The Integral Approach

Recently, in my independent studies of the world, its issues and potential solutions, I bumped into the Integral Approach (aka- Integral Theory). 

I have had my own growing belief, based on what I've studied and what I see happening around me, that not only are humans still very much evolving, but that we are evolving extremely rapidly.  This is not to say that I expect to see webbed feet or an extra eye in the next generation.  What I'm talking about here is an evolution of consciousness.  And I think it's happening exponentially.  This is because evolution, itself, is evolving. 

So, being the natural student that I am, I wanted to find some more substantial evidence to support this feeling I have, or even a theory.  Then, I bumped into the Integral Approach.  It swept me off my feet.  I watched the introductory video and craved more.  In so many ways, the Integral Approach verifies and reiterates what I've been sensing and thinking for a while now. 

First of all, it takes the viewpoint that in order to gain a better understanding of the world, we need to use all of the tools available to us.  That is, sciences, art, language and spirituality.  These are all useful and, indeed, necessary to get some sort of accurate picture of where we are at, as a species, of the problems/challenges we're facing, and in order to find solutions to those problems. 

I have written an article about systems thinking, which is a very useful tool.  However, the Integral Approach takes it a step further and includes the more psychological, artistic and spiritual aspects of humanity, which I feel are a vital part of moving forward and finding sustainable pathways.  In addition to accounting for almost every realm of human expression and understanding, the Integral Approach builds and synthesizes in a very cohesive manner various important theories and techniques  including: the scientific method, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Myers-Briggs personality types, physics, chemistry, East and Western medicine, Buddhism, etc.  And in one of its major premises which states that the ultimate reality is non-duality, so there are no rights and no wrongs, the Integral Approach asserts that it truly is holistic.

The Basics of the Integral Approach

The basic aspects of the Integral Approach consist of: quadrants, levels, lines and states. This is known as AQAL (all quadrants, all levels).  These are all just ways to look at and gain a better understanding of oneself, one's surroundings (including people), and the Universe, in general.  You can take it as far or near as you want to. The quadrants are: Interior Individual, Interior Collective, Exterior Individual, Exterior Collective.   So, you can view any person or situation through these different perspectives.  The Integral Approach professes that it is important to see things through these multiple perspectives, though, in order to keep things in perspective (pun intended). 

The levels are a way of understanding to what extent different aspects of ourselves are developed.  The levels go according to color and each color represents a different level of development.  Some basic levels are egocentric>ethnocentric>worldcentric>kosmoscentric, and preconventional>conventional>postconventional.

The lines are the aspects of ourselves that we would measure according to the levels.  For instance, a cognitive line (how aware we are of the world around us), a self-identity line (how aware we are of ourselves), intellectual (how we think in terms of rationality), interpersonal (how we interact with others), etc.

The "states" refer to states of consciousness.  Phenomenal states are emotions, insights & intuition, and physical sensations.  Then, there are altered states.  There are flow states (where things just flow), peak experiences (like making love or walking through amazing natural scenery), and meditative/contemplative states.  Then, there are the four natural states: gross (waking state), subtle (dreaming state), causal (sleeping state) and nondual (transcends/combines all of the others).

For more about AQAL and the Integral Approach, see this link.

It is a very interesting way to begin to examine and analyze yourself in an effort to better understand and know yourself.  I am a firm believer that if we come to know ourselves better, then we can reach the potential for true joy, understanding, and unconditional love that resides within us all.  Without understanding ourselves, we are unconscious of why we do the things we do.  Therefore, we are easily led by our fears and insecurities.  It is my belief that this is the cause of most of the problems we face today.  We, as a species, are mostly unconscious and, thus, very self-destructive.  This is another paralell that I found with the Integral Approach and in my next blog, I'll discuss the idea of Spiral Dynamics, which also seems to agree.  Stay tuned.