Expect fallback and meet it without judgment

Plan for the times you make meaning from an earlier stage under stress, and treat them as information.

Por que funciona

Development in this research is not a one-way escalator. In STAGES retest data reported by Murray and O’Fallon (2020), most scores rose or held steady, but about one in nine dropped — which the authors attribute to a mix of scoring noise and real regressions under major life stress. Expecting this keeps a stressful week from becoming evidence that growth was never real.

Como fazer

1. Name two or three signals that you are making meaning from an earlier place — black-and-white thinking, needing the group’s approval, rigid goal-chasing.
2. When you notice them, say so plainly to yourself: "I am under strain and I am seeing narrowly right now."
3. Attend to the strain first — sleep, support, fewer demands — before trying to "think bigger".
4. Afterward, note what triggered it. Repeated triggers point to where support is most needed.

Evidência

Murray and O’Fallon (2020) report 143 retests among 115 clients, about two years apart on average: 50% increased, 38% stayed the same, 11% decreased. They name rater error, test-retest variability, and real regressions under major life stress as possible explanations for the decreases. (observational)

The retest sample is self-selected clients of a development organization, not a random sample, and the authors did not separate scoring noise from real regression.

Fontes

• Murray, T., & O’Fallon, T. (2020). A Summary of Research on and with the STAGES Developmental Model. Integral Review, 16(1).

Erro comum

Reading a hard week as proof that you were never at the later stage. Fallback under strain is part of how the research describes development, not a refutation of it.