Olga R Sohmer
Olga R. Sohmer, Ph.D., is a scholar, participatory researcher and holistic counselor passionate about encouraging the deepest potentials of the human mind, body, heart, spirit, and soul. Her interests include embodied spirituality, expanded states of consciousness, depth psychology, participatory worldviews and research, archetypal astrology/cosmology, and transpersonal psychology. Olga has assisted Embodied Spiritual Inquiry, Holistic Awareness, and Transpersonal Psychology graduate courses and her doctoral dissertation explored the value of cooperative inquiry--an experiential, participatory research approach--for transpersonal psychology, education, and research.
Born in Russia, Olga now lives in Nevada City, California with her husband and son. Through her work and daily life, she hopes to contribute to healing the way human beings relate to ourselves, each other, and the Earth, our home.
Olga initiated a Cooperative Inquiry exploring the experience of the authentic self (Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 2020) and coauthored the chapter “A Radical Approach to Second-Person Contemplative Education” in Gunnlaugson, Sarath, Bai, and Scott’s (Eds.) anthology, The Intersubjective Turn in Contemplative Education: Shared Approaches for Contemplative Learning and Inquiry Across Disciplines (Ferrer & Sohmer, SUNY Press, 2017). She also wrote an introductory article on Embodied Spiritual Inquiry, "Interactive Meditations as Research Method" (Integral Transpersonal Journal, 2018) and is the first author of "An Embodied Spiritual Inquiry into the Nature of Human Boundaries: A Participatory Approach to Transpersonal Education and Research" (International Journal of Integral Studies, 2020). She is an associate editor of the International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, where she curated a monograph highlighting participatory research methods in the transpersonal field (2019).
Phone: 323-605-2446
Address: Nevada City, CA
Born in Russia, Olga now lives in Nevada City, California with her husband and son. Through her work and daily life, she hopes to contribute to healing the way human beings relate to ourselves, each other, and the Earth, our home.
Olga initiated a Cooperative Inquiry exploring the experience of the authentic self (Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 2020) and coauthored the chapter “A Radical Approach to Second-Person Contemplative Education” in Gunnlaugson, Sarath, Bai, and Scott’s (Eds.) anthology, The Intersubjective Turn in Contemplative Education: Shared Approaches for Contemplative Learning and Inquiry Across Disciplines (Ferrer & Sohmer, SUNY Press, 2017). She also wrote an introductory article on Embodied Spiritual Inquiry, "Interactive Meditations as Research Method" (Integral Transpersonal Journal, 2018) and is the first author of "An Embodied Spiritual Inquiry into the Nature of Human Boundaries: A Participatory Approach to Transpersonal Education and Research" (International Journal of Integral Studies, 2020). She is an associate editor of the International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, where she curated a monograph highlighting participatory research methods in the transpersonal field (2019).
Phone: 323-605-2446
Address: Nevada City, CA
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Publications by Olga R Sohmer
The present chapter shares a brief history of CI and its antecedents, positioning CI in the broader context of post-positivist (Reason and Rowan 1981) or new-paradigm (cf. Guba and Lincoln 1994; Lincoln and Guba 2011) research approaches—including the related streams of participatory, action, transpersonal, and collaborative methods. The main features of the participatory paradigm (e.g., Ferrer 2002, 2017; Hartelius and Ferrer 2013; Heron 2006; Reason 1994a, 1994b; Skolimowski 1994; Tarnas 1991, 2006), within which CI is embedded, are discussed. Then, the CI research approach is elaborated, describing the three main phases of research—inquiry initiation, action-reflection cycling, and meaning making—within which inquiry groups cocreate their unique processes. Methodological implications and validity considerations relevant for research in spirituality and contemplative studies are also considered. Finally, a case study of CI exploring the experience of the authentic self (Sohmer 2020c) is presented. The unique gifts, challenges, and mechanism of CI in spiritual and contemplative contexts is attended to throughout these discussions. The chapter closes with considerations for CI initiators and co-inquirers and suggestions for future research.
research as elaborated below1—have yet to secure an established role in transpersonal studies despite clear alignment with transpersonal research praxis (e.g., Anderson, 2018; Anderson & Braud, 2011; Braud & Anderson, 1998) and promising potential to further the transformative mission of the field (Sohmer, 2020a, 2020b). This gap has grown increasingly evident as the years elapse since the participatory turn in transpersonal theory (e.g., Ferrer, 2002, 2008, 2017; Ferrer & Sherman, 2008; Hartelius & Ferrer, 2013). Whether one views this “turn” as a paradigm shift that marks the second era of transpersonal thought (e.g., Hartelius et al., 2021; Lahood, 2007a, 2010a, 2010b; Tarnas, 2001) or simply acknowledges the well-substantiated rise of participatory perspectives in the field (e.g., Dale, 2014; Ferrer, 2011; 2017; Ferrer & Sherman, 2008; Lahood, 2007b, 2008), the contrastingly limited attention paid to practical enactments of the participatory ethos is striking.
In this spirit, this monograph brings together a collection of participatory research articles of relevance to transpersonal studies. Before outlining these papers, this introduction briefly defines participatory research methods and situates them in relation to transpersonal research in general and in particular since the participatory turn. The prospective contribution of these methods is examined in light of the transpersonal mission: the shared commitment to individual and collective human flourishing in harmony with social, ecological, and spiritual spheres that, arguably, unites the diverse disciplines and initiatives of transpersonal studies (Sohmer, 2020a, 2020b). Finally, a preview of the collected articles, curated to highlight current participatory research within the transpersonal field, is offered. Ultimately, this monograph aims to pave the way for future applications of participatory methods in transpersonal studies not only to support the much-needed invigoration of research in the field (Cunningham, 2007, 2015; Daniels, 2013, 2021; Hartelius et al., 2017; Kaklauskas & Randol, 2016), but in service of the transformation— personal, social, ecological, and spiritual—to which transpersonal studies aspire to contribute.
In this essay, initially compelled by an exploration of personal myth (Jung; see also Chalquist)—that is, the depth psychological premise that we can find certain mythic stories and figures that resonate deeply with our life experiences and sense of self—I turned to the goddess figures of the Greek pantheon that intimate wholeness, containing the totality of life and death. Specifically, I was drawn into the myths of Gaia, Persephone-Demeter, and Ariadne in their particular yet interweaving forms. In what follows, I share the ways in which the mythic complexes of these goddesses emerged in my study and imaginal life as inextricable threads of one tapestry. Honoring each in turn, I hope to give voice to some of their unique and intersecting lessons as I experienced them. In so doing, I offer an example of the ways we can discover the mythic dimension of our personal lives and the relevant wisdom this discovery may grant us at the ecological crossroads we face today.
Given this context, the main purpose of this chapter is to introduce Embodied Spiritual Inquiry (ESI) as a novel, second-person approach to participatory learning and contemplative education. While second-person contemplative approaches tend to be verbal or dialogical (e.g., Sarath, 2006), or to use presence or awareness exercises (e.g., Barbezat & Bush, 2013; Gunnlaugson, 2009b, 2011), ESI systematically—and, we argue, radically—engages contemplative intersubjectivity through mindful physical contact among practitioners. This contact occurs at not only the verbal and awareness levels but also the somatic and energetic levels. Contemplation is thus not applied as a preparation for or enhancement of intellectual learning (valuable strategies in themselves), but as the very means of a multidimensional, participatory inquiry seeking to intersubjectively access the epistemic power of all human attributes (i.e., body, vital world, heart, mind, and consciousness; Ferrer, 2002; Ferrer, Romero, & Albareda, 2005). Exploring the methodology and pedagogy of ESI as a research approach in a graduate course, this chapter aims to expand the repertoire of approaches to catalyzing intersubjective knowledge in the context of second-person contemplative education.
Essays by Olga R Sohmer
The soul in Jungian psychology is a complex domain that is a challenge to delineate, yet, by following her trail we are led along a fascinating journey into the depths of human experience. At once the name that points to the totality of the human psyche (psychology is after all, the " logos " , or study, of " psyche " , the soul), the soul in Jung's personal account and psychological theory is encountered through imaginal figures, or soul images, of a particular nature. That is, while the " Soul " in the capital letter sense expresses the immeasurable uniqueness of a human being—the incarnation of the vast spiritual Cosmos through the vessel of a human life embedded on Earth— certain faces of the Soul can be experienced directly through attentive inner and outer explorations.
Papers by Olga R Sohmer
The present chapter shares a brief history of CI and its antecedents, positioning CI in the broader context of post-positivist (Reason and Rowan 1981) or new-paradigm (cf. Guba and Lincoln 1994; Lincoln and Guba 2011) research approaches—including the related streams of participatory, action, transpersonal, and collaborative methods. The main features of the participatory paradigm (e.g., Ferrer 2002, 2017; Hartelius and Ferrer 2013; Heron 2006; Reason 1994a, 1994b; Skolimowski 1994; Tarnas 1991, 2006), within which CI is embedded, are discussed. Then, the CI research approach is elaborated, describing the three main phases of research—inquiry initiation, action-reflection cycling, and meaning making—within which inquiry groups cocreate their unique processes. Methodological implications and validity considerations relevant for research in spirituality and contemplative studies are also considered. Finally, a case study of CI exploring the experience of the authentic self (Sohmer 2020c) is presented. The unique gifts, challenges, and mechanism of CI in spiritual and contemplative contexts is attended to throughout these discussions. The chapter closes with considerations for CI initiators and co-inquirers and suggestions for future research.
research as elaborated below1—have yet to secure an established role in transpersonal studies despite clear alignment with transpersonal research praxis (e.g., Anderson, 2018; Anderson & Braud, 2011; Braud & Anderson, 1998) and promising potential to further the transformative mission of the field (Sohmer, 2020a, 2020b). This gap has grown increasingly evident as the years elapse since the participatory turn in transpersonal theory (e.g., Ferrer, 2002, 2008, 2017; Ferrer & Sherman, 2008; Hartelius & Ferrer, 2013). Whether one views this “turn” as a paradigm shift that marks the second era of transpersonal thought (e.g., Hartelius et al., 2021; Lahood, 2007a, 2010a, 2010b; Tarnas, 2001) or simply acknowledges the well-substantiated rise of participatory perspectives in the field (e.g., Dale, 2014; Ferrer, 2011; 2017; Ferrer & Sherman, 2008; Lahood, 2007b, 2008), the contrastingly limited attention paid to practical enactments of the participatory ethos is striking.
In this spirit, this monograph brings together a collection of participatory research articles of relevance to transpersonal studies. Before outlining these papers, this introduction briefly defines participatory research methods and situates them in relation to transpersonal research in general and in particular since the participatory turn. The prospective contribution of these methods is examined in light of the transpersonal mission: the shared commitment to individual and collective human flourishing in harmony with social, ecological, and spiritual spheres that, arguably, unites the diverse disciplines and initiatives of transpersonal studies (Sohmer, 2020a, 2020b). Finally, a preview of the collected articles, curated to highlight current participatory research within the transpersonal field, is offered. Ultimately, this monograph aims to pave the way for future applications of participatory methods in transpersonal studies not only to support the much-needed invigoration of research in the field (Cunningham, 2007, 2015; Daniels, 2013, 2021; Hartelius et al., 2017; Kaklauskas & Randol, 2016), but in service of the transformation— personal, social, ecological, and spiritual—to which transpersonal studies aspire to contribute.
In this essay, initially compelled by an exploration of personal myth (Jung; see also Chalquist)—that is, the depth psychological premise that we can find certain mythic stories and figures that resonate deeply with our life experiences and sense of self—I turned to the goddess figures of the Greek pantheon that intimate wholeness, containing the totality of life and death. Specifically, I was drawn into the myths of Gaia, Persephone-Demeter, and Ariadne in their particular yet interweaving forms. In what follows, I share the ways in which the mythic complexes of these goddesses emerged in my study and imaginal life as inextricable threads of one tapestry. Honoring each in turn, I hope to give voice to some of their unique and intersecting lessons as I experienced them. In so doing, I offer an example of the ways we can discover the mythic dimension of our personal lives and the relevant wisdom this discovery may grant us at the ecological crossroads we face today.
Given this context, the main purpose of this chapter is to introduce Embodied Spiritual Inquiry (ESI) as a novel, second-person approach to participatory learning and contemplative education. While second-person contemplative approaches tend to be verbal or dialogical (e.g., Sarath, 2006), or to use presence or awareness exercises (e.g., Barbezat & Bush, 2013; Gunnlaugson, 2009b, 2011), ESI systematically—and, we argue, radically—engages contemplative intersubjectivity through mindful physical contact among practitioners. This contact occurs at not only the verbal and awareness levels but also the somatic and energetic levels. Contemplation is thus not applied as a preparation for or enhancement of intellectual learning (valuable strategies in themselves), but as the very means of a multidimensional, participatory inquiry seeking to intersubjectively access the epistemic power of all human attributes (i.e., body, vital world, heart, mind, and consciousness; Ferrer, 2002; Ferrer, Romero, & Albareda, 2005). Exploring the methodology and pedagogy of ESI as a research approach in a graduate course, this chapter aims to expand the repertoire of approaches to catalyzing intersubjective knowledge in the context of second-person contemplative education.
The soul in Jungian psychology is a complex domain that is a challenge to delineate, yet, by following her trail we are led along a fascinating journey into the depths of human experience. At once the name that points to the totality of the human psyche (psychology is after all, the " logos " , or study, of " psyche " , the soul), the soul in Jung's personal account and psychological theory is encountered through imaginal figures, or soul images, of a particular nature. That is, while the " Soul " in the capital letter sense expresses the immeasurable uniqueness of a human being—the incarnation of the vast spiritual Cosmos through the vessel of a human life embedded on Earth— certain faces of the Soul can be experienced directly through attentive inner and outer explorations.