Society is undergoing a process of deep change and transformation as the neoliberal order moves into crisis. Contemporary psychology, mired in exceptionalism and individualism, fails to address this broader context and continues with a fragmented reductionist approach which is alienating to students and practitioners alike. In the lifetime of the discipline there have been several distinct frameworks to emerge - psychoanalytic, behaviourist and cognitive. To these one might add Kelly’s Personal Construct Theory as the last attempt to present a coherent and challenging framework for how to understand our lives. As society moves into a new phase, Ron Roberts argues the need for a new way of ‘doing’ psychology which challenges not only the existing epistemological and reductionist outlook, but the centrality of a scientific professional discourse as a suitable vehicle for improving lives and making sense of the world.
For the reader frustrated with the limitations of modernist psychology this book offers a thought-provoking alternative: an Off-Modern approach. Ron Roberts erudite and thought-provoking book explores the worlds of psychogeography and psychotherapy, drawing insights not only from scholars and researchers but also poets, artists, musicians and martial artists. Roberts offers those interested in psychology a new way of making the familiar strange and the strange familiar. --Dave Harper, Programme Director in Clinical Psychology, University of East London
Ron Roberts is a Chartered Psychologist and Honorary Lecturer in Psychology at Kingston University with over 30 years' experience in Higher Education. He is the author of seven other books.