Restauración Ecológica

The Reasonable Adventurer attributes is one personality framework through which

a student’s ability to create opportunities for satisfaction can be enhanced. Heath

(1964) identified six specific attributes seen as the scaffolding for skill development

for students to deal with ambiguity and change, and fundamental to the

development of graduate attribute (Jones 2007, p. 231). According to Heath, a

student with these attributes possesses reasonable expectations, ‘he seems to have

his psychological house sufficiently in order to release him to attack the problems of

everyday life with zest and originality’ (1964, p. 30).

The principal characteristic of a student demonstrating TheReasonable Adventurer

attributes is the ability to create opportunities for personal satisfaction which Heath

sees as a combination of two traits: a flair for change and ‘world relatedness’

(1964). Of Heath’s six attributes of The Reasonable Adventurer, the first attribute is

intellectuality or an ability to remain curious whilst determining what matters,

through making connections between the object under consideration and the

reality of the student’s world. In the pursuit of a problem, a student demonstrating

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(1964, p.31). What Heath is describing here is an intensive period characterised by

curiosity as the student moves towards a perceived new understanding or

relationship. What follows this involvement and strong sense of curiosity, is a

greater awareness of ‘self’ or personal identity where the student spends time

critically reflecting on the meaning of what was discovered (Heath 1964). Heath

suggests that these two mental attitudes (the curious and the reflective) occur in

alternation, the curious and the critical (1964, p. 31).

Heath speaks of another form of intellectual adventure, that of close friendships the

second attribute. This attribute has phases of involvement and detachment. The

beginning of a friendship is often marked by the experience of discovering another’s

individuality. It is suggested that elements of intensity and excitement are also

present in this phase of intellectual discovery (Heath 1964). As students share their

feelings, beliefs and ideas, this can release each student for a period of further

reflection and detachment. From the process of reflection close friendships may be

formed if the communication of deep feeling occurs. In other words, both students

experience the same feeling from their respective experiences (Heath 1964;

Chickering & Reisser 1993). Recognition of shared feeling also seems to pave the

way for another outcome in the formation of a close friendship, that is, a new

‘perception’ emerges. This means a new way of looking at one’s self, a student’s

relationships, or the world in general. Other benefits flow from the establishment

of a close friendship in higher education. Heath argues that close friendships are a

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lead to an enlivened interest in academic work (Tinto 1997; Hallinan & Williams

1990; Ramsden 1992; Wenger 2006).

The third attribute associated with being a Reasonable Adventurer is relative

independence in the area of values, or the ability of students to rely upon personal

experience rather than external authorities, such as the educator, to form value

judgements. Where a student’s own experience is lacking, he/she may suspend

judgement and pursue the role of interrogator by asking self, peers and the

educator questions to aid the process of forming value judgements. According to

Heath (1964) an increased reliance on one’s judgement, provides an opportunity for

rigorous reflexivity, an important element in student development and self-

satisfaction.

Heath (1964) identifies his fourth Reasonable Adventurer attribute as a tolerance

for ambiguity or being able to see life as a series of interruptions and recoveries. A

situation is likely to be perceived as ambiguous when it is uncertain, changing or

unstable, or when it confronts the student with new and unfamiliar problems that

cannot adequately be structured or categorised. Norton (1975) defines intolerance

for ambiguity, as ‘a tendency to perceive or interpret information marked by vague,

incomplete, fragmented, unstructured, unclear meanings as actual or potential

sources of discomfort or threat’ (Norton 1975, pp. 608–609). So a tolerance for

ambiguity relates to the information students receive from or about situations they

encounter and the ability to manage the challenge of the unexpected, uncertain

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So how can a tolerance for ambiguity impact on the learning experience? Students

with high tolerance for ambiguity seek out and enjoy ambiguity, and excel in the

performance of ambiguous tasks (Norton 1975, p. 618). Others suggest that how a

student copes psychologically with ambiguous information affects the perception,

interpretation and weighting of cognitions. This is because ‘a person’s degree of

ambiguity tolerance interacts in any situation where there is too little, too much, or

seemingly contradictory information (Steenkamp & Wessels 2014, p. 276). As

Heath suggests, a student who tolerates ambiguity enjoys encounters with the

unknown, ‘perhaps he displays less compulsion to reduce all unknowns before one

acts’ (Heath 1964, p. 34).

The fifth Reasonable Adventurer attribute is the breadth of interest that is

demonstrated by a student. What separates students with this attribute from

other students is the uncommon interest in the commonplace (Heath 1964). So

depth replaces breadth to enable what Heath termed ‘a sustained pursuit of a

specific problem’ (Heath 1964, p. 34). For students to demonstrate this attribute it

is the experience that rewards students ultimately; one that is often foreign to

students who ‘cram’ for examinations at the end of the semester and depend

heavily on rote memory (Heath 1964). Heath’s thoughts on this attribute are well

captured when he states ‘the Reasonable Adventurer has a deep understanding of

many areas of knowledge not necessarily because he is more intelligent, but

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The last Reasonable Adventurer attribute is a balanced sense of humour, making

the student good company yet also being capable of showing sensitivity towards

others even during conflict. Heath suggests that a Reasonable Adventurer’s sense

of humour comes from a ‘fluidity of mind’ (1964, p. 35) that permits the students to

shift perspectives quickly depending on the situation he or she is confronted with.

It is argued this ‘manoeuvrability’, along with deeper learning experiences, may lead

the student to see beyond the common view, which may enhance the possibilities

for humour (Heath 1964) important to building partnerships in the learning

environment.

In summing up his description of the Reasonable Adventurer, Heath suggests that

not all students ‘capable’ of demonstrating the Reasonable Adventurer attributes

will behave in the same way because as a student develops ‘the more finely

sketched is his individuality’ (1964, p. 38). Heath promotes the notion of a graduate

student who is capable of using his or her own individuality in ways that are beyond

any pre-existing mental talents, who therefore is able to deal with the complexities

of modern society and find a pathway leading to satisfaction (Jones 2007). Jones

notes that although students may be ‘tied to the reality of their own world’, they

are capable of finding deep satisfaction from ‘the basic ingredients of their “raw”

life if they are provided opportunities to do so’ (2007, p. 230).

It is proposed that the six key attributes identified by Heath are seen as essential

outcomes for any graduate destined for employment and are important to

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Adventurer attributes therefore emerge as the third postulate which can be subject

to empirical scrutiny to confirm/disconfirm their importance as a student-based

factor and justified as a component of graduate attribute development.

Postulate 3:

A student’s likelihood of demonstrating graduate attributes can be explained by thepresence of ‘The Reasonable Adventurer’ attributes.