EEEMMMBBBOOODDDIIIEEEDDD VVVAAALLLUUUEEESSS,,, CCCOOONNNSSSCCCIIIOOOUUUSSSNNNEEESSSSSS,,, CCCHHHOOOIIICCCEEESSS::: EEEvvvooollluuutttiiiooonnn ooofff VVVaaallluuueeesss iiinnn WWWooommmeeennn'''sss LLLiiivveeesss --- AAA CCCaaassseee SSStttuuudddyyy --- bbbyyy mmmOOOnnniiikkkaaa GGG... GGGaaaeeedddeee AAA ttthhheeesssiiisss ppprrreeessseeennnttteeeddd tttooo ttthhheee UUUnnniiivvveeerrrsssiiitttyyy ooofff WWWeeesssttteeerrrnnn SSSyyydddnnneeeyyy iiinnn pppaaarrrtttiiiaaalll fffuuulllfffiiilllmmmeeennnttt ooofff ttthhheee rrreeeqqquuuiiirrreeemmmeeennntttsss fffooorrr ttthhheee dddeeegggrrreeeeee ooofff DDDoooccctttooorrr ooofff PPPhhhiiilllooosssoooppphhhyyy MMMaaayyy,,, 222000000666 ©©© mmmOOOnnniiikkkaaa GGG... GGGaaaeeedddeee 222000000666 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS __________________________________________________________ I wish to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the twelve women who participated in this research project; this study would not have existed without you. Your trust, openness and willingness to share intimate and sometimes painful memories with me have provided invaluable insights into your processes of perception, meaning making and evaluative thinking. The information you shared was both illuminating and thought provoking. It has provided a basis for further questions and deepened my understanding of the nature, role and dynamic of values through a lifetime. I hope that your participation in this study will lead to more awareness and appreciation of women's value priorities, of women's inclusive expanding consciousness and of the need to advance women's influence on decision making on all levels in society. Further I would like to pay a special tribute to the long line of women from the very beginning of time whose curiosity, courage and love for life's deep mysteries moved them towards liberation and light. To this line belong the many resilient women, who allowed me to be a "gardener" in their lives to sow deeper psychological insight and wellbeing, as are the women who have overtly and less overtly nurtured, encouraged and mentored my personal growth and ongoing learning process throughout my life. In particular I would like to thank my Australian friends and mentors Maria Maguire, Helen Martin, Heather Albrecht and Dr. Stella Cornelius who embody and live vital life sustaining values of connectedness, reverence and excellence in communication. Their enduring support, encouragement and feedback have been precious to me. Finally I would like to give thanks to my supervisors Dr. Robert Woog and Brenda Dobia, University of Western Sydney, for their academic support and expert advice. Over the course of writing my thesis, Brenda Dobia had a significant impact through her prompt, responsive and clarifying feedback. Her support and encouragement has been instrumental in helping me bring this project to fruition. STATEMENT OF AUTHENTICATION __________________________________________________________ The work presented in this thesis, is to the best of my knowledge and belief, original except where acknowledged in the text. I hereby declare that I have not submitted this material either in whole or in part, for this degree at this or any other institution. [mOnika G. Gaede] North Sydney TABLE OF CONTENTS __________________________________________________________ List of Tables and List of Figures ................................................................................... v Abbreviations.................................................................................................................. vi Abstract..........................................................................................................................vii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 1 1. Prologue: The Heart of Paradox.................................................................................. 2 2. Challenges and Purpose of the Study ......................................................................... 3 3. Research as Search of the Art of Living..................................................................... 5 3.1. Childhood: It Needs a Village to Raise a Child................................................... 6 3.2. Time of the WLM: A Change in Zeitgeist ........................................................ 10 3.3. Crisis as Turning Point: Deepening Awareness ................................................ 12 3.4. Shift in Value Preferences: Change of Worldview ........................................... 13 3.5. Present Time: Conscious-aware Life Choices................................................... 15 4. Feminisms as Waves of Consciousness.................................................................... 17 4.1. Social Critique in Second Wave Feminism....................................................... 19 4.1.1. Feminist Consciousness and Body~mind Connection............................... 20 4.1.2. Feminist Critique of Patriarchal Bias in Psychology ................................. 23 4.1.3. Feminist Conceptualisation Beyond Bipolar Thinking.............................. 24 4.2. Feminist Activism and Shifting Values............................................................. 26 4.3. Eco-Feminisms and Emerging Global Consciousness...................................... 29 CHAPTER II: VALUES RESEARCH AND MAJOR CONCEPTS.......................... 33 1. Challenges in Values Research, Definitions and Frameworks ................................ 34 1.1. Values Research ................................................................................................ 35 1.2. Values Definitions.............................................................................................. 36 1.3. Values Frameworks............................................................................................ 40 2. AVI and SD as Values Elicitation and Analysis Instruments.................................. 41 2.1. The Australian Values Inventory (AVI)........................................................... 41 2.1.1. Brain Function and Brain Preferences........................................................ 42 2.1.2. Gender and Genes ....................................................................................... 44 2.1.3. How we Think and what we "Know" to be so ........................................... 45 2.1.4. Forces and Attractors on and within our Worldviews................................ 46 2.2. Graves' Spiral Dynamics (SD) in His-story-cal View....................................... 47 2.3. SD Values Test in Comparison with the AVI ................................................... 49 3. Ken Wilber's Integral Framework (AQAL) ............................................................. 52 3.1. Involution and Evolution: Matter, Body, Mind, Soul and Spirit. ..................... 55 3.2. Relevance and Limits of AVI, SD and AQAL for my Research...................... 57 3.3. Discerning, Translating, Transcending AQAL for my Research ..................... 63 4. Women's Values Development in Patriarchal Context ............................................ 68 4.1. Women's Ways of Becoming: Values and Family Dynamics .......................... 70 4.1.1. First Environment and Formation of Values.............................................. 72 4.1.2. Family Dynamics and Values ..................................................................... 74 4.2. Women's Ways of Relating: Values and Identity Formation............................ 76 4.2.1. Values and Identity Formation.................................................................... 77 4.2.2. Women's Ways of Relating......................................................................... 79 4.3. Women's Ways of Knowing: Values and Moral Voice .................................... 83 5. Wholarchical Dynamic Perspective of Soul Purpose Ecology (SPE) ..................... 87 5.1. Definition of Wholistic Relationships in Wholarchical Processes .................. 89 5.2. Value Dynamics and Definitions through Wholarchical Layers ...................... 94 5.3. Implications of a Soul Purpose Ecology Perspective........................................ 97 i CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY AND METHODS............................................... 99 1. Research Questions and Propositions..................................................................... 100 1.1. Main Questions in this Research ..................................................................... 101 1.2. General Propositions that have guided this Research ..................................... 101 1.3. Main Propositions in Relation to the Research Questions.............................. 101 2. Research Approach ................................................................................................. 103 2.1. Feminist Methodology ..................................................................................... 103 2.2. Feminist Case Study Design ............................................................................ 105 2.3. AVI and Personal Development Profile .......................................................... 107 2.3.1. Structure and Properties of AVI Instrument............................................. 108 2.3.2. Validity and Reliability of the AVI Instrument........................................ 110 2.3.3. AVI Questionnaire and Personal Development Profile ........................... 112 3. Research Process ....................................................................................................