In order to fully grasp the concept and understand the relevancy of their response to an issue of management, one has to know a little more about the backgrounds of the authors who developed the scientific approach and the theoretical body that underlies the “Labyrinthine Path and Daedalean Experience”.

When they fathered their theoretical body, Professors Chantal Delvaux and Jacques Defrenne were both PhD holders and business consultants, essentially in the field of human resources. As part of their academic activities, they were both professors at ICHEC Brussels Management School when their writings were released.

Here is a snapshot of their backgrounds at the time their main books were released:

ü Dr. Chantal Delvaux held a PhD in Psychology, a graduate degree in Psychology, and another graduate degree in Clinical Psychology. Lecturer at ICHEC Brussels Management School, she was a facilitator of seminaries at ICHEC-Entreprises (CMH). She was also a trainer, consultant, and speaker in business entities.  

ü Dr. Jacques Defrenne held a PhD in Labour Sciences, a graduate degree in Psychopathology and Psychosociology of Labour, and another graduate degree in Labour Sciences. He was a Lecturer at ICHEC Brussels Management School, at the Catholic University of Louvain, at the FUCAM, and at IHECS. He was also a Visiting Lecturer at the University of East London. He was Director of the Human Management Centre at ICHEC-Entreprises (CMH). He was also a trainer, consultant, and speaker in business entities.  

So, one has to keep in mind that the Authors’ main focus was on behavioural psychology and psychosociology of organisations.

On the one hand, as scholars and academics, they were mindful of the general scope and scientific validity of the theoretical body they were proposing.

On the other hand, as practical business consultants, they were centred on the solutions to the concrete management issues that they were coming across during their consulting missions.

Jointly, they published, among others, three books on the subject of uncertainty. Those books laid the foundation for the blossoming of the “Labyrinthine” concept:

ü “The Management of uncertainty” [“Le Management de l’incertitude”, 1991]

ü “The Organisation of Uncertainty”[“L’organisation de l’Incertitude”, 1992]

ü “Since Tomorrow Can Only be Uncertain”[“Puisque demain ne peut être qu’Incertain”, 2002]

From an epistemological and methodological standpoint, Professor Jean Ladrière, a respected Belgian philosopher, helped put their findings into perspective in his forewords of those three books.

For his part, Dr. Jacques Defrenne was the sole writer of “The Split Labyrinths” [“Les labyrinthes éclatés”, 2000]”, the book inside which was eventually introduced the concept of “Labyrinthine Path and Daedalean Experience”.