Constituting Selves (PDF)

Rich Duus, Ph.D: ¿I have practiced psychology in the Duluth area of Minnesota since 1987. My undergraduate work was done in Sioux Falls, South Dakota at Augustana College after which I spent some time in military service in the officer corp. I then went to Eastern Washington University which was finished in 1975 with a Master's of Science in experimental and clinical psychology, and went from there to Utah State University in Logan, Utah where the Ph.D. with a behavioral psychology specialty was completed in 1982. I worked in Brainerd, Minnesota at the Brainerd Regional Treatment Center and in Northland Mental Health Center in Grand Rapids, Minnesota until1987 when I took a position in the Behavioral Health Unit of the Duluth Clinic, a large medical center in Duluth area. Practicing in that position for about 9 years, in 1996 I opened a group practice which was initially called the Duluth Psychological Services, and by the next year became the Duluth Psychological Clinic, dedicated to using current psychological research and theory with the usual affiliations with area hospitals. Presently the professional practice of psychology is reduced while increasing the time dedicated to writing and research. I have a dedicated interest at this time in the theoretical conceptions and practical manifestations of the self as it affects the practice of psychotherapy, influences how research is done, and generally affects how we pursue the usual business of psychology. More general research interests include hermeneutical perspectives within psychology, phenomenological psychology, ecological perspectives of social constructivism, the practical implementation of fairness in establishing peace, spiritual and religious experience from a psychological perspective, and psychotherapy and change processes. I am increasingly interested in pursuing the ways in which philosophy, such as presented by people such as Gadamer, Ricoeur, Rorty, Dewey, James, Lynn Rudder Baker, Bernstein, and