Gravity Report Enneagram and Spiritual Practice · INITIAL REPORT: ENNEAGRAM AND SPRITUAL PRACTICE 2017 5 | Page...

ENNEAGRAM AND SPIRITUAL PRACTICE

Initial Report Prepared by

Angela Griner, EdD College of Education

Rollins College, Orlando Florida

Stacey Griner, MPH, CPH

Department of Community and Family Health College of Public Health

University of South Florida

For citation purposes: Griner, A. & Griner, S. (2017). Enneagram and Spiritual Practice. Retrieved from The Gravity

Center website: https://gravitycenter.com/learn/

INITIAL REPORT: ENNEAGRAM AND SPRITUAL PRACTICE 2017

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Final Report: Enneagram and Spiritual Practice

Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................................................ 3

Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................................... 4

Evaluation Design and Purpose .............................................................................................................................................. 4

Methodology ...................................................................................................................................................................... 4

Measures ........................................................................................................................................................................ 4

Analysis ........................................................................................................................................................................... 5

Findings and Results ............................................................................................................................................................... 5

Preferred postures ............................................................................................................................................................. 5

Preferred intentions ........................................................................................................................................................... 5

Conclusions and Recommendations ...................................................................................................................................... 6

Appendices ............................................................................................................................................................................. 7

Appendix A: Survey ............................................................................................................................................................ 7

Appendix B: Tables ............................................................................................................................................................. 9

Appendix C: Authors ......................................................................................................................................................... 11

Authors ......................................................................................................................................................................... 11


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Executive Summary

Title: Enneagram and Spiritual Practice

Authors: Angela Griner, Stacey Griner

Background: In accordance with the expressed goals of Chris Heuertz of The Gravity Center, to explore the connection between Enneagram types and spiritual practice, data were collected and analyzed to answer the following research questions:

1. Are types 8, 9, and 1 more likely to choose stillness as their preferred posture? 2. Are types 2, 3, and 4 more likely to choose solitude as their preferred posture? 3. Are types 5, 6, and 7 more likely to choose silence as their preferred posture? 4. Are types 2, 5, and 8 more likely to choose consent as their preferred intention? 5. Are types 1, 4, and 7 more likely to choose rest as their preferred intention? 6. Are types 3, 6, and 9 more likely to choose engagement as their preferred intention?

Purpose/Objective: It is ultimate goal of this project to help inform the broader, conceptual study and work that Chris Heuertz and The Gravity Center have been undertaking, “to nurture the integral connection between mysticism and activism, support the development of consciousness by making contemplative practices accessible to individuals and communities who care about their spirituality and want to make the world a better place, and [the inclusion of Enneagram], to dismantle illusions about the self, simultaneously revealing the True Self or Essence, supporting [others] to offer the best of [themselves] to a world in a need,” (The Gravity Center website, 2017).

Methodology: Answers to these questions were gathered through an online survey. Surveys were sent out to all constituents of The Gravity Center via email and other social media sites connected with the center, with the criteria set for participation being only for those who had taken previous Enneagram assessments to determine their personal type. The survey was open for participation from December 12, 2016 to March 6, 2017, approximately 3 months.

Key Findings and Conclusions: Key findings revealed a relationship between Enneagram types and preferred posture, (RQ 1,2, & 3). However, no relationship was found between Enneagram types and preferred prayer intentions (RQ 4, 5, & 6). Recommendations: Consistent with the conceptual framework presented by Chris Heuertz, participants were easily able to identify their preferred posture, but not as easily able to identify the contemplative practices most needed for personal growth, as determined by their types. It is recommended that future research be conducted to include experimental designs with pre, post, and longitudinal data to determine if said prayer practices are effectively producing desired results. Future studies can determine if a relationship may be discovered amongst types and intentions after long-‐term participation in educational workshops, consultations, readings, and other resources, as provided by The Gravity Center.


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Introduction It is ultimate goal of this project to help inform the broader, conceptual study and work that Chris Heuertz and The Gravity Center have been undertaking in order, “to nurture the integral connection between mysticism and activism, support the development of consciousness by making contemplative practices accessible to individuals and communities who care about their spirituality and want to make the world a better place, and [the inclusion of Enneagram], to dismantle illusions about the self, simultaneously revealing the True Self or Essence, supporting [others] to offer the best of [themselves] to a world in a need,” (The Gravity Center website, 2017).

In accordance with the expressed goals of Chris Heuertz of The Gravity Center, to explore the connection between Enneagram types and spiritual practice, data were collected and analyzed to answer the following research questions:

1. Are types 8, 9, and 1 more likely to choose stillness as their preferred posture? 2. Are types 2, 3, and 4 more likely to choose solitude as their preferred posture? 3. Are types 5, 6, and 7 more likely to choose silence as their preferred posture? 4. Are types 2, 5, and 8 more likely to choose consent as their preferred intention? 5. Are types 1, 4, and 7 more likely to choose rest as their preferred intention? 6. Are types 3, 6, and 9 more likely to choose engagement as their preferred intention?

Evaluation Design and Purpose The initial goal of this study was to begin the process of exploring if a relationship exists between identified Enneagram type and self-‐reported preferences for postures and prayer intentions. Additional factors that created limitations to this simple study design were participants’ level of familiarity with Enneagram in general, their specific types, and their knowledge and practice of contemplative spirituality. As with any self-‐reported data, there is an assumption of self-‐awareness, which puts such data into questions of validity and reliability. Conclusions may be assigned, based upon conceptual and theoretical frameworks in the fields of Enneagram study and Contemplative Spirituality. However, as described in the recommendations at the close of this document, more sophisticated research designs are needed to support this initial work.

Methodology Answers to the research questions above were gathered through an online survey. Surveys were sent out to all constituents of The Gravity Center via email and other social media sites connected with the center, with the criteria set for participation being only for those who had taken previous Enneagram assessments to determine their personal type. The survey was open for participation from December 12, 2016 to March 6, 2017, approximately 3 months.

Measures Respondents were asked to indicate their Enneagram type, familiarity with their type, Enneagram types in general, and contemplative spirituality (very familiar, somewhat familiar, or barely familiar). Respondents


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were asked which of three contemplative postures most effectively facilitates their spiritual growth: silence, creating an interior posture for quieting the noise of the outside world; solitude, creating an interior posture that is alone and withdrawn from the outside world; or stillness, creating an interior posture to disconnect from activity that engages the outside world. Additionally, respondents indicated which prayer intention most effectively facilitates their spiritual growth: consent, an intentional agreement to be present to the solitude, silence, and/or stillness; engagement, a deliberate engaging of solitude, silence, and/or stillness; or rest, resting in the solitude, silence, and/or stillness.

Analysis Descriptive statistics, including percentages and frequencies, were conducted for Enneagram type, familiarity, contemplative postures, and prayer intentions. Bivariate tests were conducted to analyze the relationship between Enneagram type and contemplative posture and prayer intention preferences.

Findings and Results Of the 538 survey respondents, most reported they were very familiar (38.8%) or somewhat familiar (50.4%) with their type and the Enneagram types in general, and 10.8% said they were barely familiar. Similarly, most were very familiar (44.6%) or somewhat familiar (44.8%) with contemplative spirituality, while just 10.4% reported they were barely familiar. Respondents were evenly distributed across the contemplative postures: silence (36.6%); solitude (29.9%); and stillness (33.5%); and the prayer intentions: consent (28.6%); engagement (33.6%); and rest (37.7%).

Preferred postures Consistent with the proposed hypotheses, Enneagram types 1, 8, and 9 choose stillness as their preferred posture at a higher rate (39.9%) compared to the rest of the types. Type 8 (51.4%) was significantly more likely to choose stillness compared to the other types (32.2%; p=0.035). Those who identified as Type 1, 8, or 9 and indicated they were very familiar with their type were significantly more likely to choose stillness as their preferred posture (45.5%; p=0.028). As a whole, Types 2, 3, and 4 were significantly more likely to indicate solitude as their preferred posture (38.8%) than other types (25.1%; p=0.003). Also, those who were very familiar with their type chose solitude as their preferred posture (41.9%) compared to the other postures (p=0.001). Of those who are Type 5, 6, and 7, a majority (43.8%) chose silence as their preferred posture compared to other types (34.5%). Types 5, 6, and 7 who were very familiar with their type were significantly more likely to indicate silence was there preferred posture (59.6%) compared to the other types (31.5%; p=0.002).

Preferred intentions In terms of types and their preferred intentions, Types 2, 5, and 8 did not choose consent as their most preferred intention (27.7%), but instead chose rest (37.4%). Those who were very familiar with their type did choose consent (36.5%) at a higher rate than the other types (30.6%), however this was not a significant difference. Types 1, 4, and 7 did indicate rest was their preferred intention (37.6%), but this was not significantly higher than the other types (37.6%). Similarly, Types 1, 4, and 7 who were very familiar with their


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type chose rest as their preferred intention (42.7%) at a higher rate that the other types (34.2%), but this was not a significant relationship. Finally, Types 3, 6, and 9 chose rest (38.2%) rather than engagement (32.4%) for their preferred intention. Of Types 3, 6, and 9 who were very familiar with their type, engagement and rest were indicated at similar rates (35.3% for both) and these were not significantly higher than those in the other types who indicated engagement.

Conclusions and Recommendations Key findings revealed a relationship between Enneagram types and preferred posture, (RQ 1, 2, & 3). However, no relationship was found between Enneagram types and preferred prayer intentions (RQ 4, 5, & 6). Consistent with the conceptual framework presented by Heuertz (2017), participants were easily able to identify their preferred posture, but not as easily able to identify the contemplative practices most needed for personal growth, as determined by their types. If this hypothesis is true, then, one could make the case that an explicit understanding of contemplative practices leading to personal growth is necessary for helping participants meet one of the expressed goals of The Gravity Center and their inclusion of Enneagram study to help participants, “dismantle illusions about the self, simultaneously revealing [the] True Self or Essence, supporting [others] to offer the best of [themselves] to a world in a need (The Gravity Center website, 2017).” It is recommended that future research be conducted to include experimental designs with pre, post, and longitudinal data to determine if said prayer practices are effectively producing desired results and if a relationship may be discovered amongst types and intentions after long-‐term participation in educational workshops, consultations, readings, and other resources. Because this is ongoing, exploratory work, future research designs providing more sophisticated measures, the inclusion of qualitative data, and further analysis and reviews of the literature including conceptual frameworks within the fields of Enneagram study and Contemplative Spirituality should also be considered. • •

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Appendices

Appendix A: Survey


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Appendix B: Tables

Table 1. Frequencies

% Enneagram Type

Type 1 15.1% Type 2 13.6% Type 3 5.9% Type 4 15.4% Type 5 8.7% Type 6 7.2% Type 7 8.6% Type 8 6.5% Type 9 19.0%

Familiarity with your type and the Enneagram types in general? Barely familiar 10.8% Somewhat familiar 50.4% Very familiar 38.8%

Familiarity with contemplative spirituality? Barely familiar 10.4% Somewhat familiar 44.8% Very familiar 44.6%

Contemplative Posture Silence-‐creating an interior posture for quieting the noise of the outside world 36.6% Solitude-‐creating an interior posture that is alone and withdrawn from the outside world

29.9%

Stillness-‐creating an interior posture to disconnect from activity that engages the outside world

33.5%

Prayer Intention Consent-‐an intentional agreement to be present to the solitude, silence, and/or stillness

28.6%

Engagement-‐a deliberate engaging of solitude, silence, and/or stillness 33.6% Rest-‐resting in the solitude, silence, and/or stillness 37.7%


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Table 2. Contemplative Postures and Types.

Silence Solitude Stillness Type 1, 8, or 9 38.1% 22.0% 39.9% All other Types 35.6% 35.3% 29.1% Those who were very familiar with their type Type 1, 8, or 9 34.1% 20.5% 45.5%* All other Types 40.5% 31.4% 28.1% Type 2, 3, or 4 30.3% 38.8%* 30.9% All other Types 40.0% 25.1% 34.9% Those who were very familiar with their type Type 2, 3, or 4 28.4% 41.9%* 29.7% All other Types 43.0% 18.5% 38.5% Type 5, 6, or 7 43.2% 30.3% 26.5% All other Types 34.5% 29.8% 35.7% Those who were very familiar with their type Type 5, 6, or 7 59.6%* 14.9% 25.5% All other Types 31.5% 30.2% 38.3% *Chi-‐Square test of independence significant at p<0.05

Table 3. Prayer Intentions and Types.

Consent Engagement Rest Type 2, 5, 8 27.7% 34.8% 37.4% All other Types 29.0% 33.2% 37.9% Those who were very familiar with their type Type 2, 5, or 8 36.5% 30.8% 32.7% All other Types 30.6% 29.9% 39.5% Type 1,4, and 7 28.6% 33.8% 37.6% All other Types 28.7% 33.5% 37.8% Those who were very familiar with their type Type 1, 4, or 7 31.5% 25.8% 42.7% All other Types 32.5% 33.3% 34.2% Type 3, 6, and 9 29.5% 32.4% 38.2% All other Types 28.2% 34.2% 37.5% Those who were very familiar with their type Type 3, 6, or 9 29.4% 35.3% 35.3% All other Types 33.3% 27.7% 39.0%


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Appendix C: Authors

Authors Angela Griner, Ed. D has expertise focused in the field of education and research. Her research centers on curriculum development in inclusive settings, multicultural curricular reform and culturally responsive pedagogy. She currently teaches for the Education Department at Rollins College in Orlando, Florida, while continuing to serve as graduate scholar faculty for the University of Central Florida’s graduate program in Urban and Multicultural Education. Contact: [email protected]

Stacey Griner has a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in Social and Behavioral Sciences from the University of Florida and is currently a doctoral student in Public Health at the University of South Florida. In addition to pursuing a PhD, she has completed a graduate certificate in women's and gender studies. Stacey's mixed-‐methods research takes a social-‐ecological approach to understanding the development of a sense of community and the associated protective and risk factors of emerging adults. Her current research focuses on the social determinants of health, including environmental, contextual, and community-‐level factors that influence the health of college students. Stacey has several peer-‐reviewed publications and presentations on various topics that influence population-‐level health.

Contact: [email protected]

FINAL REPORT: CAC CONSTIUENT DATA 2015

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Gravity Report Enneagram and Spiritual Practice · INITIAL REPORT: ENNEAGRAM AND SPRITUAL PRACTICE 2017 5 | Page...

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