The Craftsman and His Apprentice: A Kohutian Interpretation of the Gospel Narratives of Jesus Christ

Kohutian theory suggests that relationships play a central role in structuring and sustaining the psychological self. In this article, we apply self psychology to the Father-Son dyad found in the Synoptic and Johannine narratives in order to understand the Jesus of the gospels in a new, psychologically informed manner. Conclusions are drawn related to how self psychology can help to elucidate the biblical relationship between God the Father and Son, or the craftsman and his apprentice, as well as how, conversely, the Father-Son dyad described in the gospels can inform self psychology.     

MMPI-2 characteristics of the Old Order Amish: a comparison of clinical, nonclinical, and United States normative samples

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 23(4) of Psychological Assessment (see record 2011-12640-001). The article contains an error under the Participants and Procedure heading. This is addressed in the correction.] In the current study, we investigated Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) characteristics in an Old Order Amish nonclinical sample (N = 84), comparing these data with both the United States normative sample (N = 2,600) and a sample of Old Order Amish outpatients (N = 136). Consistent with our hypothesis, the Old Order Amish nonclinical group scored similarly to the United States normative sample and lower than the Old Order Amish outpatients on most scales. Thus, overall, the MMPI-2 appears to be sensitive to psychopathology, especially depression and psychosis, among Old Order Amish test takers. Still, several Validity, Clinical, Supplementary, Content, and Personality Psychopathology Five (PSY-5) scale score differences materialized between the Old Order Amish nonclinical group and the United States group, suggesting that certain MMPI-2 scales may need to be interpreted differently for Old Order Amish test takers. Further MMPI-2 research is needed with the Old Order Amish to replicate and generalize our findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved).