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The LOSAK Research Centre, based in the Department of Philosophy, is pleased to announce the launch of a new Philosophy Counselling Reading Group open to staff, students and members of the wider community. The group will explore the theory and practice of philosophical counselling and its potential applications in both personal and public contexts.
Philosophical counselling builds on the well-established practices of modern psychotherapy by incorporating some of the most practical and therapeutic ideas from the long history of philosophy. At its core are three key features: critical thinking (the idea that clearer thinking enables better living); attitude (a reflective and philosophical orientation towards life rather than a narrow problem-solving mindset); and therapeutic benefit, (the often powerful experience of finding one’s struggles articulated in philosophical texts written centuries ago).
The reading group has been initiated by Professor Sorin Baiasu and is co-organised and co-facilitated by Christopher Valentine, a PhD researcher in the department. Chris’s doctoral research is funded by a Collaborative Doctoral Award (Principal Investigator: Professor Baiasu) funded by the AHRC North West Doctoral Training Partnership. The project, ‘Restorative Practice and Second Victimisation’, is part of a broader initiative bringing together the University of Liverpool and the Stoke-on-Trent City Council in support of research on the best ways in which restorative practices can be implemented as part of the Council’s work.
The project is designed to examine existing practices and provide guidance on the integration of the restorative approach into policy with a view to avoiding some problems standardly associated with the approach, particularly the problem of second victimisation. Chris is particularly interested in applying desert-sensitive theory and philosophical counselling in his work with the Stoke-on-Trent City Council, as ways in which restorative practices in the delivery of Council services can be improved. The reading group will therefore also help to inform Chris’s project as part of the work through which the LOSAK Research Centre contributes to public services, community wellbeing and decision-making processes.
Reading topics will be suggested by participants, but participants can expect to learn about the history of philosophical counselling, philosophically informed psychotherapy, and therapeutically relevant ideas from ancient and contemporary philosophy. The group welcomes anyone with an interest in philosophy, counselling, or both, and especially encourages students who may wish to help shape the future of this emerging field.