The Transition Framework

• Author: Diana Bianco, Barbara Tint, and Roland Clarke
• Pages: 24-39

24 Diana Bianco, Barbara Tint, and Roland C larke

As part of our work in DDP, we used a model of social change called the Transition

Framework, a model integral to the community reconciliation efforts supported by

AFF. At the time of this project, AFF was guided by the belief that social change

efforts will have a better chance for success when the emotional and psychological

effects of the change process are recognized and addressed. Attending to the internal

transitions experienced by participants in social change and community reconciliation

processes increases the likelihood that these efforts will have a greater impact at a

deeper level of people’s experience and will sustain over time.

The Transition Framework was used both as a framing construct in the planning

and development of the dialogue processes and as a teaching tool with partici-

pants in dialogue and training sessions. In this chapter, we present a basic outline

of the Framework, offer tools in considering its applicability, and address both the

benefits and challenges of using the Framework in these processes. Our case study

contextualizes the Framework as it applies to the diaspora populations we served

in this project. Specific ways in which to use the Transition Framework in inter-

group processes are also offered in Chapter6 on Dialogue.

Change vs. Transition

While the terms change and transition are often used interchangeably, there is a

fundamental difference between them. It is important to more fully understand this

difference in order to be able to effectively work with the Transition Framework in

community reconciliation efforts.

Change happens to everyone. Change is an external event that happens in all of

our lives. With change, there are clear boundaries between the old and the new.

● We get married or divorced.

● We move to a new city or country.

● We have babies or our teenagers move away.

● We lose someone dear to us.

● We get promoted or lose our jobs.

Sometimes change is something we choose, such as a positive move to a new job

or city. Sometimes change is something that we do not choose; it is imposed on

us, as in the case of an unwanted divorce or a forced or unavoidable move to a

new country.

Transition is an internal response to change. Any type of change, whether we

choose it or not, forces us through a process of psychological adjustment – a

transition. While change is external and tied to a certain situation, transition is the

internal, emotional process of coming to terms with the effects of that change.

● We grieve, get angry, or feel stuck.

● We get confused and uncertain in new situations.

The Transition Framework 25

● We get nostalgic and try to hold on to the past.

● We get scared about possible success or new expectations and demands.

● We have bursts of new energy and creativity.

Transition is that internal, emotional response to change that needs to be addressed

in order for the change to be successfully sustained. Change can happen overnight,

but the emotional adjustments that take place alongside that change can last

foryears.

The refugee or immigrant experience is an example of the difference between

change and transition. There are various dimensions of change for a refugee or

immigrant: the move to a new country, the shift of job or status, separation from

family members. The transition related to these experiences is the underlying

psychological process that people experience in the intense and long‐lasting

emotions associated with the relocation and the adjustments that go with it. While

the change might happen abruptly, the transition can last for a very long time.

The Transition Framework

Author William Bridges (1980) developed the Transition Framework to help

people understand and talk with others about the powerful emotions involved

when change happens. In the Bridges Framework, each transition is made up

of three stages: Endings, which can produce joy, relief, sadness, anger, or

remorse–and possibly some combination of all of those; the Neutral Zone, which

can bring fear and confusion along with space for creativity; and New Beginnings,

which can bring a mix of confidence about what has been gained and anxiety

about sliding backwards. While change is often painful and scary, particularly the

magnitude of change inherent in forced or traumatic change, it isthe transition

Figure3.1 Change vs. Transition. Source: Bridges, 1980.