Topics:
What is Depth Psychology?
About Depth Psychology Alliance
Our Mission and Vision
Advisory Board
Alliance Partners
Navigating the Site
How Can I Use the Site?
News & Press
Editorial Policy
Contact Info: Send a message to any member by going to their "Page" and clicking the "Send a message" link toward the top left. To contact the Depth Psychology Alliance, email: info@depthpsychologyalliance.com
WHAT IS DEPTH PSYCHOLOGY?
Depth psychology, a term first coined by Swiss psychiatrist, Eugene Bleuler, around the end of the 1800’s, has its beginnings inthe work of Sigmund Freud and another Swiss psychiatrist, Carl Gustav (C.G.) Jung, along with Pierre Janet and William James. Depth Psychology explores the hidden or deeper parts of human experienceby seeing things in depth rather than taking them apart. Certainly,it involves deep inquiry into the symbolic meaning of things, of symptoms, images, and emotions that arise in one’s life,influencing each of us regardless of whether we are aware of it ornot (Ellenberger, 1970). includes aspects of Psychology, Philosophy, Mythology, Anthropology, Cross-cultural and Indigenous studies, and Ecology and the way each of them influences us as individuals. These fields affect we relate to ourselves, eachother, and our culture, our species, and our planet as well.
Above all, Depth Psychology is a study of the Unconscious, that which is outside of our awareness and which we unable to know directly. Much like an iceberg of which a tiny fraction is visible above water, our human egos s up and we perceive this collection of ideas, thoughts, and beliefs that stem from our cultural conditioning and past experience as "all of us." ever, the unseen content below the surface has much to reveal to us if we will only listen in. The Unconscious, personal or collective,communicates messages for our greater good through symbols, dreams,myths, and patterns in nature among other methods. Download the full article here: http://www.depthinsights.com/pdfs/On_Depth_Psychology.pdf
Or, watch this short video:
ABOUT DEPTH PSYCHOLOGY ALLIANCE
Depth Psychology Alliance was created to be a central gathering place, a global village for discussion, research, and development of Depth Psychology ideas and views as well as a place to connect with like-minded colleagues, old and new. It's also a container in which to discuss news, cultural happenings, and current events and try to understand them using a depth perspective.
As the first online community of its kind, it is our hope that we can build a powerful collection of content and methods that will empower the field---as well as each of us--to individuate and transform, enabling Depth Psychology to emerge more fully into the everyday world where it can do its work.
Our VISION...
is to make Depth Psychology universally accessible and to foster meaningful insight into the human psyche and the collective soul. Integral to this vision is the spirit of service. We aspire to serve as a source of warmth, replenishment, and interconnectivity in the ongoing process of tending to soul.
Our MISSION...
is to serve all individuals and organizations who are passionate about the power of Depth Psychology. Our intention is to cultivate a dynamic global gathering place for EXPOSURE to as well as the EXPLORATION and EXCHANGE of 1) the ideas, principles and practices of the various depth psychologies, 2) new and existing resources, while at the same time 3) encouraging opportunities to connect and dialogue with like minded others.
ADVISORY BOARD
The role of the Advisory Board is support the vision of Depth Psychology Alliance, providing counsel and insight and to hold the space for ongoing growth and expansion in serving depth psychology.
Advisory Boardmembers: Silvia Behrend, Michael Conforti, Patricia Damery, David Van Nuys, Gary Bobroff, Bonnie Bright (Founder), Dorene Mahoney, Donna May, James Newell, Brent Potter, Jennifer Selig, Mark Sipowicz, Jesse Masterson (In Memoriam)
Visit the Advisory Board web page to view profiles for original Advisory board members
Click here to view additional board member profiles
ABOUT THE FOUNDER
Bonnie Bright, Ph.D. holds Master's degrees in Psychology and Depth Psychology, and wrote her Master's thesis at Sonoma State University on the symbolic nature of Colony Collapse Disorder, the mysterious disappearance of the honeybees, a topic she parlayed into the idea of "Culture Collapse Disorder" for her Ph.D. Dissertation at Pacifica Graduate Institute which she earned after a 15-year career in Marketing Communications serving clients in technology, media, music, software, and the nonprofit arena.
Bonnie’s writing has appeared in anthologies Toward Beginnings: Images of End; Occupy Psyche: Jungian Perspectives on a Movement; and Rebearths: Conversations with a World Ensouled, published by World Soul Books, as well as Jung Journal, Quadrant, and Depth Insights scholarly journal. Her work on depth perspectives related to Colony Collapse Disorder was published in America on the Couch, edited by Pythia Peay, Lantern Books, 2015.
Bonnie has presented nationally and internationally on depth psychology topics including at the 2012 Assisi Conference in Assisi, Italy, in July 2012, and at JSSS (The Jungian Society for Scholarly Studies) in New Orleans, August 2012. She has also presented at the 2012 Open Forum for Climate Change hosted by the Deep Democracy Institute, the "Aesthetic Nature of Change" International Conference hosted by the Institute for Cultural Change in Ojai, CA, along with "Conversations with a World Ensouled" at CIIS (California Institute for Integral Studies) in San Francisco and JFK University in Pleasant Hill, CA, and the "Seizing an Alternative" Ecological Conference in Claremont, CA, in 2015.
Bonnie served on the board for AHBI, the Association for Holotropic Breathwork (now the Grof Foundation), and the board for AWRT, American Women in Radio and Television in San Francisco. She has trained extensively in the Enneagram, a psycho-spiritual personality typology system, and in Indigenous Spiritual Technologies with African Elder, author, and teacher, Malidoma Somé.
Bonnie hosts an online radio show/podcast, "Depth Insights" where she and her guests take a depth psychological look at news, events, and phenomena in today's world, and is the Executive Editor of the semi-annual Depth Insights scholarly journal. Her anthology, Depth Psychology and the Digital Age, was published in 2016. You can find her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bonniebright5 or on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/BonnieBright.DepthPsych
About the Depth Psychology Alliance Logo:
If you look closely at the icon associated with the Depth Psychology Alliance header, you’ll see it’s actually a beehive viewed in a series of layers (representing the psyche) or lenses (referring to Depth Psychology methods of inquiry), and the subject itself is blurred--symbolic of the unconscious, the mystery, or what's beneath or behind.
This particular image was chosen to represent the community because it is the most powerful depth psychological symbol I can imagine. A beehive is a superorganism, meaning it has life and intelligence as an entity in and of itself. It is greater than the sum of its parts. It is sacred space, the place in which tens of thousands of bees gather within the interior to do their designated work. Within the darkness, each bee has her own role and the hive would not function the same way without her. The hive is inhabited by the ultimate sacred feminine, the queen, which creates life by laying up to 2000 fertile eggs each day.
The space pulses with life, work, community, and is a magical laboratory for alchemy as sweet nectar is brought in and painstakingly turned into liquid gold through remarkable processes. Each of the worker bees leaves the hive to go out and forage, giving the gift of pollination to the places she visits on the outside, then returns again to sacred space before the sun goes down, navigating by an innate instinct to the place that is "home".
In addition to the darkness and depth, there is shadow (as represented on the left side of the icon)—and particularly now as bees are vanishing by the billions under the darkness of Colony Collapse Disorder that, while still mysterious, is likely in good part a result of we humans have abused the earth with pesticides, pollution, destruction of the natural habitat required by bees, genetically modified plants, and commercial practices that are harmful and often fatal to bees.
Meanwhile, it is my deep hope that this community here at Depth Psychology Alliance will function as a healthy hive, a busy, thriving meeting place which we may all inhabit and do some of our work in the world, supporting each other, entering into discussion and reflection, cross-pollinating each others knowledge and experience with our own, and alchemically transforming our presence and efforts into soul that can go out into the world, gather sweet nectar and pollen and deliver it back “home” again on an ongoing basis.
Meanwhile, if you have a strong interest in learning more about the historical, symbolic, and scientific aspects of bees and the hive, please see my short blog on the subject in the “Blogs” section, or download the entire 130+ page PDF of my Master’s thesis here--or grab it from the Articles page--toward the bottom under Theses/Dissertations (-Bonnie Bright, Founder, Depth Psychology Alliance).
How can you use the site? (Check the top menu for links to each of these areas)
- Share YOUR depth psychology-related EVENTS OR list events you find interesting that others may want to find
- Start your own BLOG site here or post a few paragraphs from an existing blog and link back to your site to drive traffic
- Find or post relevant VIDEOS to add to our collection
- Attend occasional Alliance-hosted webinars, community chats, online panels, and EVENTS
- Read Depth Insights scholarly eZine
- Listen to Depth Insights radio interview
- CHAT live with other members online
- Discuss in the FORUM: Ask questions, vet your work, state your opinion, promote your events, connect with like-minded colleagues who you may never have met otherwise.
The Alliance is a forum for inquiry, wondering, suggesting, dialoguing--and most of all, sharing. Depth Psychology cannot take hold in the world without community. Its one thing to do our inner work, but it becomes a whole new transcendent thing when we are willing to reach out and touch others with it, create a ripple in the pond--no matter small.
What is the difference between synchronicity and serendipity? Why was Carl Jung interested in the phenomenon of UFOs? do the theories of James Hillman differ from those of Jung? What is the connection between the growth of social networking and Jung's predictions about our culture? What happens when people dissociate? What did you dream last night and what are the archetypes that sed up? These are just a few examples of things I've wondered: maybe others do too. Jump in. Post your musings--stream of consciousness is fine. Share a few paragraphs--or a paper or blog you're working on.
EDITORIAL POLICY
This site is intended to foster academic discussion and provide industry information. While any member may freely contribute to the Forum or to a group, or post a photo, video or blog with approval from the administrator, we ask that you respect the intention of the site and the other members of the community and keep the academic tone of the site intact by refraining from contributions that are overly promotional of initiatives, products or services--particularly those outside the express interest of most of our members. We reserve the right to request any member who cannot comply to discontinue membership.
Regarding copyright/privacy issues, your personal or contact information will not be provided to any other service, site, or organization. You may opt out of receiving email notifications on your own "My Page". Depth Psychology Alliance makes no claim to any intellectual property posted on this site nor takes responsibility for the materials or content posted herein. All copyrights are retained by the original authors or creators. All content and posts made by members is not necessarily the opinion of Depth Psychology Alliance and Depth Psychology Alliance and affiliated persons take no responsibility for comments made here. Please refer to the "Terms of Service" on the bottom right of any page in this site for any questions regarding content or authorship issues. Material and content posted within Depth Psychology Alliance, like most online content, should not be considered entirely private as it could potentially show up in search engine results or online aggregates and is not necessarily confidential or limited to the confines of Depth Psychology Alliance. Any posts made are the sole responsibility of the person who posted them.
All members of the Depth Psychology Alliance community, by becoming members, agree to hold Depth Psychology Alliance founders, board members, and affiliates harmless in any court of law.
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