INTELLECTUAL PURSUITS OF A THINKING TYPE

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     As a Thinking type, I tend to absorb any sort of logical system that catches my interests. Traditionally, this has taken the form of theories and philosophies arising from various sources. Such ideas tend to be the primary way I solve problems. Rather than look first at my feelings or those of others, I search for an idea that fits a given circumstance, and then generate solutions based on the logical consequences of that idea. Below are some of the primary ideas that guide most of my interactions with other people and the world at large.

PSYCHOLOGY:

     My background is in psychology, and I particularly enjoy the more obscure branches of the discipline.

What is Psychology?

  • This is a brief introduction to the discipline: the different branches and who practices.

Systems and Theories in Psychology

  • Transcribed lecture notes from a class that was part of my undergraduate program within Morehead State University's Department of Psychology.

The Psychology of Optimal Experience:

  • The Flow model. Optimal experiences are those experiences that bring people fun and enjoyment. This link addresses the theory of flow and its implications for structuring more fun into individual lives.

Philosophical Psychology:

  • This is the branch of psychology that deals with the influence of ideas on individuals' thoughts, feelings and behaviors. More than any other branch, philosophical psychology examines the differing theories of the human being, pointing out logical inconsistencies and the consequences of the "hidden ideas" implicit in them.

Narrative Psychology:

  • This is what I consider to be a subfield of philosophical psychology. "Narrative psychology" springs from the thesis that human beings create their own worlds by shaping experience into stories. Some of these narratives are unique to the individual, and many are shared by an entire culture.

    Industrial/Organizational Psychology:

  • The study of the Psychology of Work. This information was taken from my own personal research

The Psychology of Pain:

  • This is information from the latest chapter of my career. The relationship of psychological factors to the perception and interpretation of chronic pain is only just beginning to be understood.

    • Religion:

    • This page is not dedicated to an exhaustive presentation of world religions and it is not intended to survey the highlights of modern theology. Plenty of other sites exist on the Internet for such topics. Rather, the goal is to present the primary ideas of each of the following traditions, and to summarize what they consider to be human nature.

    Hinduism Buddhism Islam Judaism Christianity Existentialism

    Other Religion Sites:

    Free Inquiry -- A website dedicated to Secular Humanism
    Religious Tolerance -- Essays on ideas and issues related to religion.
    CSICOP -- the critical investigation of paranormal and fringe-science claims.

    Mathematics:

    • A new area for me. With a long history of problems in mathematics, I have only recently come back to it.

    General Statistics Notes
    Fractal Geometry


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