Before I continue let me first address some questions or concerns I suspect people might have.
Yes this is true, unfortunately. This is maybe the biggest problem with this story. As soon as you set up a hierarchy people naturally want to be right at the top. I thought this didn’t apply to me until someone dismissed me as merely (at best) Green. I was so upset! How dare they! Then I caught myself – oops. Me too. But remember no stage is better than another. All the stages have deep wisdom, and we want to welcome all they have to offer. And it is usually just a matter of privilege who is at what stage. I happened to be born into a very Green family so I grew up into it. All stages are available to everyone. We want everyone to learn all the stages — it is just an historical accident that has us at different stages. So it is silly to feel superior. But we are human and so we will find ourselves going to that place of superiority anyways. Just know that you will, catch yourself (with compassion) and then find your way back.
As far as I can tell Spiral Dynamics has not yet been subjected to serious, sustained scientific review. The theory is just now gaining attention, so I think getting that review is just a matter of time, but in the meantime we need to be very careful in the claims we make. That is why I am so careful to tie the major stages to well recognized historical periods. That seems like a solid foundation to build on. I have done a lot of historical research to make sure what I say is accurate and I will correct any errors people find. But more than a theory I think we need a story that explains how we got here. Spiral Dynamics does that well.
If you listen to people talk about Spiral Dynamics you will hear important differences in interpretation. Again my approach is to focus on what history teaches us. I don’t claim to be a historian, but I have an amateur’s passion for the subject. That focus leads me to, for example, a different interpretation of Red and Blue than you might hear from others. It is clear to me that Red coincides with the advent of empire, and that Blue was a reaction to that ruthless empire. Others might not have even thought about whether the Roman empire was a Red or Blue stage, but I think the difference is crucial.
This is true. Spiral Dynamics is a better explanation of groups than individuals. People are complicated and contain many layers at once. Perhaps at work someone is a dedicated scientist (Orange), but at home they find deep solace in their simple, unquestioning Catholicism (Blue). And maybe their passion is camping (Beige). How do you put that person into just one Spiral stage? I find it seems to work better to focus on group behaviors. Those seem to average out to one stage or another. So a science organization is Orange and the Catholic church is Blue.
And countries contain a mix of groups, each at its own stage. For example the U.S. currently finds the Republican party succumbing to an unhealthy form of Red while the Democrats are an interesting combination of stages but predominantly Orange and Green.
No, not the way this theory is set up. Each stage is a reaction to the one before it. So you can’t skip stages. Each stage is necessary. For example you can’t just jump straight from Red to Orange. People first need to wake up to the Truth and community of Blue. That has to happen first before they can then react against Blue to find their way to the individual liberties of Orange. Orange shares with Red the focus on the individual, but Orange is still grounded in the law and order of True Blue. The difference between a Red businessman and a Orange one is that the Orange business man still wants to make money, but feels morally constrained by the law, whereas the Red business man is primarily worried about getting caught. Do you see how both are still focused on individual concerns but the Orange stage has Blue working in it as well?
We are all better at some things than others. A plumber knows way more about plumbing than me, but I know more about programming. Maybe you know more about spirit, but maybe I know more about personal growth. I might be at a “higher” stage than someone, but that does not make me superior. It just means I can see some things they don’t. Let’s try a thought experiment. Imagine me in my 40’s, struggling in my marriage, joining the Peace Corp and getting sent to work with a tribal shaman to stop a contagious disease breakout. That shaman will hopefully be wise enough to recognize they should listen to me on how to stop the spread of the disease. On the other hand I hope I would be wise enough to listen to the shaman about pretty much everything else. There was so much I needed to learn! I might be able to see some things more clearly about disease, but that in no way makes me superior to the shaman. There are so many important things to know; these spiral dynamic stages are just one of them.
Are there more questions or concerns? Let me know and I will add them here.
OK with that hopefully handled, let’s get started. Let’s put this theory to practical use.