Concepts
The irreducible epistemic atoms underlying the curriculum. 4,828 atoms across 8 types
Vulnerability — defined as emotional exposure, uncertainty…
Vulnerability — emotional exposure, uncertainty, and risk — is the precondition for deep connection and belonging.
There exists a meaningful distinction between meaning (what…
There exists a meaningful distinction between meaning (what matters) and purpose (directional action toward what matters).
Purpose requires self-transcendence — orientation toward…
Purpose requires self-transcendence — orientation toward contributing to something beyond the self — to sustain motivation over time.
Purpose evolves across developmental stages in predictable…
Purpose evolves across developmental stages in predictable patterns rather than remaining fixed.
Human beings construct identity through ongoing narrative…
Human beings construct identity through ongoing narrative processes rather than discovering a pre-existing fixed self.
Identity and purpose exist in a bidirectional causal…
Identity and purpose exist in a bidirectional causal relationship where each shapes the other over time.
Negative events carry greater psychological weight…
Negative events carry greater psychological weight than positive events of equal intensity.
Actual behavior reveals operative values more reliably…
Actual behavior reveals operative values more reliably than stated preferences or intentions.
The self is not a unified entity but a multiplicity…
The self is not a unified entity but a multiplicity of I-positions that engage in internal dialogue.
Human development includes a stage-appropriate drive…
Human development includes a stage-appropriate drive to contribute to what outlasts the self.
When espoused values and basic underlying assumptions…
When espoused values and basic underlying assumptions conflict, basic assumptions always win in determining actual behavior.
When mortality is made salient and consciously processed…
When mortality is made salient and consciously processed rather than suppressed, humans reorganize priorities toward intrinsic goals.
There exists a cognitive zone between what a learner…
There exists a cognitive zone between what a learner can do independently and what they can do with guidance from a more capable other.
Extrinsic motivation (reward from external recognition)
Extrinsic rewards undermine intrinsic motivation over time through an overjustification effect.
Suffering is an irreducible feature of conscious existence…
Suffering is an irreducible feature of conscious existence, woven into impermanence, the gap between desire and reality, and awareness of mortality.
Human well-being consists of multiple distinct capabilities…
Human well-being consists of multiple distinct capabilities that are not fungible.
Experiential avoidance (attempting to alter the form…
Experiential avoidance functions as a transdiagnostic risk factor across anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and chronic pain.
Humans have an innate, evolutionarily grounded need…
Humans have an innate, evolutionarily grounded need to affiliate with living systems beyond other humans.
Higher mental functions, including meaning-making, originate
Higher mental functions originate in social interaction and are subsequently internalized rather than originating inside the individual.
The mind actively constructs understanding through schemas…
The mind actively constructs understanding through schemas that assimilate new experience and accommodate when schemas fail.
Experience must be attended to before it can become…
Experience must be attended to before it can become meaningful.
Attention is a finite cognitive resource that must…
Attention is a finite cognitive resource that must be allocated.
Relational meaning-making has structural properties…
Relational meaning-making has structural properties that isolated individual meaning-making lacks.
Suffering that is interpreted as meaningful has different…
Suffering that is interpreted as meaningful has different psychological consequences than suffering experienced as meaningless.