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2 results

  • Chapter 5 - The Question of Where

  • David Yun Dai, SUNY Albany
  • Book:
    The Nature and Nurture of Talent
    Published online:
    20 June 2024
    Print publication:
    27 June 2024, pp 104-129

  • Summary

    Chapter 5 looks at talent development and human excellence in a broader social-historical conditions and changes. The flourishing of particular forms of excellence in a given historical period or culture is always distinct, due to both cultural values and priorities as well as societal changes in social structure, leisure, and conditions of education. If human excellence reflects high-level self-organized individuality, then sociocultural contexts matter; ECT supports the notion of personal agency in changing the world and changing history, not by traits and genes, notwithstanding their meaningful role, but by cultural evolution that leverages characteristic and maximal adaptation with its niche construction and infrastructure-building to achieve the prosperity and vitality of its members. However, sociocultural conditions (including available technology) also significantly constrain individual strivings as well as how far individuals can go. The Needham Puzzle on the birth of modern science (why it occurred in the West, not China) is discussed, and a comparison is made of Da Vinci and Wang Yangming to demonstrate that any creative act is a sociocultural act, which can change history, yet is constrained by one’s times.

The Nature and Nurture of Talent
  • A New Foundation for Human Excellence
  • David Yun Dai
  • Published online:
    20 June 2024
    Print publication:
    27 June 2024
  • Prepare for a captivating journey into the depths of human potential and excellence in this scholarly work. Within these pages, discover evolving complexity theory (ECT), a unified theory of talent development that integrates a rich body of research and explores a wide array of talent-related phenomena. This theory challenges conventional wisdom, shifting the focus from genetics and environmental factors to the dynamic interplay of self-organized development and real-time person–environment interactions. This book provides a practical roadmap, emphasizing actions over genetic determinants, guiding readers toward the attainment of higher levels of excellence. Departing from traditional perspectives, Dr. Dai envisions human development as a self-organized journey toward higher coherence, reframing talent development as active participation in sociocultural activities from which one's individuality evolves, and directions and purposes are crystalized. Written in an engaging and narrative style, this work is essential reading for researchers, students, and professionals seeking a deeper understanding of human potential.