Yes, very good point, Lene and Mike.
I agree with you about the science of psychology. However, the situation (as is so often the case when it comes to the world of psychology) is complicated. When considering psychology, we must consider the profession. Indeed, the significant majority of psychologists are professional (i.e., clinical, counseling or school) rather than academic/research/scientists.
Professional psychology is, by its very function, a constructive discipline. As this article I did a while back with Bob Sternberg highlights<https://www.gregghenriques.com/uploads/2/4/3/6/24368778/unified_professional_psychology.pdf>, professional psychologists work to effect change, not just describe it. That is what makes it a moral/ethical enterprise.
Ultimately, this is why I would now place myself and my work on the Unified Framework, outside the institution of both psychological scientists and psychological doctors and instead reside in at the level of “metapsychology”, which is in the same broad category as philosophy, education/pedagogy and theology….the realm of thought where social pragmatics, logic, convention, values, and the messy real world of humanistic living all intersect.
Best,
G
From: tree of knowledge system discussion <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Michael Mascolo
Sent: Tuesday, April 21, 2020 12:57 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Three very different analyses on US/State of Globe
Lene:
Wow! I had never thought of the distinction that you made between analysis and construction. It makes a great deal of sense. Defining itself as a science, it would seem that psychological science would devote itself to analysis; construction is something different, more synthetic — a question of what could be rather than what is, if you will. And a question of what should be rather than what is (the fact/value distinction).
Thanks for making this clear to me.
My Best,
Mike
Michael F. Mascolo, Ph.D.
Academic Director, Compass Program
Professor, Department of Psychology
Merrimack College, North Andover, MA 01845
978.837.3503 (office)
978.979.8745 (cell)
Political Conversations Study: www.CreatingCommonGround.org<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.creatingcommonground.org_&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=z7zHa-fc62gPrPm0HxR16xhShhcFL5zEI3-X5tFAf9w&s=Sj_oK8SZhZX-EcuQe4iKAKF8w_tb5fovXi2xXqizJOU&e=>
Blog: Values Matter<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.psychologytoday.com_us_blog_values-2Dmatter&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=z7zHa-fc62gPrPm0HxR16xhShhcFL5zEI3-X5tFAf9w&s=LRgVpoa9HC0XrBxjqctRQYskHMeouEMn157C1svxKbE&e=>
Journal: Pedagogy and the Human Sciences<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__scholarworks.merrimack.edu_phs_&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=z7zHa-fc62gPrPm0HxR16xhShhcFL5zEI3-X5tFAf9w&s=XgvYcrZXUg74uK20McecN7GsH8swllEmV0b9pMJlyA4&e=>
Coaching and Author Website: www.michaelmascolo.com<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.michaelmascolo.com_&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=z7zHa-fc62gPrPm0HxR16xhShhcFL5zEI3-X5tFAf9w&s=bnSzOuTWeDeK6wPguHaSbrV88GFMWWkm7ed-VX7si0A&e=>
Academia Home Page: http://merrimack.academia.edu/MichaelMascolo<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__merrimack.academia.edu_MichaelMascolo&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=z7zHa-fc62gPrPm0HxR16xhShhcFL5zEI3-X5tFAf9w&s=FuRACWZSXG2bW2EL9R2hZfIDX4-R6WCSw8aUPY_s21g&e=>
"Things move, persons act." -- Kenneth Burke
"If it's not worth doing, it's not worth doing well." -- Donald Hebb
On Apr 21, 2020, at 10:48 AM, Lene Rachel Andersen - Nordic Bildung / Fremvirke <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
Dear Mike,
Thank you for your wise words.
I think psychology is good at what it was created for: analysis.
It is not a construction tool.
Story, morals, ethics, rituals, community, emulation, conversation, and pedagogy / andragogy are the construction tools.
I distinguish between morals and ethics the following way:
* morals: tells us what to do in familiar situations
* ethics: principles that tell us what to do in unfamiliar situations
We are in several highly unfamiliar situations and territory and need ethics -- and the moral maturity and reasoning that allow us to apply ethics.
We also need both the analysis and the construction tools.
/ Lene
On 21-04-2020 16:38, Michael Mascolo wrote:
Hi All:
The more I contemplate the mental health crisis, the more convinced I am that the traditional psychological approach to this crisis is incomplete at best.
Our traditional psychological approach treats “mental health” and our treatment of it as a technical problem to be solved through scientific means. Our prevailing view of science is that it is a value-free activity — one that proceeds outside of a moral framework. And that, I suggest, does violence both to psychology and science.
To treat the mental health crisis, I believe, like Gregg, that there is a deep moral component to the problem. Our problem is that we need to cultivate selves organized around meaning, values and purpose; this necessarily brings us into relation with other people: it forces us to cultivate community — and not some abstract notion of “the common good” — but community between you and me.
I think that so many of our technical psychological interventions not only ignore this, but also ignore value of cultivating courage and resilience as an aspect of moral character. This is not to say with a shaking finger: You don’t have courage and you are bad; instead it is to say, “No one begins life with courage: let us help each other develop the courage to confront our crises”. Courage through compassion, and vice-versa, it seems to me.
None of this suggests that psychological science is not and cannot be useful. It does say that it cannot proceed as if it is not embedded in and organized by human values and relations.
Thanks for your post and for your third option, Gregg.
My Very Best,
Mike
Michael F. Mascolo, Ph.D.
Academic Director, Compass Program
Professor, Department of Psychology
Merrimack College, North Andover, MA 01845
978.837.3503 (office)
978.979.8745 (cell)
Political Conversations Study: www.CreatingCommonGround.org<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.creatingcommonground.org_&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=SxtMUnVUgpT5ntTWBCTF11ML0HzS-x-eTRW9q7wBBkY&e=>
Blog: Values Matter<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.psychologytoday.com_us_blog_values-2Dmatter&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=oiaG9ZT4ZSt_YgtojR6LBzEUDa0-pgOo-7EzxHZbF5U&e=>
Journal: Pedagogy and the Human Sciences<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__scholarworks.merrimack.edu_phs_&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=93wUjX81E0GV1D57eUl7QSwPljx_m9O762MzYD88tfc&e=>
Coaching and Author Website: www.michaelmascolo.com<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.michaelmascolo.com_&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=1wXp60O97hJ8nLNY50voqfBkIvrpDtN47SmBJH_IIvY&e=>
Academia Home Page: http://merrimack.academia.edu/MichaelMascolo<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__merrimack.academia.edu_MichaelMascolo&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=RrfpRCtIBb-BnbbxBktTaCYzFC0_pf0XaG_rFQK79d0&e=>
"Things move, persons act." -- Kenneth Burke
"If it's not worth doing, it's not worth doing well." -- Donald Hebb
On Apr 21, 2020, at 10:02 AM, Henriques, Gregg - henriqgx <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
Hi TOK List,
I share here three very different analyses regarding the current state of our country and globe.
The first offers a conservative, pro-American view that our way of life was going along fine. The ball games, the economy, the general prosperity were neglected by doomsayers and the critical noise of the media. It says we need to embrace that “success” and return to normalcy post virus:
https://thefederalist.com/2020/04/20/our-goal-must-be-a-total-return-to-normal/<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__thefederalist.com_2020_04_20_our-2Dgoal-2Dmust-2Dbe-2Da-2Dtotal-2Dreturn-2Dto-2Dnormal_&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=aH0iraD1VlznIzO4nf35zLLAFnG-SlIWt2X_6ztrp70&e=>
The second argues that there were many “pre-existing conditions” that were afflicting our country and the virus simply revealed them. We are struggling, our institutions are failing us, and we need a return to sane governance and good policies that create a much more stable, well-functioning system:
https://medium.com/the-atlantic/we-are-living-in-a-failed-state-8fff80f2dc89<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__medium.com_the-2Datlantic_we-2Dare-2Dliving-2Din-2Da-2Dfailed-2Dstate-2D8fff80f2dc89&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=y_VrBLPA5TX_0Oh-Z3IT7o7EoRWefzLdEweT4i4DzeA&e=>
The third is more radical. It is an interview that includes TOK Society member Zak Stein and invites us to consider our global trajectory to be deeply and existentially misguided. The message here is that we need to seize the Kairos of the moment and reassess our fundamental values and metaphysics and re-emerge with fundamentally new sense and meaning making systems and new ways of being in the world:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_c2-Bs1BqM<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.youtube.com_watch-3Fv-3Dm-5Fc2-2DBs1BqM&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=B-b_tN63XkNzt72x_NxGmzuirfeO9qsvsGArM96RU-Q&s=13ePLlCAD_CUt4TDADBEFEJkuNHrNxyf5mwlfjJo_oI&e=>
Best,
Gregg
############################
To unsubscribe from the TOK-SOCIETY-L list: write to: mailto:[log in to unmask]<mailto:mailto:[log in to unmask]> or click the following link: http://listserv.jmu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=TOK-SOCIETY-L&A=1
############################
To unsubscribe from the TOK-SOCIETY-L list: write to: mailto:[log in to unmask]<mailto:mailto:[log in to unmask]> or click the following link: http://listserv.jmu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=TOK-SOCIETY-L&A=1
############################
To unsubscribe from the TOK-SOCIETY-L list: write to: mailto:[log in to unmask]<mailto:mailto:[log in to unmask]> or click the following link: http://listserv.jmu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=TOK-SOCIETY-L&A=1
############################
To unsubscribe from the TOK-SOCIETY-L list: write to: mailto:[log in to unmask]<mailto:mailto:[log in to unmask]> or click the following link: http://listserv.jmu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=TOK-SOCIETY-L&A=1
############################
To unsubscribe from the TOK-SOCIETY-L list:
write to: mailto:[log in to unmask]
or click the following link:
http://listserv.jmu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=TOK-SOCIETY-L&A=1
|
