Depth psychology
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Depth psychology is a broad term that refers to any psychological approach examining the depth (the hidden or deeper asoects) of human experience.
Origin of Depth Psychology
Depth psychology, from the German term (Tiefenpsychologie) coined by Eugen Bleuler, refers to the ongoing development of theories and therapies pioneered by Pierre Janet and Carl Jung, with contributions by Sigmund Freud, Alfred Adler, Otto Rank, and others.
It provides a set of techniques for exploring underlying motives and a method of treating various mental disorders. It seeks to understand the "deep" layer(s) underlying behavioral and cognitive processes&mdash:the realm of the unconscious. The three major schools of depth psychology are:
- Analytical psychology based on the work of Carl Jung
- Individual psychology based on the work of Alfred Adler
- Psychoanalysis based on the work of Signmud Freud
Other influences
Also included in Depth psychology are the influences of Transpersonal psychology (which itself includes Humanistic psychology and Far Eastern currents), and existentialism, which has worked its way into the world of psychotherapy primarily via the work of Rollo May. The work of Rudolf Steiner, on our ability to participate in spiritual processes, influenced the development of Robert Sardello's Spiritual psychology, which, along with James Hillman's Archetypal psychology, an outgrowth of Jung's Analytical school, and the work of Roman Catholic theologian Thomas Moore, brings into focus the soul and the deepest patterns of psychic functioning.
Key concepts
The following are the primary elements of Depth psychology:
Conscious and unconscious
Depth psychology states that psyche is a process that is partly conscious and partly unconscious. The unconscious in turn contains repressed experiences and other personal issues in its "upper" layers, and "transpersonal" (e.g. collective and archetypal) forces in its depths.
Spiritual and instinctive
The psyche spontaneously generates mythico-religious symbolism and is therefore spiritual as well as instinctive in nature. According to Depth psychology, this implies that the choice of whether to be a spiritual person or not does not exist—the only question is where do we put our spirituality. Do we live it consciously or do we unknowingly invest it in nonspiritual aspirations (perfectionism, addictions, greed, fame) that eventually possess us by virtue of their ignored but frightfully potent numinous power?
Myth-making
All minds, all lives, are ultimately embedded in some sort of myth-making. Mythology is not merely a series of old explanations for natural events; it is rather the richness and wisdom of humanity played out in a wondrous symbolic storytelling. No story, no myth, and no humanness either.
Caring for our environment
Depth psychology notes that because of our deep connection to all that surrounds us, we are sane and whole only to the degree that we care for our environment and tend responsibly to the world in which we live.
Soul
One of the aims of depth psychology aims is to bring discussion of the soul back into psychology. The soul is the “seat of meaningful experience” where the psyche’s personal and transpersonal poles meet. James Hillman refers to it as an imaginative deepening of events into experiences.
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Hillman, James. 2004. Archetypal Psychology, Vol. 1: Uniform Edition of the Writings of James Hillman. Spring Publications. ISBN 0882145762.
- Moore, Thomas. 1994. Care of the Soul: A Guide for Cultivating Depth and Sacredness in Everyday Life. Harper Paperbacks. ISBN 0060922249.
- Sardello, Robert. 2001. Love and the World: A Guide to Conscious Soul Practice. Lindisfarne Books. ISBN 0970109741.
External links
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