The I of the Other: Mindfulness-Based Diagnosis and the Question of Sanity

This book synthesizes ideas from existential phenomenology, Buddhism, and experience-near psychotherapy to create a holistic approach to psycho-diagnostic and therapeutic practice. Since any therapeutic engagement begins with getting to know the mind of an Other, it is appropriate that a holistic revision of psychology begins by considering the fundamental knowing we refer to as clinical diagnosis. This involves both critiquing the top-down empirical approach to psycho-diagnosis and presenting a viable and rigorous alternative to the knowing of Other minds. G. Kenneth Bradford is the first psychotherapist to apply a Mindfulness-based approach to psychological assessment and diagnosis, making this a foundational and entry text to mindfulness and experientially-informed therapy practices. It presents the first application of the Phenomenological Research Method to psycho-diagnosis. While the phenomenological method has enjoyed high regard in the area of qualitative research, this book marks its first appearance in being applied to clinical assessment and diagnosis. Furthermore, these two cutting-edge approaches, one from the East and one from the West, are intertwined in a way that contributes to the emerging Integrative trends in Psychology. The final section on the Question of Sanity proceeds beyond both the phenomenological research literature and much of the current Mindfulness-Based literature, which are largely technique-focused, opening up the underlying (Buddhist & Existential) wisdom informing contemplatively-robust practices.