The relationship between the fields of psychology and spirituality can best be described as contentious. A historical separation between these areas, which can be traced back to the thinking of Freud and Charcot has resulted in a lack of research concerning the relevance of spirituality within a mental healthcare framework and moreover has led to the exclusion of this practice as a component in many psychological training programmes. Recent research, however, illustrates a shift towards a greater acknowledgment of the role of spirituality in therapeutic contexts, both in the South African context and abroad. An exploratory, interpretive case study was undertaken in order to explore the experiences of a sample of educational psychologists (n=4) in the Gauteng area regarding this practice. Data sources comprised semi-structured interviews, documented in verbatim transcripts of audio recordings. Findings indicate that the approaches and attitudes of both spiritual educational psychologists and clients appear to influence the psychologists’ utilisation of a multicultural approach. This multicultural approach seems to inform the framework, which may be represented by the Respectful model (D’Andrea & Daniels, 2001), within which these psychologists include spirituality in therapeutic practice with their spiritual clients. Findings regarding the practical application of the inclusion of spirituality in therapy suggest that the utilisation of theistic consent as well as the addition of spiritual themes and interventions may provide an effective framework regarding this practice. Both challenges and advantages tend to arise from the inclusion of spirituality in therapy. Challenges included countertransference, inner conflict arising from multiple roles and limitations in discussing spiritual issues. Various advantages were found pertaining to the client, the therapeutic relationship and the educational psychologist. Insights gained from the study may contribute towards the generation of ethically sound methods with which to address spiritual belief systems in therapeutic contexts and the establishment of the significance of spirituality as a component of a multicultural approach to psychological practice. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Educational Psychology / MEd / Unrestricted

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Western Sydney, 2002. / "A thesis presented to the University of Western Sydney for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy" Bibliography : leaves 349-363.

This thesis examines the spiritual lives of eighteenth-century English women through an analysis of their personal writings. It explores the manuscripts of religious women who practised their faith by writing letters, diaries, poetry, and other highly personal texts—texts that give unique access to the interior, spiritual lives of their authors. Concerned not only with the individual meaning of those writings but with their communal meanings, it argues that women’s informal writing, written within personal relationships, acted to undergird, guide, and indeed shape religious communities in vital and unexplored ways. Through an exploration of various significant personal relationships, both intra- and inter-generationally, this thesis demonstrates the multiple ways in which women were active in ‘writing religious communities’. The women discussed here belonged to communities that habitually communicated through personal writing. At the same time, their acts of writing were creative acts, powerful to build and shape religious communities: these women wrote religious community. A series of interweaving case studies guide my analysis and discussion. The thesis focuses on Catherine Talbot (1721–70), Anne Steele (1717–78), and Ann Bolton (1743–1822), and on their literary interactions with friends and family. Considered together, these subjects and sources allow comparison across denomination, for Talbot was Anglican, Steele Baptist, and Bolton Methodist. After an introductory chapter, Chapter Two focuses on spiritual friendship, showing how women used personal writings within peer relationships to think through religious ideas and encourage faith commitments. Chapter Three considers older women as spiritual elders, arguing that elderly women sometimes achieved honoured status in religious communities and were turned to for spiritual direction. Chapter Four explores the ways in which women offered religious instruction to spiritual children through the creative use of informal writings, including diaries and poetry. And Chapter Five considers women’s personal writings as spiritual legacy, as they were preserved by family and friends and continued to function in religious communities after the death of their authors.

Humility is an integral virtue within Benedictine spiritual traditions. It is also the subject of a burgeoning body of empirical literature in the field of psychology. This dissertation undertakes an interdisciplinary dialogue between Benedictine spirituality and contemporary psychological science, exploring the potential for both fields to mutually inform as well as critique respective understandings of humility. Scholarship in Benedictine spirituality has not shown substantial engagement with the field of psychology around the topic of humility since the 1980’s. Likewise, no in-depth analysis of the Benedictine spirituality of humility has been conducted within psychology, despite increasing interest in interdisciplinary projects among psychologists of spirituality and religion. In the body of this dissertation, chapter one sets out to locate this project within the disciplines of practical theology, spirituality studies, and the psychology of religion and spirituality. It also describes the methods used in this dissertation, with particular focus on the dynamics of mutually critical correlation, a method that gives room for both fields to inform, critique, and question the other around their positions regarding the theory and practice of humility. Chapter two presents an in-depth exploration of Benedictine humility, focusing in particular on themes in the Rule of St. Benedict as well as different contemporary interpretations of humility that have emerged over the last thirty years. Chapter three then offers an exploration of the contemporary state of the psychology of humility, documenting the growing body of research on this subject over the last two decades. Chapter four moves into the interdisciplinary analysis of this dissertation, inquiring how contemporary psychological research on humility could potentially inform Benedictine spirituality. Chapter five then switches to consider how insights and perspectives on humility from Benedictine traditions can also inform theoretical perspectives on humility within psychology, as well as applications in psychological interventions that integrate spirituality. Finally, a concluding chapter highlights some points of learning regarding interdisciplinary research on humility in spirituality and psychology, along with questions for future research and a final selection of key points for practice in both fields.

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