The Self and the Integral Interface: Toward a New Understanding of the Whole Person

Of all psychology concepts, perhaps none has a more lengthy history or engendered more controversy and ambiguity than that of the self. Indeed, the self has come to mean so many things that it hardly means anything at all. Consequently, there is currently no single theory integrating all the various meanings of the self concept. Therefore, the primary purpose of this paper is to develop an overarching metapsychology by which all aspects of the self can be understood. To accomplish this purpose, this article engages in a hermeneutic analysis of the self as it appears in cognitive behavior psychology, the psychoanalytic theories of ego and self psychology, and humanistic–existential theories of the self. In so doing, it is possible to identify two principle concepts by which the various aspects of the self can be compared and classified: the conflation frame, the collapsing of entity, intellect, and identity into a single rendering of the self; and the integral interface, the overriding theoretical framework within which each of these aspects of self can be appropriately differentiated and subsumed.     

The self as a central tenet of our psychology: New perspectives on the self

Abstract

The self is fundamental to psychology and yet it is as broad as it is foundational. Numerous concepts fall into the examination of the self and has resulted in many reviews of those individual aspects but few of the self as a whole. In this special issue, we offer an avenue for authors to engage in reviews of those such individual aspects to try to draw attention to new and novel approaches to what is an integral component of our psychology.     

Is There Any Empirical Support for Bowen's Concepts of Differentiation of Self,

Murray Bowen's Family Systems Theory is considered by many to be the most thorough and thoughtful set of ideas that family therapy has created (Nichols & Schwartz, 1995). But does the literature support his concepts and ideas? This article reviewed eight empirical research articles published in the last decade or so in which Bowenian concepts were tested. The purpose was to determine whether there is any empirical support for Bowen's concepts of differentiation of self, triangulation, and fusion. Some of Bowen's notions were supported by empirical data and two valid and reliable instruments designed to test Bowenian concepts were created.     

Some history of humanistic psychology

Abstract

This article arose out of a request to say something about humanistic psychology for a conference on positive psychology which was held in England in 2002. I wanted to say that whatever positive psychology had to offer, we got there first. So this is perhaps a quite partisan piece, and of course it says very little about positive psychology.

But now it has a further purpose, which is to tell Americans a bit about Europe and what happened there. Most Americans, as we are all aware, don't know much about Europe, and many do not want to know. Hopefully, humanistic psychologists are not in the latter category. So what we have here is a bit of a mixture, and I hope it is not too incoherent.     

Response to MacIntosh’s Review and Discussion of the Psychoanalytic Couple Therapy Journal Literature: A Self Psychological,Intersubjective Perspective

ABSTRACT

After expressing my appreciation to Heather MacIntosh and highlighting her article’s significant contributions to the field, I comment briefly on some of the implications of her methodology and findings. I then elaborate on her summary of the history of the application of self psychology (Kohut, 1971) and intersubjective systems theory (Stolorow, Brandshaft, and Atwood, 1987) to couple therapy, highlighting the key contributions of both theories and describing the current state of the field.     

Of matters of fact and psychological discourse

Abstract

We build our theories in psychology with words, but words are slippery things. We can hold them to our own purpose only for a while, and even then, they can change shape within our hands. Both in science and in everyday life, we use words not just to understand the world around us, but to communicate and share this understanding with others. As a result, we acquire a consensual view of the world that guides our behaviour and so affects the very reality we attempt to understand.     

Psychology of Dreams

Abstract

This article describes the essential aspects of a creative, experiential course in dream interpretation for psychology and counseling students. Such a course offers counselor educators an opportunity to develop basic interviewing and advanced processing techniques in their students while facilitating greater self-exploration and improved relational functioning. The authors measured students' self-reported change in their overall functioning and satisfaction with self, others, and their future. Finally, practicing counselors may find the techniques outlined in this article useful in their own work with clients.     

Constructing and measuring self-esteem

Abstract

The concept of self-esteem is examined as it relates to the theory and practice of personal construct psychology (PCP). William James's two perspectives on the self, as a knower and as an object of knowledge, are related to two PCP perspectives, the self as a construct and the self as an element. Various PCP concepts, such as core role constructs, range of convenience, and emergent poles, are interpreted in regard to self-esteem. Methods for changing self-constructions to enhance self-esteem are also described. A modified repertory grid format is recommended for the study of self-esteem, one that uses positive experiences as grid elements instead of people who fit selected roles.     

Settling on what we are: The central place of the sense‐of‐self in education,and the implication of the concepts of the teleon and telentropy for the development of the sense‐of‐self

The purpose of this article is to illustrate the centrality of the development of a person's sense‐of‐self in his or her personal growth, and so to justify why educators should deliberately focus the attention of learners on the development of their own senses‐of‐self.

We describe the sense‐of‐self as a person's working hypothesis of what he or she is, as a functioning being. (This is in contrast to the notion of self‐concept, which is composed of the beliefs and evaluations that one has about oneself as a person in a social context.)

To illustrate the centrality of the sense‐of‐self we introduce two associated concepts—the teleon and telentropy. Teleons are “purposeful action patterns,” which may be regarded as the defining characteristic of any living system, including human beings.

Telentropy is similar to entropy (encountered in physics and chemistry), but instead of dealing with the level of disorder in externally described systems, it represents the level of informational confusion existing within an organism regarding its own true nature.

We discuss the implications of the concepts “teleon” and “telentropy” for a person's educability, using examples from daily life and educational institutions.

We provide a number of suggestions for the revising of educational practice to foster the development of the sense‐of‐self in learners. This we demonstrate to have potentially beneficial effects of the general stress levels of society.     

An Historical Overview of Basic Approaches and Issues in Ethical and Moral Philosophy and Principles

Summary

This article provides a condensed history of ethics development for the purpose of exposing psychologists and other mental health professionals to ethical and moral bases upon which modern psychological ethics are founded. In addition, it focuses on contemporary theories, with an emphasis on professional ethics.     

Whitehead and Wilber: Contrasts in theory

Abstract

The question of how to interpret the ideas and evidence from the transpersonal realm has been a challenge to western psychology since its inception. This article illustrates how process philosophy, as developed by Alfred North Whitehead, can serve as a theoretical foundation for transpersonal psychology. Making it especially qualified for this role are process philosophy's unique approach to the nature of experience, its openness to spiritual matters, and its ability to offer a single framework of thought capable of integrating these issues with the concerns of the scientific and academic communities as well as our experience of everyday life. Following the introduction of some of Whitehead's basic ideas that illustrate this philosophy's relevance to psychological and transpersonal metatheory, aspects of Ken Wilber's new work are examined and criticized from a Whiteheadian perspective.     

Changing the Past,Present, and Future

Abstract

There has recently been a growing movement within psychology toward placing a greater emphasis on the positive aspects of human nature. This movement, known as positive psychology, focuses on the scientific study of human strengths and virtues as well as the variables that promote positive traits, emotions, and institutions. The purpose of this article is to discuss selected topics of research in positive psychology and the potential psychotherapeutic application of this research for children and youth, particularly in school settings. Interventions are presented for altering and enhancing children's and adolescents' perspectives regarding their past, their experience of the present, and their hopes for the future.     

Chapter 2 Using Self Psychology in Brief Psychotherapy

Abstract

This article seeks to help clinicians make the translation from theory to practice when using self psychology to do brief psychotherapy. After a theoretical overview and review of the literature, a series of organizing questions and frameworks is provided to facilitate the clinician's capacity to apply a self psychological point of view to the understanding and conduct of brief treatment.     

Narrating the self: Freud,Dennett and complexity theory

Abstract

Adopting a materialist approach to the mind has far reaching implications for many presuppositions regarding the properties of the brain, including those that have traditionally been consigned to “the mental” aspect of human being. One such presupposition is the conception of the disembodied self. In this article we aim to account for the self as a material entity, in that it is wholly the result of the physiological functioning of the embodied brain. Furthermore, we attempt to account for the structure of the self by invoking the logic of the narrative. While our conception of narrative selfhood incorporates the work of both Freud and Dennett, we offer a critique of these two theorists and then proceed to amend their theories by means of complexity theory. We argue that the self can be characterised as a complex system, which allows us to account for the structure of the material self.     

Attitudinal and normative processes in health behavior

Abstract

Given the importance of the distinction between attitudes and subjective norms for a variety of theories and interventions in social cognition and in the psychology of health, the present article presents a review of the relevant literature. Criticisms raised against the distinction include conceptual arguments, large correlations between attitudes and subjective norms, crossover effects, and methodological issues. Points in favor of the distinction include discriminant validity data, individual differences in the weights placed on attitudes and subjective norms, experimental manipulations of attitudes and subjective norms, and cognitive clustering of the beliefs presumed to underlie attitudes and subjective norms. Finally, implications of the distinction for recent research on interventions, social identity theory, and the self are considered.     

THE SHORT CIRCUIT MODEL OF READING: A SYNTHESIS OF READING THEORIES

Although many reviews of reading theories exist, little has been done to examine the similarities between reading theories so as to create a synthesis of ideas across reading theorists. Even though most of the different theorists have tended to emphasize different aspects of the reading process, upon closer examination they have been dealing with and applying similar assumptions in their work. This article is an attempt to examine both these similar assumptions and their major differences and to synthesize them into a theory comprehensive enough to encompass both. This synthesis is intended as a new perspective from which to begin to study the reading process.     

Dual realities – The search for meaning: Psychodynamic therapy with physically ill people

Abstract

We summarize Kohut's (1971) bi-polar self which enables counsellors to understand and treat narcissistic behaviours and narcissistic personality disorders in a psychoanalytic framework. After Patton and Meara (1992), we describe Kohut's formulations regarding self-development and disorders of self and how such formulations inform critical components of psychoanalytic counselling with particular emphasis on the explicit and implicit strategies and characteristics the counsellor brings to the process. Finally, we suggest that a promising arena for future theorizing and applications of Kohut's ideas is consultation with parents, teachers and other community leaders to help prevent or remedy psychological self-injuries with systemic interventions outside short-term counselling or long-term therapy.

We have suggested that Kohut's self psychology is a good vehicle for understanding what brings a client to counselling: namely, disorders of the self or self-injury. We review strategies and ‘ways of being’ a counsellor must bring to and offer in the counselling encounter if the work is to succeed. We also examine implicit qualities (beyond the achievement of a mature bipolar self) we believe a counsellor or any facilitator must have if counselling or other helping relationships are to be effective. We purpose further conversations and empirical analyses which specifically and conceptually link critical components of psychoanalytic counselling to self psychology and to essential counsellor traits or virtues that seem intrinsic to good counselling practice.     

The persistence of spiritual experience among churchgoing and non-churchgoing Italians: sociological and psychological perspectives

ABSTRACT

The study presented in this article draws on theories and methods developed within the psychology of religion to examine, from a fresh perspective, a problem established within the sociology of religion: the ‘oddity of the Italian situation’. The study employs the notion of openness to mystical experience as an indicator of the level of spiritual awareness among a sample of 1,155 Italians ranging in age from 14 to 80 years. The data demonstrated that, while levels of openness to mystical experience remain quite high among non-churchgoing Italians, these levels are significantly associated with sex, age, religious attendance, and personal prayer. Moreover, the differences between attenders and non-attenders are sensitive to the ways in which aspects of mystical experience are expressed. The dialogue between the psychology of religion and the sociology of religion generates fresh insight into the religious and spiritual landscape of Italy today.     

Sport Psychology Foundations,Organizations, and Related Resources

SUMMARY

The purpose of this article is to introduce psychologists and counselors who work in schools to the field of applied sport psychology. We begin with a brief history of how applied sport psychology developed in North America and other parts of the world. Landmark events such as the development of conferences, professional organizations and scholarly publications are described. This is followed by a discussion of the breadth of services that are typically provided by sport psychologists. The third section examines some of the current issues related to the training of sport psychologists. The final section introduces the reader to organizations, journals, texts, and on-line resources so they may learn more about the theory, research, and practice of Sport psychology.