A Guide to Integral Psychotherapy: Complexity, Integration, and Spirituality in Practice

by Mark D. Forman

Overview

This book provides a practical introduction to Integral Psychotherapy, which positions itself as the most comprehensive approach to psychotherapy yet offered. Grounded in the work of theoretical psychologist and philosopher Ken Wilber, it organizes the key insights and interventions of pharmacological, psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, existential, feminist, multicultural, somatic, and transpersonal approaches to psychotherapy. Integral Psychotherapy does not attempt to unify these diverse models, but rather takes a metatheoretical perspective, giving general guidelines for which is most appropriate in a wide range of clinical situations. It also strongly emphasizes the therapist's own personal development, under the premise that the depth and complexity of the human psyche must be understood first within the self if it is to be understood fully in others. This essential text is for therapists and others drawn to holistic approaches to psychotherapy, and serves as a theoretical ground and precise guide for those interested in applying the Integral model in therapeutic practice.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781438430249
Publisher:	State University of New York Press
Publication date:	03/30/2010
Series:	SUNY series in Integral Theory
Pages:	340
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Mark D. Forman is a clinical psychologist who has worked in a variety of settings, including the Salvation Army's Adult Substance Rehabilitation Program, Kaiser Permanente's Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and San José State University's Student Counseling Center. Forman is the cofounder of the Integral Theory Conference, the first academic conference devoted to the field of Integral Theory and its application. He is in private practice in California.

Table of Contents

List of Tables ix

List of Figures xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Integral Theory and the Principles of Integral Psychotherapy 9

Chapter 2 Psychotherapy as a Four-Quadrant Affair 35

Chapter 3 Drives and the Unconscious from an Integral Perspective 49

Chapter 4 Dynamic and Incorporative Development 59

Chapter 5 Lines of Development in Practice: Cognition, Self-System, and Maturity 73

Chapter 6 Pre-Personal Identity Development 93

Chapter 7 Early and Mid-Personal Identity Development 117

Chapter 8 Late Personal and Transpersonal Identity Development 139

Chapter 9 Interventions for the Pre-Personal and Early Personal Stages 167

Chapter 10 Interventions for the Mid-Personal, Late Personal, and Transpersonal Stages 187

Chapter 11 Spirituality in Integral Psychotherapy 207

Chapter 12 Gender and Typology in Integral Psychotherapy 231

Chapter 13 Diversity in Integral Psychotherapy 251

Chapter 14 The Development of the Integral Psychotherapist 281

References 301

Index 317

Editorial Reviews

"…A Guide to Integral Psychotherapy … [and] Integral Psychotherapy … are a magnificent bridge between clinical practice, current academic psychology, and the expansive, liberating world of integral epistemology … [they] do not shy away from the difficult task of introducing Integral Theory in general, Integral Psychology in particular, and Integral Psychotherapy as a primary focus. They lead the reader through progressively deeper levels of understanding and possibilities, sourcing their points in Wilber's work and current/past psychological perspectives." — Journal of Integral Theory and Practice

"What sets this book apart from others … is that Forman cites a wide range of sources whose work, while not necessarily part of the integral model, supports elements of the model that have not otherwise been included in other integral psychology books." — Integral Options Cafe

"Mark Forman has made an important contribution to the entire field of psychotherapy with this book, which is delicately balanced with theory and research, and always with direct clinical implications. Highly recommended for any mental health professional." — Andre Marquis, author of The Integral Intake: A Guide to Comprehensive Idiographic Assessment in Integral Psychotherapy

"Integral Theory offers a remarkably comprehensive conceptual framework, and this book offers a view of psychotherapy through its encompassing lens." — Roger Walsh, MD, author of Essential Spirituality: The Seven Central Practices to Awaken Heart and Mind

"The first full application of Integral Theory to psychotherapy by a practicing clinician, this is a pioneering and very good book on Integral Psychotherapy." — Michael Washburn, author of Embodied Spirituality in a Sacred World

From the Publisher