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Tabular Comparison of Suites of Aspects

This is part of our discussion of why Dooyeweerd's suite of aspects may have advantages over others. On this page we are developing a tabular comparison; a non-tabular discussion may be found of other suites that do not occur here. See also tips for identifying aspects and some advantages of Dooyeweerd's suite.

Click the aspect heading to bring up the page for that aspect. Click the name of the suite of aspects in Column 1 to take you to notes and discussion below, or to another page where the suite is discussed.

Suite Aspects ...
Quantitative Spatial Kinematic Physical Biotic Sensitive Analytic Formative Lingual Social Economic Aesthetic Juridical Ethical Pistic Unplaced
Maslow's
hierarchy of needs		 Biological Safety Enquiry Expression Affiliation
Esteem		 Aesthetic Transcendence
Self-actualiz'n
Esteem
Checkland's Es Efficacy Effectiveness Efficiency Elegance Ethicality
Hartmann Inorganic Organic Psychic Historical Supra-individual
Bunge
Ontol 2		 Physical
Chemical		 Biological Technical Social
Habermas'
Action Types		 Instrumental Communicative (Strategic) (Dramaturgical) Norm. Reg. (Discursive)
Giddens'
Modalities of
Structuration 		(Resources;)
Power;
Domination 		Interpretive
schemas;
Meaning;
Signification;		 Resources;
)Power;)
(Domination) 		Norms;
Moral sanction;
Legitimation
Wilenius Physical Organic Mental-
Psychical 		Social Cultural:
aesthetic 		Cultural:
truth 		Cultural:
ethics 		Cultural:
relig. belief
Boulding
Note: order differs 		Mechanical Reproductive
Evolutionary
Ecological		 Cybernetic Human Human? Social Social? Social? Transcendental Creodic
Demographic
Dimensions of power Conceptual Technical Structural 'Symbolic'
Smuts' Wholes Material Living bodies Unconsc. control Consc. control Ditto Groups Spirituality
Kierkegaard's Stages Aesthetic Ethical (duty) Ethical (giving) Religious
Roget's Thesaurus Sections Abstract relations (most) Space Space: Motion Matter Affection: personal Intellect Intellect: formation of ideas;
Volition: individual		 Intellect: communicating ideas Volition: intersocial;
Affections: sympathetic		 Affections: moral Affections: religious
Encyclopaedia Britannica Outline 10. Branches of knowledge: maths 1. Matter, energy
2. The Earth		 3. Life on earth
4. Human life 		10. Branches of knowledge:
logic, science, philosophy 		7. Technology Religion as symbolism 5. Human society
9. History 		5. Society: wealth 6. Art 5. Society: law, politics 8. Religion But ...

NOTES AND DETAILED TABLES

The following are notes and small bits of discussion that expand the above and to which the above refers.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Need Aspects
Qnv Spl Kin Phy Bio Sns Anl Fmv Lng Soc Eco Aes Jur Eth Pis
Biological * ***
Safety ***
Affiliation * ***
Esteem ** **
Knowing, Understanding ****
Aesthetic ***
Transcendence ***
Freedom of
enquiry, expression		 ** ***
Self-Actualization . ..... ....***

Habermas' Action Types

See also our more wide-ranging tabular comparison and our general discussions of Habermas with Dooyeweerd.

Habermas' action types, delineated as part of his theory of communicative action, are meant by him as different types of human, usually social, activity, with different main purposes.

In Dooyeweerdian terms these are not modes of action as the aspects are, but are distinct types of action which are led and qualified by various aspects. Most necessarily involve language and hence may be seen as qualified by the lingual aspect. But they are differentiated by their leading aspect as in the table above and the more nuanced table below, which allows more than one leading aspect.

Latterly Habermas has suggested that most might be reduced to communicative action since most involve communcation. In this Habermas is confusing reducibility with dependency. Dooyeweerd distinguishes these: dependency is when functioning in one aspect requires functioning in another but they are still irrreducible in that the two aspectual functionings are actually one single human functioning, a unity. To Dooyeweerd, aspects are different modes of the one unity, different ways in which we might look at it.

Action Type Aspects
Qnv Spl Kin Phy Bio Sns Anl Fmv Lng Soc Eco Aes Jur Eth Pis
Instrumental ***
Strategic ** **
Communicative ***
Normatively Regulated ** **
Dramaturgical *** ** *
Discursive ** **

Giddens Structuration Modalities

Giddens' Structuration Theory was an attempt to understand how human action and social structures affect and generate each other. He identified three basic 'modalities' of this: interpretive schemas as standardised shared blocks of knowledge that humans draw on to interpret things, resources are means through which intentions are realized and power is exercised, and norms are rules governing conduct. Each entry here gives these modalities, then the realm of human action, then the structures. Note the crossing of aspectual boundaries: power is formative but the resources to effect it are economic. Also, while signification is mainly lingual, the standardization in interpretive schemas is social. See more on Giddens Structuration Theory.

Dimensions of Power

There is increasing interest over the past 20-30 years in power relations. Stephen Lukes (1974) in Power: A Radical View (London: Macmillan) outlines several dimensions of power that professionals exercise over users, and this was expanded by Markus KL, Bjørn-Andersen N (1987) (in: Power over users: its exercise by systems professionals. Comm. ACM 30:498-504) especially for information system (computer) professionals and users.

We can see immediately that (a) these dimensions fit four aspects very well (b) there are many important aspects missing (e.g. aesthetic - pressure to conform to fashion, ethical - appealing to people's better nature, lingual - eloquence, sensitive - playing on people's feelings, juridical - appealing to sense of due). It may be that Dooyeweerd's aspects could enrich Markus and Bjørn-Andersen's, and also Lukes' frameworks.

Jan Smuts' Grading of Wholes: Levels of Holism

Jan Smuts, who coined the term 'holism', wanted to see reality in terms of wholes rather than e.g. matter or spirit, and developed a theoretical approach in his 1927 Holism and Evolution. He identified a "rough and provisional" of a progressive of grading of wholes. Since wholes are unified events or things that are 'more' than the sum of their parts, we may see them in terms of their distinct ways in which they are meaningful in reality. That is how Dooyeweerd understands existence and entities, and each kind is qualified by a distinct aspect. Smuts' gradings are as follows, and I explain why I assign each aspects to them.

Notice how Smuts' order matches Dooyeweerd's. For discussion of Smuts' ideas, see Jan Smuts' Holism: A Dooyeweerdian View.

Wilenius

Wilenius is rooted in phenomenonology. Not only did he seem to identify quite a number of Dooyeweerd's aspects, but he also, like Dooyeweerd, held that they are both irreducible to each other and coherent. The information above is from, sent by Gareth Jones (for which many thanks):

Roget's Thesaurus

These are his sections and some subsections. Notice the order differs from Dooyeweerd, and this may be explained by his being-oriented presupposition.

Encyclopaedia Britannica Outline

These are the ten sections of knowledge found in the Propedia of the 1975 edition. Notice the order differs from Dooyeweerd, and this may be explained by the presupposition prevalent in positivist circles of the time, that all is founded on material (hence matter is No. 1), and that philosophy is the most abstract (hence No. 10).

Why is Religion No. 8, after Technology, No. 7? In the Propedia, each section is introduced by an essay by a well-known thinker of the time. It is interesting that the essay introducing Religion is Religion as symbolism - which, in Dooyeweerdian terms, rather reduces religion to the lingual aspect! The lingual aspect follows the formative, which is the qualifying one for technology, and followed by the social, which is key in 'History of Mankind'.

Template:

Need Aspects
Qnv Spl Kin Phy Bio Sns Anl Fmv Lng Soc Eco Aes Jur Eth Pis

This is part of The Dooyeweerd Pages, which explain, explore and discuss Dooyeweerd's interesting philosophy. Questions or comments would be welcome.

Copyright (c) 2005, 2010 Andrew Basden. But you may use this material subject to conditions.

Written on the Amiga with Protext.

Created: 1 April 2005. Last updated: 23 August 2005 Wilenius. 3 February 2006 links; rid counter; Boulding. 20 March 2006 mended links. 23 October 2006 Dimensions of Power. 25 March 2008 Kierkegaard, Roget (thanks to Richard Gunton), Britannica. 17 June 2010 Giddens. 18 June 2010 more on Habermas. 24 August 2016 Smuts' holism gradings; intro to notes; intro. 1 February 2018 corrected link to sst.