1. William Perry’s Theory of Intellectual and Ethical Development
Laura Sensenig
LPO 3462 Theory of College Student Development
Professor Braxton
March 16th, 2009

2. The Perry Scheme
The Perry scheme is a model for understanding how college students “come to know the theories and beliefs they hold about knowing, and the manner in which such epistemological premises are a part of and an influence on the cognitive processes of thinking and reasoning” (Hofer and Pintrich, 1997, p. 88).
Meaning making system- coming of age theory- how we view the world and ourselves within it

3. Background
William Perry and associates at Harvard developed a theory which outlines the intellectual and ethical development of college students- ’50’s and early 60’s (Evans, Forney, and Guido Di-Brito, 1998).
Checklist of Educational Views  the typical course of development of students’ patterns of thought (Perry, 1999).
Nine Positions
“Traces evolution in students’ thinking about the nature of knowledge, truth and values and the meaning of life and responsibilities” (King, 2006).
Four Main Stages
Simplistic, categorical view of the world  realization of the contingent nature of knowledge, values and affirmation of their own commitments
Purpose: Addresses “interface between intellect and identity” (King, 2006)
Serving as Director of Harvard’s Bureau of Study Counsel  research interpreting how students make meaning of teaching and learning processes
Administered a “Checklist of Educational Views” to 313 freshmen in 1954 and then again in 1955  able to assess a pattern of cognitive student development- “students’ address to the challenges they experienced in academics, social and extracurricular life and/or employment seemed to represent a coherent development in the forms in which they functioned intellectually, in the forms in which they experienced values and in the forms in which they constructed their world”
Longitudinal study
Intellect  the way we understand the world and the nature of knowledge  How do I know what I believe? (in crossover with)
Identity  the way they find personal meaning for their role in the world  How do I know who I am and what I can be?

4. Why Study Perry’s Theory?
Tackling Ill- structured problems
Complicated world requires complex frameworks or ways to conceptualize the world (Perry, William G., Jr., 2005).
“Acts as a source of common language that can assist faculty (student affairs professionals) and students in hearing each other’s voices” (Evans, Forney, Guido-DiBrito, 1998).
Necessary coping mechanism and it is a beneficial tool to use within educational settings to promote mature growth and decision making
“The increased mobility of the population at large, together with the new mass media, make the impact of pluralism part of experience in the society as a whole. The growing person’s response to pluralism in thought and values, and indeed his capacity to generate pluralism himself, are therefore critical to the destiny of a democracy” – (Perry, 1999)

5. Assumptions
Learning is an ego-threatening task, as is teaching (Knefelkamp, 1982, as cited in Evans, Forney and Guido-DiBrito, 1988).
Movement from one position to another requires psychic energy (Perry, 1999).
Combination of challenge and support is necessary for growth
Idea of “cognitive dissonance” can be jarring
“In order to foster growth we must ‘hear’ how our students inevitably make their own meaning out of what we say to them; and we must be ready to support them in this ego- threatening process of development”
(American Philosophical Association, 1984)
1) Learning changes how we conceptualize the world and ourselves within it (example- learning that authority figures are not experts or fully knowledgeable about everything- learning that uncertainty and ambiguity exists within our world- not only within the realm of science but also within the realm of identity and ethics)- expose of self

6. Supporting Theories Jean Piaget – Developmental Psychology
Three central cognitive development assumptions
Structural Organization
“Information Processing View”
Developmental Sequence
Each progressive stage results in differentiation and integration
Interactionism
Manifestation of internal and external forces which foster development (King, 2006)
Kohlberg
Nevitt Sanford and Roy Heath  Higher Education setting
(Evans, Forney and Guido-DiBrito, 1998)
Jean Piaget- recognized as a pioneer in the field of children’s and adolescents'’ cognitive development  contribution to college personnel practice stems from his theorizing about the nature of development
Individuals’ way of processing information is determined by “relatively fixed patterns for experiencing his world…patters which we may refer to as cognitive structures”  interpreter, selectively focuses on certain stimuli, maps meaningful order onto stimuli used to guide behavior/solve problems
Highest mode is thought of as most adequate in interpreting and processing stimuli  hierarchical and value laden  spiral staircase- at each stage one adopts a different viewpoint or lens
Maturity and readiness of the individual coupled with particular elements within the outside environment  when students are challenged by environmental stimuli that they cannot process using existing cognitive frameworks they are forced to accommodate/alter existing structure to allow for more complexity

7. Nine Positions Basic Duality Dualism (Multiplicity Pre-Legitimate)
Early Multiplicity (Multiplicity Subordinate)
Late Multiplicity (a. Multiplicity Coordinate b. Relativism Subordinate)
Contextual Relativism
Commitment Foreseen
7) Initial Commitments
8) Orientation in Implications of Commitment
9) Developing Commitments
(Perry, 1981 as cited in Rapaport, 1982))
Positions- no assumption about duration, not a lock step process, position represents fluidity better or the idea of stages within stages – position represents the “locus of central tendency or dominance” and position implies that one views the world through a particular lens or point of view
Basic Duality – right answers to all questions, engraved in tablets
Multiplicity Pre-legitimate-Some authorities disagree on correct answers, (English teachers) while others agree (Math teachers). All is known, we must simply follow the “right” authorities
Early Multiplicity- only most knowledge is known but all is knowable
Late Multiplicity- Where authorities don’t have the right answer, everyone is entitled to their own opinion
Contextual Relativism - All knowledge is disconnected from any absolute truth, though there are standards or “rules of adequacy” that one must adhere to
Commitment Foreseen- must make some commitments among competing theories
Initial Commitment- student begins to make commitments
Orientation in Implications of Commitment- balancing commitments especially contradictory ones
Developing Commitments- “must retrace the whole journey over and over” – reaffirming past commitments, acting in accordance with beliefs and values, developing integrity

8. Four Frames (King, 2006) Dualism- (Positions 1 and 2)
Multiplicity- (Positions 3 and 4)
Relativism- (Positions 5 and 6)
Commitment in Relativism- (Positions 7-9)
Dualism- Thinking in black and white, right and wrong- “right answers” are the domain of established authority- teachers/experts know all- talks which require opinions or multiple points of view are challenging- want to know why professor won’t just tell them the right answers/what they need to know
Multiplicity- Multiple perspectives/arguments/options about the same topic- Questions which used to only have one answer now have multiple answers however adequately evaluating different points of view or supporting convincing evidence for an argument is difficult- “anything goes” mentality- think they cannot be wrong
Relativism- Knowledge is contextual and relative- perspectives no longer stand alone or are disjoint- ability to see how arguments measure up against on another and relate to one another within a broader context- they see the big picture- able to think analytically and think critically about their own ideas and others- oftentimes students can evaluate arguments/points of view but cannot assert any value to them- however, the need to prioritize some “truths” over others is hard for these students
Commitment in Relativism- Have made an “active affirmation of themselves and their responsibilities in this pluralistic world”  in “moving off the fence” of relativism, students begin to prioritize values, leading to identity development  ability to make committed personal commitments such as marriage, career choice, etc.

9. Progressing along the Continuum
*Combination of Challenge and Support
Concepts of Developmental Progression
Development often occurs in irregular intervals
1) Readiness
2) Attainment
Gradual Change
Shifting of Focus or “Decentering” (King, 2006)
Readiness  preparedness, gathering prerequisites for a higher level of functioning, Attainment  individual is able to think in a more complex manner allowing them to progress to the next cognitive position  shifting of framework from self to the larger world
Horizontal decalage  content building within the stage
Attitude or state of mind that accompanies progressing along the continuum  Piaget says there are 3 major crises of egocentrism, the third happening in adolescence as a by-product of the transition to formal operational thinking or abstract thought

10. Transitioning
Development occurs during the transitions between positions (positions themselves are static) “perhaps development is all transition and ‘stages’ or ‘positions’ are only resting points along the way
To move beyond dualism, students must recognize and accept the reality of uncertainty in knowledge and thinking 1T  see that knowledge is not absolute and even appreciate that diff points of view exist….How to stimulate transition- upset equilibrium of dualism and make them aware of the uncertain nature of knowledge…teaching tactics include * Mini Research Projects, Summaries of paired readings, group discussions
Moving beyond multiplicity: Re-conceptualized how they view knowledge- reality of uncertainty – believe knowledge and truth are essentially subjective and personal- no criteria or standards for making judgments- everyone has their own right to their opinion 2T even in the realm of uncertainty, criteria exists for assessing and evaluating the relative validity of competing viewpoints- not all opinions or theories are equal but the still cannot easily choose between them…How to stimulate transition * Mini Research project that focus on analysis, Analysis of paired readings, panel discussions or debates
Moving beyond Relativism Even when uncertainty exists, choice is not arbitrary and is measured by criteria or theory…3T in choosing among ideas, theories and actions in the “real world” or uncertainty, it is necessary to think outside of the context of the classroom and become conscious of how and why they make the personal decisions they make…How to stimulate transition- specific teaching strategies are less clear and expecting undergraduate students to reach this high conceptual level of clarity which permeates all aspects of life is a little ambitious (teaching students how values impact a certain area of study) 1) recognition of the relevance of critical thinking to the real world 2) recognition and confrontation of values
Thoma, 1993

11. Developmental Barriers
Development does not always occur in a linear, chronological or systematic fashion
Temporizing
Movement is postponed – static, plateau state
Many be necessary for lateral growth (horizontal decalage)
Escape
An abandonment of responsibility, marked by alienation
Usually occurs after reaching Position # 4 (Multiplicity)
Retreat
Temporary regression to dualism
These deflections are not necessarily abnormal  as humans our feelings and egos must be considered  progressing along this continuum is ego-threatening

12. Actualizing the Model
DI Model- Developmental Instruction Model- (Knefelkamp and Widick, 1984)
Four Variables of Challenge and Support
Structure
Diversity
Experiential Learning
Personalism as cited in Evans, Forney and Guido DiBrito, 1998).
Developmental Mismatch - used to further develop a student’s intellectual and ethical capacities along the Perry continuum
“Plus One Staging” (Kohlberg)
Individuals have the capacity to understand and progressively develop when challenged to reasoning slightly more advanced than their own
Establishing Goals, Implementing Program, Evaluating (Thoma, 1993).
Putting Perry into Practice- second generation theorists credited with translating the model into a tangible form to be used in the classroom and other settings
DI Model helps teachers/professors understand students’ intellectual progression and better connect with them, which in turn allows teachers/professors to consciously provide mediums (group project, assignements) through which they can help cultivate progression along the Perry continuum
Structure  framework and direction provided to students (more needed for those in lower positions)
Diversity consists of two parts- quantity and quality  Quantity refers to the amount, quality to the complexity (asking a student to read two dissenting articles, diverse in their views that challenges her authority structure)
Experiential learning  concreteness, directness and involvement contained in learning activities  ranges from direct involvement to vicarious learning  exercises that cultivate reflection and application of the material (promotes active learning  empowering)
Personalism  reflects the creation of a safe environment where risk taking is encouraged (students’ framework and way of seeing the world often shifts and a teacher, professor or student affairs professional’s support is often needed to balance a challenging task)

13. Viability of the Model
Measurements of the Perry Model (Evans, Forney and Guido-DiBrito, 1998).
Measure of Intellectual Development (MID) (1974)- Knefelkamp and Widick
Measure of Epistemological Reflection (MER) (1985)- Baxter Magolda and Porterfield
Learning Environment Preferences Measure (LEP) (1989) – Moore
King and Kitchener’s (1977) construct of Reflective Judgment- investigates how people reason and arrive at a point of view- upward progression of Reflective Judgment scores found across high school, college and grad school (King, 2006).
Complex reasoning is not a reflection of just age or verbal aptitude but more of a consequence of college attendance (King, 2006, Chickering, 1993.)
Measures the first five positions- consists of three essays in which subjects are asked to respond; best class they have taken, the last time they had to make an important decision, important considerations in making career decisions- fairly reliable
First five positions- using essay questions- measures six domains of the learning process; decision making, role of the learner, role of the instructor, role of the peers, evaluation and the nature of truth- correlation co-efficient of .80 for interrater reliability – supporting high validity of the Perry model
Series of sentences respondents are asked to rate on a four point Likert based on their ideal learning style- stems represent domains of view of knowledge and course content, role of the instructor, role of the student and peers in the classroom, classroom atmosphere and role of evaluation.

14. Strengths Comprehensive and Inclusive
Generalizability across a diversity of experiences
Themes of Human Identity class
Complexity in which students view careers
Great Explanatory Power
Many people can trace their own intellectual and ethical development by studying the scheme as well as the development of friends, family and students
(King, 2006)
Perry has described some of the fundamental changes that occur as college students develop without compromising the complexity of human growth or of the college experience- rich description of development during college = great tool for understanding college students and promoting their development.
Generalizability  academic and non-academic advantages in increasing development
Explanatory source of theory and its usefullness in practice

15. Limitations Gender biased Difficult to Separate Underlying Constructs
Although both Harvard and Radcliffe students participated in Perry’s longitudinal study, only the year- end interviews with men (with few exceptions) were used to validate the Perry Scheme (Evans, Forney and Guido Di- Brito, 1998).
Difficult to Separate Underlying Constructs
First half is focused on intellectual development and second half is focused on ethical, moral and identity development
Kohlberg (1969) and Selman (1974) garnered evidence based research claiming that moral development may follow development in other areas, however the question complicates and challenges and notions of identity construction (as cited in King, 2006).
Assumes that intellectual growth occurs apart from and before that of ethical/moral/identity growth

16. Intriguing Findings
Student Affairs Practitioners who are relativists and affiliate with Feeling and Perceiving attributes instead of Judging on the Myers- Briggs are more likely to take interest in the Perry Theory and use it to better understand their students as well as styling learning objectives/projects/tasks in hopes of facilitating growth along the continuum (Evans, Forney, Guido Di- Brito, 1998).
In comparing progressive schools vs. traditional schools in their ability to cultivate the way high school girls reason about moral and epistemological issues, senior girls scored significantly higher than sophomore girls at the progressive school, but virtually the same same at the traditional school. (Clinchy, Lief, and Young, 1977).
Kohlburg Moral Judgment Interview (1973) (as cited in King, 2006)
Students in an agricultural school scored between 2 and 5 on the continuum- no significant difference between liberal arts schools (Blake, 1976).
Religious knowledge does not buffer moral development or conceptual complexity, although religious issues can serve as a measure of intellectual development (Meyer, 1975) (King, 2006)
This is not to say that the moral capacity of students at traditional schools is inferior  this simply sheds light on if and how students are being challenged to conceptualize and support their respective moral/ethic views  not at all value laden

17. Application to Student Affairs
Career Counseling (Knefelkamp and Slepitza, 1976)
Residence Halls (Stonewater, 1988)
Supervision of Student Affairs Res Ed Professionals (Ricci, Porterfield and Piper, 1987)
Counseling Women (Knefelkamp, Widick and Stroad, 1976)
Group Advisement (Cosgrove, 1987)
Group Development (Saidla, 1990)
Academic Advising (Hillman and Lewis, 1980)
(Evans, Forney and Guido DiBrito, 1998).
Career Counseling- Understanding the movement from an external to an internal locus of control and how dualistic, multiplistic and relativistic students view career options differently  certain level of cognitive complexity needed to make serious commitments  affective component of choice needs to be addressed
Undergraduate Career Planning course designed by Touchman, Wertheimer, Cornfield and Harrison (1977)
2) Residence Halls- Provides useful descriptions of how dualistic, multiplistic and relativistic students view Res Ed staff, policy and roommate conflicts. Implements use of DI  diversity, direct experience and structure are used
Framed characteristics related to knowledge, authority, the learning process, peer acceptance and evaluation of staff members for each of the different positions…dualism, multiplicity, relativism
3) Counseling Women- Advocated recognizing how one’s beliefs might fit into the different stages of the model
4) Group Advisement- As a professional student affairs professional who may be in charge of an student organization or overseeing a specific group of students, the Perry Scheme could useful
Offering feedback
Designing and developing programs
Diagnosing and managing group conflict
Adjusting advising styles
5) Group Development- Understanding the different ways of making meaning, reflected in the Perry scheme are taken into consideration in terms of how cognitive complexity can affect individual behavior in each stage of the group development process.
6) Academic Advising- understanding the frame of mind and cognitive maturity students possess when helping advise is crucial

18. Discussion
To what areas of Student Affairs could you apply the Perry Model?
What frames does the Perry Scheme relate to or help facilitate/ develop? (Chickering and Reisser, 1993)
One of the limitations to the Perry Scheme was the combination of both intellectual and moral development- do you all think this is overall beneficial or not?
How important is it for students to achieve a state of relativism or even committed relativism? If one does not reach a mature state, can they achieve an identity?
Grieving the “road not taken” (Perry, 2005).
2) Developing Competence, especially Intellectual Competence- the ability to see more than one side of an issue and formulate their own opinions and beliefs based off of empirically supported arguments within a given contextual framework
Also helps in Moving Through Autonomy Towards Interdependence  students learn to question social conventions and parental injunctions and resist the pressure to blend in with the crowd  students make the biggest strides during the third semester of college within this vector
Developing Integrity  moving away from dualistic thinking and becoming more liberal as students are exposed to alternative viewpoints  developing integrity relates to many beliefs/values – Fowler’s model of spiritual development moves towards multidimensional approaches to life and truth.
3) Learning to think critically and independently is a needed and crucial component in defining meaningful and realistic goals which lead to personal judgment and a solidified identity.
Also presumes that if one can only have a truly established identity if they progress to the later stages of the scheme (relativism, committed relativism)
4) Does that mean that someone who hasn’t achieved a state of relativism cannot claim to have identified a strong identity
In a way, I think this makes good sense  lots of the other theories allude to their primary stages as points of dualism  think back to racial, ethnic and sexual orientation theories  one of the preliminary stages (stage # 2 in most models entailed students thinking of race, etc. in dualistic terms) black vs. white

19. Embodiment of Perry’s Theory
“Only to the extent that someone is living out this self transcendence of human existence is he truly human or does he become his true self. He becomes so, not by concerning himself with his self's actualization, but by forgetting himself and giving himself, overlooking himself and focusing outward.” Viktor Frankl
Pilgrim’s Process or the idea of self discovery
Transcendence  9 positions, 4 frames
Focusing outward or reframing

20. References
Chickering, A., Reisser, L. (1993). Education and Identity, (Second Edition). San-Francisco, Jossey- Bass.
Evans, N, J., Forney, D. S., Guido-DiBrito, F.(1998). Student Development in College: Theory Research and Practice. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass.
Hofer, B. K. and Pintrich, P. R. (1997, Spring). The development of epistemological theories: Beliefs about knowledge and knowing and their relation to learning. Review of Educational Research, 67 (1),
King, Patricia. (2006). “William Perry’s Theory of Intellectual and Ethical Development.” New Directions for Student Services Vol. 1978, Issue 4, pp
Perry, William, G. (1999). Forms of Ethical and Intellectual Development in the College Years: A Scheme. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass.
Perry, William, G. ( 2005). Different Worlds in the Same Classroom: Students’ Evolution in Their Vision of Knowledge and Their Expectations of Teachers in ASHE Reader on College Student Development Theory, eds, Wilson, M., Wolf-Wendel, L. Pearson Custom Publishing, pp
Proceedings and Addresses of the American Philosophical Association. (1984). American Philosophical Association. Vol. 57, 5, pp
Perry, William, G. Jr. (2005). Sharing in the Cost of Growth in ASHE Reader on College Student Development Theory, eds, Wilson, M., Wolf-Wendel, L. Pearson Custom Publishing, pp
Rapaport, William. (1982). “Unsolvable Problems and Philosophical Progress.” American Philosophical Quarterly. Vol. 19, pp
Thoma, George, A. (1993). “The Perry Framework and Tactics for Teaching Critical Thinking in Economics.” Journal of Economic Education Spring: