Seven Habits Grounding in the Maturity Continuum:Opportunities for WSU and
the Winona Community
4th Draft 2/10/03
by R. Schenkat, WinonaCouncil for Quality Director
Introduction
Winona State University has a huge commitment to the ideas embraced in Covey’s “Seven Habits of
Highly Effective People”. According to Dr. Darrell Krueger, “literally hundreds of WSU employees have
taken part in seminars focused on Covey material. Dr. Covey’s teachings are based on timeless, unchanging
principles that are in effect at all times around us whether we know it or not”.
As a community member, I’ve been invited to participate in Covey trainings sponsored by Winona State
over the years. Through my work with the Winona Council for Quality, I worked with Gary Evans(VP for
Development) in 1992 to coordinate the first community offering of the Seven Habits by Royce and Eric
Krueger and was subsequently trained with WSU staff as a Covey Trainer. I accompanied Dr. Krueger to
La Crosse, in bringing Stephen Covey to a packed Somsen Hall for his community address. In that short
ride in the fall of 1992, I didn’t have the chance to reconcile some of my understanding of adult
development theory with Seven Habits ideas. I’ve been dogged by questions regarding this reconciliation
for over a decade and have recently made some attempted resolution that may have interest to WSU
faculty.
Some clues have come from my friendship and intellectual relationship with Craig Pace, WSU’s senior
Covey trainer. We’ve had many long conversations over extended dinners in the last year. Also, I made
some links in going back and rereading a book called “The Modern American College” by Arthur
Chickering, promulgator of the “Seven Principles for Good Undergraduate Education” which are central to
teaching and learning at WSU. The book which I’ve owned and returned to many times since 1980
triggered the connection with another chapter by Chickering from 1976 entitled, “Development Change as
a Major Outcome” in Experiential Learning by Morris Keeton( LB 2381.K43). That chapter has been a
gold mine and has prompted several email exchanges with Dr. Chickering.
Without further ado, I’ll share some of these connections and new understandings.
Maturity Continuum
Central in the Seven Habits is the notion of the Maturity Continuum and the movement from dependence to
independence and interdependence. A corollary notion is that private victories must proceed public
victories.
I’ve come to find in visiting with Craig Pace that Covey obtained a Masters in Organizational Behavior
from Harvard in the 1970’s doing research on leadership which went on to set the foundation for the Seven
Habits. I believe in 1970, Chris Argyris came to Harvard after his career’s first two decades at Yale.
Argyris developed the concept of the immaturity to maturity continuum which was extensively described in
Hershey and Blanchard’s classic-“Management of Organizational Behavior” first published in 1969. It’s a
good guess that this was the source of Covey’s idea. However, what’s different about Argyris’ continuum
is that is covers many dimensions not just the dependence dimension.
Several other elements change as a person moves from immaturity to maturity. These elements are from:
passive to active, behave in few ways to capable of behaving in many ways, erratic shallow interests to
deep and strong interests, short time perspective to long time perspective(past and future), subordinate
position to equal or super ordinate position, and lack of awareness of self to awareness and control over
self. These dimensions are revealed in Appendix 1.
I’d assert that Covey is on the right track but simplifies the Maturity continuum from the many dimensions
of Argryis and Schon. I think we don’t think of maturity in this more involved way in our common culture.
We think of kids getting mature, but we don’t often think of these elements of maturity as developing
aspects of an adult person. We might say this or that person is acting immaturely or in a childish fashion.
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But we don’t say someone is immature because they only take a short time perspective or have shallow
interests.
Chickering made a connection for me in the chapter he wrote in 1976 that linked two areas I’ve thought
about much but somewhat separately over the last 25 years.
Argyris and his colleague Donald Schon for years have written about Model 1 and Model 2 behavior. This
is briefly summarized in the next two paragraphs( and also represented in Appendix # 2) .
In Model 1, interpersonal relationships are goal oriented toward maximizing winning and minimizing
losing, with strong emphasis on rationality and minimal open expression of negative feelings.
Relationships tend to be characterized by persuasion, stereotyping, intellectualizing, suppression of feelings
and information, competition, manipulation, and outward conformity with limited internal commitment.
In Model 2, the emphasis is on creating valid information so that internal commitment to free and informed
choices can occur, and so that actions can be openly and continuously monitored. Interpersonal
relationships call for initiative, collaboration, direct observations, attention to one’s own biases and
inconsistencies, minimal defensiveness, trust and respect for individuality, and open confrontation on
difficult issues.
Chickering connected Model 1 and 2 with the Maturity Continuum suggesting that they represent spans on
the continuum with the Model 2 behavior at the more mature end of the maturity continuum. This was an
eye opener for me as I’ve had a hard time imagining these two models and now I see them related to
maturity. But then Chickering made another connection. He linked Argryis and Schon’s Model 1 and
Model 2 with the developmental psychology literature- especially the work of Jane Loevinger on ego
development. So, where as Covey has reduced it to the dimension of dependence to interdependence, and
Arygris has 7 elements in his continuum, Loevinger devoted her life to study of ego development( in a
nutshell, the patterns of thinking and feeling about oneself, other, authority, ethics, knowledge, and the
central concerns that hold life together) . She has published extensively in this area.
This got me back to rereading Lovinger and her seminal book- Ego Development. She sets out a chart that
delineates the potential growth of a person in becoming more fully human(see Appendix # 3 ) .
Connecting Seven Habits to Maturity Continuum
On the Loevinger chart , I have super imposed two additions. One, along the left edge I’ve inserted the
Maturity Continuum from Low to High to call attention to the fact that both Argyris and Covey are
distillations of the aspects of maturity that Loevinger has set out. Two, I’ve inserted my best guess about
the placement of the Seven Habits based on Loevinger’s descriptions. Below, I will connect each of the
habits to a more textual description by Loevinger.
Habit 1-Be Proactive
At the Conscientious Stage in the Impulse Control Column, Character Development column the Chart
indicates—“Self-evaluated standards, self-criticism, guilt for consequences, long term goals”. In the
chapter narrative regarding the chart, Loevinger continues “one sees oneself as the origin of one’s own
destiny with a sense of choice not being a pawn”. This sounds like Habit 1 Be Proactive.
Habit 2 Begin with the End in Mind
At the Conscientious Stage in the Impulse Control Column, Character Development column the Chart
indicates—“Long Term goals with self evaluated standards” In the chapter narrative regarding this chart,
Loevinger, continues “contributing to this more mature conscience are the longer time perspectives and the
tendency to look at things in a broader context socially. One aspires to achievement rather than seeing
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work as onerous. Achievement is judged by own one’s standards and not by recognition or competitive
advantage”. This sounds like Habit 2 Begin with the End in Mind
Habit 3 First Things First
At the Integrated Stage in Conscious Preoccupations Column, the Chart indicates—“role conception and
self in social context”. ” In the chapter narrative regarding this chart, Loevinger, continues noting role
conception is seeing how one functions differently in different roles and requirements. This seems to be
said in a different way in seeing self in social context. Both aspects seem to call for the self awareness of
prioritizing how one spends time in different roles and the significance of those roles to the broader ends in
mind.
This sounds like Habit 3 First Things First.
Habit 4 Win/Win
From the Autonomous Stage in the Impulse Control Column, Character Development column the chapter
narrative states, “ finally realize conflict is an inherent part of the human condition. Don’t have more
conflict, but have courage to address and deal with rather than ignoring it(denial) or projecting it out to the
environment.”. This sounds like a foundation to Habit 4 Win/Win. Without this sense of conflict too much
energy is put into blame.
Habit 5 Seek to Understand Before Understood
At the Conscientious Stage in the Interpersonal Style column, the Chart indicates –“intensive,
responsible,mutual, concern for communication. ” In the chapter narrative regarding this chart, Loevinger,
continues “understand others’ views, mutuality in interpersonal relationships becomes possible. The
ability to see matters from other people’s view is the connecting link between deeper interpersonal
relationships and more mature conscience.” This sounds like Habit 5 Seek to Understand Before
Understood
Habit 6 Synergize
At the Autonomous Stage in the Cognitive Column, the Chart indicates-“increased conceptual complexity,
complex patterns, toleration for ambiguity”. ” In the chapter narrative regarding this chart, Loevinger,
continues “unite and integrate ideas that appeared incompatible earlier. Rather than dealing in polarities as
more typical of the conscientious stage, sees now as complex and multifacted and can transcend”. This
sounds like Habit 6 Synergize.
Habit 7 Sharpen the Saw
From the Autonomous Stage in the Impulse Control Column, Character Development column the chapter
narrative states “takes a broad view of life as a whole, have an interest in development”. This sounds like a
focus on a balanced approach to personal continual improvement or Habit 7 Sharpen the Saw.
Potential Implications of Seven Habits Maturity Continuum Placement for WSU
So why is rationalizing placement of the Seven Habits on the Loevinger Chart important?
The following section see the Habits more richly, uses the continuum to understand student motives, posits
a cross disciplinary aligning based on the continuum, and links the continuum to cognitive development,
learning communities, and systemic barriers that can mitigate maturity.
The Seven Habits are not just a collection of skills to be learned to be turned into habits by practice. They
are rather, markers of maturity—outcomes if you will. If we bisect the Loevinger Chart all the Habits
appear in the bottom half. If we look at the top half we get an idea of where undergraduates often reside in
their approaches to college life. From Loevinger’s Chart and narrative the following descriptors about less
mature behaviors arise:
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-seeing the world in conceptual simplicity, stereotypes, and cliches(viewing the situation and people as
conceptually simple admitting to few exceptions)
-there are rules; don’t get caught. There is little self criticism with more likely blame of the other with a
sense of opportunistic hedonism
-the inner life is seen in simple terms: such as happy- sad, joy –sorrow.
-belonging helps feel secure
-tend to perceive self and others conforming to socially approved norms while observing group difference,
but insensitive to individual differences. Sees nationality, sex, age but sees everyone in a group as alike and
people are what ought to be which is what’s socially approved
The move from dependence to independence to interdependence on the maturity continuum is at the core of
a college education. Transcending what is “learned” in the major area is a quality of being that
distinguishes one as college educated. In fact, much of what is learned and how it is learned in a college
setting has the probability of moving one on the maturity continuum. There’s much research on this type of
change in college students and most of it isn’t very encouraging. The more faculty are aligned around the
importance of movement on the maturity continuum the more likely this complex change in students will
take place.
In Chickering’s chapter, which I extolled earlier regarding the connections created for me, he does a superb
job in conveying how the traditional academic disciplines can foster movement on the maturity continuum.
I’ll include a few teasers.
Philosophy--Take truth seriously; set aside your self; penetrate your prejudices; distinguish between
what is right and what you like; use care with language; define your terms; abide by publicly stated rules;
subject your views to public criticism.
Literature-- characters display motives and emotions; they reveal values, attitudes, and belief systems
with the reasoning processes, prides, and prejudices that lie behind. Literature gives us these characters in
a context. Put literature against personal experiences- who are Willie Lomans where I work(what’s their
social context)? What is the novel in what I’ve lived so far and continue to create?
History - a record of persons who must make absolute decisions in the face of pluralistic values, with
relativistic and contingent information. Each individual is both constrained and freed by the actions of
others and by the sequence he or she creates through living.
Science. Rules of evidence and methodological constraints (screen out subjectivity) and try to control
our biases—yet scientists can’t fully control and delude themselves and others if think can .Issues are to be
settled on the basis of evidence, not through coercion, personal argument, or appeal to authority.
It seems, from my experience of over two decades ago now in college teaching/learning support, that often
faculty revel in the possibilities and would like students to join them as co learners in their disciplines, but
in a little simplification, all students seem to want to know is how long should the term paper be or how
many points are needed for a B? The insights from the top half of the Loevinger Chart give a sense of why
students have the motives that often are very vexing to faculty. Research shows the best ways to move
students on the maturity continuum is by concerted faculty effort.
The Seven Principles of Good Practice for Undergraduate Education , co –authored by Chickering, are
even more valuable when seen as tools to foster student movement on the maturity continuum. For
instance, under Encourages Student-Faculty Contact , sharing past experiences, attitudes, and values with
students models a complexity and approach to life that helps students see conceptual complexity, complex
patterns, toleration for ambiguity, objectivity, etc. This is similarly reinforced in Encourages Active
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Learning in which students are encouraged to challenge the professor’s ideas , the ideas of other students,
or those presented in readings or other course material.
It is important to consider what systemic factors can inadvertently reinforce students staying at the lower
end of the maturity continuum. Chickering in the Seven Principles document notes that in encouraging
cooperation among students performance criteria should be distributed to students so that each person’s
grade is independent of those achieved by others. Without that consideration it’s possible for students to
keep a zero sum attitude; someone has to lose . If “rush for coverage” only allows students to develop
views of situations as conceptually simple, maturity isn’t being fostered in the cognitive style column.
The Maturity Continuum in the fleshing out by Loevinger represents an insight into the student’s
potentially growing character, interdependent style, and cognitive style. The richness of this explication
offers a way to connect the substance of disciplines or academic majors to student development; an area
that has not often been common knowledge for university faculty. In fact, even these separate columns
become the work of scholarship on student development as the Character column for instance is probed
further in the works of Kohlberg and Gilligan. The Cognitive style column has been explicated by the
seminal work of William G. Perry and many subsequent inquirers(see Appendix # 4 ). It’s noted that
cognitive style is much more “than is a student left or right brained, concrete or abstract”. In fact, dealing
with capacity for abstraction is integral to higher education and isn’t just a preference that some individuals
have.
The notion of a community of learners takes on added import when looked at through the lens of the
Maturity Continuum. This sense of community parallels Covey’s insights about public victories utilizing
Win/Win, Synergize, and Seek to Understand. We’ve seen that Win/Win is grounded in a different and
much more mature understanding of conflict. Another Winona State favorite, Parker Palmer, says this in
another way, “At the core of this communal way of knowing is a primary virtue, one too seldom named
when we discuss community or set community against competition. This primary value is capacity for
creative conflict…… there is no knowing without conflict.. Our ability to confront each other critically
and honestly over alleged facts, imputed meanings, or personal biases and prejudices—that is the ability
impaired by the lack of community.”
Sticking with the topic of importance of Community of Learners, in the introduction I mentioned how
Chickering linked the maturity continuum with Model 1(being at lower end) and Model 2(being at upper
end) behavior. Model 2 behavior needs to underlie a learning community. This realization creates a very
real challenge in how community forms at WSU for staff and students.
So in summary, the Seven Habits are markers of maturity whose attainment involves a very concerted
faculty effort.
Why does the Winona Council for Quality care about this?
As Covey’s ideas have had a significant impact on Winona State, the Winona Council for Quality has been
influenced by W. Edwards Deming, the quality guru who was credited with turning around Japan’s
economy after WWII. Both Covey and Deming have deeper insights into the transformation of society.
Their commonalities could be seen if Deming’s cornerstones- understanding systems, the psychology of
human behavior, variation, a theory of knowing were mapped onto the Loevinger’s Maturity Chart. Both
call for organizations and communities, for that matter, to be operating at the upper end of the maturity
continuum.
The Winona Council for Quality has a vision of this deeper maturity permeating all aspects and sectors of
our community. This is well represented in a newly produced video of Winona community leaders talking
about emerging practices that are congruent with the upper end of the maturity continuum. These ideas are
presented in the paper- The Psychological Foundations for Transformation by Schenkat(12/02) available
upon request.
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The challenge of this vision was surfaced by Chickering in his 1976 chapter,
“Most of our schools and colleges, businesses, legislatures, social agencies, and community organizations
operate in Model 1 fashion( the lower end of maturity continuum-note added) . Arygris argues that in
doing so they keep individuals from maturing, as employees and students, they are given minimal control
over their environment and are encouraged to be passive, dependent, and subordinate. Thus the pattern of
keeping people immature is built into the fundamental management practices of most organizations.”
“This self-perpetuating condition argues powerfully for systematic attention to interpersonal
competence(movement on the maturity continuum-noted added) by educational institutions so that the
cycle of limited personal development accompanied by limited professional competence and organizational
effectiveness can be broken. Then both individuals and institutions can move toward more complex,
satisfying, and productive behaviors.”
These insights by Chickering show that we have similar challenges in the broader community to the
challenges that reside in higher education. The Council for Quality seeks alignment with Winona State’s
mission around movement on the maturity continuum. Perhaps organizations in the community that model
the maturity continuum focus could be real sites for practicums and internships for WSU students.
.The Winona Council for Quality is very respectful of the deep changes that have been made over the past
decade at WSU. The challenge of change in education institutions whether they be K-12 or Higher
Education is very daunting.
The Council thinks the landmark work being done at WSU should have more community visibility as
faculty align around student movement on the maturity continuum. The University’s multiyear $1.3
million dollar grant on assessment should be shared more broadly in the community as it models a rigor in
applying concepts of continual improvement to an organization. Research that shows making differences
on the maturity continuum should be celebrated.
The practices around student development embraced at Winona State serve well as models to be emulated
in the Winona K-12 community. Many outreaches within the community could be envisioned. A couple
starter ideas are, one, faculty might share their passions for their disciplines with their counterparts in K-12
education. Two, faculty as parents and citizens could be advocates for more of a focus on the maturity
continuum within K-12 education.
In summary, Covey showed great insight in creating Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. He is
speaking to a need that people feel. If we take a broader look at the maturity continuum concept, we can
see that much of the behavior that underlies the Habits are aspects of maturity that should rightfully be
coming from formal education aligned around these ends. Perhaps Covey and Deming training are
remedial in a way for this maturity development not consistently happening in education institutions.
Winona State is doing ground breaking work that needs to be emulated across the county in higher
education. WSU’s role as a community partner can pay huge dividends in K-12 education and community
transformation.
Appendix 1
Table 3-3
Passive
Dependence
Behave in few ways
Erratic shallow interests
Short time perspective
Subordinate position
Lack of awareness of self
Immaturity – ------------Maturity Continuum
Active
Independence
Capable of behaving in many ways
Deeper and strong interests
Longer time perspective(past-future)
Equal or superordinate position
Awareness and control of self
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