Franklian Existentialism and Transformative Learning: Unlikely Co-Captains in Uncertain Times

Abstract

Dimensional ontology is Viktor E. Frankl’s theory that contends humans are composed of their biological, psychological, and noological (spiritual) dimensions. Frankl maintains that it is in the noological dimension where humans freely choose their responses to the environmental, psychological, and biological conditions that befall them. Frankl’s humanistic existentialism is a pushback against depth psychology – which broadly is the belief that human behaviour can be ascribed to hidden motives such as drives, instincts, or the dictates of the unconscious. Some scholars have applied the ideas of Carl Jung, a depth psychologist, to their theorizing of transformative learning. Broadly, the aim of this conceptual paper is to chart new courses for scholars to explore spiritual and psychological aspects of transformative learning, more specifically, routes separate from depth psychology. It opens with brief reviews of humanism, existentialism, and depth psychology, before exploring how Franklian existentialism might enrich the already fertile and expansive terrain of transformative learning.

Keywords

adult education transformative learning Frankl Franklian existentialism spirituality height psychology noological dimension logotherapy

Introduction

Exploring the psychology and spirituality of transformative learning through the lens of Viktor E. Frankl’s philosophizing, that is, Franklian existentialism, offers another route on the holistic path directed towards transformative learning. ‘Coherence among one’s multiple ways of knowing’ that is, the holistic interplay of ones’ affective, cognitive, and practical being, is a change in one’s ‘habit of being’ (Kasl & Yorks, 2012, p. 507, italics in original). Questions of being such as what does it mean to be a conscious being? and what does it mean to exist? are the brooding grounds of existential philosophers, a ‘motley crew of thinkers’ (p. 4) who face life ‘unblinkered’ as they explore what it means to exist as a human being (Marino, 2018, p. 3).

Learning is an ontological process, steeped in paradoxes, that involves multiple ways of knowing, and as such, its theorizing requires an interdisciplinary approach (Jarvis, 1992, 2009). More specific to this paper, we draw from Peter Jarvis’s understanding of learning. For Jarvis, learning is ‘an essential element of Being . . . [it] lies at the heart of our humanity [and] it is a driving force in human existence, [and therefore] our theories of learning must embrace an holistic and existentialist perspective’ (Jarvis, 2006, p. 4). Both authors are adult educators who agree with Su’s (2011) claim that

a focus on being-in-the-world in higher education would invite students to reflect on their own growth and lead ‘learning’, not just to knowledge construction for problem-solving but also to the construction of subjectivity for the finding of meaning in learners’ existence during times of uncertainty. (p. 409)

In other words, exploring what their learning means to them during (these) uncertain times might assist learners in discovering an answer to what does it mean to be a human being – right now? Our individual, social, global, and planetary well-being is increasingly uncertain. We believe that existentialism’s focus on being-in-the-world (ontology) and values (axiology) serves to complement education’s traditional emphasis on knowledge delivery and acquisition (epistemology). In the broadest sense, we propose that existential philosophy offers us a lifeline for the turbulent and unchartered waters we currently find ourselves in. More specifically, our aim in writing this article was to explore how the ontological and axiological underpinnings of Franklian existentialism might offer another way for transformative educators to approach learners holistically.

Stormy Waters

It appears the time is ripe to revisit existentialism, including Franklian existentialism, given existentialists are fundamentally concerned with questions that arise ‘when we have become unmoored from our everyday anchorage’ (Marino, 2018, p. 4). Indeed, COVID-19 has unmoored global societies from their (in many cases) safe and familiar anchorages. And although the COVID-19 storm appears to be subsiding, and the waters beginning to calm, we are still chartering perilous and unfamiliar seas, and we are doing so without any clear vision of what the safe shores will eventually look like. Indeed, the uncertainty is unsettling, or in using Marino’s (2018) metaphor, unmooring. Franklian existentialism and transformative learning make for powerful co-captains to help us navigate the storm. Why? Because transformative learning and Franklian existentialism are theories of hope. They offer hope for change – despite uncertainty. Together, they offer hope through recognizing we have choices, and choice involves the opportunity to discover infinite meanings. The discovery of (new) meaning(s) can lead to not only a change in perspective but also a change in being (Willis, 2012). This paper explores how educators grounded in Franklian existentialism might promote learning environments that are conducive to transformative changes in being. Transformative change in being infers ontological change, more simply, a change in one’s worldview on what it means to be a human – what does it mean to exist? What does it mean to exist responsibly? What does it mean to exist responsibly at this moment? We suggest that answers to questions like these can be discovered in asking what does my learning mean to me?

Charting the Course

This paper begins with brief introductions to humanism and existentialism. Meaning making, the conceptual thread that links Franklian existentialism and transformative learning is defined. Next, a brief exploration of depth psychology within the transformative learning literature was presented, followed by a rendering of Franklian existentialism (including the concepts dimensional ontology, noological dimension, height psychology, and logotherapy). The discussion section begins a dialogue of how an adult educator might apply the principles of Franklian existentialism as another route leading towards a holistic and transformative learning environment. The paper closes with an interdisciplinary invitation to scholars interested in exploring the less chartered waters of transformative learning to join the existential conversation.

Humanism and Existentialism

Humanism asserts that human beings are free to make choices and decide their behaviour, and in viewing individuals holistically, recognizes that ‘body, mind and spirit’ all have the potential for growth and development (Merriam & Bierema, 2014, p. 29). Generally, humanistic theories encourage individual development, are learner-focused, and aim for the individual to self-actualize through self-direction and internal motivation (Taylor & Hamdy, 2013). A commonality amongst humanistic philosophers is that one’s beliefs, meanings, and values can be brought to fruition without reference to the divine or supernatural and that ‘spiritual values . . . can be followed and fostered within an entirely human frame of reference’ (Cottingham, 2017, p. 123). In other words, spiritual values do not require religious practices. Humanistic psychology offers a foundation for exploring meaning, authenticity, individual-centred approaches, progressive thought, social justice, and the idea that taking care of ourselves means taking care of ourselves and the natural world (Kamens, 2021). Humanistic adult educators who have made it their life’s work to address social justice issues through a transformative learning lens exemplify Kamens’s (2021) recommendation to move humanistic philosophy beyond the individual, into the collective and the natural environment (e.g. see Buechner et al., 2020; Burns, 2015; De Angelis, 2018; Lange, 2018; O’Sullivan, 1999).

Existentialism can be seen as a school of thought, or an interdisciplinary movement, involving philosophy, literature, and psychotherapy, focussing on individual meaning, and not universal theories (Flynn, 2006; Frankl, 2010, 2019; Marino, 2004; Panza & Gale, 2008). And although there are as many existentialisms as there are existential philosophers, generally existentialists are concerned with overlapping themes such as meaning, authenticity, anxiety, depression, fear of death (finitude), passion, individuality, and concrete existence (the here and now that changes from person to person, moment to moment), and they approach these big subjects through diverse philosophical positions (Flynn, 2006; Marino, 2004, 2018; Panza & Gale, 2008; van Manen, 2014). Existentialists envision social solidarity in a way that enhances individual freedom and responsibility, that is, neither passé, nor ‘another form of bourgeois individualism’ (Flynn, 2006, Preface, para. 8). Freedom is the greatest value, authenticity, and the main virtue (Flynn, 2006). Existential authenticity requires one to make choices, act as an individual (in other words, not be swayed by the herd, Nietzsche, 1997), and strive to expand the freedom of self and others (Flynn, 2006). Existentialism is a highly personal style of philosophizing, and subsequently many existentialists work from the first-person perspective (Marino, 2004).

Writing as an adult educator, Willis (2012) argues that ‘transformative learning can be understood as an existential act . . . which engages the whole person of the learner . . . such learning involves significant personal change and is identified by learners themselves as transformative’ (p. 216, italics in original). Such learning is not so much a change in perspective, but a transformation in being (Willis, 2012). Sherman (2020), working with post-secondary students, proposes that a view of well-being based on blending existentialism and humanistic psychology, and attends to the being (read ontological) part of well-being. He further questions what a different view of well-being might entail if the existing narrow focus on rationality and critical thinking in post-secondary education was replaced with educators who approach learners holistically. Sherman (2020) urges educators to guide learners to ‘integrate their individuality’ and assist them in discovering ‘what the world means’ to them, in relation to what they are learning (p. 8, italics in original). Educators who practice with an existentialist bent can help promote social solidarity by reminding students of their individual responsibility to society and the natural world by encouraging them to ask: how has my learning helped me understand how I might strive for the freedom of myself and for others? To what (e.g. nature, suffering, poverty, and racism) do I feel responsibility towards? How is life summoning me? How might I respond to life’s summoning? The current COVID-19 vaccine situation will serve to illustrate how an existentialist approach could help explore such questions.

For the past 2 years, public health officials around the globe have been beseeching their country’s citizens to get vaccinated. We are told that the COVID-19 vaccines protect us, our family, the vulnerable, they reduce further mutations of the virus, and they are our surest way out of the COVID-19 storm. However, the media is rife with reports of vaccine distribution inequities, wastage, and hesitancy, with some even declaring political war on vaccine mandates (e.g. the Freedom Convoy protest in Ottawa). How might an existentialist adult educator encourage learners to explore this conundrum? Firstly, and assuredly, they would not excuse you from your responsibility to discover meaning in the situation; secondly, they would remind you to strive towards freedom – yours and others; thirdly, (and possibly confoundedly) you are free to choose amongst infinite possibilities; fourthly, you will have made the right decision through the process of decision making – the key to existential decision making is that your choices must be grounded in your own individual values (Flynn, 2006; Frankl, 1978, 1984, 2014; Marino, 2004, 2018; Nietzsche, 1997; Panza & Gale, 2008), and lastly, provide the (un)assuring words that ‘questioning is itself a paradox for an uncertain humankind in continual search for certainty’ (Jarvis, 1989, as cited in Jarvis, 1992, p. 4). In summary, existentialism will not tell us if we should get vaccinated or not. To do so would infer authority and the imposition of another’s values. It would abdicate us of our responsibility to make a choice, and to be clear, not making a choice also confers a choice has been made. Existentialism does, however, remind us to strive for the freedom of self and others; however, it is our individual responsibility to discover what this statement means to each of us (Flynn, 2006; Frankl, 1978). Does freedom infer mandated vaccination, aiming towards a collective return to ‘business as usual’? Or does freedom infer the right to refuse vaccination, with the individual returning to ‘business as usual’? Who’s freedom? Existentialism does not give easy answers to difficult questions because the answers to our life’s big questions are ours, and ours alone, to discover. There are not any guidebooks to life, nobody can help us make sense of our existence, and therefore as sentient beings we must accept responsibility for creating meaning as we muddle through our way through (Panza & Gale, 2008). Fundamentally, human existence is uncertain.

Meaning Making

Meaning making is the conceptual bridge connecting transformative learning theory and Franklian existentialism. The quest for meaning, Frankl (1984) asserts, is our primary motivation in life. A change in meaning is an essential component of a change in perspective, and (in part) it is through a change in perspective that transformative learning occurs as we construct meaning from our experiences (Merriam & Bierema, 2014; Mezirow, 1991). Frankl (2014) helps to explain the construct by urging us to understand that

meaning is what is meant, be it a person who asks me a question, or by a situation which too, implies a question and calls for an answer . . . [we] must try hard to find the true meaning of the question which [we are] asked. (p. 42, italics in original)

Furthermore, we are responsible for ‘giving the right answer to a question, for finding the true meaning of a situation. And meaning is something to be found rather than to be given, discovered rather than invented’ (Frankl, 2014, pp. 42–43, italics in original). In other words, we do not take meaning given by others; we make meaning for ourselves. Simply put, it is incumbent upon us to discover our individually determined right answers and true meanings for the questions and situations that are presented to us, for as human beings, we are tasked with the responsibility to make meaning in our lives. Conceptualizing meaning making through the lens of Franklian existentialism, whereby meanings are to be discovered in the noological dimension (Frankl’s, 1978, 2010, term that is akin to the more commonly referred to spiritual dimension), takes heed of Taylor and Cranton’s (2013) recommendation ‘to think in new ways about the direction we can move in’ in developing transformative learning (p. 43). However, before we set sail on a fresh course within transformative learning, it is important to review a more commonly taken one, depth psychology.

Depth Psychology and Transformative Learning

Broadly, depth psychology describes a psychotherapeutic approach that explores the unconscious (Diamond, 2018). This therapeutic approach aims to assist the individual in the process of individuation (integration of the consciousness and unconsciousness, Spear, 2014), as they explore their inner world (psyche) and their outer world (community, The C. G. Jung Center, n.d.). Individuation is the Jungian construct for spiritual and psychological growth, a coming into self-hood or self-realization (Dillon, 2019). Individuation forms the foundation of Jung’s analytical psychology (Dillon, 2019; Jung, 1933), and it has garnered the attention of adult education scholars (e.g. see Cranton & Carusetta, 2004; Cranton & Roy, 2003; Lange, 2013; Spear, 2014) who have drawn on depth psychology to attend to other ways of knowing and advance transformative learning (Tisdell, 2012).

A Jungian Lens in the Transformative Learning and Adult Education Literature

Transformative learning has moved beyond its early beginnings in adult education, and as The handbook of transformative learning: Theory, research, and practice exemplifies, the theory means different things to different scholars (e.g. see, Brookfield, 2012; Cranton & Taylor, 2012; Tisdell, 2012). Transformative learning is the process by which one’s beliefs, values, perspectives, and assumptions are brought into question when one experiences something unexpected that challenges one’s habits of mind (Cranton, 2005). Hoggan (2020) makes the case that transformative learning, when viewed as a metatheory, provides a construct for interdisciplinary scholars working to better understand phenomena that involve ‘dramatic learning and change in adulthood’ (p. 109). Changes that occur through transformative learning are substantial and result in new ways of experiencing, conceptualizing, and interacting in the world (Hoggan, 2015).

Transformative learning scholars’ (Cranton & Carusetta, 2004; Cranton & Roy, 2003; Lange, 2013; Spear, 2014) attraction to Jungian psychology is a natural fit given ‘the fourth stage of analytical [Jungian] psychology . . . demands transformation of the patient’ (Jung, 1933, p. 51). In looking at Jung’s contributions to transformative learning, Cranton and Carusetta (2004) offer that possibly Jung’s ‘most important message is that the purpose of human life is to become conscious’ (p. 290). It is a lifelong process of becoming aware of who we are and why we do the things we do (Cranton & Carusetta, 2004). As we slowly begin to understand our unique psychological makeup (Cranton & Roy, 2003), we reach an ideal end point, that is, the ‘integrated Self’ (Lange, 2013, p. 113). Psychoanalytic transformative learning is the application of a Jungian lens to transformative learning, concentrating on psychic conflicts, not on social or cognitive ones (Lange, 2013). Dirkx (2012, 2013) discusses his concept of ‘soul work’ through Jungian and post-Jungian lenses in his approach to spirituality within the transformative learning literature. Dirkx (2013) discusses how meaning making involves learners’ sense of self, their values, and the ‘meaning, direction, and purpose of their work lives’ (p. 362). This inner work of discovering meaning extends beyond skill mastery, or specific knowledge, and tasks the learner to question what the mastery of such skills and knowledge means to them (Dirkx, 2013). This brief discussion of the transformative learning and adult education literature is intended to demonstrate how Jungian psychology has helped grow transformative learning and by way, adult education. What follows is the case that Franklian existentialism provides adult educators and transformative learning scholars a different lens to explore the spiritual and psychological aspects of learning.

Franklian Existentialism

The purpose of this section is to provide the reader with a broad understanding of Franklian existentialism. Aspects of Frankl’s life and work that are deemed relevant to conceptualizing how Franklian existentialism might further develop the varied landscape of transformative learning are explored. It is important to understand that Frankl was deeply opposed to reductionism and nihilism – in a word, he saw them as anti-human (Frankl, 1978, 2010, 2014, 2019). Reductionism and nihilism are deep and vast subjects that are far beyond the limitations of this paper; however, broad brush stroke mentions are made to both in the next section which explores dimensional ontology, height psychology, and logotherapy, a form of psychotherapy founded on the principles of Franklian existentialism (for further reading on reductionism in the social sciences, see Sayer, 2005; on existential nihilism see Veit, 2018).

Life Has the Meaning We Choose to Give It

Viktor E. Frankl was a Holocaust survivor, a psychiatrist, neurologist, philosopher (Frankl, 2000, 2014; Indinger, 2010), and living testament to his belief that life has meaning under any circumstance. Much of Frankl’s theorizing was in place before he was imprisoned during the Holocaust; therefore, he had opportunities to test the validity of these theories in the living experiments of the concentration camps (Frankl, 1984). A bright thread that runs through Frankl’s (1984, 2000, 2010, 2019) work is his disdain for nihilism. Nihilistic philosophers hold that ‘there are no objective values, that truth is purely subjective, and that human existence is meaningless’ (Flynn, 2006, p. 134). Although existentialists are often collectively referred to as morose characters (Marino, 2004, 2018) and therefore accused by some as being nihilistic, most are not, and moreover, as Panza and Gale (2008) explain, existential philosophy offers a way out of nihilism. In direct refute of nihilism, Frankl (1978, 1984) argues there is meaning in even the direst of circumstances, asserting it can be found in creative pursuits, experiences (work/deeds/relationships/events), and the stance one takes in unavoidable suffering. Meaning can be found in suffering because humans are free to choose their attitude, and hence, the stance they take, towards unavoidable conditions (Frankl, 1984). Even in death, life has a meaning (Frankl, 2014, 2019). The finality of life does not imply life is meaningless, regardless of one’s religious, or secular, belief system. Franklian existentialism fundamentally asserts that life has unconditional meaning, it is to be discovered in each moment, and furthermore, life never ceases to contain meaning until we take our final breath (Frankl, 2014, 2019). Frankl’s (2019) life and work are illustrative of his fundamental belief that humans are self-determining, free to choose their responses, transcend their situation, and subsequently they are responsible to discover their unique meanings. Existentialism tells us that life has the meaning we choose to give it (Panza & Gale, 2008). Franklian existentialism tells us life does not owe us happiness; it offers us meanings to be discovered (Frankl, 1984, 2010, 2019).

Humans are More Than a Sum of Their Parts: Frankl on What it Means to be a Human

Frankl (2014) asserts that humans must not be conceived as distinct forms of body, mind, and spirit that can be separated from one another. His theory of dimensional ontology refutes the belief that the mind–body problem (Cartesian dualism – reductionism), a perennial philosophical issue, is solvable (Frankl, 1978, 2014). In brief, dimensional ontology is Frankl’s (1978) theory which explains that humans are composed of their biological, psychological, and noological dimensions. The noological dimension is Frankl’s (1978, 2010) construct for human spirituality. Frankl (1978, 1984), an Austrian, steadfastly avoided the terms spiritual and spirituality given in English they carry religious connotations. The noological dimension can be seen as the space between stimulus and response where humans are free to choose their reaction to their biological, psychological, and environmental conditions. Frankl (1978) declares that biology (body), psychology (mind), and conditions (environment) do not determine what makes one human (humans cannot be reduced to a sum of their parts), for within limits, humans have the freedom to take a stand against their genetic endowments and environmental conditions. In other words, we are not free from conditions, but we are free to take a stand to them, our conditions do not completely condition us (Frankl, 2010). According to Frankl (2000, 2010), Freud (an early mentor to Frankl) hypothetically proposed that a starvation experiment would demonstrate a uniform behaviour amongst humans, that is, the instinctual drive to eat to survive. In other words, such an experiment would demonstrate humans can be reduced to their biological instincts (in this case, the instinct to satiate hunger). Later, and in response to Freud’s hypothetically proposed (reductionist) experiment, Frankl (2010) offered he was part of such an experiment while imprisoned in the Nazi camps, yet contrary to Freud’s hypothesis, not only was ‘the beast . . . unmasked—[but] so was the saint. The hunger was the same but people were different’ (p. 160). Although all prisoners were starving, some chose to self-transcend their conditions, finding meaning in their suffering by sharing their meagre rations, while others stole food from their fellow prisoners (Frankl, 1984, 2010). Frankl (1984, 2010) maintains these prisoners also made a choice – they chose to allow their behaviour (stealing food) to be determined by their drives and instincts.

Self-transcendence

Self-transcendence is the unique human ability to ‘orient ourselves outward toward another person or cause greater than ourselves’ (Langle & Sykes, 2006, pp. 44–45). Humans self-transcend in the noological dimension when they choose to adopt the values of creativity, experience, and attitude in responding to their lived experiences (Frankl, 2010). Although creativity, experience, and attitude are not commonly referred to as values, they are in Frankl’s work, and therefore in this paper they are understood as such. Individuals demonstrate adopting the value of creativity when they choose to write songs to process adverse life events. They demonstrate adopting the value of experience when they choose to be present and enjoy the beauty of a sunset, or delight in a child’s smile. And they demonstrate adopting the value of attitude when they choose to not be defined by a chronic illness, instead focussing on what health they do have. Meaning is discovered in acts of creativity, through experiences, and in chosen attitude (Frankl, 2014).

Although much of Frankl’s philosophizing was in place before he was imprisoned during the Holocaust, what he witnessed in the Nazi camps helped validate his theories (Frankl, 1984). Frankl’s own response to the conditions in the Nazi camps further illustrates how one can choose the value of attitude when conditions are unchangeable. Despite the horrendous conditions of the camps being unchangeable (environment), his body weakened from disease, starvation, hard labour, abuse (biological/physical), and his tenuous mental and emotional health (psychological) (Frankl, 1984). Frankl demonstrated his belief in life’s unconditional meaning when he chose to offer comfort as doctor, friend, and human being to other prisoners (Batthyány, 2019). In self-transcendence, Frankl moved beyond his environmental conditions and his own physical and psychological suffering, reaching out to a cause greater than himself, that being, the suffering of other prisoners, and doing so because of his fundamental belief that life has unconditional meaning (Frankl, 1984, 2010, 2014, 2019; Batthyány, 2019). In summary, dimensional ontology is Frankl’s (1978, 2010) theory explaining that humans enter the noological dimension when they recognize that although they may not be free from their conditions, they are free to choose their response to them, and as such transcend them.

Height Psychology: Better Known as Logotherapy

Frankl liked to refer to logotherapy, the term he called his form of psychotherapy as height psychology because instead of exploring the hidden depths of the psyche (as does depth psychology), it delves into the hidden depths of the spirit, and it is within the spirit where human strength can be explained (Viktor Frankl Institute of Logotherapy in Israel (n.d.), Depth and Height Psychology section). Frankl (1978) shares that over and over he has been ‘accused of overestimating [humans], putting [them] on too high a stool’ (p. 29). In the spirit of hope and optimism Frankl (1978) counters this accusation with the argument that if a human being is held to a higher expectation, as height psychology does, they are likely to rise to it, bringing out the human potential for goodness.

Logotherapy

Logotherapy ‘is ultimately education to responsibility’, and this responsibility requires the individual to strive to find their personal meanings in their existence (Frankl, 2010, p. 215). Logotherapy is a therapy directed at assisting the individual in developing awareness of their spiritual resources and to use this awareness in taking a stand to adversity (Indinger, 2010). A logotherapist is neither a moralist nor an intellectual, and the role of a logotherapist is to bring to awareness that the world asks questions of every human, and in turn, awaits a response (Frankl, 2010, 2014). Frankl (1978, 2000, 2014) was averse to dogmatic psychotherapeutic techniques, and as such, logotherapy has few. Logotherapy does not position the practitioner as expert, instead emphasizing relationship (Frankl, 1978, 2000, 2014). Given logotherapy is an education towards awareness and responsibility and it emphasizes relationship over techniques, it seems reasonable to ask how might adult educators apply the principles of logotherapy to educational encounters? An answer begins with the reminders that existentialism is an interdisciplinary movement that focuses on personal meaning (Flynn, 2006; Marino, 2004; Panza & Gale, 2008), the role of educators is not to pour information into the learner (Indinger, 2010; Smallman, 2014), and that the adult learner’s textbook is their lived experience (Lindeman, 1982). Adding these to Indinger’s (2010) claim that the role of a logotherapist is to uncover the spirit’s hidden wisdom, it can be argued that an adult educator is certainly qualified to assist learners in accessing the knowledge and resources, indeed the wisdom, that is waiting to be discovered in the noological dimension.

Discussion

We begin the discussion by stepping back 50 years to explore the existential angst experienced by Benjamin Braddock (played by Dustin Hoffman) in the film The Graduate (Henry et al., 1963/1981, 1967, based on the novella first published by Charles Webb in 1963). The film provides an excellent (and timely) example of how an education founded on epistemological gains risks ending in meaningless (in the ontological sense) learning. The movie opens with a welcome home party for Benjamin, a new college graduate. At the party, his parents and guests spout off his attainments in college that include long lists of his academic and sports achievements; meanwhile, a dazed and anguished Benjamin moves between the party goers looking for his chance to retreat into reflection, which usually consists of daydreaming or staring at his fish tank. Benjamin is anguishing in what Frankl (1978, 2010) terms the existential vacuum, the experience of inner emptiness and discontent. Benjamin’s melancholy, Frankl would contend, is the manifestation of his being stuck in an existential vacuum and is not pathologic, but rather, evidence of his ‘humanness’ (Frankl, 1978, p. 29, 2010). The audience watches as Benjamin struggles to discover meaning amidst the ‘American dream’ – a prosperous upbringing, a successful college education, promises of graduate studies, and numerous employment opportunities at the tender age of 20 (his 21^st birthday is captured in one of the scenes). Frankl (1978, 2010, 2014) would argue that Benjamin had all the means to live, but no meaning to life, stuck in an existential vacuum. As the tension rises towards the movie’s climactic scene, Benjamin, in true existential fashion, responds to his father’s comment that his intention to run off and marry the woman who hates him is ‘half bake’ with, ‘Oh no, Dad it is completely baked. It is the decision I’ve made’. Benjamin’s openness to uncertainty (his marriage proposal might be rejected), awareness that his plan (or lack thereof) might not lead to his desired outcome, and commitment to passionately following through with the decision he made are key principles of existentialism.

Existentialists ‘judge in situation’ but where the ‘prudent person discovers what is the right thing to do’, the ‘existentialist decides what is the right thing to do . . . in full recognition of the fallibility of his or her judgement’ (Flynn, 2006, pp. 124–125, italics in original). Imagining a different ending for Benjamin, one where his plan did not come to fruition, according to existentialist belief he would still have made the right decision because of his process of decision making, and then his acting passionately upon his decision (Panza & Gale, 2008, some may recall the dramatic church scene where Benjamin is not deterred by being too late to stop the marriage). In summary, Benjamin’s formal education helped prepare him for a life of well-being in the physical sense (employability and physical acumen). It did not however nourish Benjamin’s spiritual being, or what Sherman (2020) refers to as the ontological aspect of student of well-being. In the more than half a century since The Graduate was filmed, scholars like Sherman (2020) are still imploring educators to consider the ontological dimensions of learning through approaching learners holistically. A holistic education takes learner’s axiological and ontological, learning needs into consideration, not just their epistemological needs. It encourages students to work towards understanding how their values and world view impact what they believe constitutes knowledge and to explore how they might find meaning in the knowledge they are gaining. In other words, a holistic education asks learners to discover what their learning means to them.

As we have attempted to demonstrate, Frankl’s noological dimension offers a different course from other scholars who have approached transformative learning through a spiritual lens (e.g. see Dirkx, 2012, 2013), or through a psychological one (e.g. see Cranton & Carusetta, 2004; Cranton & Roy, 2003; Spear, 2014). An educator’s understanding of the kind of transformation that entering the noological dimension might catalyze brings into consideration the being part of well-being and as such offers another path towards a holistic educational encounter. A holistic education is one that O’Sullivan (2012) describes as the ‘web that holds together the many elements that constitute a transformative learning and teaching process’ (p. 176). Transformative learning assumes teaching towards unknowns, the uncertainty of what may come. Transformative outcomes are uncertain because, very simply, human behaviour is unpredictable. One cannot predict the kinds of meaning (if any) learners will make of their experiences. Such unknowns likely do not sit well with educators or systems that aim for certainty and measurable outcomes. However, it is important to remember that it is ‘the whole person who learns’, and since the ‘nature of the person’ (mind, body, and experiences) is problematic (unpredictable), even ‘rationalist answers’ (Jarvis, 2006, p. 7) are open to existential interpretation.

Stepping Away from the Herd

Educational systems that limit possibilities for interpretation and meaning making lead to systems that operate in patterned and predictable ways, and it comes with a cost (Biesta, 2015). Possibly, and sadly, one of the prices of an education focused solely on outcomes (e.g. number of graduates and grade point averages) could be an ontologically meaningless education. Patterned and predictable machine-like educational systems that ignore the fact that components of the system (teachers and students) are sentient beings with agency (Biesta, 2015) are on shaky ground because agency equates to unpredictability. Existentialism beseeches us to be unpredictable, to establish our own values and act on them, and to avoid herd mentality (Nietzsche, 1997). Existentialist thinking requires us to think as an individual and to be self-directed in our learning. We are to be self-directed in determining our values, deciding our actions, and a priori, our meaning making. According to Knowles (1975), self-directed learning is necessary for ‘survival as an individual, and also the human race . . . [it is] a prerequisite for living in this new world’ (pp. 16–17), and it is a cornerstone of adult education.

Adult Education: An Interdisciplinary Invitation

Erichsen and Goldenstein (2011) explain that ‘adult educators come from a grand diversity of backgrounds and bring expertise and knowledge from a multitude of disciplines’ (p. 1). It is a permeable discipline that lends itself to interdisciplinary research (Groen & Hyland-Russel, 2016). Interdisciplinary research promotes theory generation and fosters ‘critical, reflective, and problem-solving skills in the face of complex social problems’ (Erichsen & Goldenstein, 2011, p. 2). How might an existentially informed transformative educator help learners explore complex social problems? An education that contains existential dimensions supports a ‘transcending process’ via encouraging learners to explore existential meta-narratives related to their learning questions (Willis, 2012, p. 222, italics in original). Willis (2012), writing on the existential aspects of transformative learning, notes that existentialism has a ‘utopian and holistic character’ that can help us imagine alternative situations and offers a complementary view to more essentialist learning approaches (p. 224). A credible and existentially embodied adult educator who has explored their own existential questions may be ‘equipped to invite leaners to explore a similar range of learning opportunities’ (Willis, 2012, p. 225).

Although most adult educators are not aware that they do, they engage in philosophizing (Brookfield, 2008), and therefore, it seems prudent to ask this interdisciplinary group of scholars (individually, collectively, and with their learners) to explore the question what does it mean to be a human being – right now? Because right now, our world is in crisis. Among others, we are experiencing, for example, a global health crisis with COVID-19 and a global environmental crisis with the climate emergency. As we have witnessed firsthand, these are crises of our lived experiences – education, health, work, leisure, and relationships. These are crises of our physical, psychological, and spiritual well-being. And crises are often the catalyst for change (Mezirow, 1991).

Transformative Learning: Hope for Change

Self-directed learners who are aware of their innate unpredictability might find themselves drawn to the freedoms offered within the uncertainties inherent in transformative learning and existentialism. Transformative learning and existentialism require students to courageously discover what their learning means to them by accepting ambiguity and taking risks in their learning. It tasks both educators and learners to ask difficult questions and search for meaning in their answers, not just regurgitate information. Existentially informed transformative adult educators can remind learners that by holding hope for change, and by accepting uncertainty and taking risks in their learning, they might incur learning experiences beyond what they could have planned for – existential transformation, a change in Being. What kinds of transformations might occur when more of us choose courage, aiming to live an existentially authentic life by acting according to our individually determined values, or in Nietzche’s (1997) words, we choose to step away from the herd?

Concluding Thoughts

Media stories and images illustrate just how unmoored from their safe and familiar anchorages societies have become during the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 has offered us a front row seat to the extremes of human behaviour in response to a deadly global health threat. We have witnessed anti-mask rallies, vaccine hesitancy, individuals refusing to follow public health orders, and racialized blame and violence. We have also seen images of committed health care workers with dark circles under their eyes and sores on their face from working endless hours wearing personal protective equipment, children donating their birthday money to a greater cause, ordinary citizens making masks to donate to strangers, and t-shirts, billboards, and social media posts with inspiring and heartfelt messages of kindness. These diverse and extreme responses to COVID-19 have shown us what Frankl implores us to understand. We have a choice in how we respond to individual and collective suffering (e.g. and to name just a few, COVID-19, the international opioid crisis, natural disasters/climate change, and invasions/wars). We can choose fear, blame, violence, or apathy. Or we can choose courage, compassion, generosity, and activism. We are free to discover infinite meanings in our experiences. Amid the tragedies, triumphs, and mundaneness of life, life summons us. Our responsibility to respond is unequivocal; however, how we respond is our choice.

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iDs

Stephanie McDonald

Adam Perry

Author Biographies

Stephanie McDonald is a PhD student in the Nova Soctia Inter-University Doctoral Program in Educational Studies at St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada.

J. Adam Perry is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Adult Education at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada.

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