Jack Mezirow was an American sociologist and Emeritus Professor of Adult and Continuing Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He is generally considered to be the founder of the Transformative Learning concept, which divides knowledge into three types: Instrumental, Communicative, and Emancipatory.
Mezirow asserts that examining our outlook on the world, and challenging the assumptions and preconceptions underlying our values and beliefs, can be emotionally threatening. Transformative learning “…Incorporating the examination of assumptions, to share ideas for insight, and to take action on individual and collective reflection…” Challenging the values and beliefs that form part of our self-identity can challenge the very core of who we are. Conversely Mezirow’s work suggests that self-reflection can empower us to be more open and emotionally capable of change and reflection: a liberating process of intellectual and emotional growth. In his 2000 collaborative book ‘Learning as Transformation – Critical Perspectives on a Theory in Progress‘, Mezirow defines Transformative Learning as incorporating the examination of assumptions, to share ideas for insight, and to take action on individual and collective reflection. Mezirow offered the following transformative learning structure:
1. Critical reflection on one’s assumptions
2. Discourse (communication) to validate insights from the critical reflection
3. Action