Process Work is a cross-disciplinary approach to support individual and collective change. It developed in the 1970s and 1980s when Dr Arnold Mindell, a Jungian analyst in Zurich, Switzerland, began researching illness as a meaningful expression of the unconscious mind. Also known as process-oriented psychology (POP) or dream body work, Process Work offers new ways of working with areas of life that are experienced as problematic or painful. Physical symptoms, relationship problems, group conflicts and social tensions, when approached with curiosity and respect, can lead to new information that is vital for personal and collective growth.
With its roots in Jungian psychology, Taoism and physics, Process Work believes that the solution to a problem is contained within the disturbance itself and provides a practical framework through which individuals, couples, families and groups can connect with greater awareness and creativity.
The Process Work Institute of India (PWII) is one of many centres worldwide dedicated to training and research in Process Work. PWII is a five year old institute based in Mumbai engaged in promoting the knowledge and use of Process Work. PWII will soon offer a basic course in process-oriented psychotherapy in collaboration with the Process Work Center of Portland in Oregon, USA. The course is currently in the planning stages.
Where is Process Work used?
Process Work is currently being used in working within a wide range of contexts, such as
Individual therapy Personal creativity and growth
Couples, marriage and family counselling
Physical symptoms, including serious and life-threatening illnesses
Comas and other strongly altered states of consciousness
Extreme states of consciousness usually treated with psychiatry
Group process for organisational development and conflict resolution
Community building and conflict resolution in local communities and world situations (Worldwork)