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New Existentialists

What Happens to an Athlete Happens to the Team

04/02/2013

In the wake of a crisis situation, we often do not know how we are going to react—we are trained as therapists to learn to stay calm, to assess the situation, and to determine which steps to take next. However, situations arise that even cause us to question what the “correct” way to react is, or even if there is a “correct” way to react? A huge controversy has recently arisen surrounding the Steubenville Rape trial—is the reporting biased? Are they being overly sensitive to the accused rapists and neglecting the victim? In reality, we are humans—we...

Posted at 10:00 AM

New Existentialists

Fads, Phenomenology, and Cultural Psychology

04/01/2013

I love Teo and Febbraro’s (2002) pointed observation that “Psychology’s history can be studied as a history of fads” (p. 458). Teo (1996) has written that psychologists “have tended to value meta-theoretical constructions from outside their discipline more than those from inside their disciplines,” with the popularity of these constructions shifting as one or another current in philosophy achieves popularity. So psychologists who are readers of philosophy can sometimes feel as if we’re living through a lengthy philosophical hangover—as if we...

Posted at 10:00 AM

Mind-Body Medicine

Saybrook University Faculty Member Dr. Lisa Kelly Participates in Humanitarian Outreach to Dominican Republic

04/01/2013

Lisa Kelly, PhD, is a Saybrook University graduate, a member of the Saybrook University faculty, and the Director of Instructional Excellence in the School of Mind-Body Medicine. In November of 2012 Dr. Kelly returned to Puerto Plata, in the Dominican Republic ,to work with the children sponsored by the Dove Mission Youth Development Center (http://dovemissions.org/). This was Lisa’s sixth trip to work with the disenfranchised children of Puerto Plata.

Posted at 08:45 AM | Permalink | 0 Comments

New Existentialists

Existentialism in the Andes

03/29/2013

I “discovered” existential psychology back in 2008 while a PhD student at Saybrook University. At the time, I was undergoing a crisis of meaning, or perhaps it’s more appropriate to say a “crisis of control.” I had slipped into a deep depression due to the fact that life was just not doing what I wanted it to do. Like many people seeking meaning within in human potential circles, I had come to believe the New Age party line that “Nothing is Impossible! Everything is Possible!” All I needed to do was adjust my attitude, perfect my Warrior One yoga...

Posted at 10:00 AM

New Existentialists

The Future of Existential Psychology: How to Make a Best Friend Forever: Counseling and Existential-Humanistic Psychology

03/28/2013

Why can’t we all just be friends? Too simple, some might say even naïvely simple, but for me, the question contains a powerful message regarding the hope of partnership and a call for acceptance. This, in essence, is the resounding call of this piece and what is to follow. I have always felt like I have straddled two worlds. As a result, I see myself in many ways like Hermes who is the Greek god of the in-between and carries messages among the divine and mortal realms (Hyde, 1998). This shows up in my life, for example, through my education history. My undergraduate schooling took...

Posted at 10:00 AM

New Existentialists

Birdsongs and Blizzards

03/27/2013

This past weekend, the area I live in was hit pummeled with a snowstorm. The flakes were big, wet, and heavy, and quickly covered the ground and streets around my home. I was inside, warm and comfortable, and watching the snow piling up when I heard something that startled me out of my relaxed state. Outside, in the midst of this freezing, snowy day, I could hear a bird singing. I sat and listened for a moment before going to investigate. I looked out and sure enough, a bird sat on a tree outside of my home, singing. Snowflakes covered the branch he sat on and were beginning to cover his...

Posted at 10:00 AM

Newsletters

When profit isn’t enough: Chip Conley to work with Saybrook University to reinvent business culture.

03/26/2013

“I often ask business leaders this simple question: ‘If your business didn’t exist, would it matter to the world?’” said entrepreneur and New York Times best-selling author Chip Conley. “Companies that can answer ’yes’ are far more likely to bring out the best in their employees and excel in the marketplace.’

Posted at 04:19 PM | Permalink | 0 Comments

Newsletters

Building Peace in the Middle East

03/26/2013

“Hiking through the forest, sleeping beneath the stars or sitting around a campfire over a meal with someone who’s supposed to be an enemy can be transformative,” says Nettie Pardue.

Posted at 04:17 PM | Permalink | 0 Comments

Newsletters

Leading Change, Saving Lives

03/26/2013

It's early morning and Organizational Systems Alumnus David Williams, PhD is on a virtual meeting coaching hospital teams across the Atlantic. In the Southwest of England, nurses are trying to reduce hospital-associated infections in acute care hospitals. Headset on and consciously listening, he hears stories from frontline staff on the unit.

Posted at 04:13 PM | Permalink | 0 Comments

Newsletters

Creating More Authentic Workplaces

03/26/2013

When an executive at jewelry-maker Alex and Ani asked Dennis Rebelo for advice on how she could develop a better rapport with one of her managers, he suggested she tell the manager a story.

Posted at 04:10 PM | Permalink | 0 Comments