Western Psychology Research Articles

A Black-Archipelago Anticolonial Canon Speaks Psychology

In Euromodernity, the discipline of western psychology holds a unique place in the global knowledge order. It is the primary epistemic source, the authoritative voice of psychological knowledge. This essay explores epistemic problems with western psychological science and its canonical status. Epistemic selectivism—the failure to address phenomena which are detrimental to all human beings, not only those of concern to western subjects and their subjectivities—is identified as a problem to be solved in the discipline of western psychology. In order to address epistemic failures of western psychology I return to the knowledge that emerges from the geography where Europe launched its project of racial and racist modern life. I review the Black-Archipelago anticolonial canon that speaks psychology. I follow this anticolonial canon because it pierces and penetrates epistemic silences about psychological experience in Euromodernity. Of the plenitude of theories and concepts developed by Black, Caribbean anticolonial thinkers which are of relevance to understanding the psychological effects of Euromodernity I focus in this review on two fundamental ideas—Frantz Fanon’s sociogenic principle and the emancipatory thrust of consciousness. An embrace of the principle of open epistemologies is proposed as a solution to the problem of epistemic selectivism.

A Review of Mental Health Services in Tibetan Society: The Symbiosis of Tibetan Buddhism and Western Psychology Approaches

A Review of Mental Health Services in Tibetan Society: The Symbiosis of Tibetan Buddhism and Western Psychology Approaches

Self-Transformations in Indian and Western psychology

Self-Transformations in Indian and Western psychology

Transforming Classrooms with Indian Educational Psychology - A new approach to learning

This research explores the transformative potential of Indian Educational Psychology (IEP) within modern educational contexts, emphasizing its roots in ancient Indian wisdom and traditions. IEP views consciousness as fundamental encompassing the unity of absolute existence, consciousness and joy (saccidānanda) contrasting with Western psychology's focus on neuro-physiological processes. It acknowledges various levels of non-physical existence and inner worlds, accessible through introspection and intuitive knowledge. This perspective underscores the importance of self-realization, self-discipline and moral values such as truthfulness, non-violence, and compassion integrated into educational practices through storytelling and experiential learning.

Towards Enlightenment: Taixu’s Interpretation of Buddhist Psychology

Chinese intellectuals started to engage in Buddhist psychology in the early 20th century, a time when Western culture was greatly influencing the country. Taixu criticized Western psychology and proposed his Buddhist psychology. He proposed a tripartite psychology based on Buddhist doctrine: psychology on affection (qing 情); psychology on reflection (xiang 想); and psychology on wisdom (zhi 智). Perceiving Western psychology as lacking in both theoretical depth and breadth, he specifically criticized behaviorism. He integrated the interpretation of “sense faculties” (indriya) from the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, thereby reconstructing an Ideal Behavioral Science, a philosophical system that centers on behavior and encompasses all aspects of life. This paper argues that Taixu’s critique of Western psychology and his construction of Buddhist psychology responded to the ideological trends of his era. In Taixu’s conceptual system, Buddhist psychology was part of his theory on “Buddhism for human life” (rensheng fojiao 人生佛教), serving not only to explain the psychological state of human but also to guide cultivation and lead people to enlightenment, bearing practical significance. Taixu’s study of worldly knowledge, including psychology, attempts to comprehensively construct a modern Buddhist system that integrates Buddhist Dharma and secular learning.

Turtle Island Indigenous Psychologies

This paper explores Indigenous psychology as a radical alternative to modern theories of psychology. I explain and define Western psychology as a dominating force which overshadows other psychological approaches. I then explore cross-cultural and previous ideas of Indigenous psychology as subsections of Western psychology. I explain that cross-cultural and Indigenous psychology are no different than Western psychology as they rely heavily on abstract, fixed meanings. Cultural psychology provides a radical approach which invites an Indigenous psychology based on a genuine understanding of Indigenous practices. I explore Turtle Island Indigenous Psychologies (TIIP) as local, interrelated, oral, ceremonial, and medicinal or healing. I then use TIIP as a radical perspective to critique the colonial or tautological approaches dominating Western psychology. I offer TIIP as a genuine, radical opposition to Western psychology which can only be used from a place of comprehensive understanding.

EFFECTS OF DHIKR SPIRITUAL MEDITATION PRACTICE ON THE RECOVERY OF DRUG ABUSER: A PHENOMENOLOGY STUDY

Meditation based intervention such as mindfulness-based therapy, mantra, yoga, Qi Gong and Zen are generally focused on the integration of Buddhism, Hindhuism and Western psychology. However, little is known about Islamic dhikr spiritual meditation. The present article intent to describe the implications of dhikr meditation to recovering drug addicts’ wellbeing and life based on their experiences. Phenomenological qualitative study design was used with face to face and semi structured interview. Six participants were recruited among recovering drug addicts who had been in the Islamic rehabilitation centre and still practising dhikr spiritual meditation. The entire interviews were recorded and transcribed into verbatim. Then, the transcripts were thematic analytically. Four broad domains which spiritual changes, shift of thought, emotional and behavioural transformation were revealed after consistent and prolonged period of continuos dhikr spiritual meditation. Findings revealed that consistent practice of dhikr meditation has give an apparent impact on recovering drug addicts’ cognitive, emotion and behaviour. In conclusion, the individuals’ belief, values, culture, and spiritual paradigm should be addressed by healthcare professional and counselor to develop holistic strategy for drug addiction therapy.

Dismantling the colonial mindset and becoming “Gender AWAke”: From gendered complicity to embodied praxis

The purpose of this article is to delineate the nature of the colonial mindset, which perpetuates gendered settler colonial structures of historical oppression in research and practice. By connecting a critical consciousness and living in alignment with agility (AWA), this work explicates pathways from gendered complicity to embodying praxis—or becoming gender AWAke. This article begins by describing the nature of the colonial mindset. Second, I critically examine the dominant discourse institutionalized by Western psychology. Third, I introduce the FHORT and critically analyze how the colonial mindset has affected and driven violence against Indigenous women. Examining how settler colonial structural sexism in its heteropatriarchal and heteropaternalistic forms has become imposed upon the lives of Indigenous women and gender-expansive peoples exposes subjugated knowledges; it provides an empirical scaffolding for people to become critically conscious of dominant gender norms that apply to people, institutions, and society more broadly. Finally, I propose living AWAke for personal and collective liberation.

Ready to help, no matter what you did: Responsibility attribution does not influence compassion in expert Buddhist practitioners.

Within western social psychology and neuroscience, compassion is described as being conditioned by cost-benefit appraisals, such as the attribution of responsibility for the causes of suffering. Buddhist traditions maintain the possibility of cultivating and embodying unconditioned and universal forms of compassion. Whereas a growing body of empirical literature suggests that Buddhist-inspired compassion-based programs foster prosociality and well-being in healthy and clinical populations, there is no evidence that such compassionate disposition toward others can become unconditioned from moral judgment. To address this question, we collected and integrated self-report and behavioral data from expert Buddhist practitioners and trained novices using a previously validated within-subject experiment that manipulates contextual information to influence moral judgment toward suffering others and a newly designed approach-avoidance task. We found that context manipulation impacted responsibility and blame attribution in both groups and that experts' reported willingness to help was higher and less influenced by context, compared to novices. Partial correlation networks highlighted a negative relationship between blame attribution and willingness to help in novices, but not in expert practitioners. Self-reported willingness to help was correlated to reaction times when approaching suffering stimuli. Approach behavior was modulated by context in novice, but not in experts. This study provides initial evidence of a dissociation between moral attributions and prosocial attitude in expert Buddhist practitioners and challenges established evolutionary accounts of compassion in western psychology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

A State of Grace: Community, Self-Consciousness, and Faith in W.H. Auden's "The Age of Anxiety".

In this essay, the author examines a highly influential poem, The Age of Anxiety by W.H. Auden, for its engagement with anxiety and religious faith in the modern world. Published in 1947, the book-length poem reveals Auden's deep understanding of western psychology, Judaism, and Christianity. The author argues for the relevance of The Age of Anxiety in this modern moment, but demonstrates that this relevance does not derive from any direct diagnostic or therapeutic implications of the poem. Rather, Auden's work provides readers with an image of a state of grace in the middle of an age of anxiety.

Mevlana psychology: Rumi’s contributions to mental health concept and practice development

ABSTRACT Although Rumi’s ideas have been widely recognized in Western psychology, only little scholarly attention has been paid to his notion of mental health. Therefore, this article aims to describe the ideas of mental health depicted in Rumi’s thought. This article also presents the contribution of Rumi’s thoughts to psychotherapy practices. By engaging critically primary and secondary sources on Rumi’s works and other literature about his thoughts, this study shows that Rumi offers three dimensions of mental health: spiritual, cognitive, and emotional. These dimensions of Rumi’s mental health concept help us better understand and apply psychotherapy practices, including logotherapy, mindfulness, and cognitive therapy.

Between conformity and individuality: Psychologists in Czechoslovakia during normalization (1968-1989).

The study examines the development of psychology in former Czechoslovakia during the period of "normalization" (1968-1989) and the challenges it faced under the communist regime. The restricted connection to Western psychology and the regime's control over all aspects of human activity negatively influenced the continuity of development in psychology. The regime demanded conformity, leaving individuals, including psychologists, in recurring states of internal conflict and intellectual discomfort when deciding how much to compromise in their personal and professional lives. The study identifies three groups of psychologists based on their adaptability to regime demands. The first group consists of those who aligned themselves with the regime, allowing them to hold positions of leadership and shape the conceptualization of the field. The second group comprises individuals who actively opposed the regime, facing significant limitations in their educational and career opportunities, and mostly being forced to leave the profession. The third group of psychologists belongs to the apolitical gray zone. A significant portion of individuals in this largest group passively complied with established norms and constraints, accepting the restrictions imposed on the development of Czechoslovak psychology. Fortunately, thanks to the persistent efforts of the proactive members of the gray zone and their willingness to endure significant discomfort, an even deeper decline of psychology during the normalization period was prevented. The study provides insights into the topics of education, research, Western influences, and adaptation to the communist regime within Czechoslovak psychology, illuminating the intricacies of living in that historical period. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

마음챙김(Mindfulness) 기반 치유문화의 비판적 고찰

Currently, the phenomenon that is attracting the most attention in the field of Korean Buddhism can be said to be a healing culture based on mindfulness.
 Inspired by the active application and use of mindfulness in Western psychology and psychiatry, the Buddhist community is almost uncritically accepting and popularizing various Western mind-body healing programs based on mindfulness. Furthermore, the Buddhist community shows great interest in research and program development that combines traditional Buddhist practice and healing.
 Jon Kabat-Zinn (1944~) created and successfully popularized MBSR (Mindfulness Based on Stress Reduction), a healing program to reduce stress in patients with chronic diseases or pain. Currently, MBSR is gaining popularity around the world, and is being actively used in psychological counseling and treatment in Korea as well, especially in the psychology community. Even the K-MBSR program has been developed and is being distributed. However, in the process of spreading MBSR in the West, there is positive evaluation that it is an expedient (upāya) use of Dharma, while negative criticism that it is a transformation and distortion of Buddhist practice and spiritual commercialization in neoliberal society is also significant.
 Accordingly, focusing on MBSR, which can be said to be the origin of mindfulness-based programs, we would like to critically examine the meaning of mindfulness, its correlation with sati of Vipassanā, a traditional Buddhist practice, and the phenomenon of mindfulness as a healing culture.
 The encounter between Eastern and Western cultures is having a lasting impact on Korean Buddhist practice. So far, Korean Buddhism has been dominated by a Zen-centered, masculine, elitist, monastic, and authoritarian ethos. In the era of spirituality in the 21st century, healing culture is emerging as an alternative as there is a need to remodel Buddhism into a feminine, accepting, empathetic, popular, and democratic Buddhism. However, as risk factors are detected, if we recognize the importance of not only internal and personal mindfulness, but also external and social participation mindfulness, and respond in a timely manner, we can realize the fundamental purpose of Buddhism, which is achieving success, leaving suffering, and gaining joy. I look forward to opening a new chapter.

The Application of Theravāda Buddhist Meditation Practices and Techniques in Mindfulness-Based Interventions

The prominent meditation practices and techniques of Buddhism have been integrated into mindfulness-based psychological interventions to manage mental disorders and enhance mental well-being. However, limited research has been conducted to explore the specific application of Theravāda Buddhist meditation practices in the context of clinical psychology and psychotherapy. The current study appraises the synthesis of Buddhist meditation practices and their techniques, which combine Eastern knowledge with Western psychology. The research delves into Theravāda meditation, concentrating on Vipassanā, Mettā, and Ānāpānasati meditations, which teach mindfulness, self-awareness, and emotional control - all of which are necessary for mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) integration. The research aims to understand the application of Theravāda meditations, examine their application in MBIs, and review empirical support to seek their prominent contribution in clinical settings. Cultural appropriation, misunderstanding, and dilution are among the integration issues. To ensure ethical treatment, therapists must study and practice Theravāda teachings and practices as well as Western psychology. The integration of Eastern and Western findings in MBIs improves efficacy by bringing together historical ideas and current research. Collaborative efforts and multidisciplinary studies are critical for the growth of holistic well-being. Incorporating Theravāda practices into MBIs exemplifies how old knowledge may supplement modern psychology. This interplay improves treatment procedures while encouraging innovation. More research is needed to better grasp tradition and innovation in psychological therapies.

Phases of human development: Comparing Western and Islamic theories and the implication in Islamic education

The physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development determine every aspect of human life, including education. Providing appropriate education for children is determined by the child's developmental stage. The current study aims to describe the stages of human development according to Western and Islamic concepts and their implications in Islamic education. To ensure a comprehensive investment in human beings, attention to religious education and introducing religious instruction from the prenatal stage is deemed necessary, as this period forms the foundation for further development. The research methodology employed in this study is a Systematic Literature Review (SLR). After reviewing various literature sources, the researchers selected several references that were relevant to the topic. The study's results indicate that the prenatal phase in Islamic psychology is more extended than Western psychology's. The tamyiz and amrad phases, viewed in Islamic psychology as preparations for entering adulthood, correspond to the Western psychological perspective of puberty. The futuh phase, or the phase of wisdom in Islamic psychology, occurs when a person ages 40, whereas Western psychology labels this as the adult phase. The phase of the Hereafter is considered crucial in Islamic psychology, while Western psychology lacks an afterlife phase. Consequently, Muslims undergo lifelong education from early birth to death. In conclusion, every phase of human life must be educated according to the level of maturity, starting from prenatal, infant, early childhood, school age, adolescent, young adult, mature adult, to late adult.

Islamic texts refer to psychosomatic illnesses: Historical comparison

There is a recurring dilemma among doctors and health care providers in distinguishing between what is physical and what is psychological, such as the psychosomatic symptoms that lead sufferers to medical clinics. This confusion causes poor diagnosis on the one hand and causes poor therapeutic management on the other hand due to differences in treatment. Therapeutic approaches and methods (Khamis, 2018). Because the nature of the human sciences is participatory, this research aimed to draw a comparison between the view of early Muslim scholars on the nature of psychosomatic diseases and the view of modern psychology on these illnesses through comparison with Islamic historical texts, and the research showed that there are points of agreement and points of difference. One of the most prominent points of agreement between the two approaches is that the body is affected by the psychological state in what is known as psychosomatic illness, while we find that the most prominent points of difference are in Islamic psychology’s view of man as an integrated being, where religion is considered a central factor in influencing him, while Western psychology views man as a person isolated from religion. The research recommended further discovery of similarities and differences to reach an integrative vision for therapeutic psychology.

Integration between the Western and Islamic Parenting Models: Content Analysis in A Literature Review

Parenting as a child care practice has become the main focus in both Western psychology and Islam psychology. Each perspective is founded on different values and contributes to the development of the parenting concept. The concept of parenting from the Western psychology includes Montessori parenting, positive parenting, and religious parenting. Meanwhile, from the perspective of Islam psychology, the concept of parenting involves prophetic parenting, Islamic parenting, Qur’anic parenting, and fathanah parenting. The researcher conducted a literature review on these concepts by collecting papers using search engines, including Google, Publish or Perish, and Open Knowledge Map and collected scientific journal articles that are nationally and internationally accredited. A total of 58 journal articles published between 2013 and 2023 were found. Data sampling is adjusted to the research topic, namely the concept of parenting and early childhood parenting. Next, the researcher will interpret the meaning of each journal article using content analysis to identify the basic argument of the research. The findings show that the development of the parenting concept in the Western psychology perspective stems from phenomena in parenting, especially the religion phenomenon in parenting culture in the 21st century. On the other hand, the development of the parenting concept in the Islam psychology perspective is merely a conceptual reinterpretation that is centered in the values of al-Qur’an and hadith. Nevertheless, the researcher found two patterns in the development of the parenting concept in Islam: first, the development of the parenting conceptual framework that is integrated with interpretation method on al-Qur’an texts to explain the notion of parenting, and second, the theoretical integration between the parenting concept that is in accordance with al-Qur’an and hadith and the Western psychology’s notion on parenting. Based on the literature review, the integration between the parenting concept in Western psychology perspective and that in Islam results in the SMART parenting model which prioritizes joy, education, moral and religion, and health for the children’s growth.

FAKTOR-FAKTOR YANG MEMPENGARUHI PERKEMBANGAN

Abstract. In normal growth and development, a child will see changes in the size of the body's organs (physical) as the child gets older. Body sizes will increase, both those that are visible such as feet, hands, body height and so on, and those that are not visible such as the heart, lungs, muscles and so on. At the same time, changes are also experienced in the spiritual/mental field, namely increasing the ability to observe, remember, feel, and so on, in line with the physical growth mentioned above, so that a healthy soul will develop in accordance with healthy physical growth as well. The research method is by comparing research methods, processing methods, and the results obtained from each article. The research source comes from articles obtained via the internet in the form of research articles discussing early childhood development. The research results show that the conclusions of the factors that influence the development of western and Islamic psychological perspectives are heredity, environment and God's provisions. In western psychology, emphasis is placed on factors such as heredity and environment in understanding individual development, while in Islamic psychology, the factor of Allah's provisions is also considered very important.

Evolving Conceptualizations: A Commentary on the Varying Perspectives of Self-Compassion in Western Psychology

Self-compassion involves being touched by and open to one’s own suffering, coupled with the desire to alleviate it and heal oneself with kindness. While self-compassion has gained significant attention in research, certain conceptual and methodological complexities have evolved over time and led to ambiguity surrounding the concept. As such, the overall purpose of this commentary was to highlight and discuss the different perspectives of self-compassion in the literature. We opted to centralize our focus primarily on Neff’s [1] self-compassion framework, given its extensive adoption. We highlight two broad perspectives for conceptualizing self-compassion in the literature: 1) <em>Mind-Body Experiences</em> (i.e., cognitive process, emotion/affect, or motivation) and 2) <em>Generality</em> (i.e., state-like, trait-like/global, or context-specific). This paper aims to offer insights into the complexities surrounding the conceptualizations of self-compassion and facilitate improvements in researchers approaches to studying this important construct.

Psychedelics and critical theory

AbstractIn the monograph Philosophy and Psychedelics: Frameworks for Exceptional Experience, Hauskeller raises the important subject of individualization and alienation in psychedelic psychotherapy. Under the prevailing conditions of neoliberalism, Hauskeller contends that psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy appropriates Indigenous knowledges in an oppressive fashion, may be instrumentalised to the ends of productivity gain and symptom suppression, and may be utilised to mask societal systems of alienation. Whilst offering a valuable socio-political critique of psychedelics' clinical uptake, we suggest that Hauskeller's view does not adequately acknowledge the ways in which psychedelics offer a challenge to the Western reductive bio-medical understanding of healing and wellbeing. It is contended herein that Indigenous knowledges, in alliance with a range of emerging sciences, offer both an engagement with ethnomedicines in a less harmfully appropriative fashion, and a renewed understanding of the means by which psychedelics achieve therapeutic change. With this understanding, what becomes apparent are the potential ways in which psychedelic medical usage may produce positive feedback upon the oppressive systems in which we are embedded. That is, transpersonal experience through encounters with the ineffable may offer a revisioning of Western psychology and cognitive science. Indeed, if psychedelics are approached with an understanding of the actual means by which they produce therapeutic outcomes—changing mental representations of the self, or self-insight derived through non-ordinary states of consciousness—then psychedelic psychotherapy offers a reimagining of psychiatric nosology, challenging conventional understandings of both pathology and wellbeing through an overturning of specified and discrete deficit models of psychopathology. This may provide both a critique of the prevailing categories used to describe madness and an expansion of our understanding of the mind-body relation, as well as an increased recognition of positive psychology grounded in cross-cultural contemplative traditions. This provides an implicit challenge to the pharmaceutical industrial-complex and its profit motives; and the corresponding neoliberalist, globalising tendencies which Hauskeller seeks to address.