Moving Down the Slope: from Scaffolding to Autonomous Mastery

In this article, we introduce the notion of de-scaffolding that covers the process of releasing the autonomously developing person from the social support that is the necessary stating step for mastery. We use the specific action system—that of acquisition of down-hill skiing—as the empirical example for the de-scaffolding processes. Social guidance of the developing person towards autonomous actions is crucial for all human development. Following the canons of idiographic science, we focus on a 4-year longitudinal study of a family system (two children aged 2.5 and 1.5 in the beginning of the project, parents, grandparents) who systematically prepared their children for downhill skiing experiences in Austrian mountains. The de-scaffolding process entails concrete action plans and their strategic withdrawal, as well as the thinking processes of the parents in granting the children safety while preparing them for autonomy.