ERIC Number: EJ781550
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007
Pages: 4
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1540-7969
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Planning with Open Eyes and Open Hearts: An Alternative to Excessive Positivism
O'Brien, John
Research and Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities (RPSD), v32 n3 p173-176 Fall 2007
In this article, the author offers his critique on Holburn and Cea's notion on "excessive positivism" that person-centered planners are overconcerned with scientific verification and logical proof. The author believes that Holburn and Cea's notion blurs the important messages they have for person-centered planners by leading toward a debate about optimism versus realism. While Holburn and Cea saw the root of the trouble as self-deception induced by a lopsided focus on the positive, the author sees these temptations to self-deception as an invitation to look more deeply at how people who want to make a positive difference understand contingencies and cope with failure and disillusionment. They raise questions about the extent of people's commitment, the acuity of their reading of their environment, and their capacity for learning. On this view, excessive positivism on the part of administrators generates far more mischief than optimistic person-centered planners do, and those who choose to commit to person-centered planning need to go forward with their eyes open to their environment and their hearts open to one another. Here, the author describes some implications of this alternative perspective.
Descriptors: Deception, Meetings, Planning, Program Development, Program Effectiveness, Organizational Development, Change Strategies, Accessibility (for Disabled), Staff Development, Helping Relationship, Normalization (Disabilities), Self Efficacy, Developmental Disabilities
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Opinion Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
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Author Affiliations: N/A