What theory did Claire Graves put forward? Graves' theory of spiral dynamics and its application in the practice of HR management

Based on materials from D. Beck and K. Cowan

Developing the concepts of A. Maslow's hierarchy of human needs, in the second half of the last century, the outstanding psychologist K. Graves, having processed a huge amount of experimental and statistical data, formulated an amazing model of a system of human values. His work was developed by Don Beck and Christopher Cowan, who built on it a whole new direction in sociopsychology, which they called “mimetics” or Spiral Dynamics.

Currently, Spiral Dynamics is capturing the keen interest of not only scientists, but also politicians, businessmen, teachers, etc., who find it a convenient tool for analyzing and solving many practical problems related to management and learning. In Russia this topic is practically unknown. Therefore, we will be happy to present here the basic concepts of Spiral Dynamics, translating into Russian some chapters from the book by D.E. Beck and K.K. Cowan “Spiral Dynamics – Mastering Values, Leadership, and Change”. (www.spiraldynamics.org)

Main characteristics of mimes

First, we will describe the characteristics of those invisible deep thinking patterns (memes) that often unconsciously influence people. We will then look into the laws, rules and principles that influence shifts, development and internal organization in these evolving ways of being.

The meme manifests itself as a worldview, a value system, a level of psychological existence, a belief structure, organizing principles, a way of thinking, and a way of life.

Memes have the following qualities:

1. Memes exhibit deep ways of thinking that form systems and influence human behavior: The meme contains a basic package of thoughts, motives and instructions that determine how we make decisions and prioritize in life. Each of us has our own input and transmission channels, ways of organizing, level of intensity, rules of behavior, and a set of assumptions about how the world works.

Memes shape our basic life priorities, which in turn, on a more superficial level, influence our behavior and decisions. Outwardly, people can do the same thing, but they will be moved by completely different mimes. It is impossible to determine which mime is currently functioning just by observing the behavior - What man does. Only after realizing Why a person does or says certain things, we will come to a mime. An unscrupulous type may try to convince you that he is speaking based on a very sensitive Green Mime, which is based on the good of the person and social objectives, while he may be driven by the very self-serving forms of the Orange Mime, who wants to make you pay by supporting his “charity” event.

Here's a quick look at the eight basic memes that have emerged so far.

Mime	Name	Basic motives
Beige	Survival	Stay alive thanks to physical instincts
Violet	Mysticism	Family ties and mysticism in magic and dangerous world
Red	Power	Selfish and exploitative power over self, others and nature
Blue	Law	Absolute faith in the only true path and submission to authority
Orange	Ambition	Striving for better opportunities for yourself
Green	Relationships	Human well-being and consensus
Yellow	Flexibility	Flexible adaptation to change thanks to a systemic vision
Turquoise	Globality	Attention to global dynamics and macro-level actions
Coral	Development	Global development of civilization

2. Memes influence all the choices we make in life.. Memes are self-organizing entities that manifest themselves in consistent stereotypes that cover literally all areas of our lives. Like powerful viruses, they can attach themselves to those ideas, people, objects and organizations that allow them to reproduce themselves and emit their basic messages. Each contains its own concepts of religion, politics, family life, education, peace of mind, work and management, social order and law and order. The same mime can permeate stadiums, the media, legislative assemblies, offices, cathedrals and classrooms.

Memes act like magnetic fields, which bind objects or cause them to repel. Racial divisions are often determined by differences in mimes. Churches split as new memes awaken within some of their followers. Major shifts in mimes are occurring in business, causing significant disruption and the need for restructuring. Modern epidemic " broken families“- for the most part a derivative of the change of mimes.

A well-established meme will be surrounded by strong and developed structures, and painful processes of their destruction may often be required before a new meme can come and grow. This is the state of affairs found in countries moving from Marxism to market democracy, state structures moving to privatization and dictatorships on the brink of theocracy.

Mimes live independent lives. They have the ability to carry out religious persecution, study outer space, threaten our habitat, or advocate for human rights. No force on earth can stop a mime whose time has come - not the calls of the media, not military force, not UN resolutions.

3. Memes can exhibit both healthy and unhealthy qualities. Memes themselves are not good, not bad, not healthy, not unhealthy, not positive, not negative. For example, the same meme may manifest itself in the form of mystical revelations, Disney-inspired fantasies, or cannibalistic rituals. The meme that directs the imagination and devotion of millions to noble causes and gives meaning and order to their lives can condition others within the framework of military fanatical religious or ethnic terrorism.

Healthy memes are those that allow or even promote the positive expression of other memes on the evolutionary spiral, even if they compete with them for influence. Often mimes become malignant, losing internal system regulation that would tell them when to stop growing. Sometimes mimes become closed-minded, withdrawn and repressive, imposing an overprotective mentality.

4. Memes are structures of thinking. Mime defines How people think or make decisions, unlike in how are they convinced or What appreciate. These are “schemas” within which different “topics” can be found. Two apologists of different religions will have the same memes. This is a conflict of content rather than deeper ways of thinking. Other examples are gang conflicts, rivalries between Republicans and Democrats, or struggles between company management and labor unions.

Conflicts between memes occur when they intersect in a limited space, physical or conceptual, in order to gain influence over the same people. For example, the conflict between Orange, secular Western values ​​and Blue, ideologically oriented Eastern ones; the confrontation between the technological Orange society and the Green environmental movement; the invasion of the Orange expansive civilization into the Purple tribal life of the American Indians.

5. Memes can fade in and out as they change. living conditions. Memes have strong cybernetic abilities (perceive feedback and adapt) and tend to retain their deep patterns of thinking and extend their influence into any favorable territory. Everyone has a regulator that allows them to increase or decrease their manifestations, under the dictates of internal “DNA” or changing external living conditions. Memes are not some rigid, immobile structures. They can adapt, change intensity, points of application and fields of activity, penetrating, sometimes with speed forest fire, entire communities, continents and professions.

Yesterday's Red recidivist becomes a Blue apologist for religious teaching. The Green Hippie returns to his parents' Orange pragmatic values. The blue norms of socialist morality come with the orange values ​​of capitalist society.

Often, in different departments of the same company, there are different mimes, who often collide at general meetings over literally all sorts of trifles. Perhaps you have a friend who is going through a painful mime shift in their family or personal life. Downsizing often leads to a shift in memes as those who remain with the company feel guilty. Many large-scale change efforts fail because they completely ignore the meme anchors that cause people's resistance.

However, what are the dynamics that determine the behavior of the corresponding memes? Are there any patterns here, or is this a random result of independent manifestations of mimes? Look at the following characteristics:

Beige. If thinking automatic, then the structures are free groups, and processes are survival Violet. If thinking animistic, then the structures will be tribal, and processes – mutual responsibility Red. If thinking egocentric, then the structures will be empires, and processes – exploitative. Blue. If thinking absolutist, then the structures will be nIraalmond, and processes – authoritarian Orange. If thinking plural, then the structures will be delegating, and processes – strategic Green. If thinking relativistic, then the structures will be equalizing, and processes – consensual Yellow. If thinking systemic, then the structures will be interactive, and processes – integrating Turquoise. If thinking holistic, then the structures will be global, and processes – environmental

Spiral Dynamics is a theory of human and social development introduced in 1996 in the book of the same name by Don Beck and Chris Cowan. This book is based on the psychological theory of Professor Claire Graves. Spiral Dynamics is a registered trademark of the National Value Center.

Spiral Dynamics argues that human nature is not immutable: people are capable, when forced by the conditions of life, to adapt to their environment by creating new, more complex, conceptual models of the world that allow them to cope with new problems. Each new model includes and surpasses (overcomes) all previous models. According to Beck and Cowan, these conceptual models are organized around so-called VMemes: systems of fundamental values ​​or a kind of collective intelligence that applies to both individuals and the culture as a whole.

In Spiral Dynamics, the term VMeme refers to a core value system that acts as an organizing principle that expresses itself through memes (self-propagating ideas, customs, habits, or cultural practices). The letter “V” in upper case before the word “Meme” means that we are not talking about basic memes, but rather about the value system that includes them (“V” - from the word “value” - value). The colors of VMemes serve for more convenient memorization of Living Conditions and Mental Abilities, characteristic of each system. In this case, there is a transition between cold and warm colors as part of the model.

Within this model, no individual or culture falls completely and precisely into any one category (color). Each person/culture embodies a mixture of value patterns, with varying degrees of intensity of each. Spiral Dynamics does not claim to be a linear and hierarchical model, although it has been accused of being so. According to Spiral Dynamics, there are many stages of progress and regression depending on the circumstances of the individual/culture, which are in constant change. Achieving higher stages is not at all synonymous with achieving “better” or “more correct” value systems. All stages can exist in either a "healthy" or a "pathological" state, whereby each stage of development can lead to undesirable consequences regarding human health and social environment (see Shadow and Subpersonalities).

The first tier of levels of VMemes is focused on various tasks that are posed by man and society, and includes almost all types of worldviews, cultures and mental states that exist today. New systems are built by adapting previous levels and finding solutions to problems created by those previous levels. Giving any specific examples of these levels of psychological existence is difficult and often confusing because (a) there may be several causes for the same behavior and (b) centralization at any one level, taking into account all aspects of life, is very rare . Some advocates of Spiral Dynamics argue that they are ways of thinking about things, not types of people. However, Spiral Dynamics emphasizes a category of people called "Spiral Sages" who have achieved a stable presence in the "top level" VMemes.

Brief characteristics: Archaic-instinctive - survivalist/automatic/reflexive

Appearance time: approx. 100,000 BC

Description: “Expressed through the satisfaction of urgent physiological needs through the instincts of Homo Sapiens.”

Purple

Brief description: Animistic-tribal magical-animistic tribal system

Time of appearance: 50,000 BC.

Description: "Worshiping the customs and ways of the ancestors as a group unit." This is the level of traditional cultures.

Brief characteristics: Egocentric, exploitative, strong gods/lords

Time of appearance: 7000 BC.

Description: “Expressed (impulsively) by satisfying personal desires without guilt, but to avoid shame (loss of face).” Expressed in the mentality of street gangs.

Brief description: Absolutist mythical system based on obedience - purposeful/authoritarian

Appearance time: approx. 3000 BC

Description: “Sacrifices himself in order to, through obedience, come to righteous power in a purposeful Path.” Embodied in fundamentalist religions.

Note: Ken Wilber calls this stage "amber"

Orange

Brief description: flexible goal achievement, scientific/strategic approach

Appearance time: approx. 1000 AD to this day (or c. 600 AD according to Graves and Colquhoun)

Description: “It is expressed (prudently) in achieving benefits and goals, without, if possible, affecting the interests of those people who are important to you for some reason.” Expressed in the Scientific and Industrial Revolution.

Brief description: Relativist-personalist approach, communal/egalitarian

Time of appearance: from 1850 to the present (peak at the beginning of the 20th century)

Description: “Sacrifice personal interests now to gain group approval and harmony.” Expressed in 1960s pluralism and systems theory.

The theory of Spiral Dynamics also identifies a second tier of VMemes. These are relatively new levels, which are gradually moving from focusing on purely “mundane” moments, characteristic of the First Tier, to existence on an existential level. The existence of two different tiers psychological development was introduced by Graves. Cowan states that it is possible that Graves introduced the tiering system as some kind of marketing tool. Until now, no study has been able to prove that these two tiers exist. Cowan no longer supports the idea of ​​two tiers, but states that the only thing currently known about the Yellow and Turquoise systems is that they are more complex versions of the Orange and Green tiers, respectively. The open-ended theory suggests that the levels from Coral and above are simply not yet formed and will be established as more larger number communities will evolve to the level of these memes.

Brief description: System-integrative

Origin: 1950s

Description: “Expressed by satisfying personal desires, but avoiding harm to others, so that everyone benefits, and not just oneself.”

Turquoise

Brief description: Holistic

Time of appearance: 1970s

Description: an integrative system that combines personal interests necessary for the body with the interests of the communities of which a person is a part. This theory is in its infancy.

Further development.

The color system was added in 1970 as a graphic element for illustration educational materials used by Cowan and Beck. The term VMeme was introduced by Beck and Cowan in Spiral Dynamics, where linguistic language replaced Graves' original terminology. They defined milestones for the transition between levels. Graves' original theory uses the double helix model to show the interconnectedness of individual perception living conditions with the neuronal systems producing the level of psychological existence. This double helix of two interacting forces corresponds to the spiral in Spiral Dynamics.

After their book was published, Beck and Cowan taught their theory in two courses, SDI and SDII. Their collaboration was officially terminated in 1999. After this, both continued to teach various types of training courses, as well as do consulting work. Beck spent several years applying the theory of Spiral Dynamics while working with individuals and groups in South Africa to deconstruct Apartheid, for which he received an award from the State of Texas. Beck continued to adapt his courses using this model in both business and politics.

Beck and Ken Wilber (with his integral theory) became interested in each other's work, resulting in Beck developing his own branch of spiral dynamics, which he called Integral Spiral Dynamics. This version of the theory uses integral ideas such as the Four Quadrants. Beck is also associated with spiritual teacher, Andrew Cohen. This cooperation still promises to yield certain organizational and social results.

Cowan does not subscribe to these developments and promotes a version of the theory that he describes as remaining closer to and developing Claire Graves' original research. He continues to use the term "Spiral Dynamics" to describe his work since he created it with Beck. With his assistant, Natasha Todorovic, he undertook work in combining Spiral Dynamics with NLP and other models, and in developing corporate strategy and practical applications. He also proposed an additional second-tier VMeme, Coral, which deals with the development of the faculties of consciousness.

Pathologies

According to Don Beck and Ken Wilber, every VMeme has both "healthy" and "unhealthy" versions. Pathologies are sometimes called “low”, such as “Low Green VMeme” (LGM), or “Low Orange VMeme” (LOM). For example, NOM is characterized by the excesses of capitalism such as exploitation, environmental disaster and a general lack of ethics and sensitivity, while NLM has internal contradictions such as anti-hierarchy, anti-competition, etc.

Cowan counters that there is no credible evidence for the existence of the Low Green VMeme, and that it is a distortion of the theory. While he acknowledges the above problems, Cowan argues that they exist in other value systems just as much, so attributing them only to the Green VMeme oversimplifies things. He believes that the term “low” is inappropriate and distorts the theory, whereas it is more appropriate to use the terms adaptation and maladaptation, efficiency and ineffectiveness. Psychopathology potentially exists at all levels and is another dimension.

Todorovic offers data and analysis leading to the conclusion that the hypothesis of the existence of NLM is contradicted by the data. Todorovic further concludes that the NLM is a "fault of analysis" based on a number of misconceptions about spiral dynamics, giving a "false alarmist signal", and classifies the NLM as a harmful "form of spiral fundamentalism".

Criticism of Spiral Dynamics

Critics point out that the conclusions that follow from this model apply not only to personal development, but also to politics, and although the terminology of the theory has more to do with self-awareness, the practical applications of this model can be more elitist and authoritarian in nature. In his work on this subject, Beck emphasizes that one of the characteristics of the "second tier" individuals, the so-called "Spiral Sages", is their ability to make the best decisions for all parties and to bring agreement to their methods at lower levels, using resonant terms and ideas. In addition to general and specific theories of development, Spiral Dynamics provides detailed advice to such “Wise Men” for both consensual and non-consensus management of lower-tier individuals. One of the critics of Spiral Dynamics, Michael Bauwens, argues that some concepts of what is called the "second tier" have similarities to Nietzsche's idea of ​​the Overman. Beck's co-creator Cowan has publicly distanced himself from the ideas that his ex-partner Beck is now promoting in collaboration with Ken Wilber.

Addendum: interpretation of memes by Ken Wilber.

Scarlet (aka purple) (egocentric, magical). Begins about 50,000 years ago, and is a designation for an egocentric, magical worldview, and impulsiveness. It is expressed in magism/animism, the cult of ancestral spirits and the like. Small children initially have a scarlet worldview. The scarlet level for all lines of development is the initial one, which is called “their own circle” for all new tasks. Scarlet-level emotions and worldviews can be seen in such cultural phenomena as comic books and films dedicated to superheroes.

Red (ego- to ethnocentric, egoistic): Red level began ca. 10,000 years ago and is a marker of egocentric systems based on power, where “might is always right,” where aggression rules, and where the ability to understand another person and take his place is very limited. Red impulses are classically seen in middle school and early high school, where bullying, teasing, and the like are the norm. Culturally red motivations can be seen in Fighting competitions, which have no fixed rules (fixed rules come at the next level, amber), in teenage rebellion and in films that cater to all of this (for example, "Fast and the Furious"), gangster gangs (where the strong rules the weak) and the like.

Amber (that is, blue) (ethnocentric, mythical): The Amber level began about 5000 years ago and characterizes a worldview that is traditionalist and mythical in nature - and mythical worldviews are almost always absolutist (this stage is often called absolutist). Instead of the rule “might is always right,” the amber ethic is more group-oriented, but strictly and only “my” group. Middle and high school children typically display amber motivations to fit in with the group. The Amber ethic helps control the impulsiveness and narcissism of the Red. Culturally, the amber worldview is represented as fundamentalism (my God is right no matter what); extreme patriotism (my country is right no matter what); and ethnocentrism (my people are right no matter what).

Orange (world-centric, rational): The Orange level begins about 500 years ago, during the period known as the Age of Enlightenment. In the orange worldview, the individual begins to move away from amber conformism, which makes views on his own religion, nation or tribe more flexible. The orange worldview often begins to emerge in high school, college, and adulthood. Culturally, the orange worldview represents the understanding that “truth is not something that is given, it is something that must be discovered on one’s own,” and it stimulates the rapid development of science and formal rationality. The Orange Ethic already embraces all people - “we hold it to be a self-evident truth that all men are created equal...”. Ayn Rand's objectivism, the US Bill of Rights, and many laws designed to protect individual freedom are all a product of the Orange worldview.

Green (worldcentric, pluralistic): The Green level begins approximately 150 years ago, although it comes into full expression in the 1960s. Green worldviews are characterized by pluralism, or the ability to see that there are many ways to see reality. While orange sees universal truths (“All men are created equal”), green sees many universal truths—different universes for different cultures. The green ethic continues and radically expands the trend towards inclusion of all people. A green statement would be: “We hold it to be self-evident that all men are created equal regardless of race, sex, class...”. The green ethic gave birth to civil rights, feminism, the gay rights movement, and the environmental movement.

The multi-dimensional vision of a green worldview provides the opportunity for greater compassion, idealism, participation in its healthy form. Such qualities can be seen in such organizations as the Sierra Club, Amnesty International, Union of Concerned Scientists, Doctors Without Borders. In its unhealthy form, the green worldview can lead to extreme relativism, where all beliefs are considered equally relative and equally true, which in turn can lead to the nihilism, narcissism, irony and meaninglessness represented by many modern intellectuals, scientists and trendsetters... not to mention about other “lost” generations.

Second tier:

Canary (yellow) (from world-centric to "cosmocentric", integral): The yellow meme marks the beginning of an integral worldview in which pluralism and relativism are transcended and incorporated into a larger systemic whole. The transition from green to yellow is also known as the transition from the values ​​of the first tier to the values ​​of the second. The most striking difference is that each level of the first tier believes its values ​​are the only true ones, while the second tier recognizes the importance of all previous stages of development. In this way, the yellow worldview honors the green level insights, but places them in a deeper context that allows for the creation of healthy hierarchies and healthy discrimination of value systems.

Perhaps more importantly, the yellow worldview begins to see the process of development as such, recognizing that each of the previous stages (from purple to green) plays an important role in the human experience. Yellow consciousness sees that each of the previous stages reveals some important truth and collects these truths together, integrating them without trying to remake them for themselves, but also without extreme cultural relativism (“everyone is equal”). The yellow worldview does not just see all points of view (like the green level) - it can give them their due, but at the same time critically evaluate them.

Turquoise (“cosmocentric”, integral): The turquoise level is the prerogative of an integral vision, in which a person can not only see a healthy hierarchy, but also the various quadrants of human knowledge, expression and requests (at a minimum: me, we and it). While the yellow worldview is still "worldly", the turquoise level for the first time begins to include Spirit as an active force in the world (incarnated through any or all of the three persons of God - "I" - "selflessness" or "witness" of Buddhism; “we/you” - the “great Other” of Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, etc.; or “it” - the “Net of Life”, which can be seen in Taoism, Pantheism, etc.).

I also provide here a translation of another description of Spiral Dynamics given by Wilber.

KW: In Integral Psychology I present chapters that summarize more than one hundred developmental psychologists, Eastern and Western, ancient and modern and post-modern. Spiral Dynamics is only one of these hundred, but I use it because of its simplicity and clarity, even for beginners. Based on extensive research pioneered by Claire Graves, Spiral Dynamics (developed by Don Beck and Christopher Cowan) views humans as evolving through eight major waves of consciousness. For convenience, I will give a brief description of them

SPIRAL DYNAMICS AND WAVES OF CONSCIOUSNESS

The first six levels are “living wage” levels, designated as “first level thinking.” Next, a revolutionary shift in consciousness is observed: the emergence of the “existential level” or “second level thinking”, where there are two main waves. Below is a brief description of these eight waves, the percentage of the population, and the social power that portion of the population holds.

1. Beige: Archaic-instinctive. Basic Survival Level; food, water, warmth, sex and safety take priority. Self-awareness is barely discernible. Such people flock into survivalist herds.

   Where you can observe: The first human societies, newborns, very old people, late stages of Alzheimer's syndrome, mentally ill homeless people, starving masses, shell-shocked. Approximately 0.1% of the adult population, 0% of power.

2. Purple: Magical-animistic. Thinking is animistic; magical spirits, good and bad, bury their blessings in the ground, spells determine events. Such people form ethnic tribes. The spirits of the ancestors bind the tribe together. Political connections are determined by kinship and origin. It sounds “holistic”, but in reality it is atomistic: “every bend of the river has a name, but the river as a whole has no name.”

   Where you can watch: Believers in Voodoo spells, blood oaths, ancient curses, good luck charms, family rituals, ethnic magic and superstitions; strong in third world countries, in gangs, sports teams and corporate “tribes”. 10% of the population, 1% of the authorities.

3. Red: Strong gods. The first occurrence of the separation of self from the tribe; powerful, impulsive, self-centered, heroic. Magical-mythical spirits, dragons, creatures and powerful people. Archetypal gods and goddesses, powerful beings, forces to be reckoned with, both good and bad. Feudal lords protect their subjects in exchange for obedience and labor. The basis of feudal empires is power and glory. The world is a jungle full of dangers and predators. Conquerors, cunning and strong; take whatever you want from life without regret or repentance; to be here and now.

Where you can watch: “Bonnie and Clyde”, rebellious youth, frontier mentality, feudal kingdoms, epic heroes, James Bond villains, gang leaders, soldiers of fortune, New Age narcissism, wild rock stars, Atilla the Gun, “Lord of the Flies”. 20% of the population, 5% of the authorities.

1. Blue: Mythic order. Life has meaning, direction and purpose, with results determined by the omnipotent Other or Order. This only true Order implements a code of conduct based on the absolutist and choiceless principles of “right” and “wrong.” Violation of this code will result in severe, possibly eternal, punishment. Following the code is richly rewarded. The foundation of ancient nations. Rigid social hierarchy; paternalism; one right way and only one right way to think about everything. Law and order; impulsivity is controlled through guilt; literal and fundamentalist faith; obedience to rules and Order; following the generally accepted, conformism. Often – “religious” and “mythical” [in the sense of participation in myth; Graves and Beck refer to this as the "holiness/absolutism" level, but Order or Mission can be secular or atheistic.

   Where to observe: Puritan America, Confucian China, Dickensian England, Singaporean order, totalitarianism, codes of chivalry and honor, Whereseen: PuritanAmerica, ConfucianChina, DickensianEngland, Singaporediscipline, totalitarianism, codesofchivalryandhonor, charity, religious fundamentalism (e.g. Christian and Islamic), Scouting organization, “moral majority”, patriotism. 40% of the population, 30% of the authorities.

1. Orange: Scientific achievements. On this wave, the self moves away from the herd psychology of the blue meme, and seeks truth and meaning in individualistic terms - hypothetical-deductive, empirical, objectivist, mechanistic, operationist - "scientific" in the usual sense of the word. The world is a rational and well-oiled machine with natural laws that can be studied, mastered and used for human purposes. Focused on achievement, especially (in the US) material gain. The laws of science govern politics, economics and human life. The world is a chessboard on which games are played by the winners, and the losers find themselves on the sidelines. Trade unions; managing the planet's resources for strategic gain. The basis of corporate states.

   Where you can watch: The Enlightenment, Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged, Wall Street, the rise of the global middle class, the cosmetics industry, trophy hunting, colonialism, the Cold War, the fashion industry, materialism, secular humanism, liberal selfishness. 30% of the population, 50% of the authorities.

   1. Green: Sensitive self. Communitarianism, human connections, environmental sensitivity, networks. The human spirit must be free from greed, dogma and discord; feelings and care replace cold rationality, cherishing the Earth, Gaia, life. Against hierarchy, creates horizontal connections and unity. Permeable self, relational self, group interconnectedness. Emphasis on dialogue and relationships. The basis of value communities (that is, freely chosen affiliations based on common sentiments). Makes decisions based on reconciliation and consensus ( reverse side: endless processing and inability to make decisions). Renewal of spirituality, harmony, enrichment of human potential. Strongly egalitarian, anti-hierarchical, pluralistic, social construction of reality, diversity, multiculturalism, relativistic value systems; this worldview is often called pluralistic relativism. Subjective, non-linear thinking; shows a great degree of warmth, sensitivity and care for the Earth and all its inhabitants.

Where to watch: Depth psychology, postmodernism, Dutch idealism, Carl Rogers psychotherapy, Canadian health care system, humanistic psychology, liberation theology, World Council of Churches, Greenpeace, animal rights, ecofeminism, post-colonialism, Foucault/Derrida, political correctness, diversity movements, human rights issues, ecopsychology. 10% of the population, 15% of the authorities. [Note: This is 10% of the world's population. Don Beck estimates that about 20-25% of the American population is green.]

With the end of the green meme, human consciousness undergoes a quantum leap to “second-level thinking.” Claire Graves calls it "an important leap" in which "a chasm of incredible depth of meaning is crossed." In essence, with second-level consciousness a person can think both vertically and horizontally, using both hierarchies and heterarchies (both rankings and horizontal connections). Therefore, here a person can for the first time vividly embrace the entire spectrum of internal development and thus see that each level, each meme, each wave is extremely important for the health of the entire Spiral.

As I would call it, every wave here is surpassed and included. That is, each wave goes ahead of its predecessor and yet includes or embraces it in its own structure. For example, a cell is superior to but includes molecules that are superior to but includes atoms. To say that a molecule goes beyond atoms does not mean to say that molecules hate atoms, but that they love them: they embrace them in their own structure, include them in themselves, do not reject them. Only in this way, each wave of existence is a fundamental component of all subsequent waves.

Moreover, each wave can itself be activated or deactivated by certain life circumstances. In extreme situations we can activate the red forces; in response to chaos, we may need blue order; when looking for a new job, we may need an orange achievement orientation; In family life and with friends you need green connections. All of these memes make important contributions.

But each first-level meme is itself inferior in the sense that it does not value other memes. Each of the first level memes thinks that their worldview is correct and better. If he is challenged, he reacts negatively; he attacks using his tools whenever there is a threat. Blue order really dislikes red impulsiveness and orange individualism. Orange individualism thinks that blue order is for cattle, and green egalitarianism is for weaklings. Green egalitarianism cannot easily follow perfection and value hierarchies, big pictures, hierarchies or anything that looks like authoritarianism, and thus green reacts painfully to blue, orange and second-tier memes.

All this changes at the second level of thinking. Because second-level consciousness is fully aware of the stages of internal development - even if it cannot articulate it in technical terms - and steps back to embrace the whole picture, and thus second-level thinking appreciates the role played by each meme. Second-level thinking thinks in terms of the whole spiral of existence, and not just in terms of any one level.

Where the green meme begins to embrace the many different systems and pluralistic contexts that exist in different cultures (which is why it is truly a sensitive self, i.e. sensitive to the rejection of others), second level thinking takes it one step further. It seeks the contexts that unite these disparate systems, and in this way it collects these separate systems and begins to embrace, include and integrate them into a single spiral and integral interconnectedness. Second-level thinking, in other words, moves from relativism to holism, from pluralism to integralism.

Extensive research conducted by Graves, Beck and Cowan shows that there are at least two main waves in this second level consciousness:

1. Yellow: unifying. Life is a kaleidoscope of natural hierarchies [holarchies], systems and forms. Flexibility, spontaneity and functionality have the highest priority. Difference and multiplicity can be integrated into interdependent, natural flows. Egalitarianism is complemented by natural degrees of ranking and mastery. Knowledge and competence trump power, status, or group instincts. The prevailing world order is the result of the existence different levels reality (memes) and various patterns of movement up and down the dynamic spiral. Good governance facilitates the emergence of entities through levels of increasing complexity (nested hierarchy). 1% of the population, 5% of the authorities.
2. Turquoise: holistic. Universal holistic system, holons/waves of integrative energies; sense of unity and knowledge; multiple levels connected into one system of Consciousness. Universal order, but in a living, conscious sense, not based on external rules (as in the blue meme) or group connections (as in the green one). "Grand Unification" ["theory of everything"] - possible in theory and in reality. Sometimes it includes the emergence of a new spirituality as a network structure of being. Turquoise thinking uses the entire Spiral; sees multiple levels of interaction; captures harmonics, mystical forces and penetrating flows-states that permeate any organization. 0.1% of the population, 1% of the authorities.

   Level 2 consciousness is relatively rare (2% of the population and 0.1% for the turquoise meme) as it is now the cutting edge of the collective human evolution. As examples, Beck and Cowan mention Teilhard de Chardin's noosphere, theories of chaos and complexity, universal systems of thought, integral holistic theories, pluralistic integration of Gandhi and Mandela. The frequency of such manifestations is increasing and even higher memes may appear.

In the 20th century, several theories appeared that described the evolution of human consciousness. Among them is Graves' spiral dynamics. This theory was able to most fully describe the steps in the evolution of people and society. The fundamental difference This teaching is a holistic approach - a new stage of human development is presented as the next level of holarchy, which includes the previous one.

Claire Graves - who is he?

The American scientist and professor of psychology was a student of Abraham Maslow. In 1952, he began conducting research to extract meaning from existing scientific concepts that explain human behavior. For more than 15 years, Graves studied the process of changing values ​​in society. The scientist did not ask the question: “Why does this happen?” He was interested in how everything happened.

The psychology professor chose the field of human behavior in which there was controversy and many scientific points of view. He chose the “concept of a mentally healthy person” as the basis. The scientist was interested not so much in the content of existing concepts as in the fact of their interaction with each other. Graves conducted his “experiments” on students. For 8 years, he collected scientific data, after which he processed it and connected it with each other. Graves' spiral dynamics soon became known in scientific circles. Later this theory had followers: Chris Cowan, Ken Wilber, Don Beck.

Spiral dynamics

Many theories of the 20th century describe how a person goes through certain stages in his development. Many people successfully overcome the stages, moving to the next stage of development. Others get stuck.

Graves' theory of spiral dynamics describes levels of human development through value complexes, including faith, moral principles, and cultural ideas that arise in the process of sociocultural evolution. Graves' theory states that the highest levels of social and human development include the lower ones - the previous ones.

Test

The scientist conducted his experiment as follows. He formed groups of students, each of whom was asked to defend his concept. The students expressed all their thoughts on paper, describing in detail why they adhered to the chosen direction.

At the third stage, the scientist conducted personal conversations with the experiment participants, discussing what influenced them to change their opinions. He showed the students’ notes to independent experts in order to “classify” the result of the work.

The results of the test were unpredictable. In the first studies, experimental participants fell into the “victim” category. They rebuilt themselves and their behavior, adapting to the world around them. At the second stage, their attitude to what was happening changed. Students agreed to sacrifice to get what they wanted now. At the third stage, they tried to express themselves in any way (calculatingly - at the expense of others). And finally, the participants in the experiment tried to establish themselves through their own efforts - not at the expense of other people.

This was Graves' first test of spiral dynamics. In the early 60s, the scientist conducted several more experiments with a wider range of participants. As a result, he was able to identify several more categories of the concept of behavior of a “healthy personality.” Ultimately, 8 main Graves levels were identified. The spiral dynamics of the scientist is the basis of the values ​​of the earthly world. The legendary ideas of the psychology professor continue to be developed by modern scientists.

Levels

Clair William Graves' theory of spiral dynamics describes 8 levels of human development, which are located in in a certain order: as new questions arise in a person in the process of his development.

At the top step are memes of the highest order - vMeme. Each meme represents a system of certain values, which is characterized by religious beliefs, organizational dynamics, social groupings, and goals. The model is hierarchical: memes are arranged in it in order of increasing complexity. There are currently 8 levels of holarchy.

1. Survival - beige color.
2. Tribal Thinking - Purple.
3. Gods of power - red color.
4. The power of truth is blue.
5. Thirst for success - orange color.
6. Circular - green.
7. Intriguing - yellow.
8. Modernizer - turquoise.

Beige

In Graves' Spiral Dynamics, this color represents instinctive thinking. The scientist called the initial level “Survival.” Here, a person’s instinctual desires come first. He strives to satisfy his physical needs to the maximum. Social organization This stage is represented by small tribal groups in which there is practically no ethics. In the modern world, newborns and very elderly people are a striking example of this. To move to the next level, a person needs to recognize his personality.

At the “Survival” stage, people with mental development problems and complete dissociation get stuck.

Violet

The second level of Clair Graves' spiral dynamics is called "Ancestral Spirits". The color purple corresponds to animistic, tribal, down-to-earth thinking. A person here strives for social stability. He does not understand the many processes taking place around him, so he tries to protect himself from them. It seems to him that life in a tribe is the only correct and safe form of existence. A person at this level defends the interests of the group. Blood ties between people here are very strong. Leaders and shamans have strong power.

The prerequisites for the transition to a higher level are the emergence of a dominant ego and the emergence of an individual who turns out to be stronger than the group.

An example of people who linger at the second level are many tribes in Africa.

Red and blue

The third level of existence is “colored” red. In Clair Graves' Spiral Dynamics they are called the "Gods of Power." At this stage, a person’s individualism begins to manifest itself. And often this happens in a rude manner. There is strict authoritarianism here, and slavery is developing. Power belongs to one leader, who is convinced that almost all people are lazy, so they need to be forced to work. At the same time, the leader tries to suppress human emotions. At this level, the truth is “for the strong.”

In the modern world, vivid examples are bandit groups and African kingdoms.

To leave the “Red” level, a person must recognize the power of morality and begin to search for life goals and the meaning of his existence.

The fourth level of development of Graves' spiral dynamics has a blue tint. It is called "the power of truth." It is at this stage that a person begins to understand that life consists of more than just pleasure; people live according to certain rules. To live long and peacefully on earth, you need to follow these rules. In people at this level of development, patriotic thinking predominates; they are willing to sacrifice for a higher purpose. This group has a predominant religious ethic.

Many people live happily at this level and do not try to move to the next. Examples include Islamic states, Confucian families, and Puritan American states.

To move to the next level, you need to seek happiness in life by choosing the best path from numerous alternatives.

Orange

The fifth level of existence is called “Thirst for Success.” It has an orange tint. At this stage, a person tries to comprehend the secrets of the world in order to master it. But this does not manifest itself in the crude form characteristic of the previous stages. A person believes that only those who truly deserve it reach the top. Orange people can be called dogmatists. But at the same time they are pragmatic.

There are examples of the existence of such groups in the modern world - American and Western European capitalists.

A prerequisite for moving to a new level is the discovery that material wealth does not bring happiness and inner satisfaction; feelings of dissatisfaction with competition and inequality arise.

Green and yellow

The sixth level of existence in Graves' Spiral Dynamics is called "Circular". It is “painted” green. Here the main values ​​for a person become relationships with other people, as well as with the inner “I”. At this stage, people care less about material needs and power, wanting to experience love and feel attention from other people. A person is ready to accept principles that others consider correct and useful.

Ethics of the sixth level of existence: laws are important and they should ensure the well-being of the majority of people.

The transition to a new level is possible subject to competition with systems that have fewer social obligations.

Yellow is the seventh level of being. Graves argues that it is at this stage that a person becomes a social individual and loses his competitiveness. He begins to understand and feel that many ongoing processes depend on the influence of the Universe. A person begins to systematically build the world, using the knowledge accumulated in previous levels of development. At the yellow level, people recognize the value of chaos. The first place for a person is the efficiency of the system.

The prerequisites for the transition to the last level of development are the search for order in chaos, the desire to connect the spiritual and physical.

Turquoise

The last stage of Graves' theory corresponds to synergetic thinking. A person is able to see the shortcomings of previous levels and integrate them into a single whole. In the twentieth century, there were few representatives of the turquoise level. In the 21st century, their number has increased significantly. Man has become more interested in the problems of global survival. People began to explore their inner worlds.

Most scientists estimate that about 10% of the population is in the "purple" tier; 20% are representatives of the “red” stage. 40% of the population is “stuck” in the “blue” level. The remaining 30% is at the “orange”, “green”, “yellow” stages.

The Graves spiral dynamics test proves that the transition to a new level is not an inevitable process. Some groups may get stuck at some point. For example, a corporation always remains at the “blue” level. The transition to the “orange” stage may result in bankruptcy for it.

The theory of spiral dynamics can be applied in practice. For example, it can be used for a specific firm to evaluate its performance.

Books

Graves' theory of spiral dynamics was developed by his followers - D. Beck and K. Cowan. They published a joint paper, Spiral Dynamics: Managing Values, Leadership and Change in the 21st Century. This book has been translated into several languages, including Russian. The spiral dynamics of Claire Graves are described in detail on the pages of the literary publication. It should be noted that Graves' theory is placed on a par with the theories of systems and chaos.

Many theories of the evolution of human society have been created, but so far none of them claims to become generally accepted. The reason is that none of them has been able to explain the nature of social processes in a comprehensive manner (or even close to it). This is their similarity, and as for the differences, here we are faced with an extremely rich choice - there are so many theories and ideas on this subject that in this they can only compete with philosophical theories of substantiating the meaning of human existence.

Does all this mean that all theories social evolution, due to the exceptional diversity of social processes and the presence of many different and unexpected factors influencing them, are a priori doomed to failure? Maybe so, but something else is more obvious here: as long as human society develops and exists, attempts will continue to find laws of development common to all.

In this article we will tell you about one of these theories, which, compared to others, is distinguished by a fair amount of originality, and also claims to actually embrace the immensity and explain in a fairly simple way what no one has been able to do.

So, meet - Theory of Spiral Dynamics of development of human societies.

The theory of spiral dynamics is quite comprehensively presented in the 1996 book of the same name by Don Beck and Chris Cowan (already translated into Russian), which we highly recommend reading, and is a creative interpretation of another original theory known as the theory emergent cyclical levels of existence" Professor of Psychology from the USA Claire William Graves.

William Graves

The theory was released back in the 60s of the last century, and its main idea was that the development of worldview systems in public systems goes along a double helix, where one is the totality of all external conditions of existence - both individual people and society as a whole, while the other is determined psychological state individuals in a particular society, their ideas about the world around them and their subsequent vision of this world.

Don Beck

From the interaction of these two main factors, stable conditions of existence and ways of thinking emerged over time, which formed the current model of society and the conditions for its further development.

Theory of Spiral Dynamics.

The theory of spiral dynamics is based on the following principles:

- the nature of human consciousness is not something immutable and defined once and for all, people are in constantly changing conditions of existence to which they are forced to adapt, and this process necessarily goes through the creation of new ideas - concepts that describe the world around us, while new ideas about the world always surpass previous ones.

- these conceptual models of the world inherent in individual members of society are always organized around value systems common to many members of society, which were called V-Memes by the authors of the theory.

V-Meme is a kind of collective intelligence, which is based on a combination of values ​​fundamental to a given community and is inherent in both individuals and society as a whole.

— in the system of spiral dynamics, V-Memes represent social ideas, customs and traditions common to all, habits, generally accepted patterns of behavior, cultural manifestations of a given society, etc.

An interesting distinctive property of V-Memes is their ability to self-organize and self-develop. This property means that they are capable of changing over time on their own, albeit in close connection with changing social trends.

— V-Memes are the dominant tendency in the consciousness of both individual members of society and society itself as a whole. There are two of these tendencies in the system of spiral dynamics - consciousness of the “I” type and consciousness of the “WE” type.

*The letter V, which is at the beginning of the word, comes from the English word “value”, which means “value”.

With the “I” type of consciousness, most members of society perceive themselves as individuals, whose interests are always above the public.

In the “WE” type of consciousness, the dominant one is the awareness of oneself as a member of a group or society, and in this case, the interests of the group in the public consciousness are prevalent.

Of course, here it is necessary to clearly understand that we are talking specifically about dominant social attitudes or trends, while individually in any society there are always individuals and even groups adhering to different behavioral tendencies.

Stages of development of societies - levels of the spiral.

In the system of spiral dynamics, different levels of development of societies are traditionally represented by different colors, and the basis of this division, as the authors of the theory tell us, is simple randomness. While giving lectures, Beck and Cowan, for their own convenience, marked slides about the dominant levels of social consciousness with different colors, which were subsequently chosen to indicate these levels.

Level 1 - Beige.

Human society has existed for a very long time, and in primitive times (about 100,000 years ago) man was practically no different from an animal. Living conditions were such that the main and natural guideline in life was physical survival.

This is the level of social consciousness of the “I” type, and personal survival comes first here.

The psychology of the individual is completely dependent on the difficult conditions of existence; it is the satisfaction of urgent physiological needs through instincts. Level psychology is based on the opposition between man and the hostile surrounding world, in which one must survive at any cost. Killing one's own kind for the sake of survival in such a world is a common thing, sometimes this murder is committed just to simply eat another.

As the external conditions of existence change, the orientation of consciousness gradually changes and moves to the next level.

Level 2 - Purple.

This is a level with a collective V-Meme of consciousness of the “WE” type.

The world around us is still extremely dangerous in the public consciousness and, in addition to natural enemies- other tribes, diseases, wild animals, it is inhabited by various spirits and creatures, most of which also do not bring anything good to humans.

During this period, the tribe (as a group) carries within itself the main potential for survival and, in accordance with this, is the prevailing value. The tribe has higher value than each of its members in itself.

These kinds of communities still exist in remote places on our planet, for example, in the jungles of the Amazon and Indonesia, and scientists have the opportunity to study them. It is known that one of the most terrible punishments in such a community is expulsion from the tribe.

The main motive of such a culture is physical survival, but at a higher level than the previous one. A higher level means that the chances of survival here are much higher than for a single person. Together, it is more convenient for people to hunt and repel the onslaught of enemies; at the same level, the first social relationships, social rules and collective views on the world around them arise.

When considering the levels, it is necessary to clearly understand that their psychology is inherent not only to those communities to which they were initially assigned. Elements of the psychology of primitive communities can be found at any level of development. This is very typical of primitive groups - teenagers, criminals. Remember how teenagers often perceive a person who transfers to another school - they talk about him as an outcast or even as a traitor.

Level 3 - Red.

Approximately 7,000 years ago, with the advent of agriculture, new conditions for existence gradually emerged - people moved to a sedentary level of life. This is truly a revolutionary change because it dramatically improves communities' chances of survival.

In accordance with these changes, social consciousness also changes, which again, but at a different level, is transformed into consciousness of the “I” type.

With the development of agriculture, such a phenomenon as the exploitation of man by man appears, slavery arises, and with it the material well-being of many members of society increases. Large classes of exploiters emerge who introduce an egocentric value system into society. In full accordance with circumstances change and social ideas about the world, a religion appears, where instead of the spirits of nature, figures of strong deities appear - the masters of certain elements.

This time is characterized by the seizure of new territories, since they provide more opportunities for agriculture, and this, in turn, serves as the main source of material values. Value manifestations of the red level are strength, aggression. Motto: I want everything, immediately and at any cost.

This level of social consciousness is often manifested in our time in the world, especially in developing countries and countries with an authoritarian type of government.

Level 4 - Blue.

In accordance with external changes, social consciousness again changes its sign to the opposite. The primitive thirst for resources and pleasures is replaced by the desire for law and order, based on obedience to the power of an absolute ruler - the monarch. A clear hierarchical division appears in societies.

From now on, law and order are a guarantee of survival and successful existence for many, and this becomes the highest value of society. Polytheism with the cult of strong gods embodying natural elements or individual human qualities changes to monotheism, and the one God becomes the source of order, law and justice, a kind of analogue of a just ruler, but only in heaven.

This is the level when it is not brute force that becomes valuable, but labor and the opportunities it gives.

Blue is the level of religious worldview, although the role of religion here can easily be played by any consolidating social idea (communism, nationalism, fascism).

The most understandable illustration of social values ​​at this level is the Protestant ethic.

A characteristic property of the levels of social development is their expediency. They fully meet the current needs of society, and when circumstances change, the levels begin to transform in accordance with the changes. This means that under certain conditions it is possible to move not only up, but also down. For example, if at the blue level of development of society a certain threat to its existence or the concept of its existence appears, then social values ​​can very quickly return to the previous level of development.

Thus, in certain periods of history, a “blue” society easily slides into the red level - wars break out, territories are seized, genocide occurs, etc. The reason for such regression is not always the need to repel an external threat; social consciousness of this type is quite capable of creating an imaginary enemy who, in accordance with the accepted value system, can appear at any moment and fulfill its role to consolidate such a society or satisfy its aggressive ambitions. Examples lie in very recent history - this is the creation of an image of an enemy in the person of Jews and other peoples (Nazi Germany), enemies in the person of the fifth column and world imperialism (Stalinist Russia), an enemy in the person of the whole world ( North Korea) etc.

Level 5 - Orange.

In the Middle Ages, society again transforms its basic paradigm, and individual consciousness comes to the fore. During this period, great geographical discoveries were made, science and art developed.

The orange level for humanity is a time of great achievements, when people begin to understand that their destiny is in their hands, and not at all in the hands of the Lord or the Monarch.

Personal qualities are valued very highly; the orange period of history is a time of triumph of leadership, private initiative and business. For example, nowadays the vast majority of business books are written by so-called “orange authors.”

But there is a problem that the orange level is the same red one, just moved to a higher stage of development and, nevertheless, remaining a level of extreme individualism, with all the ensuing consequences in terms of consumer attitudes towards other people and the environment.

The orange level is built on the principle of consumption, elevated to an absolute, and its motto is “I want everything and preferably right now.” This approach does not take into account the consequences, especially when they concern other people and surrounding nature. As a result, because of the decisions dictated by the greed of the “orange” leaders, many people and significant natural areas, from which useful resources are mercilessly extracted.

Level 6 - Green.

In response to the situation that is unfolding at the orange level, social consciousness again experiences a transformation and moves to the next level, and the scales once again tip towards the collective consciousness. According to Beck and Cowan's classification, this is the green level.

V-Meme number six is ​​characterized by the emergence of social movements for freedom, equality, ecology, and spirituality. An important feature of this level, in contrast to the related levels of collectively oriented consciousness of blue and violet, is that green consciousness is much broader and more flexible; at this level people unite not under the sign of rules or restrictions, but on a more voluntary and often ideological basis.

In such a consciousness there is much less suspicion of other people’s psychology and way of life and much more acceptance of the unfamiliar and incomprehensible. This means that people are initially more positive about the world around them than at previous levels, where distrust and suspicion play a big role.

A person living in a green paradigm often buys things made from recycled materials, despite their exorbitant cost, rides a bicycle to work so as not to harm the environment, is often a vegetarian and an animal rights activist, he charges his gadgets from solar panels, and finds work not for the money, but for the opportunity to do something for the world together with similar “green” colleagues.

Today, the culture of “green” consciousness is more characteristic of Western culture. Even in the “orange” area of ​​business, which is usually considered to be about profit, there are often “green” elements in the form of the desire to do something important for the world or a great idea beyond making money.

However, there are some nuances here too. The green type of consciousness often suffers from a collision with the realities of an imperfect world, represented by more primitive social paradigms, within which people often do not take green consciousness seriously at all, because for them safe consumption always comes first.

On the other hand, in the very focus of the green paradigm on trust in the world, which does not always deserve such trust, there is a danger that these ideas will be transformed to suit the needs of other types of consciousness and reduced to a level where their original meaning will be lost.

An example of this is the notorious Western tolerance, the manifestations of which representatives of more primitive levels are so fond of scolding. Unfortunately, this remarkable desire for tolerance of manifestations of dissent and other action has largely profaned precisely the encounter with earlier types of consciousness.

Let's see what can happen to tolerance, which was adopted by representatives of other levels of consciousness.

In many cases, it turns into its opposite, because the rules of tolerant behavior, not introduced at the state level, very quickly reduce to a set of strict rules and often meaningless social restrictions.

In general, history knows many examples when a violent attempt to transfer society to a higher level of development led to the collapse of the idea itself, or even to tragedy, because a natural change in social development paradigms is always carried out under the influence of urgent necessity, that is, it is expedient. As for artificial attempts to do this, at best they can lead to the fact that a society located at a lower stage of development simply transforms a wonderful idea to suit its interests in such a way that this idea completely loses its original meaning.

This often happens with democracy and liberalism when they find themselves in conditions of archaic social model, are transformed from methods that actually work and are useful for society into a simple imitation, and often into a scarecrow used to manipulate the broad masses ( shining example- modern Russia).

In our time, the conditions for a total transition to a green paradigm of consciousness have not yet fully formed, and therefore its manifestations are fragmentary even in Western liberal communities, not to mention those countries where traditionalism and violence rule the roost. It is interesting that in such societies, rare manifestations of green consciousness often cause much greater rejection and hatred than outright aggression, murder and injustice.

Level 7 - Yellow.

According to the theory, starting from this level, the transition to the next stage of the evolution of the spiral begins, because the “yellow” stage is the first stage at which society becomes aware of the previous levels as necessary and necessary stages in the development of humanity.

Each type of consciousness is recognized as appropriate and necessary under certain external conditions. In the “yellow” consciousness there is no idea about eradicating previous levels for further development and progress.

Harmonious manifestations of all types of consciousness are often a necessary condition for survival. What should a “green” person do when he needs to earn his own food and clothing? The answer is obvious - temporarily “return” to the orange level.

What to do if a person carrying a yellow level of consciousness is attacked? Naturally, in order to effectively protect himself, he will have to temporarily move to the red level or use the help of people who are specialists in such a transition (police).

What are the manifestations of “yellow” consciousness in our lives? These manifestations are primarily associated with the organic integration of the previously incompatible. Thus, carriers of different types of consciousness are most often in obvious or hidden contradiction with each other, but it is the “yellows” who are able to link these contradictions, reconcile them and ensure that people of different levels can work in a single team.

Often this approach means transforming the levels of consciousness of all participants in the process. This is the same emergence that we mentioned at the very beginning of the article and which implies that the qualities of a correctly created system at a certain moment begin to exceed the sum of its component parts, and these components themselves begin to evolve under the influence of the system.

The principles on which the “yellow” consciousness works are very pragmatic and expedient. And they are much more appropriate due to the fact that one of the main paradigms of the “yellow” level is cooperation and harmonious interaction. There is hope that it is with the help of psychology built on similar principles that it will finally be possible to solve the most difficult problems modern society, especially those based on the opposition of different types of consciousness.

The “Yellow” V-Meme represents another round of consciousness when the “I” type comes to the fore, but it is precisely this feature that limits its capabilities. In large and complex systems of social relations, towards which the world is inexorably moving, joint activity becomes much more necessary, which becomes more effective than individualism.

Level 8 - Turquoise.

The turquoise level, according to the authors of the theory, is not uniquely the level of “I” or “WE”, although it is more focused on collective activity. This level is called holistic, or the level of integrity, when the difference between the collective and individual characteristics of consciousness is blurred, and in the limit there is no difference at all between them. This is exactly what the thousand-year-old Buddhist doctrine tells us, as well as the research of modern quantum physics.

It is a big mistake in modern ways of thinking to see everything separately, when in fact the world around us is one, and all the individual things in it are connected and in fact inseparable. Understanding this unity and acting based on this understanding is an integral feature of the “turquoise” way of thinking.

Of course, today the turquoise level looks like a distant and ephemeral utopia. After all, in fact, this is a level of religious consciousness, but not the one to which we are accustomed and which is an expression of the social stereotype “religion”. It's about about religion, which is built on the internal experience of a person and the subsequent transformation of his consciousness.

On turquoise level, as the authors of the theory characterize it, there are many parallels with the type of consciousness that is spoken of in the religions of experience as enlightened. Perhaps this is what Beck and Cowan mean.

However, despite the fact that little is known about turquoise consciousness, the authors go a little further and, looking into the future, mention the next level, which in their terminology is called “coral”.

The idea of ​​the next level has not yet been formalized in any way, because nothing is known about it except the assumption that it should exist, because the development of human consciousness, according to the authors of the theory, should continue.

Perhaps this is it summary The theory of spiral dynamics should be completed, and if you are interested in this theory, you can continue your acquaintance with it by reading the book by Don Beck and Chris Cowan, which is currently the only book on this topic. The book is called Spiral Dynamics, and it is available in numerous online bookstores.

Many people will probably want to know what type of consciousness our society belongs to, as well as themselves. As you probably understood from the article, these are not the same thing at all.

The answer here cannot be unambiguous, since both society and the individual can operate with different types of consciousness. In this case, one type will be dominant.

As you might guess, most of the modern world, according to the theory outlined, lives within the orange paradigm of consciousness. Society, which is built in many countries, both democratic and not, is based on similar principles - the principle of material and spiritual consumption and extreme individualism is proclaimed everywhere.

And these conditions sometimes become a tendency not only to progress (transition to the green level), but also to the desire to return to the previous level, which many adherents of traditionalism and spiritual bonds tend to consider progress. But, of course, a return to the blue level, when the collective consciousness dominated, is not that.

And although such a temporary return is quite possible under certain conditions, it will in no way lead to a rejection of the principle of consumption, but will only transfer it to a slightly different plane.

In order to be convinced of this, it is enough to look at the countries where the trend of “blue consciousness” is clearly expressed; there are many such countries in the world, but happy and harmonious societies are not observed in them.

This can also be applied to individual consciousness, which can change much faster than the consciousness of society. Of course, no individual consciousness can be considered completely orange, green or blue, it always comes down to one dominant level. But there is one important feature here: the higher the level, the lower the likelihood of regression and the higher the progress.

And one more thing: in the context of personal development, what matters more is not what her consciousness is today, but her desire for progress, regression or stability.

Resume.

In the theory of spiral dynamics, the authors managed to link the psychological tendencies of individual consciousness, events of the external world and the result of their interaction - social consciousness (V-Meme). Perhaps today this is the only idea of ​​its kind that claims to be able to explain many of the trends in the development of modern society. An important issue remains the area of ​​its practical application, which in our time lies mainly in the area of ​​planning business development in the context of relations between its participants, that is, in the plane of the orange paradigm of consciousness. Will this theory find application in the field of politics? practical psychology Whether it will bring benefits to the development of society is still a big question.