Key Takeaways
- Transpersonal psychology studies the spiritual side of human life.
- It helps people understand their spirituality and improve their self-esteem.
- Topics like meditation and spirituality are common research areas in this field.
Transpersonal psychology is centered on the spiritual aspects of human life. While it’s one of the less-known psychology branches, transpersonal psychology plays a critical role in mental health. By helping individuals understand their spirituality, they’re able to positively change their character, identity, and even their self-esteem.
What Is Transpersonal Psychology?
Transpersonal psychology utilizes psychological methods and theories to examine spiritual subject matter. This particular psychological theory embraces a wide variety of ideas that are less about religion and more about the human mind and behavior. Transpersonal psychology looks at the whole human experience.
Instead of focusing on one school of psychological thought or even just one discipline, transpersonal psychology seeks to incorporate a broad array of ideas, disciplines, and theories like philosophy, literature, health theories, art, social theory, cognition science, and different spiritual traditions.
In her book Eyes Wide Open: Cultivating Discernment on the Spiritual Path, Mariana Caplan explains: “Transpersonal psychologists attempt to integrate timeless wisdom with modern Western psychology and translate spiritual principles into scientifically grounded, contemporary language. Transpersonal psychology addresses the full spectrum of human psychospiritual development—from our deepest wounds and needs to the existential crisis of the human being, to the most transcendent capacities of our consciousness.”
History of Transpersonal Psychology
The field formally began in the late 1960s and was co-founded by psychologist Abraham Maslow and psychiatrist Stanislav Grof. However, transpersonal psychology also has roots in earlier work by psychologists such as William James and Carl Jung, who were deeply interested in the spiritual aspects of human nature.
Other notable dates in transpersonal psychology include:
- In 1969, The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology began publication.
- In 1971, the Association for Transpersonal Psychology was established.
- In 1978, the International Transpersonal Association was formed.
In the early 1990s, researchers Lajoie and Shapiro attempted to clarify what transpersonal psychology means. While not all definitions are exactly the same, they suggested that there are several key factors that figure into most explanations within this field. They include spirituality, higher potential, transcendence, and other states of consciousness.
In addition to using psychology to better understand spiritual experiences, transpersonal psychology also strives to provide a deeper and richer understanding of individuals and to help them achieve their greatest potential.
Popularity of Transpersonal Psychology
Transpersonal psychology is not often explored in traditional psychology degree programs. That said, there is increasing interest in this perspective and how theories and ideas from this field can be applied to different subfields of psychology.
Mindfulness meditation, for example, is one element of transpersonal psychology that has gained popularity. Between 2012 and 2017, the number of people practicing this type of meditation, mantra-based meditation, or spiritual meditation tripled, growing from 4.1% to 14.2%
Transpersonal Psychology vs. Parapsychology
Transpersonal psychology is sometimes confused with parapsychology. Although, it is important to note that the two are not the same.
While transpersonal psychology focuses on the spiritual side of human nature, parapsychology is concerned with the paranormal. Parapsychology includes topics such as psychic phenomena, precognition, clairvoyance, near-death experiences, and psychokinesis.
Research Areas in Transpersonal Psychology
The following are just a few of the areas of research interest in the transpersonal psychology field:
- Music therapy
- Guided imagery and visualization
- Peak experiences
- Meditation, including mindfulness
- Spirituality and psychology
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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