Development of meaning making: A dynamic systems approach

The development of meaning making can be seen as a central aspect of the de velopment of self and identity in adolescence and adulthood. Current theori es in this area offer descriptions of different developmental stages, but l ittle is known about the factors and mechanisms involved in the development al process. In this article a conceptual model is presented of these factor s and mechanisms, Because descriptive models are too general to permit deta iled descriptions of the process or the formulation of specific hypotheses for the validation of the model, the model has been translated into a quant itative dynamic systems model which allows the developmental process to be simulated. The developmental trajectories generated by the model can be com pared with the theoretical ideas and empirical data concerning the developm ent of meaning making. The simulated trajectories of the development of mea ning making show a good fit with both the theory and the available data. Th is means that the assumptions about the factors and mechanisms in the devel opmental process on which the model has been based have at least some valid ity. In addition, the simulations generate new hypotheses about the process . It is concluded that quantitative dynamic systems models offer a useful w ay of exploring the validity of theoretical notions about developmental pro cesses. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.