DOCSLIB.ORG

Rethinking Media Synchronicity Theory: Examining the Cooperative Assumption

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Rethinking Media Synchronicity Theory: Examining the Cooperative Assumption Proceedings of the 51st Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences j 2018 Rethinking Media Synchronicity Theory: Examining the Cooperative Assumption Jaime Windeler Andrew Harrison University of Cincinnati University of Cincinnati [email protected] [email protected] Abstract MST, Dennis et al. [4, p. 579] say, “We do not specifically address situations where some participants Much of information systems (IS) literature desire to manipulate or control how other participants assumes team members have completely aligned goals. interact so that the shared understanding that is In practice, people interpret goals to suit personal developed does not reflect the information and agendas, even when they are collaborating. This opinions of all participants…”. motivates our examination of the cooperative MST is an influential theory in the IS literature; assumption in Media Synchronicity Theory (MST)—a together, the two source papers [4, 5] have been cited leading IS theory of communication performance. We over 1700 times per Google Scholar and over 500 assess the boundaries of MST by relaxing the times per Scopus. Dennis et al. [4] was the MIS assumption of cooperation. Our results support MST Quarterly best paper of the year and the MIS Quarterly for explaining communication and task performance in Editor-in-Chief named it one of only seven modern a cooperative context. However, MST was insufficient “native IS theories” [6]. However, MST has not been to capture how media capabilities influence empirically tested in its entirety, despite two decades of performance in a non-cooperative context. Our study influence on IS research. shows that relaxing the assumption of cooperation In light of these opportunities to empirically test changes MST in profound ways—altering which media and expand MST, our research question is: How does capabilities are central to the model and the very MST change when we relax the assumption of processes that underlie communication. cooperation? We approach this investigation from two directions. First, we consider MST in light of non- cooperation. This leads us to re-conceptualize 1. Introduction constructs in the model and hypothesize additional media capabilities that are relevant when people are Cooperation is an underlying assumption in much not cooperating. Second, we test the model and of the research on computer-mediated communication contrast the results among participants engaged in a (CMC) [1, 2, 3]. Indeed, one name for this stream of cooperative and a non-cooperative communication research is “computer-supported cooperative work” task. By exploring a prevalent real world context that (CSCW). However, even when people come together tends to be ignored—non-cooperation—we add for a common purpose, agency and opportunism thrive. richness to the prevailing view of MST and CMC. People conceptualize problems based on their perspective and interpret goals to suit personal agendas. The result is people working together with 2. Review of Media Synchronicity Theory overlapping, yet incongruent goals that influence how they communicate. This can result in problems for MST aims to predict communication and task virtual teams that work across functional, geographic, performance given the capabilities of a communication and cultural boundaries. Accordingly, virtual medium. MST posits media possess a set of collaborators may have incongruent perspectives and capabilities that make it suitable for certain objectives that can compromise task performance. communication processes. Whether a set of media To explore the implications of non-cooperation for capabilities is suited to a task depends on two computer-mediated task performance, we ground our fundamental communication processes—conveyance study in Media Synchronicity Theory (MST) [4]. MST and convergence. These processes are supported by moves beyond theories of media richness and is geared capabilities for synchronicity, which refers to working toward “new media” and information technologies. together at the same time with a coordinated pattern of MST typifies an assumption of cooperation between behavior [4]. Lower capabilities for synchronicity are communication partners. Articulating the boundaries of required when information is being conveyed; greater URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10125/49979 Page 737 ISBN: 978-0-9981331-1-9 (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) capabilities for synchronicity are required when people offered by the media, and appropriation factors [4]. must converge on meaning [4, 5]. This view draws both from the task-technology fit In subsequent sections, we review MST starting literature [12] and the fit-appropriation model [13] to with the dependent variable in the model and working account for various dimensions of influence on our way backward to the antecedents. We define key communication performance. Fit is a normative constructs, tenets, and explain how our model extends construct capturing a user’s perceived match between MST. We then expand MST by identifying media the needs of the communication process and the capabilities that are relevant to non-cooperative capabilities of the medium [4, 14]. Communication communication performance. processes capture two activities that take place when people communicate: conveying information (i.e., 2.1. Communication Performance transmission) and converging on meaning (i.e., processing) [15]. Departing from previous research that Dennis et al. [4] define communication broadly categorized tasks based on equivocality [30], performance, the key dependent variable in their Dennis et al. [4], had proposed most tasks were rooted model, as the development of shared understanding. in the underlying processes of convergence and When people are cooperating, shared understanding is conveyance. This more precise conceptualization of a meaningful way to assess communication. However, task addresses equivocality, task type, and the when people are not cooperating and their personal familiarity or novelty of a task in terms of convergence goals are not aligned, shared understanding may not and conveyance. Thus, MST proposes that all tasks reflect a successful exchange [7]. In our first departure require varying amounts of these processes. Some from MST, we reconceptualize communication tasks require a greater focus on converging on shared performance by distinguishing between cooperative meaning while other tasks emphasize conveying communication performance (for which we use Dennis information. Most tasks require some combination of et al.’s [4] definition) and non-cooperative both processes [4]. communication performance. Tasks requiring an emphasis on convergence Cooperation is “the act of working together to one benefit from faster information transmission with more end” [8, p. 8]; non-cooperation represents working feedback and verification; in contrast, conveyance is a together, but relaxes the constraint that a goal is shared slower, retrospective process [4]. Media provide amongst communicants [9]. The “ends” to which each different capabilities to support information person strives may be partially or completely transmission and processing [4]. This yields two key incongruent, and individuals may conceal or distort the propositions of MST: (1) when convergence on information they share with others to garner beneficial meaning is a goal, media with higher synchronicity outcomes [9, 10]. Non-cooperative communication will improve communication performance; and (2) does not assume that a mutually accepted common when conveyance of information is the goal, media goal exists between communicants [9]. This is a with lower synchronicity will lead to better departure from MST, which assumes goals are communication performance. completely congruent. Finally, appropriation factors are personal and When people are working toward incongruent situational characteristics that influence how people goals, they will try to influence one another to use a medium [4, 13]. MST assumes that appropriation maximize their self-interest and achieve their goal [8]. is faithful to the fit of the media and communication The assertion of social influence through coercion, process—i.e., that people use the medium as intended deception, and persuasion represents one of the most for a communication process. We adhere to Dennis et common forms of non-cooperative communication [9, al.’s [4] assumption of faithful appropriation and 11]. In this paper we conceptualize non-cooperative include their appropriation factors in our model test. communication performance as the extent to which a These factors are: familiarity with the group, person can influence others. When a medium enhances experience with the task and technology, and social one’s personal influence over others, there is a greater norms. In managing our scope, we leave other or likelihood of maximizing task performance. unfaithful appropriation factors for future research. 2.3. Media Capabilities 2.2. Fit, Appropriation, and Processes Conveyance and convergence rely on messages MST proposes that communication performance being passed through media. Media capabilities are increases when there is a fit between the “structures provided by a medium which influence the communication needs of the task, the capabilities manner in which individuals can transmit and process Page 738 information,” [4, p. 583]. These capabilities are personal influence. Delays also introduce uncertainty physical or socially-derived. Physical media about how a message was received and reduces
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Pauli on Synchronicity
    Pauli on Synchronicity Teun Lammers 11922583 Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Wouter Hanegraaff Second Examiner: Dr. Carolina Ivanescu Religious Studies Master Thesis Western Esotericism August 2019 Index Introduction 2 Why Pauli? 5 Die Geiβel Gottes 6 The other Pauli 8 The Problem 11 The Psychophysical Problem 17 No Scientific Picture 18 The Measurement Problem 20 Detached Observer 22 The ‘Cut’ 24 Opposites Unite 25 The Psyche 26 The Cosmic Order 30 The Symbolic Wave Function 31 The Conscious Order 32 Mathematical Reality 32 Archetype 34 Synchronicity 38 Everyday World 38 Pauli-effect 40 Meaning-Correspondence 41 Statistical Correspondence 43 The General Acausal Order 44 Conclusion 46 Bibliography 48 1 Introduction The first poem I ever text messaged my soon to be girlfriend was ‘Roll the dice’ by Charles Bukowski. With its strong appeal on following your own course through life no matter the consequences, and lines like ‘You will be alone with the gods, and the nights will flame with fire’ it served me as a small mantra when I was in fact changing my life for the better. On our second date we went to the nearest café from her house, appropriately named ‘Bukowksi’, when she mentioned there was one poem hanging from an old typewriter next to the bar. Surprisingly it turned out to be ‘Roll the dice’. This remarkable coincidence gave the poem some special meaning for the both of us. However the climax came, when after some time of proper courtship, we were making love for the first time and suddenly out of nowhere the raw voice of Bukowksi started reciting our poem with its epic first lines ‘if you’re going to try, go all the way, otherwise don’t even start’.
    [Show full text]
  • Ancient Egypt
    Cosmology & Culture Lecture 3 Wednesday April 15, 2009 Medieval & Renaissance Cosmology, Stuff of the Universe UCSC Physics 80C Medieval Period 524 Boethius’s Consolation of Philosophy summarizes classical heritage 622 Muhammad flees Mecca, begins preaching Islam 732 Martel halts Muslim invasion at Tours; Bede’s History 800 Chalemagne crowned Holy Roman Emperor 1066 Norman conquest of England 1086 Domesday Book – census of all taxable property in England 1095 First Crusade 1170 University of Paris, then Oxford; rediscovery of Aristotle 1215 King John of England signs Magna Carta at Runnymede 1270 Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica 1280 Jean de Meun, Roman de la Rose; Moses de Leon, Zohar ~1320 Dante, Divine Comedy; Meister Eckhart, Christian mystic 1335 First public striking clock, in Milan; William of Ockham, philosopher 1347-51 Black Death sweeps Europe ~1350 Petrarch, Italian humanist scholar ~1400 Chaucer, Canterbury Tales Renaissance 1455 Gutenberg Bible – printing revolution c.1500 Leonardo, Michangelo, Raphael, Machiavelli, Erasmus, More 1517 Luther’s 95 Theses begins Reformation 1543 Copernicus, De Revolutionibus 1600 Bruno burned at stake in Rome; Shakespeare, F. Bacon, Gilbert 1600-1700 Galileo, Kepler, Descartes, Leeuwenhoek, Hooke, Newton, … THE SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION Dante’s Cosmos Monastic Life 10 Medieval Monk’s Contemplation Imagine that it is the year 1200 CE, and you are a monk in a monastery somewhere in Europe. You have just awakened in your cell. It is pitch black and very cold. You wrap yourself tightly in your woolen habit and fling open the window. The moon has not yet set. The world outside is silent and the sky sparkles with stars.
    [Show full text]
  • European Journal of Pragmatism and American Philosophy
    European Journal of Pragmatism and American Philosophy XI-2 | 2019 Pragmatism and Theories of Emergence The Throne of Mnemosyne Pragmatism and Emergence as Aspects of Organic Memory Kermit Snelson Electronic version URL: http://journals.openedition.org/ejpap/1628 DOI: 10.4000/ejpap.1628 ISSN: 2036-4091 Publisher Associazione Pragma Electronic reference Kermit Snelson, « The Throne of Mnemosyne », European Journal of Pragmatism and American Philosophy [Online], XI-2 | 2019, Online since 24 December 2019, connection on 16 June 2020. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/ejpap/1628 ; DOI : https://doi.org/10.4000/ejpap.1628 This text was automatically generated on 16 June 2020. Author retains copyright and grants the European Journal of Pragmatism and American Philosophy right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. The Throne of Mnemosyne 1 The Throne of Mnemosyne Pragmatism and Emergence as Aspects of Organic Memory Kermit Snelson Introduction 1 This paper will argue that Peirce was a strong emergentist and that his pragmaticism was a corollary of this underlying cosmological commitment. Before proceeding with this argument, however, it is necessary to explain the methodology used. First, the methodology itself seeks to illustrate the close relationship between emergence and pragmatism by recognizing that the significance of inquiry lies not in “results,” which are always provisional, but rather in the vitality of the semiotic processes of which these results are emergent properties. Second, any claims that this paper makes to originality do not depend on its observation that Peirce’s pragmaticism results from his strong emergentist cosmology, a conclusion which is arguably self-evident, but on its analysis of this cosmology in terms of the historical context.
    [Show full text]
  • The Synchronicity of Hope and Enhanced Quality of Life in Terminal Cancer
    University of Central Florida STARS Honors Undergraduate Theses UCF Theses and Dissertations 2016 The Synchronicity of Hope and Enhanced Quality of Life in Terminal Cancer Brianna M. Terry University of Central Florida Part of the Nursing Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the UCF Theses and Dissertations at STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Undergraduate Theses by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Recommended Citation Terry, Brianna M., "The Synchronicity of Hope and Enhanced Quality of Life in Terminal Cancer" (2016). Honors Undergraduate Theses. 75. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses/75 THE SYNCHRONICITY OF HOPE AND ENHANCED QUALITY OF LIFE IN TERMINAL CANCER by BRIANNA TERRY A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Honors in the Major Program in Nursing in the College of Nursing and in the Burnett Honors College at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Summer Term, 2016 Thesis Chair: Dr. Susan Chase Abstract Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States and a leading cause of death worldwide. The rate of mortality is currently approximately 171.2 out of every 100,000 individuals with a terminal cancer diagnosis annually. Individuals with terminal cancer diagnoses facing probable mortality utilize various coping mechanisms or internal resources in an attempt to maintain an internal sense of well-being, commonly referred to as quality of life (QOL).
    [Show full text]
  • Some Spiritual Implications of Synchronistic Experiences
    PUTTING THE SINN BACK INTO SYNCHRONICITY: SOME SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS OF SYNCHRONISTIC EXPERIENCES DR RODERICK MAIN Introduction I ought to begin by apologising to anyone I may have lured to read this paper under false pretences. The word ‘Sinn’ in the title is not a spelling mistake, and I regret that I have nothing novel to contribute on the subject of vice and wickedness. Sinn, spelt with a capital ‘s’ and two ‘n’s and pronounced as though the ‘s’ were a ‘z’, is a German word for ‘meaning’; it appears in the phrase ‘sinnvolle koinzidenz’, ‘meaningful coincidence’, which is C. G. Jung’s (1875-1961) most succinct definition of his concept of synchronicity. 1 A slightly fuller definition of synchronicity, which will be clarified and amply illustrated in what follows, is that it is the meaningful acausal paralleling of events, usually of an inner psychic event with an outer physical event .2 A simple example is where one is thinking intensely about an obscure subject such as the alleged mystical significance of a certain number sequence, then, unable to pursue these thoughts any further, one switches on the radio to relax, only to find that one is listening to an unscheduled and illuminating discussion of precisely this subject. Here, the psychic event of one’s intense thoughts and the physical event of hearing the discussion on the radio obviously parallel each other in a way which is likely to strike one as meaningful, yet neither of the events can have caused the other in any normal sense. In discussions of such experiences, attention usually focuses either on the improbability of the paralleling between the events or on the certainty with which a normal causal relationship between the events can be ruled out.
    [Show full text]
  • Examining Coincidences: Towards an Integrated Approach Laurence Browne MA (London), MA (Griffith)
    Examining Coincidences: towards an integrated approach Laurence Browne MA (London), MA (Griffith) A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Queensland in 2013 School of History, Philosophy, Religion and Classics Abstract A coincidence can be broadly defined as ‘a notable co-occurrence of events’ which may have causal or non-causal origins. Some coincidences have discernible causal connections, though these may be quite subtle and complex. Others are clearly attributable to the random play of chance or luck, while certain ostensibly random coincidences can be distinguished by the numinosity and meaning they hold for the individual involved. C. G. Jung coined the term synchronicity for such coincidences. However, there is currently no generally accepted overarching theoretical framework that deals comprehensively and inclusively with the several disparate categories under which different sorts of coincidences might be appropriately classified. The aim of this thesis is to remedy that omission. Just as planets and stars appear as points of light in the night sky and are indistinguishable to the untrained eye, so coincidences may seem on the surface to be all of one kind. This, unfortunately, has led to a tendency towards either/or explanations to account for them, a situation exacerbated by the ideological and metaphysical presumptions that have historically been equated with particular explanations. And there is more than a grain of truth to the notion that how we personally interpret coincidences is a reflection of our underlying beliefs about the nature of the universe and whether or not there is more to our existence than meets the eye.
    [Show full text]
  • Carl G. Jung's Synchronicity and Quantum Entanglement: Schrödinger's Cat 'Wanders' Between Chromosomes
    Carl G. Jung’s Synchronicity and Quantum Entanglement: Schrödinger’s Cat ’Wanders’ Between Chromosomes Igor Limar To cite this version: Igor Limar. Carl G. Jung’s Synchronicity and Quantum Entanglement: Schrödinger’s Cat ’Wan- ders’ Between Chromosomes. NeuroQuantology, NeuroQuantology, 2011, 9 (2), pp.313-321. hprints- 00637383v2 HAL Id: hprints-00637383 https://hal-hprints.archives-ouvertes.fr/hprints-00637383v2 Submitted on 22 Jun 2012 (v2), last revised 19 Jul 2012 (v3) HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Limar IV., C.G. Jung’s Synchronicity and Quantum Entanglement 1 C.G. Jung’s Synchronicity and Quantum Entanglement: Schrodinger’s Cat ‘Wanders’ Between Chromosomes Igor V. Limar Abstract One of the most prospective directions of study of C.G. Jung’s synchronicity phenomenon is reviewed considering the latest achievements of modern science. The attention is focused mainly on the quantum entanglement and related phenomena – quantum coherence and quantum superposition. It is shown that the quantum non-locality capable of solving the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox represents one of the most adequate physical mechanisms in terms of conformity with the Jung’s synchronicity hypothesis. An attempt is made on psychophysiological substantiation of synchronicity within the context of molecular biology.
    [Show full text]
  • Reincarnation and Life After Death
    THE LONG TRAJECTORY: REINCARNATION AND LIFE AFTER DEATH DR. ERIC WEISS, © 2009 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS 0. Introduction - 1 00. Preliminary Definitions - 6 01. Challenging Evidence - 20 02. Science and Metaphysics - 43 03. Actual Occasions, As Above So Below - 61 04. From Possible to Actual - 79 05. Rethinking Causality - 106 06. The Creative Advance - 119 07. The Waking World and its Transphysical Dimension - 145 08. The Transphysical Worlds - 179 09. Mandalas of Time-Space - 188 10. Transphysical Humans - 223 11. Reincarnation - 243 12. Concluding Reflections - 269 2 0. INTRODUCTION I would like to begin by saying a few things about the origin and purpose of this book. These chapters began as a series of lectures organized and sponsored by the Esalen Center for Theory and Research, founded by independent scholar Michael Murphy, author of The Future of the Body.1 Mike likes to convene groups of passionate and competent scholars to discuss issues and themes that are not being addressed anywhere in academia. One of these conferences— begun in 1998—focuses on the topic of reincarnation and life after death. The core of this conference consists of a group of scientists from the University of Virginia who have been studying the question of survival of consciousness after death and the evidence for reincarnation since 1968. Their research continues a long scientific tradition going back to William James and Frederic Myers in the nineteenth century. Since that time, a large amount of hard scientific evidence has been documented that strongly suggests we do not die with the death of our bodies, and the evidence also makes a very powerful case for reincarnation.
    [Show full text]
  • Is the Scientific Study of Religious Activity Compatible with a “Religious Epistemology”?
    Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge: Is the Scientific Study of Religious Activity Compatible With a “Religious Epistemology”? by Andrew Ralls Woodward A Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Divinity of the University of Trinity College and the Theological Department of the Toronto School of Theology In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Theology awarded by the University of Trinity College and the University of Toronto © Copyright by Andrew Ralls Woodward 2016 Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge: Is the Scientific Study of Religious Activity Compatible With a “Religious Epistemology”? Andrew Ralls Woodward Doctor of Theology The University of Trinity College and the University of Toronto 2016 Abstract Epistemologies of tested beliefs (knowledge claims) in scientific practice and non-tested yet faith-imbued beliefs (belief claims) in religious life are compared and contrasted. A study of models of rationality in contemporary philosophy of science and religion is completed with the purpose to assess possible compatibility systems in “science and religion” literature. Myths are re-contextualized in the modern scientific cosmos via the igmythicist conception of myths—myths are neither mere delusions nor reflections of an ontological reality for the gods, but myths are the application of meaning-enclaves enclosed in the world of natural human experience. It is argued that, if a compatibility system is successful in mapping shared epistemic territory between knowledge claims and belief claims, the compatibility system will be based on a theory of rationality which consistently tests knowledge claims and belief claims. While the cognitive values of a scientific epistemology provide an epistemic benchmark for testing many beliefs, the problem of constructing a “religious epistemology” in a modern, Western university is analyzed.
    [Show full text]
  • The Problem of Mind-Body Dichotomy: a Critique of the Cartesian Approach
    GNOSI: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Human Theory and Praxis, Vol. 1(2) (2018) (DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/10.5281/zenodo.3463785) O R I G I N A L A R T I C L E The Problem of Mind-Body Dichotomy: A Critique of the Cartesian Approach John Gabriel Mendie | Udofia, Stephen Nwanaokuo 1P.hD Candidate, Department of Philosophy, University of Calabar, Cross River State. 2 Department of Philosophy, University Of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. Abstract: The mind-body problem is a perennial philosophical problem that seeks to uncover the relationship or causal interaction that exists between the corporeal and incorporeal aspects of the human person. It thrives under the assumption that the human person is made up of two distinct entities, that is, mind and body, which explains their assumed causal relation. As attractive as this may seem, not all philosophers agree to this feigned idea of interaction and bifurcation of the human person. One philosopher of note, who sorts to address this problem in the 17th century, is René Descartes. For Descartes, minds and bodies are distinct kinds of substance, where bodies are spatially extended substances (a res extensa) and minds are unexpended substances characterised primarily by thought (a res cogitans). But, if minds and bodies are radically dissimilar, how could they causally interact? This paper therefore attempts to examine the philosophical foundations of Cartesian dualism. It also articulates the major arguments adopted by Descartes through his methodic doubts to address the mind- body problem. The paper concludes by highlighting some fundamental criticisms of Cartesian Interactionism in the light of recent trends in parapsychology and neuro-scientific research.
    [Show full text]
  • Religion, Science and Synchronicity by Dr. Roderick Main
    Religion, Science, and Synchronicity Dr Roderick Main Lecturer in Psychoanalytic Studies University of Essex, UK [email protected] [Originally published in Harvest: Journal for Jungian Studies 46, no. 2 (2000): 89-107; reproduced with permission for www.jungianstudies.org] In this paper, I examine the role C. G. Jung’s (1875-1961) theory of synchronicity played in his attempt to come to a satisfactory understanding of the relationship between religion and science. First, I briefly explain the theory of synchronicity. Then, I sketch Jung’s lifelong preoccupation with the relationship between religion and science and note some of its implications for his general psychological theory. Jung’s emphasis in this theory on the primacy of psychic reality provided a ground on which religious (spiritual) imagery and scientific (material) imagery could interact. However, it also left him open to the charge that he was reducing spiritual and material phenomena to psychic phenomena. Next, I show the influence of Jung’s understanding of religion and science on his theory of synchronicity. After that, I note some influences that the theory of synchronicity, reflexively, had on Jung’s understanding of religion and science. With the theory of synchronicity, Jung achieves even closer interaction between the domains of religion and science and in a manner that is less dependent on the notion of psychic reality. In the last main section, I suggest how the theory of synchronicity supports some of the more spiritual emphases within analytical psychology. I conclude by noting a more general implication of this overall discussion for the status of depth psychology in relation to religion and science.
    [Show full text]
  • Can Synchronicity Be Invoked? Synchronistic Inquiry and the Nature of Meaning Crane, Gabriel S
    Journal of Conscious Evolution Volume 13 Article 3 Issue 13 Issue 13/2017-2018 June 2018 Can Synchronicity be Invoked? Synchronistic Inquiry and the Nature of Meaning Crane, Gabriel S. Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.ciis.edu/cejournal Part of the Clinical Psychology Commons, Cognition and Perception Commons, Cognitive Psychology Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Family, Life Course, and Society Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, Liberal Studies Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education Commons, Social Psychology Commons, Sociology of Culture Commons, Sociology of Religion Commons, and the Transpersonal Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Crane, Gabriel S. (2018) "Can Synchronicity be Invoked? Synchronistic Inquiry and the Nature of Meaning," Journal of Conscious Evolution: Vol. 13 : Iss. 13 , Article 3. Available at: https://digitalcommons.ciis.edu/cejournal/vol13/iss13/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals and Newsletters at Digital Commons @ CIIS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Conscious Evolution by an authorized editor of Digital Commons @ CIIS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. : Can Synchronicity be Invoked? Synchronistic Inquiry and the Natur SYNCHRONISTIC INQUIRY Journal of Conscious Evolution Issue 13 & 14, 2017-2018 CAN SYNCHRONICITY BE INVOKED? SYNCHRONISTIC INQUIRY AND THE NATURE OF MEANING Gabriel S. Crane1 California Institute of Integral Studies ABSTRACT This paper examines synchronicity, the concept first proposed by Carl Jung, of an “acausal connecting principle” (Jung, 1952), or, a meaningful coincidence linking inner and outer events, from three distinct angles. First, it reviews the theoretical framework for synchronicity, and specifically explores the nature of meaning as an arbiter of synchronicity.
    [Show full text]