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THESCIENCEWITHOUTASOULOneoftheessentialproblemswithpsychologytodayisitsrelianceuponpsychiatricor

biologicalbehavioralmodelsafarcryfromitsfoundations. Psychologyoncefollowed

earlyphilosophy

and

initially

meant

the

study

of

the

soulpsyche

(soul)

and

ology

(studyof). Thegeneralthoughtwasthatthemindandbodywereseparateentities.

Thus,eachmanandwomanwasregardedasacompositeofsoul,mindandmatter.

In1829,WebstersInternationalDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguagedefinedpsychology

asadiscourseortreatiseonthehumansoul;thedoctrineofthenatureandproperties

ofthesoul. In1892,WebstersHighSchoolDictionarysaidpsychologyrelatedtothe

powersandfunctionofthesoul.

However,allthischangedinthelate1800swhenGermanpsychologistWilhelmWundt

establishedthe

first

experimental

psychology

laboratory

in

Leipzig

University,

officiallyrejectingtheexistenceofthesoulanddeclaringwithoutashredof

evidencethatmanwasmerelyaproductofhisgenes. Inhiswords,Ifoneassumes

thatthereisnothingtheretobeginwithbutabody,abrainandanervoussystem,then

onemusttrytoeducatebyinducingsensationsinthatnervoussystem. InaWundt

textbook,translatedintoEnglishin1911,Wundtdeclared,The...soulcannolonger

existinthefaceofourpresentdayphysiologicalknowledge....1

Theideaofthespiritbeingasensiblebeing,separablefromthebody,abeliefheldby

alarge

percentage

of

civilized

man,

was

scientifically

relegated

to

primitive

races.2

WebstersDictionaryoncedefinedsoulasAnentityconceivedastheessence,substance,

oractuating[impelling]causeofindividuallifeitisthesubjectoftheexperience

mediatedbyhisbody;itisnotthemind,butthatwhichthinksandwills. Second,the

soulisidentifiedwiththetotalityofconsciousexperience.

However,withWundtianpsychologyimpactingonthecultureintheearly1900s,

Webstersstated:Recentpsychology,forthemostpart,dispenseswiththeconceptof

thesoulasanentity.

ThomasHardyLeahey,authorofAHistoryofPsychology,notedtheresultsofthis:

Traditionally,psychologymeantpsychelogos,thestudyofthesoul. Butthe

supernaturalsoulhadnoplaceinnaturalisticscience,sotocontinuepursuing

psychologyalongtraditionallineswouldbaritfromscience.However,byinsisting

thatthenervoussystemisthebasisofallmentality,anddefiningpsychologyasthe

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investigationofthephysiologicalconditionsofconsciousevents,thenewfieldof

physiologicalpsychologycouldestablishitselfasascience.

By1961,MerriamWebsters3rdInternationalDictionarydefinedpsychologyasthe

scienceofmindormentalphenomenaoractivities;thestudyofbiologicalorganism(as

man)andthephysicalandsocialenvironment.

Withthesouleliminated,psychologistssetaboutmanipulatingbehaviorandtraining

anindividualmuchlikeonewouldtrainabear,adogoranyotheranimal.

Althoughthismanisananimaltheoryiseasilydebunked(dogsdonotdrivecars,

horseswillneverpaintmasterpiecesandconcertoshaveyettobeperformedbyan

orchestraofmonkeys),psychologydrewheavilyonWundtstheoriesanddeclared

Manavictimofhisenvironment.

TanaDineen,Ph.D.,pointsout:Thehorrificsufferingthatsomevictimsbearcannotbe

trivialized,norcanitbeimpliedthatpeoplenevercarryscars. Somepeopledoneed

helpinlivingwithlifesexperiences. But,Dr.Dineensays,thepsychologyindustry

profitsfromturningpeopleintovictimstobenefititself. Whilepeoplecanmanifest

remarkableresilience,psychologyhasbeenlargelyresponsibleforthecreationofa

worldinwhichpeopleliveinfearthattheywillcrumble.3

Inplacingmanasthedirectandunknowingeffectofanauthoritarianandsoulless

philosophy,

those

psychologists

supporting

this

view

are

promoting

the

idea

that

ones

mentalhealthdependsuponanadjustmenttotheworldratherthanitsconquest. This

presumesthatmancannot,therefore,effectpositivechangeontheworldaroundhim

butmustsubmittoitsrandomwill. Implicitalsoisthebeliefthathecannotevenbe

responsibleforhisownmentalhealing,ashisbehaviorsareentirelytheproductofthe

functionsormalfunctionsofthebrain. Inotherwords,thatlikedogs,menarebasically

stimulusresponsemechanisms.

WhileManiscapableofgreatevil,thereisaninherentdecencyinusallthatmakesus

wanthappinessforourselves,thoseweholddear,andeventhosewehardlyknow.

Thegoodistheretobecultivated.

Itcannotbenurturedinaworldwherepsychiatricdoctrineandthoughtpermeateour

culturewiththephilosophythatwearemereanimalswhohavenohopeoffinding

happinessoutsideofamedicinecabinet.

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1 Wilhelm Wundt,Introduction to Psychology, (MacMillan Company, New York, 1912), English version, original

written in 1911, p. 192.2

Wilhelm Wundt,Ethics: An Investigation of the Facts and Laws of the Moral Life, (The Macmillan Co., NewYork, 1897), Translated by Julia Henrietta Gulliver, Edward Bradford Titchener and Margaret Floy Washburn from

the second German edition (1892), p. 104.3

Dr. Tana Dineen,Manufacturing Victims, (Robert Davies Publishing, Quebec, Canada, Third Edition, 2000), p. 65.