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Values Affecting Collaboration Among Psychologists and Evangelical Clergy Timothy P Digital Commons @ George Fox University Faculty Publications - Grad School of Clinical Graduate School of Clinical Psychology Psychology 1999 Values Affecting Collaboration Among Psychologists and Evangelical Clergy Timothy P. Chaddock Mark R. McMinn George Fox University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/gscp_fac Part of the Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Chaddock, Timothy P. and McMinn, Mark R., "Values Affecting Collaboration Among Psychologists and Evangelical Clergy" (1999). Faculty Publications - Grad School of Clinical Psychology. Paper 187. http://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/gscp_fac/187 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School of Clinical Psychology at Digital Commons @ George Fox University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications - Grad School of Clinical Psychology by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ George Fox University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Journal of Psychology and Theology 1999, Vol. 27, N o. 4, 319-328 V alues A f f e c t in g C ollaboration A m o n g P sychologists a n d Ev a ng elical C lergy T im othy P. C haddock anti M ark R. M cM inn Wheaton College Previous research has shown that shared values are The relationship between psychology and religion important to both clergy and psychologists when con- has a long historical foundation. Oden (1987) notes: sidering the possibility of collaborating with one Long before psychology was a distinct profession, pastors another, but it is not clear which values must be engaged in activities that required psychological wisdom. Pas- shared. Eighty-one psychologists and 56 evangelical tors have struggled for the health of persons and the life of Protestant clergy were surveyed using a values ques- souls in ways that anticipate and resemble contemporary psy- chotherapies. (p. 5) tionnaire developed by Jensen and Bergin (1988) with some additional items specifically pertaining to evan- During the relatively brief history of modern psy- gelical beliefs, revealing differences within value chology, some such as William James, Carl Jung, and themes between clergy and psychologists. The episte- Gordon Allport have sought to include spiritual per- mological foundations of the two professions create spectives. More recent contributions include obstacles to collaboration, suggesting a need for psy- Richards and Bergin’s (1997) book, A Spiritual chologists to develop trusting relationships with clergy, Strategy for Counseling and Psychotherapy and engage in specialized training, and reevaluate the post- Shafranske’s (1996) edited book Religion and the modem distinction between facts in the public domain Clinical Practice of Psychology. Within the and privately held values. Shafranske volume, Vande Kemp (1996) contends that during the latter part of the 20th century, inte- espite the growing interest in religious gration of religious faith and psychology has issues in psychology (Richards & Bergin, emerged as a discrete specialty within psychology. D1997; Shafranske, 1996), a large distance Despite the growing interest in psychology of reli- remains between psychologists and clergy. One evi- gious issues and the justification for this increased dence of this tension is the relative lack of collabora- interest, there are those from both professions who tive efforts that occur between the two professions believe the two fields should remain distinct (Bulk- (McMinn, Chaddock, Edwards, Lim, & Campbell, ley, 1993; Zeiger & Lewis, 1998). One source of this 1998). Although there is frequently overlap between tension can be found in the different epistemologi- the types of problems each discipline addresses in a cal foundations of religion and psychology. care-providing context, each discipline has its own The historical foundations of evangelical Chris- areas of focus; therefore, collaboration between psy- tianity and modern psychology come from different chologists and clergy can be essential to adequately time periods and philosophical foundations. Central address and respect the concerns of the person to evangelical Christianity is God and his revelation seeking help (Meylink & Gorsuch, 1988). Both cler- to humanity through the prophets, sacred texts, gy and psychologists view values as an important fac- Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. God is viewed as tor affecting collaboration (McMinn et al., 1998), the source of this knowledge: “The Christian reli- but it is not yet clear which values must be shared in gion has placed strong emphasis on revelation and order to promote effective collaboration. its epistemological authority” (Honer, Hunt, &C Okholm, 1996, p. 90). From ancient times, truth has Requests for reprints may be sent to Timothy P. Chaddock, PsyD, been assumed to be grounded in an external source Trinity International University, 2065 Half Day Road, Deerfield, Illi- of authority; there is “absolute truth that applies to nois 60015. Electronic mail may be sent to [email protected]. everyone, everywhere, at all times; truth is there wait­ 319 320 VALUES AFFECTING COLLABORATION ing to be discovered through revelation, reason, al America,” 1994) survey indicated that about 95 experience, or intuition” (Honer et al., p. 94). The percent of Americans believe in God or a universal central role of Scripture as the source of authority spirit, about 60 percent said they regularly attend for the evangelical faith is evidenced in the Westmin- religious services, and over 80 percent indicated ster Confession: they believe the Bible is the inspired word of God The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary (p. 50). Twenty years ago, Hogan (1979) eloquently for his own glory, man’s salvation, faith and life, is either described the importance of religion and the resis- expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary con- tance often met within psychology: sequence may be deduced from Scripture; unto which nothing Religion is the most important social force in the history of at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the man. But in psychology, anyone who gets involved in or Spirit, or traditions of men (I, VI). tries to talk in an analytic, careful way about religion is imme- In contrast, modern psychology draws much of diately branded a meat-head: a mystic; an intuitive, touch-feely its identity from modern science and the Age of sort of moron, (pp. 4-5) Reason. During the beginning of modernity, a signif- Only 29% of mental health therapists view reli- icant epistemological shift occurred within the gious themes as important in guiding and evaluating Western world when science began to replace reli- psychotherapy with all or many clients (Bergin Sc gion as the predominant frame of reference (Cush- Jensen, 1990). Whereas the majority of psychologists man, 1990). The early founders of psychology try to live their life by their religious beliefs (Jensen sought to bolster credibility of the developing disci- and Bergin, 1988), many of them keep their religious pline and aligned with foundational assumptions of beliefs separate from their professional work. Yet the scientific method that included a naturalistic many consumers of psychology want religious fac- basis for human behavior while abandoning reli- tors to be included in the care they receive. Chalfant gious and spiritual explanations (Richards Sc et al. (1990) found that residents of El Paso, Texas, Bergin, 1997). Early leaders also adopted “determin- far preferred to seek help for personal problems istic, reductionistic, atomistic, materialistic, and from clergy (41% of respondents) than any other mechanistic views of human beings” (p. 27). Psy- professional group (medical doctors, 29%; psychia- chology was not immune to the cultural and philo- trists, psychologists, 21%)—a finding that also sophical influences of the era in which it developed. emerged from a similar study with Florida residents Cushman (1990) points out that the same sociohis- (Quackenbos, Privette, Sc Klentz, 1985). These find- torical influences such as the “absence of communi- ings highlight the need for a deeper understanding ty, tradition, and shared meaning” (p. 600) during of psychologists’ and clergypersons’ practices, as the 20th century that led to the development of the well as their beliefs and attitudes about the other’s “empty self” also contributed to the development of profession. a psychology that perpetuates these very traits with- Public demand is not the only reason that psy- in persons it attempts to treat. These underlying chologists should consider more active methods of epistemological differences for clergy and psycholo- including spiritual and religious values in their work. gists form a basis for understanding differences in Psychotherapy “occurs within a values context” religious belief and practice between psychologists (Shafranske Sc Malony, 1990, p. 72). Many authors and the general public. Distinctions between these have asserted that value free science is unfeasible groups are found in two domains: privately held (Bergin, 1980a, 1980b; Jones, 1994; Kuhn, 1970). beliefs about religion and expectations about the Thus, a more reasonable and ethical position is to be role of religion within the professional practice of cognizant of one’s values and to be aware of how the mental health service delivery. Although some values of both the therapist and the client impact the reports have showed variability regarding
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