All of The Myriad Worlds: Life in the Akashic Plenum

This article explores some experiential implications of Laszlo's Akashic Field hypothesis as well as similar information-rich field models such as those suggested by Bohm and Sheldrake. It examines the implications of such models for both ordinary and anomalous human experience, and proposes the idea that these models allow for the possibility of alternative experiential worlds as real as ordinary “material” reality. Such alternative realities are posited by many, if not all, major mythic and religious systems, and are said to be directly experienced in certain contemplative and shamanic traditions as well as during postmortem and near-death experiences. We note that information-rich holographic fields may be able to store concentrated non-overlapping quantities of information that can be selectively activated by distinct eliciting stimuli. Individual human consciousness itself might constitute just such a stimulus, thus accounting for the individual and cultural variations on commonly shared motifs in shamanic, near death, and other experiences of alternative realities.     

Dependent Companions

My primary concern will be to cast light upon the relation between animal guardians ('pet owners') and pets as a deep relation. I will proceed with a degree of indirectness by explaining why animal guardians can have an epistemically-privileged position when it comes to end-of-life decisions concerning pets. My contention is that they are best placed to grasp the relevant narrative considerations upon which end-of-life deliberation in marginal cases ought to depend. Such narrative-appreciation is built into the practice of treating animals as pets. By virtue of having such a narrative appreciation, animal guardians can be best placed to grasp the life-role of pain and suffering.     

BOOK REVIEWS

Book reviewed in this article: Human Information Processing: An Introduction to Psychology. By Peter H. Lindsay and Donald A. Norman . Human Memory: Research and Theory. By L. S. Cermak . Organization of Memory. Edited by Endel Tulving and Wayne Donaldson . Associations or Addresses: a Study in Serial Verbal Learning. By F. J. Strømnes . Verbal Learning Research and the Technology of Written Instruction. Edited by Ernst Z. Rothkopf and Paul E. Johnson . Inhibition and Learning. Edited by R. A. Boakes and M. S. Halliday . Purposive Explanation in Psychology. By Margaret A. Boden . The Double Brain. By S. Dimond . Limbic System Mechanisms and Autonomic Function. Edited by C. H. Hockman . Languages of the Brain: Experimental Paradoxes and Principles in Neuropsychology. By K. H. Pribram . Perception in Everyday Life. By S. Howard Bartley . Language and Social Behaviour. By W. P. Robinson . Language Development: Structure and Function. By Philip S. Dale . Language of the Mentally Retarded. Edited by Richard L. Schiefelbusch . Studies in Dyadic Communication. Edited by A. W. Siegman and B. Pope . The Social Animal. By Elliot Aronson . Moral Learning and Development, Theory and Research. By Douglas Graham . The Social Influence Processes. Edited by J. T. Tedeschi . Perception and Cognition: a Cross-Cultural Perspective. By Barbara B. Lloyd . The Psychology of Humor. Edited by J. H. Goldstein and P. E. Mc Ghee . Males and Females. By Corinne Hutt . The Interview: Research on its Anatomy and Structure. By Joseph D. Matarazzo and Arthur N. Wiens . Inquiring Man: the Theory of Personal Constructs. By D. Bannister and Fay Fransella . Change and Continuity in Infancy. By Jerome Kagan . The Psychology of Consciousness. By R. E. Ornstein . Occupational Psychology. By Donald E. Super and Martin J. Bohn , Jr .     

Marital Conflict by Proxy After Father Kills Mother: The Family Therapist As an Expert Witness in Court

The father killing the mother leaves the children effectively without parents. The extended family from both sides will often intervene to offer a home for the children, or at least to have a say in what arrangements are made for the children and how they are to be brought up. Intensely competitive and hostile feelings between the opposing sets of relatives are commonly aroused, and the children may be caught up in a battle reminiscent of the conflict between their parents, which culminated in the death of their mother. I and my colleagues have, as a team, seen more than 300 children who have lost one parent at the hands of the other, and we have been involved in subsequent custody battles as expert witnesses. Based on this experience and using this context as an example, the issues for the family therapist as expert witness in adversarial Court proceedings are presented. A case is described that illustrates the theoretical exposition — including the effectiveness of family therapy from the witness box.     

A Model for Planning Career Continuation and Change Through Increased Awareness,Knowledge, and Skill

A 3-stage sequence based on increased awareness of assumptions, knowledge of relevant information, and skill in taking appropriate action (AKS) is presented as a model for outplacement counseling. The rationale, structure, assumptions, principles, and evaluation of an outplacement counseling program using this AKS model are discussed.     

Can Counselor Trainees Apply Their Skills in Actual Client Interviews?

The authors compared a skill-based training method (Carkhuff's human relations development model) with a conceptual-based training method by measuring (a) trainees' skill application in actual client interviews and (b) client outcomes. Participants were 14 male and 34 female master's degree trainees. Counseling skills were measured by rating segments of audiotaped sessions with field placement clients. Interrater reliabilities of .94 and above were achieved. A self-report instrument measured client outcome. Although the groups did not differ in responding skills at pretest, the skill-based group exhibited greater skill application in client interviews and superior client outcome ratings at posttest. Results support the use of skill-based training methods to increase trainees' skill application in applied settings.     

Religious Involvement, Conventional Christian, and Unconventional Nonmaterialist Beliefs

This article uses a Scottish national sample to examine the relationship between church involvement, religious socialization among nonattenders, orthodox Christian beliefs, and a variety of unconventional nonmaterialist beliefs. Greater conventional religious belief is strongly associated with supposed alternatives but nonetheless, nonattenders are more likely to believe in the unconventional over and above any enduring sympathy they may hold for Christian doctrine. One group in particular stands out: belief remains high among nonattenders who once went to services regularly and seriously contemplate reengaging with organized religion. The article discusses the importance of these findings for "believing but not belonging."