Across Disciplinary Boundaries Towards a Sustainable Life. Psychodynamic Reflection on Human Behaviour. Dedicated with Eternal Gratitude and in High Esteem to Prof. Dr. Rainer Fuchs

The contributions in this book are fairly heterogeneous. They belong to a relatively large number of disciplines and / or sub-areas of certain disciplines. They contain problems and practical aspects of their possible solutions, strategies, methodologies and concepts as well as theories (see Part 1 – 8). We all know that it is difficult to link such problem solving processes to bigger units. It needs the steady development of an appropriate awareness of a problem or conflict, i.e. consciousness. Such “networking” should not be left to journalists alone, but should rather be integrated into higher education and research related to Sustainable Development or Sustainable Life, in short Sustainability. Our survival seems to be threatened by various developments and complex problems. The Climate Change System and its consequences for ecology, economics and society, for example, is proclaimed to be one of our new enemies (Part 9). Experts suggest that stopping such negative trends could be possible through a change in human behaviour and through “reversals” in the connected systems or sub-systems. Attempts to get closer to this far reaching goal can be found in the articles of this book. But how can people be persuaded to change their behaviour? Changes of behaviour (human action) depend on human motivation. How can motivation be diagnosed in relation to Sustainability? One can assume that the theory of achievement motivation, its establishment according to learning rules, its activation depending on associations and its adaptation to reality through the experience of success or failure in motivated actions is a valid platform to build on. The sustainability-imaginative stories written by students, for example, demonstrate the manner in which the structured rules of motivated learning and acting are put in concrete terms (Part 10). We consider them to be an innovation, worthy of being tested and further developed so as to contribute to the creation of new motivation in and for Sustainability. Solving complex problems and conflicts is the content of another paper. Applying and testing the underlying psychological theory to economic / agribusiness problems / conflicts and their action programmes has been intended (see also Part 10).