Integral Theory (Ken Wilber – The Integral Institute)
The Integral Theory describes reality in five elements: quadrants, lines, levels, states, and types. States refer to those aspects of consciousness from where people act. States come and go. One moment you feel lucid and you are able to see through problems, the next moment you fall back into your normal thinking pattern. Levels are permanent. When one has mastered a certain skill level in an area as reading and writing, one does under normal circumstances not lose that skill. Lines refer to the different areas in which a human develops – one for example has developed the social line further than another. Types are characteristics that always and everywhere, in every stage of development, stay the same. The quadrants are created by looking inside the individual (self-image, beliefs) and the collective (culture, unwritten rules) and by looking at the outside of the individuals (body, behaviour) and the collective (structures and systems). The Integral Theory shows people and organizations a roadmap with the areas that are given attention and the ones that lack attention. It shows why things only succeed when we choose what dimensions to engage as consciously as possible.
