Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology

Concepts in Aristotle and Aquinas: Implications for current theoretical approaches.
Recent experimental research on concepts has identified a number of important aspects of concepts which appear to be generally incompatible with each other (e.g., research supporting concepts as prototypes vs. psychological essences, or supporting concepts as statistical accumulations vs. generics). We propose that the Aristotelian–Thomistic (A-T) view of concepts provides a theoretical framework within which such disparate results can be accommodated. We show that the classical view of concepts ruled out in the 1970s was not the A-T view of concepts, and that the evidence that rules out the classical view does not rule out the A-T view. We then show that many modern research results are prefigured by aspects of the A-T view. Our review indicates that the A-T view of concepts remains a viable approach and warrants reconsideration. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)
Kierkegaard's conception of psychology.
This article explicates Kierkegaard’s conception of psychology on its own terms and divorced as much as possible from contemporary figurations. His pseudonymous works are of primary focus. It is argued that Kierkegaard presents 2 different psychologies: 1 congruent with his understanding of science as practiced at the beginnings of the age of modernity, and the other his experimenting psychology. These psychologies differ with regard to their modes of psychological observation and are found to also instantiate the Kierkegaardian distinction between objectivity and subjectivity. Moreover, they engender contrasting results and aspire to different levels of understanding and passionate engagement with their intended objects of study. Kierkegaard places introspection and self-analysis as the sine qua non of his psychology and uses psychological information gained from the intensive study of (and engaged interaction with) other individuals to elaborate on the results of introspection. He also provides examples of psychological interventions, one of which can lead to a palliative effect and the liberation of vital energies. These various themes synthesized from his pseudonymous writings are found to be in accordance with other aspects of Kierkegaard’s thought. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)
From guilt-oriented to uncertainty-oriented culture: Nietzsche and Weber on the history of theodicy.
A psychology of the emotions should recognize that culture grounds our experience of emotions, particularly existential emotions such as guilt and the anxiety of uncertainty. Nietzsche and Weber present historical models that emphasize the role of culture in solving the problem of theodicy—explaining seemingly unjust suffering—and thereby conditioning the individual's experience of emotion in response to suffering. More important, they identified the transition from cultural premodernity to modernity with the shift from guilt-oriented to uncertainty-oriented culture. Although individuals in premodern cultures tended to interpret suffering in terms of personal inadequacy and guilt, individuals in modern culture tend to interpret suffering in terms of uncertainty and disillusionment. In the present article I review the histories of theodicy of Nietzsche and Weber. This cultural-historical theory is applied to integrate diverse empirical findings from psychology and anthropology relevant to the relationship between culture and existential emotion and to enrich relevant contemporary theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)
Review of William Stern (1871–1938): A brief introduction to his life and works.
Reviews the book, William Stern (1871–1938): A Brief Introduction to His Life and Works by James T. Lamiell (2010). We have two decades of William and Clara Stern revival in the history of psychology, thanks, in large part, to the persistent efforts of James Lamiell. This book will primarily interest psychologists for its more robust account of differential psychology, including correlation and variation research that studies the distribution of attribute variables. Lamiell notes a renewed interest in Stern’s other two methodological interests: psychography of the attributes of individuals and comparison research involving two or more individuals. Several additional authors reviewed by Lamiell have placed Stern in the history of child development research and theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)
Review of From the conscious interior to the exterior unconscious: Lacan, discourse analysis and social psychology.
Reviews the book, From the Conscious Interior to the Exterior Unconscious: Lacan, Discourse Analysis and Social Psychology by D. P. Cuéllar (2010). In this book, the author provides an insightful and scholarly “application of Lacanian concepts to discourse analysis in psychology.” As the author rightly points out, he is not the first to develop a Lacanian-inspired approach to analyzing texts, and the book systematically engages with the whole range of already existing approaches, both in the French and the English speaking literature. This, however, is the most complete and systematic proposal for a discursive approach consistent with Lacanian psychoanalysis that the reviewer has come across, at least in the English-speaking world. The book provides an extremely systematic and scholarly explication of Lacanian theory and outlines the principles of a Lacanian discourse analysis that is innovative, inspiring, and true to the spirit of Lacanian psychoanalysis. However, it falls short of taking the next step of really showing what this Lacanian discourse analysis looks like in practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)
News and notes.
Presents news and notes relevant to APA Division 24, the Society for Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology - Vol 33, Iss 2