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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Arts and Humanities

Sociology

California Institute of Integral Studies

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Transpersonal Sociology: Origins, Development, And Theory, Ryan Rominger, Harris L. Friedman Jul 2013

Transpersonal Sociology: Origins, Development, And Theory, Ryan Rominger, Harris L. Friedman

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Transpersonal theory formally developed within psychology through the initial definition of the field in the publishing of the Journal of Transpersonal Psychology. However, transpersonal sociology also developed with the Transpersonal Sociology Newsletter, which operated through the middle 1990s. Both disciplines have long histories, while one continues to flourish and the other, comparatively, is languishing. In order to encourage renewed interest in this important area of transpersonal studies, we discuss the history, and further define the field of transpersonal sociology, discuss practical applications of transpersonal sociology, and introduce research approaches that might be of benefit for transpersonal sociological researchers and practitioners.


Religion And Spiritual Experience: Revisiting Key Assumptions In Sociology, Steven F. Cohn, Kyriacos C. Markides Jul 2013

Religion And Spiritual Experience: Revisiting Key Assumptions In Sociology, Steven F. Cohn, Kyriacos C. Markides

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

In this paper, we examine the dominant materialist assumption that there is an inherent conflict between sociology, religion, and spirituality. We will suggest that such a conflict is not fundamental and that accepting the possibility that religious experiences might reflect contact with a transcendent reality can enrich the theoretical possibilities of sociology, supplementing rather than replacing existing insights.