The William James Tutorial Program
A Doctoral Program in Philosophical Psychology
“Reality, life, experience, concreteness, immediacy . . . exceeds our logic, overflows and surrounds it.”
--William James
The Professional School of Psychology (PSP) is pleased to offer a new version of its long-standing doctoral program in organizational psychology. PSP has already successfully offered a version of the doctoral organizational program that focuses on higher education, a second version that focuses on self-management and ongoing reflection regarding group dynamics in a learning cohort (the Pacific Learning Community), a third version that focuses on organizational transformation and leadership, and a fourth version that focuses on social critical analyses of contemporary organizations. This fourth version focuses on philosophical perspectives regarding psychological practices - basing this perspective on the extraordinary insights provided by William James, especially as these insights engage our attention in the 21st Century.
The new William James Tutorial Program—as the name implies—employs a very old mode of graduate instruction: the tutorial. This mode of education, however, is applied in a new manner that enables learners from throughout the world to participate and interact on a continuing basis with one another and with four senior tutors (William Bergquist, Fred Massarek, Christopher McCullough and Agnes Mura). This new version also is a hybrid (making use of both tutorial and traditional classroom formats) that enables international students to interact with students who are enrolled in one of the other tutorial programs or the standard residential doctoral programs in organizational and clinical psychology.
A Statement of Purpose and Commitment
It is the intention of the senior tutors in The William James Tutorial program that this program will provide a rigorous interdisciplinary environment that is philosophically and psychologically committed to exploring contemporary leadership issues from the perspectives, which derive from the New Sciences and Postmodern philosophy. Consistent with these contemporary theories, William James represents, in both his work and life, a process by which meaning can be found within openness to experience: truth and meaning come from creative acts in the face of uncertainty. The William James Tutorial Program supports the rich, creative potentialities generated by postmodern theory and it also encourages the actualization of human meanings in the interest of a more authentic world community. The unique structural model of The William James Tutorial Program is based on the concept of The New American Graduate School, which acknowledges the importance of providing training and educational opportunities for mature learners, appreciation for community and integration of student colleagues from all ages and social/ economic groups.
Fundamental to contemporary scientific theory, and therefore to postmodern sensibilities, is the idea that, as Professor Richard Tarnas says, “. . . the world cannot be said to possess any features in principle prior to interpretation. The subject is already embedded in the object of knowledge: the human mind never stands outside the world.” Contemporary scientific theory tells us that wave to particle changes occur in relationship to the participation of the observer. This translates into a fundamental postmodern theorem: “Relationships make possible the concept of the self” (as author Kenneth Gergen puts it).
At the sacrifice of the Enlightenment’s modernist immutable laws and universal principles, the postmodern has established the value of relationship as the meaning- making center of truth and the basis for authentic action. This assumption (shared by both physics and philosophy) serves as the profound rationale for interdisciplinary learning. In recognition of the interdisciplinary kinship inherent in the postmodern perspective, the William James Tutorial Program provides for intimate conversations among many disciplines – including physics, philosophy, psychology, sociology and the humanities. These conversations are further enriched by recognition of the transforming experiences accrued in the worlds of 21st Century business and public service.
In the face of the expediency evidenced by high-profile violations of ethics and good practice in our institutions, we are reminded of the inherent relational quality of the postmodern understanding of self: it is not just that we ought to be more communal because individuality is becoming too costly; we are to be more communal because the self is always a self-in-context. Much is written about the fragmentation and chaos of postmodernism (with its lack of universal principles and diminished emotional security). Yet, one aspect of postmodernism that serves us well is the recognition that we share the contexts within which our individual lives are carried out.
In Habits of the Heart, sociologist Robert Bellah and his colleagues set before us the profound misery we have been willing to suffer in defense of individuality. Decreased social capital (cooperation and trust) and chronic poverty, which reduces participation, deflate moral character and family values. Robert Bellah notes in Beyond Belief.
We may be seeing the beginnings of the reintegration of our culture, a new possibility of the unity of consciousness. If so, it will not be on the basis of any new orthodoxy, either religious or scientific. Such a new integration will be based on the rejection of all univocal understandings of reality, of all identifications of one conception of reality with reality itself. It will recognize the multiplicity of the human spirit, and the necessity to translate constantly between different scientific and imaginative vocabulary . It will recognize the human proclivity to fall comfortably into some single literal interpretation of the world and therefore the necessity to be continuously open to rebirth in a new heaven and a new earth. It will recognize that in both scientific and religious culture all we have finally are symbols, but that there is an enormous difference between the dead letter and the living word.
Bellah calls for greater social engagement, not by returning so much to local associations, but by including all within the larger society. The most authentic basis for a shift from individualism to social commitment is not that such a revision is moral, psychologically more healthy, or politically stabilizing-although it is all that. Rather, this shift is appropriate because it reflects the profound insights reached by contemporary science and philosophy
The Legacy of William James
Be not afraid of life. Believe that life is worth living, and your belief will help you create this fact. -William James
Arguably, no figure in American intellectual history has pointed beyond modernist assumptions more than psychologist, physician, philosopher, artist and scientist, William James. His ideas on pluralism, perception over conception, the universal as hypothesis, openness to experience, and radical empiricism speak to our own time - to our own postmodern sensibilities. And, it is the genius of James’s pragmatism that offers the postmodern a basis for action in the face of uncertainty. In spite of his belief that “To look for laws at all in the chaos seems absurdly presumptuous,” he found meaning in life—beyond just those experiences that might be deemed as belonging in the rational realm
Forty-five years after the death of William James the French writer Albert Camus confronted man's dilemma of finding a reason to live without a meta-narrative (universal principle) with what he termed the absurd, which he described as a “confrontation between the human need and the unreasonable silence of the universe.” For Camus, we could choose suicide or preserve the only thing that we know for sure - that we do not know. He called this impotent knowledge. Like Camus, James rejected suicide, but did so by weighing toward creative acts in the face of uncertainty. James sought truth as rigorously as all the great philosophers, and could not overcome Philosophical Skepticism, i.e. the end of rationalism. James argued for a kind of truth based on perception and it was this shift from concept to percept that still speaks to our postmodern era.
Philosophical Foundations
Quantum physics offers an important basic principle that we can all understand. That principle is simply that “things” (including people) are what they are only as one participates in an interaction with them. It cannot be demonstrated in physics nor argued successfully in human psychology or philosophy that an object or person we encounter is anything much without the perception we have of them. At the sacrifice of our desire for immutable laws and universal principles, the postmodern critique honors the degree to which direct experience and interpretation of “what's out there,” are basic to the understanding of the human condition. In the New Science and in the Postmodern extension of it into human affairs, there is the recognition that relationship is not simply desirable, it is arbitrary in the process of knowing. How we know determines what we know.
For James, as well as for the postmodernists, truth begins with the individual case – what one experiences in the first person - and proceeds toward (although never arriving at) a fixed theory. The modernist paradigm is just the opposite, beginning with a statement of universal law and applying it to individual instances. If truth is locally produced, rather than being universa1ly given, if truth is provisional rather than eternal, if truth is practical rather than neutral, then does such truth, with its lack of higher authority, lead to nothing more than nihilism? For some of the later Existentialists, for example, Camus, the only authentic life is one that is lived in spite of nihilism, while for James it is possible to salvage a; meaningful life through courageous and creative acts in the face of uncertainty. And, this is just what is required of us in a postmodern era. The William James Tutorial Program invites all of its Student Colleagues to relax their dependence on old principles and to wander out on the “fringes” of human experience in order to discover truths otherwise hidden.
While various disciplines have intellectually outgrown the deterministic model upon which the modem era rests, there has been little ground given by the leaders within our society's key institutions. Therefore, “the new provoking insights about man in the current culture are more likely to be found on the shelves for philosophy, literature, art and anthropology.” (Kvale)
If relationship is the meaning-creating center of truth, then it also serves as a profound basis for multi and interdisciplinary learning. The William James Tutorial Program, in recognition of the interdisciplinary kinship inherent in the postmodern perspective, provides for close connection in its teaching/learning program among natural science, philosophy, psychology, sociology and the humanities - enriched by respect for the students’ prior experience in public and/or private organizations.
Distinctive Program Features
The Professional School of Psychology believes that the William James Tutorial Program provides its students with a unique opportunity to take their places at the forefront of this fundamental, yet evolving, area of human enterprise. The William James Tutorial Program offers five distinctive features that place this program at the cutting edge of graduate education and uniquely prepares students for the new directions in which contemporary organizations are moving:
Distinction 1: Firm Interdisciplinary Grounding
The William James Tutorial Program provides firm grounding in the cognitive and neurosciences, as well as organizational behavior, social psychology, postmodern philosophical and social/critical analysis, sociology, and cultural anthropology. The core courses in this graduate program expose students to a wide array of knowledge, applications, and approaches.
Distinction 2: American, British, and Continental Perspectives
The William James Tutorial Program is committed to the examination of the American, British, and Continental perspectives on leadership and organizational transformation. Students are involved in a probing analysis of all three schools of thought, preparing them to operate in an increasingly global social and organizational environment.
Distinction 3: Small Classes and Close Student/Faculty Relationships
By design, PSP classes are limited to a small size. The William James Tutorial Program is particularly defined by its small class size - which is essential in maintaining a tutorial format (see discussion of this format below). Small class size facilitates an intimate collegial atmosphere between students and teachers, as well as providing students with direct, hands-on supervision and training by the instructor. Even when students enrolled in the William James Tutorial Program are participating in regular PSP classes, these classes typically enroll no more than 8-10 students.
Distinction 4: Alternative Opportunities for Dissertation Work
Students enrolled in the William James Tutorial Program are given the option of completing a “doctoral project” in lieu of an empirical dissertation. These projects are scholarly works that may include authoring a book, developing a treatment protocol, or writing a grant proposal for a nonprofit agency. The purpose is to provide opportunities for doctoral students to take on a project that is personally meaningful yet at the same time make a direct contribution to their community and/or help launch the new trajectories in the student’s career.
Distinction 5: Alternative Models of Program Planning and Assessment
Students enrolled in the William James Tutorial Program are given the opportunity to participate in a highly innovative process of program planning and assessment that is specifically geared toward the adult learner. Called the “Portfolio,” this planning and assessment process can be completed by organizational students in lieu of a formal internship or comprehensive examinations.
Institutional Philosophy
There are several general principles that underlie not only the new William James Tutorial Program, but also all programs being offered by The Professional School of Psychology. These principles-or broadly based philosophical perspectives-concern the interplay between educational quality and access and the new epistemologies of the 21 st Century. The desired educational outcomes of the William James Tutorial Program are based on these perspectives.
Quality and Access
Studies throughout the world regarding access to postsecondary education have revealed that geographic location has a greater impact than either financial status or age. Even with the digital revolution, there is nothing comparable to the in-person engagement of mature men and women in rich dialogue regarding leadership, management arid the dynamics of group and organizational life. By providing this graduate program through a highly flexible tutorial-based mode of instruction, geographic location ceases to become a major impediment for the mature, accomplished learner who lives outside the United States.
Access must be accompanied by quality, otherwise it isn't “true” access. The faculty members, instructional resources and students of the Professional School of Psychology are of highest quality. This emphasis on quality is engaged without the imposition of high tuition levels. High quality and low costs can be achieved through partnerships, they have taught in a major university or graduate school, as well as providing training, education, consulting or coaching in an organizational setting.
Epistemology
During the 20th Century many disciplines grew increasingly autonomous and with the rise of logical positivism and related empirically oriented perspectives, practitioners in many physical and behavioral sciences tended to divorce themselves from all but the most seemingly “scientific” of disciplines. Using the so-called “scientific methods” of physics, astronomy and chemistry, practitioners in the fields of biology, psychology, anthropology, sociology, economics and political science confined themselves to rather trivial questions and constrained their observations of the world in order to remain, “objective,” “detached” and “analytic.” These biological and behavioral science practitioners not only divorced themselves from the humanities and many of the professions, they also tended to be suspicious of one another, seeking to join physics, astronomy and chemistry at the top of the disciplinary pecking order.
Now, at the beginning of the 21st Century, there is an epistemological revolution that brings many of these estranged fields back into conversation with one another. This is occurring not only because many of the behavioral and biological sciences have themselves come to the end of the road with regard to the confining "scientific method," but also because epistemology is itself undergoing profound change. There is the revolution of chaos and complexity in the physical and behavioral sciences, the introduction of radical concepts regarding time and causality in cosmology, the shattering of the analytic ("smashed rat") tradition in the biological sciences, and the postmodern cha1lenge of interpretative traditions in the humanities and behavioral sciences.
Through its innovative William James Tutorial Program, The Professional School of Psychology offers a pedagogical door into this new world. As a portal, PSP exemplifies optimism about the future and a turning to appreciation and images of success and accomplishment when faced with the challenge of profound personal, organizational and societal transformation. As Martin Seligman notes in the opening article of the first issue of the American Psychologist in the 21st Century, this new century is a time for psychologists to investigate and grow wise about not only the fears and delusions of humankind (the primary task of 20th" Century psychology), but also the hopes and dreams of humankind that enable men and women to sustain their efforts and search for a better life, despite their individual and collective fears and delusions.
This graduate degree program of The Professional School of Psychology is intended for motivated mature learners who wish to expand their own conceptual horizons and to integrate greater self-understanding with a more profound appreciation for the complexity, unpredictability and turbulence of our contemporary world landscape. This is not "university without walls" Rather it is a “university with moveable walls." It is the intent that those enrolled will design, in company with select faculty members, a specific program of scholarship, research and practice that is aligned with each participants own shifting career goals and life purposes.
The Tutorial Format
The William James Tutorial Program makes exclusive use of a tutorial format. This format –based on a longstanding process used in many European universities—includes three distinctive elements. First, tutorials concern a specific body of published works—usually seminal books in a particular field of study. The book (not the instructor) resides at the heart of an effective tutorial process. The tutor and student together explore the meaning and implications of the written text.
Second, there are frequent interactions between the tutor and student. Unlike an independent study format, in which the student often works alone for lengthy periods of time, the tutorial process involves the active engagement of both tutor and student in the learning process. In the case of the traditional European tutorial, these interactions typically took place in the tutor’s office. In the case of the William James Tutorial Program, these interactions will often occur not only in person, but also through e-mail correspondence and telephone conference calls.
Third, the tutorial is inherently student-centered, in that it is tailored around the needs, interests and logistical challenges (time, space) of the student This means that the form of the tutorial will inevitably shift from student to student, and that the student and tutor will frequently reflect on the nature of their interaction and will shift the design or focus of the tutorial if it is not a good fit. The tutorial model is based on student working closely with one faculty person and meeting times are scheduled by mutual agreement. Student is generally more involved in determining course of study in the tutorial model, but is guided by program requirements and particular expertise of the faculty.
As a program that makes exclusive use of a tutorial format, the William James Tutorial Program is comprised of two venues:
Venue One: attendance at a four day (weekdays) tutorial that will be held in Maine, Southern California or Northern California, near home of one of the senior tutors
Venue Two: attendance at a four day (weekdays) tutorial that will be held near the home of one of the participating students
Program Schedule
The PSP doctoral degree program is usually completed in 3 ½ to 4 years. Upon completion of their program, participants receive a Doctor of Psychology degree.
For students enrolling in the William James Tutorial Program by June 1, 2006, the following schedule of classes has been tentatively established.
Month Course Title Venue
August 2006 Social Bases of Behavior One
August 2006 Organizational Theory One (1/2 course)
December 2006 Organizational Theory One (1/2 of course)
December 2006 Personality Theory One (1/2 of course)
February 2007 Personality Theory One (1/2 of course)
February 2007 Individual Assessment One
April 2007 Behavioral Neurobiology Two (1/2 of course)
April 2007 Group Theory Two (1/2 of course)
August 2007 Group Theory One (1/2 of course)
August 2007 Psychological Inquiry I One (1/2 of course)
November 2007 Psychological Inquiry I Two (1/2 of course)
November 2007 Decision Theory Two (1/2 of course)
January 2008 Decision Theory One (1/2 of course)
January 2008 Individual Intervention One
July 2008 Psychological Inquiry II Two
July 2008 Attitude Theory Two
November 2008 Group Assessment and One (2 Courses)
Intervention
February 2009 Psychological Inquiry III Two (1/2 of course)
February 2009 Adult Learning Two (1/2 of course)
July 2009 Adult Learning One (1/2 of course)
July 2009 Individual Theory One (1/2 of course)
July 2009 Cognitive Bases of Behavior One (1/2 of course)
November 2009 Cognitive Bases of Behavior Two (1/2 of course)
Individual Theory Two (1/2 of course)
March 2010 Organizational Assessment One (2 courses)
And Intervention
June 2010 Psychological Inquiry III One (1/2 of course)
Summer 2010- Dissertation Research Design One
Winter 2011
Appendix A
William James Faculty Tutors
William Bergquist , Ph.D.
Dr. Bergquist is an international coach and consultant, professor in the fields of psychology, management and public administration, author of more than 40 books, and president of a graduate Professional School of Psychology of psychology. Dr. Bergquist consults on and writes about personal, group, organizational and societal transitions and transformations. His written work ranges from the personal transitions of men and women in their 50s and the struggles of men and women in recovering from strokes to the experiences of freedom among the men and women of Eastern Europe following the collapse of the Soviet Union.
In recent years, Bergquist has focused on the processes of executive and performance coaching and on the reunification of psychology, philosophy, spirituality and religion. He recently established The Coaching Alliance-a multi-program initiative that provides training, coaching, coi1su1ting, and research services throughout the world, as well as publishing Executive Coaching: An Appreciative Approach, Executive Coaching: Resource Book 2002, and a quarterly monograph and several other seniors organizations coaches from throughout the world. Along with Agnes Mura of the William James Tutorial Program and other world leaders in the area of organizational coaching, Bergquist has also founded the International Consortium for Coaching in Organizations.
Fred Massarik, Ph. D.
Dr. Massarik is an international consultant, university professor, author and trainer. He serves as Professor (emeritus) at the Anderson School of Management (University of California Los Angeles) and is consistently involved in humanistic thought and organizational activities on various occasions as president and then as treasurer of the American Psychological Association Division 32; and as a past president of the Association for Humanistic Psychology. For many years, Massarik served as director or co-director of the Division of Applied Behavioral Science, University Extension, UCLA, coordinating experiential group process and organization development programs at Ojai, California - the well known and highly regarded “Ojai Labs.” He has been active with the NTL Institute with special interest in the germinal work of Kurt Lewin, and in linking theory with practice.
Dr. Massarik recently co-authored Organization Development: Perspectives and Foundations (Jossey-Bass Pfeiffer, 2002), is Managing Editor of Self-Help and Self-Care (Baywood Publishing) and previously has edited journals on Small Group Behavior (Sage) and Interpersonal Development (Karger.) Fred Massarik has served as external consultant to firms such as McKinsey and Andersen, teaches and consults worldwide to corporate and family businesses with assignments in Europe (Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, UK, Ireland) and Asia (Japan, India, and Nepal) and in the US (financial, automotive, industrial and service industries).
Christopher McCullough, Ph.D.
Dr. McCullough is a licensed psychotherapist in private practice in San Francisco, California. His is co-author of the APA award winning book, Managing Your Anxiety, as well as author of Outgrowing Agoraphobia, Always at Ease, Nobody’s Victim, Coping (video for teens) and How to Manage Your Fears and Phobias (audio tape). Dr. McCullough is a Certified Clinical Philosopher and also certified as a Philosophical Counselor by the American Philosophical Practitioners Association. He is a former Director of the San Francisco Anxiety and Phobia Recovery Center and the Gladman Memorial Hospital's Anxiety Treatment Program.
McCullough has hosted a biweekly Philosopher's Cafe at Barnes & Noble in San Francisco, CA. and has been interviewed extensively by the media during his long career: Wall Street Journal, Esquire Magazine, Oprah Winfrey, CNN, Prevention Magazine, Regis Philbin, Attitudes Television, and Sally Jesse Rafael. Dr. McCullough appeared on television regularly on San Francisco 's “Good Morning Bay Area,” (1977- 1989) and in Raleigh North Carolina on WRAL’s noon news (1989-1993). He also hosted two radio shows in North Carolina, "On Your Mind" and “Life-Plus.”
Agnes Mura, M.A.
Agnes Mura, M.A., is an international Master Certified Coach to executives, business owners and service professionals. She is a founding director of the Professional Coaches and Mentors Association and Chair of the International Consortium for Coaching in Organizations. Agnes is first an experienced globally minded leadership coach; she understands organizational (and national) cultures and how high achievers navigate them. Her profound humanity is coupled with the keen business sense sharpened by her ten years as banking executive:
Agnes Mura has taught Coaching and Assessments to global executives in the Advanced Executive Program at the Anderson School of Business (UCLA) and to new coaches in the Cal State University Long Beach Professional Coach Training program. She is a regular and frequent guest lecturer in Pepperdine University’s doctoral program in Organizational Leadership. In 2003 she became a founding member of the editorial board of the International Journal of Coaching in Organizations. She is a long-time member of the committee that accredits coach-training institutions for the International Coach Federation. She co-authored Ten Themes and Variations for postmodern Leaders and Their Coaches in 2005 with William Bergquist. Agnes Mura, Inc. clients have included: AT&T, Avon, The Coca Cola Company, Cemex, Deloitte & Touche, Warner Bros., Consumer Products, MGM Studios, Mattel, Coors Breweries, Habitat for Humanity, Sony Pictures, Sony Electronics, KPMG, DDB Canada, TRW, Toyota University, UBS.
Appendix B
PSP Courses and William James Tutorial Focus Descriptions
Psy 749 Personality Theory (4 units)
Examination of major theoretical approaches to understanding personality development, structure, and functioning. Considering different models, this course focuses on how personality theories are built, the elements of such theories, and the relationship between personality theory and intervention. Limitations of each theoretical conceptualization and the impact of these limits on application and research are explored. Students are encouraged to recognize their own assumptions about personality and to organize those assumptions into an evolving conceptualization.
William James Tutorial Focus: A History of the Self
This course will review a historic process of devaluation of the self beginning with a dislocation of the self as center of the Universe, the disinherited child of God, the solipsistic (Cartesian) self the Darwinian reduction of self as tied to nature, the self as largely unconscious and the postmodern self as a social product rather than autonomous. The class will participate in a creative search for the essence and location of the self, using perspectives from both science and the humanities.
Psy 770 Behavioral Neurobiology (4 units)
An introduction to behavioral neurosciences with an exploration of the physiology underlying human behavior. Particular attention given to functional neuro-anatomy, neuro-endocrine functions, psychosomatic disorders and psycho-neuro-immunology . Consideration is also given to the design of psychological interventions and educational/training programs based upon recent research and theory regarding the neurophysiology (mind/body interactions) underlying human behavior.
William James Tutorial Focus: The Spiritual Dimension of the Self: Beyond Dualism
This course considers expressions of the spiritual self, beyond traditional Cartesian dualism that postulates “thinking" as the essential human element. Beyond formalistic religious form (which mayor may not involve spirituality) the course reopens issues associated with experience of the deeper self in higher consciousness, free will, intentionality, epiphany, soul, spiritual connectedness in daily life, and sensing of meaning in extreme situations. Sources are drawn from the universalistic and natural domains, including Eastern and Western views, and from writings in Zen, Hindi and native-American literature.
PSY 772 Social Bases of Behavior (4 units)
A focus on the social inf1uence of individual and group behavior with an emphasis on perception, cognition, identity, attitudes, conformity, aggression, and interpersonal relationships. Exploration of the relationship between individuals and their social contexts, both cross-culturally and historically. In-depth discussions of these issues relevant to clinical, group, and organizational interventions.
William James Tutoria1 Focus: Les Belles Lettres: Literature, The Human Condition and Society
This course develops ideas associated with contemporary and classic literature and the arts, as intrinsic values and in their significance for understanding of self and others within societal contexts. Ideas such as “beauty,” “chaos and order,” “rhythm and “flow” are illustrative themes.
PSY 774 Cognitive Bases of Behavior (4 units)
A comprehensive exploration of numerous psychological theories related to the development of and organization of thought and memory. Ways in which cognitive processes influence the individual's perceptions of reality, emotional experiences, motivation, and behavior. A consideration of various contemporary research studies concerning the development of intervention strategies useful for clinical, group, or organizational change.
William James Tutorial Focus: Pastiche and Eclecticism - Expression and Postmodern Art
This course looks at visual and non-visual art that represents postmodern pluralism toward pastiche-like multiplicity (Gergen). Understanding how art both reflects and participates in the movement away from distinct styles to a nonspecific eclecticism.
Psy 784-786 The Nature and Functioning of Psychological Inquiry (15 units)
This year long sequence of courses highlights the fundamental issues and variety of approaches to psychological inquiry. Attention is give to the history and systems of psychological inquiry, to the wide-range of quantitative, and qualitative methods of inquiry being engaged by practicing psychologists today, and to the strategies of psychological inquiry that might be engaged by students as they prepare their dissertation proposals. The focus of these three courses is no applied research and on the interplay between theory, research and practice, so that students enrolled in these courses might become successful "reflective practitioners" who consistently reflect on their own practices, while contributing to the accumulating wisdom of their field.
William James Tutorial Focus: Research Design and Methodology
This course provides a comprehensive overview of research design and methodology and an opportunity for each learner to specialize in paradigm( s) per individual choice. Strategies of research design; the logic of inquiry; inductive and hypothetic-deductive reasoning; concept selection and the perceptual process, quantitative and qualitative methods and their meta-logic unity; monological, dialogical and trans-logical modes are central in the course's wide scope.
Psy 810 Theoretical Foundations of I-O Psychology: Individuals (4 units)
This course covers the theoretical basis of industrial organizational psychology across a range of topics, particularly as it relates to individuals within an organizational context. Attention will be given to such issues as behavior, motivation, attitudes, cognitive skills, and personality. Discussion will include the application of theoretical issues to career development, adult learning, growth, and change.
William James Tutorial Focus: Understanding Adult Development
Review of adult development theory and research (Levinson, Sheehy, Erikson, Homey, Fromm, Bridges, Perry). Looking at life in terms of empirical studies and conceptual positions, noting concepts as life stages, transitions, barriers, transcendence, growth, self-actualization, freedom, decline, dying and death.
Psy 811 Theoretical Foundations of I-O Psychology: Groups (4 units)
This course covers the dynamics that operate in the formation and maintenance of task-oriented groups. Attention is given to such issues as leadership, decision-making, problem solving, communicati1n, morale, conflict management, and planning. Consideration is also given to theories emphasizing behavioral analysis as well as unconscious processes among group members.
William James Tutorial Focus: Group Theory: Understanding Self and Others in Leadership and Society
This course concerns classical and contemporary group theories that focus on se1f in relationship with others, and on the nature of dynamics that unfold in groups.
Psy 813 Theoretical Foundations of I-O Psychology: Organizations (4 units)
An examination of the seminal works in organizational psychology covering such areas as human relations, group relations, and social-critical theory. Attention is also given to social, political, economic, and cultural influences on contemporary organizations.
William James Tutorial Focus: Field Theory in the Disciplines
This course focuses on the ways in which field theory has served as an underlying epistemological assumption by great thinkers in the various disciplines: Sociology (Gouldner and Garfinkel), Philosophy (Husserl, Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty), Psychology (Lewin, May, Binswanger), Aesthetics (Pepper, Bullough), and Leadership (Heifetz, Wheatley, Koestenbaum).
Psy 815 Attitude Theory (4 units)
An examination of the relationship between attitudes and organizational change. Emphasis will be place on the impact of attitudes on diagnosis of organizational problems, and the relationship between behavioral intentions and individuals' behavior at work. Specifically, this course will focus on attitude theory, formation, measurement, change, and how attitudes relate to behaviors.
William James Tutorial Focus: Grand Conversations
Using a role-playing format, each learner identifies with one important thinker in a particular field and represents that thinker in conversation with others on various themes of human experience.
Psy 817 Decision Theory (4 units)
In this course consideration is given to methods for encouraging effective individual, small group, and institutional decision-making within a context of institutional complexity, turbulence, and conflicting priorities. The focus will be on task, method, and relationship dimensions of decision making, as well as on organizational mapping and learning through the use of systemic, computer-based analytic tools. This course also examines the prescriptive and normative emphasis of decision theory, as potentially applied to the areas of employee selection, choice behavior, vigilance behavior, and human performance. An understanding of the inferential procedures used by individuals in making decisions will be explored through one or more of the following models: the Brunswickian lens, Bayesian inference, and cognitive information processing.
William James Tutorial Focus: Philosophic Venues: Applications Today
This course emphasizes [the function of philosophy as a unifying field, and as an original source from which numerous disciplines are derived. Pre-modern, modern and postmodern approaches are examined and their implications for contemporary science, health care and technology are reviewed. Viewpoints such as experimentalism, radical empiricism, humanism, pragmatism and positivism are discussed and focused on practical issues of interest to learners and faculty.
Psy 820 Measurement and Assessment: Individuals (4 units)
An examination of the psychometric bases for measuring normal human behavior with attention given to the assessment, interpretation, and communication of individuals' distinguishing characteristics appropriate to a variety of work-related purposes. Emphasis placed on interviews} tests, and appraisal techniques that deal with such areas as knowledge, skills, abilities, performance, interests, attitudes, and personality. Topics to be covered include identifying, developing, selecting, and using the appropriate means for assessment, as well as the guidelines for interpreting and communicating the results in writing of face-to-face. This course will stress the "whole person" approach to the individual assessment process. Also covered will be technical procedures, such as test development, selection, standardization, validity, and reliability.
William James Tutorial Focus: The Course of Human Life—What We Make of It (Part I)
Making use of a “life planning lab” this course enables students to examine their own life course as a whole - starting with the present (and past as context) while emphasizing future goals and aspirations.
Psy 821 Measurement and Assessment: Groups (4 units)
This course examines the psychometric bases for measuring group processes and behavior, including the assessment of such constructs as leadership, group dynamics, group interaction, and group effectiveness. Research and evaluation strategies for assessment of group performance, functioning, and diagnosis will be studied.
William James Tutorial Focus: The Group Experience: Understanding Self and Others in Leadership and Society (Part I)
This course is based on intensive small-group process focused on self and relationship with others - and on dynamics unfolding in groups of which the learner is a member.
PSY 822 Measurement and Assessment: Organizations (4 units)
Coverage in this course deals with the methods for diagnosing, measuring, and assessing institutional behavior, including organizational climate and character, analysis of transition, change management, and those internal and external factors which affect organizations. Both qualitative and quantitative assessment tools are considered. This course seeks an integration of theory, research, and consultation is assessing organizational behavior.
William James Tutorial Focus: Leadership in Organization ---Humanistic and Humanities Perspective (Part I)
This course looks at leadership historically and in term of the assessment of leadership styles, skills and performance.
PSY 825 Interventions: Individuals (4 units)
A integration of theory and research regarding the states of adult and career development using programs, tools, and procedures for exploring the life and career aspirations of individuals and the means of linking these aspirations to organizational intentions. Programs and interventions which assist individuals in an organizational setting are emphasized, including life and career planning, outplacement and transition counseling, training and development, professional growth contracts, career ladders, performance appraisal and skills development.
William James Tutorial! Focus: The Course of Human Life: What We Make of It (Part II)
Making use of a “life planning lab” this course enables students to examine their own life course as a whole - starting with the present (and past as context) while emphasizing future goals and aspirations.
Psy 826 Interventions: Groups (4 units)
This course applies group theory and research findings toward the improvement of group functioning and performance. Attention is also given to designing and implementing interventions, such as process consultation, team building, communication enhancement, and group relations training.
William James Tutorial Focus: The Group Experience: Understanding Self and Others in Leadership and Society (Part II)
This course is based on intensive small-group process focused on self and relationship with others, and on dynamics unfolding in groups of which the learner is a member.
Psy 827 Interventions: Organizations (4 units)
This course applies organization theory to the role of the professional consultant in the design and implementation of organizational interventions. Attention is given to issues of change (dynamics) and stabilization (statics); stages of organizational life; changes in structure, process, attitude in such area as personnel selection, training and development; socio-technical consultation; job redesign; organizational learning; and appreciative inquiry.
William James Tutorial Focus: Leadership in Organization: A Humanistic and Humanities Perspective (Part II)
This course looks at leadership historically and pragmatically by case examples chosen from classic literature, poetry, theatre and modern management. It considers values, tactics and strategy, and interrelationships among “leader,” “follower” and “situation” in determining leadership effectiveness.
Psy P76: Organizational Studies: Topics in Postmodernism [Offered Specifically for William James Tutorial Program]
In this course, students will discuss the effects of postmodern views on various aspects of human experience, e.g., ethics, religion, business, the arts, and education.
PSY 840 Organizational Case Conference (3 units)
This seminar provides in-depth supervision in a group setting and explores the professional and personal issues emerging from students' roles as teachers, leaders, interventionists, and advocates. Students present cases, and class discussion centers on issues concerning their work in the field. The focus is on such topics as diagnosis, change, stabilization strategies, and reflective practice.
William James Tutorial Focus: Practicum
A practicum is provided throughout the William James Tutorial program. The practicum offers opportunities for application and testing of ideas in “real-world” settings, unique to each learner, collaboratively with one or several faculty members.
PSY 854 Adult Learning (4 units)
An integration of needs theories, cognitive theory, and reinforcement theories with their influences on goal setting, job design, incentive systems, participatory decision making, and organizational effectiveness. Attention is also given to training theory, instructional design theory, training development, and delivery of training. The course will focus on the affective, cognitive and psychomotor impact of adult learning. It will also cover theory and research on the different ways in which adults learn with programs, tools, and procedures for training, professional development, personal goal setting, job design, incentive programs, and organizational change efforts.
William James Tutorial Focus I: Ways of Knowing
Behind every claim to know is an assumption regarding the means by which that claim is established. Is knowledge/truth to be acquired by means of rationalism, empiricism, revelation, radical empiricism, or a phenomenological field? The purpose of this course is to demonstrate how a particular epistemology allows or disallows the truth of an object of knowledge. Phenomenology’s compatibility; with the postmodern perspective will serve as a basis for this sequence of courses.
PSY 895 Dissertation Research Design (5 units)
This course is a practical pro-s~ on the nature and range of dissertation research. It emphasizes problem identification, steps in the research process, ethical considerations, and completion of a research proposal. Students should have a potential research topic area in mind ~ore enrolling in this course. Class meetings are scheduled over two consecutive quarters. Prerequisite: Advancement to candidacy status through passing of doctoral comprehensive examinations.
PSY 896-899 Dissertation Research (15 units total)
Students work independently, with the guidance and collaboration of their dissertation committees, to execute an in-depth research project on an applied psychological topic and report their findings in dissertation format. The final dissertation is a major project that exhibits doctoral-level competence in the identification, analysis, and treatment of a complex psychological phenomenon, issue, or problem.
William James Tutorial Focus: The Dissertation
This “series of events” (rather than particular structured courses) provides each learner with a chance to review exemplary dissertations; to explore pitfalls and successes in dissertation development; to dialogue on the notion “contribution to knowledge" and in timely manner to write the dissertation from draft( s) to final version.
Resource Links:
Steps in Senior Tutorial Programs
Register by contacting the Patti Erck at the Professional School of Psychology by telephone at (916) 641-6542 Ext 1 or e-mail triciaerck@yahoo.com
