Dr. Alexandra Parvan |
September - November 2011 |
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Dr Alexandra Pârvan has been awarded an Andrew W. Mellon Research Fellowship to pursue research at the Institute on ‘The practical application of Augustine's theory on evil in psychotherapy’: Many of Augustine of Hippo’s (354-430) ideas were seminal to the development of western Christianity and European cultural tradition and are studied today in the secular context of several disciplines of humanities: political theory, philosophy of history, epistemology, ethics, history, anthropology, semiotics, literary studies, and psychology. My research at IASH investigates ways in which Augustine’s concept of evil can potentially be made useful in psychotherapeutic practice. I analyse his theories on the non-substantiality of evil, the human experience of evil and the means of recovering from it and transform them into methodological tools which therapists may employ when approaching issues such as abuse, trauma, depression, anxiety, loss, etc. The very notion of healing presupposes that the persons seeking therapy lack something that they were naturally supposed to have, and that their wholeness is temporarily broken, which is exactly how Augustine describes evil: as a hole in human beings’ ontological integrity. My research explores how Augustine’s metaphysical and psychological theories on evil can be used by therapists in the therapeutic dialogue in order to guide clients out of their dysfunctional coping mechanisms to harmful experiences.
Alexandra holds a first degree in psychology from the University of Bucharest and a PhD in philosophy from the Romanian Academy. She has a license for independent practice in experiential psychotherapy.
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