Abstract
Biocultural evolution has created propensities that guide, largely unconsciously, how species think and behave. Human anthropocentrism leads to a lack of recognition of the propensities shared by Homo sapiens and other species. Human narratives and values reflect these propensities even as they also affect evolution and possible pathways of (un)sustainability for social-ecological systems (SES). Signals and narratives provide information and affective communication that simplify SES complexities and guide thought and behavior. This paper presents key propensities, signals, and a narrative typology to raise conscious awareness of their roles in shaping largely unconscious human priorities that emanate from biocultural evolution and that are unsuited to modern challenges. Four dimensions of values (i.e., experiential, utilitarian, communitarian, transcendental) are also considered, and the transcendental concept of a “realm of knowledge-ends” is presented. The concept posits that because of the cumulative knowledge that they represent, biological and cultural entities ought to be afforded worth and value as “ends-in-themselves”, transcending their immediate utilities. Local-to-regional-to-global approaches are mentioned that could help strive toward this goal and improve global SES sustainability. A case study from New Zealand illustrates how four foundational elements (biocultural propensities, signals, narratives, and values) in the conceptual framework presented by this paper can be used: (a) to enhance critical reflective thinking and analyze modern natural resources and environmental situations; and (b) to create and use records of engagement and decision-making for improved participatory processes and societal engagement. Paying attention to biocultural propensities, signals, narratives, and values can improve sustainability pathways.
This paper explores: How has wisdom pedagogy research emerged in higher education during 1980–2022? This study is the first to explore the emergence of wisdom pedagogy research in higher education applying Bipartite network analysis for detecting clusters of 24 wisdom pedagogy articles of 53 authors and 161 keywords. Results are visualized with WoS analytics, word-clouds, and with Bipartite network. Wisdom research in higher education is two decades late compared with other disciplines. In higher education n = 524 wisdom, n = 33 wisdom pedagogy publications were detected in the Web of Science Core Collection database. This paper analyzed n = 24 wisdom pedagogy articles published during the 1980–2022 period. There were only two articles found dealing directly with wisdom pedagogy. Therefore, this study has several further research implications for educational researchers. Firstly, they need to conduct a more comprehensive search for wisdom pedagogy models by extending the scope of this study to other databases, books, book chapters, and to conference papers. Secondly, they need to synthesize and theorize their findings by building a wisdom pedagogy model. Thirdly, researchers need to develop detailed guidelines for educational practitioners on how to apply wisdom pedagogy in practice. This study is only at the beginning of this journey. However, it would be important for educating students with wisdom pedagogy in higher education because it would facilitate students’ thinking, judgements, and actions based on their moral and ethical values in a highly interconnected and complex world.
