Postformal Reasoning
Discussion
Jennifer Gidley:
" Postformal in psychology: Postformal is the most widely used psychological term to denote higher developmental stages beyond Piaget’s formal operations — other terms include “post-conventional” (Cook-Greuter, 2000), “hierarchical complexity” (Commons, Trudeau, Stein, Richards, & Krause, 1998) and “vision-logic” (Wilber, 2000a). Adult developmental psychologists have been researching postformal reasoning for several decades, identifying up to four stages of postformal development. They identify numerous features of postformal reasoning — including complexity, contextualization, creativity, dialectics, dialogue, holism, imagination, construct awareness, paradox, pluralism, reflexivity, spirituality, values and wisdom (Arlin, 1999; Campbell, 2006; Cartwright, 2001; M. Commons et al., 1990; M. L. Commons et al., 1998; Cook-Greuter, 2000; Falcone, 2000; Kegan, 1994; Kohlberg, 1990;Kramer, 1983; Labouvie-Vief, 1990, 1992; Riegel, 1973; Sinnott, 1998, 2005; Yan & Arlin,1995). Michael Commons has identified a hierarchical complexity of stages of postformal thinking, including systematic, meta-systematic, paradigmatic and cross-paradigmatic reasoning(Commons & Richards, 2002; Commons et al., 1998).
Postformal in education: Several educational researchers have also identified the terms post- formal and post-formality in relation to critical and postmodern approaches to education (Horn,2001; Kincheloe & Steinberg, 1993; Kincheloe, Steinberg, & Hinchey, 1999; Rose & Kincheloe,2003). Kincheloe and Steinberg proposed four key components of post-formality:
etymology (origins of knowledge, imagination, problem detecting); pattern (deep structures, metaphoric cognition, mind-ecosystem links); process (deconstruction, logic-emotion links, non-linear holism); and
contextualization (context, particular-general links, and power issues) (Kincheloe etal., 1999, p. 62-81). Kincheloe referred to post-formality as “the socio-cognitive expression of postmodernism” (Kincheloe & Steinberg, 1993, p. 309).
Transdisciplinary postformality: My approach to the term postformal is not limited by the parameters of the developmental psychology or education uses. My use of postformal is transdisciplinary and includes a macrohistorical futures perspective (Gidley, 2007b, 2008b).There are several features of postformal reasoning that have migrated beyond the postformal psychology literature into the boundary crossing discourses of integral studies, planetary studies and futures studies. The postformal features I want to highlight include: complex thinking(Morin, 2008; Sinnott, 2005), paradoxical reasoning (Griffin et al., 2009), creativity (Montuori,1998; Montuori, Combs, & Richards, 2004; Saloff-Coste, 2001), dialogue (Gangadean, 1998)and imagination (Gidley, 2009, 2010c; Nielsen, 2004). Complex thinking involves the ability to hold multiple perspectives in mind while at the same time being able to meta-reflect on those perspectives and the potential relationships among them. This is also referred to as metasystemic thinking (Commons & Ross, 2008). Paradoxical thinking is one of the expressions of complex postformal logic. Authors of a recent study that explores the application of postformal reasoning in non-cognitive settings make the following connections between postformal thought, complexity and ability to deal with paradox One general aspect of post-formal thought is that one can conceive of multiple logics, choices, or perceptions of an event or relationship, even if seemingly paradoxical, in orderto better understand the complexities and inherent biases in “truth.” Relationships work on shared “truths” and resolution of logical conflicts. (Griffin et al., 2009, p. 173)Postformal logics go beyond Aristotelian formal logic, which requires an either/or response thus creating what is called an “excluded middle.” Paradoxical thinking refers to the ability to hold in mind the apparently illogical possibility that two contradictory statements can both be true — or indeed both false. This paradox of the included middle allows for both/and and neither/nor to be correct (Nicolescu, 2002). Sardar notes that this “four-fold logic enables us to think in multiples and thus get a better grip on contradictory tensions” (Sardar, 2010). I would also suggest that the attempt to “hold in mind the paradox of contradictory truths — or non-truths ”creates uncomfortable tension in the minds and emotions of people only accustomed to using formal logic. It is beyond the scope of this paper to fully discuss the ways that dialogue, creativity and imagination can be regarded as imaginaries that cohere. These postformal features have been discussed in more detail elsewhere (Gidley, 2007a, 2007b, 2008b, 2009, 2010a,2010d).Furthermore, this literature raises the question of how we facilitate the ability of people todayto think more complexly, creatively, imaginatively and to dialogue rather than debate their differences. I see it as a global educational priority to lay foundations in childhood and adolescence for the unfoldment of postformal reasoning capacities in adults. In this light, we need to develop postformal pedagogies (Gidley, 2007a, 2009)."