Transpersonal

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The transpersonal is a term used by different schools of philosophy and psychology in order to describe experiences and worldviews that extend beyond the personal level of the psyche, and beyond mundane worldly events.

Contents

Definition and context

The transpersonal has been defined as experiences in which the sense of identity or self extends beyond (trans) the individual or personal to encompass wider aspects of humankind, life, psyche or cosmos. [1] On the other hand, transpersonal practices are those structured activities that focus on inducing transpersonal experiences. [1]

In the Textbook of Transpersonal Psychiatry and Psychology, Scotton [2] defined the term as "development beyond conventional, personal or individual levels." It is associated with a developmental model of psychology that includes three successive stages: the prepersonal (before ego-formation), the personal (the functioning ego), and the transpersonal (ego remains available but is superseded by higher development). [2]

One of the founders of the field of transpersonal psychology, Stanislav Grof, has defined transpersonal states of awareness as such: "The common denominator of this otherwise rich and ramified group of phenomena is the feeling of the individual that his consciousness expanded beyond the usual ego boundaries and the limitations of time and space." [3]

The term is related to the terminology of peak experience, altered states of consciousness, and spiritual experiences. [4] [5] Note a The term is also associated with psychedelic work, and psychotechnologies, that includes research with psychedelic plants and chemicals such as LSD, ibogaine, ketamine, peyote, ayahuasca and the vast variety of substances available to all human cultures throughout history. Note b

Etymology

The term has an early precedent in the writing of philosopher William James, who used the term "Trans-personal" in one of his lectures from 1905. [6] [7] However, this early terminology, introduced by James, had a different meaning than the current one [7] and its context was philosophy, not psychology, [6] which is where the term is mostly used these days.

There has also been some speculation of an early precedent of the term in the writings of Carl Jung, as a result of the work of Jung's translators. It regards the Jungian term ueberpersonlich, used by Jung in a paper from 1917, which in later English translations appeared as superpersonal, and later, transpersonal. [6] [2] Note c In a later, revised, version of the Psychology of the Unconscious (1942) there was even a chapter heading called "The Personal and the Collective (or Transpersonal) Unconscious". [6] [8]

However, the etymology, as it is currently used in academic writing, is mostly associated with the human potential movement of the 1960s and the founders of the field of transpersonal psychology; Anthony Sutich, Abraham Maslow and Stanislav Grof. [9] [6] [10] [11] [8] According to Vich [6] all three had used the term as early as 1967, in order to describe new ideas in the field of Psychology. In 1968 the term was selected by the founding editors of the Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, Abraham Maslow and Anthony Sutich, in order to represent a new area of psychological inquiry. [6] Note d Porter [12] locates the start of the so-called transpersonal psychology movement to the American west-coast in the late 1960s. In addition to Maslow, Vich and Grof the movement was associated with the names of Ken Wilber, Frances Vaughan, Roger Walsh and Seymoor Boorstein.

According to Powers [13] the term "transpersonal" starts to show up in academic journals from 1970 and onwards. The use of the term in academic literature is documented in Psychological Abstracts and Dissertations Abstracts. The use of the term grew during the 1970s and 1980s and stabilized in the 1990s. [14]

Movement

The collective of people and organizations with an interest in the transpersonal is called the transpersonal movement. Walsh and Vaughan [1] defines the transpersonal movement as the interdisciplinary movement that includes various individual transpersonal disciplines.

The philosophy of William James, the school of psychosynthesis (founded by Roberto Assagioli), and the analytical school of Carl Jung are often considered to be forerunners to the establishment of transpersonal theory. [4] However, the start of the movement is associated with the emergence and growth of the related field of humanistic psychology. Several of the academic profiles of the early transpersonal movement, such as Abraham Maslow and Anthony Sutich, had their background in humanistic psychology. [15] [9] [16] [17]

The formative years of the transpersonal movement can be characterized by the founding of a few key organizations and institutions, such as: Transpersonal Institute in 1969, the Institute of Noetic Sciences in 1973, The International Transpersonal Psychology Association in 1973, Naropa Institute in 1974, and the California Institute of Transpersonal Psychology in 1975. [16] The California Institute of Transpersonal Psychology later emerged as the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology (ITP) and is today known as Sofia University.

Contemporary transpersonal disciplines include transpersonal psychology, transpersonal psychiatry, transpersonal anthropology, transpersonal sociology and transpersonal ecology. Other academic orientations, whose main focus lies elsewhere, but that are associated with a transpersonal perspective, include humanistic psychology and near-death studies. [18] Contemporary institutions include: the Association for Transpersonal Psychology (ATP), the European Transpersonal Psychology Association (EPTA), the International Transpersonal Association (ITA), the Ibero-American Transpersonal Association (ATI) and the European Transpersonal Association (Eurotas). Leading publications within the movement include: the Journal of Transpersonal Psychology , the International Journal of Transpersonal Studies , and the Journal of Transpersonal Research.

Transpersonal studies

Several commentators note how the transpersonal field, and its vision, moved beyond the perspective of psychology and into other transpersonal domains during the 1980s and 1990s. [19] [20] This expansion of the transpersonal concept resulted in an interdisciplinary situation, and a dialogue with such fields as social work, ecology, art, literature, acting, law, business, entrepreneurship, ecopsychology, feminism and education. [20] [19] [21]

In this respect, commentators have suggested that there is a difference between the founding field of transpersonal psychology and a broader field of transpersonal inquiry, transpersonal studies. [14] [21] [22] This differentiation of the transpersonal field has to do with the scope of the subjects under study, and the interest of researchers and theorists.

In their review of transpersonal definitions, published in 1993, Walsh and Vaughan [1] noted that transpersonal studies had grown beyond the founding field of transpersonal psychology. Commenting on the criticisms of transpersonal psychology in the 1980s, Chinen [14] noted how the criticism did not differentiate between transpersonal psychology, on the one hand, and a broad range of popularized transpersonal orientations, on the other. The same line of reasoning was picked up by Friedman, [22] who differentiated between a broad domain of inquiry known as transpersonal studies, and a more narrow field of transpersonal psychology. Both authors argued that the confounding of the two domains resulted in confusion. In a summary of contemporary viewpoints on transpersonal psychology Jorge Ferrer [20] placed transpersonal psychology within the wider "umbrella" known as transpersonal studies.

Among institutions of higher learning that promote transpersonal studies we find Sofia University [23] and California Institute of Integral Studies. [24] In 2012 Sofia University announced that they were expanding their graduate program in order to include transpersonal studies. The new program was named the Graduate School of Transpersonal Studies. [23]

The International Journal of Transpersonal Studies was established in 1981. It is sponsored by the California Institute of Integral Studies and serves as the official publication of the International Transpersonal Association. [21]

See also

Notes

a. Grabovac & Ganesan, 2003: Table 3.
b. See Winkelman & Roberts, 2007: "Part III. Transpersonal Dimensions of Healing with Psychedelic States"
c. John Beebe, San Francisco Jung Institute Library Journal
d. The term was considered to be an improvent upon an earlier term called «transhumanistic». [6] [10]

Related Research Articles

Abraham Maslow American psychologist

Abraham Harold Maslow was an American psychologist who was best known for creating Maslow's hierarchy of needs, a theory of psychological health predicated on fulfilling innate human needs in priority, culminating in self-actualization. Maslow was a psychology professor at Brandeis University, Brooklyn College, New School for Social Research, and Columbia University. He stressed the importance of focusing on the positive qualities in people, as opposed to treating them as a "bag of symptoms". A Review of General Psychology survey, published in 2002, ranked Maslow as the tenth most cited psychologist of the 20th century.

Humanistic psychology Psychological perspective

Humanistic psychology is a psychological perspective that arose in the mid-20th century in answer to two theories: Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory and B. F. Skinner's behaviorism. Thus, Abraham Maslow referred to it as the "third force" in psychology. The school of thought of humanistic psychology gained traction due to key figure Abraham Maslow in the 1950s during the time of the humanistic movement. It was made popular in the 1950s by the process of realizing and expressing one's own capabilities and creativity.

Psychosynthesis is an approach to psychology that expands the boundaries of the field by identifying a deeper center of identity, which is the postulate of the Self. It considers each individual unique in terms of purpose in life, and places value on the exploration of human potential. The approach combines spiritual development with psychological healing by including the life journey of an individual or their unique path to self-realization.

Transpersonal psychology School of psychology

Transpersonal psychology, or spiritual psychology, is a sub-field or school of psychology that integrates the spiritual and transcendent aspects of the human experience with the framework of modern psychology. The transpersonal is defined as "experiences in which the sense of identity or self extends beyond (trans) the individual or personal to encompass wider aspects of humankind, life, psyche or cosmos". It has also been defined as "development beyond conventional, personal or individual levels".

Stanislav Grof Czech psychiatrist

Stanislav "Stan" Grof is a Czech-born psychiatrist who has been living in the United States since the 1960s. Grof is one of the principal developers of transpersonal psychology and research into the use of non-ordinary states of consciousness for purposes of exploring, healing, and obtaining growth and insights into the human psyche. Grof received the VISION 97 award granted by the Foundation of Dagmar and Václav Havel in Prague on October 5, 2007. On the other hand, Grof has been criticized for furthering nonscientific psychology in the Czech Republic. He is the only person to have been awarded the anti-prize Erratic Boulder Award twice in that country.

Arnold Mindell

Arnold Mindell is an American author, therapist, and teacher in the fields of transpersonal psychology, body psychotherapy, social change, and spirituality. He is known for extending Jungian dream analysis to body symptoms, promoting ideas of ‘deep democracy,’ and interpreting concepts from physics and mathematics in psychological terms. Mindell is the founder of process oriented psychology, also called Process Work, a development of Jungian psychology influenced by Taoism, shamanism, and physics.

Sofia University (California) Private for-profit university in Palo Alto, California

Sofia University is a private for-profit university in Palo Alto, California. It was originally founded as the California Institute of Transpersonal Psychology by Robert Frager and James Fadiman in 1975.

Jorge N. Ferrer is a US-based Spanish psychologist who wrote about participatory theory with transpersonal psychology, religious studies, integral education, and sexuality and intimate relationships. Ferrer is a former professor of psychology at California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), San Francisco, where he served as chair of the department of East-West Psychology. He was forced to resign in 2020.

Ego death is a "complete loss of subjective self-identity". The term is used in various intertwined contexts, with related meanings. In Jungian psychology, the synonymous term psychic death is used, which refers to a fundamental transformation of the psyche. In death and rebirth mythology, ego death is a phase of self-surrender and transition, as described by Joseph Campbell in his research on the mythology of the Hero's Journey. It is a recurrent theme in world mythology and is also used as a metaphor in some strands of contemporary western thinking.

John Rowan was an English author, counsellor, psychotherapist and clinical supervisor, known for being one of the pioneers of humanistic psychology and integrative psychotherapy. He worked in exploring transpersonal psychology, and wrote about the concept of subpersonality.

Transpersonal anthropology is a subdiscipline of cultural anthropology and transpersonal studies. It studies the relationship between altered states of consciousness and culture.

Transpersonal business studies is an area of interest within the field of transpersonal studies. It may be defined as businesses "in which the sense of identity or self extends beyond (trans) the individual or personal to encompass wider aspects of humankind, life, psyche or cosmos". Since the foundation of transpersonal psychology by Abraham Maslow in the late 1960s, other transpersonal disciplines have been considered.

Transpersonal psychiatry is an area of transpersonal studies that integrates the clinical and theoretical framework of modern psychiatry with the spiritual and philosophical worldview of the transpersonal. It is considered to be one of several transpersonal disciplines. The field is associated with the work of Bruce W. Scotton, David Lukoff and Francis Lu.

Roger Walsh

Roger N. Walsh is an Australian professor of Psychiatry, Philosophy and Anthropology at the University of California, Irvine, in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, within UCI's College of Medicine. Walsh is respected for his views on psychoactive drugs and altered states of consciousness in relation with the religious/spiritual experience, and has been quoted in the media regarding psychology, spirituality, and the medical effects of meditation.

Eastern philosophy in clinical psychology refers to the influence of Eastern philosophies on the practice of clinical psychology based on the idea that East and West are false dichotomies. Travel and trade along the Silk Road brought ancient texts and mind practices deep into the West. Vedic psychology dates back 5000 years and forms the core of mental health counselling in the Ayurvedic medical tradition. The knowledge that enlightened Siddhartha Gautama was the self-management of mental suffering through mindfulness awareness practices. Humane interpersonal care of the mentally disturbed was practiced in the Middle East in the Middle Ages, and later in the West. Many of the founders of clinical psychology were influenced by these ancient texts as translations began to reach Europe during the 19th century.

Transpersonal disciplines are academic fields of interest that study the transpersonal.

Spiritual crisis is a form of identity crisis where an individual experiences drastic changes to their meaning system typically because of a spontaneous spiritual experience. A spiritual crisis may cause significant disruption in psychological, social, and occupational functioning. Among the spiritual experiences thought to lead to episodes of spiritual crisis or spiritual emergency are psychiatric complications related to existential crisis, mystical experience, near-death experiences, Kundalini syndrome, paranormal experiences, religious ecstasy, or other spiritual practices.

The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology (JTP) is a semi-annual, peer-reviewed academic journal which is published by the Association for Transpersonal Psychology (ATP). The journal is a seminal publication in the field of transpersonal psychology. According to sources the journal is addressing the interface between psychology and spirituality, and the area of spirituality as a legitimate topic for academic studies.

Kirk J. Schneider is a psychologist and psychotherapist who has taken a leading role in the advancement of existential-humanistic therapy, and existential-integrative therapy. Schneider is also the current editor of the Journal of Humanistic Psychology. His major books are Existential-Humanistic Therapy (2010), Existential-Integrative Therapy (2008), The Handbook of Humanistic Psychology (2001), The Psychology of Existence (1995), Rediscovery of Awe (2004), Awakening to Awe (2009), and "The Polarized Mind" (2013).

The International Transpersonal Association (ITA) is membership organization in the field of Transpersonal studies.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Walsh, R. and F. Vaughan. "On transpersonal definitions". Journal of Transpersonal Psychology. Vol. 25, No2, pp. 199-207, 1993.
  2. 1 2 3 Scotton, Bruce W. "Introduction and Definition of Transpersonal Psychiatry". In Scotton, Bruce W., Chinen, Allan B. and Battista, John R., Eds. (1996) Textbook of Transpersonal Psychiatry and Psychology. New York: Basic Books.
  3. ↑ Grof, Stanislav. (1975, 1993). Realms of the Human Unconscious: Observations from LSD Research. New York: Viking, London: Souvenir Press.
  4. 1 2 Miller, John J. "Book Review: Textbook of Transpersonal Psychiatry and Psychology". Psychiatric Services 49:541-542, April 1998. American Psychiatric Association
  5. ↑ Grabovac, Andrea D. & Ganesan, Soma. "Spirituality and Religion in Canadian Psychiatric Residency Training". Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, Vol 48, No 3, April 2003
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Vich, M.A. (1988) "Some historical sources of the term 'Transpersonal' ". Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 20 (2) 107-110
  7. 1 2 Freeman, Anthony. "A Daniel Come To Judgement? Dennett and the Revisioning of Transpersonal Theory". Journal of Consciousness Studies, 13, No. 3, 2006, pp. 95–109
  8. 1 2 Lukoff, David and Lu, Francis. A Transpersonal-Integrative Approach to Spiritually Oriented Psychotherapy, in L. Sperry and E. P. Shafranske (2005) Spiritually Oriented Psychotherapy, American Psychological Association.
  9. 1 2 Valle, Ronald S. & Harari, Carmi. Current developments in...Transpersonal Psychology. The Humanistic Psychologist, 11, Vol. 13, NO. 1, Winter 1985
  10. 1 2 Judy, Dwight. Transpersonal psychology: Coming of age. ReVision, 02756935, Winter94, Vol. 16, Issue 3.
  11. ↑ Ferrer, J. N. (2002). "Revisioning transpersonal theory: A participatory vision of human spirituality". Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
  12. ↑ Porter, Kenneth. Book review: Spirituality in Clinical Practice: Incorporating the Spiritual Dimension in Psychotherapy and Counseling. American Journal of Psychotherapy, Volume 56, Issue 101 Jan 2002
  13. ↑ Powers, Robin. "Counseling and Spirituality: A Historical Review". Counseling and Values, Apr 2005, Vol.49(3), pp.217-225.
  14. 1 2 3 Chinen, A.B. The emergence of Transpersonal psychiatry, in Scotton, Bruce W., Chinen, Allan B. and Battista, John R., Eds. (1996) Textbook of Transpersonal Psychiatry and Psychology. New York: Basic Books
  15. ↑ Keutzer, C.S. Transpersonal Psychotherapy: Reflections on the Genre. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 1984, Vol. 15, No. 6, 868-883
  16. 1 2 Taylor, Eugene. Transpersonal Psychology: Its several Virtues. The Humanistic Psychologist, Vol. 20, Nos. 2 and 3, pp. 285-300, 1992.
  17. ↑ Walsh, R. The Transpersonal Movement: A History and State of the Art. Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 1993, Vol. 25, No. 2
  18. ↑ Scotton, B.W., Chinen, A.B. and Battista, J.R. (ed. 1996). Textbook of Transpersonal Psychiatry and Psychology. New York: Basic Books.
  19. 1 2 Grof, S., Friedman, H., Lukoff, D., & Hartelius, G. (2008). The past and future of the International Transpersonal Association. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 27(1), 55–62.
  20. 1 2 3 Caplan, Hartelius & Rardin. Contemporary viewpoints on Transpersonal Psychology. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 2003, Vol. 35, No. 2.
  21. 1 2 3 Atlas, N. (2016). (Book Review) The Wiley-Blackwell handbook of transpersonal psychology, by Harris L. Friedman & Glenn Hartelius (Eds.) International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 35 (2).
  22. 1 2 Friedman, H. (2002). Transpersonal psychology as a scientific field. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 21(1), 175–187.
  23. 1 2 PRWEB. (July 16, 2012) Institute of Transpersonal Psychology Becomes Sofia University. PRWEB: Palo Alto, CA. Retrieved Saturday, December 8, 2018.
  24. ↑ Subbiondo, Joseph L. CIIS and American Higher Education. Integral Review, June 2011, Vol. 7, No. 1
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