a view of Worldview

Worldview is a popular notion used by scholars and practitioners to encompass individuals' and collective cognitive orientations of various aspects of our world, such as science, religion, government, business, etc. At its very core, worldview is no more than the sense-making people have of themselves and the world around them, the perspectives gained from perception and interpretation. 

While there are many influences on people's sense-making like personality, experience, beliefs, human biases, and culture, there is an interesting overarching dichotomy that seems to skew the influences of all the other levels of sense-making to one end of the spectrum or another. How anyone processes the tension between whether I am an individual or whether I am part of a collective will go a long way in determining worldview.

Interestingly, the influences on how an individual resolves this tension are both trait driven and culturally driven. Individual personalities differ in the need to be independent or the need to be affiliated. Ambient influences, such as culture, are also powerful forces for individualism or collectivism. Generally speaking, while both are contributors to sense-making, the one that will have the most influence on worldview is the one that is the strongest.

For instance, when you look at the picture above, do you primarily see a body and a tree, or do you see arms, legs, head, etc. and branches and leaves. The reality is that both exist and both have function. You can focus on your hand and make it stronger, better, well if it has been sick, and so forth. When we have to rake leaves we do not think much about the tree, but the presence of leaves or branches. Yet at the same time, the body functions and the tree has presence. The body accomplishes tasks and the tree gives shade.

Thus, the worldview of individuals will largely be shaped by their tendencies to focus on the parts or the whole. A good example is making sense of unity. If someone has more of an individual worldview, then unity is seen as equality of opportunity. If someone has a more collective worldview, then unity is viewed as equality of outcome. Unity is really exercising each individual part of the collective in its own unique way for the benefit (glory) of the collective. Neither extreme is better than the other. When your worldview comes closer to a perfect blend that you function as an individual and at the same time you function as a community, then your worldview will come closer to the truth of who you are meant to be. You have a personal identity and you have a social identity. Learning to make sense of yourself and the world around you through a lense that brings both into focus is the worldview you should strive for.

Just saying ....