More or less finished drafting chapters on professions and professional ethics. Interested to discover how much material can be found to support the idea of a psychological approach to professions – and ethics – alongside the sociological studies which have tended to divide into those who find professions to be part of the ballast supporting social structures (like Dukheim) and those who accuse them of self aggrandisement to secure their own power (eg weber, Larson, Friedson).
While my sympathies are mainly with the latter, I found Durkheim rather surprising – usually characterised as a functionalist, conservative – don’t disagree but was interested by his concern for psychology and spirit – he shares many concerns with Jung – the withdrawal of the sacred from everyday life; the loss of meaning and the importance of looking inward for value. Talks about collective consciousness (not unconscious) too. He, Jung and Weber were born within a few years of each other. Sense of connections between European thinkers. And how wide their thoughts were, ranging across disciplines in an inspiring manner that highlights the conservative silo-based structure of contemporary academic discourse.
Been ages. Got totally bogged down trying to write up chapters to a ridiculous timetable.Wanted to do viva early so David McKie cd be external, cos he’s a good professor, but it left me with about ten days per chapter and after 6 weeks realise that’s not doable. Writing has been going backward, getting slower and slower as I got more and more anxious. finally sussed that I have to put viva back to original June (ie late april submission). Still tight, will need several rewrites, proofing, binding etc. It all seemed so lucid and coherent in my head but is so LUMPY on the page. Oh well, I’ll get there in the end.
Gave first lecture in seven or more years on Tuesday – on professional ethics and PR. Went well – helped me to hear the main story summarised and students seemed interested and engaged – nice feedback after. Just a one off guest spot, but good to know I can still do it.
A self-help approach but quite interesting. May use some of these ideas (and similar) in the final section of thesis to suggest practical applications for Jungian ethics.Finding your shadow
Lots of coverage of the year since Lehman’s collapse today. Lots of talk about the public’s loss of trust. In a recent paper I cited Arthur W Page society research of leading CEOs which identified the loss of trust as the No 1 issue facing business today.
But thinking about the semantics: trust is about us – our failure to keep faith in institutions. We have been pathologised, made into the problem. Actually the issue isn’t lack of trust: it’s excess greed. That changes the focus, doesn’t it?
just back from Stirling 21, the academic conference for PR and comms people, brilliantly organised by Jaquie L’Etang and team, including glorious weather.
Primary observation is the quality of papers and thought on offer: all the presentations I went to were driven by ideas not data: on the relationship between PR and anthropology, PR in fiction, dialogue and relationship, health sector ethics… much more. Didn’t see a single graph!
I presented two papers, one asking if there can be a psychology of the professions, which looked at sociological approaches to the professions and found a wealth of psychological material, though this is not explicitly identified as a psychology of professions. Then applied Jungian insights to professional development in general and then PR profession in particular. All the pieces seemed to fit, good questions and discussion. This has been useful paper to me, settling some uncertainties about the scope and direction of thesis.
Second paper was on hermeneutics, drawing on the work I did earlier in the year. Treated it as a report from recent adventures into hermeneutics, very open about my ignorance before (and still after) the trawl thru unfamiliar literature. Again, it makes much more sense to me now and was gratified that in later conversation one delegate thought I’d grasped subject well and others found it useful.
This is the last conference before I complete as I now need to put my head down and starting turning these papers into chapters. Looks like the viva will be in April now not June so need a good draft by the new year. Yikes!
