loading content...

Style

Curriculum Vitae

Curriculum Vitae

Selected Professional Positions

2015-present
Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA.
Faculty.
SYMPOSIA ORGANIZED:
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Is Sanity? What Is Madness? (2015)
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Is Therapeutic? (2016)
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Are Altered Realities? (2017)
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Is Love? (2018)
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Is Authenticity? (2019)
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Is Spiritual? (2020)
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Is Happiness? (2021)
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: What Is Ethical? Moral? (2022)
2011-2019
California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA.
Adjunct Professor, Psy.D. Program.
COURSES TAUGHT:
Theories and Practice of Psychotherapy: Existential
Theories and Practice of Psychotherapy: Psychodynamic
2010-present
California Pacific Medical Center, San Francisco, CA.
Clinical Supervisor, Outpatient Mental Health Clinic
2008-present
Access Institute San Francisco, CA.
Clinical Supervisor/Faculty
1998-present
Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California, San Francisco, CA.
Personal and Supervising Analyst, Faculty.
2016-2018
Psychological Services Center (PSC), California Institute of Integral Studies
Clinical Supervisor/Faculty
1995-2013
Alliant International University/California School of Professional Psychology, San Francisco, CA.
Adjunct Professor
COURSES TAUGHT:
Theory and Technique of Clinical Practice: Psychodynamic
Theory and Technique of Clinical Practice: Existential
Theory and Technique of Clinical Practice: Psychotic Process
Theory and Technique of Clinical Practice: Family Systems
Spirituality and Religious Traditions
Phenomenology and Psychodynamic Therapy
Psychodynamic Perspectives on the Treatment of Psychosis
Principles of Psychotherapy
1988-present
Free Association, Inc., San Francisco, CA.
comprising:
New School for Psychoanalysis;
Free Association Clinic for Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis;
Gnosis Retreat Center.
Gnosis In-Home Services.
Founder, Chairman & CEO.
1988-1994
The Wright Institute, Berkeley, CA.
1988-1994
John F. Kennedy University, Orinda, CA.
(Graduate School of Professional Psychology)
Adjunct Professor.
COURSES TAUGHT:
Theories of Personality
History and Systems of Psychology
Psychopathology
Family Systems and Therapy
Theories of Psychodynamic Therapy
Existential Therapy
1984-1985
The Wright Institute, Berkeley, CA.
(Graduate School of Clinical Psychology)
Instructor.
COURSES TAUGHT:
The Radical Edge in Psychoanalysis
The Role of Love in Spirituality and Religion
1984-1985
California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA.
Assistant Adjunct Professor, Masters in Counseling Program.
COURSES TAUGHT:
Introduction to Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
1983-1986
Antioch University, San Francisco, CA.
Adjunct Faculty, Dept. of Psychology.
COURSES TAUGHT:
Developmental Psychology
History and Systems of Psychology
Feminist Theory
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
Psychopathology
Varieties of Religious Experience
Alternatives to Treating Psychotic Process
1981-1983
Shadows Therapy Center, Nicasio, CA.
Clinical Director.
1980-1981
Mental Research Institute, Palo Alto/Concord, CA.
(Contra Costa Mental Health Services)
Staff Supervisor.
1973-1980
Philadelphia Association, London, England.
(Founder: R. D. Laing)
Administrative Director & Clinical Coordinator.

Selected Publications

(Author publication name: M. Guy Thompson)

BOOKS

The Death of Desire: An Existential Study in Sanity and Madness. (2nd revised edition).(2016) New York and London: Routledge. (cloth & paperback editions)
The Legacy of R. D. Laing: An Appraisal of His Contemporary Relevance. (Ed.) (2015) London and New York: Routledge. (cloth & paperback editions)
The Ethic of Honesty: The Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis.(2004) Amsterdam and New York: Editions Rodopi. (cloth & paperback editions)
The Truth about Freud’s Technique: The Encounter with the Real.(1994) New York and London: New York University Press.
(clothbound edition)
(1995) New York and London: New York University Press.(paperback edition)
The Death of Desire: A Study in Psychopathology.(1985) New York and London: New York University Press.
(clothbound edition)
(1986) New York and London: New York University Press.(paperback edition)

Essays in Existential Psychoanalysis: On the Primacy of Authenticity.
(In press) London and New York: Routledge. (cloth & paperback editions)

The Heart of the Matter: The Trials and Tribulations of Love Relationships.
(In preparation)

R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century: The Talks From Esalen Institute. (Ed.).
(In preparation)

OTHER PUBLICATIONS

Existential Psychoanalysis: The Role of Freedom in the Clinical Encounter. In The Most Innovative Ideas in Psychoanalysis Today (Eds., Aner Govrin and Jon Mills). London and New York: Routledge (Philosophy and Psychoanalysis Book Series), 2020.

The Personal Dimension to Ontology. Philosophy, Psychiatry, & Psychology. Vol. 2, No. 2: June, 2015.

Sanity and Friendship: The Therapeutic Element in Residential Living. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, Special Issue: Humanistic Perspectives on Understanding and Responding to Extreme States, 2018.

R.D. Laing and Anti-Psychopathology: The Myth of Mental Illness Redux. Psychotherapy in Australia, Vol. 20, No. 4: August 2014.

Preface. To The Druid of Harley Street: The Spiritual Psychology of E. Graham Howe (E. Graham Howe, author; William Stranger, editor). Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books., 2012.

A Road Less Traveled: The Dark Side of R. D. Laing’s Conception of Authenticity. Psychotherapy in Australia. Vol. 18, No. 2: February, 2012.

R. D. Laing Revisited: A Dialogue on his Contribution to Authenticity and the Sceptic Tradition. In Existential Psychotherapy: Legacy, Vibrancy and Dialogue (Ed., Laura Barnett and Greg Madison). London and New York: Routledge, 2012.

Happiness and Chance: A Reappraisal of the Psychoanalytic Conception of Suffering. Psychotherapy in Australia. Vol. 17, No. 3: May, 2011.

The Demise of the Person in the Psychoanalytic Situation. Psychotherapy in Australia. Vol. 17, No. 1: November, 2010.

The Demise of the Person in the Psychoanalytic Process. fort da: The Journal of the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology. Vol. 16, No. 2: Fall, 2010.

R. D. Laing’s Legacy to the Psychotherapy Experience. The Psychotherapist (a publication of the United Kingdom Committee on Psychotherapy [UKCP]). Issue 43, Autumn, 2009.

Murray Bilmes In Memoriam (1927-2007). fort da: The Journal of the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology. Vol. 14, No. 1: Spring, 2008.

Book Review of Jonathan Lear’s Therapeutic Action: An Earnest Plea for Irony. (New York, NY: The Other Press, 2006). Journal of Phenomenological Psychology. 39(2) Spring 2008.

Murray Bilmes Obituary. Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California Newsletter. Fall 2007.

Book Review of Richard Askay and Jensen Farquhar’s Apprehending the Inaccessible: Freudian Psychoanalysis and Existential Phenomenology. (Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 2006). Journal of Phenomenological Psychology. 38(1) 2007.

Book Review of Clancy Sigal’s Zone of the Interior. (London: Pomona Press, 2005). Journal for the Society of Existential Analysis. Volume 18, No. 2: July, 2007.

Vicissitudes of Authenticity in the Psychoanalytic Situation. Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Volume 42, No. 2: April, 2006.

A Road Less Traveled: The Hidden Sources of R. D. Laing’s Enigmatic Relationship with Authenticity. Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis. Volume 17, No. 1: January, 2006.

Phenomenology of Intersubjectivity: An Historical Overview of the Concept and Its Clinical Applications. In Intersubjectivity and Relational Theory in Psychoanalysis (Ed., Jon Mills). Hillsdale, N. J. and London: Jason Aronson, Inc., 2005.

The Way of Authenticity and the Quest for Personal Integrity. European Journal of Psychotherapy, Counseling and Health. September 2005; 7(3): 143-157.

Encyclopedia Articles (“authenticity;” “intentionality;” “ontology;” “ontological insecurity;” “phenomenology;” “temporality”). In The Edinburgh Encyclopaedia of Psychoanalysis (Ed., R. Skelton). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2005.

Book Review of Alphonse De Waelhens and Wilfried Ver Eecke’s Phenomenology and Lacan on Schizophrenia, after the Decade of the Brain. (Leuven: Leuven University Press, 2001).
Journal of Phenomenological Psychology. 35(1) 2004.

The Ambiguity of Cure: A Reappraisal of Analysis Terminable and Interminable. Psychoanalytic Psychology. Volume 21, Number 4, Fall 2004.

Book Review of Abraham Drassinower’s Freud’s Theory of Culture: Eros, Loss, and Politics. (New York and Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2003). Journal of Phenomenological Psychology. 35(1) 2004.

Aspects of Authenticity in the Clinical Thinking of Freud, Winnicott, Bion, and Lacan. fort da: The Journal of the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology. Vol. 10, No. 2: Fall, 2004.

Happiness and Chance: A Reappraisal of the Psychoanalytic Conception of Suffering. Psychoanalytic Psychology. Volume 21, Number 1, Winter 2004.

The Role of Being and Experience in Freud’s Unconscious Ontology. In Psychoanalysis at the Limit: Epistemology, Mind, and the Question of Science (Ed., Jon Mills). New York: State University of New York Press, 2004.

Nietzsche and Psychoanalysis: The Fate of Authenticity in a Postmodernist World. Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis. Volume 15, No. 2: July, 2004.

The Fidelity to Experience in R. D. Laing’s Treatment Philosophy. Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis. Copyright © 1997 William Alanson White Institute. (Originally published in Contemporary Psychoanalysis, Vol. 33, No. 4, 1997.) The Society for Existential Analysis Online Website, March 2004.

Postmodernism and Psychoanalysis: A Heideggerian Critique of Postmodern Malaise and the Question of Authenticity. In Way Beyond Freud: Postmodern Psychoanalysis Evaluated (Eds., J. Reppen, M. Schulman, J. Tucker). London: Open Gate Press, 2004.

Is The Unconscious Really All That Unconscious? The Role of Being and Experience in the Psychoanalytic Encounter. In Between Philosophy and Psychotherapy: Essays from the Philadelphia Association (Eds., J. Gordon and R. Mayo). London: Whurr Publications, 2004.

The Primacy of Experience in R. D. Laing’s Approach to Psychoanalysis. In Understanding Experience: Psychotherapy, Philosophy, and Postmodernism (Ed., Roger Frie). New York and London: Routledge, 2003.

Where Is the ‘Spirit’ in a Spiritual Conception of Psychoanalysis? Commentary to Raul Moncayo’s Zen Practice and the Practice of Lacanian Psychoanalysis. In Buddhism and Psychoanalysis: An Evolving Dialogue (Ed., Jeremy D. Safran). New York: Wisdom Publications, 2003.

Book Review of W. W. Meissner’s Freud and Psychoanalysis. (Notre Dame: Notre Dame University Press, 2000). Journal of Phenomenological Psychology. Vol. 33, No. 1, 2002

The Ethic of Honesty: The Moral Dimension to Psychoanalysis. fort da: The Journal of the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology. Vol. 8, No. 2: Fall, 2002.

The Existential Dimension to Working Through. Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis. Volume 13, No. 1: January, 2002.

Is The Unconscious Really All That Unconscious? The Role of Being and Experience in the Psychoanalytic Encounter. Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Volume 37, No. 4: October, 2001.

Happiness, Addiction, and Transference. In Hungers and Compulsions: Contemporary Perspectives in the Psychoanalytic Treatment of Eating Disorders and Addictions (Eds., Jean Petrucelli and Catherine Stuart). Northvale, N.J.: Jason Aronson, Inc., 2001.

The Ethic of Psychoanalysis: The Fundamental Rule to be Honest. In Where Id Was: ChallengingNormalization in Psychoanalysis (Ed., Anthony Molino). London: Athlone Press, 2001.

The Enigma of Honesty: The Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis. Free Associations, Volume 8 Part 3 (No. 47): 390-434, 2001.

Free Association: A Technical Principle or Model for Psychoanalytic Education? Psychologist Psychoanalyst. Volume 20, No. 2: Spring, 2000.

Logos and Psychoanalysis: The Role of Truth and Creativity in Heidegger’s Conception of Language. Psychologist Psychoanalyst. Volume 20, No. 4: Fall, 2000.

The Legacy and Future of R. D. Laing’s Contribution to Contemporary Thought – M. Guy Thompson, Guest Editor. The Psychoanalytic Review, 87(4), August 2000.

The Heart of the Matter: R. D. Laing’s Enigmatic Relationship with Psychoanalysis. The Psychoanalytic Review. The Psychoanalytic Review, 87(4), August 2000.

The Sceptic Dimension to Psychoanalysis: Toward an Ethic of Experience. Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Volume 36, No. 3: July, 2000.

Book Review of Ronald Lehrer’s Nietzsche’s Presence in Freud’s Life and Thought: On the Origins of a Psychology of Dynamic Unconscious Mental Functioning. (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1995). The Psychoanalytic Review, 87(3), June 2000.

Scepticism and Psychoanalysis. Psychologist Psychoanalyst. Volume 20, No. 2: Spring, 2000.

The Existential Dimension to Working-Through. Psychotherapy in Australia. Volume 6, No. 2: February, 2000.

The Crisis of Experience in Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Volume 36, No. 1: January, 2000.

Book Review of Edward Dolnick’s Madness On The Couch: Blaming the Victim in the Heyday of Psychoanalysis (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1998). Psychoanalytic Books, Volume 10, No. 4, 1999.

The Ethics of Psychoanalysis: Philosophical, Political, and Clinical Considerations – M. Guy Thompson, Guest Editor. The Psychoanalytic Review, 86(4) August, 1999.

The Ethic of Psychoanalysis: An Introduction. The Psychoanalytic Review, 86(4) August, 1999.

The Heart of the Matter: R. D. Laing’s Enigmatic Relationship with Psychoanalysis. The Humanist Psychologist. Volume 27, No. 1, 1999.

Manifestations of Transference: Love, Friendship, Rapport. Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Volume 34, No. 4: October, 1998.

The Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis. The Psychoanalytic Review, 85(5) October, 1998.

The Way of Neutrality. Australian Journal of Psychotherapy, Vol. 17, Nos. 1 and 2, 1998.

Interview with Dr. Otto Allen Will, Jr. (with Sharada Thompson). Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Volume 34, No. 2: April, 1998.

Existential Psychoanalysis — A Laingian Perspective, in Psychoanalytic Versions of the Human Condition and Clinical Practice (Eds., Paul Marcus & Alan Rosenberg). New York: New York University Press, 1998.

Skepticism and Psychoanalysis: Toward An Ethic of Experience. fort da: The Journal of the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, Vol. 4, No. 1, Spring 1998.

Book Review of Daniel Burston’s The Wing of Madness: The Life and Work of R. D. Laing (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1996). Psychoanalytic Books, Volume 8, No. 4, 1997.

The Fidelity to Experience in R. D. Laing’s Treatment Philosophy. Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Volume 33, No. 4: October, 1997.

Logos, Poetry and Heidegger’s Conception of Creativity. Psychotherapy in Australia, Volume 3, No. 4, August 1997.

The Fidelity to Experience in R. D. Laing’s Treatment Philosophy, in R. D. Laing: Creative Destroyer, Bob Mullan (Ed.). London: Cassell Publishers, 1997.

Deception, Mystification, Trauma: Laing and Freud. The Psychoanalytic Review. 83(6), December, 1996.

Deception, Mystification, Trauma: Laing and Freud. Psychotherapy in Australia, Volume 2, No. 4, August 1996.

Book Review of Bob Mullan’s Mad To Be Normal: Conversations With R. D. Laing (London: Free Association Books, 1995). Psychoanalytic Books, Volume 7, No. 3, 1996.

The Rule of Neutrality. Psychoanalysis and Contemporary Thought, Volume 19, No. 1, 1996.

Freud’s Conception of Neutrality. Contemporary Psychoanalysis, Volume 32, No. 1: January, 1996.

Logos, Poetry and Heidegger’s Conception of Creativity. fort da: The Journal of the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, Vol. 2, No. 1, Spring 1996.

Book Review of Miguel Iturrate’s Psychoanalysis and Phenomenology – Toward a Human Synthesis (New York: Vantage Press, 1993). Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, Vol. 26, No. 2, 1995.

Book Review of Herbert M. Potash’s Pragmatic-Existential Psychotherapy (Madison: Gordon Handwerk, 1994). Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, Vol. 26, No. 2, 1995.

Deconstructing Prozac. fort da: The Journal of the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, Vol. 1, No. 2, Fall 1995.

The Fidelity to Experience in Existential Psychoanalysis, in The Psychology of Existence: An Integrative, Clinical Perspective (Eds., Rollo May & Kirk Schneider). New York: McGraw-Hill, 1995.

The Existential Dimension to Termination. Psychoanalysis and Contemporary Thought, Vol. 17, No. 3, 1994.

Is There Hope for Psychoanalysis? Book review of Stephen A. Mitchell’s Hope and Dread in Psychoanalysis (New York: Basic Books, 1993). Contemporary Psychology, October 1994, 39(10).

Unpublished Lectures

“R. D. Laing’s Ethical Imperative.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium and Workshop: What Is Ethical? What Is Moral? Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, June 28, 2022.

“What Is Happiness: And Why Is It So Elusive?.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium and Workshop: What Is Happiness? Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, August 31, 2021.

“Brokenheartedness: Why Broken Hearts Are So Hard To Mend.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium and Workshop: What Is Spiritual? Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, July 21, 2020.

“The Enigma of Happiness: And Why It Is So Elusive. Public Lecture Presentation. California Institute of Integral Studies, Namaste Hall, San Francisco, CA., April 16, 2019.

“Eros and Agapé.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium and Workshop: What Is Love? Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, July 23, 2018.

“Sartre and Psychoanalysis: The Role of Freedom in Clinical Encounter.” Keynote Address, 23rd Meeting of the North American Sartre Society, University of La Verne, La Verne, CA, November 4, 2017.

“What Is Friendship? Public Lecture Presentation. California Institute of Integral Studies, Namaste Hall, San Francisco, CA., August 31, 2017.

“On Falling in Love.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium & Workshop: What Are Altered Realities? Asilomar Conference Center, Pacific Grove, CA., July 17, 2017.

“On Sympathy: The Role of Love in the Therapeutic Process.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium & Workshop: What is Therapeutic?, Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, August 8, 2016.

“Existential Freud: Converting Neurotic Misery into Common Unhappiness.” Invited Address, Seventh Annual Conference of the Existential-Humanistic Institute: Beyond Anxiety: Finding Strength and Meaning in Everyday Living. San Francisco, CA, November 16, 2013.

“What Is The Existential Sensibility?” Invited Address. Gnosis Existential Salon. San Francisco, CA, May 21, 2016.


Selected Speaking Engagements

“Sartre and Psychoanalysis: The Role of Freedom in the Clinical Encounter.” Invited Zoom Address. SAFPAC Seminars 2020 (UK). University of Roehampton, London, November 3, 2022.

“The Phenomenology of Will?” Invited Zoom Address. SAFPAC Seminars 2020 (UK). University of Roehampton, London, November 5, 2020.

“Brokenheartedness: Why Broken Hearts Are So Hard To Mend.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium and Workshop: What Is Spiritual? Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, July 21, 2020.

“What Is The Will?” Invited Address. Gnosis Existential Salon. 30 Poppy Lane, Berkeley, CA, June 6, 2020.

“The Enigma of Happiness: And Why It Is So Elusive. Public Lecture Presentation. California Institute of Integral Studies, Namaste Hall, San Francisco, CA., April 16, 2019.

“The Road Less Traveled: R.D. Laing’s Approach to Treating Psychosis – The Role of Love in the Therapeutic Encounter.” Training Workshop, RAMS, Inc. (Richmond Area Multi-Services), 3626 Balboa Street, San Francisco, CA., April 11, 2018.

 

“Existential Psychoanalysis: The Role of Freedom in the Therapeutic Experience.” Public Lecture Presentation. Sponsored by the Clinical Psychology Department, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA., January 17, 2018.

 

“The Role of Friendship in the Healing of Psychosis.” Invited Address, RAMS, Inc. (Richmond Area Multi-Services), 3626 Balboa Street, San Francisco, CA, December 20, 2017.

 

“Healing Friendship: The Therapeutic Component of Residential Living.” Invited Address, Second Session, Arizona Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, Scottsdale Marriott Suites Old Town, Scottsdale, AZ, December 9, 2017.

 

“The Desire to Fall in Love.” Invited Address, First Session, Arizona Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, Scottsdale Marriott Suites Old Town, Scottsdale, AZ, December 9, 2017.

 

“Sartre and Psychoanalysis: The Nature of Freedom in Clinical Practice.” Keynote Address, 23rd Meeting of the North American Sartre Society, University of La Verne, La Verne, CA, November 4, 2017.

 

“What Is Friendship? The Power of Intimacy When Healing Extreme States.” Public Lecture Presentation. California Institute of Integral Studies, Namaste Hall, San Francisco, CA., August 31, 2017.

 

“On Falling in Love.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium & Workshop: What Are Altered Realities? Asilomar Conference Center, Pacific Grove, CA., July 17, 2017.

 

“Falling in Love as an Altered State.” Public Lecture Presentation. Sponsored by the Clinical Psychology Department, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA., March 30, 2017.

 

“The Role of Love, Empathy, and Sympathy in Therapy.” Invited Address, Windhorse Foundation, Boulder, CO, September 29, 2016.

 

“On Sympathy: The Role of Love in the Therapeutic Process.” Featured Presentation. R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium & Workshop: What is Therapeutic?, Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, August 8, 2016.

 

“The Search for Authenticity: Conversations with Jim Bugental.” Featured Presentation. The Power of Presence Conference: Celebrating Jim Bugental and The Search for Authenticity. Namaste Hall, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA, November 14, 2015.

 

“Community, Friendship, Healing.” Invited Address. Windhorse Community Services, Inc., Boulder, CO, November 1, 2015.

 

“Sanity and Friendship.” Featured Presentation. R.D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century Symposium & Workshop: What Is Sanity? What Is Madness? Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, July 21, 2015.

 

“All Divided Selves: A Film by Luke Fowler.” Panel Discussant, feature documentary presentation about the life and work of R.D. Laing. Namaste Hall, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA, February 23, 2014.

 

“Existential Freud: Conversting Neurotic Misery into Common Unhappiness.” Invited Address, Seventh Annual Conference of the Existential-Humanistic Institute: Beyond Anxiety: Finding Strength and Meaning in Everyday Living. San Francisco, CA, November 16, 2013.

 

“R.D. Laing and Anti-Psychopathology: The Myth of Mental Illness Redux.” Invited Presentation, weekend symposium, R.D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century, in commemoration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of R.D. Laing’s death, Wagner College, Staten Island, October 25-27, 2013.

 

“The Concept of Happiness.” Invited Address, Clinical Colloquia, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA, March 13, 2013.

 

“Michael Guy Thompson’s Journey to Psychoanalytic Psychology.” Invited Address, California School of Professional Psychology, Alliant International University, San Francisco, CA, October 19, 2009.

 

“The Demise of the Person in the Transference Situation.” Panel Presentation, 28th Spring Meeting of the Division of Psychoanalysis (39), American Psychological Association Annual Convention, The Waldorf Astoria, New York, NY, April 9-13, 2008.

 

“Murray Bilmes Memorial Address.” Eulogy, under the joint auspices of Alliant International University and the Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California, First Unitarian Universalist Church and Center, San Francisco, CA, October 27, 2007.

 

“My Name is Sabina Spielrein.” Invited Address and Discussion of the Film Presentation, under the auspices of the Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California’s Extra Curricular Education Committee, San Francisco, CA, March 11, 2006.

 

“R. D. Laing’s Enigmatic Relationship With Authenticity.” Invited Address, 40th Anniversary Celebration of the Founding of the Philadelphia Association, Friends Meeting House, Heath Street, London, England, June 25, 2005.

 

“The Quest for Authenticity in the Psychoanalytic Encounter.” Invited Address, San Francisco Chapter of the California Association Marriage and Family Therapists, California Pacific Medical Center, San Francisco, CA, June 12, 2005.

 

“The Role of Authenticity in the Psychoanalytic Encounter.” Five-Part Lecture Series, Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute, San Francisco, CA, September 16 – October 14, 2005.

 

“The Way of Authenticity: The Quest for Personal Integrity.” Scientific Meeting, Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, San Francisco, CA, December 11, 2004.

 

“Vicissitudes of Authenticity: The Quest for Personal Integrity.” Invited Address, Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California, San Francisco, CA, June 7, 2004.

 

“Vicissitudes of Authenticity: Latent Elements in the Quest for Personal Integrity in the Psychoanalytic Tradition.” Invited Workshop, under the auspices of the Philadelphia Association, 4 Marty’s Yard, London, England, June 19, 2004.

 

“Culture and Happiness: Civilization And It’s Discontents.” Invited Seminar, San Francisco Intensive Study Group, Dead or Alive: Freud’s Death Drive in the Clinic and Contemporary Culture, sponsored by the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, March 19 — May 14, 2004, San Francisco, CA.

 

“The Question of Authenticity: Its Clinical Import and Philosophical Foundations.” Invited Panel Presentation, 24th Spring Meeting of the Division of Psychoanalysis (39), American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Fontainebleau Hilton Resort, Miami Beach, FL, March 18-21, 2004.

 

“The Clinical Foundations of Authenticity in the Transformational Conversation.” Panel Presentation, Fourteenth Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, Westin Pasadena Resort, Pasadena, CA, November 5-7, 2003.

 

“Phenomenology of Friendship.” Invited Address, under the auspices of the Philadelphia Association, 4 Marty’s Yard, London, England, October 14, 2003.

 

“Nietzsche and Postmodernism: and the Question of Authenticity.” Invited Address, Regent’s College, School of Psychotherapy, October 9, 2003, Regent’s Park, London, England.

 

“The Concept of Happiness: A Reappraisal of the Psychoanalytic Conception of Suffering.” Invited Address, under the auspices of the Philadelphia Association, 4 Marty’s Yard, London, England, October 7, 2003.

 

Discussant to John Searle’s Keynote Address, “Technology and Consciousness.” OUT OF THE TOWER, OFF OF THE COUCH Annual conference, on TECHNO-ANALYSIS, sponsored by the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, Interdisciplinary Committee, October 3-5, 2003, Berkeley Art Museum, Berkeley, CA.

 

“Freud and the Body.” Invited Seminar, South Bay Intensive Study Group, On the Body: Forms and Expressions of Being, sponsored by the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, September 10 – October 1, 2003, Palo Alto, CA.

 

“The Ambiguity of Cure: Discussion of the Psychoanalytic Film, NINETEEN NINETEEN.” Invited Address, Appalachian Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology (ASPP), Knoxville, TN, May 17, 2003.

 

“A Brief Introduction of Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic Work.” Invited Seminar Series, Marina Counseling Center, February 25 – March 10, 2003, San Francisco, CA.

 

“The Enigma of Cure: A Cinematic Journey into the Mysteries of the Analytic Experience.” Invited Address, South Bay Intensive Study Group, sponsored by the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology (NCSPP), Redwood City, CA., February 23, 2003.

 

“The Pursuit of Happiness: A Reappraisal of the Psychoanalytic Conception of Unhappiness.” Invited Address, Southeast Florida Association for Psychoanalytic Psychology (SEFAPP), Hollywood, Fl., November 3, 2002.

 

“Nietzsche and Psychoanalysis: The Space Between Postmodernism and Authenticity.” Paper Presentation, Thirteenth Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, Lago Mar Resort and Club, Ft. Lauderdale, Fl, October 25-27, 2002.

 

“Dynamics of Transference.” Invited Seminar, South Bay Intensive Study Group, Revolutions and Evolutions: The Nature of the Object in the Legacy of Freud, sponsored by the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, September 6 — October 18, 2002, Palo Alto, CA.

 

“The Fidelity to Experience in R. D. Laing’s Treatment of Severe Psychopathology.” Invited Address, Second Meeting of the San Francisco Chapter of the International Society for the Psychoanalytic Treatment of Schizophrenia and Other Psychoses, (ISPS-SF) Boyer House, San Rafael, CA, January 25, 2002.

 

“Happiness and Culture: A Reappraisal of Freud’s Civilization and Its Discontents.” Presidential Address, Twelfth Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, Lago Mar Resort and Club, Ft. Lauderdale, Fl, November 2-4, 2001.

 

“The Role of Candor and Honesty in the Psychoanalytic Encounter.” Invited Panel Presentation, Section One (Psychologist-Psychoanalyst Practitioners), Division of Psychoanalysis (39) Program, American Psychological Association Annual Convention, San Francisco, CA, August 26, 2001.

 

“The Ethics of Honesty in the Free Associative Experience.” Invited Panel Presentation, Section Four (Local Chapters), Division of Psychoanalysis (39) Program, American Psychological Association Annual Convention, San Francisco, CA, August 24, 2001.

 

“The Crisis of Experience in Contemporary Psychoanalysis.” Invited Address, Southeast Florida Institute for Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy (SEFIPP), Ft. Lauderdale, Fl., June 15, 2001.

 

“The Mysteries of Termination and the Psychoanalytic Treatment Experience.” Invited Address, video film presentation and discussion, Southeast Florida Association for Psychoanalytic Psychology (SEFAPP), Boca Raton, Fl., June 16, 2001.

 

“The Ethic of Honesty: The Moral Dimension to Psychoanalysis.” Discussion to Peter Carnochan, “The Moral Architecture of Psychoanalysis,” sponsored by the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, San Francisco, CA, March 3, 2001.

 

“Is the Unconscious Really all that Unconscious? The Role of Being and Experience in the Psychoanalytic Situation.” Presidential Address, Eleventh Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, Palmer House Hilton Hotel, Chicago, Illinois, November 3-5, 2000.

 

“The Crisis of Experience in the Psychoanalytic Situation.” Invited Address, Fall Convocation of the California Institute for Clinical Social Work on the general theme of Philosophical Dimensions of Psychoanalysis, Hotel Durant, Berkeley, California, September 23-24, 2000.

 

“The Crisis of Experience in Contemporary Psychoanalysis.” Invited Keynote Address, the Annual Spring Conference of the Michigan Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology on the general theme of The Experience of Psychoanalysis: What Does It Have To Offer, If Not A “Cure”?, Providence Hospital Medical Building, Southfield, Michigan, March 11, 2000.

 

“The Sceptic Dimension to Psychoanalysis: Toward An Ethic of Experience.” Invited Keynote Address, the Annual Conference of the Instituto de Investigación en Psicología Clínica y Social (Institute of Clinical and Social Psychological Research), Mexico City, February 26, 2000.

 

“The Enigma of Honesty: The Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis.” Invited Public Lecture presentation, under the auspices of the Philadelphia Association, 4 Marty’s Yard, London, England, October 22, 1999.

 

“Transference and Addiction.” Invited panel presentation on “Desires and Addictions: Compelling Forces,” at the all-day conference sponsored by the William Alanson White Institute on the general theme of Hungers and Compulsions Contemporary Perspectives in the Psychoanalytic Treatment of Eating Disorders and Addictions, Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York City, October 30, 1999.

 

“The Decline of Experience in Contemporary Psychoanalysis.” Invited Keynote Address, the Annual conference of the Institute of Clinical and Social Psychological Research (Instituto de Investigación en Psicología Clínica y Social), Mexico City, February 27, 1999.

 

“R. D. Laing’s Contribution to Psychoanalysis.” Paper presentation, two-day symposium, The Legacy and Future of R. D. Laing’s Contribution to Contemporary Thought, in commemoration of the tenth anniversary of R. D. Laing’s death, sponsored by Saybrook Institute and Free Association, Lone Mountain College, San Francisco, March 13-14, 1999.

 

“Transference and Friendship: Aristotle, Montaigne, Freud.” Invited Address presentation, Ninth Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, Fordham University, New York, New York, November 6-8, 1998.

 

“The Crisis of Experience in a Post-Subjective Age.” Discussion presentation following paper by Martin Jay, Ph.D., in the Out of the Tower, Off of the Couch lecture series, sponsored by The Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, San Francisco; George Gund Theater, University of California at Berkeley Art Museum, Berkeley, California, November 14, 1998.

 

“Skepticism and Psychoanalysis: The Rule of Neutrality.” Paper presentation, San Francisco Institute for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis lecture series, Thinking About Psychoanalytic Theories: Philosophical Assumptions, 3325 Sacramento Street, San Francisco, October 19, 1998.

 

Discussant to J. M. Heaton, M.A., M.B., B.Chir., D.O., “Skepticism and Psychoanalysis: Toward A Therapeutic Phenomenology.” Invited Address, Radical Edge in Psychoanalysis Lecture Series, California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, California, November 8, 1997.

 

“The Death of Desire and the Problem of Intentionality.” Invited Address, Free Association Lecture Series, Berkeley, California, October 10, 1997.

 

“Free Association: Psychoanalytic Technique or a Model for Psychoanalytic Education?” Paper presentation, the Eighth Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, The Campus Inn, Ann Arbor, Michigan, October 3-5, 1997.

 

“Working — or Wrestling? — Through Resistance to Change.” Invited Address, Free Association Lecture Series, Berkeley, California, February 21, 1997.

 

Discussant to Betty Cannon, Ph.D., “Sartre and Psychoanalysis.” Invited Address, Radical Edge in Psychoanalysis Lecture Series, California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, California, December 6, 1996.

 

“The Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis.” Paper presentation, the Seventh Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, Boca Raton Resort and Club, Boca Raton, Fl., September 27-29, 1996.

 

“Narcissism and Psychosis.” Invited Address, Free Association Lecture Series, Berkeley, California, September 13, 1996.

 

“Freud’s Rule of Neutrality.” Keynote Address presentation, the Twentieth Annual Freud Conference, Toorak Campus, Deakin University, Melbourne, Australia, March 23, 1996.

 

“Deception, Mystification, Trauma: Laing and Freud.” Keynote Address Presentation, the Twentieth Annual Freud Conference, Toorak Campus, Deakin University, Melbourne, Australia, March 24, 1996.

 

“Neutrality and Affect.” Invited Address, Free Association Lecture Series, Berkeley, California, January 12, 1996.

 

Discussant to Daniel Burston, Ph.D., “The Pathology of Normalcy in the Psychoanalytic Theories of Eric Fromm and R. D. Laing.” Invited Address, Radical Edge in Psychoanalysis Lecture Series, California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, California, December 2, 1995.

 

“Demystifying ‘Classical’ Technique: The Truth About Freud’s Conception of Neutrality.” Invited Paper Presentation, Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology, UCSF Laurel Heights Conference Center, San Francisco, CA, October 19, 1995.

 

“The Existential Dimension to Working Through.” Paper presentation, Sixth Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, The Toronto Hilton, Toronto, Canada. October 13-16, 1995.

 

“Logos, Poetry and Heidegger’s Conception of Creativity.” Invited paper presentation, Fourth Annual Meeting of the Northern California Psychiatric Society, on Creativity, Psychiatry and the Human Condition, Santa Fe, New Mexico. July 13-15, 1995.

 

“Freud’s Papers on Technique: Neutrality.” Invited paper presentation, The Psychoanalytic Forum, California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA. November 11, 1994.

 

“Freud’s Conception of Neutrality.” Invited Public Lecture presentation, under the auspices of the Philadelphia Association, 4 Marty’s Yard, London, England. October 28, 1994.

 

“The Impact of Freud’s Conception of Neutrality on His Analysis of the Rat Man.” Invited Address, Centre for Psychoanalytic Studies, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, October 27, 1994.

 

“The Truth About Freud’s Technique.” Paper presentation, Fifth Annual Conference of the International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education, The Palmer House Hilton, Chicago, Il. October 8-9, 1994.

 

“Existentialism and Schizophrenia.” Invited paper presentation, Existential Psychotherapy Forum, California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA. May 14, 1994.

 

“Fromm, Psychoanalysis and Existentialism.” Invited paper presentation, The Psychoanalytic Forum, California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA, April 22, 1994.

 

“The Existential Dimension to Psychoanalysis.” Invited two-day lecture presentation, Dept. of Psychology, Graduate School, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, April 8-10, 1994.

 

“Deception, Mystification, Trauma: Laing and Freud.” Invited paper presentation, Twelfth Annual Symposium of the Simon Silverman Phenomenology Center, addressing The Interpersonal Phenomenology of R. D. Laing, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, March 11-12, 1994.

 

“The Fidelity to Experience in Existential Psychoanalysis.” Invited paper presentation, The Psychoanalytic Forum, California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA, April 3, 1992.

 

“Guilt and the Father Function.” Invited paper presentation, two-day Conference on Fatherhood and the Modern Family, Sonoma State University, Rohnert Park, CA. April 24-26, 1987.

 

“The Death of Desire.” Paper presentation, Fifth International Human Sciences Research Conference, co-sponsored by Saybrook Institute, San Francisco, CA and California State University at Hayward, CA, at University of California Campus, Berkeley, CA, May 27-31, 1986.

 

“The Concept of Desire in Hegel and Freud.” Invited paper presentation, Melia Foundation Symposium on Psychotherapy and Philosophy, San Francisco, CA, March 14-15, 1984.

 

“Alternatives for In-patient Treatment of Psychosis.” Invited paper presentation, Kaiser Hospital, Dept. of Psychological Services, Oakland, CA, April 7, 1983.

 

“Schizophrenia as a Structure of Desire.” Invited Weekend Presentation, Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, June 15-16, 1981.

 

“The Existential Approach to Psychosis.” Invited paper presentation, Mental Research Institute, Palo Alto, CA. August 20, 1979.

 

“The Convergence of Philosophy and Psychology in Psychoanalysis.” Invited paper presentation, Annual Meeting of the Asociacion Psicoanalytico de España (The Spanish Psychoanalytic Association), Zaragoza, Spain, May 22, 1975.

 

“The Anti-psychiatric Treatment of Schizophrenia.” Invited paper presentation, Hospital Psiquiatrico de Barcelona (The Psychiatric Hospital of Barcelona), Barcelona, Spain, April 27, 1975.


Education

MA Psychology, Antioch University, London, U.K. 1980.

PhD Psychology, The Wright Institute, Berkeley, CA. 1985.


Specialized Training

Graduate:
Philadelphia Association Training Programme in Phenomenology and Psychoanalysis. London, U.K. 1980.
Supervisors:
R. D. Laing, M.B., Ch.B., D.P.M.
J. M. Heaton, M.A., M.B., B.Chir., D.O.
Analyst:
Hugh Crawford, M.B., Ch.B., F.R.C.P. (C)

Appointments, Awards & Elected Positions

2015-

Advisory Council, Bay Area Mandala Project
San Francisco, CA

2013-

Member, Advisory Council for the Center for the Study of Empathic Therapy
President, Peter Breggin, MD

2012

2012 PEP Award for Most Downloaded Authors
(awarded by Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing, UK)

2011

2011 PEP Award for Most Downloaded Authors
(awarded by Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing, UK)

2010

2010 PEP Award for Most Downloaded Authors
(awarded by Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing, UK)

2006–

Editorial Board, Journal of European Psychoanalysis.
Anthony Molino, PhD, Editor

2005-

Editorial Board, Existential Analysis: Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis. Simon Du Plock, PhD, Editor

2005-

Clinical Supervisor, California Pacific Medical Center Outpatient Mental Health Clinic, San Francisco, CA

2004-

Faculty and Clinical Supervisor
Access Institute for Psychological Services, San Francisco, CA

2004-

Past President
Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology (NCSPP)

2003

President
Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology (NCSPP)

2003-2005

Member of the Board (3rd term)
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)

2002-2007

Co-Chair, Curriculum Committee
Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California (PINC), San Francisco, CA

2002-2007

Member, Executive Committee
Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California (PINC), San Francisco, CA

2002-2005

Board Member
Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California (PINC), San Francisco, CA

2002

Past President
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)

2002

President-Elect
Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology (NCSPP)

2002

PINC Liaison
Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology (NCSPP)

2001-2005

Editorial Board, European Journal of Psychotherapy.
Del Loewanthal, PhD, Editor

2000; 2001

President
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)

2000

Co-Chair, Program Committee
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)
Annual Conference, Nov. 3-5, 2000, Chicago, IL

2000

Co-Chair, Program Committee
Division 39 (Psychoanalysis), Annual Spring Meeting,
San Francisco, CA. April 2000.

2000-

Member, Board of Directors
Philadelphia Association, Ltd.
London, England

1998-1999

Member of the Board
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)

1999

Co-Chair, Program Committee
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)
Annual Convention, Nov. 5-7, 1999, San Francisco, CA

1997-1999

Chair, Site Committee
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)

1998-2002

Member, Curriculum Committee
Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California (PINC), San Francisco, CA

1998

Co-Chair, Program Committee
Division 39 (Psychoanalysis), Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, CA. August 14-18, 1998.

1998-2008

Editorial Board, Psychoanalytic Psychology.
Joseph Reppen, PhD, Editor

1996-1997

Member of the Board (1st term)
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)

1997-

Editorial Board, Journal of Phenomenological Psychology.
Frederick Wertz, PhD, Editor

1995-1996

Chair, Public Relations Committee
International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)


Conferences & Symposia Organized

‘R.D. LAING IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY: What is Love?
Five-Day Symposium & Workshop. Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA. Sponsored by Free Association, Inc., San Francisco, CA. July 22-27, 2018:
 

SYMPOSIUM CHAIRPERSONS:
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Fritjof Capra, PhD
Nita Gage
Heather LaFace, PhD

Presenters:
PRINCIPAL FACULTY
Fritjof Capra, PhD
Douglas Kirsner, PhD
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD

GUEST FACULTY & FACILITATORS
Fernando Castrillon, PhD
Michael Cornwall, PhD
Nita Gage
Rebecca Greenslade
Will Hall
Michelle Anne Hobart
Edie Irwin
Chuck Knapp
Heather LaFace, PhD
James Norwood
Mina Semyon
Rinat Tal, MD
Connor Tindall
Andrew Turkington, RN, LMFT
Dina Tyler
Scott Von, OMD, PhD

‘R.D. LAING IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY: What are Altered Realities?
Five-Day Symposium & Workshop. Asilomar Conference Center, Pacific Grove, CA. Sponsored by Free Association, Inc., San Francisco, CA. July 16-21, 2017:
 

SYMPOSIUM CHAIRPERSONS:
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Fritjof Capra, PhD
Nita Gage
Heather LaFace, PhD

Presenters:
PRINCIPAL FACULTY
Fritjof Capra, PhD
Douglas Kirsner, PhD
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD

GUEST FACULTY & FACILITATORS
Michael Cornwall, PhD
Frank Echenhofer, PhD
Nita Gage
Jack Gipple
Rebecca Greenslade
Will Hall
Michelle Anne Hobart
Heather LaFace, PhD
Ralph Metzner, PhD
James Norwood
James Penner, PhD
Connor Tindall
Andrew Turkington, RN, LMFT
Dina Tyler

‘R.D. LAING IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY: What is Therapeutic?
Five-Day Symposium & Workshop. Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA. Sponsored by Free Association, Inc., San Francisco, CA. August 8-13, 2016:
 

SYMPOSIUM CHAIRPERSONS:
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Nita Gage
Steven Sorkin, PhD

Presenters:
PRINCIPAL FACULTY
Fritjof Capra, PhD
Steve Sorkin, PhD
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD

OTHER FACULTY
Michael Cornwall, PhD
Nita Gage
Rebecca Greenslade
Will Hall
Edie Irwin
Yana Jacobs, LMFT
Douglas Kirsner, PhD
Chuck Knapp
Heather LaFace, PhD
Scott Lines, PhD
Matthew Morrissey, LMFT
Nick Putman
Steve Sorkin, PhD
William Stranger, PhD
Andrew Turkington, RN, LMFT

‘R.D. LAING IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY: What is Sanity? What is Madness?
Five-Day Symposium & Workshop. Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA. Sponsored by Free Association, Inc., San Francisco, CA. July 19-24, 2015:
 

SYMPOSIUM CHAIRPERSONS:
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Nita Gage
Steven Gans, PhD

Presenters:
PRINCIPAL FACULTY
Fritjof Capra, PhD
Steve Sorkin, PhD
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD

OTHER FACULTY
Beatrice Birch
Susan Budnick
Michael Cornwall, PhD
Nita Gage
Steven Gans, PhD
Will Hall
Edie Irwin
Yana Jacobs, LMFT
Douglas Kirsner, PhD
Chuck Knapp
Daniel Mackler, LCSW
Matthew Morrissey, LMFT
William Stranger, PhD
Stephen Ticktin, MD
Scott Von, PhD
Robert Whitaker

‘R.D. LAING IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY’ Weekend Symposium
in commemoration of his death, co-sponsored by Wagner College, Staten Island, NY,
and Free Association, San Francisco, October 11-13, 2013. Wagner College Conference Center,
Wagner College, Staten Island, NY:
 

SYMPOSIUM CHAIRPERSONS:
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Steven Gans, PhD
Miles Groth, PhD

Presenters:
Fritjof Capra, PhD
Betty Cannon, PhD
Darlene Ehrenberg, PhD
Nita Gage, PhD
Steve Gans, PhD
Miles Groth, PhD
Edie Irwin
Theodor Itten, PhD
Douglas Kirsner, PhD
Stanley Krippner, PhD
Peter Mezan, PhD
Andrew Pickering, PhD
Kirk Schneider, PhD
Martin Schulman, PhD
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD

“THE RADICAL EDGE IN PSYCHOANALYSIS” Symposia Lecture Series, co-sponsored by Free Association and California School of Professional Psychology, September 1995 to May 1998:

Series Chairperson:
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD

9/22/95

Speaker: Neville Symington
“The Struggle to Achieve Independence of Mind in the British Psychoanalytical Society”
Discussant: Antonia Bercovici, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

10/27/95 Speaker: Wilfried Ver Eecke, PhD
“Charles Peirce and the Therapeutic Function of Language”
Discussant: Era Loewenstein, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

12/2/95 Speaker: Daniel Burston, PhD
“The Pathology of Normalcy in the Psychoanalytic Theories of Eric Fromm and R. D. Laing”
Discussants: Murray Bilmes, PhD
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

2/16/96 Speaker: Marvin Hyman, PhD
“Solipsism and Psychoanalysis”
Discussants: Philip Cushman, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

3/16/96 Speaker: Donnel B. Stern, PhD
“Courting Surprise: Clinical Hermeneutics”
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

5/10/96 Speaker: Edgar A. Levenson, MD
“The Politics of Interpretation”
Discussants: Murray Bilmes, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

4/26/96 Special Feature Film Presentation:“NINETEEN NINETEEN”
(Starring Paul Scofield as ‘The Wolf Man’)
Moderators: Murray Bilmes, PhD, Philip Cushman, PhD, and
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Location: Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, CA

 

9/20/96 Speaker: Mikkel Borch-Jacobsen, PhD
“The Birth of Trauma: Charcot, Janet, Freud – and Their Patients”
Discussant: Jeanne Wolff Bernstein, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

11/1/96 Speaker:Douglas Kirsner
“Unfree Associations: The Troubled History of American Psychoanalytic Institutes”
Discussant: Nathan G. Hale, Jr., PhD

 

12/6/96 Speaker:Betty Cannon, PhD
“Sartre and Psychoanalysis”
Discussant: Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

2/7/97 Speaker:Anthony A. Long, PhD
“Choosing A Technology of the Self: Stoicism, Epicureanism, or Skepticism?”
Discussant: Julius E. Heuscher, MD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

3/7/97 Speaker:William J. Richardson, PhD
“The Question of ‘Law’ in Lacan, Kafka, and Psychoanalysis”
Discussant: Era Loewenstein, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

4/11/97 Speaker:Nathan G. Hale, Jr., PhD
“Freud Bashers: A Critical Look at Freud’s Critics”
Discussant: Marcia Cavell, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

5/3/97 Speaker:Stuart A. Schneiderman, PhD
“Why I Am No Longer A Lacanian!”
Discussant: Murray Bilmes, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

9/19/97 Speaker:Irvin D. Yalom, MD
“The Lying Animal”
Interlocutor: Murray Bilmes, PhD
Location: Saybrook Graduate Institute, San Francisco, CA

 

11/8/97 Speaker:J. M. Heaton, M.A., M.B., B.Chir., D.O.
“Skepticism and Psychoanalysis: Toward A Therapeutic Phenomenology”
Discussant: Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Location: California School of Professional Psychology, Alameda, CA

 

3/13/98 Speaker:Hazel E. Barnes, PhD
“Subjectivity, Consciousness, and the Self: Sartre’s Contribution to Contemporary Thought”
Discussant: Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Location: San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute, San Francisco, CA

 

5/9/98 Speaker:Joanne Greenberg
“I Never Promised You A Rose Garden”
Discussant: Peter L. Giovacchini, MD
Location: San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute, San Francisco, CA

 

Weekend Symposium: March 1999

 

‘THE LEGACY AND FUTURE OF R. D. LAING’S CONTRIBUTION TO CONTEMPORARY THOUGHT’ Weekend Symposium, jointly sponsored by Saybrook Graduate School and Free Association, March 13-14, 1999, Lone Mountain College Conference Center, San Francisco, CA:

Symposium Chairpersons:

Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Kirk Schneider, PhD

Presenters: J. M. Heaton, M.A., M.B., B.Chir., D.O.
Leon Redler, MD
Steven Gans, PhD
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD
Daniel Burston, PhD
Kirk Schneider, PhD
 

Memberships

American Psychological Association

 

Division 39 (Psychoanalysis), American Psychological Association

 

Section I (Psychologist-Psychoanalyst Practitioners), Division 39 (Psychoanalysis), American Psychological Association

 

Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology (NCSPP)
A Regional Affiliate of the Division of Psychoanalysis (39), American Psychological Association

 

International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA)
Training and Supervising Analyst, Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California

 

The College of Psychoanalysts, United Kingdom

 

CPJA: Council for Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analysis, United Kingdom

 

International Federation for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE)

 

Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California (PINC), San Francisco, CA
Faculty, Personal and Supervising, Committee Chair

 

Confederation of Independent Psychoanalytic Societies

 

Lacan Clinical Forum, Stockbridge, MA (Ex-Officio)

 

Philadelphia Association, Ltd., (Founder: R. D. Laing), London, England

 

International Society for the Psychoanalytic Treatment of Schizophrenia and Other Psychoses (ISPS)

 

Southeast Florida Association for Psychoanalytic Psychology (SEFAPP)

 

Southeast Florida Institute for Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis (SEFIPP)

 

 


Licenses Held

Registered Psychoanalytic Practitioner (UKCP, United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy, Great Britain, 1980)

 

LMFT21927 (Board of Behavioral Sciences, California, 1986)