Formative tendency

Primarily through his extensive experience with encounter groups, Rogers (1980) extended his view of the actualizing tendency inherent in living organisms to encompass a broader view, the formative tendency. He wrote : 

• “There appears to be a formative tendency art work in the universe, which can be observed at any level.” (Rogers, 1980, p. 124) 
• “It seems that the human organism has been moving toward the more complete development of awareness. It is at this level that new forms are invented, perhaps even new directions for the human species. It is here that the reciprocal relationship between cause and effect is most demonstrably evident. It is here that choices are maid, spontaneous forms created. [.] Consciousness is participating in this larger, creative, formative tendency.” (Rogers, 1980, p. 127) 
• "When I am at my best, [...] then simply my presence is releasing and helpful to the other. [...] Our relationship transcends itself and becomes a part of something larger. Profound growth and healing and energy are present. (Rogers, 1980, p. 127) Interesting follow-up work in the context of the actualizing and formative tendency has been published, for example, in (Barrett-Lennard, 1998, 2005; Cornelius-White and Kriz, 2008; Kriz, 2007)