In a spiral: how are red people different from green people?

The theory of spiral dynamics, invented in the 1960s by the American psychologist Clare Graves, became popular thirty years later thanks to the work of his student Don Beck. But this time – in the field of psychotherapy. Spiral Dynamics divides the evolution of consciousness into successive stages, each of which is associated with a particular color.

The behavior of the infant is governed by vital impulses, as are primitive tribes. This stage in the spiral corresponds to beige. The child grows up, it seems to him that the world is full of magic, and his life is controlled by big and strong patrons – just like in traditional societies with shamanistic cults. This is the purple period. This is followed by a red period when the child asserts his ego, often in a rather aggressive way – just like the militant barbarian states do. Later comes the blue phase: the child enters a conscious age, he seeks to put his thoughts and feelings in order – in society this stage corresponds to the period of the formation of modern states and world religions.

How can we understand each other

Don Beck has been involved in personal growth issues and also traveled extensively, in particular, he visited Africa more than 60 times, where he tried to use his skills to help local regimes move towards democracy. Don Beck came to the conclusion that many personal and collective problems stem from the fact that people are at different stages of development and simply cannot understand each other. But you can help people and societies with different colors to find a common language, no matter what. For example, how can blue (theocracy or communist country) and orange (multinational country or trade association) societies build contacts? Graves and Beck’s model shows that similar problems arise between an eight-year-old preoccupied with the pursuit of order and an eighteen-year-old who values ​​independence and creativity above all else.

But this range of options is entirely present within each of us. It turns out that the stages of development do not replace each other, like landscapes outside the train window, but pile up on top of each other like a cultural layer. Moreover, this happens unevenly: in the personality of each person, the combination of “colors” is unique and depends on his life experience, experiences and decisions that he makes. In our brain, its most ancient, “reptilian” part is constantly present, where deep drives are localized, but next to it, the limbic system, which is responsible for emotions, and the neocortex, which is responsible for the mind and rational thinking, operate … Similarly, the different stages of the spiral coexist in us and are activated at certain moments under the influence of impulses. Recognizing which color dominates at the moment is the first step to finding inner harmony, according to Don Beck.

Read more:

• What are our years: the main stages of child development
• Two thousand years to become a person
• “Our brain is a social organ, and it needs healthy, open relationships in society”

Primary colors

Jacques Ferber, a cognitive psychologist at the University of Montpellier (France), teaches spiral dynamics to his students. “By observing ourselves, our desires and interests, we can determine which part of the spiral we are currently in,” he explains. – Readers of Psychologies magazine have every chance to be “orange” (a characteristic feature of this stage is the active search for one’s self) or “green” (concern about the state of society, the desire to take into account other people’s interests in their actions). As a rule, people with the dominance of a certain color in the spiral find themselves in areas that require appropriate skills. But the values ​​of the company and its employees may not coincide: for example, there are a lot of “red” people among Greenpeace people, while in the business environment it is important to find a compromise, so there are many professionals with “green” energy.

Read more:

• Adolescence… of the brain

The main idea that Don Beck is trying to convey is that we can find a way to conflict-free communication if we understand that others are not always on the same level of understanding with us. This should be remembered first of all by those who are in a higher position. “In developed countries, we see the interaction of three main colors: blue (statists and nationalists), orange (liberals and businessmen) and green (social democrats and environmentalists), says Don Beck. – Where there are three colors, there are three mutually exclusive logics. To break the impasse, humanity must move to the next level – yellow.”

iPhone and Bamboo Alliance

A person with a “yellow” worldview understands how complex the world is and takes into account the role of different models of thinking and behavior in its development. “Yellow” is an integrator by nature, he is very mobile, he feels at ease everywhere: in a research laboratory, in a synagogue, mosque or temple, and at the same time among liberal thinkers. Americans call this way of life “an alliance of iPhone and bamboo.” “Yellow” is often effective as a negotiator because he knows what arguments will affect other people. He uses “orange” arguments (interest, causal logic, benefits) when talking to entrepreneurs and corporate executives; in a conversation with religious leaders and members of traditional societies, he will use arguments from the “purple” arsenal (family values, moral prescriptions, inner intuition). “Today’s generation Z, the generation of twenty-year-olds, fits this definition very well,” Jacques Ferber is sure. – It can communicate at different levels, quickly switch from one thing to another, it is mobile and open to new experiences. Just those qualities that correspond to the yellow stage.

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