Natural Systems Thinking
Process (NSTP) Orientation Course Evaluation
Michael C. LaFerney
This course was cognitively stimulating because of the readings, but it
is the group interaction and exercises that makes it so attractive. One
reads about NSTP implications and applies their force through the
exercises. It pertains to so many prevalent disciplines: Psychology,
Counseling, the sciences as biology, ecology and environmental\studies,
crime, religion or spiritual studies and the Arts-Poetry, Creative
Writing etc. that it could be included in almost all academic programs
that desire to deter ill health.
This course brings people together and has implications for the vast
population in that it has so many benefits. These include health,
mental health malady, peace that helps keep personal relationships in
balance, preserves the environment, unifies and creates connection with
others. It helps us in our interpersonal and internal issues to problem
solve better and promotes social interest. It helps remove the negative
parts of our psyche that deceive us. It allows us to use senses we
never knew we had, or forgot we had to reconnect with nature. It will
deter crime, allow people to know each other better and reduce
drug and alcohol addiction. Eliminating these maladies would bring
relief to families and society as a whole and would aid in eliminating
the prevalence of prejudice by focusing on common connections.
Global Citizen Psychology
Michael C. LaFerney
Psychology as an academic and clinical discipline
has never lived up to its potential. The field of Social Psychology has
especially disappointing. Although we have learned about conformity,
cognitive dissonance, group behavior, and other areas of interest in
studies of large groups there has been little effect in developing
technologies or ideas that could solve many of the world's problems.
War, famine, poverty, mental illness, health problems and the declining
environment are more existent than ever before.
Clinical and Counseling Psychology have contributed much to our
understanding of human psychopathology and behavior if you believe the
therapists and counselors whose livelihood depends on our being "sick"
Yet mental illness is as prevalent as ever and acts of insanity
(terrorism toward our fellow human beings etc) seem to occur every day.
The advent of new drugs has been a boom for the drug companies. Yet
they are expensive with many side effects, rarely "cure" the mental
illness, and the incidence of depression in our world continues to
grow.(2)
Experimental Psychologists, especially those who work with animal
behavior, would state they have learned much about animal behavior
through their experiments and observation. Yet a cage is not a natural
environment for an animal -life within a cage may be all the
psychologist or animal knows. Many of these experiments are
"controlled" in the lab with little if any real natural surrounding.
Unlike human research subjects animals do not sign "consent forms".
They have not given permission to be there. Can we really accept these
findings as applicable to human life given the unnatural state they are
researched in?
Why has Psychology failed?. Could it be that in
spite of all the research done in the area of perception and sensation
by Psychology it emphasizes mostly the faculties of sight, reason, and
language in its study and practice? Could it be that by limiting itself
to these senses and the "stories, of those psychologists and
researchers who came under Upton Sinclair's observation: "It is
difficult to get people to understand something when their salary
depends upon them not understanding it."(3) How can they "heal" us when
they suffer from the same NAD (Natural Attractions Disconnect )as we do
?
What then is to be the future of Psychology in the
treatment of human disease and global social problems?(1) The future is
now. Michael Cohen's NSTP (Natural Systems Training Process) may be the
psychological process that finally lives up to its potential.
This process uses what many psychological processes fail to use-all our
innate senses (53 and growing)in a way that promotes respect for the
environment, creatures, our fellow human beings and ourselves. Unlike
psychotherapy and drug therapy it is not expensive and can be easily
learned. It is applicable on a global scale -allowing people of all
cultures to connect. It is grounded in not only psychology but also the
disciplines of biology, religion and spiritual studies, science, and
the arts. How is this process taught? If you can read, hear, use the
internet or breath you can learn it. I recently participated in the 5
week internet based course called ECO 500 Elements of Global
Citizenship (that is found in the book The Web of Life Imperative):
The Science of Connecting With
the Web of Life
The Art of Thinking With
Nature.
I will describe that process that the course participants took and the
change from Natural Attraction Disconnect thinking to Reconnected
Natural thinking that I observed. The e-mail based participants were
located in various places around the globe. These included China,
Brazil, Korea and the United States.
The basic process in the course consisted of
readings, experiments, exercises to be done in a natural environment,
and feedback sent among the students to describe what they did and felt
.These were expressed as Thoughtful Verbalizations.
There were different reasons people had for
learning this process. They included wanting college credit, wanting to
be a peace mediator and for individual growth. All were interested in
the process but 2 participants out of 4 did express some healthy
skepticism at the beginning -given the wide myriad of social and
individual maladies this process claims to help. As one participant
proclaimed she must "overcome my distrust of sensory experiences as the
sources of knowledge of self and the real world."
There was education in the area of sensory bias
-showing us how the perceptual observations of traditional
psychologists are often based on faulty thinking. There was education
in how and why this process works. Yet these readings would be
meaningless unless we had a way to validate them through our own
experiences. Traditional psychotherapy has relied basically on 2
senses-cognition and feeling. Psychotherapy is essentially a verbal
process. Although silence can be used as a therapeutic tool rarely are
any other senses utilized.
The process undertaken involved going to a natural area, identifying
what was attractive to you, asking permission to be there and share in
the interaction. One was to reconnect with nature and sense the
intelligence.Through a process called webstrings these connections were
shared with others -meant to inspire. As we feel the positives of
nature and realize these natural attractions also exist in us we have
improved self-esteem and respect for ourselves, others, and our
environment.
Did it work? Here are some quotes from students describing their
experiences and observations.
Marcia: "Since ours first days we are induced to
do things not to learn and develop ourselves but to be rewarded with
familiar approval, social recognizing, and even to reward the others
(like parents). I guess the destiny of all human being has been largely
( and badly) influenced by how we have learned to separate from nature
and its values, because the consequences are in front of ours"
Madelyn: "most important things I learned were that words run my life
way too much; that the nonverbal world is primary"
Revalyn: "Non-verbal experiences have as much meaning and validity as
verbalized, rationalized ones"
These statements indicate that through the
exercises experienced an awareness of NAD was developed. The stories
and words were seen as too prevalent in their lives-more sensory
contact with nature was needed.
Was self esteem (positive feeling about self) and concern for others
and nature developed or enhanced? Observations:
Revalyn: "I did not want to rationalize too much, I did not want reason
to detract from the satisfaction and good feeling the activity left
within me."
"It seems to me that I went through consent, contact, feeling, trust,
and recognition of my ability to experience pleasant and meaningful
sensory experiences."
Jackie: "I love me because I am imperfect but
beautiful"
Madalyn: "The three most important things I learned from the chapter
were: don't let categories such as "dangerous" and "safe" cloud the
moment's sensibilities; begin to believe in and perceive in terms of
the larger entities of natural community; begin to permit/encourage
myself to get good feelings from the earth more often. When I ask the
other one's permission to do anything I'm
really recognizing them as my equal, and expressing my respect
for them."
Were new senses aroused -were things seem in a new way? Were new
insights discovered?
Jackie: "Deep inside me a joy has awakened because I can find myself
having so much in common with a broken shell on the shore."
Lastly was there a global connection -concern for
others world wide? A concern for the environment?
Jackie
"I thought, I am a person who has seen what the "end of the world"
might look like - am someone who is grieving for the loss of so much
that is natural and loved in my immediate world"
Revalyn: "Into my room of trust I have placed: global consciousness as
a search for unity of all endeavors and acceptance that webstrings
exist,that the unseen can exist and be felt, that the untouchable can
touch me. By feeling and responding to attractions in Nature, we do not
reject or run away from human relationships but learn how to approach
them in a more open, balanced way."
I observed growth in all participants. Participants were able to
experience new senses, find joy in things previously unnoticed, share
feelings with "strangers", recognize their disconnected feelings and
thoughts and change them, and relate in new ways to their environment.
An awareness of the world as one was evident.
As for my own experience I experienced a new awareness of things once
unnoticed, little things that brought me joy like an acorn in a snow
pool, felt relaxation and stress reduction, found value in things once
undervalued (the influence of pets, plants, and nature in general),
felt new senses and a connection and concern for the other participants
and our world. A world terribly disconnected from nature -destroying
its self in the name of Peace. I don't think Traditional Psychotherapy
could have done that in 5 weeks!
So in summary, the promise of Psychology to truly help others is here.
Individually and globally. Sound too good to be true? I invite you to
decide for yourself. Remember the writing in this paper is made up of
words. We are aware of the individual letters intellectually, but not
in sensory way. To truly understand NSTP you must experience it-not
just read about it! (By the way I was one of the 2 students who voiced
skepticism at the beginning of the course!) If you want to experience
this process go to the website www.ecopsych.com. You will find that you
(and the Earth) will be glad you did!
(1)"Psychology's Dilemma-
http://mentalhealth.about.com/library/weekly/aa042400c.htm
(2)Author: Rakesh Jain, MD, MPH ,Medical Writer: Nancy Russ Addressing
Both the Emotional and Physical Symptoms in Depression
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/450695
(3]Elements of Global Citizenship:
The Science of Connecting With the Web of Life
The Art of Thinking With Nature. -www.ecopsych.com
(4)Cohen, Michael J. Reconnecting With Nature, Ecopress 1997
Project NatureConnect
