatjes in vorm van puzzelstukjes)) {{level|1}} This Wiki is about the way humanity will '''overcome the''' problems resulting from the present world wide '''population explosion''' and will '''survive this nuclear era''', surviving the methods and tools for mass destruction that have become available. It is also about how humanity will manage to '''enter its next phase in evolution'''. As will be argued, this next phase is a phase with less mass unhappiness and suffering, a phase in which the evolutionary need for large scale wars and the all overruling need for the systematic suppression and neurotisation of people has disappeared. While going, this Wiki also will provide some new data that have not yet been generally known before, new data that help to point out to us how we will survive and how we will create a more agreeable world. ((plaatje van ravage er na; na een bombardement)) ((plaatjes in vorm van puzzelstukjes)) However, this Wiki does not serve as a kind of "saviour" tool. It is argued that humanity will discover these data, these truths, '''unavoidably and automatically''' by itself anyway, whether they are presented at this place or not, and why this is necessarily and unavoidably going to happen anyway. Short of aiming for a messiah role, this Wiki is merely aiming to bring understanding at a timely moment, in order to make adaptation to the new situation easier and make it happen more smoothly. This Wiki can thus serve as a midwife, making the birth of a new era easier and on a personal level help you to find your way out of the clutches of the old power structures that made the lives of all of us so miserable for thousands of years. == '''10 issues to take into account''' == === Overview === {{level|1}} In searching for the roots of human misery and of the most pressing problems in our societies, the following 4 issues have to be addressed, phenomena that are widely known, but the significance of which for prevailing human misery is often not very clear. These first 4 phenomena are: <ol start="1"> <li>'''Superstition and ignorance''' in human society and [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#The_evolutionary_importance_of_blindness_for_self_and_the_illusion_of_Good_and_Bad|their evolutionary role]] '''(**)'''.</li> <li>'''Taboos''' and their function in human societies.</li> <li>[[The_effects_of_genetic_pollution_on_political_structures_and_human_history|'''Genetic pollution''']] '''(**)''' and its effects on human societies.</li> <li>Disfunctioning and '''neuroticism''' versus optimal development and well being in individuals; the technical reversibility of these processes and a strong [[Energy_and_Strokes#2.10._.22Contagiousness.22_of_Interpersonal_Psychological_Skills_and_Adaptation|contagiousness]] '''(***)''' in both directions.</li> </ol> In this guided tour the role and function of each of these familiar concepts, numbered #1 to #4, will be briefly mentioned. While going it will be indicated where on this Wiki each of these four phenomena is discussed in more detail. Apart from the above mentioned 4, more or less familiar, issues, each playing its role in present day human existence, we will in this Wiki additionally also discuss 6 other phenomena that are not widely known yet. These 6 phenomena are: <ol start="5"> <li>'''The Upper Intelligence Limit'''.</li> <li>'''Blindness for the Self'''.</li> <li>'''Reversal Theory'''.</li> <li>'''Meme Level Power Structures'''.</li> <li>'''Selection Cycles in Social Structures''', and</li> <li>the '''Point Omega''' transition.</li> </ol> We will first very briefly indicate what these 6 novel concepts stand for. '''Concept #5''': -- The '''Upper Intelligence Limit''' is the phenomenon that in the animal kingdom intelligence has evolved many times throughout evolution, every time independently from one another and that generally speaking these evolved intelligent capacities do not surpass a certain level. It is explained why still higher intelligence levels in general cannot be an E.S.S. (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy). However, Homo sapiens appears to be an exception to that rule. Having broken through that Upper Intelligence Level does however have a number of striking and serious consequences for our own species, which will be discussed at length in this Wiki. '''Concept #6, Blindness for the Self''': -- In general we humans are very little aware of how we function, how we feel, how our emotions are triggered and why and how we interact with one another. There is an avalanche of scientific psychological research data showing the existence and the working of these '''blindnesses''' in detail. It is indicated here '''why''' it has been '''an evolutionary necessity''' in us humans that such blindnesses evolved and have been and still are ruling our lives until this day. '''Concept #7, Reversal Theory''': -- The next unfamiliar issue addressed is one of the basic and very important characteristics of our emotional and motivational system, which is the phenomenon of '''emotional "Reversals"'''. Whereas one of the most basic parts of our biological make up, we are in general fully unaware of these mechanisms. And that is highly peculiar for a species that prides itself for its "superior" intelligence. But it is easy to understand in the light of the above mentioned all overruling human '''Self-blindness'''. Once we understand the dynamics of our emotional reversals, we also can start to understand how humanity lost most of its original capacity to learn. Learning and development come about by playful and curious interaction, a pleasant and effective condition which basically is our birthright. But most of us large and by seem to have lost that birthright. '''Concept #8, Meme Level Power Structures''': -- Another unfamiliar issue is the finding that the world of Homo sapiens is not ruled by human persons, but rather by impersonal '''meme level power structures'''. In this Wiki we deal with the consequences for us human beings, making us live in a highly uncomfortable mental and emotional splits, having to comply with the demands of these meme level power structures while being designed and evolved for quite different, more original, social structures that our ancestors used to live in. '''Concept #9, Selection Cycles in Social Structures''': -- The ninth (unfamiliar) issue is a '''behaviour genetic social selection mechanism''' operating in any socially living mammal species, that renders limits to the life span of social structures and that produces an important boost to the spreading and the reshuffling of genes in the gene pool. '''Concept #10, Point Omega''': -- The tenth issue summarizes the changes that can be expected to happen in the near future and the reasons why these changes will happen indeed. These changes can only happen together, not separate from one another. The occurrence of these changes together is labeled with the term '''"Point Omega"'''. Four of the above issues, numbered #6, #7, #9 and #10, are briefly explained in a 5-page summary in which it is also indicated how these newly introduced issues interact and hang together. Together with the other, more widely known phenomena, they form one grand coherent picture describing the present human situation, at the personal level as well as at the collective level. In case you want to read this 5 page summary now first, [[Point Omega (summary)|click here '''(*)''']]. Otherwise, in case you want to dive deeper immediately, just continue. In that case however, we will first briefly explain here, in 2 pages, a little more about the novel concept '''#9, the social selection cycles in socially living mammal species''' and how that functions in us humans. The reason is that this phenomenon '''#9''' is still rather unfamiliar to most readers whereas it makes it easier to see the coherence of the different phenomena mentioned. === Selection pressure in societies in favour of docile behaviour (# 9) === {{level|2}} Before trying to fit bits and pieces together, we need to spend a few more words on issue #9, Social Selection Forces and Population Cycles. This mechanism thus far is only known to some specific groups of social - and personality psychology scientists, who happen to be specialists in a related field of research, like personnel selection, organizational selection pressure and ossification of organizations or in behavioural genetics. As further explained in more detail in [[The biological instability of social equilibria|other chapters on this Wiki]](***), there is an important behaviour-genetic mechanism operating in any socially living mammal species, that renders limits to the life span of social structures and that produces an important boost to the spreading and the reshuffling of genes in the gene pool. In short, this mechanism boils down to the following: In socially living mammals there exists genetic variance in the innate propensity to behave more or less social versus behaving less or more individualistic and creatively. Within social structures there always operates a selection pressure in favour of social compliance and against individualistic explorativeness and creativity. Since these trait differences do have a strong genetical basis, this selection pressure brings about irreversible changes in the average behavioural make up of the group members. The consequences are that: - Every social structure has only a limited life span. - This life span is inversely proportional to the effectiveness of the selection pressure in individuals against self-willed creativity and in favour of social compliance. - The life span endings, depending on the organization level we look at, appear to us as bankruptcy, desolvation, abolition, genocide, etc. - At the end of a social life span, a catastrophy-like turn over of individuals and a strong reshuffling of genes in the gene pool also occurs. - On the one hand this mechanism is by and large unknown to people, whereas on the other hand the population genetic effects and the catastrophic turn-over problems do have huge, far reaching effects on all participants involved. - This mechanism does explain a range of social turn over phenomena, like the periodic migration waves in lemmings to the rise and fall of complete human societies and many dynamic population processes on organizational levels in between. The latter social processes have in common that they had not yet been understood until now. However, we have to pay attention to this mechanism here, because it is to a high degree the source of many forms of human misery and represents one of the greatest contemporary dangers to human survival. Therefore this mechanism is introduced here as '''novel''' (because in general still unknown) '''information piece # 9'''. We will give some more explanation further below in the paragraph on Social Selection Forces and Population Cycles. === The consequences of Issue #9: cyclic changes in social structures and the origin of periodic catastrophies === To the superficial observer it may seem rather counter-productive to carry a mechanism that functions as a time bomb underneath every social structure, being the cause of an eventual, but unavoidable, catastrophic turn over event. Such catastrophic events normally bring with them large percentages of the population to be expelled or terminated in a direct or less direct way. This seems like an enormous waste of energy, skills and capacity in the system. However, it is not surprising after all, since the resulting selection pressure going with such turn over catastrophes more than counterbalances the very proximate disadvantages and misery for the individuals who are in the middle of such a turn over catastrophy. The advantages of such catastrophes for the gene pool are obvious. Many individuals will appear not to be able to handle the changing circumstances during a turn over in the social structure in question. They contribute less to the next generation. The badly needed selection pressure resumes its necessary role with one big leap. Those who stay in the gene pool, are likely to migrate and recombine in different groups and gene pools. The catastrophes make the genes move through their pool or even cross over to other gene pools. This is very beneficial to the gene pools as a whole. So, this seemingly counter-productive social selection system producing periodic turn over catastrophes, can very well be part of Evolutionarily Stable Strategies (ESS). Therefore it should not surprise us that such a mechanism exists in all socially living mammal species. However, these cyclic selection processes, that have ruled our social and political lives always, like in any other socially living mammal species, these days are not affordable any more for Homo sapiens. The turn over catastrophes have become too great dangers for us to be able to afford them any longer. The technological developments have made war, genocide and revolutions too risky to allow them to carry on unconsciously and involuntarily as they always used to do. We simply have no choice but to start to understand these mechanisms and then subsequently steer these processes consciously and rationally in the required direction, taking the sting and the pushing power out of the "periodic catastrophy" machine. This, together with genetic pollution, always has been the cause of periodic redistribution of gene pools over the inhabitable areas of land, also triggering migration waves. Once understood, we can in principle deal with both mechanisms without much difficulty. After the agricultural revolution started, a number of still other mechanisms have emerged that helped to secure the periodic emergence of catastrophy, disaster and misery. These mechanisms are stemming from the demands from the meme level power structures that are ruling human life since. We will discuss, among other things, "superstition", "induced ignorance" (#1), "taboos" (#2), commonly induced and stabilised "neuroticism" (#4), etc., and we will also mention the mechanisms by which these conditions are induced and stabilised by the meme level power structures that are ruling our lives. == '''Putting some bits and pieces together''' == '''Bits of information, needed to make our picture more complete and create better understanding''' {{level|1}} Together with the above indicated phenomenon (#9) of selection cycles in social structures we now have mentioned in brief in the above chapter some 10 phenomena and mechanisms that are considered of importance for understanding the major problems mankind is facing. These were: 1, present day superstition and ignorance; 2, taboos as guiding devices; 3, genetic pollution in human societies; 4, neuroticism as major tool of meme-level power structures; 5, the evolutionary upper limit to intelligence that mankind has escaped from; 6, self-blindness that enabled higher intelligence to evolve, but hampers a proper monitoring of our own behaviour; 7, emotional and motivational reversals ruling personal development in both favourable and unfavourable directions; 8, meme-level power structures ruling human societies; 9, selection cycles in social structures; and 10, a Point Omega transition to be expected. As we will see, there are very good evolutionary reasons why humanity up to this moment in time has never been able to solve the most pressing questions and riddles that have presented themselves to us during already many thousands of years. Evolution '''needed''' us to be blind. Important things that really mattered to us necessarily stayed hidden from view all the time. They stayed hidden from our capacity to understand, covered up by '''''superstition and misunderstanding (#1)'''.'' Once we will have understood the grand picture nevertheless and once we have studied and checked also the details, it will also be understood why this state of ignorance has evolved and is still prevailing. (((aparte) plaatjes van duivel / engel / heks / elfje/ kabouter)) In order to get some more understanding of how all these phenomena hang together, let's approach it for a while from the other side and make a little tour through the different realms of pressing human problems. While discussing these problems, let's consider the different numbered phenomena mentioned above, indicating how each of them in turn relates to one or more of the major problems mankind is facing. ((plaatje oorlogsgeweld, guns; eerste wereldoorlog scene o.i.d.)) ((plaatjes in vorm van puzzelstukjes, verderop ook)) A major problem for humanity has always been the issues of '''''war and peace'''''. Some philosophers have pointed out that a well oiled and fair operated society that manages to maintain peace within its realm, basically is a "project postponing evolution" or a "conspiracy against evolution". What they mean is that humanity, just like any other animal species, is subject to processes of natural selection and that without being subjected to such evolutionary selection processes, a species cannot survive. Genetic drift and '''''genetic pollution (# 3)''''' would in that case reduce the quality level of that society's members to such an extent, that eventually, within a limited number of generations, it would not any more be able to meet the competition with neighbouring societies and sooner or later be overwhelmed and replaced by another societal structure which is still backed up by more genetic vigour. In other words, the longer and more just and fair a period of peace has been, the more the average quality level has dropped and the sooner competing societal structures will take over. And when that happens, we are facing total '''''disruption of society, collapse of protective structures, war, starvation, mass destruction, enslavement, genocide''''', or any combination of these unpleasant phenomena '''(#3 and #9)'''. And, apart from outright actions of war and purposeful destruction, there are also a number of other mechanisms that may cause our organized societies to collapse after some period of seeming order and peace. See for instance [http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/280/1754/20122845.full here] for a recent overview by Ehrlich and Ehrlich (2013) of the predicaments and inescapable looming disasters humanity is facing today. ((hongerende massa; concentratie-kamp-achtig o.i.d.; liefst slavendrijvers met zweep o.i.d., die massa voortdrijven;)) ((bijv. slaven bij pyramidebouw in oude egypte)) ((vredes-duif met palmtak o.i.d.)) If we want to get to grips with issues of '''''war and peace''''' and of looming disasters, we will therefore at least have to understand how all this works. Many issues of such selection and competition mechanisms are well known and investigated at length in scientific areas like (behavioural) genetics, population genetics, economy, etc. However, this type of knowledge has rarely been applied to thinking about the fate of mankind itself. For instance, population genetics theory has quite successfully been applied in matters of cattle breeding and such, but the implications for the human species has always been kept in '''''taboo''''' spheres '''(# 2)'''. These are issues one "should not speak or even think about". So, many notions and tools that we would need to get a better understanding about matters of war and peace are in principle readily available, if we only put ourselves to simply utilize them, breaking eventual (irrational)''''' taboos''''' where needed. [[File:HZZ Hans vd Sande.jpeg|800px]] [[File:HZZ 3 aapjes.jpeg|800px]] [[The effects of genetic pollution on political structures and human history|The above mentioned '''''Genetic pollution (**)''''']] is one such issue '''(#3)'''. It can easily be understood and estimated as to quantity of damage, what genetic pollution is doing to any society that has managed to establish a certain measure of fairness and justness and peace. ((DNA streng)) What is not generally known yet, also not in scientific research communities around these subjects, is a certain type of selection pressure, operating within any socially living group of mammals, that causes certain specific '''''social selection cycles''''' with a certain life span. In other words, this type of internal social selection pressure '''''works as a built in time bomb in any social structure (#9)''''' in socially living mammals. We spent a few paragraphs above to briefly indicate what this selection mechanism is about. The evolutionary advantages can also easily be understood. Here we will limit ourselves to just mention the phenomenon and point out that elsewhere on this Wiki this social selection mechanism causing cyclic changes in social structures is [[The biological instability of social equilibria|described in more detail '''(***)''']], including evidence from scientific research. ((tikkende tijdbom met opschrift "harmony & peace"; zo'n ronde bal/bom zoals in stripverhaaltjes met een brandende lont er aan)) ((en op de bolle bom het opschrift "harmony & peace";)) ((of zo'n plaatje er op geschilderd zoals je in die Jehova-boekjes ziet met een leeuw vredig liggend naast het lam)) ((en anderszins undestructable peace uitdrukkend; alles in vorm van puzzlestukjes)) In short, two major factors that are often overlooked when investigating issues of '''''war and peace''''' are: '''''genetic pollution (#3)''''' and the '''''life cycles of social structures by internal social selection forces (#9).''''' The latter mechanism is producing the quickest limiting effects on the life span of any project that is trying to maintain peace, fairness and "justice". The effects of genetic pollution work a bit slower. So, here we have one population genetic mechanism, that is virtually unknown yet, even in circles of professionals (although these mechanisms have already been published around 1980). But it is rather easy to understand. However, if we want to asses its effects on human society and on our own lives, we also have to dive into the mechanisms of our own social interactions and social reflexes that motor these cyclic selection processes. For a complete understanding we therefore also need to know how human beings deal with their own social relationships and what exactly is triggering which effect. We also need to know to what extent such social reflexes are similar or different from those in other social animal species. Looking into that matter, we quickly stumble across another issue that is crucial to our understanding and that is the quite peculiar '''''human capacity to be [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Self_Blindness_and_Social-role_Blindness|blind for one's own and to a lesser extent be blind to other people's behaviour (*)]](#6)'''''. It can be shown experimentally that human beings have a conspicuous incapacity to asses their own and each other's behavioural intentions, qualities and capacities. This in turn has consequences for the workings of the above mentioned involuntary internal social selection pressures in human social structures, causing '''''limited lifespans of any social structures''''' involved, and with concomitant '''''[[The_biological_instability_of_social_equilibria#Life_cycles_of_social_groups_and_structures|turn over catastrophies (***)]]''''' going with it, in the form of '''''bankruptcy, revolutions, genocide (#9)''''', etc. ((plaatjes: blinddoek in/voor spiegel; dus van achteren de figuur die in de spiegel "kijkt" met blinddoek voor; de blinddoek zichtbaar via de spiegel)) ((phenix verrijst uit de as/ het vuur)) ((revolutieplaatje, bijv. van de Franse bastille)) ((alles in vorm van puzzelstukjes)) So, we need to know also about the specific '''''[[Point_Omega_(summary)#Self_Blindness_and_Social-role_Blindness|blindnesses (*)(#6)]]''''' humans are saddled with, that make the eons old and still unhampered selection pressures possible to continue to operate in spite of humanity's high level of intelligence. Therefore this Wiki contains also contributions about '''''[[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit|Amathology or the science of ignorance (**)(#1 and #6)]]'''''. Without an understanding of the mechanisms of ignorance, innate as well as caused by external factors, we cannot hope to come to grips with matters of '''''war and peace''''', nor with matters regarding '''''human unhappiness and suffering (#4)'''''. We need all the bits and pieces to understand the essentials of our situation. ((plaatjes: dom/sloom gezicht)) ((lijdend gezicht; ... )) (dit mogen heel schematische gezichten zijn) ((plaatje: puzzle half af; een puzzel, waar nog het e.e.a. aan ontbreekt qua stukjes )) == '''More bits and pieces needed to complete the puzzle and create effective understanding''' == ((lampje, zoals "lampje" van Willie Wortel in Donald Duck; flash-inzicht)) {{level|1}} Investigating the above phenomena, we also want to know how human understanding can enhance or moderate or change the various mechanisms studied. Therefore we need to know how human learning and development can be of influence on such selection reflexes as mentioned above. To what extent can human beings overcome the '''''innate and [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Power_structures_utilizing_.22jet-lag.22_effects_in_human_evolution|culturally amplified blindness and ignorance (**)(#1)]]''''' and start to come to grips with social reflexes that in general, unchequed, lead to mayhem and disaster ? This Wiki contains the details of a still rather novel and little known [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Reversal_Theory_of_Emotions_and_Motivations|theory of learning '''(*)''']] (although also already published more than 30 years ago), based on Reversal Theory and explaining how the contageousness of human development as well as of '''''human neuroticism''''' works and how human development and growth is influenced by social interaction. ((neurotisch stress-hoofd; etc.)) ((bijv. te halen uit T-shirt CEL plaatje; kan ik voor zorgen)) The understanding coming forth from this novel theory of learning is laid down in the '''''[[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model|CEL (***)]]''''' (Cognition Energy Learning model)'''(#7)'''. It describes '''how we gather experiences and how we learn and grow'''. It also describes how human development and learning is ruled by very strong positive feed back loops. Such loops do cause so called "developmental traps". That is, once a person has entered a series of positive learning spirals, his or her development is becoming more likely to develop positively in the future also. And reversely, once a person has ended up in a series of negative learning spirals, his/her further development is likely to become more and more hampered. This is a mechanism ''within'' persons. A similar effect can be found ''between'' people, mental and developmental health in a group of people having a strong positive effect on the developmental chances of individuals belonging to or dealing with such a group of people. But the reverse also holds. So, in both directions there is a strong contageousness within and between people. ((duivel pest/prikt mens)) ((engel beschermt/helpt mens)) In summary: "'''''Unpersons unperson persons" and "Persons re-person unpersons (#7)'''"''. These "positive feed back loops" in human learning and development, either in a healthy or in an unhealthy direction, and the concomitant developmental traps, do have strong implications for societies that have ended up in '''''structures of repression and misery (#8)''''', which is mostly the case. And the reverse also holds, i.e., for societies that have managed to organise and escape from collective unhappiness and disaster (which happens only very rarely). So, these "positive feed back loops" create a certain stability in social structures. And it works both ways. An unhappy, stressful and neuriticizing society tends to stay that way, but also a supporting, happy society has a strong measure of built in stability, and the CEL explains why. Thinking about '''''war and peace''''', it is clear that we also do need the information from these particular lines of research. ((massa zombies)) ((stralend persoon)) Having touched upon the mechanisms of human learning and development, we are dealing with '''''human suffering and misery''''' on the one hand and '''''human'' ''enlightenment and liberation (#7)''''' on the other hand, either in individuals or in whole populations. It is argued on this Wiki that, once we have acquired a rather complete overview of all these different but intertwined mechanisms, we discover the likelihood of a transition in the functioning of the human species, that is looking like what the catholic scholar and priest Teilhard de Chardin was writing about, "'''''Point Omega (#10)'''"'', a transition point that is estimated here to be rather near in time. From Teilhard de Chardin we have therefore borrowed the label for this Wiki. ((Omega-symbool)) ((overal in vorm v. puzzelstukjes)) Looking at these issues of human learning and development and of the peculiar and specific human areas of '''''blindness (#6)''''', the question arises how these states of affairs have ever been able to be ESS's (Evolutionarily Stable Strategies). How can it be that a certain species, Homo sapiens, does have certain capacities for learning and development while most persons in most large societies do not "realise" those potentials at all, but only develop into '''''truncated, limited phenotypes, neurotic and relatively miserable (#4)''''' ? In this Wiki it is postulated that this is indeed a phenomenon that is highly unusual, if not for evolutionary reasons generally impossible in the animal kingdom, but that in the case of human evolution we are facing a unique species in a unique situation in which this strange anomaly does indeed make evolutionary sense in a rather strange, unique, and surprising way. ((mutilated person ; kreupele )) The point is that '''''Homo sapiens has escaped the so called "upper intelligence limit (#5)"'''''. That is a boundary that usually limits the evolution of intelligence in any phylum in the animal kingdom. Any intelligence above a certain functional level, becomes self-defeating and stops being an ESS, because intelligence above that level usually bites its own tail. As explained [[Self-blindness_in_humans_as_prerequisite_for_the_evolution_of_advanced_intelligence#Proximate and ultimate causes of behaviour|elsewhere on this Wiki]], a high level of intelligence enables individuals to find short cuts to proximate behavioural need-gratification loops, bypassing the more simplistic, but more risky or costly, behaviours that ordinarily were designed by evolution to gratify those needs, while at the same time producing behaviour favouring ultimate procreational goals and results. In other words, intelligence, if above a certain level, tends to cause a mismatch between proximate and ultimate behavioural systems. They stop running parallel. For that reason, in animal species there is in general a limit to how far intelligence can develop. Above a certain level it becomes self-defeating indeed. ((grafiek homo sapiens breekt omhoog door barrière; hier maak ik wel een aanzet toe)) ((boven streep verlichtingslampje, onder streep dom/neurotisch gezicht; idem)) (géén puzzelstukje) The fact that '''''Homo sapiens escaped this intelligence boundary'''''(#5) explains why we have such '''''conspicuous awareness blocks regarding our own behaviour (#6)'''''. This unique type of "'''''blindness'''''" must have been introduced in our genome before the high growth of intelligence could take off, or latest simultaneously. So, it is probably an adaptation that is at least - guess - a quarter to two million years old. This peculiar characteristic of us humans plays a crucial role in a number of other mechanisms that we need to take into consideration when we want to understand the present human situation. This specific '''''[[Point_Omega_(summary)#Self_Blindness_and_Social-role_Blindness|blindness for the self (*)(#6)]]''''' is a strong moderating factor for a number of the other mechanisms discussed on this Wiki. ((blindfold in mirror; net als eerdere spiegel-plaatje of een variant daarop)) Another important factor on the level of human awareness is the '''''selection pressure in favour of docile behaviour''''' and against intelligent enquiry that started some 10.000 years ago at the beginning of the agricultural revolution. From that time on the ordinary (human) autonomy was gradually replaced by the influence of meme level power structures. All mechanisms as discussed above must be seen in the light of the evolutionary struggle, not between people, but between impersonal power structures, a struggle in which we human beings are merely the carriers of the meme sets struggling for survival and supremacy. In this struggle the main requirement for us humans is to be docile and reliable carriers of meme sets, cultural sets of ideas and recipes that together "make" a culture. ((braaf hondje o.i.d.; zo'n hondje dat braaf op z'n achterpootjes zit en met de voorpootjes in de lucht)) (This recently (about 10.000 years) emerged selection pressure, in favour of docile behaviour and against intelligent enquiry, is different from the earlier mentioned selection pressure (#9) within social structures in favour of compliant behaviour and against self-willed behaviour that was mentioned some pages ago and which selection pressure is of a much older origin, much older than the human species, and in fact stemming from the origin of the earliest socially living mammal species. We will discuss the effects of these latter selection mechanisms further below.) === Three issues about which we need some more details === {{level|1}} Having briefly mentioned this range of relevant phenomena, how about now tackling the perennial problems humanity has been struggling with since time immemorial? If we try to fit the assembled data together in one comprehensive model, there appear to be still a few conspicuous "gaps" in the tool set that we have available, a set that consists of well known and established issues but also containing some novel concepts. The "gaps" are in the novel concepts. The notions in question are so basic for our understanding that missing parts of them makes it almost impossible to figure out how the different jig saw pieces, the different sets of info, should be arranged to solve the puzzle. Three of these new notions in particular are basic for being able to understand the most important mechanisms involved. They were already briefly mentioned above, but deserve a bit more space, attention and effort now, to enable us to complete the picture. ((puzzel met nog slechts 3 ontbrekende, grotere, stukjes)) (Uit schilderij van Abdul Mati Klarwein o.i.d.) One of these three missing pieces '''(#7)''' is the '''[[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model (1)|CEL, the Cognition Energy Learning model (***)]]''' as developed by van der Molen (1984, 1991), based on the Reversal Theory by Apter and Smith. Without this model of learning and development the issue of contagiousness within and between persons cannot be fully understood, nor the consequences for the wider issues of misery versus well being as well as the issues of war and peace. Whereas very basic to all human affairs, for most people this learning model is rather counter-intuitive. This counter-intuitiveness is part of our innate "blindness for the Self" (see below). Therefore we need to pay some more attention to this learning theory in order to overcome that part of our innate blindness and, from there, to be able to grasp the broad picture. A second concept playing a crucial role '''(#9)''' is the also relatively novel model of '''social selection pressure and population cycles'''. That mechanism causes the life spans of social organisations to be only limited in time. Understanding this mechanism is also rather crucial for understanding processes of war, peace, survival and decay. Whereas this issue was superficially mentioned further above, we will give some more details about its mechanisms in the below paragraph "Social Selection Forces and Population Cycles". And a third phenomenon '''(#6)''' that is large and by unknown until now, but that is of great importance to us if we wish to grasp the essentials of our present evolutionary predicaments fully, is our '''"blindness for the Self"'''. This typically human incapacity to consider its own and each other's behaviour soberly, poses strong blocks to a rational and purposeful approach in solving the most pressing present day human predicaments and challenges. These blocks stem from various sources, innate as well as induced or enlarged by external causes. It can be argued that these human blindnesses have evolved because of the unique evolutionary situation we are in, being the carriers of unprecedented levels of intelligence in evolution. We suggest to now first dive a bit deeper into each of these three novel conceptual tools, before starting to glue all the different jig saw pieces together for achieving a full understanding of how the whole machinery of the existence of Homo sapiens works. == '''The C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model)''', issue #7 == '''{{level|1}} How we gather experience, learn and develop''' Children learn and develop by playing. Almost everybody is aware of that. Children play for fun. They like to explore and to venture out. In between they seek - and generally find - cover, security and reassurance. Alternating between venturing out playfully and seeking cover and reassurance, they gather experience in optimal quantities and thus develop their skills and behavioural repertoire. Adults show less playful behaviour. They are "mature" and their behavioural repertoire is supposed to be fully grown. However, in Homo sapiens, the learning animal par excellence, also adults keep learning by trial and error, motored by curiosity and playful behaviour. On the other hand, human adults and also semi adults, show less playful exploration than what seems natural. By and large humanity lost its ability to learn by playing after the juvenile phase. The CEL explains how this works in detail and this Wiki deals with the reasons why humanity lost most of its capacity to "learn by playing in the natural way" and deals with what are the implications of this defect for the present human situation. “[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]]” '''(***)''' (developed by Apter and Smith) explains the emotional and motivational dynamics that form the basics of our learning process. The basic principles are explained in a different chapter with graphs, pictures and examples. For more details [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Reversal Theory|see there '''(**)''']] Since these mechanisms of emotions and motivations are the very basis of our behaviour and thus of our very existence, awareness of these mechanisms is of crucial importance. It is striking and highly peculiar, that awareness of these mechanisms has not always already been our normal state. On the contrary, our cultures invariably have taken care of blinding us specifically for these basic aspects of our existence, utilizing and enhancing the already innate specific human blindness for the self, establishing and maintaining numerous structures to consolidate that blindness. Becoming aware of the reversal mechanisms in our emotional organization is therefore a key to any attempt of mankind to (re)gain autonomy. Once these basic mechanisms of collecting and digesting experience, and from there the dynamics of learning, are understood, it is much easier to optimize instructional and educational methods, helping to enlighten mankind. In fact, this very theory can render the tools to boost self-actualization processes on a massive scale. It enables people to effortlessly enhance and stimulate general developmental processes in one another. Click [[Energy_and_Strokes|'''here''']]'''(***)''' for more details. Before diving into the details of Reversal Theory it is good to realize that whereas the mechanics of the motivational reversals are basically very, very simple from a purely technical point of view, they are nevertheless very difficult to grasp for most people. This is because of the reasons as mentioned above, the clear evolutionary reasons, resulting in the unavoidable specific human blindness for oneself. Click [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Self_Blindness_and_Social-role_Blindness|here for more details]]. '''(*)''' [[File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png|framed|none|'''Figure 5b.''' The relation between the reversal system of antagonistic motivations and processes of learning]] === Explanatory power of the C.E.L.=== {{level|1}}The CEL explains how animals with an open ended learning capacity do have an emotional and motivational system that is designed to maximize the use they can make of any surplus energy and time available. In case there is not enough energy available, this system directs the individual to seeking cover, safety and rest, in order to restore as quickly as possible the internal energy balance. However, if there is energy available, the individual is "pushed" to spend that energy, also in case there is no problem to be solved at that very moment, on acquiring new experiences and thus gather more knowledge of the world around. The CEL is organized in such a way, that automatically that surplus of energy of an individual is directed towards those ("exiting") areas of experience where the individual does not yet have sufficient knowledge and experience. In those areas the individual still can learn something useful, because there is not yet full mastery. Only by the time that in that specific area of the world around, in that specific area of experience, there has been gathered enough experience and also enough knowledge, that area in question is "mastered". By that time that area is experienced as "boring" in the paratelic state and will therefore not be further explored when sufficient energy is available, because not "exiting" any more. From that time on the energy will be spent on more exiting areas of exploration. In that way the CEL directs any energy surplus towards experiencing and learning particularly about those areas of life where the individual can profit most from expansion of its experience and knowledge. The CEL explains how this system contains a set of positive feed back loops. The result is that in case a person is already in a state of equilibrium in terms of telic / paratelic balance over time, the likelihood of learning more and integrate further experiences well, is high. In case an individual only has a limited level of skills and does not have a well balanced telic / paratelic rhythm, the likelihood of learning well from subsequent experiences is also much lower. Basically, one could say that the CEL-like organisation of our behaviour is very unfair, the lucky birds learning more rapidly and effectively than the unlucky persons. In case differences in skill and well-being already exist, the CEL-like organisation is likely to amplify such differences in the future. One could formulate this as a strong internal "contagiousness" of the learning system. For more details [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning#Positive and negative learning spirals|click here '''(***)''']]. Betwéén people a similar contagiousness exists. The [[Energy_and_Strokes#Chapter_2._An_Extension_of_the_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model|'''CEL''' explains]]'''(***)''' how emotional and physical support from other people may help to restore the emotional balance in the supported individuals. And such restored balance in turn stimulates an easier emergence of paratelic states. In tense and neurotic people the paratelic states are in general too little prominent. Their frequency is too low. Social support and help can cure that. So, also between people the CEL shows that there is a high contageousness. Living in a group of self-actualizers heightens the chances to enter in optimal learning spirals also and find ones' way towards self-actualization. And reversely, living in a group of neurotics with truncated behavioural systems, one will find less social support and help and as a consequence one will not be able to restore the telic/paratelic balance easily and one is more likely to also stay trapped in neurotic and truncated behaviour patterns oneself. It is pointed out in the pages about the CEL that present day humanity is in general trapped in negative learning spirals and operates on a level that is far below what would be possible in terms of our genetic endowment. From an evolutionary point of view this situation, an animal species, us humans, of which most individuals do not realise their full innate potential, is highly peculiar, if not almost unbelievable. If human beings would be more often well balanced, they would be more often self-actualizers and not be stuck in truncated and less effective behaviour patterns. On the whole our civilizations appear to be trapped in a system that blocks the full expansion of human possibilities and that keeps us bound in neurotic misery. However, the CEL indicates that, from a technical point of view, the opposite would in theory also be possible, and also would be stable in itself. For reasons that are now easy to understand, our evolution has directed us towards this one of the two basic options, the unpleasant one. We shall explain [[Existential_friction:_Homo_sapiens_at_the_interface_between_the_gene-_and_the_meme_evolution|elsewhere '''(*)''']] why this is the case and why this strange and peculiar situation could not have been avoided at this stage of human evolution. For more detailed information about Reversal Theory and the Cognition Energy Learning model (the CEL) click [[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model|'''here''']] '''(***)'''. Otherwise continue reading. == '''Social Selection Forces and Population Cycles''', issue #9 == {{level|1}} Never in human history one could put a permanent end to conflicts between social groups and organizations. One of the behavioural mechanisms making that impossible is the involuntary selection pressure within groups. Essential in this mechanism is a certain kind of social-role blindness, a peculiar unawareness of what we are doing on the level of social-role interactions, whereby forces of attraction or repulsion between individuals are effectuated. Other elements of this mechanism are involuntary incrowd–outcast selection reflexes and a personality 'trait dimension', i.e. a dimension in which people differ from one another, which may be described as a `readiness to comply with a submissive role'. This dimension is correlated with ''a large amount of'' social behaviour and ''a small amount of'' thing-oriented, individualistic and explorative behaviour. It is, by definition, of great importance for the distribution of social roles and for the social structure in a group; it determines, for example, the likelihood of an individual assuming or maintaining a compliant and socially accepted subordinate position versus the likelihood of drifting into an outcast position. Knowledge about this innate personality trait dimension and of its effects in social groups and structures may increase our understanding of a wide range of intriguing and sometimes disquieting phenomena. These phenomena range from educational and organizational strategies to the often catastrophe-like collapses and turn-over phenomena in companies and other social structures, and from the way social roles and positions tend to be distributed up to the resulting evolutionary consequences. ((plaatje: finger-pointing and shame/fright; bijv. gelovige krimpt ineen onder de dreigende vinger )) ((van de ouderling of dominee)) From a purely biological point of view, differences between individuals are to be expected in any socially living mammalian species in a number of situations where choices have to be made. They regard for instance readiness to comply with a submissive role; sociability versus thing-orientedness; and compliance versus self-will. Individuals make up their mind all the time about these "choices". It can be argued that the underlying biological organization must, from an evolutionary standpoint, be very old and elementary. What is of importance here are the consequences of these behavioural differences on the level of social interaction. A life span theory of social structures and organizations (causing limited life spans) can be shown to be one of the implications. The way these interpersonal differences are behaviourally organized (and the way our awareness tends to be blocked in these respects) have far reaching consequences; an increase in our understanding of the life cycles of social structures might be by far their most important result. Such understanding enables us to map the processes underlying periodic catastrophe-like turn-over phenomena and to learn how to control their violent backlashing at any level of organization. ((phenix uit de as herrijzend))and ((collapse and catastrophe)) ((zaagtand-grafiek; maak ik zelf wel ?? (geen puzzelstukje))) The duration of social-structural cycles is predicted to be roughly inversely proportional to speed and intensity of selection for the trait under discussion. In an industrial company the intensity of selection and the take-on/dismissal percentages are much higher than, for example, the selection intensity and the immigration/emigration percentages in the much larger units of political states. Therefore the average cycle periods are likely to vary from a few decades in companies or in political parties, to a few centuries in political states, or even to one or two millennia in whole civilizations. The small-scale turn-over cycles with a relatively stronger and quicker selection effect are superimposed, therefore, on the larger-scale turn-over cycles with a longer life span. Thus, individuals may be outcasts in terms of some small-scale social structure while at the same time being totally accepted incrowd members in terms of some larger-scale social structure. The small-scale cycles may be seen as the ripples on the surface of the long range waves of the large-scale cycles, What happens with a person at the social-role level of a sports club is not necessarily parallel to what happens to him at home or at the level of the village community, and what happens to a person on the level of a company does not at all need to be parallel to what happens to him on the level of the political state. In fact, being an incrowd group member on some small-scale level of organization may be vital for a person to keep functioning properly in case of struggling with an outcast position on a larger-scale level of organization. If it were possible to manipulate these – hitherto involuntary – selection mechanisms, it would be possible to stop or to speed up population cycles at will. This might for instance be relevant for personnel management in industrial companies or for measures on the level of political nations. The latter might be of particular significance in our nuclear age, since population cycles on this broad level tend to be worked out and consolidated by means of war and other economic strangling techniques. Mankind as a whole, up until now, has been able to afford this luxury of genocidal praxis, but war and economic asphyxia, nowadays, threaten to come close to total nuclear destruction. It would be worthwhile, therefore, to take the pressure off the dynamic population cycles kettle and to search for a way to replace or short-circuit nature's hitherto applied selection tricks with which it powered our evolution and our spatial spreading and distribution. It seems about time to substitute alternative and less dangerous mechanisms for it. For more detailed information about these selection forces in social groups and the resulting periodic turn over catastrophies click [[The_biological_instability_of_social_equilibria_(abstract)|'''here (**)''']]. Otherwise continue reading. == '''Human Blindness to the Self''', issue #6 == '''{{level|1}} A series of blocks to a rational and purposeful approach; strange effects from recent human evolution''' Whereas in principle nowadays the technical means are available to tackle the above mentioned basic causes of periodic war and disaster, there does not seem at present to be any broadly carried willingness to tackle these problems at a significant scale. The notion of genetic pollution is taboo if applied to human beings. The concept is only being applied to cattle. Likewise, one may expect resistance to applying counter measures to the automatic selection forces in favour of sociability and compliance and against self-will and creativity. Such an intitiative also would encounter a number of strong taboo's. In us humans there are a number of built in factors that cause an unwillingness to consider the above mentioned issues and a range of other "sensitive" issues. We will mention four of these blocking factors here below. === The major Blindness Block, probably stemming from some 0,5 million to 2 million years ago === ((mirror plus blindfold; zoals eerder, of een variant daarop)) {{level|1}} '''1) The first block''' is stemming from the innate tendency to not use our intelligence on our own behaviour. As pointed out [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Self_Blindness_and_Social-role_Blindness|elsewhere on this Wiki '''(*)''']], this is an awareness block that must be some half million or more years old. It was an adaptation for our hominid ancestors who grew more and more intelligent, living in circumstances where high intelligence did pay off very well. As pointed out earlier, this adaptation, this block on the use of intelligence on the own behaviour, this '''blindness to the self''' (labeled issue #6 above), helped circumvent the ordinary upper limit to intelligence that holds for any living animal species. Normally, in any reasonably intelligent animal species, intelligence cannot evolve beyond the point where it enables individuals to find short cuts to emotional satisfaction, avoiding the energy and time-consuming behaviours that would result from reacting "without thinking". The latter behaviours are the ones evolution has produced as best ways to survive and procreate, but if they get short-cutted by easier, more "clever" ways to short-term satisfaction, procreation is endangered and the too high intelligence level, enabling such short cuts, bites in its own tail and will be weeded out by natural selection. Our hypothesis is that in humans the evolution towards higher levels of intelligence than that specific, general maximum level, only became possible after innate blocks had formed that made the utilisation of intelligence on the own and each other's behaviour very difficult. And that was the "Blindness for the Self" we are facing now ([[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence|see here]] for more information on this innate Self-Blindness). So, if we wish to regard and study the conditions to organise peace and stability for the long term and abolish war and political disasters, we would at the very least have to come to grips with this typically human innate blindness structure. If not, we will continue to live and interact like monkeys, but ............. monkeys with nuclear power. ((plaatje van chimpansee met machinegeweer en op achtergrond ontploffende atoombom (paddestoel) )) === Three more recent Blindness Blocks, stemming from 5.000 to 10.000 years ago === '''2) {{level|1}} The second block''' (#2) is because there has evolved, since some 10.000 years, cultural systems that wield complex '''taboo''' '''systems''', serving to maintain their power over people. These meme level power structures among other things incorporate a system of taboos that prevent us from investigating our own behaviour. This strengthens the already innate tendency to steer clear from meddling with the own and each other's behaviour. These taboos help to keep us even more stupid than we already were for innate reasons. ((plaatje: sssst !!)) So, if we wish to understand the basics of the problems of war and peace we also will have to be willing to overcome a multitude of current cultural taboos. '''3) The third block''' is stemming from us maybe having lost part of our intelligence as compared with some 10.000 years ago. From the time the agricultural revolution began, there was a premium on docility and on fitting into large organizations. From that time on the impersonal meme level power structures took over command and these power structures were served better by docile subjects than by highly creative individualists. These power structures use a variety of techniques to keep their subjects under control. Among these tricks are systems of lies and superstition that increase the dependency of the subjects on the power structure, reducing the individual's capacity to deal with the environment at hand by themselves independently. Adaptation to such systems of counterfeit and superstition is more difficult when one is highly intelligent than when one is somewhat dull and mediocre. '''Intelligence makes adaptation to superstition and fairy tales difficult''' for reasons of cognitive dissonance. Therefore it is likely that since the agricultural revolution there has been on average a '''negative selection pressure on intelligence'''. Intelligence would pay off for members of the ruling class, which is always a minority, but it would often be a disadvantage for the survival chances of subordinate members in the power structure in question, which is always the great majority. In other words: the power structures "breed" stupid and docile carriers for themselves. ((hamer op lampje --> begrip in scherven uiteen)) It would be worthwhile to find out if we can find data on the growth or decrease of average intelligence during the last 10.000 years. It might be an explanation for the finding that modern man has a somewhat lower brain volume than our ancestors from before the agricultural revolution. Whether true or still an unwarranted hypothesis, this lower intelligence, lower than what we had before, could perhaps be another, third factor making it difficult for us to tackle the perennial problems of humanity effectively. '''4) The fourth block''' is stemming from us being saddled with a culturally induced level of '''neuroticism''' that prevents us from too much intelligent investigation of anything and, subsequently, also of our own behaviour. The more neurotic, the less space for intelligent investigation and the less danger for meddling with the norms imposed by the meme level power structures that are geared to help these impersonal power structures to survive and to spread. A higher level of neuroticism reduces the level of useful output of people, but on the other hand it does enhance the malleability of people and the possibilities to manipulate them. And that is a major and crucial advantage to the power structures in charge. ((gezicht met stress en neurotische spanning)) So, if we wish to tackle and understand our problem effectively, we also should try to overcome our culturally induced neuroticism. This is not easily done on the individual level, but it might be far easier to influence on the population level, by purposefully and collectively organising the reduction of the various neuroticising external societal factors. Whether or not this fourth factor is valid also, at least the other three factors prevent us from intelligently and soberly investigating the phenomenon of genetic pollution in human gene pools and the effects of cyclic changes in groups and social organisations, let alone develop the remedies. Obviously, we are at the very least saddled with a couple of serious handicaps, innate as well as learned. And we need to come to grips with those handicaps. We need to become masters over ourselves, again. === Overcoming awareness blocks === If we want to do something about understanding the predicaments of humanity and find remedies for the perennial problems, we obviously need to break through this multifacetted structure of ignorance and blindness that has evolved for very valid evolutionary reasons, but that are now posing some serious and dangerous handicaps to our survival. We cannot do much about blocking factor 1) (labeled as issue #6 before). The innate blindness for our own behaviour is very old and is deeply and solidly ingrained in our system on a genetic level. This part of our specific stupidness and ignorance cannot be "unlearned" it is firmly anchored in our genetic hardware. And if blocking factor 3) (selection against high intelligence since some 5.000 to 10.000 years) is correct, than this is also something that we cannot hope to change within a few centuries. Genetic changes come slowly. Blocking factors 2) and 4) however, are different. If we would decide, we could tackle both blocking factor #2, the taboos, and blocking factor #4, artificial neuroticism, purposefully and diligently, and we can do that right now. For more details about the above mentioned awareness blocks one may refer to the article [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit|"Eating from the Forbidden Fruit" '''(**)''']], otherwise, please continue. == '''What we can do''' == Summarizing the above paragraphs, we now have further explored three important mechanisms, to be added to our tool box, that are each of crucial importance for solving our riddles. They were: 1) the basics of human learning and development (#7), the C.E.L. (Cognition Energy Learning model, based on the Reversal Theory of alternating meta-motivational states); 2) the built in selection cycles motoring periodic catastrophy and disaster (#9) and 3) the human "blindness for the Self" (#6). We now can start to understand the different reasons for this blindness. Understanding these issues also, these three novel concepts, we can now try to tackle anew the eternal basic problems that have plagued humanity since time immemorial. === Approaching humanity's predicaments with a better and more complete tool box === {{level|1}} When investigating human history, it soon becomes apparent that it seems to be impossible to avoid war and disaster from happening for longer periods of time. In fact, well organized societies have as their primary goal to prevent the individuals to make each others lives miserable by unpredictable violence and arbitrariness. The state holds a monopoly on the use of violence and sets rules for its subjects who enjoy a certain protection and peace in return for abiding to the rules. However, no matter how well designed a political structure is set up and ran, it always appears to work for only a limited period of time. Sooner or later, but invariably, uncontrolled violence breaks out again, whether internally, within its own structure, or with neighbouring states. A little study of history will suffice to demonstrate the validity of this rule. It can be argued that these periods of break down, disaster and misery are beneficial for the human population, because in such circumstances everybody has to rely on himself more than otherwise and selection forces resume their task. Mother nature thus makes the '''''badly needed''''' corrections in terms of the '''''necessary selection forces''''', that had temporarily been set aside in the fair and just and well oiled society with "more or less" (relatively) equal chances for everybody. Maybe this is just how it is and and is it biologically impossible and undesirable to organise eternal peace, and was it never meant to be. Maybe this is the case. In fact it does seem to be so, but nevertheless there appears to be a novel problem for humanity, which is the technological revolution and the means of destruction it has produced. We are now living in the nuclear age and we have acquired the potential to destroy the human population a couple of times over. Maybe this is a bit exaggerated and even in the case of a large nuclear shoot out there will always survive some people in some remote corners of the earth. But even if that is true, than still it seems totally unacceptable to let such a nuclear shoot out happen at all. Humanity would at the very least be thrown back to primitive circumstances and large areas of the world would become uninhabitable for ages. Obviously that is not what we want. But, how to prevent further full swing wars ? We should find out about its causes and reasons one way or the other, and rather soon than late. In the literature on war one finds a wealth of overviews and theories (see e.g., van der Dennen, 1995), but to date there does not seem to be one single theory of war and peace that is convincingly explaining it all at the required level of understanding. We show on this Wiki that this is not very surprising, because two of the above mentioned major factors / principles / mechanisms are missing from all these theories and overviews, two principles that are absolutely indispensable for acquiring a full understanding of our human situation and the forces that rule war and peace. === Two technical reasons, each preventing long lasting social equilibria === '''1) Cyclic selection forces (jig saw piece # 9)''' '''2) Genetic pollution (jig saw piece # 3)''' '''1)''' {{level|1}} One of these two factors we already described above. It is in the '''cyclic selection forces''' and concomitant changes in social structures, automatically '''causing periodic turn over catastrophies'''. This mechanism is up till now virtually unknown to researchers in the field. It is in itself enough to prevent any long term political structure to bring peace and well being in the long run. Sooner or later the internal selection process will have proceeded that far that a turn over catastrophy cannot be avoided any more, signalling the end of the (utopian) political arrangement. From this mechanism we can derive '''one certain and indispensable condition''' in case we want to organise an end to periodic war and destruction. And that is that '''we have to become aware of this automatic selection process and we have to introduce some counter selection pressure'''. This is in principle easy to achieve and in fact it is on a small scale already applied in the practice of business organisation and selection advice (see e.g. the application of the [[K.A.I._and_Changes_in_Social_Structures:_on_the_Anatomy_of_Catastrophy|KAI, Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory]] '''(***)'''). So, it has already been shown that it cán work. In principle it should therefore not be very difficult to also implement these techniques on a larger scale up to complete political states, ......... if only the political will and determination would prevail. '''2)''' Another factor that would make it impossible to establish and maintain ever lasting political structures with peace and harmony for all, is the phenomenon of '''genetic pollution'''. This phenomenon does have a different genetic effect on the population in question, but its long term effect is similar. It also '''makes a long lasting structure of peace and harmony technically impossible'''. This automatic biological effect on human populations '''can''' however '''also be countered with well directed measures'''. Parents in general wish to have healthy and successful children. Well, the technical means to achieve that are available and laying ready on the shelf nowadays. Also, there is no need any more to have unwanted children. No matter the resistance from the churches and other religious power structures, methods for birth control are spreading all over the world and will not be stopped from becoming "normal". In fact, the technical means are available to counter the effects of genetic pollution without the least measure of compulsion. And they certainly will be applied more and more. People will more and more simply demand it. Once this becomes main stream, its effect wil help mankind to move from "evolving gradually towards a higher level of consciousness" into a situation of "evolving consciously". For more details about the effects of genetic pollution click [[The_effects_of_genetic_pollution_on_political_structures_and_human_history|here '''(**)''']]. These two above mentioned mechanisms do need some measure of awareness and action from mankind to be overcome and to stop to periodically cause war, disaster and chaos while the subjects, or rather victims, us, stay unaware and helpless while suffering our fate. On the other hand, from the earlier mentioned list of mechanisms that keep us bound in relative slavery, misery and proneness to war and mayhem a number will change by themselves, also without our purposeful actions. Our technical environment is rapidly changing and these irreversible changes will also automatically bring with them crucial changes in the working of those several mechanisms that always kept the miserable state of modern society - i.e. the last 10.000 years or so - in place. Let's mention a few of these changing mechanisms here below. == '''Times are changing; what we may expect''' == {{Level|1}} As to taboos and induced neuroticism, there seem to be developments in operation that "just will do it for us". In order to see that more clearly, we have to take a closer look at the details of how exactly the meme level power structures keep us trapped and bound in slavery and in stupid blindness. Once we have a clear picture of how that works we also can recognise that many of the tools of repression of the power structures that keep us bound, are becoming unstable through recent technological developments. === Present trends === {{Level|1}} We live in the middle of an '''information explosion'''. People are flooded with avalanches of information they can choose from. Also, they can find through internet information on most subjects they care about. Power structures used to lean among other things on important information privileges, depriving their subjects of most of the information available, thus preventing initiatives from that side quite effectively. This privilege was a powerful tool for power structures to maintain and consolidate their power, but through the new internet developments this highly powerful weapon of information exclusivity is dwindling away rapidly. We live in the age of the democratization of information. Also "taboos" therefore can sooner and easier be unmasked for what they are, as mere stories of power structures full of do's and dont's, that dwindle away under scrutiny. The information explosion produces ever more scrutiny, so these power tricks gradually but surely lose their grip on humanity. They also lose their grip on guarding our ignorance. That is the first of the newly developing trends that prepare the way for the point Omega shift. Second, '''birth control''' is spreading quickly all over the globe these days. This means that an ever higher percentage of the children is being '''born "wanted" and planned'''. That, in turn, means that in more cases the parents are prepared for the arduous task of bringing up the child successfully. And that, in turn, means that the child in question is more likely to receive proper amounts of love and attention that are needed for an optimal development (according to the CEL theory, describing the effect of [[Energy_and_Strokes|sufficient "strokes"]] '''(***)''' on children's development). This implies that less and less children are being brought up to become neurotic individuals with truncated behaviour patterns. A higher percentage will be able to "self-actualize", which implies more individuals being able to escape the clutches of the power structures that are trying to subdue them into a mild but steady state of neurotic slavery, contaminating also their neighbours and colleagues in the process. Third: nowadays, there are a number of serious threats for the (pleasant) survival of mankind that force more and more people to think over thoroughly the human condition and the options that we have. There is mass pollution; there is the nuclear capacity to destroy the human species by and large or completely, waging war is nearing more and more to potential massive self-destruction. There is massive overpopulation; etc., etc. These '''urgencies trigger more awareness''' about our own situation and our own functioning than has been usually the case. Subsequently, this triggers attempts to overcome the innate blocks to being aware of and to thinking clearly about our own behaviour and our own (social) situation. Such increased awareness therefore sooner or later undermines the ultimate power of the meme structures in charge. In short, we gradually start realising that "'''we have no choice''' but to finally start understanding ourselves". Fourth: like neuroticism, '''self-actualization also is very contagious'''. The communication explosion of this era reduces distances. Through the internet all sorts of groups emerge with increasing ease. Self-actualizers, historically a small minority, therefore also can easier find their likes nowadays. Critical sizes of self-actualizing groups can therefore develop easier and can eventually trigger chain reactions of contagious self-actualization. That will undermine the usual thoughtless and massive subservience to power structures. We will return to this aspect below. All these recent developments reduce the stability of the classical mechanisms by which power structures acquired stability and longevity, controlling their subjects (their "carriers") sufficiently. Gradually, many of the millennia old fundaments of power start crumbling and are falling apart. The above trends for instance '''loosen the taboo networks''' that keep human thought locked up and that are put in place and maintained by the local power structures in charge, religions and otherwise. As a result, the inborn as well as the induced unwillingness to consider the important issues for the human species are loosening up and more and more people start to direct their curiosity and intelligence to the questions that really ''do'' matter. And one thing that they then automatically will stumble across, is details of how the power structures operate and how they maintained their power over them (us). Another thing that the above modern trends bring closer, is a '''weakening of the artificially induced neuroticism''' in us humans that made us more stupid than what would be natural to our genetic endowment. So, this weakening of our neuroses is making us more clever and intelligent. That also induces a '''more intelligent investigation''' of what rules us and keeps us down. And that is bringing us closer and closer to a mass reversal from neuroticism to states of self actualization (this shift being point Omega). In order to see how these latter effects come about, a better understanding is necessary of how the human system of emotions and motivations operates. We should therefore take a closer look at the mechanisms of the CEL (Cognition Energy Learning model). As explained in the chapters on the [[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model (1)|CEL]]'''(***)''', our system of experiencing, learning and development entails strong positive feed back loops. That means that truncated and neurotic behaviours induce ("positive") feed back loops, resulting in "negative" learning spirals in people, in themselves as well as in their neighbours. On the other hand, complete and fully actualized behaviours induce ("positive") feed back loops resulting in "positive" learning spirals in people and in their neighbours. In short, psychological well-being and self actualization are highly contagious, just as are neuroticism and lack of skills are contagious. Until now, mass neurosis and misery have been the usual state of these two basic possibilities, induced and stabilized by a multitude of tricks, wielded by the power structures in question. But it is precisely those tricks, inducing neuroticism, that are becoming unstable and wavering. The result seems to be a gradual growth towards the point where the artificially induced mass neuroses cannot be upheld any more and where they will reverse into their opposite, causing "positive" feed back loops in the wholesome direction, producing an enhanced growth and development to mass health, vigor and actualization (Point Omega reversal), instead of the customary positive feed back loops producing neurotic misery. (Click [[The significance of the Point Omega transition|here '''(***)''']] for more information on how the CEL mechanism will trigger a mass psychological chain reaction.) In short, it looks like most of the mechanisms that have kept us down in misery, slavery and ignorance are gradually losing their power these days, making it more and more probable for humanity to reach a critical percentage of self-actualizers, which will trigger a mass reversal to positive feed back loops in the wholesome direction instead of in the usual direction of neurotization, fear and mass stupidity. This change of direction, this shift in probability for self-actualization, is what we have labelled the "'''Point Omega reversal". ''' === What will human society look like after Point Omega ? === {{level|1}} Now, what will happen, once that shift has occurred, that shift in focus, that shift in the likelihood for any person to realize self-actualization? For one thing, happiness is a rather subjective matter. One gets used to everything, even hanging, the pun goes. There is much truth in this saying. People are primarily just aware of changes happening to them. People compare. Steady states tend to become "back ground noise", gradually disappearing from awareness. A neurotic person in general has no idea, or only vaguely, that he/she is functioning below normal level and is feeling more than average anxieties. Reversely, a self-actualizer, if he/she has grown up like that, and does have little experience with stressful and neurotic states of mind, generally has no clue as to being a self-actualizer. To him/her it seems to be the usual and therefore the "normal" situation. So, whereas human beings will tend to grow towards higher levels of skills and stability, '''they will not so much report higher states of "happiness"''', simply because they use their own usual state as a reference point, not knowing anything else. However, in such states there will be way less misery, as objectively measured. There will be more real equilibria and more structural stability. Also, there will be much more room for creative exploration and innovation. And since the gradual human evolution towards a higher consciousness will reverse into "conscious evolution", there may be a myriad of directions to choose from, in which directions we may steer our own evolution. Below, we summarise a number of the characteristics that we may expect after Point Omega in terms of the jig saw puzzle pieces as listed in the above paragraph of "Issues to take into account". '''Superstition, taboos and false belief systems''' will disappear. The power structures will be seen for what they are, for how they operated and exerted power over us. Inducing ignorance and superstition will not work any more. Instead, '''sobriety and unhampered intelligence will rule''' and be considered as "normal", not as inexplicable "strokes of genius", as they used to be regarded before. Problems of war and peace will be much easier to handle and because handling them will finally be based on a thorough and complete understanding, there will by and large be '''world wide consensus about how to deal with issues of war and peace'''. '''Competition''' will express itself '''at completely different levels''' from that point on. The physical dangers of large scale wars will be history, liberating huge amounts of time and energy for more useful issues. '''Genetic pollution''' will stop being an automatic source of periodic catastrophical collapse, disaster, destruction and genocide. People will have started breeding consciously and will automatically, willingly and even enthusiastically, generate a sufficient counter-force against genetic pollution. The cycles in social structure of growing and aging, with the concomitant '''turn over catastrophes like bankruptcy, revolutions, genocide, etc., will be history''', since the previously automatic internal selection forces in social structures will be insightfully countered by purposeful, compensating selection forces. Our inborn weakness, us hardly being able to observe ourselves and each other objectively, our characteristic '''"blindness" for the Self''', will be mollified by our awareness that this weakness is an innate human trait, but that we can intelligently and purposefully add sufficient awareness about the social and psychological mechanisms that are ruling our daily lives. Such initiative will not be hampered any longer by all sorts of cultural taboos and other tricks, blocking such awareness, the stings being removed from the meme level power structures. "Amathology", or the '''science of ignorance''', will be a standard ingredient for psychological education. This also means that the extent to which human beings are able to understand one another and assist to one another, will move to a completely different and unprecedented high(er) level. The positive feed back loops in the "wholesome" direction, resulting from that, will in itself already '''stabilize mass self actualization'''. Human unhappiness and suffering, as objectively measured, will be reduced to an unparalleled low level. However, this will not imply that the same holds at a subjective level. That is a completely different matter because subjective emotions are strongly relative and have a strongly "myopic" character. '''Human intelligence will be able to increase again'''. The advantages for the meme level power structures have ceased to exert their evolutionary power in favour of an on average low intelligence. Selection pressure in the opposite direction, in favour of a higher intelligence, stemming among other things from our present day high-tech world and the need to be able to cope with it, will exert its full pressure. That need for high intelligence will not be slowed down or counter-effected any more by the pressure in favour of moderate intelligence as exerted by the meme level power structures in charge, needing multitudes of docile "sheep" as its reliable carriers and cannon-fodder. The selection pressure in favour of extreme docile and uncritical behaviour will have evaporated. Thus far a short listing of some of the changes we may expect after the Point Omega shift. (For more information on these changes [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Point_Omega_.2F_Mass_enlightenment|leading to '''(*)''']] and to be expected after Point Omega, [[Directives_for_after_Point_Omega|click here]] '''(*)'''.) With this short, and far from complete, listing we have almost come to the end of the guided tour through this Wiki. You may dive deeper in the data and arguments supporting this story by using the links in the above texts or in the short summary of this article below. We hope you enjoyed the Tour and that we managed to trigger your curiosity to where it really counts for us all. == '''In summary''' ..... == (( plaatje van complete puzzel; zelfde als eerder, maar dan compleet)) {{level|1}} We will now summarize in short the highlights of this guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki and for your convenience provide further links to other articles and chapters on this Wiki. This Wiki aims at providing a better insight in how we humans tick, in how our societies are run and about how we could avoid huge (e.g., nuclear) disasters. We have ended up in a rather dangerous global political and environmental situation. How can we survive ? And how can we make our fellow beings survive ? In view of everything that is known and scientifically established, in fact for quite some time already, it should not be very difficult to (re-)organize our societies in such a way that the most crucial and common human problems and dangers are overcome and disappear. It is argued on this Wiki that the major problem is to mobilize all available knowledge and to remove the taboos and superstitions that until now blocked the intelligent use of the knowledge that is already available. Four phenomena are indicated that are generally missing from our world view, but that are crucial for being able to understand the essentials of the present human situation. These four crucial phenomena are: '''1)''' The '''dynamics of human learning and development''', based on '''"[[Point_Omega_(summary)#Reversal_Theory_of_Emotions_and_Motivations|'''Reversal Theory''''' (*)''']](#7)"'''. The organization of the dynamics of emotions and motivations implies a strong contageousness of psychological health, but also of neuroticism. This holds within individuals as well as at the social level. Without a solid understanding of [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Reversal Theory]] '''(***)''' and of the [[Towards_a_Cognition-Energy-Learning_Model|CEL (Cognition Energy Learning model) '''(***)''']], the reasons for the present human situation and the possibilities that we have instead, can never be understood well. So, we need to understand Reversal Theory and the CEL. '''2)''' Within social groups and structures there is an automatic and up till now unhampered selection pressure in favour of sociable adaptation and against creative individualism. This results in a limited life span of any social structure or institution. Social structures always carry a time bomb within, fueled by [[The_biological_instability_of_social_equilibria|'''automatic social selection cycles''']] '''(***)(#9)'''. When social structures collapse at the end of their life span and are replaced by fresh, smaller structures, the turn over catastrophes go by the names of dissolution, bankruptcy, revolution, war or genocide. Since this mechanism always, since primordial times, has been the engine behind the periodic reshuffling of the gene pool and the concomitant catastrophes, it is absolutely impossible to understand even vaguely the source of much of human misery, let alone to be able to do something about it, without knowledge of these automatic social selection cycles. '''3)''' The typical [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Self_Blindness_and_Social-role_Blindness|'''human blindness for the self''']] '''(*)(#6)'''. This is the innate incapacity to utilize our intelligence for understanding our own and each other's behaviour. This is a consequence of the higher than "normal" human intelligence and it developed since some quarter million to two million years ago, when one line of hominids escaped from the ordinary evolutionary "upper intelligence limit". '''4)''' Since the agricultural revolution, some 10.000 years ago, the power in human societies is in the "hands" of impersonal meme-level information structures. These [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Impersonal_power_structures_ruling_our_world|'''meme-level power structures''']] '''(*)(#8)''' compete with one another and cause an evolution on the meme level that is running much faster than the gene-level evolution of our physical properties. This causes a [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Impersonal_power_structures_ruling_our_world|structural friction in us humans]] '''(*)''', being subject to selection pressures on the meme level that leave the gene level adaptations lagging hopelessly behind. Ordinary human psychological functioning is strongly determined and coloured by this evolutionary friction. Other than the above 4 mechanisms that are unfamiliar to most people, the following phenomena that are crucial for a thorough understanding, are more commonly known, but often not considered in the context that we now need here. These well known phenomena and their application in the present point Omega context are: '''Superstition and ignorance''' in human society and [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#The_evolutionary_importance_of_blindness_for_self_and_the_illusion_of_Good_and_Bad|their evolutionary role]] '''(**)(#1)'''. '''Taboos''' and their controlling function in human societies. '''(#2)''' [[The_effects_of_genetic_pollution_on_political_structures_and_human_history|'''Genetic pollution''']] '''(**)''' and its effects of collapse and rejuvenation in human societies. '''(#3)''' Disfunctioning and '''neuroticism''' versus optimal development and well being in individuals; the technical reversibility of these processes and a strong [[Energy_and_Strokes#2.10._.22Contagiousness.22_of_Interpersonal_Psychological_Skills_and_Adaptation|contagiousness]] '''(***)''' in both directions. '''(#7)''' '''Selection pressure in societies''' [[Point_Omega_(summary)#Impersonal_power_structures_ruling_our_world|'''in favour of docile behaviour''']] '''(*)(#9)'''. This, together with '''genetic pollution (#3)''', always has been the cause of periodic redistribution of gene pools over the inhabitable areas of land, also triggering migration waves. Once understood, we can deal with both mechanisms without much difficulty. All in all, the mechanisms that we describe on this Wiki help us to understand how and why Homo sapiens has ended up in its present precarious situation and how that state of affairs has been stabilized over time. However, understanding of the mechanisms involved also shows us what other options are in principle available. That understanding shows which other, radically different, fate may be in store for humanity. In fact, understanding of all mechanisms involved suggests that it is almost unavoidable that mankind will, sooner rather than later, enter in a next phase of evolution, an evolutionary phase bringing with it changes for our way of life, that are far more radical and far reaching than were the changes through the agricultural revolution that started around 10.000 years ago. Let's hope that it will not be necessary that a nuclear shoot out and concomitant disaster and misery will be needed to trigger our awareness to shift upward to the required level. Let's hope that our communal awareness will increase quickly enough to avoid such disaster. This is the end of this summary. Point Omega will most likely come, whether we try to induce it or not. A number of developments that come about automatically and unavoidably, will autonomously trigger the emergence of that Point Omega. This Wiki can help the reader to be prepared. '''That's all we need to do'''. The rest will follow by itself automatically. Enjoy the ride ! Thanks for your attention. For returning to the start of this Guided Tour, click [[A_guided_tour_through_this_Wiki|here]] '''(*)'''. == '''Your support''' == '''(*)''' If you wish to support the work on this Wiki you can do two things for us: 1) You can copy this Wiki. This will prevent any party that feels threatened through it contents, from effectively destroying it. Copies will exist all over the place and the information gathered here cannot be undone any more. For copying instructions, '''click''' [[Omega_Research:Site_support#Copy this wiki (our version of 'CopyRight')|'''''here''''']]. 2) You can send us a donation. (Click [[Omega Research:Site support|'''''here''''']]) Your donation will be used to improve and spread the contents of this Wiki and to support the scientific research behind it. 89842yetsygbulsql0g6es23x0vyzvw 0 180 5615 5567 2013-12-27T20:22:48Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki '''(Extended definition of "Point Omega")''' {{Level|2}} For understanding the evolution of intelligence, we need to consider a couple of unfamiliar notions. These notions are indispensable for a clear understanding of what intelligence is all about, what is its usefulness and evolutionary rationale, and what are the conditions under which intelligence can reach higher levels. As the evolutionary baseline in the evolution of intelligence, let's start considering the ordinary state of modest intelligence which is a customary option for all evolving phyla and which is limited by ordinary evolutionary forces, protecting the integrity of the proximate behavioural organization. In figure 1 this period in evolution in which a developing intelligence is being blocked by these evolutionary forces is indicated as the time between (B) and (C). Fig.1 about here ********************* Text in figure 1: Phases in the Evolution of Intelligence Text to figure 1: The logarithmic time scale in figure 1 signifies that: * The period of time from (A) to (B), +/- 100M years, is much longer than the period of time from (B) to (C), +/- 15M years, and * The period of time from (B) to (C), +/- 15M years, is much longer than the period of time from (C) to (D), +/- 1,5M years. (A): Early intelligence phase (B): Evolving intelligence being stopped by the usual intelligence boundary (C): Intelligence breaking out of boundary after the development of Self-Blindness (D): Meme-level evolution taking over; beginning of agricultural revolution (E): Slightly reduced intelligence induced by power structure repression The renewed rise in intelligence after the expected Point Omega transition has not been indicated in the graph Escaping from that general upper boundary to intelligence is only possible for a species after the development of a species-specific blindness, an incapacity to relate to one's own behaviour in an intelligent way. Only after such blindness has been established firmly at the genetic level may intelligence surpass that ordinary upper limit. What then follows is the '''first''', and longest, '''intermediary phase''', which we call the blindness phase, in which intelligence has become genetically blocked regarding the behaviour of oneself. Whereas such Self-Blindness may sound like a negative asset for a species, it does remove the evolutionary limiting force on intelligence, freeing the way for an increase of intelligent power. The '''second intermediary phase''' is when innate behavioural tendencies are overruled by power structures at the meme level, which induce massive states of fear and neuroses in the intelligent carriers of those memes, that is: in "us". The end of this second intermediary phase is when intelligence, with the support of technical developments, finally breaks through that genetically facilitated self-blindness and finally understands its own nature and structure, including its own specific blindnesses. Collective slavery, based on mass neuroses and fears as characteristic for the second intermediary phase, then comes to an end, as well as periodic mass destruction and genocide, that adequately served the genetic evolution until that moment in time. '''This last transition, the escape and coming of age of intelligence, is labeled "Point Omega".''' That Point Omega transition has not been indicated in figure 1. This Wiki harbours [[Self-blindness_in_humans_as_prerequisite_for_the_evolution_of_advanced_intelligence|detailed argumentation]] for this scheme of the evolution of intelligence and deals with [[A_guided_tour_through_the_Omega_Research_Wiki|various biological and psychological mechanisms]] that are of importance in the time of transition laying ahead of us. 7asxdcg2m7iqpqxzesmahb5rp81iwyc 0 204 4152 4151 2012-07-22T18:00:56Z Baby Boy 2 /* GENETICS */ wikitext text/x-wiki By: '''Popko P. van der Molen''' Chapter in: '''''Adaptors and Innovators, Styles of Creativity and Problem Solving''''' edited by Michael J. Kirton 1989, Routledge, London & New York __TOC__ == Support == The writing of this chapter 7, Adaption-Innovation and Changes in Social Structure: on the anatomy of catastrophe, by P.P. van der Molen, has been supported by a grant of the ANO foundation. Comments and criticism from Michael Kirton, Vernon Reynolds and Robin Dunbar were of great help to improve the text, which is not to imply that they are responsible for any flaws in the basic line of argumentation defended here. The help of Ben Hoffschulte in refining and presenting this text is also gratefully acknowledged. == Preface to Michael J. Kirton's book: Adaptors and Innovators, Styles of Creativity and Problem Solving == {{level|2}} The mental processes which underlie concepts of creativity, problem solving and decision making are of continuing interest to researchers and teachers and are increasingly recognised by managers as directly relevant to the problems which they encounter in introducing change. There are good logical reasons for linking the three concepts. A decision is essentially based on the choice of solution to a problem - in other words, if there is no choice of solution to a problem no decision is needed. Further, both creativity and problem- solving have in common at least the implication of originality and novelty. Most often the three concepts have been kept apart, in theory and in research design and practice. One possible reason for this may be a lack of clarity in their relationship to intelligence. All scholars class intelligence as a concept of capacity or level; most accept that intelligence is heavily implicated in observed individual differences in problem solving and subsequent decision making. There is, however, much less clarity or certainty on what relationship should be hypothesized between creativity and intelligence. Studies that are founded on comprehensive reviews of pertinent literature and involve careful measurement, have on occasion added to the general confusion by not being able to make a clear prediction. Guilford (1950) whilst predicting a modest relationship between intelligence test scores and many types of creative performance concludes: 'we must look well beyond the boundaries of IQ if we are to fathom the domain of creativity'. Getzels and Jackson (1962) emphasized: 'we are not saying there is no relationship between IQ and creative thinking. Obviously the feeble minded by IQ standards are not going to be creative. But at the high average level and above the two are sufficiently independent to warrant differentiation.' These standpoints have a tentative air that do not make for sharp hypotheses that can be the subject of a clear test. In contrast Adaption-Innovation theory takes an unequivocal stance. It postulates and through its measure, the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI) demonstrates, that the preferred cognitive style of the individual is wholly unrelated statistically to that individual's level, i.e., capacity. That key distinction between level and style has wide implications, which are explored in this book, for the management of organizations and for the direction of future research. It brings clarity to the debate when the factors affecting an individual's response in a particular situation are being considered. It makes it possible to examine the concepts of creativity, problem solving and decision making of individuals and to predict their behaviour and that of the groups which they make up, with a greater degree of confidence than has previously been possible. It is, however, made clear that level and style are only two of the variables which affect the performance of individuals. Other individual variables; motivation, knowledge, social skills and many others and the particular activity and organizational context in which the activity takes place, will all have a powerful impact on the outcome. It is, however, apparent from the volume of research already carried out into the application of adaption-innovation theory, in more than a dozen countries, that there is value in- being able to demonstrate the existence of a stable preferred form of behaviour in the individual and to measure it with confidence. One example of the value of re-examining assumptions, in the light of the clear level-style distinction which Adaption-Innovation offers, is in the concept of creativity as applied to occupational groups. Artists are generally accepted as being creative people (e.g. Myers, 1962). Architects are also often so accepted, aided no doubt by MacKinnon's (1962) seminal work on them; businessmen or engineers have so far received scant attention (e.g. MacKinnon, 1987), mainly because they are so often viewed as lacking in creativity. If, however, the level-style distinction is here applied, then a more precise differentiation can be made that is closer to general experience. The members of these or any other profession may differ in ability, and even more widely in experience and behaviour, however defined and measured. They may also range widely over the Adaption-Innovation dimension, working closely to their relevant paradigms or not, in accord as far as possible with their preferred cognitive style. The first chapter of this book sets out the theory, explores these and other underlying assumptions, describes typical adaptors and innovators, introduces the theory's measure: the KAI and uses it to test some of the theoretical standpoints taken. The principal issues addressed are the distinctness of cognitive capacity and cognitive style; the stability, persistence and early setting of style; the relationship to personality and the concept of coping behaviour as an intervening variable. The second chapter is written by a psychologist in management, Professor Ronald Goldsmith, at The Florida State University. With style firmly separated from level, the way is clearer to relate cognitive style to personality trait. Goldsmith puts forward a number of propositions: that KAI is a summary measure of behaviour, acting as a substitute for aggregate measures of behaviour over time; that Adaption-Innovation may lie in scope between personality traits and any individual behavioural act, being more specific than the former and more general than the latter; schematically, however, Adaption-Innovation may underlie personality trait clusters. He touches also on interesting measurement issues. Chapter three reviews the structures, nature and performance of the KAI from the validation studies in the early 1970s, to its present widespread international use by scholars and practitioners. Steven de Ciantis, of Shell UK Ltd, shares the authorship of the next chapter which assembles the evidence from numerous studies for the notion of cognitive climate, placing it as an element within organizational climate. We examine the possible impact on the individual and the coping behaviour and clashes that may result. Harry Schroder built a scholarly reputation as a Professor at Princeton University in the study of cognitive complexity and group functioning. He now continues to build this reputation as a scholar and practitioner in the theory and measurement of management competencies and their use in his Center for Organizational Effectiveness at the University of South Florida. He shows that as Adaption-Innovation theory predicts, management competencies being measures of capacity are unrelated to cognitive style. When taken together the effect is that groups of adaptor managers will exhibit their competency in clearly characteristically adaptive ways. The converse for innovators is also true. This has obvious teaching value for training departments as well as academics. The penultimate chapter is by psychologist Gordon Foxall, Professor of Marketing at Strathclyde University. He reviews studies based on decades of expectation in marketing and marketing research that a secure link should exist between personality characteristics and early or late adoption of novel products. His research shows that 'innovative consumers' in marketing terminology cannot be simply equated to innovators as measured by the KAI. One significant complication is the degree of innovativeness of the novel product. Another significant factor is the extent to which the buyer may be assiduously collecting products within a novel range. These applications seem amenable to being unravelled by the Adaption-Innovation theory and successfully tested by use of KAI. The implications for marketing may be that old intuitions may yet be supported by more relevant theory, sounder measures and more sophisticated research design. Popko van der Molen's work at the State University of Groningen in the Netherlands spans biology, psychology and sociology and both animal and human behaviour. In this final chapter, he explores the implications of the conflict which exists in all social animals between the drive to satisfy individual physical needs and the urge to maintain social contact and interaction. The importance of the Adaption- Innovation orientation of individuals as a basic determinant of human behaviour in such conflicts, led van der Molen to theorize that the Adaption-Innovation dimension had a biological root and he marshals data from a wide range of research on human and animal behaviour to sustain the argument. He considers the impact of this approach for the apparent cyclical rise and fall of social groups and the need for man to find a compromise between the all too slow evolutionary process of change and the all too disturbing revolutionary alternative. The central aim of the book has been to bring together the work already done in refining and applying Adaption- Innovation theory and to consider its wider implications. The conclusions in it are based on reliable data and will, I hope, lead to a wider application of the theory and measure. Where there is speculation it will, I hope, stimulate further research including cross-disciplinary research where that is appropriate. In order to achieve fluency the masculine personal pronoun has been used throughout the book. Where he, him and his has been used please read also she, her and hers. Notes have been grouped at the end of each chapter and referred to in the text. == Chapter Seven: '''ADAPTION-INNOVATION AND CHANGES IN SOCIAL STRUCTURE: ON THE ANATOMY OF CATASTROPHE''' == by P.P. van der Molen === SOME CONSEQUENCES OF LIVING SOCIALLY === {{level|3}} This chapter deals with the questions: 'Why do social structures tend to harden and ossify in time?' or 'Why do social structures appear to have a limited life span?' and 'What can Adaption-Innovation theory teach us about these phenomena?'. Kirton has suggested that Adaption-Innovation differences are set very early in life and are relatively stable. As will be pointed out below, this is not surprising, since similar individual differences, and their genetic basis, can even be traced in non-human mammals that have social group life. Therefore the underlying biological organization must, from an evolutionary point of view, be very old and elementary. Insight into these underlying biological mechanisms and their effects in social groups, may increase our understanding of a wide range of intriguing, and sometimes disquieting phenomena. These phenomena range from educational and organizational strategies to the emergence and the, sometimes catastrophic, collapse of companies and other social group structures, including the way social roles and positions tend to be distributed, and the evolutionary consequences. First, this chapter suggests why, from a biological point of view, adaption-innovation differences between individuals are theoretically to be expected among social mammals. Second, the chapter investigates the consequences of these behavioural differences on the level of social interaction. A life-span theory of social structures and organizations will be introduced, which includes the likelihood of catastrophic collapses as a major implication. Third, these assumptions are related to some experimental results and data from the literature. Experimental and empirical findings from biological and psychological research will be presented which support the notion of a biological basis of Adaption-Innovation - and related inter-individual differences. Finally, the chapter explores how this type of understanding may enable us to map the processes underlying periodic catastrophe and may teach us how to exercise a degree of control on the process. Starting with the biological and theoretical viewpoint, let us focus on the basic requirements of social behaviour. Each individual among social mammals is by necessity saddled with a conspicuous bi-polarity in behavioural urges. First, being a social animal, drives for social contact and interaction are by definition an important part of its behaviour-genetical endowment. Second, it also has a set of perhaps even more basic drives to ensure the fulfilment of a range of non-social personal needs, e.g. water, food, cover, warmth, sex, territory, etc. As far as these latter needs are concerned, the amount of resources is often limited, thus causing competition and social conflict. This basic functional conflict exists in every social individual, who inescapably has to reconcile these two sets of urges much of the time. Whenever some of the needed resources are scarce, the ensuing competition will put a strain on social relations. Under such conditions an individual frequently has to choose between either striving for continuation of peaceful social relations or getting an appropriate share of the resources, eventually at the cost of social peace and harmony. Most of the time this dilemma boils down to the question of whether or not to submit to the initiative of other individuals at the cost of fulfilling personal urges and desires. In any social species this conflict of needs is inescapably present in each individual day after day, the outcome determining how the individual will deal, by and large, with the social situation at hand. It is most desirable to have one's own way most of the time and still maintain close social contact and interaction. But that is more or less identical to what is generally understood by a 'dominant' social role, and such roles are comparatively scarce. It is therefore more interesting to know what happens to the majority of individuals, the various types of subordinates who are under regular pressure to comply and postpone or even abandon part of their individual desires and initiatives.   [[Image:Two dimensions of social-role behaviour.png|framed|'''Fig. 6.''' Two dimensions of social-role behaviour.]] '''Two dimensions of social-role behaviour ''' For such non-dominant individuals, the balance between the strength of the desire for social contact and interaction, and the strength of the desires to fulfil other biological needs, determines the outcome of this continuous process of weighing one need against the other. Given a certain pressure to comply, it largely depends on this equilibrium of basic sensitivities within the subordinate individual, as to what the behavioural outcome will be, either drifting gradually into an outcast position or assuming a compliant and socially accepted subordinate position. Such differences between subordinates have indeed frequently been observed in mammals. What is important for us to note here, is that for any social mammal the competing sets of needs under discussion are very general and basic. We must therefore assume that the variance in the balance between these sets of basic needs has strong genetic roots. The equilibrium discussed above is therefore also an equilibrium between functionally competing parts of the genetic programme. As such, we may consider this equilibrium, varying over individuals, as a trait in the classical sense. We could therefore express this set of behavioural polarities as a set of (''inter alia'' genetically based) trait differences which do have a clearly defined impact on the distribution of social roles, or mathematically speaking - as p(ω/not-α) or as 1-p(β/not-α) see Figure 6). (In the cross-specific behavioural literature the symbols α, β and ω are used for: dominant role (α), compliant and tolerated subordinate role (β), and non- compliant, non-tolerated type of subordinate, frequently leading to an outcast role (ω); the p stands for probability and refers to the indeterminancy of the social roles to be acquired, because of environmental influences). Up to this point, three basic assumptions have been made about the behaviour of social mammals in general: 1. There is a strong functional link between, on the level of behavioural orientation, the frequency of social behaviour versus thing-oriented individualistic behaviour, and, on the level of the distribution of social roles, conformity and compliance with authority versus a self-willed attitude. These two polarities cannot be separated, they do have the same behavioural basis. Therefore a range of personality characteristics have to be strongly intercorrelated, e.g. self-will, thing- orientedness, individualism, and innovative creativity on the one pole, and compliance, person-orientedness, sociability, conformity, and adaptiveness to rules and traditions, on the other pole. 2. Individuals differ from one another as far as the balance between these polarities is concerned. 3. This variation between individuals must have genetic components. Later in this chapter we will check these assumptions against experimental data, but before doing that, we will first investigate their logical consequences. At this point one might justly retort: 'Why so much ado about nothing?' It seems self-evident that these polarities in behaviour are interconnected, and since for most broad behavioural characteristics it is likely that differences in behaviour are partly caused by genetic differences, in particular if they are of very old phylogenetic origin, which these behaviours apparently are, it is rather tautological to state that they have genetic roots. The point is, first, that this notion of a biological basis of certain behaviours may be self-evident to behaviour biologists, it is certainly not for large groups of sociologists and psychologists. Second, these three assumptions do have peculiar and important consequences if applied to the sociology of group structures, the incrowd-outcast dynamism and the concomitant behavioural reflexes in particular. In order to discuss these consequences we have to add one more assumption, which is rather a definition, namely: 4. In what follows 'Social groups' will mean groups over which individuals are distributed discretely. In other words, individuals can recognize one another as either belonging to the 'social group' in question or not - and treat each other accordingly. === HYPOTHESIS: LIFE CYCLES OF SOCIAL GROUPS AND STRUCTURES === {{level|3}} If defined this way, the previous four assumptions imply that within such 'social groups' - and other discrete social structures for that matter - there is exercised a more or less continuous selection pressure in favour of compliance and sociability. This is so because the most compliant - and thus most socially-orientated and rule-adaptive - individuals are most likely to establish long-lasting accommodation within the group. Self-willed individualists on the other hand (also being innovative and thing-oriented according to assumption 1), are most likely to run into trouble and disagreement with the dominant individuals and/or habits and rules in the group. They are least prepared to pay time and again the price of postponing or giving up personal urges and initiatives in order to keep the peace and social harmony. As a consequence, such individuals are most likely either to fight hard for attaining a dominant position, or if failing, to drift into marginal omega-like social positions and eventually become outcasts and leave the social structure. For any eventual influx of individuals into the social group or structure, the opposite holds. Individuals will be most readily accepted if they do not pose a threat to the individuals and/or habits ruling group life, which of course favours rule-adaptive compliants. The effect of such a continuous selection pressure is that the behavioural make-up of a group will shift gradually towards compliance and sociable rule-adaptiveness. Because of assumption 1, this also implies a shift towards less and less independent creativity and thing-oriented innovativeness. And because of assumption 3, this shifting of group characteristics is (genetically) consolidated. What then automatically happens with every social group and structure is a gradual loss of innovativeness and behavioural flexibility. In the end such a gradual ossification reduces the effectiveness of the group (structure), whether its function be the preservation of a territorial area with sufficient resources to keep a deme of mice alive, or, in man, the enhancement of some sport, the maintenance of political ideals, the aim to get a better share of the market, or the preservation of a political state. At any level of organization a price has to be paid in the end. Such ossification especially matters whenever novel challenges turn up in the form of environmental changes or the emergence of competing groups. The disadvantages of a lowered flexibility and innovative creativity weigh most when, because of changing circumstances, innovations and a change of habits are urgently required. In such circumstances the advantages of the old social system in terms of experience, solidly established routines, compliance, malleability of all members, and sheer size, may easily be outdone by the innovativeness, flexibility and efficiency of a younger, and often much smaller, social group (structure), on which these selection pressures have not yet been working for such a long period of time. At such a moment the old structure will yield to the younger structure in a relatively sudden way. Therefore, provided the above mentioned assumptions are valid, social groups and structures only have a limited life-span. The life-cycle of a social institution then, e.g., in human society, can roughly be indicated as: Foundation Consolidation -> Internal selection pressure Increasing ossification and a reduction of flexibility of the social structure -> Eventual attempts to compensate these effects by means of more striving for growth and power -> Further increase of rigidity and ossification Catastrophic collapse by sudden environmental changes or competition (see Figure 7). [[Image:Changes in time of social group structures.png|none|framed|'''Fig. 7.''' Change in time of the average characteristics of the prevalent social group structures and their incrowd members.]] This model implies a departure from notions of mere gradual changes in societal structures. The probability of sudden catastrophic turn-over events, increasing in time with cumulating selection effects, can graphically be represented and mathematically be described with help of the bi-stable models from the mathematical branch of catastrophe theory (Thorn and Zeernan, 1974; Zeeman, 1976; Woodcock and Davis, 1978). Figure 8 shows a cusp catastrophe, visualizing the relation between the continuous and the discontinuous part of the cycle. After foundation of a social structure, the level of overt challenges tends to decrease and the stability of the structure tends to increase until the inefficiency begins to take its toll, after which the stability of the structure decreases again. During the process the average level of self-will (% of innovators) decreases. An increase in the level of overt challenge may then sooner or later lead to a catastrophic turn-over event. In the new structure the percentage of innovators (average level of self-will) starts at a high level again, and so on. The selection rate determines the speed of ossification, and the life expectancy of a social structure is therefore roughly inversely proportional to the internal selection pressure. Such sudden turn-overs of social structures are therefore bound to happen at any level at which discrete social group structures are operating, as long as individuals can be recognized by one another as either belonging or not belonging to that group, and as long as there is some outflow or neutralization (and eventually a selected influx) of individuals. Depending on the level of organization, such a turn-over goes by the labels 'conquest', 'close-down', 'discontinuance', 'bankruptcy', 'revolution', 'subjugation', 'extermination', or 'genocide'. Once the old, ossified social structure has been replaced by one or more younger competitor-structures, the individuals from the population as a whole have been reshuffled in favour of resourceful self-willed innovators, who now occupy the 'incrowd' positions. The rule-adaptive compliants who formed the bulk of the establishment of the former social structure in power, have drifted by then into marginal positions and run the worst risks from then on. (Many "Last" will be "first" and many "First" will be "last".) Thus the previous internal shift in genetic make-up has been undone, and a new selection cycle is started in these new structures. The selective advantages for individuals are therefore different within and outside of social groups and structures, and also different depending on the stage of the life-cycle an institution is in. A compliant, adaptive and sociable temperament gives a selective advantage within large, and especially within older social systems, whereas a thing- orientated, innovative and self-willed temperament is selectively advantageous outside of the protective maze of established structures, or within small and young systems. [[Image:Social turn-over cycles.png|framed|none|'''Fig. 8.''' Turn-over cycles in terms of personality characteristics and institutional functioning.]] === EVOLUTIONARY ADVANTAGES === {{level|3}} Notwithstanding the above-mentioned unpleasant aspects of turn-over catastrophes, such a scheme of automatic and unavoidable cyclic changes in social-behavioural structures does have conspicuous evolutionary advantages. It is, for instance, clear that this mechanism keeps everything moving, structures, individuals and, finally, genes. After every turn-over event (or catastrophe) there occurs a thorough re-shuffling of individuals. And when in the ensuing chaos new combinations of individuals reassemble in the newly emerging social group (structures), novel combinations of gene sets are also eventually formed. Apart from this advantage at the level of interpersonal social reorganization and consequently of ensuing recombination of gene sets, there is also an advantage at the level of migration, exploration and colonization of the environment (e.g., Lancaster, 1986). Most mammals are reluctant to go beyond the limits of familiar territory - their home range - and generally must be forced one way or other to do so (Christian, 1970). Every time an old structure breaks down, a large number of individuals is forced to move and is therefore added to the extra-group surplus population. This will produce a sudden increase in inter-individual competition outside of the group (structures) and therefore also a sudden increase in the pressure on other established group (structures), catalizing the eventually impending catastrophic collapse of more systems, thus locally adding to the already existing chaos. This spatial synchronization causes migratory and related pressures to occur spasmodically and strongly instead of continuously and rather weakly. This may be an advantage where geographical barriers for example, need to be overcome in order to enable further migratory moves of the population or species as a whole. Many authors have commented on the importance of surplus out-group individuals for the production of strong dispersal pressures (Darlington, 1957), and from the model discussed above it may be clear that social hierarchies constitute by themselves a major force for dispersion. This is also stressed by Christian (1970) in a review of population dynamics research in mammals. He adds the conclusion that it is primarily on outcasts that the process of evolution can really work. The implication is that the Darwinian 'struggle for life' is in fact a process with much irony and relativity, since those individuals with, apparently, maximum reproductive success, the dominants, create by the very violence of their success the outcasts that carry on the process which we call evolution (Hoffschulte, 1986). The ethologist and social psychologist Calhoun (1974) comments on our own origins: ''The strong remain where conditions are most salubrious to preserving the old life-style. The weak must emigrate - bodily, behaviourally or intellectually. Our most distant ancestors swung from trees. Slightly less distant ones lost that race and won another. Population pressure forced them out of forest islands to wander across the African plains in search of another patch of forest where they could renew the old ways. Successive losses and successive demands for adjusting culminated in upright walking creatures like ourselves. So it has been through all of evolution; the weak (eventually) survive, changed, to open new routes into the future. The meek do inherit the earth.'' (Calhoun, 1974:302-3) The importance of deviants and scapegoats for these processes on the level of culture and social organization in man, is emphasized in the comprehensive works of Coser (e.g. 1956, 1978) and Girard (e.g. 1982). Girard desribes how throughout human history the distribution of social role positions has been brought about by means of violent acts of social repression. Not only is the dramatic shifting of non- average, deviant subordinate persons into outcast positions just as common as in lower mammals, but, according to Girard, the very development of our culture even depended on it. Only through acts of violence and the collective commemoration of the victim-outcast or scapegoat do human groups find the social-cognitive norms and unanimity from which culture can develop. Culture in our species is therefore not to be considered as an immaculate attainment with which we have overcome primitive forms of violence. On the contrary, it is precisely through the violent social collisions themselves, that human culture emerged from the animal background. The threatening circle around victims who are found guilty of social disorders is, so to say, the daily bread of social cultural order (Hoffschulte, 1986, on Girard). In summary, if a similar mechanism of population- and group-cycles exists, it would facilitate speciation through genetic adaption to marginal habitats, would help to overcome migratory bottlenecks, and even would, in the case of man, serve to motor the evolution of culture. It would also have significant effects on other levels of social organization. On the level of industrial companies for instance, such periodic outbursts of organizational turn-over may cause an enormous series of "domino bankruptcies', but they also trigger synchronized waves of entrepreneurial creativity and innovative initiatives, thus inducing large- scale industrial reshuffling and renewal. Similar considerations apply to the other levels of social organization. The actual turn-over catastrophes themselves may not be pleasant for the participants at all, but that is irrelevant from an evolutionary perspective. On this grand scale it is not the feeling and suffering of the individual involved that counts, but the long-term behavioural and behavioural-genetic output that does. These evolutionary considerations suggest that if in the case of man his superior capacity for learning plays a modifying role in these matters, that the organization of his intellectual capacities will probably have evolved in such a way, as to enhance the occurrence of the cyclic changes under discussion, rather than thwart it. (We shall return later to this particular consequence, i.e. the peculiar phenomenon of blind spots in our cognitive system as far as social role interactions are concerned.) Having outlined these intriguing, and also somewhat disquieting consequences of the four assumptions made, I will now present some data that may help us assess the validity of those four assumptions. First, some ethological research on behavioural differences between individual mice will be presented, especially in so far as these data shed light on the probabilities of non-dominant animals drifting into an omega-role (outcast-like) or adapting to a subordinate (beta) role. Then a short literature review will be presented on inter-individual differences in (innovative) self-will versus (adaptive) compliance and its correlates in other socially living mammals and especially in man. === EXPERIMENTS WITH HOUSE MICE === {{level|3}} As is reported in more detail elsewhere (van der Molen, 1973, 1988), data supporting these assumptions, were obtained from mouse research. This research investigated: (a) how social role differences could be manipulated; (b) which part of the behavioural differences had to be ascribed to those role differences; and (c) which part of the behavioural differences was due to innate 'trait'-factors. Dominance appeared to determine the behaviour of an individual to a great extent, thus being an indispensable tool for ethological descriptions of inter-individual differences. It could also be shown experimentally that becoming dominant or subordinate was mainly dependent on coincidence and contingencies, and only to a limited extent on individual characteristics such as body-weight, social- and fighting-experience, self-will, etc. Within the categories of dominants and subordinates there appeared large differences in tolerance for other individuals. Some dominant mice behaved far more aggressively towards their subordinates than did others and these differences determined to a large extent the number of subordinates eventually holding out with such a dominant. Another role-difference which can easily be manipulated experimentally is the 'incrowd/outcast' difference in subordinates, or rather, the difference between betas and omegas (the usual terms in mouse research). These differences in tolerance versus aggressiveness among dominants and subordinates largely determined the population density in the observation areas. 'Self-willed conflict-proneness' was found to be strongly correlated with a high frequency of 'exploratory' and 'thing-orientated' behaviour, whereas 'compliance' was found to be strongly correlated with a high frequency of 'social' and 'partner-orientated' behaviour. Every time a group of four males and two females was placed in a large observation cage for the first time, there were at first no clear alpha-, beta-, or omega-roles. In the course of the following days (or weeks) an alpha male would emerge and the differences in behaviour between the subordinate males would still be rather vague. Subsequently, differences would gradually evolve between the behaviour patterns of the subordinates. The subordinate mice who adapted to the initiatives of the alpha, behaved submissively more regularly and underwent the manipulations of the alpha more often. They were, however, less often disturbed by aggressive attacks from the alpha, and did not much care whether the alpha was awake or asleep. The subordinates who put up more resistance towards the alpha showed, on the other hand, a conversely adjusted type of activity pattern; they kept silent as long as they sensed that the alpha was active, and walked around when he was asleep. These gradually developing behavioural differences between subordinates can be described as differences in 'staying' (beta types) and 'fleeing' (omega types), since the latter type showed a tendency to flee the territory if possible. In experimental situations in which opportunities for fleeing are provided, a large proportion of the (young) subordinate males flee from the territory (Van Zegeren, personal communication). This is similar in many other rodent species (e.g., Healey, 1967; Ewer, 1971; Wilson, 1977:278; and Barash, 1977). In the process of a subordinate gradually becoming an omega, the behaviour of the alpha gradually changes towards treating the omega ever more as a stranger. What is important to note here however, is that the behavioural differences between betas and omegas seemed to develop before the alpha in question would begin to treat the subordinates in a different way. This suggests that these beta/omega differences are caused by differences between the individual subordinates themselves. It could in principle also be explained by assuming that an alpha male initiates these differences by having a dislike for one of the subordinates, and that this subordinate thereupon avoids the alpha more than the other subordinates do. These differences in treatment by the alpha might initially be of such a subtle nature that even though the subordinate in question reacts promptly with increased avoidance behaviour, these differences have escaped our attention. In cross-breeding experiments it could however be demonstrated that strong hereditary factors determine the likelihood of drifting into a compliant subordinate (β-) position versus the likelihood of drifting into an outcast - (ω-) position. Consequently, differences between omegas and betas of the same population appeared to originate, at least for a greater part, from genetic differences between the subordinate individuals. We label these differences accordingly as 'self-will', 'intolerance', 'tendency to have one's own way', or for that matter, 'tendency to dominate'. And these temperamental differences appeared to determine in a similar way the style of an individual's dominant behaviour. In the mouse experiments some of the populations were manipulated in such a way that some males shifted through subordinate as well as through dominant social positions. It was found, that 'tolerant', 'compliant' males, apt to take up a beta role instead of an omega role when in a subordinate position, were tolerant of (their) subordinates when performing an alpha role, contrary to males with a high level of 'self-will' or 'tendency to dominate'. The latter would sooner end up in an outcast or omega position when subordinate and when they achieved dominance, they would tend to perform their dominant roles with much intolerant aggressiveness. Besides, self-willed individuals, when either in a dominant or in a subordinate position, tended to display more thing-orientated and explorative (innovative) behaviour, whereas compliant, adaptive individuals tended to display more social-interactive behaviour. And when in a dominant position, compliant, adaptive individuals tended to maintain a more peaceful reign than did self-willed individuals, though the peacefulness of the social group involved was of course also strongly influenced by the level of self-willedness of the other (non-dominant) group members. === ETHOLOGICAL AND ENDOCRINOLOGICAL DATA === {{level|3}} The plausibility of this 'self-will versus compliance' or 'individualistic, thing-orientated versus social' dimension in the domain of temperament traits is furthermore corroborated by a substantial amount of other ethological and personality-psychological literature. In practice, it is often difficult to distinguish successfully between temperamental traits and social-role dimensions, since it is clear that amount and kind of 'social' behaviour never merely depend on congenital trait-differences, but by definition also depend strongly on the actually assumed roles. Our aim here is to look for the trait 'explorative versus social' as a label for basic individual predilections and as far as it indicates within-role variance in personal style between individuals (see e.g. Strelau, 1974 on the differences between these two classes of inter-individual (differences). Only then can we be sure to be dealing with differences in temperament in the sense of behavioural traits with a stable and inherited component (Buss and Plomin, 1975). In many species differences between individuals have been found which resemble the above-mentioned differences between male mice. From ethological field research it appears to be a general characteristic of social mammals that some individuals exert a lot of aggressive dominance, bullying their subordinates much of the time, whereas other dominants act as sort of 'social controllers', governing the social relations in the group by social skill, sustained by appreciation from companions rather than by aggressive intimidation. These differences are for instance reported from ethological research on mountain gorillas by Fossey (1972), on chimpanzees by Reynolds and Luscombe (1969), on a number of species including man by Chance and Jolly (1970) and Wilson (1977:311-13) and on man by Lippit and White (1958), Krech et al. (1962), ch. 12), Gibb (1969), Strayer and Strayer (1976), Hold (1976), and Sluckin and Smith (1977). Wilson comments on these differences (p. 294): ''It is not wholly imprecise to speak of much of the residual variance in dominance behaviour as being due to 'personality'. The dominance system of (e.g.) the Nilgiri langur (Presbytis johnii) is weakly developed and highly variable from troop to troop. Alliances are present or absent, there is a single adult male or else several animals coexist uneasily, and the patterns of interaction differ from one troop to another. Much of this variation depends on idiosyncratic behavioural traits of individuals, especially of the dominant males.'' (Poirier, 1970) To continue with non-human primates, Itani et al. (1963) and Yamada (1966) describe the behaviour of extreme beta-type males in Japanese Monkeys (Macaca fuscata) and indicate that a compliant temperament seems to be conditional for assuming such a role. Yamada further points out that, when eventually achieving a dominant position, a tendency for independence sometimes seems to exclude a tolerant attitude towards subordinates. Differences between dominant males of this sort have also been described in stumptail macaques (Macaca speciosa) by Bertrand (1969), who describes both 'bullies' and 'fair alpha males' (p. 127) and stresses that aggressiveness is not always a necessary factor for dominance (p. 261). She states that stumptail macaques differ considerably in the amount of intolerance and aggression displayed, and that in certain cases the sustained aggressiveness of some individuals who were followed up for several years, seemed a personality trait appearing early in childhood (pp. 126, 127 and 261). She also concluded that the amount of investigative behaviour shown by an individual depended, apart from social rank, age and conditions of captivity, also on the predisposition of each monkey. Some individuals were far more adventurous than others (Bertrand, 1969:153, 154 and 262). This personality dependence of investigative behaviour overruled age and rank dependent behaviour in particular when the stimuli were frightening or ambivalent. Earlier it was pointed out that in socially-living mammals at least two sets of basic urges have to be postulated, which, independently from one another, vary over individuals, thus producing inter alia the adaptor/innovator differences. The first set contains drives for social contact and interaction, leading to gregarious types of behaviour. The second set contains the drives for thing-orientated behaviour. From recent neuro-anatomical and endocrinological research it appears that there is probably a strong link between these two distinct sets of drives on the one hand and specific neuro-endocrine systems on the other. Cloninger (1986, 1987) presented a biosocial theory of personality, based on a synthesis of information from family studies, studies of personality structure, as well as neuropharmacologic and neuroanatomical studies of behavioural conditioning and learning in man and other animals. He describes three dimensions of personality that are genetically independent, two of which, the 'novelty seeking' dimension and the, more socially oriented, 'reward dependence' dimension, relate to the two distinct sets of basic drives mentioned above. One of his dimensions of personality trait differences is principally ruled by the monoamine neuromodulator 'dopamine'. This system determines the heritable tendency toward intense exhilaration and excitement, leading to frequent exploratory activity (novelty seeking) and avoidance of monotony. Individuals, high on this dimension, are generally also characterized as impulsive, quick-tempered and disorderly. They tend to neglect details and are quickly distracted or bored. They are also easily provoked to prepare for fight or flight. The other dimension is principally ruled by the monoamine neuromodulator norepinephrine. This system determines the heritable tendency to respond intensely to signals of social reward and approval, sentiment and succour. Individuals, high on this dimension, are generally characterized as eager to help and please others, persistent, industrious, warmly sympathetic, sentimental, and sensitive to social cues, praise and personal succour, but also able to delay gratification with the expectation of eventually being - socially - rewarded. According to Cloninger, a person high on 'novelty seeking' (the dopamine system) and low on 'reward dependence' (the norepinephrine system), is characterized as: ''seeking thrilling adventures and exploration; disorderly and unpredictable; intolerant of structure and monotony, regardless of consequences; frequently trying to break rules and to introduce change; quick tempered and strongly engaged with new ideas and activities; socially detached; independent nonconformist; content to be alone; minimal ambition and motivation to please others, and insensitive to social cues and pressures anyway.'' Conversely, a person, low on 'novelty seeking' (dopamine) and high on 'reward dependence' (norepinephrine) is characterized as: ''dependent on emotional support and intimacy with others; sensitive to social cues and responsive to social pressure; sentimental; crying easily; rigid; orderly and well organized; trying to impose stable structure and consistent routine; rarely becoming angry or excited; an analytical decision maker who always requires detailed analysis of complete information; slow to form and change interests and social attachments.'' This is strikingly similar to descriptions of Kirton's innovator v. adaptor dimension, which illustrates once more the biological roots of A-I differences. === FURTHER RESEARCH DATA ON HUMAN BEHAVIOUR === {{level|3}} Gibb (1969), Strayer and Strayer (1976), Hold (1976) and Sluckin and Smith (1977) report similar differences in dominance-styles of children, and of adolescents (Savin- Williams, 1979, 1980). Hold labels these differences thus: ''there are two opposite leadership styles, called by Gibb (1969) "leadership" and "domination". With leadership, authority is spontaneously accorded by fellow group members whereas with domination there is little or no shared feeling or joint action and authority derives from some extra-group power.'' (Hold, 1976:194) Turning from dominance styles to more general differences in behavioural style, Abrams and Neubauer (1976) report that human infants differ considerably in the way they divide their attention between persons and objects. This trait dimension, which they called 'Thing- versus Human-Orientedness', was manifest as early as in the second month of life. They found that the more thing-orientated child shows a greater freedom in exploration. Therefore we might label this dimension of 'Thing - versus Human Orientedness' (or sociability) also as 'explorative versus social', parallel to the vocabulary in Bertrand's (1969) longitudinal research on macaques. Abrams and Neubauer (1976) suggest furthermore that learning processes are shaped in a way which is different for each type of child: ''Training issues are characterized essentially as "tasks" for the more thing oriented child; for the human- disposed infant, they are characterized as acts in the spectrum of approval or disapproval. ... If earlier impressions were that the more thing-oriented children are more outer-directed, by the third year of life they appeared more inclined to be motivated by inner determinants and resources, a distinction which seems to persist thereafter . . . The dispositions of infants are re-inforced in the milieu, as implements in evolving strategies are cycled back into the psychological system and thus inevitably emerge as traits of character.'' Hold (1976) reports that children who rank high in the attention structure tend to set initiatives instead of complying to the initiatives of other children and that they ''prefer to play alone when the leading role was already taken by another high-ranking child. It seems that these children do not like to be commanded by other children.'' This runs essentially parallel to what has been said in the introduction, in that self-willed individuals are more prone to become either dominants or 'loners' than to become beta-type compliant subordinates. Hold's findings also suggest that such self-willed individuals are prone to become more thing-orientated and less social, since 'loners' are by definition less sociable. A similar trait contrast is employed by McClain (1978, in his study on the behaviour of adult women. He distinguishes between women (e.g. feminists) who are dominated by a need for independence and women who are dominated by a need for affiliation. McClain, like Ausubel (1952), points out that two basically opposing patterns of maturation occur in the parent-child relationship during a youngster's early years. He terms the resulting personality types as 'satellizers' who tend to adapt to existing rules, versus 'nonsatellizers' who tend to behave more individualistically (hence feminists' irritation at failing to imbue all women with their views). ''The satellizing child establishes her life orbit about her parents, whom she perceives as the benign source of all that is good in her life. In contrast, the nonsatellizing child rejects this kind of dependency because she 'believes' that her welfare lies in her freedom to choose her own course.'' (McClain; 1978: 436) The material of McClain's study was derived from behaviour of women. Kirton (1976, 1987a) investigates the phenomenon of adaptiveness and innovativeness in adults in general. For Kirton, a person confronted with a problem has a choice: he can do things 'better' or 'more' to solve the problem (adapt) or he can do things 'dfferently' (innovate). Doing things 'better' (Drucker, 1969) implies the acceptance of the old framework, while doing things 'differently' means breaking accepted patterns. As Kirton says: ''The Adaptor is right at home in bureaucracies, which tend to become more adaptor-oriented as times goes on . . . whereas . . . the natural position of high Innovators seems to be out on a limb. '' Kirton's work is of special significance if for the performance of leaders it can be argued that innovators tend to become initiating and directing 'task'-leaders whereas adaptors tend to become consideration-orientated 'maintenance-specialists' of social relations. This is in line with differences between leader types as described by Bales (1953), Halpin and Winer (1957), Thibaut and Kelley (1959), Krech et al. (1962) and Reddin (1987). From a conceptual point of view, innovativeness may furthermore be considered as a positively appreciated creative variant of non-conformism and disobedience. 'Conformity' as defined by Krech et al. (1962) in their research on the dimensions of social interactive behaviour, is related to the trait dimension 'thing-orientated and self- willed versus social and compliant'. They state: ''For another thing, some people are more resistant to group pressures and demands (the hard-core independents and the deviants) than are others (the easy conformists) (Krech et al., 1962: 486)'' and ''The above findings offer strong support for the proposition that conformity tendencies are significantly related to enduring personality factors in the individual. (Ibid: 527)'' The relevance for our model becomes especially clear where they define Conformity as a 'trait of the person' as opposed to conformity as a 'trait of the situation' (or 'social role' dimension in our words). '' . . . conformity might be thought of as a 'trait of the situation', (and) There are also marked individual differences in general readiness to conform, over a wide variety of situations. These differences . . . reflect conformity as a 'trait of the person'. This distinction between conformity as reflecting the conformity-inducing properties of a situation and as reflecting the conforming propensity of a person should be kept well in mind. Much of the controversy and misunderstanding about the facts and theories of conformity stems from a confusion of these two aspects of conformity. (Ibid.)'' === FACTORANALYTIC RESEARCH === {{level|3}} Of particular interest is the existence of a similar dimension in factoranalytic personality trait research. Feij (1978) compares the trait models of Heymans (1932), Eysenck (1953), Zuckerman (1974), Strelau (1974), Buss et al. (1973) and Buss and Plomin (1975), amongst others. Although these authors often use different classes of subjects and prefer different final rotations of their resulting factorial personality models, some of their dimensions appear closely related to our trait dimension 'self-willed and individualistic and thing-orientated and explorative' versus 'compliant and social'. For instance, a high score on Zuckerman's (1974) and Feij's (1978; Feij et al. 1979, 1981) trait dimension of 'sensation seeking' indicates a strong need for change, exploration and new experiences, a tendency towards independence of other people and an anti-authoritarian attitude, while 'low sensation seeking' implies a tendency to comply with conventional values and rules. Feij (1978: 293) stresses that extreme sensation seekers may on the one hand be anti-social, drop-out delinquents but may on the other hand be unconventional but fully accepted creative innovators (For Goldsmith's empirical support, see Chapter 2). This is in agreement with what was postulated above, namely that highly self-willed individuals have a tendency to become either dropouts (omega-role) or accepted innovators in the focus of attention (alpha-role), and that individuals with a low self-will have a higher tendency to assume beta- roles compliantly. Buss and Plomin's (1975) trait dimension 'sociability' indicates a strong need to be together with others, a high responsiveness toward others and a predilection for social interaction above non-social reinforcers (Feij, 1978). In most other factoranalytical classification systems (a) dimension(s) may also be discerned which is (are) related to our concept of 'self-will and thing-orientatedness versus compliant and social'. In Cattell's sixteen-personality-factor set for instance, the dimension labelled as 'liberalism' (Ql), indicating among other things behavioural differences like 'conservative' and 'experimenting', is supposed to measure an underlying tendency toward nonconformity and independence versus a need for affiliation (Cattell, Eber and Tatsuoka, 1970; Karson and O'Dell, 1976; McClain, 1978). At least three other dimensions from his 16PF battery also relate to concepts discussed here, namely Cattell's higher order factor IV, indicating 'subduedness versus independence', the factor 'assertiveness' ('E') indicating 'cautious humbleness versus abrasive assertiveness', and the factor 'Superego' ('G'), indicating 'conscientiousness versus expedience' (Kirton and de Ciantis, 1986; Kirton, 1987a). From all these data it would appear that the personality trait dimension we are looking for, does indeed emerge systematically in one form or other in most factoranalytic personality research. Moreover it appears from the empirical work of, inter alia, Goldsmith (see Chapter 2) that the concepts emerging in all these dimensions from the various authors on personality are indeed related, forming a coherent web of conceptually intertwined behavioural characteristics. Kirton (in Chapter 1) reports numerous different studies, which investigated the interrelations of the KAI with various established dimensions fitting into this mesh of conceptually intertwined personality characteristics. This resulted in over 60 significant correlations with twenty five of these different personality trait dimensions. This is the more interesting because Kirton's A-I theory provides a conceptual framework linking all these aspects of personality in a meaningful way, a framework which ties in seamlessly with the theory as outlined in the previous sections. We shall return to Kirton's research in the following sections. === GENETICS === {{level|3}} These data from personality research are the more relevant because various writers point out that a genetic basis of these dimensions has repeatedly been established firmly (Eysenck, 1967; Buss et al., 1975; Feij, 1978; Claridge et al., 1973; Eaves and Eysenck, 1975; Wilson, 1977; Plomin and Rowe, 1977, 1979). Feij uses, for instance, two more or less orthogonal dimensions with a hereditary component which seem to be related to our dimension 'self-willed, individualistic, thing- orientated, explorative, versus compliant, social' (See Figure 9). These are labelled by Feij as 'extraversion' and 'sensation seeking'. His topological system does not include a genetically based dimension 'activity' like Buss and Plomin's (1975), for example but both these dimensions of Feij may be conceived as correlated with 'activity' because a high activity enhances a higher score on either scale (Feij, 1978; Feij et al., 1979). Therefore Feij's two dimensions 'extraversion' and 'sensation seeking', both with hereditary components, appear to be similar (spanning the same two- dimensional personality space) to the dimension we are looking for, together with the dimension 'activity-level' (see Figure 9). The empirical findings of Kirton (1976, 1978a, 1987b: 90-9 and 114-19) and Ettlie and O'Keefe (1982) are also in line with the notion of a biological basis. They report that differences in innovativeness versus adaptiveness are not significantly related to IQ, level of education, exam results or previous experiences, but are definitely of a more basic personality nature (see Chapter 2). What is clear is that Kirton's concept indicates the 'type' of creativity, and so differs from instruments which measure 'level' of creativity (Kirton, 1978c; Torrance and Horng, 1980) Kirton (1987a) further marshals the evidence that, at the least, the adaption-innovation characteristics must be set early in life. The biological links of the adaptor/innovator differences also show in a correlation with hemispheric preference (Torrance, 1982; Kirton, 1987a; Prato Previde and Carli, 1987). [[Image:Extraversion and sensation seeking dimensions.png|framed|none|'''Fig. 9.''' Feij's dimensions 'extraversion' and 'sensation seeking', the balance between them – our dimension adaptive – and their relation with 'general activity level'.]] The more methodical, planned approach of the left-brain dominated individual relates to adaption, and the more intuitive style of the right-brain dominated individual relates to innovation. In summary, the available data support the view that a genetically based trait dimension 'thing-orientated, explorative versus social' or, in different terms, 'self-willed versus compliant' is indeed conspicuously present. === SELECTION === {{level|3}} As the first three assumptions made at the beginning of this chapter find ample support in ethological and psychological literature, one would conclude that in any class of social (group) systems in which there are clear differences between members and non-members (prerequisite 4), cyclic changes should occur in the sense that each separate social group or structure only has a limited life-span, which life-span is inversely proportional to the effectiveness of the selection pressure in favour of compliance within the (group) structure. The separate life-cycles are then separated by turn-over catastrophes which go by various names, depending on the level of organization: territorial conquest, close-down, discontinuance, bankruptcy, revolution, subjugation, extermination, genocide, etc. In the literature on animal ecology and population dynamics the research data on population explosions and emigration waves at more or less regular time intervals are renowned (see e.g. Christian, 1970, on various species of lemmings, mice and voles). Whereas Christian points to the importance of these periodic changes in density and migration activity for evolution, the proximal causation of these conspicuous phenomena has up to this moment not yet been explained satisfactorily. It shall be clear that the present model constitutes, among other things, an attempt to fill this gap. Turning to man, we can, in the psychological literature, find many comments referring to the relevance of the discussed personality dimensions (and the selection thereupon) for the way our human society is run, including data on the selective processes involved (see also, apart from the authors quoted here, Snow, 1961; Etzioni, 1964; Weick, 1969; and Tiger, 1987). Milgram (1974), on the first page of his book on the compliance of people in situations where obedience and conformity conflict with ethics and sympathy, states: ''Obedience is the psychological mechanism that links individual action to political purpose. It is the dispositional cement that binds men to systems of authority. Facts of recent history and observation in daily life suggest that for many people obedience may be a deeply ingrained behaviour tendency, indeed, a prepotent impulse overriding training in ethics, sympathy, and moral conduct.'' This dependence of strongly repressive systems on a strong and dependable compliance of its employees and 'agents', explains what is often considered a paradox in the literature on holocausts like e.g., in 'das Dritte Reich', namely that, surprisingly, the people who were in charge of the extermination machinery quite generally appeared to be extremely docile, middle-class, adapted, morally rigid and reliable house-fathers and exemplary husbands, with an aversion to adventure and violence. As shall be clear from the present theory, this is the only type of person - the highly compliant, non-innovative, non-self-willed adaptor - that can be relied upon to carry through orders ('Befehl ist Befehl!') in situations where obedience strongly conflicts with morals and ethics. Under such extreme circumstances the selection pressure on personality characteristics is therefore also extreme, the not-extremely-compliant individuals trying to avoid such ghastly 'responsibilities' (see e.g. van der Dennen, 1987). As Koestler (1967) eloquently stated: ''It is not the murderers, the criminals, the delinquents and the wildly nonconformists who have embarked on the really significant rampages of killing, torture and mayhem. Rather it is the conformist, virtuous citizens, acting in the name of righteous causes and intensely held beliefs who throughout history have perpetrated the fiery holocausts of war, the religious persecutions, the sacks of cities, the wholesale rape of women, the dismemberment of the old and the young and the other unspeakable horrors ... The crimes of violence committed for selfish, personal motives are historically insignificant compared to those committed 'ad majorem gloriam Dei', out of a self-sacrificing devotion to flag, a leader, a religious faith, or a political conviction.'' It should be stressed here that this tendency towards obedience and conformity is not the exclusive domain of adaptors. It is a general human characteristic. In fact, it is an undispensable basic characteristic of any social mammal. It is the glue that keeps individuals together in social structures. The difference between adaptors and innovators is a relative one. Adaptors are more often willing to pay the price of giving up personal urges and convictions in favour of social coherence and compliance with authority, whereas innovators are more often prepared to pay the price of social isolation for not giving up personal convictions and desires. Milgram labels the compliant, subordinate style of functioning the 'agentic mode', which expresses that somebody in that mode functions as the 'agent' of some (personal or impersonal) authority. He points out that individuals tend to function in any one situation in either this mode or in its opposite, the 'autonomous mode'. Milgram explains that the readiness to shift from the 'agentic mode' into the 'autonomous mode' in certain conflict situations, differs considerably between adults, and that people differ in the amount of time they spend in either 'mode'. This discontinuity in the way antagonistic social modes of functioning reverse into each other, is also highlighted by the phenomenological work of Apter and co-workers on "reversal theory' (Apter, 1982, ch. 9, 1983; Apter and Smith, 1976, 1985; Lachenicht, 1985). They label these antagonist meta-motivational modes of functioning as the "negativistic" and the 'conformist' state. Apter (1982: 198) defines: ''When high arousal is associated with the negativistic state in the telic (goal-directed, need-motivated, re-active) mode, then the emotion experienced is likely to be that of anger. Indeed, it would appear that it is the operation of the negativistic state which transforms anxiety into anger. Anything which increases the arousal at such a time, e.g., frustration, will also increase the intensity of the anger experience ... Negativism in an individual always involves three related components in his or her phenomenal field. The first consists of some other individual, or some social group or situation, which is perceived as exerting some pressure on him or her. This can be called the 'source'. The second component consists of some perceived expectation, norm, convention, suggestion, request, requirement, rule, law, command, order, injunction, prohibition, threat or dictate, deriving from the source. . . . The third component is a feeling on the part of the individual who perceives the requirement (etc.) and the source, as a desire or need to reject it and act against it. . . . Put at its simplest, then, the feeling of being in a negativistic state can be defined as 'wanting, or feeling compelled, to do something contrary to that required by some external agency'. The conformist state can be defined most simply as the absence of this feeling.'' Since individuals tend to reverse from one meta-motivational state into the other in a discrete, all-or-none way, as was also shown by Milgram, negativist/conformist differences between individuals should not so much be regarded as differences in the 'degree' of conformism with which individuals generally operate in their social environment, but rather as differences in the relative frequencies of the antagonist meta-motivational states, viz. the relative frequency of the 'conformist' versus the 'negativist', or, in Milgram's terms, the 'agentic' versus the 'autonomous' state. It is in these frequent or less frequent instances of negativistic states, with all the possibilities of social friction and evoked conflicts involved, that the selective forces exert their systematic pressure. The differences between individuals in their tendencies either to comply with social standards most of the time, or to act autonomously and independently most of the time, are also important for the way in which bureaucratic structures and other social institutions are run. Kirton elaborates: ''the 'adaptor' personality . . . who can be relied upon to carry out a thorough, disciplined search for ways to eliminate problems by 'doing things better' with a minimum of risk and a maximum of continuity and stability. . . . (whereas) . . . innovative change . . . leads to increased risk and less conformity to rules and accepted work patterns (Bright, 1964), and for this reason it rarely occurs in institutions on a large scale.'' (Kirton 1978c: 611) ''It is said that organisations in general (Whyte, 1957; Bakke, 1965; Weber, 1970; Mulkay, 1972) and especially organisations which are large in size and budget (Veblen, 1928; Swatez, 1970) have a tendency to encourage bureaucracy and adaption in order to minimise risk. Weber (1970), Merton (1957) and Parsons (1951) wrote that the aims of a bureaucratic structure are precision, reliability, and efficiency. The bureaucratic structure in its nature exerts constant pressure on officials to be methodical, prudent, and disciplined, resulting in an unusual degree of individual conformity in that situation''. (Kirton, 1987c). Therefore institutions tend to become more adaptor-oriented as time goes on (see Chapter 3) because a selection pressure is continuously exerted against innovators. Hayward and Everett (1983) found empirically that in the case of an adaptive cognitive climate, innovators are more likely to resign than adaptors, which consolidates and strengthens the adaptive climate. But the present model goes even further and predicts also that in the case of an innovative cognitive climate the average level of innovativeness of individuals coming into and staying in the organization, will tend to be a little lower than the current general average, which causes the cognitive climate gradually to shift towards adaptiveness. This is not to deny that in general there is a selection pressure in the direction of the existing cognitive climate, it just means that there must also be another overall selection pressure in the direction of more adaptiveness. In other words, a slight deviance from the average cognitive climate in the adaptive direction should be more acceptable to the established in-crowd than a slight deviance in the innovative direction. One of the reasons for the latter effect is the innovator's lower level of social skills. Even when an innovator finds badly needed novel solutions for pressing problems, it will often fail to render him social approval, because of inherent (sometimes insurmountable) communication problems with his more adaption-orientated colleagues (Kirton, 1987a). Instead of winning social approval when coming up with the badly needed novel solutions for pressing problems, the innovator rather experiences that tolerance for his innovative style of approach is at its lowest ebb when his adaptor-type colleagues feel under pressure from the need for quick and consensually accepted change (Kirton, 1987c). Even when the novel solutions in question are accepted, it does not generally lead to a suspension of the above discussed selective forces. In an empirical study to investigate the ways by which ideas, which had led to radical changes in some companies, were developed and implemented, Kirton (1961) found that: ''There was a marked tendency for the majority of ideas which encountered opposition and delays to have been put forward by managers who were themselves on the fringe, or were even unacceptable to the 'establishment' group. This negativism occurred not only before, but after the ideas had not only become accepted, but had even been rated as highly successful. At the same time other managers putting forward the more palatable (i.e, conventional) ideas were themselves not only initially acceptable, but remained so even if their ideas were later rejected or failed.'' It can thus be seen how the failure of ideas is less damaging to the adaptor than to the innovator since any erroneous assumptions upon which the ideas were based were also shared with colleagues and other influential people (Kirton, 1984). === PARADIGM CONSISTENCY, COGNITIVE BIASES AND OSSIFICATION === {{level|3}} This relative advantage for adaptors in terms of social selection pressures can even easier be understood if we take into account the fact that adaptors and innovators are also different in their cognitive functioning. As Kirton showed (1985), innovators are more inclined towards consistency between (as distinct from within) paradigms than are adaptors. Adaptors are more likely to use different paradigms at different times, bothering less with their mutual inconsistency, in particular if the use of such different and incompatible paradigms is in line with local habits and expectations. For instance, it is no problem for many people to go to church on Sundays in snug conviction of their own good Christian faith, while behaving in a rather unchristian fashion during the rest of the week. This results in a conflict of conscience, because nobody is totally indifferent to the contradiction between his Sunday's creeds and his daily deeds. The adaptors have to pay a price for their adherence to consensus and their wish to stick to established but mutually incompatible paradigms for different situations. In order to avoid too much cognitive dissonance they have to keep the paradigms functionally well separated and thus the situations in which each one is applied. As a consequence they also have to accept a lower overall level of rationality. In terms of cognitive logic adaptors tend towards applying 'sufficiency-orientated' paradigms with an empirical ''ad hoc'' character in contrast to the bent of the typical innovator for 'necessity-oriented' paradigms with a more general and broad causal validity. The consequence of the innovator's need for consistency between paradigms is that he appears of necessity less rigidly committed to any one separate paradigm. He will sooner start to explore its limits and reconsider its validity (see Goldsmith and Matherley, 1986b for example). Since his concern is primarily with mutual consistency, he is less concerned with minor details. He will rather squeeze at least one paradigm a bit to make more paradigms fit together into one new encompassing model than have to accept a multitude of different paradigms for different occasions. But his preference for few novel encompassing models above many established models of limited scope, no matter the unavoidable initial lack of sufficient detail of the new paradigms, brings with it the social risk of being regarded a heretic by colleagues. By this cognitive bias the typical innovator is likely to run into trouble with at least three different categories of people. First, he will clash with supporters of each separate established classical paradigm which he tries to incorporate in his novel grand design, and these supporters are likely to be a majority. Second, he will clash with anybody who is slow at accepting new ideas - typical adaptors fit into the category, but also anybody feeling too insecure to let go of the anchorage of fixed old ideas and beliefs. In itself, this category is also likely to be a majority. Third, standing out by his deviant points of view, he is, as pointed out in the section on ethological and endocrinological data, likely to be sought out by people who are on the look-out for scapegoats. All in all, the innovator is apt to run into social trouble just because he is trying to solve his personal paradigm inconsistencies, let alone the rest of his less appreciated behavioural predilections. Little wonder then, that the innovator, on average is unlikely to beat the adaptor within the system, be it science (Kuhn, 1970) or organization (Whyte, 1957). As a consequence of this continuous selection pressure, discussed in the previous two sections, ageing institutions suffer in the end from the disadvantages of not having innovator type creative input available in times of change when policy and methods are required to change as well. Such necessary changes are therefore often brought about only when a 'precipitating event', or a crisis, occurs when at last the adaptor needs, and so collaborates with, the innovator (Kirton, 1961). Therefore, ''although the adaptor clearly has qualities essential to any institution, he should not be the only type to be rewarded by promotion. Despite the fact that the innovator has weaknesses - he is erratic, insensitive to the needs of others, impatient, and a risk-taker - which are potentially dangerous to an organization, he also has qualities essential to that organization.'' (Kirton, 1978c: 661) Scientific research is one of the areas where the effects of the selective forces as discussed earlier can clearly be recognized. The very goal of scientific research is to find ever better conceptual and instrumental frameworks. But, as Kuhn (1970) points out, changing the paradigms which are hitherto accepted without question by an entire scientific community, requires a breakdown of previously accepted rules. Such breakdowns are the very process of scientific revolution and this revolutionary process is also fundamental to scientific advance. In scientific institutions, the innovator type input is therefore not only needed in rarely occurring times of change, but very regularly, since 'precipitating events' or conceptual crises are the very thing that scientific efforts are supposed to be aimed at. Some ageing institutions, like production or administrative units, that have an unconscious adaptive bias in selection and in promotion policies may initially not be very disadvantaged. For as long as no drastic external challenges turn up, they can go on producing their output ever more efficiently with excellent results. But in ageing research units it is eventually disastrous if the 'cognitive climate' becomes more and more adaptor-orientated. The innovator type creative output, consisting of (often disquieting) conceptual challenges and explorations of the unknown and 'unthought', will in that case gradually be replaced by adaptor type output consisting of residual puzzle-solving and inter-paradigm discoveries with lesser conceptual threat. After an initially fruitful phase of consolidation, the prevailing paradigms will become overpowerful. It is clear that in a government-protected scientific community, even more than in government-protected industrial companies, competition does not operate freely. On the contrary, the scientific community tends to be controlled by people whose career and existence depend on the dominant paradigms and who, as a consequence, are neither able nor willing to view the world and its phenomena in a different way. This may postpone organization-structural turnover considerably, and thus the timely rejuvenation and de-ossifications science continually needs; eventually catastrophe intervenes. === SOCIAL-ROLE BLINDNESS === {{level|3}} Apart from these specific ossification phenomena, many more areas in human society can be found where the effects of the selection mechanisms are manifest. These selection mechanisms are apparently operative in lower social mammals as well as in man. They must therefore be anchored quite solidly in the behavioural system. This is not surprising because this mechanism does indeed have considerable evolutionary advantages, not only in animals, but, at least up to recent times, also in the case of man. As mentioned earlier, it facilitates speciation through genetic adaption to marginal habitats, helps in many species to overcome migratory bottlenecks, and even serves to motor the evolution of culture in the case of man. It seems, therefore, plausible that if, in the case of man, our superior capacity for learning plays a modifying role in these matters, that the organization of our intellectual capacities will have evolved in such a way, as to enhance the occurrence of selection cycles, rather than to thwart them. The mechanism of selection cycles and periodic turn-over catastrophes is basically powered by the involuntary forces of attraction and repulsion within social groups and structures. Therefore it must have been evolutionarily advantageous for behavioural and cognitive 'master-programmes' to develop, serving to prevent the intellectual capacities from interfering with the involuntary biases in social interactions. As we shall see, this is indeed what can be found. Generally speaking, people are quite well able to assess their own as well as other people's basic behavioural tendencies and personality characteristics. People are found to be quite proficient in the utilization of personality descriptive adjectives and other personality descriptive language (Norman, 1963; Goldberg, 1978; Brokken, 1978; de Raad, 1985). From an evolutionary point of view this ability is not surprising. After all, it is extremely important for us, as a socially living and intelligent mammal species, to predict other people's actions correctly. People are for instance quite well able to estimate their own and other's position on the adaptor-innovator dimension accurately (Kirton and McCarthy, 1985). Knowing this, one would suggest that it should be even easier to assess one's own and other people's characteristics at the level of overt social behaviour, and still easier to evaluate objectively and reliably one's own and other's social actions in hindsight. This, however, is contrary to what is found. Human beings appear to be peculiarly unable to assess objectively the quality of their own social-role behaviour and the role-behaviour of other people they are dealing with in the social group. There is, it appears, a sort of 'social-role blindness', of specific blind spots in our cognitive capacities, safeguarding primitive, elementary tendencies of being either attracted or repulsed by other people, depending on their own and on the other's social role and position. As in the experiments with mice, described earlier, the omega-like subordinates, the peripheral non-conforming types, are also in humans most likely to be disliked by the established leaders as well as by the conforming and compliant other subordinates. This is in fact of course a tautological statement, since drifting into a marginal or an outcast position (omega-type in Figure 6), is just another way of saying that one is less acceptable to, and less accepting of, the in-group as Lindsay's (1985) KAI case study shows. What is important to note here, however, is that human individuals are hardly aware that the way they assess the other person's qualities is to a large extent coloured by their positive or negative feelings towards that other person, resulting from the involuntary forces of attraction and repulsion in operation. A considerable part of human communication consists not of transferring pure information, but of more or less involuntary emotional expressions of praise, admiration, criticism, ridicule, and insults, as is shown for instance in the ethological work of Weisfeld (1980) on social role behaviour in adolescent boys, or in the sociological investigations by Segerstrale (1986) into the Wilson-Lewontin 'scientific' debate as part of the sociobiological controversy. To a large extent the use of language serves to support or to camouflage non-verbal actions, actions for manipulating other people and for staking out and sustaining social roles (Scheflen and Scheflen, 1972; Mehrabian, 1972; Argyle, 1976 a, b). In fact analytic research on the social interactions between people, the first and by far the largest principal component is in general the so called 'evaluation-' or 'positive-negative dimension', describing to what extent one appreciates or disappreciates the rated other. In questionnaire research where elucidation of the actual social behavioural attitudes and social-role distributions is the primary goal, the raw data are therefore in general first 'corrected' for the positive-negative evaluation' or 'social desirability' dimension by partialling out its influence (Benjamin, 1974; 419). Raters colour their judgements with 'appreciation' or 'disapproval' to indicate, 'explain' and consolidate the social relations between themselves and the rated person (e.g., Kipnis, 1976: ch. 9). The importance of this negative or positive bias in the way we think about our companions is also expressed in the fact that most behavioural attitudes and personality characteristics can be expressed in positive as well as in negative terms, giving us virtually a double set of conceptual labels for other people's actions and behavioural attitudes. This cumbersome and at first sight inefficient cognitive organization, in which the pure assessment of other people's behavioural qualities is blurred to a great extent by the strong involuntary bias of 'appreciation' or 'disappreciation', can only be evolutionarily advantageous if it serves an essential purpose. This purpose may be the protection of the involuntary attraction and repulsion reflexes, which direct our social behaviour, against our intelligent faculties. Indeed, people do not generally realize that their, say negative, labelling of (the behaviour of) an important other, can easily be changed into its positive counterpart by simply regarding the same behaviour from the point of view of a supporter, and vice versa. They tend instead to attach a sense of permanence and absoluteness to their (negative) judgement, and they are in particular not aware of the relativity of the judgement in terms of its dependence on the mutual social positions of the rater and the ratee. In summary, the postulated blind spots and 'no entry' signs in our intellectual faculties apparently do indeed exist. Despite our vaunted intellect and our protestations of rational and scientific know-how, we humans show a disturbing tendency to reserve our intellectual powers strictly for certain specific tasks. In other specific areas of functioning, like the mechanisms of social attraction and repulsion mentioned above, we tend to rely on intuitive biases while allowing the intellectual faculties to be effectively blocked. The result of these cognitive biases is that, in many instances, we cannot help to foster involuntarily a lower esteem for other persons if they happen to be less 'in-crowd' than ourselves. And in more extreme cases, we cannot help tending to join others in 'mobbing' or in 'scapegoating'. We tend to justify the actions taken through our (biased) evaluations of the outcast's or scapegoat's qualities, attitudes and behaviour (unless we incidentally happen to be one of the outcast's supporters). Being in the 'agentic' or 'systemic' (Milgram, 1974) or 'compliant' (Apter and Smith, 1976, 1985) motivational mode while dealing with a victim, we involuntarily tend to see the person in question to a larger or lesser extent as inferior, or even repulsive, detestable or evil. This tendency is so powerful it is considered the behavioural basis of torture by Amnesty International (1973). We cannot help hating our (self-created) enemies and we cannot help loving primarily, those individuals who the selection-cycle mechanism urges us to appreciate. On the level of the behaviour of managers for instance, this can be illustrated by the findings of Kirton (1987c): ''Problems of fruitful collaboration between innovators and adaptors are not infrequently based on the coloured and often inaccurate perceptions which each group has of the other. Innovators tend to be seen by adaptors as abrasive, insensitive and disruptive, unaware of the havoc they are causing. Adaptors are seen by innovators, on the other hand, as stuffy and unenterprising, wedded to systems, rules and norms of behaviour which (in the opinion of the innovators) are restrictive and ineffectual. Consquently, disagreement and conflict are likely to arise when the more extreme types of innovator and adaptor come into working contact. . . . When the extreme types view each other pejoratively (as they tend to do - see also Myers 1962: 76) the innovator claims that the adaptor originates with a finger on the stop button; the adaptor sees the innovator as an originator who cannot find such a button.'' When it comes to evaluating the contributions of adaptors versus those of innovators, the effect of systematic evaluative distortions becomes even more apparent. Kirton points out that when ideas fail, initiators who are adaptors, are less likely to be blamed than those who are innovators, since the former share with the establishment the same set of basic assumptions. To condemn them would be, in the eyes of the establishment, to condemn themselves. As a consequence, such failure is likely to be written off as 'bad luck' or due to 'unforeseeable events', thereby directing the blame away from the individuals concerned. The opposite is found for the authors of innovative ideas, ideas which depart from and may even challenge the beliefs, values and practices of the group. They tend to be viewed with suspicion, and may be subjected to derision, and such rejection or virtual hostility may very well persist even after those ideas have been shown to be successful. Nonconformists are not forgiven for being right. Authors of adaptive ideas, being themselves in most cases adaptors, generally appear to be in a relationship of mutual admiration with the establishment, which leads those managers of the opposite turn of mind - the innovators - to assert that adaptors owe their success to and maintain their position simply by agreeing with their superiors. Kirton (1977) showed, however, that such opinions are not supported by empirical evidence. They are part of the systematic cognitive distortions, in this case cherished by the typical innovators. === NATURE AND NURTURE === {{level|3}} It could be argued that, at least in man, social structure cycles with their turn-over catastrophes might occur merely because of mechanisms on the cognitive psychological level. In that case one would not need to postulate a genetic background for these gradual shifts in social structures to occur. Indeed, as we saw above, social-role blindness and related cognitive biases are a very powerful influence in man. Moreover, we can also find a wealth of empirical and experimental data on the various constraints on learning in man, on habit-forming, traditions and the transfer of cultural information, on perceptual biases like the cognitive dissonance theory, etc., all showing that our behaviour is organized in such a way, that a great inertia of ideas, concepts and habits is safeguarded in spite of our capacity to keep learning. These data would suggest that enough mechanisms at a purely cognitive and cultural level can be traced as to make social-structural cycles likely to occur. Indeed, the basic requirement for the postulated selection cycles is not so much that there is a genetic basis to it, but rather that individuals, once their phenotypes in these areas of functioning have established themselves, cannot be reshaped into their opposites. As we saw above, this inflexibility aspect, irrespective of its causes, has been firmly established by psychological research. Moreover, the evidence for genetic influence cannot be neglected. These mechanisms are therefore most probably implemented on the genetic as well as on the learning level. That in man, the learning animal par excellence, the influence of learning will be important goes without saying. Another, related, critique is the argument that where a multi-gene basis of these differences should be expected, a strong enough selection pressure and a quick selection response are difficult to imagine. However, no high mortality, or low fecundity or whatever on the part of the declining morph needs to be assumed at all. Basic to the model is rather the existence of differences between in-crowd and outcast-individuals. No physical elimination whatsoever needs to be assumed to let the cycles run. The only thing which needs to be postulated is that the in-group/out-group and the in-crowd/outcast distribution of social roles and positions is subject to reshuffling. It depends on the level of organization we are talking about whether the postulate of a genetic effect needs to be included in a description of the cycles or not. In man this will, in my view, probably only be indispensable in the case of very long-term cycles on a very large scale. On most levels of human social structures the individuals selected against just need to be shifted into outgroup- or outcast positions, relative to the unit(s) of organization in question. The very presence of the removed individuals in the organizational periphery then represents the growing danger of a turn-over catastrophe. As was pointed out above, the duration of social-structural cycles is predicted to be roughly inversely proportional to speed and intensity of selection for the trait under discussion. In an industrial company the intensity of selection and the take-on/dismissal percentages are much higher than the selection intensity and the immigration /emigration percentages in the much larger units of political states for instance. Therefore the average cycle periods are likely to vary from a few decades in companies (refer for illustrative material on cycles to Schumpeter, 1939; Kirton, 1961, 1976) or in political parties (Ostrogorski, 1982) to a few centuries in political states (Olson, 1982), or even to one or two millennia in the case of whole civilizations (for illustration refer to Spengler, 1918; Toynbee, 1972) (1. p.197) Darlington, 1969; Davis, 1974). The small-scale turn-over cycles with a relatively stronger and quicker selection effect, are thus superimposed on the larger-scale turn-over cycles with a longer life-span. Individuals may therefore be outcasts in terms of some small-scale social structure while at the same time being totally accepted 'incrowd' members in terms of some larger-scale social structure. The small- scale cycles may thus be seen as the ripples on the surface of the long-range waves of the large-scale cycles. What happens with a person at the social role level of a sports club is not necessarily paralleled at the level of the village community or the nation. This chapter has however argued that the sociological theory of a mechanism of cyclic changes and periodic turn-over catastrophes is anchored firmly and intricately in our behavioural system, rooted in genetically based social patterns and protected against rational inquiry by specific awareness blocks. This leads to a rather gloomy perspective. A limited life-span for industrial companies and other social organizations does seem natural, ending in their bankruptcy or takeover. In the case of animals this natural course of events in social structures would seem inevitable. They can do nothing about their behavioural programme. The human case, however, is an altogether different matter. Man's saving grace is his unparalleled capacity to learn. Once a sufficient number of people succeed in gaining a clear understanding of these mechanisms and come to grips with them the opportunity exists to mitigate these biological tendencies. The aim to keep harvesting the benefits of the periodic widespread change to new and novel circumstances (which is progress), without suffering so much damage from catastrophe, (e.g., Weisbord, 1987) such as global economic slump or devastating war. Mankind as a whole has up to now been able to survive these self-induced disasters. But it must be worthwhile to search for ways to replace or short- circuit nature's hitherto applied selection tricks with which it powered our evolution, and to substitute alternative and less dangerous mechanisms for it. As Kirton (1987c) points out, individuals may acquire coping strategies, compensating for the set-backs, concomitant with their particular cognitive style. Similarly, society as a whole, may learn to overcome the catastrophic events, concomitant with the unchecked progression of the cyclic social changes, if the mechanisms are better understood. This elaboration of Adaption-Innovation theory is admittedly still tentative, but its relevance for our very existence might urge us to search for further experimental evidence for or against it. This elaboration contains several related parts. Initially Kirton's suggestion that Adaption-Innovation differences are set up early in an individual's life is taken up, and it is demonstrated that most probably they are innate and certainly, basically not confined to man. Then the argument develops by reference to the already well-established research on changes in animal groups. It highlights the gradual 'ageing' effect in social structures leading to disastrous destabilization from intruding, less compliant individuals and groups, a situation paralleled in human institutions and described in earlier chapters. In short, the concept of individual preferred style to solve basic social problems has explanatory power in understanding group phenomena. Kirton and his associates have been concerned with the influence of these individual differences on industrial type organizations but there is no apparent reason why the same influences should not bear on the State itself. Organizations, however large, can be affected by selection drift into adaption domination, first establishing 'evolutionary' type change which is orderly, safe and largely acceptable, then gradually slowing the pace of that change. As the pace of change slows, the range of flexibility narrows closer to well-chosen, but 'ageing' paradigms, so the pressure for innovative change banks up until drastic 'revolutionary' type catastrophe threatens discontinuous rupture of whole societies. What can be tolerated in small groups of social animals - however uncomfortable to the individual - cannot be readily accepted for whole swathes of mankind. This chapter suggests that the same mitigating processes that aid individuals and small groups again applies on larger scales: insight through knowledge and a wide range of learnt, acceptable forms of coping behaviour may enable society to avoid catastrophic events. '''NOTE''' 1. Toynbee disagrees with what he calls Spengler's 'determinism'. Though he (Toynbee) gives abundant material to illustrate the point made here, he emphasizes that one cannot convincingly speak of some or other predetermined and fixed 'life span' of societies. The present theory would support Spengler's view. But it would also give room for something that Toynbee stresses, namely that, as far as their life-span and their spin-off in terms of disseminative effect towards other societies is concerned, societies differ greatly from one another. According to the present theory, it very much depends on incidental environmental factors how effective selective emigration can be, and how strong the differential propagation within the structures themselves. And it depends on the actual presence of competing structures how quickly the effects of the internal selection processes will precipitate an eventual turnover catastrophe. === BIBLIOGRAPHY === Abrams, S. and Neubauer, P.B. (1976) 'Object orientedness: the person or the thing', The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 45: 73-99 Allsopp, J.F. (1986) 'Personality as a determinant of beer and cider consumption among young men', Personality and Individual Differences, 7: 341-7 Amnesty International. (1973) Report on Torture, London Apter, M.J. (1982) The Experience of Motivation, London, New York, etc.: Academic Press Apter, M.J. (1983) 'Negativism and the sense of identity', in G. Breakwell (ed.), Threatened Identities, London: Wiley Apter, M.J. and Smith, K.C.P. (1976) 'Negativism in adolescence', The Counsellor, 23/24: 25-30 Apter, M.J. and Smith, K.C.P. (1985) 'Experiencing personal relationships', in M.J. Apter, D. Fontana and S. Murgatroyd (eds) Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments, Cardiff, UK: University College Cardiff Press Argyle, M. (1976a second edition 1987), Bodily Communication, London: Methuen Argyle, M. (1976b) 'Personality and social behaviour', in R. Harre (ed.), Personality, Oxford: Blackwell Ausubel, D.P. (1952) Ego Maturation and the Personality Disorders, New York: Grune & Stratton Bagozzi, R.P. (1984) 'A prospectus for theory construction in marketing', Journal of Marketing, 48: 11-29 Baker, M.J. (1983) Market Development, Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Bakke, E.W. (1965) 'Concept of the social organization', in M. Haire (ed.), Modern Organization Theory, Wiley: New York Bales, R.F. (1953) Interaction Process Analysis, Reading, Mass: Addison-Wesley Barash, D.P. (1977) Sociobiology and Behaviour, New York: Elsevier Barron, F. (1953) 'Complexity-simplicity as a personality dimension', Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 48: 163-72 Beene, J.M. (1985) Compatibility of Self-Actualization and Anxiety and the relationship to Adaptors and Innovators. M.Sc Thesis, The Graduate School of East Texas State University Beene, J.M. and Zelhart, P.F. (1986) Factor Analysis of the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory, Working paper, Department of Psychology, East Texas State University Bertrand, M. (1969) Behavioural Repertoire of the Stumptail Macaque, Macaca Speciosa, Basel: S. Karger AG Bieri, J., Atkins, A.L., Briar, S., Seaman, R.L., Miller, H., and Tripodi T. (1966) Clinical and Social Judgements: the Discrimination of Behavioural Information, Wiley, New York Billings, R.S., Klimoski, R.J., and Breaugh, J.A. (1977) 'The impact of a change of technology on job characteristics: a quasi-experiment', Administrative Science Quarterly, 22: 318-39 Bowers, K.S. (1973) 'Situationism in psychology: an analysis and a critique', Psychological Review, 80: 307-36 Boyatzis, R. (1982) The Competent Manager, New York: John Wiley <5c Sons Bray, B.W., Campbell, R.J., and Grant, D.L. (1974) Formative Years in Business: A Long Term AT&T Study of Managerial Lives, New York: John Wiley 6c Sons Brief, A.P. and Aldag, R.J. (1975) 'Employee reactions to job characteristics: a constructive replication', Journal of Applied Psychology, 60: 182-6 Bright, J.R. (1964) Research, Development and Technological Innovation, Homewood, III.: Irwen Brokken, F.B. (1978) The Language of Personality, Thesis, State University Groningen Brunswick, E. (1956) Perception and the Representative Design of Psychological Experiments, Berkeley: University of California Press Budner, 5. (1962) 'Intolerance of Ambiguity as a Personality Variable', Journal of Personality, 30, 29-50 Burns, T. and Stalker, G.M. (1961) The Management of Innovation, Tavistock, London Buss, A.H., and Plomin, R.A. (1975) A Temperament Theory of Personality Development, New York: Wiley Buss, A.H. Plomin, R., and Willerman, L. (1973) 'The inheritance of temperaments', Journal of Personality, 41: 513-52 Byrne, D. (1974) An Introduction to Personality, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall Calhoun, J.B. (1974) 'The universal city of ideas', presentation at a Conference on The Exploding Cities, held at Worcester College and the Taylor Institution, Oxford, 1-6 April 1974, Conference Transcripts 301-6 Campbell, D.P. (1974) Introversion Extraversion Scale, Strong Campbell Interest Inventory, Stanford Univ. Calif. Campbell, D.T. and Fiske, D.W. (1959) 'Convergent and discriminant validation by the multitrait-multimethod matrix', Psychological Bulletin, 56:81-105 Carne, J.C. and Kirton, M.J. (1982) 'Styles of creativity: test score correlations between the Kirton Adaption- Innovation Inventory and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator', Psychological Reports, 50:31-6 Casbolt, D. (1984) The Effects of Idea Generation Technique, Problem Type and Creative Thinking Style on Individual Problem Solving Performance, Ph.D. Thesis, University of Ohio Cattell, R.B. (1981) Misurare l'Intelligenza con i Test Culture Fair, Sirenze, Florence: Organizazzione Speciali Cattell, R.B., Eber, H.W., and Tatsouka, M.M. (1970) Handbook for the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire 16PF, IPAT, Champaign, III. Chance, M.R.A. and Jolly, C. (1970) Social Groups of Monkeys, Apes and Men, London: Cape Chapman, L.J. and Campbell, D.T. (1957) 'An attempt to predict the performance of three-man teams from attitude measures', Journal of Social Psychology, 46:277-86 Christian, J.J. (1970) 'Social subordination, population density and mammalian evolution', Science, 168:84-90 Clapp, R.G. and de Ciantis, S. (1987) 'The influence of organisational climate on the relationship between cognitive style and observed behaviour', Working Paper, Occupational Research Centre, Hatfield Polytechnic Claridge, G.A., Canter, 5., and Hume, W.J. (1973) Personality Differences and Biological Variations: A Study of Twins, New York: Pergamon Press Cloninger, C.R. (1986) 'A unified biosocial theory of personality and its role in the development of anxiety states', Psychiatric Development, 3:167-226 Cloninger, C.R. (1987) 'A systematic method for clinical description and classification of personality variants', Archives of General Psychiatry, 44:573-88 Cohen, J.B. (1968) 'The role of personality in consumer behavior', in H.H. Kassarjian and T.S. Robertson (eds), Perspectives in Consumer Behavior, Glenview, Ill: Scott Foresman & Co., 220-34 COMA, (Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy), (1984) Diet and Cardiovascular Disease, Department of Health and Social Security Report No. 28, London: H.M.S.O. Cooper, R. and Foster, M. (1971) 'Sociotechnical systems', American Psychologist, 26:467-74 Coser, L.A. (1956) The Functions of Social Conflict, New York: Free Press Coser, L.A. (1968) Gulzige Institutes: Patronen van Absolute Toewijding, Deventer: van Loghum Slaterus, translation of Greedy Institutions, 1974 Crockett, W.H. (1965) 'Cognitive complexity and impression formation', in D.A. Maher (ed.) Progress in Experimental Personality Research (Vol. 2) New York: Academic Press Cronbach, L.J. and Meehl, P.E. (1955) 'Construct validity in psychological tests', Psychological Bulletin, 52: 281-302 Crowne, D. and Marlowe, D. (1964) The Approval Motive, Wiley, New York Darlington, C.D. (1969) The Evolution of Man and Society, London: Allen & Unwin Darlington, Jr. P.J. (1957) Zoogeography: The Geographical Distribution of Animals, New York: Wiley Davidson, M.J. (1982) Occupational Stress in Female Managers, Ph.D Thesis, UMIST Davis, K. (1974) 'The migrations of human populations', Scientific American, 231(3): 93-105 De Ciantis, S.M. (1987) The Relationships Between Leadership Style, Cognitive Style and Learning Style: An Exposition of Management Style Dimensions. Ph.D Thesis, The Hatfield Polytechnic van der Dennen, J.M.G. (1987) 'Ethnocentrism and ingroup- outgroup differentiation: a review and interpretation of the literature', in V. Reynolds, I. Vine and V. Falger (eds), The Sociobiology of Ethnocentrism, London: Croom Helm Dennis, D.M. (1973) 'Predicting full-scale WAIS IQ's with the Shipley', Journal of Clinical Psychology, 29, 366-8 Dershimer, E.L. (1980) Study to Identify the Characteristics of Teachers Willing to Implement Computer Based Instruction using Microcomputers in the Classroom. Ed.D. Thesis, Memphis State University Dewan, S. (1982) Personality Characteristics of Entrepreneurs. Ph.D. Thesis, Institute of Technology, Delhi Donnelly, J.H. and Etzel, M.J. (1973) 'Degrees of product newness and early trial', Journal of Marketing Research, 10:295-300 Donnelly, J.H. and Ivancevich, J.M. (1974) 'A methodology for identifying innovator characteristics of new brand purchasers', Journal of Marketing Research, XI (August): 331-4 Drucker, P.F. (1969) 'Management's new role', Harvard Business Review, 47:49-54 Eaves, L. and Eysenck, H.J. (1975) 'The nature of extraversion: a genetical analysis', Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 32:102-12 Eisner, E.W. (1965) 'Children's creativity in art: a study of types', American Educational Research Journal, 2:125- 36 Epstein, S. (1986) 'Does aggregation produce spuriously high estimates of behaviour stability?' Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50:1199-210 Epstein, S. and O'Brien, E.J. (1985) 'The person-situation debate in historical perspective', Psychological Bulletin, 98:513-37 Ettlie, J.E. and O'Keefe, R.D. (1982) 'Innovative attitudes, values and intentions in organizations', Journal of Management Studies, 19:163-82 Etzioni, A7(1964) Modern Organizations, in Foundation of Modern Sociology Series, A. Inkeles (ed.), New York: Prentice-Hall Evans, F.B. (1959) 'Psychological and objective factors in the prediction of brand choice: Ford versus Chevrolet', Journal of Business, 32 (October): 340-69 Ewer, R.F. (1971) 'The biology and behaviour of a free-living population of black rats (rattus rattus)', Animal Behaviour Monographs, 4, 3:127-74 Eysenck, H.J. (1953) The Structure of Human Personality, London: Methuen Eysenck, H.J. (1967) The Biological Basis of Personality, Springfield: Thomas Eysenck, H.J. and Eysenck, S.B.G. (1964) Manual of the Eysenck Personality Inventory, University of London Press Feij, J.A. (1978) Temperament: Onderzoek Naar de Betekenis van Extraversie, Emotionaliteit, Impulsiviteit en Sapnningsbehoefte, Amsterdam: Academic Press Feij, J.A., Orlebeke, J.F., Gazendam, A., and van Zuilen, R. (1981) Sensation seeking: measurement and psychophysiological correlates', in J. Strelau, F. H. Farley, and A. Gale (eds) Biological Foundation of Personality and Behaviour, New York: Hemisphere Press Feldman, L.P. and Armstrong, G.M. (1975) 'Identifying buyers of a major automotive innovation', Journal of Marketing, 39 (January): 47-53 Feshbach, S. (1978) 'The environment of personality', American Psychologist, 33:447-55 Forbes, J.B. (1975), 'The relationship between management styles and functional specialization', Group and Organizational Studies, 10:95-111 Fossey, D. (1972) 'Living with mountain gorrillas', in R.P. Marler (ed.), The Marvels of Animal Behaviour, Washington DC: National Geographic Society Foxall, G.R. (1981) Strategic Marketing Management, London: Croom Helm; New York: Wiley Foxall, G.R. (1983) Corporate Innovation: Marketing and Strategy, London: Croom Helm; New York: St. Martin's Press Foxall, G.R. (1986a) 'Managers in transition: an empirical test of Kirton's Adaption-Innovation theory and its implication of mid-career MBA', Technovation, 4:219- 32 Foxall, G.R. (1986b), 'Managerial orientations of adaptors and innovators', Journal of Managerial Psychology 1: 24-7 Foxall, G.R. (1986c), 'Theoretical progress in consumer psychology: the contribution of a behavioural analysis of choice', Journal of Economic Psychology, 7, 293-315 Foxall, G.R. (1986d) 'The role of radical behaviourism in the explanation of consumer choice', Advances in Consumer Research, XIII, 187-91 Foxall, G.R. (1986e) 'Consumer theory', Management Bibliographies and Reviews, 12(2):27-51 Foxall, G.R. and Haskins, C.G. (1986) 'Cognitive style and consumer innovativeness on empirical test of Kirton's Adaption-Innovation theory in the context of food purchasing', European Journal of Marketing, 20:63-80 Foxall, G.R. and Haskins, C.G. (1987) 'Cognitive style and discontinuous consumption: the case of "Healthy Eating",' Food Marketing, 3(2): 19-32 French, J.R.P., Rodgers, W., and Cobb, S. (1974), 'Adjustment as person-environment fit', in G.V. Coehlo and D.A. Hamburg (eds), Coping and Adaption, New York: Basic Books Gardner, H. (1983) Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, Basic Books: New York Gatignon, H. and Robertson, T.S. (1985) 'A propositional inventory for new diffusion research', Journal of Consumer Research, 11:849-67 Geen, R.G. (1976) Personality: The Skein of Behavior, Saint Louis: C.V. Mosby Gershon, A. and Guilford, J.P. (1963) Possible Jobs: Scoring Guide. Orange, CA: Sheridan Psychological Services Getzels, J.W. and Jackson, P.W. (1962) Creativity and Intelligence: Explorations with Gifted Students, New York: Wiley Guilford, J.P. (1967) The Nature of Human Intelligence. New York: McGraw-Hill Gibb, C.A. (1969) 'Leadership', in G. Lindzey and E. Aranson (eds), Handbook of Social Psychology, Reading, Mass: Addison-Wesley Girard, R. (1982) Le Bouc Emissaire, Paris: Bernard Grasset Goldberg, L.R. (1978) 'Attribution of trait-descriptive terms to oneself as compared to well liked, neutral and disliked others', Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36:1012-28 Goldsmith, R.E. (1983) Dimensions of Consumer Innovativeness: An Empirical Study of Open Processing, Ph.D Dissertation, University of Alabama Goldsmith, R.E. (1984) 'Personality characteristics associated with adaption-innovation', Journal of Psychology, 117:159-65 Goldsmith, R.E. (1985) 'A factorial composition of the KAI Inventory', Educational and Psychological Measurement, 45:245-50 Goldsmith, R.E. (1986a) 'Convergent validity of four innovativeness scales', Educational and Psychological Measurement, 46:81-7 Goldsmith, R.E. (1986b) 'Adaption-innovation and cognitive complexity', Journal of Psychology, 119:461-7 Goldsmith, R.E. (1986c) 'Personality and adaptive-innovative problem solving', Journal of Personality and Social Behaviour, 1:95-106 Goldsmith, R.E. and Matherly, T.A. (1986a) 'The Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory, faking and social desirability. A replication and extension', Psychological Reports, 58:269-70 Goldsmith, R.E. and Matherly, T. A. (1986b) 'Seeking simple solutions: assimilators and explorers, adaptors and innovators', Journal of Psychology, 120:149-55 Goldsmith, R.E. and Matherley, T.A. (1987a) 'Adaption- innovation and creativity. A replication and extension', British Journal of Social Psychology, 120:149-55 Goldsmith, R.E. and Matherley, T. A. (1987b) 'Adaption- innovation and self-esteem', Journal of Psychology, 127:351-2 Goldsmith, R.E., Matherley, T.A., and Wheatley, W.J. (1986) 'Yeasaying and the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory', Educational and Psychological Measurement, 36:433-6 Goldstein, K.M. and Blackman, S. (1978) Cognitive Style: Five Approaches and Relevant Research, New York: Wiley Goldstein, K.M. and Blackman, S. (1981) 'Cognitive styles in personality', in F. Fransella (ed.), Theory Measurement and Research, London: Methuen Goodepough, D.R. (1985) 'Styles of cognitive-personality functioning', in H.J. Bernardin and D.A. Bownas (eds), Personality Assessment in Organizations, New York: Praeger Gottlieb, M.J. (1958) 'Segmentation by personality types', in L.H. Stockman (ed.), Proceedings of the American Marketing Association. Chicago: A.M.A., 148-58 Gough, H.G. (1956 and 1975) California Psychological Inventory. Palo Alto Calif.: Consulting Psychologists' Press Gruen W. (1960) 'Preference for new products and its relationship to different measures of conformity', Journal of Applied Psychology, 44:361-6 Gryskiewicz, S.S. (1982) The Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory in Creative Leadership Development, invited paper for the Occupational Psychology Conference of the British Psychological Society, Sussex University Gryskiewicz, S.S., Hills, D.W., Holt, K., and Hills, K. (1987) Managerial Understanding Creativity: The Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory and Other Assessment Measures, Technical Report, Center for Creative Leadership, Greensboro, N.C. Guilford, 3.P. (1950) 'Creativity', American Psychologist, 5:444-54 Guilford, J.P. (1969) Seeing problems: Manual for Administration and Interpretation, Orange, C.A.: Sheridan Psychological Services Guilford, J.P. (1980) 'Cognitive styles: What are they?' Educational and Psychological Measurement, 40:715-35 Gul, F.A. (1986) 'Differences between adaptors and innovators attending accountancy courses on their preferences in work and curricula', Journal of Accounting Education, 4:203-9 Hage, J. and Dewar, R. (1973) 'Elite values versus organizational structure predicting innovation', Administrative Science Quarterly, 18: 279-90 Hackman, J.R. and Lawler, E.E. Ill, (1971), 'Employee reactions to job characteristics', Journal of Applied Psychology Monograph, 55:259-86 Hackman, J.R. and Oldham, G.R. (1975) 'Developments of the job diagnostic survey', Journal of Applied Psychology, 60:159-70 Hackman, J.R. and Oldham, G.R. (1976) 'Motivation through the design of work: test of a theory', Organizational and Human Performance, 16:250-79 Halpin, A.W. and Winer, B.J. (1957) 'A factorial study of the leader behavior descriptions', in R.M. Stagdill and A.E. Coons (eds), Leader Behavior: Its Description and Measurement, Bur. Bus. Res. Monogr. 88 Columbus: Ohio State University Hammond, S.M. (1986) 'Some pitfalls in the use of factor scores: the case of the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory', Personality and Individual Differences, 7: 401-7 Hannaway, J. (1985), 'Managerial behaviour, uncertainty and hierarchy: a prelude to a synthesis', Human Relations, 38:1085-100 Hardin, E. (1967) 'Job satisfaction and desire for change', Journal of Applied Psychology, 51:20-7 Hayward, G. and Everett, C. (1983) 'Adaptors and innovators: data from the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory in a local authority setting', Journal of Occupational Psychology, 56:339-42 Healey, M.C. (1967) 'Aggression and self-regulation of population size in deer-mice', Ecology, 48:377-92 Heller, F.A. (1976) 'Decision processes: an analysis of power sharing at senior organizational levels', in R. Dubin, (ed.), Handbook of Work, Organization and Society, Chicago: Rand McNally Hertz, M.R. (1946) Frequency Tables to be Used in Scoring Responses to the Rorschach Ink Blot Test (3rd ed.) Cleveland, OH: Western Reserve University Heymans, G. (1932) Inleiding tot de Speciale Psychologie, Haarlem: Bohn Hickson, D.J., Pugh, D.S., and Pheysey, D.C. (1969) 'Operations technology and organization structure: an empirical reappraisal', Administrative Science Quarterly, 14:378-97 Hinrichs, J.R., (1978) 'An eight year follow up of a management assessment center', Journal of Applied Psychology, 63: 596-601 Hirschman, E.C. (1980) 'Innovativeness, novelty seeking and consumer creativity', Journal of Consumer Research, 7: 283-95 Hoffschulte, B. (1986) The Scapegoat Theory and Sociobiology, Paper presented at the 8th meeting of the European Sociobiological Society (E.S.S.), Bussum, Netherlands Hofstede, G. (1984) Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values, London: Sage HPublications Hold, B.C.L. (1976) 'Attention structure and rank specific behaviour in preschool children', in M.C.R. Chance and R.R. Larsen, The Social Structure of Attention, London: Wiley Holland, P. A. (1987) 'Adaptors and innovators: application of the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory to bank employees', Psychological Reports, 60:263-70 Honey, P. and Mumford, A. (1982) The Manual for Learning Styles, Berkshire, U.K.: Honey Hossaini, H.R. (1981) Leadership Effectiveness and Cognitive Style Among Iranian and Indian Middle Managers, Ph.D. Thesis, Institute of Technology, Delhi Howell, D.C. (1982) Statistical Methods for Psychology, 2nd edn., Boston, MA: Duxbury Press Huff, S., Lake, D.G., and Schaalman, M.L., (1982) Principal Differences: Excellence in School Leadership and Management, Florida Council on Educational Manage¬ment Report, Department of Education, State of Florida, Tallahassee, Fl. Hunt, R.G. (1970) 'Technology and organization', Academy of Management Journal, 13:235-52 Hurt, H.T., Joseph, K., and Cook, C.D. (1977) 'Scales for the measure of innovativeness', Human Communication, Research, 4:58-65 Hyland, M.E. (1985) 'Traits, processes and the purpose of templates', Journal of Research in Personality, 19:72-7 Itani, J., Tokuda, K., Furuya, Y., Kano, K., and Shin, Y. (1963) 'The social construction of natural troops of Japanese monkeys in Takasakiyama', Primates, 4:1-42 Ivancevich, J.M. and Donnelly, J.H. (1974), 'A study of role clarity and need for clarity for three occupational groups', Academy of Management Journal, 17:28-36 Jackson, D.N. (1976) Jackson Personality Inventory Manual, Goshen, New York: Research Psychologists' Press Jacobson, E. and Kossoff, J. (1963) Self-percept and consumer attitudes toward small cars', Journal of Applied Psychology, 47 (August): 242-5 Jorde, P. (1984) Change and Innovation in Early Childhood Education: The Relationship Between Selected Personal Characteristics of Administrators and Willingness to Adopt Computer Technology, Ph.D. Thesis. Stanford University, California Kagan, J. and Kogan, N. (1970) 'Individual variation in cognitive processes', in P.H. Mussen (ed.), Carmichael's Manual of Child Psychology, vol. 1. New York: Wiley, P.H. Kahneman, D. and Tversky, A. (1982) 'The psychology of preferences', Scientific American, 246, 160-73 Karson, S. and O'Dell, J.W. (1976) A Guide to the Clinical use of the 16 PF, Champaign: Institute for Personality and Ability Testing Kassarjian, H.H. (1971) 'Personality and consumer behavior - A Review', Journal of Marketing Research, 4: 409-18 Kassarjian, H.H. and Sheffet Mary J. (1982) 'Personality and consumer behavior: an update', in H.H. Kassarjian and T.S. Robertson (eds), Perspectives in Consumer Behavior, Glenview, IL: Scott Foresman & Co., 160-80 Katz, D. and Kahn, R.L. (1978) The Social Psychology of Organizations, (2nd Ed), New York: Wiley Keller, R.T. (1984) 'A cross-national validation study for research and development professional employees', IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, EM-31, 162-5 Keller, R.T. (1986) 'Predictors of project group performance in Research and Development organisations', Academy of Management Journal, 29: 715-26 Keller, R.T. and Holland, W.E. (1978a) 'Individual characteristics of innovativeness and communication in Research and Development organizations', Journal of Applied Psychology, 63: 759-62 Keller, R.T. and Holland, W.E. (1978b) 'A cross-validation study of the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory in three Research and Development organizations', Applied Psychological Measurement, 2:563-70 Keller, R.T. and Holland, W.E. (1979) Towards a selection battery for Research and Development professional employees', IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, vol. EM-26:4 Khaneja, D. (1982) Relationship of the Adaption-Innovation Continuum to Achievement Orientation in Entrepreneurs and Non-Entrepreneurs, Ph.D. Thesis, Institute of Technology, Delhi Khatena, J. and Torrance, E.P. (1976) Manual for Khatena- Torrance Creative Perception Inventory, Chicago: Steolting Co. Kiggundu, M.N. (1983) 'Task interdependence and job design: test of a theory', Organizational Behaviour and Human Performance, 31:145-72 Kipnis, D. (1976) The Powerholders, Chicago/London: University of Chicago Press Kirton, M.J. (1961) Management Initiative, London: Acton Society Trust Kirton, M.J. (1976) 'Adaptors and innovators: a description and measure', Journal of Applied Psychology, 61:622-9 Kirton, M.J. (1977) 'Adaptors and innovators and superior- subordinate identification', Psychological Reports, 41:289-90 Kirton, M.J. (1978a) 'Have adaptors and innovators equal levels of creativity?', Psychological Reports, 42:695-8 Kirton, M.J. (1978b), 'Field dependence and adaption-innovation theories', Perceptual and Motor Skills, 47:1239-45 Kirton, M.J. (1978c) 'Adaptors and innovators in culture clash', Current Anthropology, 19:611-12 Kirton, M.J. (1980) 'Adaptors and innovators in organizations', Human Relations, 3:213-24 Kirton, M.J. (1984) 'Adaptors and innovators - why new initiatives get blocked', Long Range Planning, 17:137-43 Kirton, M.J. (1985) 'Adaptors, innovators and paradigm consistency', Psychological Reports, 57:487-90 Kirton, M.J (1987a) Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI) - Manual 2nd Edition Hatfield, UK: Occupational Research Centre Kirton, M.J. (1987b) 'Reply to R.L. Payne's article: 'Individual differences and performance amongst R&D Personnel', R&D Management, 17:163-6 Kirton, M.J. (1987c) 'Adaptors and innovators: cognitive style and personality', in S.G. Isaksen (ed.), Frontiers of Creativity, Buffalo, NY: Brearly Ltd Kirton, M.J. and de Ciantis, S.M. (1986) 'Cognitive style and personality: the Kirton Adaption-Innovation and Cattell's Sixteen Personality Factor Inventories', Personality and Individual Differences, 7:141-6 Kirton, M.J. and McCarthy, R. (1985) 'Personal and group estimates of the Kirton Inventory scores', Psychological Reports, 57:1067-70 Kirton, M.J. and McCarthy, R. (1988) 'Cognitive climate and organizations', Journal of Occupational Psychology, 61: 175-84 Kirton, M.J. and Mulligan, G. (1973) 'Correlates of managers' attitudes towards change', Journal of Applied Psychology, 58:101-7 Kirton, M.J. and Pender, S.R. (1982) "The adaption- innovation continuum: occupational type and course selection', Psychological Reports, 51: 883-6 Koestler, A. (1967) The Ghost in the Machine, London: Pan Kogan, N. (1971) 'Educational implications of cognitive styles', in G.S. Lesser (ed.), Psychology and Educational Practice, Glenview, II: Scott Foresman Kogan, N. (1973) 'Creativity and cognitive style: a life-span perspective', in P.B. Baltes and K.W. Schaie (eds), Life¬span Developmental Psychology: Personality and Socialization, New York: Academic Press Kogan, N. (1976) 'Sex differences in creativity and cognitive styles', in S. Messick (ed.) Individuality in Learning, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Kohn, C.A. and Jacoby, J. (1973) 'Operationally defining the consumer innovator', Proceedings of the 81st Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, 837-8 Kolb, D.A., Rubin, I.M., and Mclntyre, J.M. (1979) Organizational Psychology: An Experiential Approach, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall Koponen, A. (1960) 'Personality characteristics of purchasers', Journal of Advertising Research, 1 (September): 6-12 Krech, D., Crutchfield, R.S., and Ballachey, E.L. (1962) Individual in Society: A Textbook of Social Psychology, New York: McGraw Hill Kuhn, T.S. (1970) The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (2nd ed.) Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press Lachenicht, L. (1985) 'A reversal theory of social relations applied to polite language', in M.J. Apter, D. Fontana and S. Murgatroyed (eds) Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments, Cardiff, UK: University College Cardiff Press Lancaster, J.B. (1986) 'Primate social behavior and ostracism', Ethology and Sociobiology, 7: 215-25 Lawler, E.E., Hall, D.T., and Oldham, G.R. (1973) 'Organisational climate: relationship to organisation structure, process and performance', Organisational Behaviour and Human Performance, 10:118-27 Leavitt, H. (1972) Managerial Psychology, Third Edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press Legge, K., (1978) Power, Innovation and Problem-Solving in Personnel Management, London: McGraw-Hill Lewin, K. (1935) A Dynamic Theory of Personality. New York: McGraw-Hill Lindsay, P.R. (1985) 'Counselling to resolve a clash of cognitive styles', Technovation, 3:57-67 Lippitt, R. and White, R.K. (1958) 'An experimental study of leadership and group life', in E.E. Maccoby, T.M. Newcomb and E.L. Hartley (eds), Readings in Social Psychology (3rd Ed.), New York: Holt Lowe, E.A. and Taylor, W.G.K. (1986) 'The management of research in the life sciences: the characteristics of researchers', R&D Mangement, 16:45-61 Loy, J.W. Jnr. (1969) 'Social psychological characteristics of innovators', American Sociological Review, 34:73-82 McCarthy, R. (1988) The relationship of individual characteristics of women managers to the pressures experienced at work and choice of coping strategy', Ph.D. Thesis, The Hatfield Polytechnic (in progress) McClain, E. (1978) 'Feminists and nonfeminists: contrasting profiles in independence and affiliation', Psychological Reports, 43: 435-41 MacDonald, A.P. Jnr. (1970) 'Revised scale for ambiguity tolerance', Psychological Reports, 26:791-8 McHale, J. and Flegg, D. (1985) 'How Calamity Jane was put in her place', Transition, November, 14-16 McHale, J. and Flegg, D. (1986) 'Innovators rule OK - or do they?' Training and Development Journal, Oct. 10-13 McKenna, F.P. (1983) 'Field dependence and personality: a re-examination', Social Behaviour and Personality, 11:51-5 McKenna, F.P. (1984) 'Measures of field dependence: cognitive style or cognitive ability?' Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 47:593-603 MacKinnon, D.W. (1962) 'The personality correlates of creativity: a study of American architects', in G.S. Neilson (ed.), Proceedings of the XIV International Congress of Applied Psychology, Copenhagen, 1961, 2:11-39 MacKinnon, D.W. (1978) In Search of Human Effectiveness: Identifying and Developing Creativity, Buffalo, N.Y.: Brearly MacKinnon, D.W. (1987) 'Some critical issues for future research in creativity', in Isaksen (ed.) Frontiers of Creativity Research: Beyond the Basics, Buffalo, NY: Brearly McNemar, Q. (1964) 'Lost: our intelligence? Why?' American Psychologist, 19:871-82 Maccoby, M. (1976) The Gamesman, the New Corporate Leaders. New York: Simon & Schuster Malloy, T.E. and Kenny, D.A. (1986) 'The social relations model: an integrative method for personality research', Journal of Personality, 54:199-225 Mandler, G. (1985) Cognitive Psychology: An Essay in Cognitive Science, Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Matherly, T.A. and Goldsmith, R.E. (1985) 'The two faces of creativity', Business Horizons, 28:8-11 Meehl, P.E. (1945) 'The dynamics of 'structured' personality tests', Journal of Clinical Psychology, 1: 296-303 Mehrabian, A. (1972) Nonverbal Communication, Chicago/N ew York: Aldine, Altherton Mehrabian, A. and Russell, J.A. (1974) An Approach to Environmental Psychology, Cambridge, Mass., The M.I.T. Press Merton, R.K. (ed.) (1957) Bureaucratic Structure and Personality in Social Theory and Social Structure, New York: Free Press of Glencoe Messick, 5. (1976) Individuality in Learning: Implications of Cognitive Styles and Creativity for Human Development, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Messick, S. (1984) 'The nature of cognitive styles: problems and promise in educational practice', Educational Psychologist, 19:59-74 Midgley, D.F. (1977) Innovation and New Product Marketing, London: Croom Helm Midgley, D.F. and Dowling, G.R. (1978) 'Innovativeness: the concept and its measurement', Journal of Consumer Research, 4:229-42 Milgram, S. (1974) Obedience to Authority, London: Tavistock Mischel, W. (1973) 'Toward a cognitive social learning reconceptualization of personality', Psychological Review, 80:252-83 Mischel, W. (1976) Introduction to Personality, (2nd ed.) New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston Mohr, L.B. (1971) 'Organizational technology and organizational structure', Administrative Science Quarterly, 16:444-57 van der Molen, P.P. (1973) Verslag van een Ontdekkingsreis door het Gebied van het Sociale Gedrag, internal research report, Dept. of Behavioural Genetics, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) Netherlands van der Molen, P.P. (1988) 'Biological mechanisms precluding the establishment of social equilibria and their effects on the emergence of conflict and disaster' in J.M.G. van der Dennen, V.S.E. Falger, M. Hopp and C.J. Irwin (eds), The Sociobiology of Conflict, London: Croom Helm Mudd, S. A. and McGrath, R. A. (1987) 'The role of a trait measure of innovativeness (KAI) in the adoption of innovations', Computers and Education, (in press) Mulkay, M.S. (1972) The Social Process of Innovation,London: Macmillan Mulligan, G. and Martin, W. (1980) 'Adaptors, innovators and the KAI', Psychological Reports. 46:883-92 Murgatroyd, 5. and Evans, P. (1979) A Negativism-Conformity Scale for Adolescents, Paper for the Conference of the Psychology of Reversals Study Group, Cardiff Myers, I.B. (1962) The Myers Briggs Type Indicator, Palo Alto: Calif. Consulting Psychologists Press NACNE (National Advisory Committee on Health Education) (1983) A Discussion Paper on Proposals for National Guidelines for Health Education in Britain, London: Health Educational Council National Food Survey (1986) London: H.M.S.O. National Institute of Industrial Psychology Test Battery (1964-1979) Windsor, UK: Nelson - N.F.E.R. Norman, W.T. (1963) 'Toward an adequate taxonomy of personality attributes: replicated factor structure in peer nomination personality ratings', Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 66:574-83 Nystrom, H. (1979) Creativity and Innovation, Chichester: John Wiley and Sons Olson, M. (1982) The Rise and Decline of Nations (Economic Growth, Stagflation and Social Rigidities), New Haven: Yale University Press Osborn, A.F. (1963) Applied Imagination, (3rd ed.) New York: Charles Scribner's Ostrogorski, M. (1982) Democracy and the Organization of Political Parties, Brooklyn: Haskell House O'Toole, J.J. (1979) 'Corporate and managerial cultures', in C.L. Cooper (ed.) Behavioural Problems in Organizations, Eaglewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall Parsons, T. (1951) The Social System. Glencoe: Free Press Payne, R.L. (1987) 'Individual differences and performance amongst R&D personnel: some implications for management development', R&D Management, 17:153- 61 Payne, R.L. and Pugh, D.S. (1973) 'Organisational climate and organisational structure', in M.D. Dunnette (ed.) Handbook of Industrial and Organisational Psychology, 2nd ed. New York: Wiley Perrow, C. (1967) 'A framework for the comparative analysis of organizations', American Sociological Review, 32:194-208 Peters, T.J. and Waterman, R.H. (1983) In Search of Excellence, New York: Warner Books Petrinovich, L. (1979) 'Probabilistic functionalism: a conception of research method', American Psychologist, 34:373-90 Pierce, J.L. (1984) 'Job design and technology: a sociotechnical perspective', Journal of Occupational Behaviour, 5:147-54 Pizzam, A. (1972) 'Psychological characteristics of innovators', European Journal of Marketing, 6:203-10 Plomin, R. and Rowe, D.C. (1977) 'A twin study of temperament in young children', The Journal of Psychology, 97:107-13 Plomin, R. and Rowe, D.C. (1979) 'Genetic and environmental etiology of social behaviour in infancy', Development Psychology, 15:62-72 Poirier, F.E. (1970) 'Dominance structure of the Nilgiri langur (Presbytis johnii) of South India', Folia Primatologica, 12:161-86 Prato Previde, G. (1984) 'Adattatori ed Innovatori: i risultati della standardizzazione italiana del KAI', Ricerche di Psichologia, 4:81-134, Validated Italian translation of the KAI Prato Previde, G. and Carli, M. (1987) 'Adaption-Innovation typology and right-left hemispheric preferences', Journal of Personality and Individual Differences, 8:681-6 Pulvino, C.A.F. (1979) Relationship of Principal Leadership Behaviour to Teacher Motivation and Innovation. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Wisconsin Madison de Raad, B. (1985) Person-Talk in Everyday Life: Pragmatics of Utterances about Personality, Thesis, State University Groningen, Netherlands Raju, P.5. (1980) 'Optimum stimulation level: its relationship to personality, demographics and exploratory behavior', Journal of Consumer Research, 7:272-82 Reddin, W.J. (1970) Managerial Effectiveness, London: McGraw-Hill Reddin, W.J. (1987) Effective Management, New Delhi: McGraw-Hill Reynolds, V. and Luscombe, G. (1969) 'Chimpanzee rank order and the function of displays', in C.R. Carpenter (ed.), Proceedings of the Second International Congress of Primatology, Basel: Karger Roberts, K.H. and Glick, W. (1981) 'The job characteristics approach to task design: a critical review', Journal of Applied Psychology, 66:193-217 Robertson, I.T. (1985) 'Human information-processing strategies and style', Behaviour and Information Technology, 4, 19-29 Robertson, T.S. (1967a) 'Determinants of innovative behavior', in R. Moyer (ed.), Proceedings of the American Marketing Association, Chicago: A.M.A., 328-31 Robertson, T.5. (1967b) 'The process of innovation and the diffusion of innovation', Journal of Marketing, 31:14-19 Robertson, T.S. (1971) Innovative Behavior and Communication, New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston Robertson, T.S. and Myers, J.H. (1969) 'Personality correlates of opinion leadership and innovative buying behavior', Journal of Marketing Research, 6:164-8 Robey, D. and Taggart, W. (1981) 'Measuring manager's minds: the assessment of style in human information processing', Academy of Management Journal, 6:375-83 Rodger, A. and Cavanagh, P. (1962) 'Training of occupational psychologists', Occupational Psychology, 36:80-8 Rogers, C.R. (1959) 'Towards a theory of creativity', in H.H. Anderson (ed.) Creativity and its Cultivation, New York: Harper Rogers, E.M. (1983) Diffusion of Innovations, 3rd ed., New York: The Free Press Rogers, E.M. and Shoemaker, F.F. (1971) Communication of Innovations: A Cross-Cultural Approach, (2nd Edition) New York: The Free Press Rokeach M. (1960) The Open and Closed Mind, New York: Basic Books Rosenberg, M. (1965) Society and the Adolescent Self- image. Princeton: N.J. Princeton University Press Rydell, S.T. and Rosen, E. (1966) 'Measurement and some correlates of need cognition', Psychological Reports, 90:139-65 Sackett, P.R. and Dreher, G.F. (1982) 'Constructs and assessment center dimensions: some troubling empirical findings', Journal of Applied Psychology, 67: 401-10 Savin-Williams, R.C. (1979) Dominance hierarchies in groups of early adolescents', Child Development, 50:923-35 Savin-Williams, R.C. (1980) 'Dominance hierarchies in groups of middle to late adolescent males', Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 9:75-85 Schaefer, C.E. (1971) SirnllTes Test Manual, Research Psychologist Press, New York: Goshen Scheflen, A. and A. (1972) Body Language and Social Order, New Jersey: Prentice Hall Schneider, B. (1983) 'Work climates: an interactionist perspective', in N.R. Feimer and E.S. Geller (eds), Environmental Psychology: Directions and Perspectives, New York: Praeger Schneider, B. (1985) 'Organizational behaviour', Annual Review of Psychology. 36:573-611 Schneider, B. and Snyder, R.A. (1975) 'Some relationships between job satisfaction and organisational climate', Journal of Applied Psychology, 60: 318-27 Schoen, D.R. (1960) 'Managing technological innovation', Harvard Business Review, May-June, 156-68 Schroder, H.M., (1985) Manual for Assessing Managerial Competencies. Tampa, Fl: Center for Organizational Effectiveness, University of South Florida Schroder, H.M., (1986) The Development of Managerial Competencies, Tampa, Fl: Center for Organizational Effectiveness, University of South Florida Schroder, H.M. and Croghan, J.H., (1984) The Reliability and Validity of Assessment Center Measures. Florida Council on Educational Management Report, Department of Education, State of Florida, Tallahassee, Fl. Schroder, H.M., Croghan, J.H., and Michaels, C.E., (1986) Situational Manuals for Measuring Managerial Competencies, Tampa, Fl.: Center for Organizational Effectiveness, University of South Florida Schroder, H.M., Driver, M.J., and Streufert, S., (1969) Human Information Processing, New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston Schumacher, E.F. (1975) Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered, New York: Harper & Row Schumpeter, J.A. (1939) Business Cycles, a Theoretical, ^Historical and Statistical Analysis of the Capitalist Process, London: McGraw Hill Segerstrale, U. (1986) 'Colleagues in conflict: an "In Vivo" analysis of the sociobiological controversy', Biology and Philosophy, 1:53-87 Shipley, W.C. (1940) 'A self-administering scale for measuring intellectual deterioration', Journal of Psychology, 9:371-7 Skinner, B.F. (1950) 'Are theories of learning necessary?' Psychological Review, 57:193-216 Slocum, J.W. and Sims, H.P. (1980) 'A typology for integrating technology, organization, and job design', Human Relations, 33:193-212 Sluckin, A.M. and Smith, P.K. (1977) 'Two approaches to the concept of dominance in preschool children', Child Development, 48:917-23 Smith-Benjamin, L. (1974) 'Structural analysis of social behavior', Psychological Review, 81: 392-425 Snow, C.P.(1961) 'Either - or', Progressive, 24 Snyder, M. (1979) 'Self-monitoring processes', in L. Berkowitz (ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 12:85-128, New York: Academic Press Snyder, M., and Gangestad, 5. (1986) 'On the nature of self- monitoring: matters of assessment, matters of validity', Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51:125-39 Spengler, O. (1918) Der Untergand des Abendlandes, Vienna & Leipzig: Wilhelm Braunmuller Stein, M.I. (1975) Manual: Physiognomic Cue Test, New York: Behavioral Publications Strayer, F.F. and Strayer, J. (1976) 'An ethological analysis of social agonism and dominance relations among preschool children', Child Development, 47:980-9 Strelau, J. (1974) 'Temperament as an expression of energy level and temporal features of behaviour', Polish Psychological Bulletin, 5: 119-27 Streufert, 5. and Swezey, R.W., (1986) Complexity, Managers and Organisations, New York: Academic Press Summers, J.O. (1971) 'Generalized change agents and innovativeness', Journal of Applied Psychology, VIII: 313-16 Swatez, G.M. (1970) 'The social organization of a university laboratory', Minerva: A Review of Science Learning and Policy, VIII: 36-58 Tellegan, A., in Gryskiewicz (1982) (op.cit.) 'TCI, control- impulse in Tellegan's research scale' Thibaut, J.W. and Kelley, H.H. (1959) The Social Psychology of Groups, New York: Wiley Thom, R. and Zeeman, E.C. (1974) 'Catastrophe theory: its present state and future perspectives', in A. Manning (ed.), Dynamical Systems: Proceedings of a Symposium Held at the University of Warwick 1973/1974, Springer- Verlag Thomson, D. (1980) 'Adaptors and innovators: a replication study on managers in Singapore and Malaysia', Psychological Reports, 47:383-7 Thomson, D. (1985) A Study of Singaporean Executives: Their Attitudes, Dispositions and Work Values, Ph.D. Thesis, Henley Management College/Brunei University Thornton, G.C. and Byham, W.C., (1982) Assessment Center and Managerial Performance, New York: Academic Press Tiger, L. (1987) The Cerebral Bridge from Family to Foe, Presentation at the 9th meeting of the European Sociobiological Society (E.S.S.) Jerusalem, (in press) Torrance, E.P. (1971) Technical Norms Manual for the Creative Motivation Scale, Athens GA: Georgia Studies of Creative Behavior, University of Georgia Torrance, E.P. (1974) Norms Technical Manual: Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, Bensenville, 111.: Scholastic Testing Service Torrance, E.P. and Horng, R.Y. (1980) 'Creativity, style of learning and thinking characteristics of adaptors and innovators', The Creative Child Adult Quarterly, V:80-5 Torrance, E.P., Reynolds, C.R., Ball, O.E., and Riegel, T.R. (1978) Revised Norms-Technical Manual for Your Style of Learning and Thinking, Athens, GA: Georgia Studies of Creative Behavior, University of Georgia Toynbee, A. (1972) A Study of History, London: Oxford University Press Trist, E.L. and Bamforth, K.W. (1951) 'Some social and psychological consequences of the Longwall method of coal-getting', Human Relations, 4:1-38 Troldahl, V. and Powell, F. (1965) 'A short-form dogmatism scale for use in field studies', Social Forces, 44:211-14 Trumbo, D.A. (1961) 'Individual and group correlates of attitudes to work-related change', Journal of Applied Psychology, 45: 338-44 Tucker, W.T. and Painter, J.J. (1961) 'Personality and product use', Journal of Applied Psychology, 45:325-9 Vannoy, J.S. (1965) 'Generality of cognitive complexity- simplicity as a personality construct,' Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2:385-96 Veblen, T. (1928) The Theory of the Leisure Class. New York: Vanguard Press Wallach, M.A. and Kogan, N. (1965) 'A new look at the creativity-intelligence distinction', Journal of Personality, 33:348-69 Walling, M., Robertson, E.D., Higgins, P., and Fournet, G.P. (1987) 'Relationship between time perception and Kirton's Adaption-Innovation Inventory', paper presented at the 1987 Annual Convention of the Southwestern Psychological Association Weber, M. (1970) in H.H. Gerth and C.W. Mills (eds and trans.) From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Weick, E.I. (1969) The Social Psychology of Organizing, Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley Weisbord, M.R. (1987) 'Managing and consulting beyond the design limits: a third wave action product' in M.R. Weisbord (ed.), Productive Workplaces: Organizing and Managing for Dignity, Meaning and Community, San Francisco/London: Jossey-Bass Weisfeld, G.E. (1980) 'Determinants and behavioral correlates of dominance in adolescent boys', in D.R. Omark, F.F. Strayer and D.G. Freedman (eds), Dominance Relations: An Ethological Perspective on Human Conflict, New York: Garland Wells, W.D. (1961) 'The influence of yeasaying response style', Journal of Advertising Research, 1:1-12 Wesley, E.L. (1953) 'Preservative behaviour in a concept-formation task', Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 8:129-34 Westfall, R. (1962) 'Psychological factors in predicting product choice', Journal of Marketing, 26:34-40 Whyte, W.H. (1957) The Organization Man, Cape, London Wilson, E.O. (1977) Sociobiology, The New Synthesis, Cambridge, Massachussetts: Harvard University Press Wilson, G.D. and Patterson, J.R. (1968) 'A new measure of conservatism', British Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 7:274-9 Winer, B.J. (1971) Statistical Principles in Experimental Design, 2nd edn., New York: McGraw-Hill Witkin, H.A., Dyk, R.B., Faterson, H.F., Goodenough, D.R., and Karp, S.A. (1962) Psychological Differentation, New York: Wiley Witkin, H.A. and Goodenough, D.R. (1977) Field Dependence Re-visited, (ETS RB-77-16) Princeton, N.J.: Educational Testing Service Witkin, H.A., Moore, C.A., Goodenough, D.R., and Cox, P.W. (1977) 'Field-dependence and field-independent cognitive styles and their educational implications', Review of Educational Research, 47: 1-64 Woodcock, A. and Davis, M. (1978) Catastrophe Theory, New York: Avon Woodward, J. (1965) Industrial Organization: Theory and Practice, London: Oxford University Press Yamada, M. (1966) 'Five natural troops of Japanese monkeys in Shodishama Island', Primates, 7:313-62 Zaleznik, A. (1977) 'Managers and leaders: are they different?' Harvard Business Review, 55(3): 67-78 Zaltman, G. (1965) Marketing: Contribution from the Behavioural New Sciences, Harcourt, Brace & World Inc. Zaremba, 3. (1978) Relationship of Teacher Motivation to Innovativeness and Job Satisfaction, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin-Madison Zeeman, E.C. (1976) 'Catastrophe theory', Scientific American, 234:1976 Zuckerman, M. (1974) 'The sensation seeking motive', in B.A. Maher (ed.), Progress in Experimental Personality Research, vol. 7: 74-148, New York: Academic Press 0x4s1mbdf1coxo9o07dyhwfguzo7ymy 2 227 3000 2011-06-24T07:39:07Z Iyana786 32 moved [[User:Iyana786]] to [[Payday loan lenders]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Payday loan lenders]] ia93pn46dg14e370zfj05c4hmj2i141 2 232 3008 2011-06-27T09:15:21Z Carmenwinsent 35 Created page with ''''''P90x Nutrition Guide: Your way to healthy body''''' A good nutritional diet is always necessary, in order to live a healthy and cheerful life. P90x Nutrition guide provide…' wikitext text/x-wiki '''''P90x Nutrition Guide: Your way to healthy body''''' A good nutritional diet is always necessary, in order to live a healthy and cheerful life. P90x Nutrition guide provide us this nutritional diet plan. [http://www.x-fat.com/p90x-nutrition-guide P90x nutrition guide]is developed by experts so as to fulfill the need of calories for a human body. In P90x nutritional guide, edibles are selected so that no excess calorie reaches to body. P90x nutritional guide is very helpful is not just proper nourishment of body but, it is also pretty much required when you are following P90x exercise program. Since P90x exercise program is developed in order to reduce excess weight and give body a slim, sleek and good look, so P90x nutritional guide pays an important part in this. In P90x nutrition guide, the nutrition plan is divided into three phases: The first phase is the fat burning phase, designed to make the body lean. Here a high protein diet is taken which will strengthen the muscles and help lose the extra fat. For this daily diet should include 30% carbohydrates, 50% proteins and 20 % fats. This is achieved by consuming proteins, dairy products, fresh fruits, vegetables, fats, carbohydrates, condiments, snacks and P90x supplements such as recovery drink and protein bar. The second is the strength increasing phase; it is also known as the energy booster and is designed to increase the strength of the body. This is very much required because the workout schedule becomes tougher and the body has to be prepared for this extreme workout, hence changes in the diet becomes a necessity. The diet in this phase should include a mix of proteins and carbohydrates in equal quantities with a small amount of fat which will provide the right amount of energy. The daily diet should include 40% carbohydrates, 40% proteins and 20% fats. The third is the endurance building phase, and is designed to make the body fit by increasing carbohydrates in the diet. This diet would yield results only if the above two phases are utilized properly. The third phase should include 20% proteins, 40% carbohydrates and 20% fats. 0dkjs4oscwf4jsdlk7wfm151h1uvmkc 2 235 3012 2011-06-30T05:30:53Z Jeniferlara22 37 moved [[User:Jeniferlara22]] to [[Payday loans process]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Payday loans process]] fovxiawb6r8ag3b73cnxz1ahbpnwjnu 0 237 3015 2011-07-03T09:20:12Z Baby Boy 2 moved [[A guided tour through this Wiki]] to [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki]] n87otv1bmpmusithf21g6qo1n8axctp 2 239 3041 2011-07-11T05:37:45Z Bandna desmuk456 39 moved [[User:Bandna desmuk456]] to [[Safe cig]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Safe cig]] 8ne2fgmm9okcflx4vuae28bsb3tj29b 1 241 3044 2011-07-12T05:21:39Z Bandna desmuk456 39 moved [[Talk:Safe cig]] to [[E Cigarette Starter Kit]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[E Cigarette Starter Kit]] dtjiwyw9qsf366faedvji7qqw3ihpf0 2 242 3045 2011-07-13T05:52:56Z Coolterminology 40 Created page with 'hello wiki people.' wikitext text/x-wiki hello wiki people. tdmc5ft4furso0hu94kce86qcmm1qe3 2 244 3048 2011-08-05T04:44:24Z Xenderscade 41 moved [[User:Xenderscade]] to [[Electronic Cigarette Need Of 21st Century Smokers]] wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Electronic Cigarette Need Of 21st Century Smokers]] 981k33slhd9yafi1sdt4ovz9ynae69i 2 301 3210 2011-10-04T07:27:18Z SChau19 79 Created page with '== Stretch Mark Removal == Stretchmarks certainly are a standard part of age of puberty for some ladies and also fellas. Whenever a individual develops or even increases fat rea…' wikitext text/x-wiki == Stretch Mark Removal == Stretchmarks certainly are a standard part of age of puberty for some ladies and also fellas. Whenever a individual develops or even increases fat really fast (such as in the course of age of puberty), the face may get facial lines on the human body referred to as stretch marks. Stretch marks take place in the event the epidermis is actually taken by simply quick development or even stretching. Although pores and skin is generally rather elastic, when it's overstretched, the standard creation of bovine collagen (the key protein that makes up the ligament within your epidermis) is actually upset. Consequently, scars called stretch-marks might form. If you are observing stretchmarks in your system, it's not just you. The majority of women and women have got scars, that often be visible on the breast tissue, thighs and leg, , along with bottom. Women make them during pregnancy. And even though they are more widespread throughout young ladies, guys can get stretch-marks, way too. Those who are fat frequently have stretch-marks. Serious weightlifters are given to obtaining stretch-marks due to the rapid system adjustments in which weight training could generate. Stretchmarks can also occur if a person makes use of steroid-containing pores and skin ointments or perhaps ointments (for instance hydrocortisone) for over a couple weeks, as well as must acquire higher dosages associated with common corticosteroids for several weeks or perhaps longer. To start with, stretch marks may show up since reddish as well as purplish collections that may show up indented where you can various consistency from the around pores and skin. Luckily, stretch marks often turn light along with almost disappear as time passes. Though the idea that stretch-marks generally reduce and grow a smaller amount obvious over time can be little convenience if you plan to invest most of your summertime in a bathing suit. Here are several things to consider if you need to help make stretchmarks significantly less noticeable: Some individuals realize that self-tanners along with sunless tanning therapies (equally over-the-counter products along with aerosols and in-salon types of treatments) may help mask stretch marks. It doesn't help regular sun tanning or getting brownish naturally bedrooms, even though, because stretch marks are less likely for you to tan. So when everybody knows, the sun and also suntanning beds carry out more harm than good in terms of the particular long-term wellbeing of your skin. In addition, you can get entire body cosmetics matched to the tone on the skin that will make stretchmarks almost undetectable. Although some people might manufacturers help make these kinds of cover-up goods water-resistant, makeup products will not be the best option in the event that you may be shelling out time and effort within the water. These are pool area or perhaps beach period, fortunately which latest manner favors numerous forms of swimsuits this only happen to disguise stretchmarks. "Boy short" type suits (well-liked by several players as they do not journey upward each time a man or woman techniques) work effectively pertaining to hiding stretch-marks for the butt along with legs. And because many bathers favor high-neck swimwear, which can disguise scars in the torso place, you will find generally a great deal of types from which to choose. Nevertheless, there tend to be plenty of ointments and also other products on the market which claim to reduce stretch marks, the fact is that nearly everyone is inadequate and quite often pricey. You simply can't <span class="plainlinks">[http://xstretchmarks.com <span style="color:black;font-weight:normal;text-decoration:none!important;background:none!important; text-decoration:none;/*CITATION*/">how to get rid of stretch marks</span>]</span> help make scars go away totally without the help of a physician (your doctor whom focuses on the treatment of pores and skin issues) or even cosmetic surgeon. These kinds of medical professionals may also use one of several types of treatments : via actual medical procedures to be able to methods including microdermabrasion and laser treatments : in which reduce the physical appearance associated with stretchmarks. They are costly and so are certainly not generally suitable for individuals inside their adolescent a long time as they are certainly not concluded developing and stretchmarks will most likely reduce as time passes at any rate. k7zmp88dd1b640vao9agrhm3gmei7qw 2 306 3215 2011-10-10T19:57:10Z SofiatGaskins 92 Created page with '== Ecigg Dangers == Because 2006, the ecigarette has attracted hundreds of thousands of individuals across the earth who've switched from conventional cigarettes on the e-cigare…' wikitext text/x-wiki == Ecigg Dangers == Because 2006, the ecigarette has attracted hundreds of thousands of individuals across the earth who've switched from conventional cigarettes on the e-cigarette, also known as the "safe cigarette, the e-cigarette, as well as the smokeless cigarette". E-cigarettes share some facets of there standard counterparts, this kind of as physical appearance, feel [http://smokeelectroniccigarettes.org electronic cigarette] and style of a normal cigarette. But the distinctions are substantial in which the "safe cigarette" will get it truly is identify since it produces none from the damaging areas of traditional smoking cigarettes like tar, ignition (warmth), approximately 4000 types of chemical additives that often lead to respiratory and cardiac procedure ailments, nor the carcinogenic results of classic cigarettes. Actually considering that the Surgeon Standard confirmed that cigarette cigarette smoking is hazardous on your health, cigarette companies have searched for means to cut back tar and nicotine stages, in efforts to produce a far more safe cigarette smoking experience. Nothing, however, has actually arrive close towards the ecigarette. Ads by Google This innovative new smoking option, not merely simulates cigarette smoke but additionally the temperature related with dragging off a common cigarette (50-60 degrees Celsius), consequently incorporating on the psychological habit with no including the hazardous substances that have tested to trigger cancerous, which includes carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, hydrocyanic acid, acrolein, arsenic, lead and hydragyrum. Smokeless cigarettes had been first viewed with trepidation but a lot more have grown to be embraced because of the manifeste as well as the Professional medical Association. E-Cigarettes are now manufactured by many distinctive firms all through the US and China and are quickly accessible across the united states and Europe, even the several of the most ardent skeptics have become believers as soon as they try the e-cigarette. Including for the basic safety gains, the e-cigarette has also been confirmed being a way for people who smoke to give up the behavior, as the levels of nicotine might be very carefully monitored, as a result giving the smoker the choice of steadily lowering the amount till he/she can stop without concern of withdrawals. Most [http://smokeelectroniccigarettes.org electronic cigarette] refill cartridges can be obtained in whole, medium, mild and none, and although e cigarettes are usually not yet approved as smoking cigarettes cessation devices, the possible for the devices to become employed as these kinds of is somewhat evident. It can be advisable that people that have demonstrated a sensitivity or allergy to nicotine, pregnant or breastfeeding, or that have unstable heart ailments should discuss the usage of an e-cigarette unit using a health practitioner in advance of making use of just one. Moreover, e cigs might not be utilized by everyone underneath the legal cigarette smoking age in your own state hauoz5spenxtray0x7o6wr2nk2b4ygs 2 309 3219 2011-10-10T22:33:37Z THinrichs 91 Created page with '== Ecigg Dangers == Seeing that 2006, the electric cigarette has attracted tens of millions of individuals round the environment who may have switched from standard cigarettes t…' wikitext text/x-wiki == Ecigg Dangers == Seeing that 2006, the electric cigarette has attracted tens of millions of individuals round the environment who may have switched from standard cigarettes to your e-cigarette, also called the "safe cigarette, the e-cigarette, as well as the smokeless cigarette". Electronic cigarettes share some aspects of there classic counterparts, this kind of as visual appeal, truly feel and taste of the standard cigarette. However the variances are considerable in that the "safe cigarette" will get it truly is name simply because it delivers none with the negative facets of classic smoking cigarettes like tar, ignition (heat), as much as 4000 sorts of chemical additives that often cause respiratory and cardiac process illnesses, nor the carcinogenic outcomes of conventional cigarettes. Ever before seeing that the Surgeon Common decided that cigarette cigarette smoking is hazardous on your well being, cigarette organizations have searched for methods to cut back tar and nicotine levels, in efforts to create a more safe cigarette smoking knowledge. Nothing, even so, has ever arrive near to your [http://smokeelectroniccigarettes.org electronic cigarette]. Advertisements by Google This revolutionary new smoking cigarettes alternate, not merely simulates cigarette smoke but additionally the temperature associated with dragging off a common cigarette (50-60 degrees Celsius), consequently incorporating on the psychological habit without incorporating the hazardous substances which have proved to lead to cancerous, which includes carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, hydrocyanic acid, acrolein, arsenic, lead and hydragyrum. Smokeless cigarettes were initial viewed with trepidation but more and more have grown to be embraced from the manifeste along with the Health care Affiliation. E-Cigarettes are actually manufactured by many diverse organizations all over the US and China and therefore are commonly offered across the usa and Europe, even the several of the most ardent skeptics are getting to be believers when they check out the electric cigarette. Including to the safety rewards, the e-cigarette has also been confirmed being a way for people who smoke to quit the habit, since the stage of nicotine may be very carefully monitored, therefore providing the smoker the choice of gradually decreasing the degree till he/she can quit with no fearfulness of withdrawals. Most electric cigarette refill cartridges can be obtained in total, medium, mild and none, and whilst e cigarettes are usually not nevertheless accredited as smoking cigarettes cessation units, the potential for your gadgets being utilised as these kinds of is relatively apparent. It can be advisable that individuals who've demonstrated a sensitivity or allergy to nicotine, pregnant or breastfeeding, or who may have unstable coronary heart ailments should really talk about using an electronic cigarette gadget by using a medical doctor in advance of using just one. Also, e-cigarettes might not be employed by any one underneath the legal smoking cigarettes age in your state sbwhdpuoix6mn14r6q795j9mkmw39cr 2 319 3230 2011-10-21T01:45:22Z MercymNeville 101 Created page with 'With your following holiday, why not handle yourself and your family members to a getaway house rental. Just visualize it - You relaxing in a hammock outside the house the rustic…' wikitext text/x-wiki With your following holiday, why not handle yourself and your family members to a getaway house rental. Just visualize it - You relaxing in a hammock outside the house the rustic log cabin you may have taken on rent, relishing the breeze blowing through the trees, listening to the birds chirping, ensconced within the lap of Mother Naturel. Think about all by yourself unwinding, far absent from the pressures from the business office along with the frantic speed of the every day grind. Without a doubt, a holiday can turn into further specific by choosing a family vacation residence rental at a location of the selection, not simply for you as well as your partner, but additionally for that little ones, that are bound to adore it also. On the subject of family vacation residence rentals, they occur in a number of designs, dimensions and price ranges. From quaint cottages with the lake to luxurious beachfront real estate correct in the edge with the sea. Or, if you would like, it could possibly be a traditional, stone cottage from the highlands of Scotland, or even a condominium or apartment inside the center of a town of one's alternative, or conceivably a cabin in the middle with the woods or on the snow-filled ski slope. You may get homes which can accommodate solitary or maybe more family members, some you may get for short-term rentals, though other folks may very well be ideal for company housing. The prices of such trip house rentals change in accordance to your site, the dimension, and naturally the facilities. Put simply, you'll be able to uncover one that will match your necessities, taste, in addition to price range. A lot of vacationers are recognizing that it really is a lot more useful to remain at a holiday residence rental and so are selecting to carry out so each time they journey on trip. A number of the important things they hunt for are only accessible in holiday real estate. As an example, aside from the extra area, exactly where a whole family members of four, for instance, may have a area for every particular person if a 4-bedroom home is taken, you can find the choice to cook while in the cooking area, and try to eat meals within the eating place. Several holiday properties also have Jacuzzis or non-public swimming pools. Additionally, people today can keep their particular routines, obtaining the freedom to arrive and go as they please, without the need to be topic to resort policies and rules. Furthermore, when people journey in family members or in groups, getaway house rentals turn out far more cost-effective than accommodations, which charge per head. Actually, a vacation residence is often a house away from property like a resort room can never ever be. If it's a short-term rental you might be using, check out to find out what the minimum amount days you may keep are. Even though some destinations will permit just 5 days, other folks will let you stay even up to a month. Test to find out when the house is very well preserved. Also, discover out what the products and services are that arrive using the home and if they give nearly anything [http://bit.ly/r5ucXV vacation rentals] absolutely free. Look at the amenities that are supposed for being integrated together with the dwelling. If there exists a swimming pool, find out if it truly is screened or heated. Also consider if excess charges will probably be added for the facilities. A different component that you simply need to think about will be the type of dwelling it truly is, especially if you've got a toddler with you, or an elderly or disabled particular person. For example, a 2-story would certainly not be ideal in that situation. Homes with scenic views with the seaside or mountains, or perhaps close to an amusement park, are preferable. Check out with friends and family members concerning the getaway residences they've skilled dwelling in. They'll tell you what to watch out for. Attempt out a trip home rental with your subsequent vacation; you could possibly conclusion up generating long lasting memories for your self as well as your family 7hy01272ocqnsxc6jgpfi1d7q5hip40 2 322 3239 2011-10-25T02:56:38Z CHenning 102 Created page with '== Housing For Rent == In your following getaway, why not handle by yourself as well as your family members to a trip residence rental. Just visualize it - You soothing inside a…' wikitext text/x-wiki == Housing For Rent == In your following getaway, why not handle by yourself as well as your family members to a trip residence rental. Just visualize it - You soothing inside a hammock outside the house the rustic log cabin you may have taken on hire, savoring the breeze blowing in the trees, listening to the birds chirping, ensconced in the lap of Mother Nature. Imagine yourself unwinding, far absent in the pressures with the business office and the frantic tempo from the every day grind. In fact, a getaway can grow to be extra distinctive by choosing a family vacation household rental at a vacation destination of your decision, not merely for you as well as your partner, but also for that young children, who are bound to like it far too. In regards to trip dwelling rentals, they come in a number of shapes, dimensions and costs. From quaint cottages through the lake to luxurious beachfront homes right in the edge in the sea. Or, if you'd like, it could possibly [http://www.furnishedhousing.me/ vacation rentals] be a conventional, stone cottage inside the highlands of Scotland, or even a condominium or apartment in the middle of a metropolis of your respective preference, or conceivably a cabin inside the middle of your woods or on the snow-filled ski slope. You will get houses which will accommodate simple or even more people, some you may get for short-term rentals, while other individuals could be excellent for company housing. The prices of these getaway house rentals vary in accordance for the locale, the dimension, as well as the facilities. In other words, you can obtain one which will match your specifications, flavor, along with spending budget. Many vacationers are realizing that it truly is far more advantageous to stay at a family vacation household rental and so are choosing to try and do so each time they journey on vacation. Some of the necessary elements they try to look for are only readily available in trip households. As an example, other than the extra area, where an entire family members of four, as an example, can have a space for every particular person if a 4-bedroom house is taken, there is the choice to cook from the kitchen, and try to eat meals inside dining home. Several getaway homes also have Jacuzzis or private swimming pools. As well as, people today can keep their own routines, obtaining the liberty to occur and go as they please, without having to be matter to lodge rules and regulations. Moreover, when individuals travel in families or in groups, trip household rentals turn out far much less expensive than accommodations, which cost per head. In truth, a getaway dwelling is usually a house absent from residence like a hotel area can by no means be. If it is a short-term rental you are taking, look at to check out what the minimum days you can keep are. Whilst some places allows just five days, other people will allow you to remain even up to per month. Verify to discover when the house is effectively taken care of. Also, locate out what the services are that arrive along with the house and when they give anything at all free. Have a look at the amenities that happen to be intended to get included with all the house. If you will find there's swimming pool, obtain out if it can be screened or heated. Also check out if more fees will be extra for your facilities. One more component that you just must look at will be the type of home it's, especially if you've a toddler with you, or an elderly or disabled human being. Such as, a 2-story would absolutely not be suitable in that situation. Residences with scenic views in the beach or mountains, or perhaps shut to an amusement park, are preferable. Look at with associates and relatives with regards to the getaway households they have professional living in. They could notify you what to watch out for. Try out a vacation property rental in your next family vacation; you could potentially finish up creating long lasting recollections for all by yourself along with your loved ones neihcb3c5cvwmi65rxyv1p1944tg0bv 2 325 3242 2011-10-26T06:43:41Z KSantacruz 88 Created page with '== Free Payday Loans == It is rather tough to payoff all of your charges for the basis of one's monthly revenue in complicated moments. You need to possess a breather that could…' wikitext text/x-wiki == Free Payday Loans == It is rather tough to payoff all of your charges for the basis of one's monthly revenue in complicated moments. You need to possess a breather that could assist obvious the expenses and support put off the load of pending payments. Because of the conclusion of your month you are within a repair as you are not able to feel of something which will save you through the wrath of one's impatient collectors. And if you've got a a bad credit score bank loan history, you can't hope to get a financial loan to ease off the strain. Many occasions due to some causes you fall brief of cash and cannot pay off your loans. This earns you a identify from the poor credit checklist, which is composed of people that have defaulted on their loans. This causes it to be tough to suit your needs to apply for loans as your a bad credit score history retains popping up for the duration of qualifications checks. Many individuals become averse to apply for loans, as these credit ratings provides them a harrowing time. But, in occasions of wants, temporary loans bail you out. Keeping bad credit background and desires for brief expression loans, loan companies are providing very same day loans for bad credit. You may study a lot more on identical day [https://www.paydayloanranger.com payday loans] and similar day loans no credit score checks. A person must fulfill some eligibility requirements when applying for unsecured loans for below-average credit. These standards are extremely basic like you need to be within a secure task by using a steady money. You will need a legitimate lender account in your identify therefore you needs to be above eighteen decades of age. Any citizen of The united states can utilize for prompt income loans a bad credit score. It is best to have a very regular monthly earning as much as USD 1000 for each month. You could apply for identical day loans for unfavorable credit ratings on the internet. You only must refill the net form and obtain approval instantly. The senders tend not to inquire you to deliver documents by fax or mail. They won't consider your below-average credit background and approve exactly the same day loans no credit verify. You could repay cash borrowed underneath the payday loans for a bad credit score in 14 to 30 days. These same day loans for poor credit certainly are a boon to lots of individuals with reduced credit score scores. It assists them fork out off their pending payments quickly. You could homework the different businesses offering very same day loans no credit checks and evaluate the rates, terms and circumstances. Pick a corporation that offers you loans that fit your needs. Make sure you go through the company policies and instructions careful before applying. Choose a business that follows shopper credit and knowledge protection acts. The lender will evaluate your score on the internet as a result of a simple examination and grant you your mortgage. When you've got had late payments, state court judgments (CCJ), payment defaults and arrears during the earlier, it will not be considered a dilemma when applying for identical day loans for unfavorable credit ratings. The interest billed on unsecured loans for unfavorable credit ratings is somewhat larger than very long expression loans. You simply should give your identify, handle, loan sum, per month income and some other details to avail exact same day loans for low credit score. nt5molkrv4gqb1medgnnn7hejg8dtma 2 328 3245 2011-10-26T06:45:38Z FlorianAvery 87 Created page with '== Affordable Auto Insurance == You may be confused with the quantity of auto insurance policy readily available within the sector. So it's important for you to undergo the mome…' wikitext text/x-wiki == Affordable Auto Insurance == You may be confused with the quantity of auto insurance policy readily available within the sector. So it's important for you to undergo the moment details just before you take a decision on the kind of [http://www.insurance90.com car insurance] plan policy you would like to purchase. An inexpensive full protection car insurance is amongst the options it is possible to take a evaluate. This sort of insurance coverage coverage addresses not just the clinical charges which you can ought to pay out in case you meet with an accident, but will even cover the cost of repairing your motor vehicle and liability lawsuit bills. Moreover, in the event you meet with the accident the place the opposite celebration is uninsured, nonetheless you receive the cash to cover your costs. There are plenty of cheap whole protection automobile car or truck insurance accessible inside the current market, wherein you don't should shell out high amounts as premiums, however , you ought to research for them. If you go for low-priced total protection car insurance plan, the insurance organization pays for that statements manufactured, besides the authorized costs which you will need to pay out just in case one more particular person is injured or killed in an accident. Not simply that, what's more, it pays for the damages which may are caused to somebody else's house. Also, should you have opted for your in depth or collision insurance, you then can visualize dropping them and as an alternative choose for whole coverage automobile insurance. That's as the sum which you'll buy a full coverage vehicle insurance coverage, can be considerably reduce than equally these insurance policies taken with each other. You may want to know more about what exactly is complete coverage vehicle insurance policy, as a way to know much more about it. To determine low-priced complete coverage auto car or truck insurance plan, you would like to search for it. There are lots of components which vehicle insurance coverage businesses think about when giving you an insurance policies cover and according to the top quality along with the time period differs. Your gender and age can even be taken into consideration. One of several most vital important things which the insurance coverage corporation requires into consideration is how older your automobile is. In the event your auto is quite older, you then will must fork out a higher top quality, which may be substantially higher than the marketplace worth on the auto. On the flip side, in case your car or truck is new, it really is a better strategy to go for low-cost whole protection automobile insurance. At the time you have got an thought in the benefits of cheap total protection vehicle insurance along with the points which an insurance plan business considers, you require to try and do your research properly in advance of shopping for. You will need to acquire a low cost total coverage car insurance plan rates from numerous support companies to ensure you get an notion of what exactly is on offer you. Search for items like rates which you need to shell out, the type of injuries coated, protection for your personal automobile, no matter if it addresses lawsuit bills, etcetera. You will need to be sure that in the event of the key accident you are going to find the money for to pay for for the many costs. For your most effective offer, you will need to go through all the quotes and see which suites you ideal. There are plenty of insurance corporations who're content to supply you facts of what they provide. Following all, they too need to have much more consumers to extend their profits. Be certain every one of the policies have same level of coverage, in order that you get a very clear photo of what all of them are offering. See to it which the quotations offered cover your car or truck not just in case of an accident, but in addition for theft and hearth. It really is only if it includes these capabilities that your insurance policy coverage is usually termed complete coverage. So a cheap full coverage auto insurance gives you a great chance to not only cover the cost of repairing your vehicle just in case of an accident, however it handles your professional medical expenditures as well. When ever you're thinking that of going for it, converse with the economical advisor, to know all the advantages and disadvantages of getting an individual tl9a4azq71cqde75b948wdq48ud3imh 3 335 3258 2011-11-05T05:23:52Z Navhiesb 114 my intro wikitext text/x-wiki Clothing is One of many things which you continuously have to buy, like food and groceries, that is The exact reason being wise and utilizing money-saving clothing coupons can be a must. Coupons are especially beneficial if you may possibly be the kind of person who often shops for new clothes and is also always on the lookout for rapidly and emerging trends. Clothing coupons will assist you to save some significant cash. Many on the web retailers, as properly as your favorite mall retailers, offer coupon deals. But for the best results, inquire very first at the counter if their store accepts clothing coupons just before trying to present them and Creating a purchase. But you need to already know that many coupons have an expiry date which is Why It is essential to take notice of this date and make sure you use your coupons prior to that date. Even the biggest and most pricey brands offer clothing coupons to allow a bigger share of those business to require a taste of their Merchandise as nicely as to give thanks with their loyal customers all in the same time. All that is required is for you to test out the ultimate clothing coupon websites and have a look in the hottest, most current, and single most important offerings that they have to the day. When you see the 25% to 40% taken off from your total the results will prove themselves! Furthermore, It is really easy to find on the internet clothing coupons. This way, you may possibly be able to acquire clothing of superior quality in one the best retailers at fantastic prices all thanks into the good purchasing power of coupons. When you see the 25% to 40% taken off from one your total the outcomes will prove themselves! Furthermore, It is extremely simple to look for on the internet clothing coupons. Anybody can get them and they can be utilized to acquire clothing at very good prices! There are no losers in this kind of set up. Now it is possible to easily find and shop for new clothes for yourself, your friends, your lover, and your family with no added hassle!So When you go through the have to get new clothes and shop, make sure you are armed with clothes coupons to obtain essentially the most value for your money. If you may have yet to try clothing coupons, stop wondering about it and start presenting these helpful money savers at the counter of your favorite stores. A coupon wasted is money wasted so be careful!As an extra reminder, most retail outlets and mall stores accept coupons. If you've yet to try clothing coupons, stop wondering about it and start presenting these helpful money savers at the counter of your favorite stores. Anybody can get them and they can be used to obtain clothing at excellent prices! There seem to be no losers in this kind of set up. Anybody can get them and they may be utilised to acquire clothing at good prices! There seem to be no losers in this sort of set up. When you see the 25% to 40% taken off from your total the outcomes will prove themselves! Furthermore, It is very straightforward to look for online clothing coupons. Now you can easily find and shop for new clothes for yourself, your friends, your lover, and your family without additional hassle!So When you feel the have to get new clothes and shop, guarantee you may well be armed along with other clothes coupons to get the most value for your money. But you need to know already that many coupons have an expiry date that's Why It's crucial to consider notice of this date and guarantee you use your coupons prior to that date. You usually end up along with other good buys no matter what, all thanks to your clothing coupons!Also, if you will be a quite busy person but you need to make clothing purchases, There is certainly no have to get out of these house or the office just to check out the ultimate deals and bargains. When you see the 25% to 40% taken off in one your total the results will prove themselves! Furthermore, It is quite straightforward to consider on-line clothing coupons. You usually end up with other very good buys no matter what, all thanks to your clothing coupons!Also, if you will be a very busy person but you need to make clothing purchases, There's no have to get out of the house or the office just to test out the best deals and bargains. A coupon wasted is money wasted so be careful!As an extra reminder, most retail outlets and mall stores accept coupons. You often end up with other excellent buys no matter what, all thanks to your clothing coupons!Also, if you will be a very busy person but you have to make clothing purchases, There is certainly no have to get out of these house or the office just to test out the best deals and bargains. Do not think of it as useless. After Generating your obtain employing clothing coupons, you are most possibly going to obtain an e-mail from one the store or brand name that says thank you. This makes your shopping trip far more hassle free allowing one to continue your day with much less stress. But for the best results, inquire very first in the counter if their store accepts clothing coupons before trying to present them and Making a purchase. A coupon wasted is money wasted so be careful!As an added reminder, most retail outlets and mall stores accept coupons. [http://www.getforever21coupons.com/ forever 21 coupons] cs3tx796tow67erf4fils79fxr8cma0 2 342 3283 2011-11-12T13:33:06Z LCarranza79 108 Created page with 'There are plenty of extra male sex toys readily available from the grownup current market than you'll anticipate. The standard favourite of males all over the place, the cock rin…' wikitext text/x-wiki There are plenty of extra male sex toys readily available from the grownup current market than you'll anticipate. The standard favourite of males all over the place, the cock ring, is now successfully staying rivalled by anal sex toys, anal beads, dildos, anal douches, vibrators, sex dolls, gay sex toys this sort of as anal plugs and prostate stimulators, douleur masturbators, penis sleeves, chastity belts, penis pumps and douleur intercourse enhancement goods. Customarily worn for the base in the penis, a cock ring can manage an erection which can be thicker, firmer and longer lasting due to it limiting the blood flow into the penis. This could therefore be beneficial to equally partners. Cock rings inside form of sex toys usually are comprised of silicone or rubber, that have a slight give in them. Some silicone cock rings even have detachable vibrating bullets included and a few have clitoral stimulating nodules attached for additional gratification for the female partner. Cock rings which have been created of leather or metal are classified as cock and ball torture gadgets because they have little or no, or inside the situation from the metal cock rings, no give in them in any way and are for guys which are additional into enjoyment and soreness than basically satisfaction. Douleur chastity products also fit into this category. Supposed to help keep the douleur underneath lock and essential, an erection is nearly extremely hard to accomplish although putting on just one. Anal intercourse toys this kind of as anal douches, anal beads and anal plugs (also called butt plugs) may be used by men and ladies alike. This can also be said for anal vibrators. As one of several oldest types of intercourse aids anal beads can be found inside of a variety of lengths each made up of differing numbers of beads. These beads normally get bigger the further down the string you go. Anal beads are designed to drastically raise orgasmic sensations if withdrawn for the point of ecstasy. Anal plugs are sometimes bulbous in design and style and promote the anal passage when thrust in and out. They are commonly created of silicone for less complicated insertion and come in various sizes, most of which have a suction cup base so that they will follow pretty much any surface, leaving hands totally free for other pursuits. Vibrators commonly can be found in the sort of vibrating butt plugs and multispeed anal vibrators. Douleur g-spot vibrators, as the identify suggests, are solely intended for that advantage of guys, and have a specially curved tip aimed at stimulating this area. Prostrate stimulators will also be specifically for that arousal of guys. Male sex pumps, also referred to as penis pumps, purpose to enhance not just the girth with the penis but in addition the length along with the hardness. This can be achieved by inserting the penis in the cylinder that's attached to some hand pump. Once the pumping action is utilized a vacuum within the cylinder is reached resulting in added blood to rush towards [http://lightcoupon.com/?p=41 flesh light] the penis. Some pumps also come with multispeed vibrators created in often major to some far more quickly achievable erection. The dimensions augmentation on the penis is just designed to be considered a short term measure even so some pumps claim that if applied routinely this could outcome inside of a long lasting enhance in duration and girth. For masturbatory pleasures, along with consisting of penis pumps (which might also be categorised as male masturbators), male sex aids consist of penis sleeves that have patterns and nodules on the inside to supply diverse sensations and can be both solitary or open ended, oral intercourse simulators, reasonable feeling replica vaginas and anuses, and penis tubes which also encompass various inner sleeves, several of which vibrate. Intercourse dolls, featuring up to a few distinct restricted, succulent enjoy holes based in the model, are being boosting favorite. They are not only used as male masturbators but can also be employed for entertaining threesome actions that has a spouse. What's more, with douleur intercourse enhancement solutions which can be intended to boost the amount of sperm released, pheromones to increase sexual appeal and sprays to heighten the top quality and longevity of an erection also commonplace, there are actually an abundance of sex toys and enhancers out there for males nowadays o6qrf1447ls9g47wijujg3xg7j2prwt 2 346 3287 2011-11-12T13:40:47Z EChristofferso73 110 Created page with 'There are a variety of dedicated mineral beauty items readily available world broad these days and each of the solutions are made on the best of minerals, sifted, processed and p…' wikitext text/x-wiki There are a variety of dedicated mineral beauty items readily available world broad these days and each of the solutions are made on the best of minerals, sifted, processed and pure! The groundwork packs experience superb when flaunted and cover blemishes inside best method. Most mineral cosmetics are proposed by dermatologists given that they are established hypo-allergenic. The mineral concealer is ideal to cover acne, broken facial veins plus a bout of rosacea. The foundations and concealers include all-natural SPF and are readily available in shades to complement any skin tone. The merchandise selection involves mineral setting powders which might be marketed in various shades and the transparent powder can make the software all the more flawless. The other products include mineral blush on, mineral eye shadow, lip liners, nail polishes, system shimmers and also the common mineral bronzers. Mineral Cosmetics are meant to give protection and finesse, with no the usage of hazardous chemicals and dyes. The mineral cosmetics are powders, without the need of fillers. The powders are very little but crushed minerals extracted through the Earth. The non-mineral beauty ranges far too flaunt the presence of minerals, however the mineral content is diluted with lots of additional chemical compounds. It's critical to test the label completely prior to investing in any product. The normal cosmetics are constantly probably the most improving and beautifying. The easy to follow line up of items - the software of foundation and eye and lip shade - produce magic. The mineral cosmetics do away with the feeling of getting donned oily and serious make up that ordinarily comes with the software of regular make-up. The mineral cosmetic products and solutions are very adaptable and long-lasting. The hues and texture with the solutions are developed to suit females of all ages and with unique skin kinds. It is rather significant that as custodian of your respective physical and mental well-being, it is best to check the food ingested and the personalized care solutions applied about the delicate skin. The array of mineral cosmetics is totally purely natural cause a more healthy life and glowing skin. The pure internal splendor in the long run radiates via the skin in addition to a rejuvenated [http://www.moderncosmetics.com/wholesale-mac-cosmetics mac cosmetics wholesale] and revived glance. Widespread minerals made use of in the mineral cosmetics consist of titanium dioxide, a by natural means taking place mineral that works most effectively as being a groundwork. It is just a fantastic sun shield as well. The mica articles in these cosmetics goes back again ages. Mica is surely an pretty much colorless mineral that adds quantity and texture for the products. The iron oxides used in these products and solutions add color into the makeup. Iron oxides are nothing but healthy salts oxidized inside a healthy water practice. Serecite is actually a translucent mineral that presents a silky texture to any basis, when ferric ferrocyanide is surely an organic pigment that offers the blue colour the mineral pigment. Ultramarine blue is yet another pigment coloring agent. The mineral beauty variety accessible includes a brush that facilitates inside the even application. The powder is dipped into along with the brush is swirled. The bottom in the handle should be tapped, to settle the powder very well then the powder is spread to the cleansed, dry skin in the deal with. Inside scenario of individuals with dry and flaky skin, the loose mineral basis may be correctly blended which has a organic lotion. Inside the situation of mineral liquid liner, the eyeliner brush ought to be skinny. The basis merchandise use mica, titanium dioxide, iron and zinc oxide, even though the concealers are made through the exact line of elements, additionally serecite. The environment powders contain serecite, iron oxides and Kaolin Clay. The mineral beauty blush on has mica, iron oxides and zinc oxides. The eye shadow array contains mica, iron oxides, titanium dioxide and at times ferric ferrocyanide. The mineral lip gloss elements contain soy and candelilla wax, capryllic/capric triglyceride and bee wax, moreover the oils of hemp seed, castor, olive and meadow-foam. The colours are contributed by elements like mica, iron oxide and titanium dioxide. Mineral cosmetics have revolutionized the best way adult females store for make up and have designed them conscious of what they are exposing their skin to bhenenhejndutj2uzlr0jkmzgzk818z 0 347 1983 2010-09-12T13:58:52Z Eschaton 10 Created page with '''(An essay by [http://eschatopaedia.webs.com/ '''Eschaton'''])'' Novelty Theory, also known as Timewave Zero, is an extension of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_North_Whit…' wikitext text/x-wiki ''(An essay by [http://eschatopaedia.webs.com/ '''Eschaton'''])'' Novelty Theory, also known as Timewave Zero, is an extension of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_North_Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead's] process philosophy developed by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terence_McKenna Terence McKenna] from 1971 until his death in the year 2000. ==Method== McKenna uses Alfred North Whitehead's epistemology: <blockquote> We have to understand. Whitehead said, "Understanding is the apperception of pattern as such." ... The imagination is everything. [McKenna, Terence ♦ [http://www.erowid.org/culture/characters/mckenna_terence/mckenna_terence_maps_hyperspace.shtml New Maps of Hyperspace]] </blockquote> According to Whitehead, any system is a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-reference self-referential] pattern perceivable solely by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intuition intuition]: <blockquote> These ultimate notions of 'production of novelty' and 'concrete togetherness' are inexplicable either in terms of higher universals or in terms of the components participating in the concrescence. The analysis of the components abstracts from the concrescence. The sole appeal is to intuition. [Whitehead, Alfred North ♦ [http://web.archive.org/web/20080201012356/www.levity.com/eschaton/novelty.html Process and Reality] p. 26] </blockquote> ==Concepts== ===Novelty=== Novelty Theory is based on Alfred North Whitehead's process philosophy.<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20080201012356/www.levity.com/eschaton/novelty.html Novelty & Concrescence] A page from Terence McKenna's website ♦ ''"I have elaborated Whitehead's notion of novelty into a formal mathematical speculation concerning the fundamental architecture of time."''</ref> Whitehead defines novelty (new information) as new interconnectedness: <blockquote> Creativity is the principle of novelty. Creativity introduces novelty into the content of the many, which are the universe disjunctively. ... The ultimate metaphysical principle is the advance from disjunction to conjunction, creating a novel entity other than the entities given in disjunction. ... In their natures, entities are disjunctively 'many' in process of passage into conjunctive unity... Thus the 'production of novel togetherness' is the ultimate notion embodied in the term concrescence. [Whitehead, Alfred North; Sherburne, Donald W. ♦ [http://books.google.com/books?id=IjxMRgYhQPYC&pg=PA34&lpg=PA34&dq=%22The+ultimate+metaphysical+principle+is+the+advance+from+disjunction+to+conjunction%22&source=bl&ots=-mJiP-dHJi&sig=xm23TqeK2vy5DmXQWO1HCFfSWpc&hl=en&ei=tskGSqeeGI26sga6l52bCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7 A Key to Whitehead's ''Process and Reality'']] </blockquote> McKenna's definition is the same: <blockquote> Novelty is density of connection. [[http://www.scribd.com/doc/1875926/Terence-McKenna-Live-in-New-York-April-25-1996?autodown=pdf Terence McKenna at St. John the Divine's Cathedral] April 25, 1996] </blockquote> ===Eschaton=== The universe converts its [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potential_energy#Gravitational_potential_energy gravitational potential energy] into its [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitational_binding_energy gravitational binding energy]: <blockquote> The gravitational binding energy of a system is equal to the negative of the total gravitational potential energy, considering the system as a set of small particles. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitational_binding_energy Gravitational binding energy] Wikipedia] </blockquote> The Eschaton is the state of the minimum [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potential_energy#Gravitational_potential_energy gravitational potential energy], towards which the universe is evolving: <blockquote> The universe is being pulled from the future toward a goal that is as inevitable as a marble reaching the bottom of a bowl when you release it up near the rim. If you do that, you know the marble will roll down the side of the bowl—down, down, down—until eventually it comes to rest at the lowest energy state, which is the bottom of the bowl. That’s precisely my model of human history. [McKenna, Terence ♦ [http://www.drugnerd.com/archives/5/approaching-timewave-zero-by-terence-mckenna/ Approaching Timewave Zero] ''Magical Blend Magazine'', Issue 44, November 1994] </blockquote> Simultaneously, the Eschaton is the state of the maximum [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitational_binding_energy gravitational binding energy]: <blockquote> ...the story of the universe is that information, which I call novelty, is struggling to free itself from habit, which I call entropy... and that this process... is accelerating... It seems as if... the whole cosmos wants to change into information... All points want to become connected... The path of complexity to its goals is through connecting things together... You can imagine that there is an ultimate end-state of that process—it's the moment when every point in the universe is connected to every other point in the universe. [[http://www.scribd.com/doc/1875926/Terence-McKenna-Live-in-New-York-April-25-1996?autodown=pdf Terence McKenna's workshop held in the summer of 1998]] </blockquote> The maximum interconnectedness is [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonlocality nonlocality]: <blockquote> In other words, technologies seem to be converging toward opening up the Bell-nonlocal quantum realm, where, presumably, all the intelligences of the universe are communicating in some kind of standing wave form. [[http://deoxy.org/tmab_4-1-99.htm Terence McKenna's interview on the Art Bell Show] 4/01/1999] </blockquote> The overtly [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonlocality nonlocal] Nature will lose its objectivity and become a mere extension of the human imagination ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_warping reality warping]): <blockquote> The imagination is a dimension of nonlocal information. [[http://www.matrixmasters.net/blogs/?p=275 A Few Conclusions About Life] Terence McKenna's podcast] </blockquote> <blockquote> What is happening to our world is ingression of novelty toward what Whitehead called "concrescence," a tightening gyre. Everything is flowing together. The "autopoetic lapis," the alchemical stone at the end of time, coalesces when everything flows together. When the laws of physics are obviated, the universe disappears, and what is left is the tightly bound plenum, the monad, able to express itself for itself, rather than only able to cast a shadow into ''physis'' as its reflection. I come very close here to classical millenarian and apocalyptic thought in my view of the rate at which change is accelerating. From the way the gyre is tightening, I predict that the concrescence will occur soon—around 2012 AD. It will be the entry of our species into hyperspace, but it will appear to be the end of physical laws accompanied by the release of the mind into the imagination... [McKenna, Terence ♦ [http://www.erowid.org/culture/characters/mckenna_terence/mckenna_terence_maps_hyperspace.shtml New Maps of Hyperspace]] </blockquote> ===Timewave=== According to McKenna, when the accelerated accrual of information is graphed over time, a fractal waveform results. The waveform's last period (1945–2012 AD) is known as "timewave zero." McKenna had chosen the beginning of the final timewave by looking for a very novel event in recent history; the event he chose was the atomic bombing of Hiroshima (6 August 1945). However, the 13-billion-year-long fractal wave of novelty is a wave of information, and its last period (timewave zero), during which information is generated at the fastest rate, is inextricable from computer technology, as stated by McKenna himself: <blockquote> I’ve been talking about it since 1971, and what’s interesting to me is at the beginning, it was material for hospitalization, now it is a minority viewpoint and everything is on schedule. My career is on schedule, the evolution of cybernetic technology is on schedule, the evolution of a global information network is on schedule. Given this asymptotic curve, I think we’ll arrive under budget, on time, December 22, 2012. [McKenna, Terence ♦ [http://www.drugnerd.com/archives/5/approaching-timewave-zero-by-terence-mckenna/ Approaching Timewave Zero] November 1994] </blockquote> That is why 14 February 1946—the day of the unveiling of the first electronic general-purpose computer ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ENIAC ENIAC]), regarded as the birth of the Information Age<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=-TKv7UHgoTQC&pg=PA74&lpg=PA74&dq=ENIAC+%22Information+Age%22&source=bl&ots=5ZA-a2Dj0Z&sig=qv5MxfoqFqIN8__wG4EH-gdchXA&hl=en&ei=F6AATIXzFdSBOLutlNcE&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CDAQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=ENIAC%20%22Information%20Age%22&f=false ENIAC: The Birth of the Information Age] ''Popular Science'', March 1996</ref><ref>[http://www.seas.upenn.edu/about-seas/eniac/information-age.php The ENIAC Effect: Dawn of the Information Age] ENIAC Museum</ref> —would be a much more apposite date for the beginning of timewave zero. Despite this obvious mistake, Terence McKenna's timing of the informational singularity is strikingly close to reality: <blockquote> *In 2005, information was doubling every 36 months. [[http://www.buckingham.ac.uk/news/newsarchive2009/images/elles-transcript.pdf#page=41&view=FitV Source]] *In June 2008, information was doubling every 11 months. [[http://www.sas.com/offices/europe/ireland/press_office/press_releases/predictiveanalytics08.html Source]] *On 4 August 2010, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said: "Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003." [[http://techcrunch.com/2010/08/04/schmidt-data/ Source]] *By the end of 2010, information will be doubling every 11 hours. [[http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/resources/systems_storage_solutions_pdf_toxic_tb.pdf#page=2&view=FitV Source]] </blockquote> ==Explanation== Both the universe's matter and the vacuum are undergoing an autocatalytic gravitational condensation, during which the more dense matter condenses increasingly faster that the less dense vacuum, so that from the perspective of matter, the vacuum appears to be expanding with an exponential acceleration. At that, the condensing matter radiates its entropy into the ambient vacuum.<ref>Beckenstein, Jacob D. ♦ [http://sufizmveinsan.com/fizik/holographic.html Information in the Holographic Universe] ''Scientific American'', August 2003 ♦ ''"The entropy of a region uniformly filled with matter and radiation is truly proportional to its volume."''</ref> The growth in the relative volume of the vacuum dilutes the entropy emitted by matter and thus makes the loss of entropy by matter irreversible. <blockquote> The entire evolution of the star is toward a condition of greater order, or lower entropy. It is easy to see why. In a hydrogen star each nucleon can move willy-nilly along its own trajectory, but in an iron core groups of 56 nucleons are bound together and must move in lockstep. Initially the entropy per nucleon, expressed in units of Boltzmann's constant, is about 15; in the presupernova core it is less than 1. [Bethe, Hans A.; Brown, Gerald ♦ [http://books.google.com/books?id=xhLjII9E188C&pg=PA53#v=onepage&q=&f=false How a Supernova Explodes]] </blockquote> ===Evolution of matter=== In Boltzmann's definition, entropy is a measure of the number of possible microscopic states (or ''microstates'') of a system in thermodynamic equilibrium, consistent with its macroscopic thermodynamic properties (or ''macrostate'').<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Entropy_%28statistical_thermodynamics%29&oldid=301566994#Boltzmann.27s_principle Boltzmann's principle] Wikipedia</ref> Virtual (spiritual) states are microstates; real (physical) states are macrostates. Thus the progressive decrease in matter's entropy leads to a situation in which ever-lesser spiritual efforts cause ever-bigger physical changes, which eventually allows of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_warping reality warping]. By the end of 2012 AD, the entropy of the universe's matter decreases to a critical threshold, and it forms a [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/74640/Bose-Einstein-condensate Bose-Einstein condensate]—the [http://eschatopaedia.webs.com/noveltytheory.htm#617650340 Eschaton]. ===Evolution of vacuum=== The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck_constant Planck constant]—the energy barrier between the vacuum's virtual microstates and real macrostates—is a measure of the vacuum's entropy. By radiating its entropy into the ambient vacuum, the gravitationally condensing matter increases the vacuum's entropy—the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck_constant Planck constant] (''ħ'')—and thus raises the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orch-OR objective reduction threshold] (''E=ħ/t''), making possible the existence of ever larger and intense [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/637845/wave-function wavefunctions]—atoms, molecules, living cells, people. The progressive increase of the vacuum's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orch-OR objective reduction threshold] culminates in the emergence of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_wavefunction Universal Wavefunction]—the Eschaton. ===Acceleration of time=== Reaching every subsequent lower-entropy (i.e., having fewer internal degrees of freedom, more bound) macrostate requires making fewer interconnections (by converting the system's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potential_energy#Gravitational_potential_energy gravitational potential energy] into the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitational_binding_energy gravitational binding energy]). Each successive macrostate is composed of ever larger chunks, so assembling it takes less time (just like assembling a house by joining prefabricated sections takes less time than building it brick-by-brick). <blockquote> The result is that for a long time the network grows, but does not become fully connected. Instead it contains a large number of unconnected chunks, each containing a few nodes. Eventually, the addition of just one link triggers an instantaneous phase change and the network becomes fully connected." [[http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16752-societys-vital-networks-prone-to-explosive-changes.html?full=true&print=true Society's vital networks prone to 'explosive' changes ♦ ''New Scientist'', 13 March 2009]] </blockquote> In the evolution of a massive star, the role of the "chunks, each containing a few nodes" is played by the ever-larger nuclei. When the size of the nuclei reaches a certain threshold, the star undergoes an instantaneous phase change into a [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/410987/neutron-star neutron star, which can be conceived of as a single gigantic nucleus]. <blockquote> Each successive nuclear burning stage releases less energy than the previous stage, so the lifetime in each stage becomes progressively shorter. For a 20 ''M_'''Sun''''' star: :*Main sequence lifetime ~ 10 million years :*Helium burning (3-α) ~ 1 million years :*Carbon burning ~ 300 years :*Oxygen burning ~ 2/3 year :*Silicon burning ~ 2 days<ref>[http://cass.ucsd.edu/public/tutorial/SN.html Gene Smith's Astronomy Tutorial] University of California, San Diego</ref> :*Iron core's collapse into an infinitely interconnected (Bose-condensed) neutron star ~ a few milliseconds<ref>Bethe, Hans A.; Brown, Gerald ♦ [http://books.google.com/books?id=xhLjII9E188C&pg=PA53#v=onepage&q=&f=false How a Supernova Explodes]</ref> </blockquote> ==See also== *[http://godconsciousness.com/The%20Teilhard%20Page.htm The Teilhard Page] ==External Links== *[http://web.archive.org/web/19990128030558/www.levity.com/eschaton/tm.html Terence McKenna's website] (as of 8 May 1999) ==References== <references/> ly4sa282tsxeljggs03rt37bg2njb0p 0 348 1989 2010-09-12T14:03:16Z Eschaton 10 Created page with '''(An essay by [http://eschatopaedia.webs.com/ '''Eschaton'''])'' In accordance with the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minimum_total_potential_energy_principle minimum total pot…' wikitext text/x-wiki ''(An essay by [http://eschatopaedia.webs.com/ '''Eschaton'''])'' In accordance with the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minimum_total_potential_energy_principle minimum total potential energy principle], the universe converts its [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potential_energy#Gravitational_potential_energy gravitational potential energy] into its [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitational_binding_energy gravitational binding energy] and its [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_energy kinetic energy]. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_(mathematics) product] of the binding energy and the kinetic energy is maximal at the absolute gravitational centre of the universe. *The maximally bound state is known as the [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/74640/Bose-Einstein-condensate Bose-condensed] state. *The average kinetic energy of a system's particles is known as the system's temperature. Therefore, the absolute gravitational centre of the universe progresses towards the state of a high-temperature [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/74640/Bose-Einstein-condensate Bose-condensate]—Life: <blockquote> ... the living state is a practical realization of a Bose-condensate. [Poccia, Nicola; Ricci, Alessandro; Innocenti, Davide; Bianconi, Antonio ♦ [http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=2695269 A Possible Mechanism for Evading Temperature Quantum Decoherence in Living Matter by Feshbach Resonance] Department of Physics, Sapienza University of Rome] </blockquote> [[Image:BEC.gif|center]] '''Illustration 1.''' Artist's conception of particles in an exotic phase of matter called a Bose-Einstein condensate. Each particle in the condensate shares the same quantum-mechanical wavefunction, and so they all move as one. Particles outside the condensate move faster and in all directions. Bose-Einstein condensation has been proposed to occur among neural proteins to provide a unitary sense of conscious "self." Adapted by Dave Cantrell from original "Molecule of the Year" cover of ''Science'' (December 22, 1995) by Steve Keller. [Hameroff, Stuart ♦ [http://www.quantumconsciousness.org/penrose-hameroff/anesthesiahydrophobic.html Anesthesia, Consciousness and Hydrophobic Pockets]] The Bose-condensed fraction (the spirit, the soul) of an organism resides mostly in the nervous tissue. Bose-condensed ~ having zero entropy ~ young. Therefore, the youthfulness of an organism is determined by its [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain-to-body_mass_ratio brain-to-body mass ratio]. '''1) Phylogenetically (as a species), man progresses towards youthfulness (lower entropy):''' [[Image:Human_evolution.jpg|center]] <small> </small> [[Image:Three_stages_of_human_evolution.jpg|center]] '''Illustration 2.''' ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_habilis Homo habilis]'' (brain volume 660 cm^'''3'''), ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_erectus Homo erectus]'' (brain volume 975 cm^'''3'''), and ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neanderthal Homo neanderthalensis]'' (brain volume 1550 cm^'''3'''). [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_evolution#Comparative_table_of_Homo_species Source]] [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/539615/William-Sheldon William Sheldon] noted that cerebrotonic ([http://www.kheper.net/topics/typology/somatotypes.html ectomorphic]) people have young appearance. [[http://www.kheper.net/topics/typology/somatotypes.html Source]] This observation holds even for the human phylogeny—an increase in the brain volume is accompanied by rejuvenation. In the course of their evolution, humans become increasingly cerebrotonic. The intensity and the spatial resolution of the holographic [http://www.sheldrake.org/Resources/glossary/index.html morphogenetic field], generated by the brain, increases. As a result, the skin becomes more bright, fine-textured, and smooth. Why is ''Homo habilis'' so oldish? When a radically new concept appears in your head, you hurriedly write it down in a jumbled and messy form (revolutions are always jumbled and messy). Analogously, when the concept of man came into the World Spirit's head, it was hurriedly fixed in the jumbled and messy form of ''Homo habilis''. The subsequent human evolution has been merely the elaboration of that revolutionary concept. '''2) Ontogenetically (as an individual), a man progresses towards older age (higher entropy):''' [[Image:Male_aging.jpg|center]] '''Illustration 3.''' From the age of 11.5 years in girls and 14.5 years in boys, the total cerebral volume decreases [Giedd ''et al.'', 1999]. Until the age of 24 years, this decrease is compensated by increase in the neuronal interconnectedness. After that age, the holographic [http://www.sheldrake.org/Resources/glossary/index.html morphogenetic field], generated by the brain, becomes increasingly faded and blurred, which makes the skin pallid (with dark spots), coarse-textured, and wrinkled. '''3) The speed of the phylogenetic rejuvenation is exponentially accelerating. By the end of the year 2012, the speed of the phylogenetic rejuvenation will become equal to the speed of ontogenetic aging. Eternal youth.''' <blockquote> Most of you (again I'm using the plural form of the word) are likely to be around to see the Singularity. The expanding human life span is another one of those exponential trends. In the eighteenth century, we added a few days every year to human longevity; during the nineteenth century we added a couple of weeks each year; and now we're adding almost a half a year every year. With the revolutions in genomics, proteomics, rational drug design, therapeutic cloning of our own organs and tissues, and related developments in bio-information sciences, we will be adding more than a year every year within ten years. [Kurzweil, Raymond ♦ [http://www.kurzweilai.net/articles/art0134.html?printable=1 The Law of Accelerating Returns] Published on KurzweilAI.net March 7, 2001] [[http://www.lifeboat.com/kurzweil/human.life.expectancy.jpg Graph]] </blockquote> <center>***</center> The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain-to-body_mass_ratio brain-to-body mass ratio] is a rough estimate of the possible intelligence of an organism. Infants have higher brain-to-body mass ratios compared with adults. That is why humans are "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedomorphosis paedomorphic] chimpanzees": [[Image:Adult_and_infant_chimpanzees.jpg|center]] '''Illustration 4.''' A chimpanzee adult and a chimpanzee infant. From a 1926 study by the Swiss zoologist and palaeontologist [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Naef Adolf Naef]. The informational progress of mankind is exponentially accelerating: <blockquote> *In 2005, information was doubling every 36 months. [[http://www.buckingham.ac.uk/news/newsarchive2009/images/elles-transcript.pdf#page=41&view=FitV Source]] *In June 2008, information was doubling every 11 months. [[http://www.sas.com/offices/europe/ireland/press_office/press_releases/predictiveanalytics08.html Source]] *On 4 August 2010, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said: "Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003." [[http://techcrunch.com/2010/08/04/schmidt-data/ Source]] *By the end of 2010, information will be doubling every 11 hours. [[http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/resources/systems_storage_solutions_pdf_toxic_tb.pdf#page=2&view=FitV Source]] </blockquote> As a result, the evolutionary pressure for youthfulness (essentially, for higher [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain-to-body_mass_ratio brain-to-body mass ratios]) is exponentially strengthening: <blockquote> The terrorists in al-Qaeda seek to destroy Western culture. They needn't bother. Give Western culture 30 years and it will collapse under the weight of its incontinence nappies.<br> The West's celebration of youth has infected its culture like a deadly virus. Too many members of generation X go childless as they perpetuate a youthful lifestyle of attachment-free independence.<br> It's understandable. Today youth is celebrated by the mass media like never before.<br> Sportswear, soft drinks, junk food and zippy inner-city cars are made by corporations that survive by selling their wares to young, single people with disposable income.<br> The commercial media have no choice but to deliver a younger audience to these corporations. Youth lifestyle is subsequently promoted by the media as the pinnacle of Western culture.<br> The lifestyle of the young is seductive. It's not surprising that X-men want to play the never-ageing Peter Pan and X-women choose the capable romantic, Wendy Darling, as their role model.<br> I call them "Neverlanders."<br> [Ferguson, Tim ♦ [http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/03/03/1078295445735.html Cult of youth spells end of Western civilisation] ''The Age'', March 4, 2004] </blockquote> By the end of the year 2012 at the latest, this evolutionary pressure will overcome all barriers currently preventing mankind's transformation into an eternally young species. biw0sd8wz724gu5hx9amkv0m2w0xsc2 10 349 4167 3526 2012-07-25T16:35:20Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki [[A guided tour through the Omega Research Wiki|{{#ifeq:{{{1}}}|1|✰}}{{#ifeq:{{{1}}}|2|✰✰}}{{#ifeq:{{{1}}}|3|✰✰✰}} <span style="font-size:smaller;">&lt;level {{{1}}}&gt;</span>]]&nbsp;&nbsp; rrswyc17f5tq83gpzs4wlfy8xycaimh 0 350 6894 5115 2017-01-23T14:38:58Z Baby Boy 2 /* 1. Homeostasis versus Bi-Stability */ wikitext text/x-wiki <center> STATE UNIVERSITY GRONINGEN - HEYMANSBULLETIN HB-91-1029-EX (first part) <big><b>Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (C.E.L.)</b></big><br/> on the Bistable Organization of Motivation and its Effect on Cognitive Development by Bernard B. Maarsingh and Popko P. van der Molen Presented for the fifth international conference on<br/>Reversal Theory, June 21-25, 1991 at Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.A. </center> __NOTOC__ <big><strong>Table of Contents</strong></big> [[#1. Homeostasis versus Bi-Stability|1. Homeostasis versus Bi-Stability]]<br/> [[#2. The Bi-stable Organization of Motivation|2. The Bi-stable Organization of Motivation]]<br/> [[#3. Two Metamotivational States and Reversals|3. Two Metamotivational States and Reversals]]<br/> [[#4. The Energy Dependent Basis of Motivation: Different Consequences on the Proximal and on the Ultimal Level|4. The Energy Dependent Basis of Motivation: Different Consequences on the Proximal and on the Ultimal Level]]<br/> [[#5. Motivational Sequences, Learning Spirals and Cognitive Areas of Experience|5. Motivational Sequences, Learning Spirals and Cognitive Areas of Experience]]<br/> [[#6. Cognitive Development|6. Cognitive Development]]<br/> [[#7. Summary and Conclusions|7. Summary and Conclusions]] [[#References|References]] === 1. Homeostasis versus Bi-Stability === {{level|3}} One of the most widespread concepts in psychology is "homeostasis" or synonimous words such as equilibrium and stability. The word homeostasis originates from the physiologist Cannon ([[#CITEREFCannon1932|1932]]) who used it to describe a range of physical systems whereby body temperature, respiration frequency, or the illumination of the retina {{Harv|Lakke|1985}} are maintained at a constant level. In psychology, we encounter this concept in a diversity of areas, for example in the work of Pavlov, where he writes about the equilibrium between the systems of the organism and external conditions {{Harv|Ban|1964}}; in Jung ([[#CITEREFJung1954|1954]]) in his compensation theory of personality; in Lewin ([[#CITEREFLewin1951|1951]]) where he writes about the "quasi-stationary equilibria" in group processes and in Piaget when he describes the cognitive development of the child. Also in theories on motivation the homeostasis concept is often utilized. Examples are Freud's "pleasure principle" and "reality principle" which are focussed on excitation or tension reduction and even in Butler ([[#CITEREFButler1953|1953]], [[#CITEREFButler1954|1954]], [[#CITEREFButler1957|1957]]) who advocated a "curiosity drive", in Montgomery ([[#CITEREFMontgomery1953|1953]]) who proposed an "exploratory drive" and in Myers and Miller ([[#CITEREFMyersMiller1954|1954]]) who even postulated a "boredom drive". The end product of behaviour, even if an attempt is made to explain explorative behaviour, is in fact still considered to be a reduction of the drive to a lower preferred level. More recently, Buck's motivation theory ([[#CITEREFBuck1985|1985]]) has attracted attention. Buck adopts White's non-homeostatic concept and subsequently moulds it back into a homeostatic framework. This is the concept of "effectance motivation" (see [[#CITEREFWever1989|Wever, 1989]], unpublished, for a survey). Other examples stem from the research on whether or not altruistically motivated behaviour occurs at all. Piliavin and Piliavin ([[#CITEREFPiliavinPiliavin1973|1973]]) and Piliavin et al. ([[#CITEREFPiliavinDovidioGaertnerClark1981|1981]], [[#CITEREFPiliavinDovidioGaertnerClark1981|1982]]) consider altruistic behaviour to be pro-social behaviour which is focussed on reducing one's own aversive arousal as a result of having seen somebody else "suffer". Variations on the same theme originate from Hornstein ([[#CITEREFHornstein1976|1976]], [[#CITEREFHornstein1978|1978]], [[#CITEREFHornstein1982|1982]]), Reykovski ([[#CITEREFReykovski1982|1982]]) and Lerner ([[#CITEREFLerner1970|1970]]). Batson ([[#CITEREFBatson1987|1987]], [[#CITEREFBatson1988|1988]]) ends two of his articles, on whether altruistically motivated behaviour does or does not occur, with: :"More and more it appears that motivation to help, evoked by feeling empathy, is at least partly altruistic. If it is, then psychologists will have to make some fundamental changes in their perceptions of human motivation and, indeed, of human nature" {{Harv|Batson|Dyck|Randall Brandt|Batson|1988|pp=75-76}} Apter and Smith ([[#CITEREFApterSmith1976|1976]], [[#CITEREFApterSmith1979a|1979a]], [[#CITEREFApterSmith1979b|1979b]]) and Apter ([[#CITEREFApter1976|1976]], [[#CITEREFApter1982|1982]], [[#CITEREFApter1988|1988]]), on the other hand, propose a bi-stable explanation of motivation in their reversal theory. A bi-stable system is a system in which there are two levels of preference with a given variable {{Harv|Murgatroyd|1981}}. The Cognition-Energy-Learning model (CEL: van der Molen, Stoelhorst, Van Dijk, Maarsingh) is based on the reversal theory in relation to the concept of bi-stability of motivation. === 2. The Bi-stable Organization of Motivation === {{level|3}} In the CEL two arguments are given to underpin the concept of bi-stability: an ethological and a phenomenological argument. The first argument was originally formulated by Van der Molen (1977, 1983, 1985) and revolves around the idea that one of the most recent evolutionary developments is the open-ended learning system. This is a learning system by which a behavioural repertoire develops which is especially appropriate to the situation or surroundings in which the individual incidentally happens to live. The capacity to develop such a behavioural repertoire is only utilized optimally when supplies and shortages in the energy balance are treated in a very specific way. This means that behaviour should be organized in such a way that a surplus of energy is immediately invested in the extension and refining of this repertoire. Adjustments in the repertoire will be especially meaningful when those adjustments offer a higher probability of survival in emergency situations and in situations which are very stressful. This means, however, that one has to practice in situations which engender a high level of arousal, for such situations are exactly the situations in which risks have to be taken. But taking risks which afterwards turn out to be too great can have unpleasant consequences. Also, situations which are (too) stressful for a long period of time, can be harmful to the individual. Thus, apart from the necessity to practice with difficult situations, it is also of the utmost importance that the individual has, with regularity, the possibility to escape from threat and danger and to settle down. An open learning system will contribute maximally to survival when the following two conditions are met: - firstly, there should be a tendency to seek situations which give rise to a high level of arousal when there is a surplus of energy and - secondly, there should be a tendency to look for situations which reduce the arousal as soon as the energy supply is exhausted or in cases of emergency. The second argument which is used by the CEL has a phenomenological nature and is borrowed from Apter and Smith (e.g. Apter, 1982). These authors indicate that a specific level of arousal can be experienced in two different ways. They mention as examples of situations which cause a high level of arousal: having to wait at the dentist while worrying about the condition of your teeth, or watching an exciting movie and feeling thrilled. Situations with a low level of arousal are: waiting for the bus while you have nothing to do and are bored stiff, or sitting in a nice warm tub after a hard day's work and enjoying a pleasant relaxation. What distinguishes these four situations is, in the first place, the level of arousal and, in the second place, the extent to which a person feels comfortable or not, in other words, the hedonic tone. Apter and Smith generalized such phenomenological occurrences and elaborated them into their reversal theory. One of the fundamental postulates in their theory is: : "... that certain psychological processes, especially certain motivational and emotional processes, exhibit bi-stability rather than homeostasis (i.e. uni-stability). Switching from one stable state to the other in a bi-stable system can be referred to as a "reversal" and may be brought about by a number of different factors." (Apter and Smith, 1979) Both arguments, the one phenomological and the other ethological in character, plead for a bipolar organization of behaviour, as described in the CEL. === 3. Two Metamotivational States and Reversals === {{level|3}} Both states of the bi-stable system in the CEL, following Apter and Smith, are called metamotivational states. They can be seen as "frames of mind" which determine the general phenomenological characteristics of motivation at a certain moment in time: in other words, the individual interprets his own motives in one of two ways. Because states are not motives in themselves but rather organize the motivation, they are called metamotivational states. Both metamotivational states indicate a level of preference as to the variable "level of arousal" or "tension". They are called "telic" and "paratelic", derived from the Greek word "telos" which means goal. In the telic state the individual is serious minded, tries to avoid high arousal and wants to plan and structure the future as much as possible {{Harv|Murgatroyd|1981}}. The phenomenological characteristics of the paraletic state are, in short: to carry out behaviour for the behaviour itself or for the excitement and sensation which this behaviour arouses {{Harv|Apter|1979}}, e.g., impulsiveness, fickle or frivolous behaviour and searching for arousal because it is pleasant in itself {{Harv|Murgatroyd|1981}}. (See table 1.1 for a more elaborate summary of the telic and paratelic state.) The CEL not only postulates, following reversal theory, a complex "control adjustment system" {{Harv|Murgatroyd|1981|p=185}}, but also indicates that the relation between arousal and other variables, such as being full of fear or being full of fun, is much more complex than was generally assumed. This is because, as described above, arousal in the paratelic state is experienced as being exciting and pleasant, and in the telic state as being frightening, unpleasant and as something which has to be avoided. (In table 1.2 this relation between the two metamotivational states and the level of arousal is summarized again.) [[Image:Summary of the telic and paratelic states.png|framed|none|Table 1.1: Summary of the Telic and Paratelic States (from {{Harvnb|Apter|1982|p=52}}).]] [[Image:Experience of arousal in telic and paratelic state.png|framed|none|Table 1.2: Experience of arousal in telic and paratelic state.]] In the last paragraph, a statement by Apter (1979, page 405) was quoted which, among other things, dealt with the "reversals", or changes, from one stable state into the other, that occur with a certain regularity {{Harv|Murgatroyd|1981}}. These reversals can occur under a variety of conditions {{Harv|Murgatroyd|1981}}, but will especially take place when: (a) the individual gets frustrated in one state, or (b) the individual gets satiated in the other state (Van der Molen et al., 1991)<!-- TODO -->. The former (a) takes place in particular in the paratelic state in which the organism seeks tension and accordingly takes risks. Taking risks implies that unexpected things and unforeseen contingencies may happen which can lead to a telic state. Because of the fact that in such a state the person searches for tension or arousal, satiation will not very often be the cause of a reversal. However, a reversal by satiation may occur when the supply of energy gets exhausted (Van der Molen, 1983, 1984, 1985;<!-- TODO --> see also {{Harv|Van der Molen|Stoelhorst|Van Dijk|Maarsingh|1991}}. The reversal from the telic to the paratelic state will more often be caused by satiation, because at a certain moment in time the energy supply is replenished to the extent that the search for situations which offer arousal may continue (Van der Molen, 1983, 1984, 1985)<!-- TODO -->. In the CEL model of Van der Molen et al (1991)<!-- TODO --> the energy dependent basis of motivation is an important explanation for such an interaction between level of arousal and metamotivational state and the reversal from one state into the other. === 4. The Energy Dependent Basis of Motivation: Different Consequences at the Proximal and at the Ultimal Level === {{level|3}} In contrast to most psychological approaches, the concept "allocation of energy" is very important in ethology. Strategies and tactics (e.g. to find food) of various animals are analyzed in the light of the hypothesis: " ... behavioral control mechanisms are designed to maximize the rate of net energy gain" {{Harv|Daly|Wilson|1983|p=39}}. To illustrate the concept we will give two examples to indicate what the term means in ethology. Tits are small birds which are found often in wooded areas in Europe and North-America. These birds remain in the same area the entire year and they breed there in summer. In winter it is hard to find larvae because they are well hidden and irregularly spread. So the tits must have a special strategy which makes finding food as efficient as possible. It seems to be the case that they use a "giving-up time" decision-rule. This means that they look for food only during a specific period of time at a specific place and if by then they have not found anything yet, they give up and look for another place. Krebs et al. (1974) have shown by means of experiments and calculations that this strategy produces the maximal number of food-units within a specific period of time compared to other strategies, such as, for example, examining a pine-cone during a pre-set period of time, or starting to look elsewhere, having found a fixed number of larvae. This is an example in which a number of strategies for collecting food are compared on the basis of their efficiency, and in which the animal appeared to use the most efficient method; the animal allocated energy as efficiently as possible. The next example is completely different, but corresponds with the former in using energy as efficiently as possible. The hermit-crab lives in "discarded" snail-shells and looks for a new house when she grows too large for her current house. If the crab succeeds, she continues to grow. But if the crab does not succeed to find a larger house, she stops her own growth, for a house is necessary in order not to be caught by predators. The energy which normally is put in the growth, now is used to mature sexually. Instead of putting energy in the growth, the crab puts it in reproduction {{Harv|Bertness|1981}}. Van der Molen (1983, 1984, 1985) and Van der Molen et al. (1991) assume that the motivation with specialized learning-animals (human beings), is steering behaviour in such a way that the energy spent is actually utilized in an optimal way. This means that arousal inducing situations will be sought as soon as there is a surplus of energy and that the situation will, if possible, be controlled as soon as the supply threatens to be exhausted (see pp. 4, 5, and 6). The question which now arises is: what are the implications of an energy-efficient learning system? In the first place, it can be said that the energy which is invested in experimenting with new and exciting situations is no longer available for other activities (such as eating). So only when there is a surplus of energy i.e. when there are no other urgent outstanding needs to be fulfilled, can investments be made in learning. This learning should produce long-term results in terms of survival or reproduction (see for instance {{Harvnb|Dawkins|1976}}. When the system results in a more exact, more efficient and more economical representation of the surroundings, especially concerning relevant situations, it contributes to a higher survival value. A side effect of such a learning-system is that eventually energy and time will be available for activities other than those considered to be essential necessities of life. This is so because the surroundings have been mapped out in such a way (cognitively) that one responds to the specific situation in the right way at the right time. When we add the ethological argument used by Van der Molen to the phenomenological argument which was used by Apter (see pp 4, 5, 6), we can draw an important conclusion regarding "cause" and "function" of behaviour (Tinbergen, 1963, 1968). By "cause" Tinbergen means the proximal causes and goals of behaviour and by "function" he means the ultimate causes and effects. The paratelic state results, in the long term, in a surplus of experience (especially in important areas) which in the end is settled down into a refined and extended behavioural repertoire (Van der Molen, 1983, 1984, 1985). In the short term, the main goal is to have fun doing things which are exciting (see for instance Apter, 1976 or 1982). So the behaviour is, at the proximal level, aimed at the principle: just do what is exciting. The effect at the ultimate level of such behaviour (an extended and refined behavioural repertoire) seems to play no part in the proximal motivation of such behaviour. In our view, this is a logical consequence of the observation that learning competes with other activities (e.g. eating) and so should be inviting at the proximal level. Batson et al. (1987, 1988) also ascertain the importance of the distinction between proximal and ultimate results when they study the motivation of altruistic behaviour. From a number of very well organized experiments Batson concludes that altruistic behaviour indeed also appears to exist when the proximal goal of the behaviour is examined and not only the long term results. Now that a clear distinction between proximal and ultimate results and goals has been indicated to be of crucial importance, it seems logical to ask in more detail how exactly learning progresses. === 5. Motivational Sequences, Learning Spirals and Cognitive Areas of Experience === {{level|3}} In figure 1.1 both the metamotivational states and the reversals from one state to the other are represented graphically. The sequence, shown in this figure (fear - relaxation - boredom - excitement - fear, etc) is important for the learning process. [[Image:Reversals between telic and paratelic state.png|framed|none|Figure 1.1. A commonly occurring Motivational Sequence.]] Van der Molen (1984) explains how a behavioural repertoire develops by way of positive and negative learning spirals. If the indicated sequence relaxation - boredom - excitement - fear - relaxation - etc. can be completed often enough, it means that generally speaking there have been sufficient opportunities to achieve relaxation timely and to replenish the energy supply. In this way an individual will develop a behavioural repertoire which functions adequately and in which the various skills have been well consolidated and integrated. As a consequence, the person is (better) able to deal with emergencies and to relax more quickly and effectively, with the result that after some period of time he or she is able again to explore, etc. We label this a positive learning spiral. If, however, the person does not succeed in finding enough moments of relaxation, he or she can replenish his/her energy less often. The individual will then be in the paratelic state less often and consequently will explore less and exhibit telic behaviour more frequently. This results in the person acquiring fewer new skills and practicing "old" skills less often. And being less skillful subsequently lessens the chances of further moments of relaxation. Thus a negative learning spiral develops (figure 1.2). According to this model, skills have the tendency to grow in clusters. Van der Molen calls such clusters, after Grof (1972, 1973, 1976) "clusters of COndensed EXperience" or "COEX-systems" (see figure 1.3). Grof defines a COEX-system as follows: :"A COEX-system can be defined as a specific constellation of memories consisting of condensed experience (and related fantasies) from different life periods of the individual. The memories belonging to a particular system have a similar basic theme or contain similar elements and are associated with a strong emotional charge of the same quality. The nature of these systems varies considerably from one COEX-system to another." Grof distinguishes positive and negative COEX-systems, depending on the emotions connected with the cluster. The reason for such clustering of areas of experience is explained by Van der Molen (1983, 1984, 1985). When certain situations have been explored regularly and the experiences have been processed well, we can speak of a positive COEX-system in which various skills have been incorporated. Such skills can often also be applied in other, comparable situations, so that these too, can turn out to be controllable and manageable. In this way positive experiences can extend to related areas of experience and thus stimulate a positive COEX-system to grow. Poorly processed experiences also have the tendency to grow in clusters. When, in a given situation, there is little exploration and consequently little practice with certain relevant skills, it is more difficult to control that situation if needed, and subsequently it is also more difficult to relax and settle down after solving the problems at hand. [[Image:Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on proper rhythms of telic paratelic alternations.png|framed|none|Figure 1.2 Two possible learning spirals {{Harv|Molen, van der|1984}} in which the development and refining of the behavioural repertoire is the result of positive learning spirals, and in which a rigid and stereotyped way of reacting will be the outcome of negative learning spirals]] This implies a high probability that only few new skills will be learnt, so that the next time the individual finds himself in the same, or a similar situation, he will, most likely, have another problematic experience. This increases the likelihood of telic behaviour (i.e. behaviour for escaping and avoiding) in such situations, resulting in even less experimenting. An example of a negative cluster is the behaviour of somebody who, as a result of his or her shyness, no longer dares to appear in public. By doing so, the fear for such kind of situations will grow, because the familiarity with those situations will diminish, and the person can not properly develop other skills for which he or she needs the help of others in a group context (for instance school tasks). In this way the individual easily ends up in a negative learning spiral in which new experiences are no longer utilised to learn, but rather to strengthen the existing, inadequate avoidance behaviours. Breaking out of such a spiral is very difficult. The most important (and most necessary) condition for this is the ability to acquire relaxation and rest whenever needed, which is necessary for the processing of experiences and replenishing the energy resources. If a number of well-processed areas in which there are well-controlled skills, are in some way related to badly processed areas of experience, those well-processed areas of experience can sometimes serve as a "refuge" when situations become too frightening. Such refuges serve to provide the necessary opportunities for relaxation. [[Image:Outcome of the growth of positive and negative COEX systems.png|framed|none|Figure 1.3 Hypothetical example of the growth of positive (+) and negative (-) systems of COndensed EXperience in the total area of experiences (from: {{Harv|van der Molen|1984}}.]] Here it is important to bear in mind that a positive COEX-system does not necessarily consist of pleasant experiences. It can also be a matter of a positive end result, i.e. the ''good processing'' of negative, unpleasant, experiences. A negative COEX-system consists of ''badly processed'' unpleasant experiences. The term unpleasant can easily lead to misunderstanding. The experiences were unpleasant at that time, but after a while the negative COEX-system may be experienced as intriguing, i.e. when the person is in the paratelic state, precisely because of the arousal elevating characteristics of such a COEX-system. Positive areas of experience are then experienced as boring and thus as less pleasant, for they no longer produce excitement. In the telic state, of course, the situation is reversed. The positive areas of experience will be sought, whereas the negative areas of experience will be experienced as unpleasant and frightening. This difference in the way in which positive and negative COEX-systems are faced, has interesting implications for cognitive development. === 6. Cognitive Development === {{level|3}} Lewicka (1985, 1986, 1987, and 1989) speaks of "standards of goodness" and "standards of badness"; certain standards indicating what kind of behaviour should be pursued and what kind of behaviour should be avoided. Czapinski (1982, 1985, 1986, and 1987) extends this with his research on the judgement of experiences, from which it is evident that, generally speaking, people have a slight "positivity bias". This means that experiences generally acquire a slightly positive emotional value rather than a zero or neutral value (except when they have a specific and very strong emotional value). According to Czapinski one can speak in the cognitive representation of the experiences of a slightly positive background field, against which the negative areas of experience especially stand out. Using these concepts, we can now say more about cognitive development. (see figure 1.4). This figure resembles the figure which van der Molen used to depict Grof's theory of COEX-systems (see the previous paragraph), but is now further specified. The development of the cognitive system can now be described as follows. The areas of experience with the unpleasant connotations, i.e. the areas which have not yet been properly processed and digested (- -), will raise the level of arousal and be accompanied by tension. In the telic state, the well processed areas (+ +) are attractive, because they are controllable in such a way that in the case of an emergency a state of rest can easily be achieved. For such areas we therefore have chosen the term "refuge". In the paratelic state, the not yet well processed areas will be particularly attractive, because the tension they afford will be experienced as pleasant. [[Image:Cognitive representation of areas of experience.png|framed|none|Figure 1.4: Cognitive representation of areas of experience.]] We assume the following: in the paratelic state the borders of the exciting areas are explored, i.e. exploration will occur in those areas that are closest to the area for which there is a "standard of badness" and where there is a relatively high chance of an arousal inducing (and thus also possibly unpleasant) experience. At the proximal level, if things go well, it is however simply a matter of (pleasant) tension and excitement. A consequence of such an exploration then is that the borders of the badly processed areas start to shift; as a result of the positive experiences, parts of the problem area are "nibbled away" and gradually change into well-processed areas. In this way the individual learns and is able to develop further. At the ultimate level we may in a way speak of a "goal" of the paratelic state, namely, "striving after" and gaining new experiences which are necessary for further development. What then happens on the logical-cognitive level? Following the line of argumentation, the experiences should be represented in such a way that the organism acquires precise, relevant and economical schemes of the surroundings (otherwise the gain from the energy spent would not be maximized). Lewicka (1985, 1987, and 1989) concludes that we can say more about this when we make a distinction between sufficient and necessary conditions. Sufficient conditions are conditions which have to be fulfilled in order to attain a certain result. When for instance, somebody wants to boil an egg for his breakfast, a sufficient condition could look like this: # Fill a pan with water. # Place the egg into the pan. # Put the pan on the cooker and turn on the gas. # Once the water is boiling, wait for 4 more minutes. # Turn off the gas and pour the water away. When these conditions are met, the person will indeed get his boiled egg. However, this is not the only way to boil an egg: it could also for instance be boiled in an old can over a camp-fire or in a micro-wave. A (series of) sufficient condition(s) indicate(s) how a certain result can be obtained, but this does not mean that when these conditions are not met, the result cannot possibly be obtained. A necessary condition is a condition which hás to be fulfilled; without that condition a certain result cannot possibly be obtained. A necessary condition in the example of boiling of an egg could be: "heat the egg to a temperature above the coagulation temperature of the white of the egg, just long enough for the heat to penetrate the whole egg". The way in which the egg is heated is not specified, it is in fact unimportant. Only the fact that the egg is heated for a certain period of time is relevant; otherwise it never never will become "boiled". Given the necessary condition(s) for a certain result it is often possible to lay down a varied number of sufficient conditions. Lewicka (1985, 1986, 1987, and 1989) subsequently speaks of "necessity-oriented" and "sufficiency-oriented" procedures (behavioural strategies / -recipes). In the CEL these procedures are treated as a number of "recipes" for behaviour, belonging to a certain COEX-system which are based on sufficient or on necessary conditions. The recipes which are based on conditions (necessity-oriented procedures) are related in particular to those areas of experience which are mapped out thoroughly. The recipes which are based on sufficient conditions (sufficiency-oriented procedures) are conceptually simpler, but in general less economical, because in general more instructions and recipes are then needed and they are less well (causally and logically) integrated (see Van der Molen et al. 1991). What happens eventually at the logical-cognitive level in the optimal case is that, starting from the experiences that exploration has yielded, an all-encompassing necessity-oriented recipe of a higher abstraction level is generated out of the initially acquired sufficiency-recipes. For this to happen it is a prerequisite that there is enough time and relaxation between such situations for the processing and integration of the new experiences. A simple example will clarify this: Imagine John is walking in a forest. He enjoys the surroundings and is completely relaxed. Every now and then he climbs a fence to walk through the pastures or through a piece of fenced-in woodland. Suddenly a horse gallops towards him from out of the wood and without thinking John starts running. Somehow he can escape and not until later he asks himself what exactly has happened. First he hesitates to enter the forest again, but after a while when he has settled down again it seems to him quite exciting (paratelically) and he resolves to constantly stay close to the fences, so that he can escape quickly should that be necessary (refuges in frightening situations). In this way John re-investigates the situation and finds out in which area of the forest the horse is and which area of the forest and which pastures he must try to avoid. Eventually, the excitement of walking is diminished, because he exactly knows where he has to be careful and why. The motivation during the paratelic phase - to explore the forest - eventually disappears because he knows it all. It has become too familiar. In this example, John is unpleasantly surprised and at first reacts frightened upon the entire forest. But by exploring the situation a sufficiency-oriented recipe ("If I walk in the forest, a horse may gallop towards me at any given moment in time") is converted into a necessity-oriented recipe ("Only if I climb that particular fence can the horse gallop towards me"). The consequence hereof is also that John's freedom of movement has increased, for the area to be avoided is clearly reduced. This is represented in figure 1.5. [[Image:Avoidance exploration and reduction of an unpleasant area of experience.png|framed|none|Figure 1.5 Avoidance, exploration, and reduction of an unpleasant area of experience (after positive experiences).]] An area of experience which is first experienced as problematic (unpleasant in the telic phase), gradually reduces in size, as its borders are explored (in the paratelic states) and positive experiences in that marginal area may occur. At the ultimate level the aim of the paratelic behaviour is, to speak in Grof's terms, to convert as many negative COEX-systems as possible into positive ones. In other words, the aim is, among other things, to convert less efficient sufficiency-oriented recipes, connected to badly processed experiences, into highly efficient necessity-oriented recipes which are are in particular connected to well-processed and digested experiences. This means that the representations of the surroundings become more efficient and more economical. It now becomes clear why experiences tend to result in well processed and badly processed clusters. When certain situations have been explored often enough and the experiences have been well-processed, we speak of a positive COEX-system in which skills have been learned that are applicable in different, but comparable or related situations. In such an area of experience the individual can more easily establish positive learning spirals. In a similar way badly processed experiences also tend to grow in clusters; there is a strong likelihood that the next time the individual finds himself in the same, or a similar or related situation, he will experience it as problematic. This raises the probability of telic behaviour in such situations, with the result that less exploration and experimentation will take place. In this way the individual gets caught up in a negative learning spiral in such areas of experience; new experiences cannot be used for learning, but only for strengthening and extending the existing, relatively inefficient behavioural strategies. In terms of figure 1.4 this means that, given such an accumulation of bad experiences, the cognitive representations of the refuges (+ +) remain relatively limited and small and that for the cognitive representation of the problem areas (- -) relatively broader and less efficient margins are maintained. [[Image:Safety margins in the telic state.png|framed|none|Figure 1.6 Safety margins in the telic state. Explanation: the dotted lines indicate the direction in which the circumference of the COEX-systems changes in the case of an unfavourable direction of the learning process.]] Should necessity-oriented recipes of high precision and a high level of abstraction be absent, and relatively many sufficiency-recipes be used instead, the indicated borders in figure 1.4 are less favourable during the telic state. The refuges of well-processed areas are small because of the overly simple, badly generalizable and thus limitedly useful sufficiency-recipes, whereas for the badly processed areas, excessive safety margins are maintained. The individual's freedom of movement is then relatively limited (see figure 1.6). In such a negative learning spiral a negative COEX-system may gradually extend via an accumulation of avoidance reactions which are principally based on sufficiency recipes. These can be generated relatively quickly, but they are also accompanied by relatively large safety margins, with the result that a relatively large area of experience is considered to be risky and scary. === 7. Summary and Conclusions === {{level|3}} In this chapter about the Cognition-Energy-Learning model (CEL), which explains the most essential aspects of the learning process, two arguments have been put forward to support the bi-stable character of motivation. One argument refers in particular to the ultimal effect of an open-ended learning system: the accumulation of a refined and extensive behavioural repertoire. The second argument was purely phenomenological and refers to the fact that the bi-stable character of motivations indeed is reflected in the personal experience of the individual. Subsequently, the energy dependent basis of learning was discussed. The concept of energy allocation was illustrated using a number of examples from ethology which then were applied to the CEL model. The alternating preference for a high or a low level of arousal provides two essential parts of the process of learning: on the one hand the acquisition of new and novel experiences, on the other hand the reserving of time and energy for structuring and processing this experiential knowledge. The alternation of the telic and the paratelic state guarantees that the learning process continues, every time when time as well as energy are available for other matters than for the primary necessities of life. This system thus guarantees that no surplus energy is waisted, but is utilized to increase survival value. Experiences can be problematic or non-problematic. Depending on the meta-motivational state of an individual, an area of experience can be experienced as pleasant and attractive, or as unpleasant. In the telic state problematic areas (for which no adequate behavioural strategies exist yet) will be avoided as much as possible: in the paratelic state, however, they can be a source of (then pleasant) tension and arousal and can thus be attractive to explore. In this way the individual can glean some measure of experience in areas which are (relatively) unknown. And such experiences are a prerequisite for the development of the individual to higher levels of behavioural organization. Non-problematic areas of experience will not be sought in the paratelic state, for they do not produce arousal and are thus considered to be "boring". In the telic state however, these areas are essential for the individual in order to be able to retreat to "common ground" and to relax. Only when a certain amount of rest can be achieved regularly is the individual able to process his or her experiences optimally. There are circumstances in which it is impossible for the ideal sequence of telic-paratelic reversals to occur, because they are too demanding. If such circumstances last too long, this will lead to the establishment of a negative learning spiral which will force the individual into stereotyped and inefficient ways of responding. The likelihood that the negative, problematic experiences within a certain area will spread to other areas will then increase. Hence the term, the "contagiousness" of experiences. This contagiousness of experiences also applies to the positive, well processed and consequently non-problematic experiences. In a positive learning spiral, the individual continually learns new skills which can sometimes be applied to other areas of experience. In this way, the likelihood of having positive experiences increases. Contagiousness of the way in which learning experiences are processed, both in the positive and the negative direction, primarily manifests in areas of experience than are functionally related. However, the principle of contagiousness manifests also in all other areas of experience in their totality. In the next chapter, the CEL-model will be expanded to include two other metamotivational states, namely social contacts and the emotions arising from them. By incorporating these two states, it is possible to describe and explain how the quality of social relationships influences the learning process. == References == {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1976 | title=Negativism in adolescence. The Counsellor | pages=23, 24, 25-30 }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | year=1979 | chapter=Sexual behaviour and the theory of psychological reversals | editor1-last=Cook | editor1-first=M. | editor2-last=Wilson | editor2-first=G. | title=Love and Attraction | place=Oxford | publisher=Pergamon Press }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1982 | title=The experience of motivation. The theory of psychological reversals | place=Londen | publisher=Academic Press }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | chapter=Experiencing personal relationships | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Murgatroyd | editor2-first=D.F.S. | title=Reversal Theory: applications and development | pages=161-178 | place=Cardiff | publisher=University College Cardiff Press | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last1=Apter | first1=M.J. | last2=Smith | first2=K.C.P. | chapter=Experiencing personal relationships | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Murgatroyd | editor2-first=D.F.S. | title=Reversal Theory: applications and development | pages=161-178 | place=Cardiff | publisher=University College Cardiff Press | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Apter | first=M.J. | year=1988 | chapter=Reversal theory as a theory of the emotions | editor1-last=Apter | editor1-first=M.J. | editor2-last=Kerr | editor2-first=J.M. | editor3-last=Cowles | editor3-first=M.P. | title=Progress in Reversal Theory | pages=43-62 | place=Amsterdam | publisher=Elsevier Science Publishers | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Ban | first=T.A. | title=Conditioning and psychiatry | place=London | publisher=Allen and Unwin | year=1964 }} {{Citation | last=Barash | first=D.P. | title=The hare and the tortoise: culture, biology, and human nature | place=New York | publisher=Penguin Inc. | year=1986 }} {{Citation | last=Batson | first=C.D. | contribution=Prosocial motivation: is it ever truly altruistic? | periodical=Advances in Experimental Social Psychology | issue=20 | pages=65-117 | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last1=Batson | first1=C.D. | last2=Dyck | first2=J.C. | last3=Randall Brandt | first3=J. | last4=Batson | first4=J.G. | last5=Powell | first5=A.C. | last6=Mc.Master | first6=H.R. | last7=Griffitt | first7=C. | contributation=Five studies testing two new egoistic alternatives to the empathy-altruism hypothesis. | periodical=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology | issue=55 (1) | pages=52-77 | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Berne | first=E. | title=Beyond games and scripts, selections of this major writings | place=New York | publisher=Ballantine Books | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Bertness | first=M.D. | contribution=Pattern and plasticity in tropical hermit crab growth and reproduction | periodical=American Naturalist | issue=117 | pages=754-773 | year=1881 }} {{Citation | last=Bowlby | first=J. | year=1977 | title=The making and breaking of affectional bonds | periodical=British Journal of Psychiatry | issue=130 | pages=201-210, 421-431 }}<!-- TODO: Verify this reference --> {{Citation | last1=Boyd | first1=R. | last2=Richerson | first2=P.J. | title=Culture and the evolutionary process | place=Chicago | publisher=The University of Chicago Press | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Buck | first=R. | contribution=Prime theory: an integrated view of motivation and emotion | periodical=Psychological Review | issue=92 | pages=389-413 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Butler | first=R.A. | year=1953 | contribution=Discrimination learning in rhesus monkeys to visual exploration motivation | periodical=Behavior Research and Therapy | issue=3 | pages=245-250 }} {{Citation | last=Butler | first=R.A. | year=1954 | contribution=Incentive conditions which influence visual exploration | periodical=Journal of Experimental Psychology | issue=48 | pages=19-23 }} {{Citation | last=Butler | first=R.A. | year=1957 | contribution=The effect of deprivation of visual incentives on visual exploration motivation in monkeys | periodical=Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology | issue=50 | pages=177-179 }} {{Citation | last1=Buunk | first1=B. | last2=Yperen | first2=N. van | last3=Janssen | first3=P. | title=Een nieuwe blik op angst en affiliatie: sociale ondersteuning en stress in organisaties | year=1988 }} {{Citation | last=Campbell | first=D. | contribution=On the genetics of altruism and the counterhedonic in human culture | periodical=Journal of Social Issues | issue=28 | pages=21-37 | year=1972 }} {{Citation | last=Cannon | first=W.B. | title=Bodily changes in pain, hunger, fear and rage | place=New York | publisher=Appleton | year=1932 }} {{Citation | last=Cassel | first=J. | contribution=The contribution of the social environment to host resistance | periodical=American Journal of Epidemiology | issue=104 | pages=107-122 | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Cobb | first=S. | contribution=Social support as a moderator of life stress | periodical=Psochosomatic Medicine | issue=38 | pages=300-314 | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last1=Cohen | first1=S. | last2=Wills | first2=T.A. | contribution=Stress, social support and the buffering hypothesis | periodical=Psychological Bulletin | issue= 98 (2) | pages=310-357 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Positive and negative asymmetry at group and individual level: further evidence and a new interpretation | periodical=Polish Psychological Bulletin | issue=13 (2) | pages=153-158 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Negative bias in psychology: an analysis of Polish publications | periodical=Studia Psuchologiczne | issue=22 (2) | pages=25-53 | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Interpersonal communication, informativeness of evaluations in interpersonal communication: effects of valence, extremity of evaluations and ego-involvement of evaluator | periodical=Polish Psychological Bulletin | issue=7 (3-4) | pages=155-164 | year=1986 }} {{Citation | last=Czapinsky | first=J. | contribution=Informational aspects of positive-negative asymmetry in evaluations | title=Paper delivered in the Small Group Meeting on Social Cognition | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last1=Daly | first1=M. | last2=Wilson | first2=M. | title=Sex, evolution and behavior | edition=2nd | place=Belmont | publisher=Wadsworth Publishing Company | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=R. | year=1976 | title=The Selfish Gene | place=Oxford | publisher=Oxford University Press }} {{Citation | last=Dawkins | first=R. | year=1986 | title=The Blind Watchmaker | place=London | publisher=Penguin Group }} {{Citation | last1=Dean | first1=A. | last2=Ensel | first2=W.M. | contribution=Modelling social support, life events, competence, and depression in the context of age and sex | periodical=Journal of Community Psychology | issue=10 | pages=392-408 | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last=Edelwich | first=J. | title=Burn-out: Stages of disillusionment in the helping professions | place=New York | publisher=Human Scientific Press | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last=Egan | first=G. | title=The skilled helper | place=Monterey | publisher=Brooks/Cole Publishing Company | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last1=Freedman | first1=A.M. | last2=Kaplan | first2=H.I. | last3=Sadock | first3=B.J. | title=Comprehensive textbook of psychiatry/4 | place=Baltimore | publisher=Williams and Williams | year=1975 }} {{Citation | last1=Goduco-Agular | first1=C. | last2=Wintrob | first2=R. | contribution=Folie à famille in the philippines | periodical=Psychiatric Quarterly | issue=38 | pages=278 | year=1964 }} {{Citation | last=Gorp | first=J. van | contribution=Quantity and quality of strokes | editor-last=Stein | editor-first=E. | title=TA, The state of the art, a European contribution | pages=77-89 | place=Dordrecht | publisher=Foris Publications | year=1984 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1972 | title=Varieties of transpersonal experiences: observations from L.S.D. psychotherapy | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=4 | pages=45-80 }} {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1973 | title=Theoretical and empirical basis of transpersonal psychology and psychotherapy: observations from L.S.D. research | periodical=Journal of Transpersonal Psychology | issue=1 }}<!-- TODO: Doesn't correspond to reference in other article --> {{Citation | last=Grof | first=S. | year=1976 | title=Realms of the Human Unconscious. Observations from L.S.D. Research | place=New York | publisher=Dutton }} {{Citation | last=Hamilton | first=W.D. | contribution=The genetical evolution of social behaviour. I & II | periodical=Journal of Theoretical Biology | issue=7 | pages=1-52 | year=1964 }} {{Citation | last1=Henderson | first1=S. | last2=Byrne | first2=D.G. | last3=Duncan-Jones | first3=P. | last4=Scott | first4=R. | last5=Adcock | first5=S. | contribution=Social relationships, adversity, and neurosis: A study of associations in a general population sample | periodical=Journal of Psychiatry | issue=136 | pages=574-583 | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last1=Hoevenaars | first1=J. | last2=Son | first2=M.J.M. van | chapter=Gedragstheorieën over depressiviteit | title=Directieve therapie | pages=108-126 | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=Hornstein | first=H.A. | title=Cruelty and kindness: A new look at aggression and altruism | year=1976 | publisher=Prentice Hall }} {{Citation | last=Hornstein | first=H.A. | title=Promotive tension and prosocial behavior: A Lewinian analysis | year=1978 }} {{Citation | last=Hornstein | first=H.A. | title=Promotive tension: Theory and research | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last1=Husaini | first1=B.A. | last2=Newbrought | first2=J.R. | last3=Neff | first3=J.A. | last4=Moore | first4=M.C. | contribution=The stress-buffering role of social support and personal competence among the rural married | periodical=Journal of Community Psychology | issue=10 | pages=409-426 | year=1982 }} {{Citation | last=Jung | first=C.G. | chapter=The aims of psychotherapy. In "The practice of psychotherapy" | title= Collected Works | volume=16 | publisher=Routledge and Kegan Paul | place=London | year=1954 }} {{Citation | last1=Kaplan | first1=B.H. | last2=Cassel | first2=J.C. | last3=Core | first3=S. | contribution=Social support and health | periodical=Medical Care | issue=15 (Supplement) | pages=47-58 | year=1977 }} {{Citation | last=Kohlberg | first=l. | chapter=Stage and sequence: the cognitive-developmental approach to socialization | editor-last=Gostlin | editor-first=D.A. | title=Handbook of socialization theory and research | place=Chigaco | publisher=Rand Mc.Nally | year=1969 }} {{Citation | last1=Krebs | first1=K.r. | last2=Ryan | first2=J.C. | last3=Charkov | first3=E.l. | contribution=Hunting by expectation or optimal foraging? | periodical=Animal Behaviour | issue=22 | pages=953-964 | year=1974 }} {{Citation | last=Lack | first=D. | title=Population studies of birds | place=Oxford | publisher=Clarendon Press | year=1966 }} {{Citation | last=Lakke | first=J.P.W.F. | title=Inleiding in de neurologie | place=Lochem | publisher=De Tijdstroom | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last1=Lasèque | first1=C. | last2=Falret | first2=J. | contribution=Folie à deux folie à communiquée | periodical=Annual Med. Psychol. | issue=18 | pages=321 | year=1877 }} {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | title=Positive- negative evaluative asymmetry and human cognitive biases (paper) | place=Helsinki | year=1985 }} <!-- paper --> {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | title=Action involvement and action control | year=1986 }} {{Citation | last=Lewicka | first=M. | chapter=On objective and subjective anchoring of cognitive acts | editor1-last=Baker | editor1-first=W.J. | editor2-last=Mos | editor2-first=L.P. | editor3-last=Rappard | editor3-first=H.V. | editor4-last=Stam | editor4-first=H.J. | title=Recent trends in Theoratical Psychology | place=New York | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last=Lewin | first=K. | title=Field theory in social science: selected theoretical papers | editor-last=Cartwright | editor-first=D. | place=New York | publisher=Harper & Row | year=1951 }} {{Citation | last=Marcelissen | first=F.H.G. | title=Gangmakers in the stressproces | place=Leiden | publisher=NIPG/TNO | year=1987 }} {{Citation | last=Mazák | first=V. | title=Prehistoric man: The dawn of our species | place=Prague | publisher=Artia (for the Hamlyn Publishing Group Limited) | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last=Molen, van der | first=P.P. | title=Anxiety, joy and the dynamics of personal growth: on the process of learning in the play and struggle called life | id=HB-77-324-EX | place=Rijks Universiteit Groningen | year=1977 }} {{Citation | last=Molen, van der | first=P.P. | chapter=[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] | editor1-last=Wind | editor1-first=J. | editor2-last=Reynolds | editor2-first=V. | editor3-last=Corlay | editor3-first=R. | title=Essays in human social biology | volume=2 | pages=189-211 | year=1983 | place=Brussels | publisher=V.U.B. Study Series }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1984 | title=Bi-stability of emotions and motivations: An evolutionary consequence of the open-ended capacity for learning | periodical=Acta Biotheoretica | issue=33 | pages=227-251 }} {{Citation | last=Molen | first=P.P. van der | year=1985 | chapter=Learning, self-actualization and psychotherapy | editor1-first=M.J. | editor1-last=Apter | editor2-first=D. | editor2-last=Fontana | editor3-first=S. | editor3-last=Murgatroyd | title=Reversal Theory: Applications and Developments | pages=103-116 | place=Cardiff, U.K. | publisher=University College Cardiff Press }} {{Citation | last=Montgomery | first=K.C. | contribution=Exploration behavior as a function of 'similarity' of stimulus situations | periodical=Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology | issue=46 | pages=129-133 | year=1953 }} {{Citation | last=Murgatroyd | first=S.J. | contribution=A new perspective on crises counselling | periodical=British Journal of Guidance and Counselling | issue=9, (2) | pages=180-193 | year=1981 }} {{Citation | last1=Myers | first1=A.K. | last2=Miller | first2=N.E. | contribution=Failure to find a learned drive based on hunger; evidence for learning motivated by 'exploration' | periodical=Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology | issue=47 | pages=428-436 | year=1954 }} {{Citation | last1=Newman | first1=B.M. | last2=Newman | first2=P.R. | title=Development through life: A psychological approach | place=Homewood | publisher=Dorsey Press | year=1979 }} {{Citation | last1=Parreren | first1=C.F. | last2=Carpay | first2=J.A.M. | title=Leerpsychologie en onderwijs 4: Sovjetpsychologen over onderwijs en cognitieve ontwikkeling | place=Groningen | publisher=Wolters Noordhoff | year=1980 }} {{Citation | last1=Piliavin | first1=J.A. | last2=Piliavin | first2=I.M. | title=The good samaritan: Why does he help? | place=University of Winconsin-Madison | publisher=Unpublished manuscript | year=1973 }} {{Citation | last1=Piliavin | first1=J.A. | last2=Dovidio | first2=J.F. | last3=Gaertner | first3=S.L. | last4=Clark | first4=R.D. | title=Emergency intervention | place=New York | publisher=Academic Press | year=1981 }} {{Citation | last=Postle | first=D. | title=Synergy: creativity in interpersonal relations, mapping the terrain of cooperation | place=The Wentworth Institute | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=Rogers | first=C.R. | title=Mens worden, de visie van een psychotherapeut op persoonlijke groei | place=Utrecht | publisher=Bijleveld | year=1976 }} {{Citation | last=Shapiro | first=H.L. | title=Man, culture, and society | place=London; New York | publisher=Oxford University Press | year=1981 }} {{Citation | last=Swensen | first=L.H. | chapter=Ego development and the interpersonal relationships | editor-last=Nevill | editor-first=D.D. | title=Humanistic psychology, new frontiers | place=New York | publisher=Gardner Press | year=1977 }} {{Citation | last=Thoits | first=P.A. | contribution=Life stress, social support, and psychological vulnerability: Epidemiological considerations | periodical=Journal of Community Psychology | issue=10 | pages=341-362 | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Thoits | first=P.A. | chapter=Social support and psychological well-being: theoretical possibilities | editor1-last=Sarason | editor1-first=I.G. | editor2-last=Sarason | editor2-first=B.R. | title=Social Support: Theory, Research and Applications | place=Dordrecht | publisher=Martnus Nijhoff Publishers | year=1985 }} {{Citation | last=Tinbergen | first=N. | contribution=On aims and methods of ethology | periodical=Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie | issue=20 | pages=410-433 | year=1963 }} {{Citation | last=Tinbergen | first=N. | contribution=On war and peace in animals and man | periodical=Science | issue=160 | pages=1411-1418 | year=1968 }} {{Citation | last=Trivers | first=R.L. | contribution=The evolution of reciprocal altruism | periodical=Quarterly Review of Biology | issue=46 | pages=35-37 | year=1971 }} {{Citation | last=Turner | first=R.J. | chapter=Direct, indirect, and moderating effects of social support upon psychological distress and associated conditions | editor-last=Kaplan | editor-first=H.B. | title=Psychological stress: trends in theory and research | place=New York | publisher=Academic Press | year=1983 }} {{Citation | last=Wever | first=D. | title=Biopsychologische aspecten van gemotiveerd gedrag | publisher=Ongepubliceerd | place=Rijks Universiteit Groningen | year=1989 }} {{Citation | last=White | first=R.W. | contribution=Motivation considered: The concept of competence | periodical=Psychological Review | issue=66 | pages=297-333 | year=1959 }} {{Citation | last=Williams | first=G.C. | title=Adaptation and natural selection | place=Princeton, N.J. | publisher=Princeton University Press | year=1966 }} {{Citation | last=Wynne-Edwards | first=V.C. | title=Animal dispersion in relation to social behaviour | place=Edinsburgh | publisher=Oliver and Boyd | year=1962 }} ==Research Reports and Prepublications on this subject== {{Citation | last1=Dennen, v.d. | first1=J.M.G. | last2=Molen, v.d. | first2=P.P. | year=1981 | title=Violent Aggression as a Social Unskill: Notes on the Psychopathology of Everyday Life | place=Polemological Institute, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) | }} {{Citation | last1=Molen, v.d. | first1=P.P. | last2=Dennen, v.d. | first2=J.M.G. | year=1981 | contribution=Striving, Playing and Learning: An Ethologists View on Aggression and the Dynamics of Learning in the Play and Struggle called "Life" | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-81-551-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} <!-- Presented at the First Congress of the European Section of the International Society for Research on Aggression (I.S.R.A.), sept.1981, at Strassburg, France, and at the Second Meeting of the European Sociobiological Society (E.S.S.), febr.1983, at Leusden, Netherlands --> {{Citation | last1=Maarsingh | first1=B. | last2=Molen, v.d. | first2=P.P. | year=1990 | contribution=Energie en Strokes: de Wisselwerking tussen de kwaliteit van sociale relaties en de individuele ontwikkeling | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-90-1004-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} {{Citation | last1=Molen, v.d. | first1=P.P. | last2=Dijk, v. | first2=C. | last3=Maarsingh | first3=B. | last4=Stoelhorst | first4=P. | year=1990 | contribution=Naar een Cognetief-Energetisch Leermodel; over de bi-stabiele organisatie van emoties en het effect daarvan op de ontwikkeling van copingvaardigheden en cognitie; een integratie van de theorieën van Lazarus, Apter, Van der Molen en Lewicka | periodical=Heymansbulletin | id=HB-90-1012-EX | place=Dept. of Psychology, Rijks Universiteit Groningen (R.U.G.) }} 4fdy0jek1x63m1c8kd0606nt2jcpwfy 1 351 4426 4179 2012-12-15T14:32:51Z BigSmoke 1 /* Figures and their reuse */ fig 5b and 6 wikitext text/x-wiki == Figures and their reuse == [[User:BabyBoy|BabyBoy]], See below some notes accompanying the digitizing of the scans of tables/figures that you sent me and the matching of such as already digitized. – [[User:BigSmoke|BigSmoke]] 16:00, 22 July 2012 (UTC) * '''Figure 1''' <tt>[DOC099.PDF,p.1 / DOC118.PDF (DOC094.PDF & DOC095.PDF were ignored on your advice)]</tt>: Instead of turning it into a vector drawing and then exporting it as a bitmap, I've cleaned it up with the GIMP (an bitmap manipulation program) and uploaded it as ''[[:File:Topological Model of Agonistic Behaviour.png]]''. * '''Figure 2''' <tt>[DOC099.PDF,p.2 / DOC114.PDF]</tt>: Again, worked directly from a cleaned up version of the scan and redid the hand-written “Arousal” axis to be somewhat consistent with the rest of the figure: ''[[:File:Butterfly catastrophes.png|Butterfly catastrophes.png]]. * '''Figure 3''' ** '''Figure 3a (table)''' <tt>[DOCUMENT119.PDF]</tt>, I already digitized as ''[[:Image:Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png|Pleasant_and_unpleasant_experiences_of_high_and_low_arousal.png]]'' for ''[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Evo. Stab.]]'' and ''[[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model|CEL]]''. ** '''Figure 3a (diagram)''' <tt>[DOCUMENT100.PDF]</tt>, I only have combined with a table that resembles '''Fig. 3a (table)'''/<tt>DOCUMENT119.PDF</tt>: ''[[:Image:Telic and paratelic pleasantness of different arousal levels.png|Telic and paratelic pleasantness of different arousal levels.png]]''. I've used the combined version, although it may be a bit redundant. It wouldn't be terribly difficult to make a version which replaces the in-figure table with the table from <tt>DOCUMENT119.PDF</tt>. Think about it a bit. ** '''Figure 3b.''' <tt>[DOCUMENT120.PDF]</tt> was also already digitized as ''[[:Image:Reversal between preferred level of arousal.png|Reversal between preferred level of arousal.png]]'' for ''[[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning|Evo. Stab.]]''. ** '''Figure 3c.''' <tt>[DOCUMENT115.PDF]</tt> is one of the butterfly figures that I just updated as per your request with explanatory text along the edges of the arrows: ''[[:Image:Reversals between telic and paratelic state.png|Reversals between telic and paratelic state.png]]''. * '''Figure 4''' <tt>[DOCUMENT121.PDF]</tt>, I completely redid as a vector graphic in Inkscape. I changed the layout to more so resemble a table and at the same time be more graphical with a scariness gradient and slanted arrows: ''[[:Image:Redigesting initially aversive experiences.png|Redigesting initially aversive experiences.png]]''. * '''Figure 5''' ** '''Figure 5a.''' <tt>[Figure 8 in DOCUMENT113.PDF]</tt>, already digitized as ''[[:File:Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on proper rhythms of telic paratelic alternations.png|Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on proper rhythms of telic paratelic alternations.png]]''. ** '''Figure 5b.''' <tt>[DOCUMENT116.PDF]</tt> took half a day to re-do as a vector drawing in InkScape. Made some changes, like adding in a real spiral: ''[[:File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png]]''. * '''Figure 6.''' <tt>[DOCUMENT097.PDF, DOCUMENT098.PDF]</tt>, built upon the vector work already done for Fig. 5, so it took only an additional hour or so: ''[[:File:Positive and negative learning spirals simplified.png]]''. 9rgdz8tlx77zf61slsx0h4nsqh0f9z4 6 352 4136 2012-07-22T16:43:24Z BigSmoke 1 Scan <tt>[Document118; 099, 094 & 095 were ignored]</tt>, cleaned up with the GIMP to achieve true whiteness and such. wikitext text/x-wiki Scan <tt>[Document118; 099, 094 & 095 were ignored]</tt>, cleaned up with the GIMP to achieve true whiteness and such. jrgoldu5swemyu4215x9twiw8d2htzl 2012-07-22T16:43:24Z BigSmoke 1 Scan <tt>[Document118; 099, 094 & 095 were ignored]</tt>, cleaned up with the GIMP to achieve true whiteness and such. Topological_Model_of_Agonistic_Behaviour.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Topological_Model_of_Agonistic_Behaviour.png 145053 nseo2thvvwew7g3vq6dqnet3obk8h6j Topological_Model_of_Agonistic_Behaviour.png 6 353 4142 2012-07-22T17:34:47Z BigSmoke 1 Remastered using the GIMP <tt>[from Document099.PDF, p. 2 & Document114.PDF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki Remastered using the GIMP <tt>[from Document099.PDF, p. 2 & Document114.PDF]</tt> 4234tabx1a3qesksdvpqhm2p7h5ktgb 2012-07-22T17:34:47Z BigSmoke 1 Remastered using the GIMP <tt>[from Document099.PDF, p. 2 & Document114.PDF]</tt> Butterfly_catastrophes.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Butterfly_catastrophes.png 209078 q4wsvqadaivvn8b37uwa79zn60v47yh Butterfly_catastrophes.png 0 354 4168 2012-07-25T16:43:06Z Baby Boy 2 Created page with 'Info Hans van der Dennen: http://rint.rechten.rug.nl/rth/dennen/dennen.htm' wikitext text/x-wiki Info Hans van der Dennen: http://rint.rechten.rug.nl/rth/dennen/dennen.htm 7xnwp32y5ld651i7hsvko222x3ep97h 6 355 4172 2012-07-28T11:30:40Z BigSmoke 1 Vector image, freely interpreted from Popko's scan <tt>[Document121.PDF]</tt>, with some added graphics juice. wikitext text/x-wiki Vector image, freely interpreted from Popko's scan <tt>[Document121.PDF]</tt>, with some added graphics juice. h6fvo77a28rmgieaol58ucun61x01dt 2012-07-28T11:30:40Z BigSmoke 1 Vector image, freely interpreted from Popko's scan <tt>[Document121.PDF]</tt>, with some added graphics juice. Redigesting_initially_aversive_experiences.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Redigesting_initially_aversive_experiences.png 44977 eqze5e6fy79rhrudvnroy3sumvdhjcd Redigesting_initially_aversive_experiences.png 6 356 6990 4422 2017-02-11T13:33:22Z BigSmoke 1 BigSmoke uploaded a new version of [[File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png]] wikitext text/x-wiki Vector drawing, adapted from Popko's scans (<tt>Document099.PDF</tt>, <tt>Document116.PDF</tt> and <tt>Document179.PDF</tt>), with some added InkScape juice. hllvxnl10buaa1a0bicf2voabypivct 2012-12-15T13:34:38Z BigSmoke 1 Vector drawing, adapted from Popko's scans (<tt>Document099.PDF</tt>, <tt>Document116.PDF</tt> and <tt>Document179.PDF</tt>), with some added InkScape juice. Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals.png 20170211133322!Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20170211133322%21Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals.png 175001 7sb5w4oo5umknwfhd4bsrn1nqvdtifz archive/20170211133322!Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals.png 2017-02-11T13:33:22Z BigSmoke 1 There was an error in the lower half of the figure. I changed “Proper telic/paratelic alternations” there into “Improper telic/paratelic alternations”. Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals.png 157451 9e3x319i0c26kxwpdagpuuo7mt1i1nd Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals.png 6 357 4424 2012-12-15T14:24:45Z BigSmoke 1 InkScape vector drawing, adapted from [[:File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png]] and some of poko's scans [<tt>Document099.PDF</tt> p.4, <tt>Document097.PDF</tt>, and <tt>Document098.PDF</tt>]. wikitext text/x-wiki InkScape vector drawing, adapted from [[:File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png]] and some of poko's scans [<tt>Document099.PDF</tt> p.4, <tt>Document097.PDF</tt>, and <tt>Document098.PDF</tt>]. 09101ypeppguvgnni2trsrqoopraj0i 2012-12-15T14:24:45Z BigSmoke 1 InkScape vector drawing, adapted from [[:File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png]] and some of poko's scans [<tt>Document099.PDF</tt> p.4, <tt>Document097.PDF</tt>, and <tt>Document098.PDF</tt>]. Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals_simplified.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals_simplified.png 97782 qodke8cc2h73qzc182pxh6c3h8w8ezf Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals_simplified.png 0 358 4523 2012-12-29T06:33:32Z Baby Boy 2 Created page with 'This page still needs to be added. This page will consist of the figures as presented at the 1992 EAPP conference at Groningen University.' wikitext text/x-wiki This page still needs to be added. This page will consist of the figures as presented at the 1992 EAPP conference at Groningen University. dtpbtgemvoy3vle66dawqfbxkn9v8nt 0 359 4964 2013-02-04T10:47:03Z BigSmoke 1 moved [[Personality of Mice and Men; re-arranging personality dimensions in a six-dimensional adjective space]] to [[Personality of Mice and Men]]:&#32;A bit longish wikitext text/x-wiki #REDIRECT [[Personality of Mice and Men]] ko1umxg794j79du76wglsk3essg0qw8 8 360 5035 5034 2013-02-06T14:21:06Z BigSmoke 1 Fix borders around td in table 3 in mice and men css text/css /* CSS placed here will be applied to all skins */ table.mice-and-men { border-collapse: collapse; border: 1px solid black; } table.mice-and-men th { /* scope=col is the default */ padding: 2pt 8pt; text-align: center; font-weight: bold; border-bottom: 1px solid black; } table.mice-and-men th.corner { border-right: 1px solid black; } table.mice-and-men th[scope=row] { padding: 2pt 8pt; border-right: 1px solid black; border-bottom: none; font-weight: bold; text-align: left; } table.mice-and-men td { padding: 2pt 8pt; text-align: center; } table.mice-and-men.table2 th[scope=row]:first-child { border-right: none; } table.mice-and-men.table3 td { border: 1px solid black; } table.mice-and-men.table7 th { background-color: #cecece; } table.mice-and-men.table7 th, table.mice-and-men.table7 td { border-right: 1px solid #888; } table.mice-and-men.table7 tr:nth-child(even) td { background-color: #ccf; } table.mice-and-men.table7 td.hsep { height: 30px; border-top: 1px solid black; border-bottom: 1px solid black; border-right: 1px solid white; border-left: 1px solid white; } table.mice-and-men.table7 th:nth-child(2), table.mice-and-men.table7 th:nth-child(n+4), table.mice-and-men.table7 td:nth-child(2) { color: #056; } table.mice-and-men.table7 td:nth-child(2) { font-weight: bold; } table.mice-and-men.table7 td:nth-child(3) { text-align: left; } 2kl1mw9nhqo74p7vmknx7y4fs469b7e 6 361 5009 2013-02-05T23:47:55Z BigSmoke 1 PNG version of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document133.DPF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki PNG version of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document133.DPF]</tt> qkev2lfnt7gzzrnldry3no2ld155qyu 2013-02-05T23:47:55Z BigSmoke 1 PNG version of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document133.DPF]</tt> Two_dimensions_of_social_interactive_behaviour.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Two_dimensions_of_social_interactive_behaviour.png 26242 f5iqbq9dekyylos1gqy25l41j5oi8ti Two_dimensions_of_social_interactive_behaviour.png 6 362 5013 2013-02-06T00:15:40Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document134.PDF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of Inkscape interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document134.PDF]</tt> 7m2r3e8uwv54eeqz54kip287zmxndop 2013-02-06T00:15:40Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document134.PDF]</tt> Two_sets_of_basic_biological_urges_and_their_balance.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Two_sets_of_basic_biological_urges_and_their_balance.png 49929 c3as1eirgz8axq21qkd7gw4kjsns7mb Two_sets_of_basic_biological_urges_and_their_balance.png 6 363 5015 2013-02-06T00:24:33Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document135.PDF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of Inscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document135.PDF]</tt> fiaptrggyoshj16uwu37s0xt9q5pxkq 2013-02-06T00:24:33Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document135.PDF]</tt> Feij_extraversion_and_sensation_seeking.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Feij_extraversion_and_sensation_seeking.png 39925 ne7gjdyg23awkd7zgvvymsfxceg87wn Feij_extraversion_and_sensation_seeking.png 6 364 5017 2013-02-06T11:27:40Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document126.PDF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document126.PDF]</tt> 6w2aj4olniegqi1sw2c831ens50uncx 2013-02-06T11:27:40Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document126.PDF]</tt> Social-role_types_and_skills.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Social-role_types_and_skills.png 86466 erfgl9b26b1b5vh4qsboyvwj5dhayg2 Social-role_types_and_skills.png 6 365 5019 2013-02-06T11:50:17Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document127.PDF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document127.PDF]</tt> ehyr7jvmj6ldm5gui3blxe9kjefap63 2013-02-06T11:50:17Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document127.PDF]</tt> Social-role_types_and_skills_(simple).png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Social-role_types_and_skills_%28simple%29.png 46876 6z0m4s753w4ajsixjj09xxfcq4c3kef Social-role_types_and_skills_(simple).png 6 366 5022 5021 2013-02-06T12:23:37Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[File:Personality domains.png]]":&#32;Scaled down version wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document130.PDF]</tt> 8wzspox2jaqs7skbwbwoa8wqjd053qb 2013-02-06T12:18:37Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document130.PDF]</tt> Personality_domains.png 20130206122337!Personality_domains.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20130206122337%21Personality_domains.png 65509 cuiarc3dkaoimm523n0l5tso5jjc5dh archive/20130206122337!Personality_domains.png 2013-02-06T12:23:37Z BigSmoke 1 Scaled down version Personality_domains.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Personality_domains.png 41991 nkgkpzb06zq88j2oe7pq3eofcsx9p1o Personality_domains.png 6 367 5024 2013-02-06T12:46:51Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document122.PDF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document122.PDF]</tt> nsnrekhluueq1y9qugvey1qdnock1nh 2013-02-06T12:46:51Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document122.PDF]</tt> Anchoring_dimensions.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Anchoring_dimensions.png 19634 ddur2ny69osst7wvkf3egl3bl3fzi1f Anchoring_dimensions.png 6 368 5029 2013-02-06T14:10:10Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document.157.PDF/Document158.PDF]</tt> wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document.157.PDF/Document158.PDF]</tt> 423p812lizx8szag2swef6mlu8a1idg 2013-02-06T14:10:09Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of Inkscape vector interpretation of Popko's scan <tt>[Document.157.PDF/Document158.PDF]</tt> Dynamics_of_temperaments_and_social_behaviour.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Dynamics_of_temperaments_and_social_behaviour.png 133948 tozk1tntul184gnvkkj730x1eubs7k2 Dynamics_of_temperaments_and_social_behaviour.png 0 370 5083 2013-02-15T23:49:19Z Baby Boy 2 Created page with 'Refer to the article by Ehrlich and Ehrlich (2013): [[http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/280/1754/20122845.full]] Dat gaat over de gevaarlijke afgronden waar de huidi…' wikitext text/x-wiki Refer to the article by Ehrlich and Ehrlich (2013): [[http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/280/1754/20122845.full]] Dat gaat over de gevaarlijke afgronden waar de huidige mensheid regelrecht op afstormt. 7xww3d8wp7frzy9uc6wzd2jgrd8p367 6 371 5089 2013-02-17T22:29:59Z Baby Boy 2 HZZ 3 aapjes wikitext text/x-wiki HZZ 3 aapjes 0oobpdgpagpsb6jnvcrfmi6jf36powx 2013-02-17T22:29:59Z Baby Boy 2 HZZ 3 aapjes HZZ_3_aapjes.jpg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/HZZ_3_aapjes.jpg 317522 9mp0syl07zi21wso7y3t4g8sy9r56r3 HZZ_3_aapjes.jpg 6 372 5735 5734 2014-01-08T22:08:20Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[File:HZZ 3 aapjes.jpeg]]":&#32;Moved text wikitext text/x-wiki phoiac9h4m842xq45sp7s6u21eteeq1 2013-02-17T22:38:47Z Baby Boy 2 HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 20140108214644!HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20140108214644%21HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 317522 9mp0syl07zi21wso7y3t4g8sy9r56r3 archive/20140108214644!HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 2014-01-08T21:46:44Z BigSmoke 1 Cleaned it up a little and translated NL to EN. HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 20140108220305!HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20140108220305%21HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 340623 l7zl461lnu43txvesykdj4v0b4hhr2g archive/20140108220305!HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 2014-01-08T22:03:05Z BigSmoke 1 Removed ugly dark borders HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 20140108220820!HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20140108220820%21HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 328947 gkj90vmrw1f5waxljrix96g89um4s0e archive/20140108220820!HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 2014-01-08T22:08:20Z BigSmoke 1 Moved text HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 333337 7f2okeswxakmp6vy9te6q6jibv5djdc HZZ_3_aapjes.jpeg 6 373 5094 2013-02-17T22:47:57Z Baby Boy 2 HZZ Hans vd Sande wikitext text/x-wiki HZZ Hans vd Sande e62dssoqfdbcptqgui64tuwxtt0pxkw 2013-02-17T22:47:57Z Baby Boy 2 HZZ Hans vd Sande HZZ_Hans_vd_Sande.jpeg http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/HZZ_Hans_vd_Sande.jpeg 175065 kynafb3oxswvaq8z0lncc4ew6bcdheu HZZ_Hans_vd_Sande.jpeg 0 374 6016 6015 2015-08-13T05:41:05Z Baby Boy 2 /* Conclusions */ wikitext text/x-wiki ********** ''This chapter is still under construction / picture of fighting mice'' == Introduction == {{level|2}} This chapter relates some interesting findings from ethological observations on house mice, Mus musculus, findings that were found by coincidence. Some of the training schedules for introduction-mice did not work as expected, not in line with the purpose of that type of training. While figuring out how to prevent the training schedules from turning out faulty, it was found, surprisingly, that severely aversive experiences did not necessarily always result in avoidance behaviour. The same aversive experiences training schedule could produce either stereotyped and highly predictable cowards or, contrary to that, highly skilled and less predictable heroes. These two extreme and opposite phenotypes were the result of the same training pattern, always aversive and always, at every instance, ending in outright disaster and sheer panic of the trainee. == Findings == What happened was the following. {{level|2}} In 1972 we were studying with ethological methods the behaviour of groups of 6 resident house mice, 4 brothers and 2 sisters, stemming from the same litter, in a population cage with ample space and climbing devices, ropes, cages, sawdust, a gauze roof, escape devices, food- and drink boxes, etc. See fig. 1. [[Image:Large mice observation cage.png|framed|'''Fig. 1.''']] Because we were aiming to find out about "stable personality characteristics", if any, in house mice, we tried to minimize the behavioural differences, stemming from learning processes. Therefore the groups of mice studied were always of the same composition and with the same upbringing and history. In order to observe the group under different circumstances, in the first place in peaceful circumstances and in the second place while being visited by an intruder, we needed a standard social intruder-stimulus for these resident groups . And that "intruder" stimulus should be as standardized as possible in order not to introduce unnecessary and not planned variation from outside sources. The objective of these ethological observations of resident groups of house mice was to study differences in behaviour between male house mice that could be classified as differences in "personality". We could get more reliable data on the interpersonal behaviour patterns if the stimuli from the environment under the various circumstances, would be, for the resident mice, every time the same, as much as possible. One rather uniform social stimulus could be provided by introducing for a short period of time, 5 to 10 minutes, an unfamiliar male introduction mouse that had been trained to react completely paranoia, and thus stereotyped, when introduced into the group of 6 residents. What we did to make sure that the introduction mice, 60 males from a CPB's strain, would show highly similar behaviour every time when introduced for a short period of time, was to give these mice a training beforehand until their reactions while being introduced were highly stereotyped and predictable. They were in fact made completely paranoia for being introduced into such a resident population (case '''"C"''' in the table below). Male intruders were introduced regularly into the population-cages for some five or ten minutes. Half of the protocols were obtained while such an intruder was present in the observation cage. In order to standardize this type of stimulus on the resident mica as much as possible, the guest-mice were trained beforehand in such a way that they showed continuous avoidance behaviour when introduced. This was very easily realized in the following way: About 60 male trainees of the CPB's strain were weaned and isolated at the age of 21 days. One or more weeks before they were needed to provide a standardized introduction stimulus, they were introduced every other or every second day into an unfamiliar observation cage, populated by a group of 6 resident mice that showed territorial aggressive behaviour towards strangers. Being outnumbered at least four to one and being on foreign territory, a trainee never had a chance to win and therefore was beaten up every time when introduced. Such a trainee -introduction was stopped as soon as the trainee showed panicky behaviour such as frequently jumping high, running around frantically, bumping into resident mice and other objects and avoiding social contact as much as possible. The trainee was never removed before such extreme behaviour was shown, which was always the case within a few minutes. The trainees were often slightly wounded while being introduced. After five to ten days of training, these trainees immediately showed avoidance behaviour when being introduced, even when not under attack by any resident mouse at all. The earlier social experience of these male "trainees" consisted of ordinary maternal care in a litter until the age of 21 days, during which period of time no other adult mouse was present. After being weaned at the age of 21 days, they were kept in isolation for a shorter or longer period with water and food supplied ad libitum, and subsequently they were trained as described above. So, before their training, they were kept without further social experience, apart from the first 3 weeks with their mother. They were utterly inexperienced youngsters when entering in this training schedule in order to become standardized paranoia. There seemed, however, to be some sort of "critical training frequency", i.e. if the periods of rest in isolation between the training introductions were too long, the effect of the whole training was the opposite of what was aimed at. ******** about here: picture of fighting mice ****************** If a trainee was introduced for "training" once every week or once every second week instead of every day, he tended to put up extremely severe resistance . Such a male did not attack residents, refrained from "fleeing frantically" and appeared to "stand firm" when necessary (case '''"D"''' in the table below). For this reason, trainees who had not been "trained" for some time became worthless for providing standardized introduction stimuli. By manipulating only the "training-frequency" or "resting-in-isolation period", trainees could be transformed from inexperienced males into either "fearful fleeing males" or into "skilled fighters", the opposite. It should be remembered that neither type of trainee was ever allowed to win a fight. During every introduction in their training period they had to fight against heavy odds. "Skilled fighters" simply managed to hold out and fight back now and then without continuously "running for their lives". With the above described procedure trainees became either more skilled in fighting or more fearful than unexperienced males. Furthermore, inexperienced males varied more in their reaction patterns than did either of the two classes of trainees. This made sense, because the training was aimed at reducing the variation in behaviour in the first place. Once a male had become a "skilled fighter" (case '''"D"''' in the table below), it was very difficult to turn him back into a "fearful fleer" again (case '''"C"''' in the table below). To achieve this required a very harsh and frequent training schedule with more intense (longer) beatings and short resting periods (initially a couple of hours), but even so he would never again reach the same old reliable predicability as a "fearful fleer". The skill of fighting could apparently only be suppressed with difficulty for a limited period of time once it had been learned. The acquisition of skills apparently is very much a one way process that can hardly be undone or reversed. In order to find out more about this phenomenon, out of a total amount of 60 trainees, some 20 males were on purpose turned into "skilled fighters". Once we had obtained the hang of it, we could easily produce either standardized cowards or heroic fighters. Apparently the type of (always aversive) experience in question can lead to different learning processes, depending on the input frequency of the experience. The one direction in the learning spiral leads to intensive avoidance reactions, the other direction leads to increasing skill in offering resistance. What also should be noted, is that both learning effects were strongly "cumulative". A fearful fleeer would show panicky behaviour ever earlier, even in still peaceful circumstances and at the other side of the scale a "hero" would put up resistance better and better after more training sessions, until it would take an avalanche of attacks by various opponents simultaneously to bring him finally to full fledged fleeing behaviour. Evidently we are dealing here with vicious spirals in two opposite directions. And these vicious learning spirals can reverse into one another, thus reversing the effect of the experiences. However, this phenomenon is far from symmetric. Acquiring skills is more stable than acquiring stereotyped avoidance reflexes. A possible explanation of this phenomenon may be found in the influence of fearful experiences on the hormone production. Fear reduces the testosterone-level and with it probably the tendency to put up resistance when provoked (Bermond, 1977); long training intervals allow the hormone level to return to normal, but when the intervals between the fearful experiences are too short, the effects accumulate. Eleftheriou and Church demonstrated this for mice (1968), and Rose(1972) for Rhesus monkeys. Thus the pattern in time of experiences appears to be of great importance for the eventual effect of the experience! Besides, individual mice differed in their "critical digestion-time" for this type of experience. Some males of this CPB's strain became "fighters" after three-day training intervals, whereas others remained reliable "fleeers" after five-day training intervals. So, for inexperienced males of the CPB's strain this "critical digestion time" varied between two and six days. If males had grown up in more "natural"circumstances, i.e. in a social group, they varied greatly in their reactions when introduced into a strange "group" as described above. In general males with a background of "normal" social experience were rather well able to hold out against such an avalanche of territorial aggression. Apparently such a "normal" social history provided ample opportunity for these mice to "digest" their aggressive encounters in such a way that they became skilled in dealing with agonistic social situations as with most other situations that could be considered "normal" for these mice. == Conclusions == {{level|2}} 1) Male mice can easily be trained in such a way that they perform a uniform type of avoidance behaviour when introduced into a strange environment, inhabited by resident mice. 2) The training that is required for turning an inexperienced male into a "coward" is almost the same as the training needed to turn him into a "hero". The only difference is that in the former training schedule less "digestion time" is available for every experience than in the latter. 3) This "critical digestion time" or "recovery period" varies somewhat between individuals 4) The acquisition of skills is very much a one way process that can hardly be undone or reversed. {| class="mice-and-men table3" |+ '''Behaviour of male mice during introductions in a resident population''' |- ! scope="col" colspan="2" class="corner" | Previous Experience ! scope="col" width="100px"| Ability to withstand attacks from residents ! scope="col" width="100px"| Variance in behaviour during introduction |- ! scope="row"| Grown up in a "normal" social setting ! scope="row"| '''(A)''' | '''Good''' | '''Very large''' |- ! scope="row"| Isolated from the third week on ! scope="row"| '''(B)''' | width="100px"| '''Modest''' | width="100px"| '''Large''' |- ! scope="row"| Same, but introduced with '''short''' time intervals (Cowards) ! scope="row"| '''(C)''' | '''Nihil''' | '''Very small''' |- ! scope="row"| Same, and introduced with '''long''' time intervals (Heroes) ! scope="row"| '''(D)''' | '''Very good''' | '''Small''' |- |} == Discussion == {{level|2}} What is most striking about these relatively simple and straightforward experimental results is that it did not depend at all on the outcome of the agonistic encounters what was the result of the experience of the mice. Whether it was a terrible experience or a success experience apparently did not matter very much. All experiences were effectively controlled for ending in personal disaster and agony invariably. The only differences between the introduction encounters were how much time it took before the introduced male mouse was beaten up and ended up in fearfull fleeing behavior. With the "cowards" that only took a few seconds to a few minutes. With the "heroes" that would take quite a while longer, up to several, 5 to 10, minutes. And cowards would tend to become ever more stereotyped cowards after repeated training whereas heroes would become more and more heroic with time and with accumulating experiences, no matter how aversive they all were. So, the results of the learning processes did result in quite opposite phenotypes, in either "always frightfully fleeing at first sight and only showing panicky and ineffective escape attempts", or in "skilled fighters". The latter would ''also'' always end up in a negative and aversive social experience, being beaten up, but only so after skilled and prolonged escape maneuvers including occasional and well dosed agonistic responses, resulting in winning more time. What also was a clear difference was that the "panicky fleeing" pattern did not result in the acquisition of a detailed map of the terrain whereas the "skilled resistance" pattern quickly resulted in detailed and obvious awareness of all useful details of the setting in question. Such knowledge of the terrain made ducking away and exploiting local barriers and passages a lot easier for the introduced mouse and made it more difficult for the group of resident mice to restore order in the deme. Basically, these findings are at variance with classic behaviorist learning paradigms. It took the experimenter a couple of years, searching the ethological and the behaviorist literature, before an explanation emerged. And that explanation did not emerge from existing learning psychological literature, but from novel insights from a completely different area of psychological research, labeled as phenomenology. At the time the above experimental findings seemed to defy any available type of learning theory theorizing in existence. In another article on this Wiki by [[Behaviorism versus Humanism, an Integration; Application of the Cognition Energy Learning Model (CEL) on an old controversy|Popko van der Molen and Carola van Dijk (1990)]] it is shown how this new approach resulted in a novel learning paradigm that at the same time could bridge the old controversy between behaviorist theorizing and humanistic psychological approaches. This Cognition Energy Learning model (CEL) explains how individuals make optimum use of available surplus energy and time by automatically selecting such experiences as fit best in the individual's already existing behavioral repertory. The CEL explains how the individual, by virtue of the organization of emotions and motivations, also automatically selects periods of rest and recovery after bouts of experience. The CEL predicts how the quality of the processing of experiences into skills primarily depends on the possibility for the individual to achieve a suitable rhythm of alternations between telic (goal directed) and paratelic (goal-free) meta-motivational states. And the latter meta-motivational states only can emerge after sufficient(ly long) periods of rest and recovery have past. Indeed, the CEL predicts that it is not so much the emotional quality and coloring of the separate experiences that determines the outcome of the series of experiences, but rather the intermediate periods of rest and recovery in between. That implies that the timing of the experiences and the timing of the recovery periods in between far more determines the outcome in terms of habits and skills than does the incidental emotional coloring, loss or victory, of the experiences itself. Behaviorist principles of behavioral organization and the concomitant reactive models of learning then appear to be describing a special set of cases in learning processes. And on the other hand Humanistic psychological models of learning and development describe another set of cases in learning processes. Both describe a different set of learning events, but the CEL predicts and describes them all. Concluding that "timing" of experiences and of recovery periods is of the essence implies also that we can derive very effective tools from this CEL model, tools that can be utilized for repair and for growth. The CEL can in that way help to put an end to the old controversy between behaviorism and humanistic psychology. In fact, the CEL can provide us with a better theoretical basis for humanistic psychological thinking. == Application and further reading == {{level|2}} The above described experiments with house mice, Mus musculus, triggered the design of the CEL, Cognition Energy Learning model and that model in turn is the basis for many articles on this Wiki. The article [[The evolutionary stability of a bi-stable system of emotions and motivations in species with an open-ended capacity for learning]] was one of the first articles about the utilization of Reversal Theory for designing a novel and more broadly applicable theory of learning, published in 1985 and 1986 in international scientific periodicals. The article [[Striving, Playing and Learning]] is another early publication of this novel approach to learning processes, presented at scientific congresses in 1978 and 1981. In 1991 more detailed models of the CEL were presented at a Reversal Theory congress in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. See the articles on this Wiki: [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)|Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (C.E.L.) (1 and 2)]], and [[Energy and Strokes|Energy and Strokes: how the quality of relationships influences the process of learning and individual development]]. All these articles were spin offs of the puzzling findings with the introduction mice that we described above in this article. The unpublished article on "[[Behaviorism versus Humanism, an Integration; Application of the Cognition Energy Learning Model (CEL) on an old controversy|using the CEL to solve an old controversy between behaviorist theories and humanistic psychological theories]]" describes another useful application of the CEL. 5jdvs2wqfq3otfbbf9r631hak7r1o7g 0 375 5421 5420 2013-07-02T21:20:40Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki '''Under construction ''' In the previous chapter, [[Self-blindness in humans as prerequisite for the evolution of advanced intelligence]], it was shown that Homo sapiens is saddled with a peculiar inability to regard the own behaviour soberly and that this incapacity does have strong genetic roots, but is also amplified by cultural factors of self-blinding. In this chapter we will discuss the probability of present day selection forces in favour of moderate to low levels of intelligence, at the same time paired to selection forces in favour of higher intelligence. Such antagonist selection forces favour a high spread of the (general) intelligence level. Since the beginning of the agricultural revolution brain size in Homo sapiens has not increased, but has significantly decreased. This is quite remarkable and goes counter to common sense and highly cherished notions of Homo sapiens evolving to ever higher levels of achievement and capacities. Uitleggen waarom na de agriculture revolution er een hogere premie kwam te staan op middelmatigheid en een lagere intelligentie. Tot aan landbouwrevolutie samenleving in klein stamverband, net zoals andere hominiden en verwante primaten. Genetisch vastgelegd gedragsrepertoire in hoge mate aangepast aan het kunnen functioneren in dergelijke kleine samenlevings-groepen. Op een gegeven punt in onze evolutie, +/- 250.000 jaar geleden, heeft de intelligentie van Homo s. kunnen exploderen vanwege het inbouwen van een vermogen tot blind zijn voor de eigen motivaties en emoties en voor die van elkaar. Er was tot aan het begin van de landbouwrevolutie een evenwicht tussen aan de ene kant het goed kunnen benutten van extra denkvermogen en aan de andere kant het gevaar van "modderen met de eigen motivatie" zodra de eigen intelligentie dat al te zeer voor de hand liggend maakt. ko1hb5q15g2wqjik1rcphp4c6fjb8eo 0 376 5555 5554 2013-11-14T16:34:46Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki {{Level|1}} The '''goal of this Wiki''' is to help put an end to the eternal plagues of humanity, like war, genocide, wholesale rape, the destruction of our environment, etc. These eternal plagues seem to be part of the very fabric the human species is made of. It seems to be inseparable from our biological and psychological make up. Throughout human history, some people have become aware of the "normalcy" of these disastrous events. In a way, human politics and organizations are designed to fight these very plagues. It is however also evident, that all these attempts have been to no avail, if not producing in the end more, rather than less, strife, mayhem and mass murder, providing rather the ultimate pretext for it. One way to look at this seemingly hopeless situation, is to describe civilizations as "conspiracies against evolution". That viewpoint implies that the above mentioned disasters are mother nature's methods to recover and restore selection pressures, which have only been postponed locally for some period of time by "civilization". The more successful, just and fair a civilization and the longer the postponement of selective forces, the more massive and lethal the recuperative and corrective events of mother nature will be. No matter which way one looks at these eternal plagues of humanity, this Wiki's goal is to lay bare the deepest roots of organized murder and destruction, enabling mankind at last to take the sting out of the very common cause of war, genocide and mass destruction. The cure is in becoming aware of the innate and the organized blindnesses regarding our own functioning. In that sense this emerging awareness is the finishing touch, the final boost to human enlightenment, that started in the eighteenth century, pushing us now over the treshold of a totally new era in the evolution of Homo sapiens. As this Wiki argues, this will be the era in which the human species consciously will steer its own evolution, rather than unconsciously be the "passive" victim of it. pwirftxntbxu7heg6ycni1phmbj4wkk 0 377 6776 5709 2017-01-17T12:15:09Z Baby Boy 2 wikitext text/x-wiki Dit artikel moet nog worden ingevoerd. De bedoeling is om dat zowel in het Nederlands als in het Engels te doen. De tekst in het Nederlands is al klaar en bijgewerkt op papier. De vertaling moet nog gebeuren. ag0dblh1bh2l7lg0vc9ydqsgnjxcs2t 6 378 5758 5757 2014-02-08T23:51:49Z BigSmoke 1 uploaded a new version of "[[File:Large mice observation cage.png]]":&#32;"Fixed" layering mayhem. wikitext text/x-wiki PNG rendition of a SVG Inkscape interpretation of a scan of the original hand-drawn image by Popko. hfchccj72sry7buayfi5vb2057m9u9f 2014-02-08T23:35:25Z BigSmoke 1 PNG rendition of a SVG Inkscape interpretation of a scan of the original hand-drawn image by Popko. Large_mice_observation_cage.png 20140208234152!Large_mice_observation_cage.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20140208234152%21Large_mice_observation_cage.png 91331 doegh6apxn21olem897s10rv2ibie13 archive/20140208234152!Large_mice_observation_cage.png 2014-02-08T23:41:52Z BigSmoke 1 Partially hide tredmill. Large_mice_observation_cage.png 20140208235149!Large_mice_observation_cage.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20140208235149%21Large_mice_observation_cage.png 80201 q36d56n50tlxm7vc1e9ma8vryuxkbax archive/20140208235149!Large_mice_observation_cage.png 2014-02-08T23:51:49Z BigSmoke 1 "Fixed" layering mayhem. Large_mice_observation_cage.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Large_mice_observation_cage.png 82840 oydu85g6qnnafqrfex2pcam77inwyr7 Large_mice_observation_cage.png 6 379 5839 2014-06-29T14:25:32Z BigSmoke 1 Transparent logo for the Omega Research Project. wikitext text/x-wiki Transparent logo for the Omega Research Project. lnz3n9lck1fpwowmb4zefl2u94l6v52 2014-06-29T14:25:32Z BigSmoke 1 Transparent logo for the Omega Research Project. Embrace-earth-transparent-135x135.png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Embrace-earth-transparent-135x135.png 25953 96wokdm7sxntjbsryjphmbc7u5w23tg Embrace-earth-transparent-135x135.png 6 380 5887 5884 2014-11-15T13:37:21Z Baby Boy 2 Baby Boy uploaded a new version of &quot;[[File:Self-blindness poster-1.pdf]]&quot; wikitext text/x-wiki 1-pagina samenvatting v. Blindness presentatie nvgqf1icvyw7lw1pjqxoipeba0g61xh 2014-11-14T22:38:56Z Baby Boy 2 1-pagina samenvatting v. Blindness presentatie Self-blindness_poster-1.pdf 20141115133721!Self-blindness_poster-1.pdf http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/archive/20141115133721%21Self-blindness_poster-1.pdf 380384 k31wpbfamjk7z9vj3jqdpwjsp0afel5 archive/20141115133721!Self-blindness_poster-1.pdf 2014-11-15T13:37:21Z Baby Boy 2 Self-blindness_poster-1.pdf http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Self-blindness_poster-1.pdf 380384 k31wpbfamjk7z9vj3jqdpwjsp0afel5 Self-blindness_poster-1.pdf 6 381 5895 2014-11-15T21:08:34Z Baby Boy 2 Summary one page Self-Blindness presentation wikitext text/x-wiki Summary one page Self-Blindness presentation 0vyaf40qh909b28xx5b40j6mq529gba 2014-11-15T21:08:34Z Baby Boy 2 Summary one page Self-Blindness presentation Self-blindness_poster_(2).png http://wiki.omega-research.org/images/Self-blindness_poster_%282%29.png 289849 6to8ncbl40s5jh6d5flrh0wwdugofjv Self-blindness_poster_(2).png 0 382 6161 6160 2016-06-10T07:59:14Z Baby Boy 2 /* Losing our ignorance */ wikitext text/x-wiki = What it means to be human = == Being living matter == === Self replicating molecules === Catalization of self-replication Competition for basic building blocks == Being an animal, not a plant == === How a plant finds its building materials === === How an animal finds its building materials === movement; the trick to change place perception of the environment emotions and motivation Proximate and Ultimate purposes of behaviour (basics of how behaviours evolve) == Being a "group"-animal == Emotions to seek company Emotions to seek own family or group == Being intelligent == === What is intelligence ? === === "Free" capacity for information processing === === Limits to free accessible intelligence capacity === == Being the most intelligent species on earth == === Having escaped from the ordinary evolutionary upper limit of (free) intelligence === === Hardware and software === === Information, tradition, culture, cumulated knowledge === == Living in slavery == Software evolution taking over the lead Speed of evolution for hardware and for software Evolutionary jet-lag in Homo sapiens Human beings as carriers of two types of information, DNA, genes, and Culture, memes Blind spots / Self-Blindness / Cultural smoke curtains == Losing our ignorance == When intelligence finally understands its own nature Freeing unsuspected quantities of energy and intelligence == Surpassing point Omega == Unavoidable, automatic, unexpectedly fast and sudden Runaway characteristics; positive feed back loops (technically) Relax, enjoy the ride dwlhiheth6h8ay504mu86s54iv0jwqs 0 383 6989 6988 2017-01-29T19:11:41Z Baby Boy 2 /* The Point Omega transition in Evolutionary Perspective */ wikitext text/x-wiki (nog toevoegen: figuren ) <center> <big><b>Why we shortly can expect a sudden Point Omega transition:</b></big><br/> <b>the implication of antagonist mechanisms of positive reinforcement</b> </center> __NOTOC__ {{level|2}}This article explains how the conclusion was reached that it is likely that humanity will shortly go through a transition that will change the life of us humans more than anything before in human history, yes even more than anything in human evolution. If our deductions are correct, the coming transition will even be a novelty from the perspective of evolution itself. In that case it will in fact be the emergence of "conscious evolution" which we can safely consider as the culmination of life on earth. What is more, if our deductions are right it should be considered as a basic law of nature that on any planet in the universe where life is possible, sooner or later "conscious evolution" will emerge. For our planet that moment in time is now, or rather, very soon. And we humans are the carriers of that pinnacle of evolution. This conclusion, that we can indeed expect such a sudden rise in human potentials and in the quality of human functioning, is based on a combination of 10 findings. We will mention these 10 findings very briefly below, and then indicate how taking these 10 findings together, leads us to quite surprising conclusions, conclusions that seem quite unbelievable at first sight. About each of these findings more detailed information and argumentation can be found in other articles on this Wiki. Links are provided in the text, indicated with (*), (**) or (***). Some of these findings are well known, but are commonly not applied in a context as we apply it here. Some other findings are also well established, but as yet only in circles of specialist researchers. Finally, some of the findings that we utilize here, are novel in the sense that they have not yet been published before, or only very briefly. The latter findings have as yet not been the subject of a broad scientific discussion. === 1) Unfolding of innate (congenital) potentials, yes or no ? === ==== 1a) Self-actualization the exception, rather than the rule, in Homo sapiens ==== {{level|1}}- Self-actualization, the coming to bloom of a rather complete collection of innate potentials in a human being is the exception, rather than the rule. That is very different from how it works in other species. How is that strange and unexpected situation possible and how could that be an ESS (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy) ? ==== 1b) Maslow and the foundation of [[Behaviorism_versus_Humanism,_an_Integration;_Application_of_the_Cognition_Energy_Learning_Model_(CEL)_on_an_old_controversy|Humanistic Psychology]](**) ==== {{level|1}}- Maslow, the author who launched that concept, could not be discarded as being mistaken. He appeared to have done his homework quite thoroughly, starting with his research on monkeys and subsequently investigating if and how his findings also pertained to humans. Although going quite strongly against anything that an evolutionary biologist would expect, Homo sapiens emerged from his research as an anomaly, an evolutionary contradiction, in the sense that we apparently are a species in which the majority of the members are functioning way below their inborn potentials and not the other way around, as is customary in any other species. So, not being able to discard Maslow's work as mistaken, I was left with contradictory and seemingly impossible information about the behaviour of ourselves, of Homo sapiens. ==== 1c) The foundation of Humanistic Psychology as an Evolutionary Paradox ? ==== {{level|2}}- However, at first sight it does make absolutely no sense that in Homo sapiens, considering itself as the evolutionary pinnacle of intelligence, it seems to work the other way around as what is the case in the rest of the animal kingdom. Just a minority of the human population seems to be actualizing the full innate behavioural repertoire, while the majority gets stuck in truncated behaviour patterns, neuroses and other fear clusters. How strange ! If the available data are correct and interpreted in the right way, there must be something quite extraordinary going on in our own species ! In what follows below we need to stay aware of this question mark. === 2) How we learn from experience === ==== 2a) The CEL (Cognition-Energy-Learning model)==== {{level|2}}- The development of the CEL [[Towards a Cognition-Energy-Learning Model (1)|(Cognition-Energy-Learning)]](***) model, my novel theory of learning, based on Apter and Smith's Reversal Theory, but then expanded with some evolutionary considerations, shows that the system of emotional and motivational reversals can be regarded as the behavioural engine that is needed to enable individuals to make optimum use of an open-ended capacity of learning. That implies that any species with the capacity to acquire a behavioural repertoire that is specifically geared to deal with different personal coincidental circumstances of living, does have such a reversal system in its behavioural organisation. Without such a reversal system, a capacity for situational adaptation is not possible. It does not need much explanation that such a CEL, when it developed some hundred million years ago, it was a major step forward in the evolution of flexible behaviour patterns that can adapt to changing circumstances. Whereas the CEL, as a relatively new learning paradigm, is not widely in use yet, it is basically nothing very special. It is a behavioural asset that is available in many animal species from different evolutonary phyla. ==== 2b) The CEL and contagiousness==== {{level|2}}What is of importance here, is that this CEL model describes that learning and behavioural growth is not only flexible, but also [[The_evolutionary_stability_of_a_bi-stable_system_of_emotions_and_motivations_in_species_with_an_open-ended_capacity_for_learning#Positive_and_negative_learning_spirals|highly contagious]](***). In other words, badly processed experiences lead to emergency-oriented, rough and ready, behavioural avoidance responses, fear complexes and neuroticism, and such fear complexes diminish the likelihood of a proper processing of further experiences in the future. Reversely, well-processed experiences increase the likelihood of well processing further experiences and thus a further increase of skills and mastery. From [[Learning_from_aversive_experiences;_the_effect_of_timing|experiments with mice]](**) I learned that the "timing" of experiences was a major determining factor for resulting in either high level skills, or just in clusters of rough and ready avoidance reflexes. There is a basic "unfairness" to the whole learning mechanism, in that the already favoured individuals learn best and the misfits have the worst chances to further profit from their further experiences. The learning system tends to further amplify already existing differences in development. But from an evolutionary point of view, the system works very efficient en economical. Basically the CEL harbours two types of so called positive reinforcement loops, one in the direction of gaining skills and mastery, and the other in the direction of culminating avoidance reflexes and eventually neuroses. (see the figure below) [[File:Dependence of positive and negative learning spirals on proper rhythms of telic paratelic alternations.png|none|framed|'''Figure 2b.1.''' Positive and negative learning spirals, showing alternations between telic and paratelic states]] [[File:Positive and negative learning spirals.png|framed|none|'''Figure 2b.2.''' The relation between the reversal system of antagonistic motivations and processes of learning]] ''(van "proper" maken: "improper" in onderste helft van figuur)'' ==== 2c) [[Energy_and_Strokes|Contagiousness between individuals]](***) ==== {{level|1}}Within an individual, well processing of experiences is contagious and badly processing of experiences also is contagious, but in the other direction. Besides, on top of that, a similar contagiousness also exists between individuals of the same group, living together. The more skilled the other members of the group, the better the chances of an individual to also end up in learning spirals in the desired direction, towards more mastery and skills. And the more neurotics and fear ridden cowards around, the worse are the chances for an individual to learn optimally from his or her experiences. ==== 2d) Evolutionary efficiency of the CEL ==== {{level|1}}The CEL predicts that there are basically two optional outcomes of a sequence of experiences. The one option is the favorable one, leading to increasing skills and mastery and the other option is leading to increasing avoidance clusters and a truncated behavioural repertoire. In other species, the unfavorable option mainly occurs in a minority of the specimens, in the minority of individuals who don't make it and in that way are "weeded out" more efficiently and more quickly than what would be the case without such a behavioural provision. The open ended learning capacity is that way boosting processes of natural selection, favoring the specimens with the highest learning capacity. This organization of behaviour and of the learning system thus obviously makes evolutionary sense. And that's why this mechanism of flexible learning spread so successfully in many phyla of animals. === 3) Theory of the point of inflection === ==== 3a) Positive reinforcement loops in two directions ==== {{level|2}}- The positive reinforcement character of both the favourable and the unfavourable option of the process of learning and development does have similar results as comparable systems with a double mechanism of positive reinforcement. As an example we may consider what happens in a chemical solution with a strong acid and a strong basic component. In such a watery solution the water molecules react in an acidic or in a basic way, depending on which types of molecules constitute the majority. The way the water molecules behave is more or less in line with how the majority of the molecules in that watery solution behave in their direct surrounding. And that statistic bias in the behaviour of the water molecules reinforces the percentual bias in the chemical behaviour of the solution. The behaviour of the water molecules is subject to two antagonist positive reinforcement effects stemming from the acidic part and from the basic part of the components in the solution. The net result of these opposite but complementary reinforcement loops is that the acidity (pH) of the solution very rapidly changes if close to the chemical equilibrium between acid and base and that it only changes gradually if the solution is far away from the equilibrium point. The result is the well known S-curve of acidity as depending on the amount of acid added. *************** hier figuur van S-curve van zuur-base titer ************************ ==== 3b) The inflection-point relationship between self-actualization of individuals and self-actualization in the population at large ==== {{level|2}}Individual chances for an optimal development depend on the percentage of individuals around who have emotional space and energy to hand out "strokes", also to the individual(s) in question. Let's change focus from learning animals in general to the situation in Homo sapiens. Attaining optimal frequencies of telic-paratelic switches, necessary for the best possible learning results, is [[Energy and Strokes|most likely to occur in a social environment of Self-actualizers]](***). And the other way around. It is clear that also here we are dealing with a system with self-strengthening feed back loops in two directions. The contagiousness between people implies that the more Self-actualizers there are in a population, the better the chances for any individual in that population to also attain self-actualization / actualization of the innate potentials. And reversely, the more neurotic and fear ridden individuals there are in a population, the more likely it is that any individual in that population also will end up as fear ridden and neurotic. From the perspective of process dynamics we are dealing here also with two antagonistic positive reinforcement loops, each with an opposite final result. From a technical point of view, both options are stable in itself, because of the built in positive feed back loops. Having seen above that in present day humans the learning process is in general miraculously impaired compared to what in principle would be possible from a congenital point of view, the question arises why the neuroticizing variety of the two options apparently has prevailed. We will return to that question further below. *************** hier figuur van S-curve van kans op actualization as dependent on % of self-actualizers in the population ************************ The above figure expresses the effect of positive feed back mechanisms in two opposite directions and the resulting S-curve relationship between the likelihood for an individual to attain optimal development as depending on the average developmental health of the whole social environment. What remains is the question at what % of self-actualizers the inflection point may be expected, where an extra addition of self-actualizers in the population will have an increasingly strong effect on the condition of the whole population. === 4) The usual [[Self-blindness_in_humans_as_prerequisite_for_the_evolution_of_advanced_intelligence|Upper Limit of Intelligence in Evolution]](**) === {{level|2}}- There is something peculiar going on in evolution as far as intelligence is concerned. In different phyla, in quite different eras of earthly evolution, species developed intelligence, which we define here as freely applicable information processing capacity. What strikes the observer, is that in all those different phyla, and in all those different evolutionary eras, the level of intelligence acquired ends at more or less the same level. That suggests that there exists a functional upper limit to freely applicable information processing capacity. Apparently, a too high level of intelligence in principle is not an ESS (Evolutionarily Stable Strategy). Considering how behaviour evolves and is selected for in evolution, it is easily noticed that there is a certain, all-important relationship between the proximate causes of behaviour, the innate reflexes of liking and disliking, of approach and avoidance on the one hand and on the other hand the ultimate (evolutionary) reasons for certain behavioural reflexes, which are the ultimate procreational results. What is important here to note, is that selection forces exert their influence on the ultimate effects of the proximate behaviours, whereas only the proximate feelings and urges themselves are present in the awareness of the actors. The actors are not aware of the ultimate effects of their behaviour and they could not care less. It can be argued that an intelligence that reaches the level where it can be applied to (re-)considering its own proximate urges and to finding short-cuts to attain desired results in non-traditional ways, is likely to discover new, different ways to fulfill short term proximate urges, but without the customary non-conscious ultimate effects at the level of reproduction and therefore also without paying the "price" for it, in terms of a lower proximate average level of satisfaction. Our hypothesis is therefore that in principle a too high intelligence will automatically weed itself out as soon as it enables the carrier of that intelligence to manipulate its own behaviour in order to fulfill proximate desires in novel and "clever" ways, different from the evolutionary "meaning" or "goal" of the original reflex-based behaviour. [[File:Self-blindness_poster (2).png|800px]] Only by developing a special characteristic, a specific blindness for the own behaviour, blocking the utilization of intelligence for finding different options for satisfying urges concerning the own behaviour and social behaviour, could the intelligence of our early ancestors rise above the ordinary upper level of intelligence. === 5) The [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#New_demands_and_requirements_since_the_agricultural_revolution|Evolution of Power Structures]](**) === {{level|1}}- Since the agricultural revolution a different type of evolution started off. That is the evolution of sets of "memes" that form power structures. Labeling the ordinary evolution, based on DNA, as "hardware"-evolution, that evolution of power structures can be labeled as a "software"-evolution. The point is that agriculture is technically impossible if there is not a military organization that secures the products of the agricultural efforts for the people who have made the investment in agricultural labour and work. This development is very recent, just between 5.000 and 10.000 years old in most inhabited regions of the world. === 6) [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22_.28the_evolutionary_Jet-Lag.29|Evolutionary Jet-Lag]](**) === {{level|1}}- The evolution of power structures can proceed at a higher speed than the evolution of DNA. Software needs less time to evolve and change than does hardware. Humans beings are the carriers of genes as well as of memes. Humanity is therefore suffering from [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22_.28the_evolutionary_Jet-Lag.29|evolutionary "jet-lag"]](**) in that our primordial hardware is lagging behind as compared to the demands from the recently evolved software of the power structures. This evolutionary jet-lag produces mismatches between what we "really" want (primordial P-feelings) and what the power structures demand from us ("new" N-demands). === 7) [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Friction_between_P-feelings_and_N-demands.3B_.22Primordial.22_versus_.22New.22_.28the_evolutionary_Jet-Lag.29|N-demands versus P-feelings]](**), their effect on Self-actualization in power structures === {{level|1}}- Power structures need high quantities of malleable, docile slaves and military to man the agricultural mass projects and the warring machinery. One of the methods to produce high percentages of docile people is inducing neurotic states in as many of the human beings/carriers involved as possible. Neurotics may function sub-optimal as compared to their original congenital potential, but they can easier be manipulated into obeying the requirements of the power structures in charge. It is therefore not surprising that the data available to us indicate that indeed in the case of contemporary human societies the full actualization of the innate potentials is the exception, rather than the rule, which has always been applicable for other species. The situation in Homo sapiens appears to be exceptional indeed. === 8) Means of subjugation === {{level|1}} - We can recognize several mechanisms in the working of human societies that help to [[Impersonal_Power_Structures_ruling_our_world|keep the carriers of the power structures subdued]](*) and immersed in neuroticizing processes of control and deformation. We mention a few: - We maintain schooling systems that "inject" knowledge but that block awareness of the CEL dynamics, which results in blocking self-actualization. - We instill and maintain "working" ethics to the extent that it is detrimental for optimal frequencies of meta-motivational reversals (see the article about learning experiments with house mice) (see more details about the CEL here). - We seduce captains of industry and captains of other systems of slavery to continue doing their job with exorbitant salaries. - We always turn spiritual movements gradually into [[Eating_from_the_Forbidden_Fruit#Good_and_Evil.2C_how_great_religions_consolidate_their_power|religions of superstition and blindness]](*). - We maintain strict information privileges for the people in control of the masses that are kept stupid. - The innate propensity for Self-Blindness in humans is amplified where possible. - The Blindness for the own system of feelings and impulses is so elementary, that in all languages that I am familiar with, there is not even a word for the most elementary and most basic of all emotional and motivational switches in our behaviour. We have words for fear, love, hate, pleasure, panic, curiosity, hesitation, anger, etc., but a word for the telic motivational state or its antagonist, the paratelic state does not exist. Words for those most elementary aspects of the dynamics of motivation and emotion needed to be coined artificially, borrowing it from the greek word "telos" or goal/target. - etc., etc. === 9) N-demands from the Power Structures === ==== 9a) N-demands and the low level performance of human beings ==== {{level|1}}- Taking the above findings and considerations together, a possible explanation of the strange rarity of self-actualization in the case of the human species emerges. That explanation is that since the agricultural revolution our species has been pushed into systems of neurotization and subjugation. The [[Impersonal_Power_Structures_ruling_our_world|power structures]](*), that are in the lead since that time, take a strongly lowered useful output per person for granted in exchange for a much higher malleability and docility of their carriers. Thus the power structures that neuroticized best could outcompete power structures that were less effective in that sense. If this view is correct, it would explain the at first sight incomprehensible phenomenon that the majority of the human species is functioning way below its congenital capacities and that in our species self-actualization is the exception rather than the rule, as it is in other species. Our species is in general considered as the pinnacle of (primate) evolution, and it almost exclusively consists of underperformers. How strange ! ==== 9b) N-demands versus the two Basic Options of the Learning System ==== {{level|1}}- However, knowing how the mechanism of learning and development works, it is also clear that from a purely technical point of view, the opposite option in principle also exists, the option of a critical % of the population being in a state of self-actualization and as a consequence a very high likelihood of also attaining self-actualization for any individual in that population. Technically speaking, both options exist, although large and by humanity has not experienced the favourable option for many thousands of years. There are some exceptions that may be found in remote corners of the earth where the power structures have not - yet - managed to establish their power. For an eloquent description of how such groups of not yet corrupted and still self-actualized people view our complex, modern societies, one may read [[Further_reading#Scheurmann1927|The Papalagi, by Scheurmann (1927)]](*), a series of lectures by a Samoan chief, [[Further_reading#Tiavea1976|Tuiavii of Tiavea (1976)]](*), to his fellow-villagers about how things work in Europe, after he had been invited by the French government to experience civilization and tell about it at home. === 10) Modern developments undermining the customary subjugation props of the power structures === {{level|1}}- Having researched the above mentioned mechanisms that help to keep the carriers of the power structures subdued and immersed in neuroticizing processes of control and deformation, we have reached the conclusion that many or most of these props as automatically and involuntarily (as evolution works) applied by power structures are quickly crumbling down under pressure of modern technical developments. We name a few of those developments that are ever more undermining the web of subjugation tricks that always served to keep us bound in slavery in whichever of the prevailing power structures: the information explosion, the democratization of information, the increasing transparency on all levels, family planning techniques, techniques for eugenic planning, unlimited availability of energy, technical innovations and machinery making slavery superfluous, etc., etc. (see [[Directives_for_after_Point_Omega|here]] for more information about these new developments). === Conclusion === {{level|1}}- Our estimate is that not only are we in a situation where the above developments are in a process of speeding up, undermining the previously absolute power of the impersonal power structures ever faster, but also that we are in the phase of the exponential rise in the average chances for individuals to attain full actualization of their innate potential. That would imply that we are getting closer and closer to the inflection point that we have labeled as Point Omega. The conclusion is not only that Homo sapiens does have the very realistic option to become immeasurably more effective, but that we are in fact very close to that shift, a shift that is likely to happen with unexpected suddennes and unexpected speed, similar to what happens with the above mentioned acid-base solution when we add the last drop of alkaline solution to the mixture, before it suddenly swaps to a couple of pH grades rise per drop, changing the indicator-colouring all of a sudden. So, taking the 10 findings as mentioned above together, our conclusion is that a Point Omega transition is near. And that transition not only will launch humanity in its next evolutionary phase, but the whole planet Earth will enter a different phase in its evolutionary development because ............ intelligence will finally start to understand itself. And one of the consequences of that self-awareness of intelligence will be that human stewardship over the world will get a new and more serious connotation. === The Point Omega transition in Evolutionary Perspective === {{level|1}}To stimulate a proper understanding of where we stand in evolution and which evolutionary phases had to be completed before we ended up standing at the brink of "conscious evolution", we give here a listing of the steps of evolution that came before. Let's start with the statement that what perceptibly exists, has a certain stability over time, more than alternative configurations. Molecular configurations with higher chemical stability are therefore the configurations that are more common than their alternatives. In fact, this description may be viewed as a tautology. Basically, the whole of evolution may similarly be regarded as a tautological concept. Evolution exists, because that's how it works with matter. [[Further reading#Monod1971|(For a good argumentation for this line of thought see for instance Jackes Monod: Chance and Necessity, 1971]].(*)) But we will dive into the details a bit further, because it is of course the details of our role in evolution that matter most to us. Posing the "why" question in relation to these matters is therefore a token of "misunderstanding it all". The only reason why things exist is because those things are evolutionarily stable enough. - Conditions on our planet Earth have since a long time be suitable for the formation of large and eventually complex molecules. - At some stage molecules were coincidentally formed, that had a novel property, which was that they acted as catalizers for the formation of more of these same types of molecules. - Once this effect emerged, a type of evolution of as yet "non-living" matter got started, the self replicating molecules coming in more and more varieties. This process took vast amount of time. - A next step in this sequence of evolutionary events is when different types of self-replicating molecules start a form of symbiosis, helping one another in each one's self-replicating effects, for instance by influencing the flow of certain chemical compounds to one another's advantage. Such combinations of different self-replicators already change in the direction of organelles or units that could also act as (still primitive) functional parts of a cel. - At some stage in such a soup of self-replicating molecules and already more complex proto-organelles, organelles may combine and form a communal form of defense, an outer layer that is difficult to penetrate for other, competing, replicators. What emerges in that way can be considered a first approach to the phenomenon of cell walls. And all that is the beginning of what we tend to label as "life". The cells that start to emerge in that way each contain different structures that cooperate, each with their own specialization. Cells contain primitive organelles. This happened some 5.000 million to 3.500 million years ago (which is still less than the last 10% of the total life of planet Earth). - Once that life phase has started, evolution can really start off at an ever increasing speed. Self-reduplication of course not always is perfect, so variation is paramount and the best varieties continue their lineage best. And that is what evolution is all about. Once cells inhabit a variety of places and conditions, different varieties, adapted to different circumstances emerge and that variation starts to lead a life of its own. Evolution proceeds. - Multiplying cells need materials for the composition of the organelles and tissues that the cells need for their offspring. Also, collecting energy is one of the methods to improve the speed of reduplication. Energy can be used to move around matter that cells need to grow and multiply. Cells have found different methods to tap energy from the environment and utilize that energy for growth and multiplication. - One of the energy-tapping methods is absorbing fotons from light sources. Plant cells can do that and they can use for instance chlorophyll molecules to "catch" fotons from the light. With chlorophyll they are fishing for energy. - Plants are groups of cells, each with their specialization, that collect their energy from light, by means of chlorophyll. - A next development is the emergence of entities that do not bother to collect energy from light themselves, but "eat" the energy as stored in the plant bodies. Such living entities we label as herbivores. - And subsequently, also carnivores emerge, because it is relatively easy to consume and process living matter that is already very much composed as is the body of the predator itself. Converting flesh into animal matter takes less energy than converting plants. So, by then evolution has produced bacteria and other one-cell organisms, plants, herbivores, carnivores and of course also organisms who get their energy and basic building materials from dead or decaying plant- or animal bodies. Fungi are for instance of that class of living things. - Microbes or plants that catch light for their growth are normally sedentary. They sit in their place and live from what is available in their immediate surrounding. Animals differ from plants in that they can move from place to place. But in order to move they need a system of perception and of generating a preference of where to go to. Animals are moving entities and they differ from plants in that they all have developed a perception system for assessing important aspects in the environment and a system that makes them move in the preferred direction. So, once animals have evolved, these entities do have a system of emotions and motivations. If not, they would just sit still and not move. Being attracted by something and being repulsed by something else is therefore an indispensable characteristic of any animal, no matter how small. In higher, more complex, animals we tend to label these tendencies as emotions and or motivations. - For processing incoming information and for translating that information into useful action, a nervous system is useful and so all higher, more complex, animals have a nervous system, a sort of controlling and coordination center. - Once animal nervous systems have been developed in all sorts of variations and sizes, sooner or later more sophisticated systems of data processing evolve. We can call that intelligence. What we see in the animal kingdom, is that in many era's of evolution and in many phyla of animals, intelligence has developed. And those developments have emerged completely independently of one another. What should be noted here, is that in all cases (except our own case) the evolved levels of intelligence are about of the same level, no matter how many millions of years the development of such an intelligence had time to evolve further. What also is striking, is that intelligence emerged in quite different nervous systems. The nervous systems of vertebrates, like monkeys or whales, birds or dogs, have a comparable set up. In each of those phyla one finds very dull, non-intelligent species as well as quite intelligent species. But similar intelligence has also developed in mollusks, like in various octopus species. Their composite nervous system is located in different parts of the body and this very different basic design nevertheless produced a comparable level of intelligence. Elsewhere on this Wiki we have explained what is the reason of this same level of intelligence in so many different animal species. That reason is that normally, basically and at first there is a functional upper limit to freely applicable intelligence. As soon as intelligence reaches a level where it can be utilized to find short cuts to proximate satisfaction, that higher intelligence will weed itself out automatically (see point 4 above). - However, once that maximum level of freely applicable intelligence has emerged in a number of species, sooner or later one species will develop a way around that maximum. That is what happened in the ancestors of Homo, later - sapiens, where a trick was built into the system that was making sure that the intelligence could not any longer be utilized for finding short cuts for the fulfillment of proximate impulses. So, now we have a species saddled with Self-Blindness, and as a consequence the intelligence of Homo could rise further, way above the ordinary upper limit of intelligence. - One of the consequences of such a rising intelligence is that gradually the species in question, us, will manage more and more to escape from the traditional dangers like predators, hunting accidents, etc. They get too clever to compete on an equal level with the competing species around. They become an ecologically dominant species. More than is the case in other related species, primates in our case, Homo sapiens will increasingly be its own predator and competitor. It is not surprising therefore that recent research has shown that Homo sapiens is by nature more violent towards conspecifics than are other primates. Homocidal tendencies are more prominent in us than in our relatives. - The next step in evolution, by now the human evolution to be precise, is the "invention" of agriculture. Agriculture is the ultimate way to change the environment as to get as much food and needed materials from it as possible. There is however a heavy price to be paid inevitably for starting agriculture. And that is that agriculture is only possible in combination with an increased warring capacity on a massive scale. - At that point in evolution, the evolution of software items, "memes" takes over, because meme level power structures can and do evolve much faster than do DNA based evolutionary processes. Power structures make use of us, intelligent carriers, and compete with one another, but always over the backs of their subjects. The power structure that is best in wielding masses of soldiers and masses of slaves, will outcompete other power structures. - Because of the difference in speed of the evolution on the meme-level, as compared to the speed of evolution on the gene-level, we Humans, as carrier of the meme-level information as well as carriers of the gene-level information, have suffered, since the start of the agricultural revolution, from a sort of evolutionary Jet-lag. Such a situation, wherever in the universe, only will last as long as the power structures can abuse their carriers to maximize their chances in the competition with other power structures. At some stage, the raised intelligence will, in combination with technological developments, start to look through and to understand the nature of the Jet-Lag and of the slavery aspects of living in the power structures. At that point there will occur a break down of the power structure configuration of human life on earth, triggered by an understanding that escapes from its shackles. Curiosity at that point wins over fear. We have labeled that point in time as Point Omega. - The next stage is the start of conscious evolution. It will be understood how and why in the old situation it always was structurally impossible to organize a lasting societal structure that was supportive of human wishes and preferences. The influence of genetic pollution and of selection cycles in social structures will be understood and will be replaced by various forms of conscious evolution, then easily bypassing the classical sources of war, genocide and economic strangling techniques. The issues that will be fought about will shift to discussions about which direction we prefer for our conscious evolution. But that is by far a luxury problem as compared to what mankind has been subjected to for the last 10.000 years. The above listing of the different phases in evolution does not represent a regularly distributed time schedule. The different phases in the beginning of evolution are wide apart and each cover very long time periods, hundreds of millions of years. The more recent phases have taken ever less time. The latest evolutionary phases as described above follow each other in historical time, which means "within the blink of an eye" as compared to earlier epochs. Our conclusion is that we, the human species, finds itself right now in a very special and unique situation. We are at the point of shifting into a totally different mode of evolution, "conscious evolution". It is only natural that for most people this shift, the most important shift in the whole of human history, is still inconceivable. The concepts that, together, are required for understanding this situation, are not yet part of our contemporary culture. That is still to come. Nevertheless, our conclusion is that the Point Omega shift is very near and that the accelaration phase of the transition seems to have started already. The theory predicts that awareness of what is really going on, will tend to lag behind the flow of events. Therefore most probably mankind will completely be taken by surprise. I hope that for the curious reader the evolutionary "reason" for this development, this Point Omega transition, has been clarified a bit in these pages. 7ahveuyv2oh8z0i9mnxlgr7ezn017er