Abigail Lynam | Fielding Graduate University (original) (raw)

Papers by Abigail Lynam

Routledge eBooks, May 14, 2024

Encyclopedia of Sustainability in Higher Education, 2018

Maturing Leadership: How Adult Development Impacts Leadership, 2020

In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing... more In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing and facilitating the Generating Transformative Change (GTC) program; a developmentally informed and research-based leadership development program. We address our approach to working developmentally with leaders, the application of the STAGES developmental model, and the research that informs and guides the program’s curriculum. In greater detail we examine the developmental transition between Strategist and Construct Aware (Cook-Greuter, 2013; O’Fallon, 2016) and the implications for leadership practice and development. We explore the unique challenges and opportunities of this developmental transition and the practices and processes that support it. We conclude by sharing principles and practices for working developmentally with leaders, including pitfalls and challenges, and the ethical perspectives that guide the work.

The Palgrave Handbook of Learning for Transformation

This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a cons... more This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a constructive developmental perspective to faculty and students in a post-secondary program in sustainability education and leadership development. It also explored the relationship between adult development and sustainability education, teaching, and mentorship. There is increasing emphasis on integrating human interiors (values, beliefs, worldviews) in sustainability work. However, little research has examined the relationship between adult development and sustainability education. The purpose of this research was to explore deepening the transformative nature of learning and leadership development in graduate education through the use of a developmental framework and assessment, and to contribute to advancing the application of adult developmental research to adult learning and sustainability education. The site of study was Prescott College, and the sample of 11 included four Ph.D. faculty and seven students. This mixed-methods study included semi-structured interviews, a five-month action inquiry process, and a pre and post developmental assessment. The findings demonstrate that sustainability is significantly different for individuals assessed at different developmental stages; learning about adult development is transformative developmentally, personally, and professionally; a developmental awareness may deepen the transformative impact of graduate sustainability education and leadership development; and teaching about adult development is more effective when it is developmentally responsive. Integrating a developmental awareness into graduate and sustainability education is recommended to support learning and growth at all stages of development, support the development of the educators themselves, and support skill development for working well with diverse groups.

Given the importance of understanding and learning to work effectively with a diversity of perspe... more Given the importance of understanding and learning to work effectively with a diversity of perspectives and values in the sustainability field, this article offers a developmental map of the worldviews of sustainability. It includes an introduction to developmental theory and research, an overview of the diversity of worldviews, how they differ and relate to one another and to sustainability practice and leadership, and how these worldviews develop over time. A developmental perspective suggests that every sustainability practitioner/educator/leader has a worldview that is made up of the beliefs that person holds and their definition for sustainability emerges out of those beliefs. Moreover, there are consistent patterns observed cross-culturally in the ways that these worldviews develop. Understanding and learning to work with the diversity of perspectives and their developmental trajectory is vitally important for sustainability education and leadership in that it helps us to desi...

Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here, And you must treat it as a powerful stranger, Must... more Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here, And you must treat it as a powerful stranger, Must ask permission to know it and be known. ~from David Waggoner, "Lost"

Encyclopedia of Sustainability in Higher Education, 2019

In the sustainability field, there is increasing recognition of the role that worldviews, mindset... more In the sustainability field, there is increasing recognition of the role that worldviews, mindsets, and values play in how we educate for and cultivate sustainability knowledge and beliefs. Behavioral and systemic changes are difficult to achieve without engaging the worldviews and values of those we aim to educate and engage in change initiatives. Sustainability researchers and practitioners McEwen and Schmidt (2007) emphasize the role of worldviews in the following: “Sustainability is as much about the mindset through which the world is seen, as it is about the activities taken in support of it” (p. 30).

How an individual perceives and makes meaning of sustainability, including knowledge and beliefs, is significantly shaped by worldview and psychological development. Research in adult developmental psychology applied to sustainability education and leadership development supports knowledge and skill development for sustainability educators and change agents (Brown, 2011; Hedlund-de Witt, 2013; Rogers, 2012; Schein, 2015; Lynam, 2014). Understanding how sustainability worldviews develop and the differences between these worldviews and the associated knowledge and beliefs inform curriculum development and the design of change initiatives and sustainability communications. It also supports a more transformative approach to sustainability education and serves as a tool for effective engagement of the diversity of students and stakeholders.

Integral Review, 2020

Understanding one’s own development as an educator, as well as the developmental diversity of stu... more Understanding one’s own development as an educator, as well as the developmental diversity of students can have a significant impact on how educators approach teaching, mentorship, and design learning experiences. Developmentally informed educators recognize the phases of development that students are likely to be in and adapt their teaching accordingly. Recognizing developmental diversity, they adjust the outcomes, processes, and mentoring to meet the students where they are developmentally. Without this awareness and knowledge, educational programs are more likely to teach for particular forms of development, which provide an appropriate stretch for some students but not for others. In addition, educators may be more likely to project their own developmental needs onto students, teaching who they are, rather than who is in front of them. This article offers a review of adult development theory, specifically O’Fallon’s STAGES model, and its application to teaching and learning. It includes the results of research on the impact of learning about adult development for faculty and students in a graduate program and the findings of additional research on the meaning- making and perspective-taking of educators through the stages of development. It concludes with practical insights and principles for teaching and mentoring developmentally.

Advances in Presencing, 2019

This chapter describes an interpenetrative approach to the application of Theory U in an integral... more This chapter describes an interpenetrative approach to the application of Theory U in an integral transformative development program that Pacific Integral offers (Ramirez, Fitch, & O’Fallon, 2010, 2013; Fitch, 2016). The term interpenetration indicates two aspects of a phenomena (such as an individual and a collective, or the left and ride side of the “U”) that are both distinct and paradoxically co-exist and are inseparable. This approach emerged as we redesigned our program with the intent of finding a deeper integration of the tools and frameworks we made use of. Over time, we began to see Theory U as a fundamental archetype for transformation in all aspects of our work; an archetype that is both timeless and unfolding in time, and that interpenetrates with the other frameworks we use including integral theory (Wilber, 2006), constructive development theory (Cook-Greuter, 2002, O’Fallon 2011), integral polarity practice (Murray & O’Fallon, 2010) and others. The chapter describes the evolution and distinctions of this interpenetrative approach to Theory U application, as well as experiences, lessons learned, and essential practices.

Maturing Leadership: How Adult Development Impacts Leadership, 2020

In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing... more In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing and facilitating the Generating Transformative Change (GTC) program; a developmentally informed and research-based leadership development program. We address our approach to working developmentally with leaders, the application of the STAGES developmental model, and the research that informs and guides the program’s curriculum. In greater detail we examine the developmental transition between Strategist and Construct Aware (Cook-Greuter, 2013; O’Fallon, 2016) and the implications for leadership practice and development. We explore the unique challenges and opportunities of this developmental transition and the practices and processes that support it. We conclude by sharing principles and practices for working developmentally with leaders, including pitfalls and challenges, and the ethical perspectives that guide the work.

This chapter explores the contributions that adult development research makes towards understandi... more This chapter explores the contributions that adult development research makes towards understanding and catalyzing a transformation of meaning making and action in the world, how curriculum can be designed and delivered in a developmentally responsive way and makes suggestions for a developmental approach to mentoring students and facilitating learning communities. Understanding adult development sheds critical light on the transformative learning process, serves as a tool for internal systems thinking and supports working more effectively with the developmental diversity represented in a learning community. The chapter also includes an application of adult development theory to the field of sustainability leadership as an example of a discipline specific application. The terms sustainability leadership and adaptive leadership are used interchangeably in this chapter, based on the assumption that the complexity of sustainability challenges requires adaptive responses. Constructive-developmental theory is based on the assumption that everyone has a lens through which they experience the world which shapes their experience of reality, and that these meaning making systems develop over time and with patterns that are consistent across gender, socio-cultural context and other personality differences. Developmental researcher, Suzanne Cook-Greuter (1999, p. 29) describes development as " the gradual unfolding of people's capacity to embrace ever-vaster mental horizons and to plumb ever-greater depths of the heart. " Adult development is seen as a sequence of integrated and increasingly complex meaning-making stages or systems, each potentially more effective at addressing the complexities of life. This is a nested hierarchical process, where each development to a new stage results in a transformation of the previous way of making meaning, while also including the previous stages (Cook-Greuter, 1999). Attuning to adult development can help educators more effectively mentor their students to engage with more complexity, to reflect with greater depth of inquiry, to be aware of and integrate more perspectives in their scholarship and research, and to transformatively engage in their chosen professions. It can also support the development of the educators themselves through the transformation of their own meaning making and educational practices. It supports educators to more effectively discern where students are in their learning and developmental journeys and how to mentor them in ways that support their developmental journeys.

Journal of Sustainability Education, Jan 1, 2012

Thesis Chapters by Abigail Lynam

This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a cons... more This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a constructive developmental perspective to faculty and students in a post-secondary program in sustainability education and leadership development. It also explored the relationship between adult development and sustainability education, teaching, and mentorship. There is increasing emphasis on integrating human interiors (values, beliefs, worldviews) in sustainability work. However, little research has examined the relationship between adult development and sustainability education. The purpose of this research was to explore deepening the transformative nature of learning and leadership development in graduate education through the use of a developmental framework and assessment, and to contribute to advancing the application of adult developmental research to adult learning and sustainability education. The site of study was Prescott College, and the sample of 11 included four Ph.D. faculty and seven
students. This mixed-methods study included semi-structured interviews, a five-month action inquiry process, and a pre and post developmental assessment. The findings demonstrate that sustainability is significantly different for individuals assessed at different developmental stages;
learning about adult development is transformative developmentally, personally, and professionally; a developmental awareness may deepen the transformative impact of graduate sustainability education and leadership development; and teaching about adult development is more effective when it is developmentally responsive. Integrating a developmental awareness into graduate and sustainability education is recommended to support learning and growth at all stages of development, support the development of the educators themselves, and support skill development for working well with diverse groups.

Routledge eBooks, May 14, 2024

Encyclopedia of Sustainability in Higher Education, 2018

Maturing Leadership: How Adult Development Impacts Leadership, 2020

In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing... more In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing and facilitating the Generating Transformative Change (GTC) program; a developmentally informed and research-based leadership development program. We address our approach to working developmentally with leaders, the application of the STAGES developmental model, and the research that informs and guides the program’s curriculum. In greater detail we examine the developmental transition between Strategist and Construct Aware (Cook-Greuter, 2013; O’Fallon, 2016) and the implications for leadership practice and development. We explore the unique challenges and opportunities of this developmental transition and the practices and processes that support it. We conclude by sharing principles and practices for working developmentally with leaders, including pitfalls and challenges, and the ethical perspectives that guide the work.

The Palgrave Handbook of Learning for Transformation

This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a cons... more This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a constructive developmental perspective to faculty and students in a post-secondary program in sustainability education and leadership development. It also explored the relationship between adult development and sustainability education, teaching, and mentorship. There is increasing emphasis on integrating human interiors (values, beliefs, worldviews) in sustainability work. However, little research has examined the relationship between adult development and sustainability education. The purpose of this research was to explore deepening the transformative nature of learning and leadership development in graduate education through the use of a developmental framework and assessment, and to contribute to advancing the application of adult developmental research to adult learning and sustainability education. The site of study was Prescott College, and the sample of 11 included four Ph.D. faculty and seven students. This mixed-methods study included semi-structured interviews, a five-month action inquiry process, and a pre and post developmental assessment. The findings demonstrate that sustainability is significantly different for individuals assessed at different developmental stages; learning about adult development is transformative developmentally, personally, and professionally; a developmental awareness may deepen the transformative impact of graduate sustainability education and leadership development; and teaching about adult development is more effective when it is developmentally responsive. Integrating a developmental awareness into graduate and sustainability education is recommended to support learning and growth at all stages of development, support the development of the educators themselves, and support skill development for working well with diverse groups.

Given the importance of understanding and learning to work effectively with a diversity of perspe... more Given the importance of understanding and learning to work effectively with a diversity of perspectives and values in the sustainability field, this article offers a developmental map of the worldviews of sustainability. It includes an introduction to developmental theory and research, an overview of the diversity of worldviews, how they differ and relate to one another and to sustainability practice and leadership, and how these worldviews develop over time. A developmental perspective suggests that every sustainability practitioner/educator/leader has a worldview that is made up of the beliefs that person holds and their definition for sustainability emerges out of those beliefs. Moreover, there are consistent patterns observed cross-culturally in the ways that these worldviews develop. Understanding and learning to work with the diversity of perspectives and their developmental trajectory is vitally important for sustainability education and leadership in that it helps us to desi...

Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here, And you must treat it as a powerful stranger, Must... more Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here, And you must treat it as a powerful stranger, Must ask permission to know it and be known. ~from David Waggoner, "Lost"

Encyclopedia of Sustainability in Higher Education, 2019

In the sustainability field, there is increasing recognition of the role that worldviews, mindset... more In the sustainability field, there is increasing recognition of the role that worldviews, mindsets, and values play in how we educate for and cultivate sustainability knowledge and beliefs. Behavioral and systemic changes are difficult to achieve without engaging the worldviews and values of those we aim to educate and engage in change initiatives. Sustainability researchers and practitioners McEwen and Schmidt (2007) emphasize the role of worldviews in the following: “Sustainability is as much about the mindset through which the world is seen, as it is about the activities taken in support of it” (p. 30).

How an individual perceives and makes meaning of sustainability, including knowledge and beliefs, is significantly shaped by worldview and psychological development. Research in adult developmental psychology applied to sustainability education and leadership development supports knowledge and skill development for sustainability educators and change agents (Brown, 2011; Hedlund-de Witt, 2013; Rogers, 2012; Schein, 2015; Lynam, 2014). Understanding how sustainability worldviews develop and the differences between these worldviews and the associated knowledge and beliefs inform curriculum development and the design of change initiatives and sustainability communications. It also supports a more transformative approach to sustainability education and serves as a tool for effective engagement of the diversity of students and stakeholders.

Integral Review, 2020

Understanding one’s own development as an educator, as well as the developmental diversity of stu... more Understanding one’s own development as an educator, as well as the developmental diversity of students can have a significant impact on how educators approach teaching, mentorship, and design learning experiences. Developmentally informed educators recognize the phases of development that students are likely to be in and adapt their teaching accordingly. Recognizing developmental diversity, they adjust the outcomes, processes, and mentoring to meet the students where they are developmentally. Without this awareness and knowledge, educational programs are more likely to teach for particular forms of development, which provide an appropriate stretch for some students but not for others. In addition, educators may be more likely to project their own developmental needs onto students, teaching who they are, rather than who is in front of them. This article offers a review of adult development theory, specifically O’Fallon’s STAGES model, and its application to teaching and learning. It includes the results of research on the impact of learning about adult development for faculty and students in a graduate program and the findings of additional research on the meaning- making and perspective-taking of educators through the stages of development. It concludes with practical insights and principles for teaching and mentoring developmentally.

Advances in Presencing, 2019

This chapter describes an interpenetrative approach to the application of Theory U in an integral... more This chapter describes an interpenetrative approach to the application of Theory U in an integral transformative development program that Pacific Integral offers (Ramirez, Fitch, & O’Fallon, 2010, 2013; Fitch, 2016). The term interpenetration indicates two aspects of a phenomena (such as an individual and a collective, or the left and ride side of the “U”) that are both distinct and paradoxically co-exist and are inseparable. This approach emerged as we redesigned our program with the intent of finding a deeper integration of the tools and frameworks we made use of. Over time, we began to see Theory U as a fundamental archetype for transformation in all aspects of our work; an archetype that is both timeless and unfolding in time, and that interpenetrates with the other frameworks we use including integral theory (Wilber, 2006), constructive development theory (Cook-Greuter, 2002, O’Fallon 2011), integral polarity practice (Murray & O’Fallon, 2010) and others. The chapter describes the evolution and distinctions of this interpenetrative approach to Theory U application, as well as experiences, lessons learned, and essential practices.

Maturing Leadership: How Adult Development Impacts Leadership, 2020

In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing... more In this chapter we share research and learning from Pacific Integral (PI)’s 16 years of designing and facilitating the Generating Transformative Change (GTC) program; a developmentally informed and research-based leadership development program. We address our approach to working developmentally with leaders, the application of the STAGES developmental model, and the research that informs and guides the program’s curriculum. In greater detail we examine the developmental transition between Strategist and Construct Aware (Cook-Greuter, 2013; O’Fallon, 2016) and the implications for leadership practice and development. We explore the unique challenges and opportunities of this developmental transition and the practices and processes that support it. We conclude by sharing principles and practices for working developmentally with leaders, including pitfalls and challenges, and the ethical perspectives that guide the work.

This chapter explores the contributions that adult development research makes towards understandi... more This chapter explores the contributions that adult development research makes towards understanding and catalyzing a transformation of meaning making and action in the world, how curriculum can be designed and delivered in a developmentally responsive way and makes suggestions for a developmental approach to mentoring students and facilitating learning communities. Understanding adult development sheds critical light on the transformative learning process, serves as a tool for internal systems thinking and supports working more effectively with the developmental diversity represented in a learning community. The chapter also includes an application of adult development theory to the field of sustainability leadership as an example of a discipline specific application. The terms sustainability leadership and adaptive leadership are used interchangeably in this chapter, based on the assumption that the complexity of sustainability challenges requires adaptive responses. Constructive-developmental theory is based on the assumption that everyone has a lens through which they experience the world which shapes their experience of reality, and that these meaning making systems develop over time and with patterns that are consistent across gender, socio-cultural context and other personality differences. Developmental researcher, Suzanne Cook-Greuter (1999, p. 29) describes development as " the gradual unfolding of people's capacity to embrace ever-vaster mental horizons and to plumb ever-greater depths of the heart. " Adult development is seen as a sequence of integrated and increasingly complex meaning-making stages or systems, each potentially more effective at addressing the complexities of life. This is a nested hierarchical process, where each development to a new stage results in a transformation of the previous way of making meaning, while also including the previous stages (Cook-Greuter, 1999). Attuning to adult development can help educators more effectively mentor their students to engage with more complexity, to reflect with greater depth of inquiry, to be aware of and integrate more perspectives in their scholarship and research, and to transformatively engage in their chosen professions. It can also support the development of the educators themselves through the transformation of their own meaning making and educational practices. It supports educators to more effectively discern where students are in their learning and developmental journeys and how to mentor them in ways that support their developmental journeys.

Journal of Sustainability Education, Jan 1, 2012

This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a cons... more This research examined the personal, professional, and developmental impact of introducing a constructive developmental perspective to faculty and students in a post-secondary program in sustainability education and leadership development. It also explored the relationship between adult development and sustainability education, teaching, and mentorship. There is increasing emphasis on integrating human interiors (values, beliefs, worldviews) in sustainability work. However, little research has examined the relationship between adult development and sustainability education. The purpose of this research was to explore deepening the transformative nature of learning and leadership development in graduate education through the use of a developmental framework and assessment, and to contribute to advancing the application of adult developmental research to adult learning and sustainability education. The site of study was Prescott College, and the sample of 11 included four Ph.D. faculty and seven
students. This mixed-methods study included semi-structured interviews, a five-month action inquiry process, and a pre and post developmental assessment. The findings demonstrate that sustainability is significantly different for individuals assessed at different developmental stages;
learning about adult development is transformative developmentally, personally, and professionally; a developmental awareness may deepen the transformative impact of graduate sustainability education and leadership development; and teaching about adult development is more effective when it is developmentally responsive. Integrating a developmental awareness into graduate and sustainability education is recommended to support learning and growth at all stages of development, support the development of the educators themselves, and support skill development for working well with diverse groups.