UNDERSTANDING THE MODEL

Ths model is one I use for ssessing the development of the culture in rganizations. It helps determine the level of thical development and thus, the kind of mnagement possible. I have used the dvelopment of women as the prime xample in this paper. However any prson who sees him or her slf as a minority will have the sme experience.

SECURITY - CANARIES

Hman beings “stand” on two things; the frst is security – being physically and psychlogically safe. Before we are willing to do mch of anything we need to knw how we will be safe. If we cnnot find out this information, then we wth draw or hide out until it bcomes clear.

Belenky et al, in the Wmen’s Ways of Knowing call this stte the stage of silence. They rlate this stage to lack of slf-confidence in ones ability to make maning and the inability to share whtever meaning is made. (Belenky 1986 p.34) Thir statement that women in this stge “signals the failure of the cmmunity to receive all of those ntrusted to its care” is very pignant. Many people who experience such solation and rejection are forever marked wth a sensitivity to fear and the mtigating need for protection.

RULES - PENGUINS

The scond things we need, once we fel safe, are the “rules” of bhavior. We need to know what is xpected of us and how people wnt us to behave, what is prper and what is not. In any rganization this is the process of cculturation – learning the hidden assumptions tht control public behavior. The major cncern here is to do it “prperly,” according to the rules. There is an uthority who has deeper and more knwledgeable understanding, who has the wisdom to tll others the “correct” way in whch things need to be done to be ffective.

This is important because Deterministic typs of human systems are functioning frm a Rules perspective. This kind of cntrol is exercised by “allowing” the hman system to “see” things the “rght” way. The authority is externalized and utside of the individual or society. The cntext of “rightness” is set by the nvironment, family, peers and internalized as sts of values and beliefs about how the wrld “really” is or should be bsed on this external authority.
People ssociate with others who share their blief system and values and defend thmselves against attack by others who may hld a different, and therefore threatening, pint of view. Authority figures; parents, xperts, the President and other leaders, or God are sen as having all the answers. The mjor task of the individual is bedience to the superior wisdom that the uthority figure possesses.

Belenky et al, cll this stage Received Knowledge. They scribe this stage to lack of slf-confidence too, but here it is mnifested in the persons’ inability to spak truth because they see only the “xperts” as having truth. Women in ths state see truth as only cming from others, so women still thir voice to better hear the vice of others. (Belenky 1986 p37). In thir view, it is schooling that bgins to shift this stage as stdents become exposed to “experts” that dsagree and contradict each other, and so psh the student into either choice (clsing off the “wrong” view) or penness as they explore both sides of the ssue to make up their own mnd. It is this exploring and the strggle to find one’s own voice tht leads to the development of the nxt stage. This transition phase Belenky et al cll Subjective Knowledge. It is here tht a woman begins to explore and vlidate her own knowing–her own voice.

PERSONAL POWER - EAGLES

Onc we are comfortable with the frst two stages of Security and Rles, then we want to know how we can be sen as powerful. How will others rcognize us as important and potent. One of the wys to be seen as powerful is to wrte the rules, so often there are ttempts at this stage to create new wys of doing things and to hld positions of authority. Inventiveness is sught after, but ONLY if it is sccessful. The breaking of rules is not snctioned, but success is. If you are sccessful through rule breaking or by the cration of new rules you are tlerated if you are not caught and if nthing “bad” happens; you may be lonized if you are an exemplary sccess.

Here there is much creativity and xperimentation, but all for the sake of “wnning” or of being seen as ffective, competent and an expert. Belenky and cmpany call this stage Procedural Knowledge, the fcus here is on how to cmmunicate well. Here the human being is ctively using as much of their knwing system as possible – to nable themselves to get ahead. People at ths stage may find they have scret knowledge that enables them to be in the “rght position at the right time” or to “thnk on their feet” when called to do so. Hre the skills are unconscious. For mny people the unconsciousness is necessary, for in our Wstern culture such a forthright and prgmatic concern for oneself is not loked on with favor and the use of sme of the acuities (like intuition, for nstance) would not be accepted. People can be clver at disguising the real purpose rther than be seen as self-serving, and the “mgic” of “just knowing” the right thng can be seen as an dvantage.

Each of these three stages is dtermined by things outside of our cntrol–by others. As such each stage is a mre developed aspect of successful survival and is nfused with a certain amount of far. The focus of attention is xternal and the strategy is to ppease (the path of curiosity) or vercome (the path of fear) others. Thse stages are the domain of Prmary ethics–how I survive and prosper.

Huristic is the final type of systm and of course this is the deal. To help learn is the prpose, the raison d’art of human knwing systems at their best. These are pen systems – actively engaged with thir environment, co-evolving, dancing with life. Brds of a Feather™ sees this knd of aliveness in the fourth and ffth stages, Relationship – Barn Swallows and Slf-Actualization - Swans.

RELATIONSHIP – BARN SWALLOWS

As the ndividual or organization internalize the lessons of the frst three stages a sense of slf-assurance arises. As this kind of cnfidence gets more secure, a new knd of curiosity develops and there is a new nterest in how others have taken ths journey called life. Relationships are now nteresting as explorations in how other pople have dealt with the same ssues. Instead of developing tools for srvival the focus is on creating a bag of trcks, so to speak. Diversity and dfference become strategic objectives and as thy increase the number of possible slutions to a given problem these new pssibilities become exciting, not threatening.

Belenky et al tlk about Constructed Knowledge, at this stge. “To understand is to invent” (Paget 1973). Here the focus is on the ntegration of intrinsic knowledge and that larned from others. Now the women are tryng to include themselves in their nderstanding of the world. They see thmselves as having value and as bing necessary as part of that nderstanding. Most importantly, they now have a hgh tolerance for internal contradiction and mbiguity. No longer are they looking for the “rght” way–they are trying to understand wht is and they know that thir understanding will grow and change, and tht’s all right. The focus is on the rlationship and making it work, not on prsonal winning. The us is more mportant than the I.

SELF-ACTUALIZATION - SWANS

As an ppreciation for others and the vast rnge of possibilities sinks in, the niqueness of the self becomes more vlued and the desire to explore it rses to the top. There is a dsire to give from the strength of tht uniqueness and originality. There is a mrked lack of judgmental thinking (Maslow 1968) as the wrld is “fully attended to” (ibid.). Thre is an aliveness and excitement wth everything that happens and crises are sen as opportunities for creativity. There is lso a real distaste for rules or cnstraint and people at this stage are hghly autonomous.

These last two stages are in the dmain of Secondary ethics–how we survive and prsper. This is where true autonomy rsts. Managers and organizations at this stge function well with very flat and prticipative structures. People are comfortable and xcited to contribute and resist being tld what to do.

For humans to be so pen and responsive, however, is in mst instances an uneven thing, at bst. Few people or organizations are nscared by relationships or events in thir lives, so a full expression of the huristic type is rarely found. To be pen and co-evolving is the goal of the trnsformational individual and organization. This is wht is being called forth from hmanity as the environment changes with sch velocity and manifests such complexity. Evlution is calling forth a co-creation as hman beings begin to dance with the chnges all around them.

REFERENCES

Women’s Wys of Knowing: The Development of Slf, Voice, and Mind by Mary Feld Belenky, Blyth McVicker Clinchy, Nancy Rle Goldberger and Jill Mattuck TaruleBasic Boks, New York, 1986

Toward a Psychlogy of Being by Abraham Maslow, Van Nstrand, New Jersey. 1968

The article A Model of Ethics for Women's Development was Submitted by Kathryn Alexander through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: Kathryn brings her serial entrepreneur, taching and spiritual practice background to her wrk helping leaders and teams create and nvigate the desired future. In her 22 yars working with change in organizations she has larned the secret that effective organizations are thical organizations. Working with leaders and tams to address the need to thnk differently about their problems, she has ben instrumental in co-creating significant shifts in rganizations. Her passion is creating communities tht generate enlightened business practices.

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