This book presents a theory of the person, which does not regard reason, the consciousness of self or freedom as distinguishing marks, but "feeling". The author distinguishes feeling from its complement, emotion, and defines it as resonance with being, the capacity to be unified with what is present. He relates his approach to the theory and practice of a transpersonal psychology and philosophy. John Heron explores in depth the nature of feeling, and the imaginal mind as the home of intuition and imagery; devotes several chapters to learning and the idea that feeling and imagination are the bases of the intellect; considers how personhood unfolds through various stages; contrasts the constricted ego with the integrated person; looks at both the theory and practice of a spiritual philosophy; provides 100 exercises to enable the reader to translate theoretical concepts into personal experience. He relates his approach to the theory and practice of a transpersonal psychology and philosophy. John Heron is also author of "Helping the Client".
John Heron founded the Human Potential Research Group at the University of Surrey, and later pioneered personal and professional development programs for doctors, as Assistant Director, British Postgraduate Medical Federation, University of London. He now runs the South Pacific Centre for Human Inquiry, New Zealand.
Theory of the person: preliminaries Theory of the person: overview States of personhood The ego The affective mode: feeling The affective mode: emotion The imaginal mode The psyche and its worlds A One-Many Reality Jung, Kolb and Wilber Life cycles and learning cycles A brief look at learning Formal learning cycles The reality-creating learning cycle
`A complex work, well designed and structured, and rooted in philosophy and psychology... Several of the chapters culminate in exercises, generally to be carried out with a partner. They underline the points Heron makes in his theoretical exposition in an enjoyable way and would form part of an exploration of different psychological approaches and theories... The wide range and ambition of the book, as well as its concepts, make it interesting. It is presented as a "challenging alternative to traditional reason-centred and ego-bound psychology" and as such will be welcomed for its different perspectives by those running courses' - Counselling, The Journal of the British Association for Counselling `The book will find an avid following amongst those involved in humanistic approaches to psychology and co-counsellors who will value the hundred experiential exercises... the strength of the book lies in its detailed treatment of models of personhood. Heron carefully takes the reader through a series of complex intertwining metaphors, culminating in a mandala bringing together the various modes with their attendant polarities, worlds and forms of knowing. A review such as this cannot do justice to the extent to which Heron has successfully used diagrams to amplify the complex ideas within his text... there is much to commend this book. In addition to the carefully crafted theoretical statements, the activities will be a reservoir of ideas for the practitioner involved in work on the development of human potential' - British Journal of Psychology `The book delivers a thoughtful and internally consistent model that attempts to integrate the traditional areas of emotion, imagery, cognition and behavior with the archetypal-transpersonal realms of experience... Heron offers exercises that give the reader an opportunity to experientially delve into many of the phenomena covered by Heron's model' - Contemporary Psychology
