Clare Graves

On the eve of the third millennium racism is still one of the most pervasive social evils in the world. Part of the problem is that attempts to eliminate racism have focused on surface differences of race, color, and biological supremacy. Such attempts do not get to the root of the problem, the deep-level value and belief systems that undergird racism. This paper introduces the Theory of Levels of Existence of the late Clare W. Graves, supplemented with the concept of “memes” from Richard Dawkins. Together these two perspectives comprise the bio-psycho- social-spiritual framework of Spiral Dynamics® that provides the best approach for unlearning and eliminating racism. The research shows that there is no single future of racism, but multiple futures depending on the memetic level of its expression. Thus, racism will fluctuate between worsened conditions to ones where it will be non-existent, depending at which level of existence people are operating. The paper closes with an explanation of MeshWORKS as a solutions process and ways of reducing racism for both individuals and institutions.

In his contribution to the book: «Innovative Development: Emerging Worldviews and Systems Change.» (Tom Christensen, Editor) the author focuses on field-tested applications and tools based on Graves Value System/Spiraldynamics in the field of school development.

psychology Since the appearance of Abraham Maslow’s needs hierarchy in the 1950s, devel-opmental theories have played an important role in understanding the forms and directions of human growth and development. The applications of such theories range from management strategies to psychotherapy but also play an important role in understanding transformation processes in education. Spiral Dynamics,1 (Beck & Cowen, 1996) a developmental model of value structures, is nearly as popular today as Maslow’s model was in the 1970s. Curiously, it is based almost entirely on the work of Clare Graves, an obscure academic psychologist who did most of his research from the 1950s through the 1970s. It is hoped that this review, and The Never Ending Quest itself, will shed light on these all but forgotten origins. The book under review here was compiled from Clare Graves’s unpublished manuscript, with reconstructions of missing chapters drawn from his papers and audiotapes. It recounts the fascinati...