Snakes and ladders : emergence of deep power in transformational change

Abstract

This study explores the emergence of inner empowerment of people involved in intentional transformational change. It was prompted by my work in human service environments with organisational leaders, people receiving services and practitioners. A constant challenge for human services is navigating the disjuncture between ideals and practice. People, teams, and whole organisations make unexpected twists and turns in implementing personal and collective aspirations. These are more visible during times of intentional change. This transdisciplinary study draws on multiple disciplines and in-depth interviews. The thesis presents the findings from three perspectives: a review of lessons from the literature on human services and on transformational change (Parts 1 and 2), and exploratory case studies told as inquiry stories from practice that ground the literature followed by implications for the design and practice of human service organisations (Part 3). The findings from the critique of the literature on human services confirm that despite extensive reforms worldwide many people in human service environments experience exploitation and neglect, human rights restrictions, isolation, and low community participation as friends, citizens and contributors. As a result, many people with complex needs exist in a restrictive, separate society. There are some promising directions such as positive approaches (Barol, 1996) and the Personal Outcome Measures(R) (Gardner and Carran, 2005). Part 2 contains a review of the literature on transformational ideas about the disjuncture between ideals and practice, ideas from 20th century quantum physics as allegories for the experience of transformational change, and a review of deep democracy, an organisational change philosophy and methodology (Mindell, 2002). Drawing on this literature, I identified the dimensions of deeper vision, subjective experience and tangible results as a suitable framework to explore the experiences of people involved in transformational change. In Part 3, I studied the self-reported experiences of 12 individuals drawn from four associated organisations. Their roles in the organisations are as organisational leaders, people receiving services and practitioners. The participants live and work in Camphill organisations in South Africa, Norway, Botswana and Canada. One of Camphill's transformative ideals is that all people, regardless of differences, can enjoy human dignity in creating a community for mutual and broader social benefit. The empirical study expanded the understanding of the three dimensions identified from the literature in Part 2 of the study and confirmed that people in all selected roles experience life through these dimensions of deeper vision, subjective experience and tangible results. In the dimensions of deeper vision and subjective experience, eleven deeper powers emerged, within each person and across all roles. These deeper powers provided ladders for tangible results: the power to address injustice, the power of applied transformational learning and the power of integrative community building. The idea of 'deep power' is introduced in this thesis to explain inner and outer powers that have been newly identified. Deep power is presented as a renewable resource to enhance quality of life, relationships and community. This finding contributes to an understanding of personal and collective potential in navigating the Snakes and Ladders of intentional transformational change.