The Development of Logic in Adulthood: Postformal Thought and Its Applications / Edition 1

by Jan D. Sinnott

Overview

In this book Jan D. Sinnott synthesizes her 20 years of research on lifespan cognitive development to describe the growth of complex (or ‘postformal') thought in adults. She shows specifically how adults improve mentally over a lifetime and learn to think in more complex and wiser ways. Applications of postformal thought are demonstrated in such diverse areas as - family relations - adult education - personal identity - and spirituality. Chapters examine relations between postformal thought and pertinent variables such as age, health, memory, and vocabulary. Other sections deal with issues in humanistic psychology such as - guided imagery - mind - body medicine - and creative intentionality.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780306457234
Publisher:	Springer US
Publication date:	03/31/1998
Series:	The Springer Series in Adult Development and Aging
Edition description:	1998
Pages:	372
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.36(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: Creation of a Theory and the Purpose of This Book.- I. The Theory: Description and Development of Complex Postformal Thought.- 2. Limits of Traditional Approaches for Understanding Adult Logical Development.- 3. What Characterizes Postformal Thought?.- 4. Development of Postformal Thought.- 5. New Physics Models Underlying Postformal Thought.- 6. General Systems Theory Underlies Postformal Thought.- 7. Chaos, Complexity, Self-Regulating Systems, and Postformal Thought.- II. Some Research to Support the Theory: Studies of Complex Postformal Thought.- 8. Initial Research: How Do Adults Use Logical Thought?.- 9. Interview and Thinking Aloud Studies: A View of Process.- 10. Age Differences in Processes.- 11. Emotion, Intention, Health, Goal Clarity, and Other Factors in Postformal Thought.- 12. Digging Deeper: A Case Study and Suggestions for Studying Special Subsamples.- III. Applications of the Theory of Postformal Thought at Home and in the “Big Picture”.- 13. Applications of the Theory of Postformal Thought to Education.- 14. Reinventing the University to Foster and Serve Postformal Thinkers.- 15. Postformal Thought and Multiperson Groups: The Workplace.- 16. Postformal Thought and Multiperson Groups: Couples and Families.- 17. Development and Yearning: Postformal Thought and Spirituality.- 18. Postformal Thought, Creativity, and Creating the “Self”.- 19. Healing Minds, Bodies, Nations, and the Planet: The Value of Postformal Thought.- 20. Some Uses of Postformal Thought in Humanistic Psychology.- IV. The Next Steps: Interventions—Teaching Postformal thinking and Using Postformal Thought to Live in Balance.- 21. Can We Teach Adults To Use Complex Postformal Thought?.- 22. Postformal Thought and Living in Balance.- Appendixes.- A. Measure ofPostformal Thought and Coding and Scoring Guidelines.- Measures.- Coding and Scoring Guidelines.- B. The Narings Liv Project at the Institute for Noetic Sciences...- C. Some Readings in Existential, Humanistic, and Transpersonal Psychology and in Mind-Body Medicine.- References.

Editorial Reviews

The author makes use of theoretical models outside the realm of traditional psychology, such as chaos theory, the new physics, and complex systems science, to describe the refinement in an individual's thinking that develops over a lifetime. She maintains that adults can cultivate this process and shows how postformal thought can enhance relationships and social roles and how it can be practically applied in the workplace, in adult education, and in conflict resolution, decision making, and cross cultural communication, as well as in spiritual development and ecology. Material is organized in sections on development of a theory of complex postformal thought, related studies, applications, and teaching postformal thought. Of interest to psychologists, teachers, and policymakers. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

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