Overview & Scope
This documentation defines the shared scaffolding for all work conducted under the banner of the Institute for Adult Development. It is intended for:
- Regional hub leads and affiliated institutes.
- Accredited coaches, leaders, educators, and therapists using CDT.
- Researchers and Academic Practitioners engaged in CDT-related inquiry.
The goal is to ensure that, regardless of country or context, practice aligned with the Institute:
- Honours the developmental nature of awareness and thinking.
- Uses Constructed Development Theory responsibly and accurately.
- Maintains clear ethical standards and transparent governance.
Ethics & Professional Conduct
All practitioners operating under the Institute’s name commit to an awareness-based ethical stance. Ethics are not treated as a checklist but as an active, developmental responsibility grounded in self-reflection and Dynamic Intelligence.
2.1 Core Ethical Principles
- Respect for developmental position: honouring where clients, students, and organisations are, without coercive “stage-pushing”.
- Informed consent: clarity about methods, developmental assessments, and potential implications of CDT-based work.
- Confidentiality & data care: responsible handling of profiles, assessments, and research data.
- Non-exploitation: no use of developmental profiling to manipulate, shame, or undermine autonomy.
- Reflexive practice: maintaining an ongoing self-inquiry into one’s own Awareness Quotient and Cognitive Intentions.
2.2 Misuse of CDT & AQ/TQ
CDT provides powerful lenses for understanding cognition and awareness. Misapplication can cause harm. The following uses are explicitly discouraged or prohibited:
- Using AQ/TQ as fixed labels or as a basis for exclusion or elitism.
- Presenting developmental scores as “personality types”.
- Deploying CDT language to bypass accountability (“my CIs made me do it”).
Training routes and Institute awards
The recognition architecture is Certificate → Diploma → Advanced Practitioner → Fellow (FIAD). Training supports the evidence required for each award; course attendance alone does not confer recognition. Professional Recognition is the governing description of award outcomes and assessment.
Foundational learning: theory, terminology, ethics and conceptual analysis. Evidence includes a learning portfolio and accurate use of the framework.
Applied learning: supervised practice, observed or recorded work, case portfolios and reflective construction analysis.
Advanced learning: complex casework, a substantial applied project, independent assessment and viva.
Contribution route: an original body of work, contribution portfolio, independent reviewers and a Fellowship panel. Fellowship is not simply another taught course.
Assessment and progression
Entry, recognition of prior learning, evidence requirements, decisions and any continuing-standing conditions follow the award criteria. Programme arrangements are now complete; contact the Institute for current availability. Regional delivery may adapt learning activities but should use the same award names and evidence standards.
These Institute awards do not confer a degree, professional registration or a licence to practise. An AQ label alone does not establish competence or scope. Assessment methods and their limitations should be stated explicitly.
Governance & Regional Hubs
The Institute operates a hub-and-spoke model. The global HQ maintains the core frameworks, whereas regional hubs adapt implementation to their context while remaining aligned to shared principles.
4.1 Roles & Responsibilities
- Global HQ: stewards CDT, maintains global documentation, and approves new regional hubs.
- Regional Hubs: deliver local programmes, ensure ethical conduct, and maintain quality control.
- Affiliated Practitioners: agree to use CDT language and tools in line with these standards.
4.2 Use of Brand & Naming
“Institute for Adult Development” and associated visual identities should be used in ways that:
- Clearly differentiate global HQ from local or independent activities.
- Avoid suggesting endorsement where no formal agreement exists.
- Respect local legal requirements around naming, certification, and education.
CDT Frameworks Referenced
Institute documentation assumes familiarity with core Constructed Development Theory frameworks. Where these are used in formal documentation, they should be referenced consistently.
5.1 Core Constructs
- Awareness Quotient (AQ): a measure of dynamic awareness in the moment.
- Thinking Quotient (TQ): a measure of cognitive complexity and construction.
- Cognitive Intentions (CIs): the underlying heuristics shaping how thinking is constructed.
- Dynamic Intelligence (DI): the live process of moving from Intention to Response with awareness.
5.2 Pillars & Process Models
- CAIR / IACR: Intention, Awareness, Choice, Response as a live developmental loop.
- Teaching Styles (TQᴱ): developmental profiles of Academic Practitioners.
- Next-Level Coaching: CDT-based developmental coaching methodology.
When referencing these frameworks in local materials, please include a brief note such as:
“This programme is based on Constructed Development Theory (CDT) as developed by Dr Darren Stevens and the Institute for Adult Development.”