{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]],"date-time":"2026-09-04T06:12:25Z","timestamp":1788502345694,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":22,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]],"date-time":"2026-09-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1788480000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Psychol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>\n                    Contemporary developmental psychology, positive psychology, prevention science, and contemplative research have substantially advanced understanding of human growth, resilience, flourishing, and the factors associated with psychological and behavioural outcomes across the lifespan. However, comparatively less theoretical attention has been devoted to whether the developmental processes that precede observable manifestations constitute a distinct domain of scientific inquiry. This article\n                    <jats:italic>introduces the Vilayam Framework, a<\/jats:italic>\n                    conceptual model proposing that human development may be understood as a bidirectional process characterised by movement toward increasing integration or increasing fragmentation while biological life continues. The framework advances three interconnected theoretical propositions. First, it proposes that human development is fundamentally bidirectional rather than exclusively progressive. Second, it introduces\n                    <jats:italic>progressive internal unconsciousness while biologically alive<\/jats:italic>\n                    as a proposed developmental construct referring to reductions in conscious participation rather than neurological impairment or psychiatric diagnosis. Third, it proposes the\n                    <jats:italic>Journey Before Manifestation<\/jats:italic>\n                    as a developmental domain concerned with investigating developmental trajectories preceding observable psychological, behavioural, relational, educational, social, and physical manifestations. These propositions are integrated within a conceptual architecture describing reciprocal relationships among conscious participation, developmental patterns, narratives, identity, fixation, and manifestation, while emphasising that developmental trajectories remain dynamic, multidetermined, and potentially reversible. The Vilayam Framework is presented as a hypothesis-generating model that complements rather than replaces established developmental theories, diagnostic systems, and evidence-based interventions. Its principal contribution is the proposal that developmental science may benefit from investigating not only observable manifestations and recognised risk factors, but also the developmental trajectories through which manifestations emerge. As a conceptual framework, the model does not claim empirical validation. Instead, it offers theoretically defined propositions intended to stimulate interdisciplinary dialogue, operational development, longitudinal investigation, and empirical evaluation across developmental psychology, prevention science, positive psychology, contemplative science, education, neuroscience, psychiatry, and public health.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1916474","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]],"date-time":"2026-09-04T05:28:33Z","timestamp":1788499713000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["The Vilayam Framework: a conceptual model of bidirectional human development from devolution to flourishing"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Balram Aatmanayana","family":"Rishi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Vilayam Institute for Consciousness and Humanitarian Science, Kailash Yaatra Ashram","place":["Demerara, Guyana"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","volume-title":"Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders","year":"2022"},{"key":"ref2","first-page":"569","volume-title":"Handbook of Child Psychology: Vol. 1. Theoretical Models of Human Development","author":"Baltes","year":"2006"},{"key":"ref3","volume-title":"Social Foundations of Thought and action: A social Cognitive Theory","author":"Bandura","year":"1986"},{"key":"ref4","first-page":"793","volume-title":"Handbook of Child Psychology: Vol. 1. Theoretical Models of Human Development","author":"Bronfenbrenner","year":"2006"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1017\/CBO9781139174794","volume-title":"On the Self-Regulation of Behavior","author":"Carver","year":"1998"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"32197","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.2014859117","article-title":"The plasticity of well-being: a training-based framework for the cultivation of human flourishing","volume":"117","author":"Dahl","year":"2020","journal-title":"Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"62","DOI":"10.1177\/1745691617718358","article-title":"Outstanding challenges in scientific research on mindfulness and meditation","volume":"13","author":"Davidson","year":"2018","journal-title":"Perspect. Psychol. Sci."},{"key":"ref9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"457","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev-neuro-062012-170339","article-title":"Measuring consciousness in severely damaged brains","volume":"37","author":"Gosseries","year":"2014","journal-title":"Annu. Rev. Neurosci."},{"key":"ref10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"207","DOI":"10.2307\/3090197","article-title":"The mental health continuum: from languishing to flourishing in life","volume":"43","author":"Keyes","year":"2002","journal-title":"J. Health Soc. Behav."},{"key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"68","DOI":"10.1186\/1741-7015-8-68","article-title":"Unresponsive wakefulness syndrome: a new name for the vegetative state or Apallic syndrome","volume":"8","author":"Laureys","year":"2010","journal-title":"BMC Med."},{"key":"ref12","first-page":"1","volume-title":"Handbook of Child Psychology: Vol. 1. Theoretical Models of Human Development","author":"Lerner","year":"2006"},{"key":"ref13","first-page":"499","volume-title":"The Cambridge Handbook of Consciousness","author":"Lutz","year":"2007"},{"key":"ref14","volume-title":"Reducing Risks for Mental Disorders: Frontiers for Preventive Intervention Research","author":"Mrazek","year":"1994"},{"key":"ref15","first-page":"9","volume-title":"Handbook of Child Psychology and Developmental Science: Vol. 1. Theory and Method","author":"Overton","year":"2015"},{"key":"ref16","volume-title":"Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification","author":"Peterson","year":"2004"},{"key":"ref17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"141","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.psych.52.1.141","article-title":"On happiness and human potentials: a review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being","volume":"52","author":"Ryan","year":"2001","journal-title":"Annu. Rev. Psychol."},{"key":"ref18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1069","DOI":"10.1037\/0022-3514.57.6.1069","article-title":"Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being","volume":"57","author":"Ryff","year":"1989","journal-title":"J. Pers. Soc. Psychol."},{"key":"ref19","volume-title":"Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-Being","author":"Seligman","year":"2011"},{"key":"ref20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"5","DOI":"10.1037\/0003-066X.55.1.5","article-title":"Positive psychology: an introduction","volume":"55","author":"Seligman","year":"2000","journal-title":"Am. Psychol."},{"key":"ref21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"213","DOI":"10.1038\/nrn3916","article-title":"The neuroscience of mindfulness meditation","volume":"16","author":"Tang","year":"2015","journal-title":"Nat. Rev. Neurosci."},{"key":"ref22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"8148","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.1702996114","article-title":"On the promotion of human flourishing","volume":"114","author":"VanderWeele","year":"2017","journal-title":"Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA"},{"key":"ref23","volume-title":"World Mental Health Report: Transforming Mental Health for All","year":"2022"}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Psychology"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1916474\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]],"date-time":"2026-09-04T05:28:36Z","timestamp":1788499716000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1916474\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]]},"references-count":22,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1916474"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1916474","relation":{},"ISSN":["1664-1078"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1664-1078","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]]},"article-number":"1916474"}}