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History of psychology

ISSN 1939-0610

4 papers in the library · 40 citations · publishing 2011-2024

Papers

Psychedelics and psychotherapy in Canada: Humphry Osmond and Aldous Huxley.

History of psychology August 1, 2018 Erika Dyck, Patrick Farrell 21 citations

In the 1950s, as psychiatry turned toward psychopharmacology, Canadian researchers in an isolated prairie mental hospital pioneered a unique blend of psychotherapy and psychedelic substances like mescaline and LSD. The correspondence between psychiatrist Humphry Osmond and writer Aldous Huxley reveals how they developed their psychedelic approach to therapy, combining interests in psychoactive substances, perception, and empathy. Working far from major research centers, Osmond sought collaborators outside psychiatry, fostering an innovative regional approach that blended traditions.

Renata Calabresi: the experimental analysis of the present.

History of psychology February 1, 2011 Liliana Albertazzi 12 citations

Renata Calabresi conducted laboratory research in the 1920s and 1930s on the nature, extensity, and quality of the psychic present, drawing on the Central European tradition of descriptive psychology. Her work, largely unrecognized due to the decline of that paradigm and historical events, demonstrated that perceptual events in subjective time are at least partially independent from those in objective time. Subjective and objective time do not flow in unison, and the continuum of perceptive sequences has different modalities of existence from physical sequences.

The impact of James's Varieties of Religious Experience on Jung's work.

History of psychology February 1, 2020 Walter Melo, Pedro Henrique Costa de Resende 6 citations

William James influenced Carl Jung's theoretical development, particularly through James's book 'The Varieties of Religious Experience'. Jung's emphasis on fundamental subjective experience in his own work 'Psychology and Religion' drew on James's ideas. The article examines how James's dynamic psychology shaped Jung's later writings, including 'On the Nature of the Psyche'. Jung's acquaintance with James led him to move away from psychoanalysis and shaped his views on religious experience and the concept of the unconscious.

William James's experience of presenting The Varieties of Religious Experience: His Gifford performance in historical context.

History of psychology August 1, 2024 John R Snarey, Joel Mclendon 1 citation

William James's 1901 and 1902 Gifford Lectures, later published as The Varieties of Religious Experience, are examined as separate performances. Comparing newspaper reports from The Scotsman with James's own correspondence shows that both sources strongly agree: the 1901 lectures were better received than those in 1902. The accounts also reveal a complex interplay between James and his audience, shaped by competing expectations and worldviews. Viewing the lectures as performance events within their personal and historical contexts deepens understanding of James, each lecture, and the resulting book.