Ira Progoff (August 2, 1921 – January 1, 1998) was an American

psychotherapist Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...

, best known for his development of the Intensive Journal Method while at

Drew University Drew University is a private university in Madison, New Jersey. Drew has been nicknamed the "University in the Forest" because of its wooded campus. As of fall 2020, more than 2,200 students were pursuing degrees at the university's three scho ...

.About Ira Progoff
/ref> His main interest was in

depth psychology Depth psychology (from the German term ''Tiefenpsychologie'') refers to the practice and research of the science of the unconscious, covering both psychoanalysis and psychology. It is also defined as the psychological theory that explores the rela ...

and particularly the

humanistic Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

adaptation of

Jungian Analytical psychology ( de , Analytische Psychologie, sometimes translated as analytic psychology and referred to as Jungian analysis) is a term coined by Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist, to describe research into his new "empirical science" ...

ideas to the lives of ordinary people. He founded Dialogue House in New York City to help promote this method. Progoff began exploring psychological methods for creativity and spiritual experience in their social applications in the early 1950s. His doctoral dissertation in the field of the social

history of ideas Intellectual history (also the history of ideas) is the study of the history of human thought and of intellectuals, people who conceptualize, discuss, write about, and concern themselves with ideas. The investigative premise of intellectual histor ...

at the New School was on the work of C.G. Jung. In 1953, the dissertation was published in hardcover by the Julian Press as ''Jung's Psychology and its Social Meaning''. Later editions were published by the Grove Press, Anchor/Doubleday, and Dialogue House. After receiving his doctorate, Progoff was awarded a Bollingen fellowship, and studied privately with Jung in Switzerland. This work led to a reconstruction of depth psychology in terms of the later work of Freud, Adler, Jung, and Rank in ''The Death and Rebirth of Psychology'' and a first statement of Holistic Depth Psychology in ''Depth Psychology and Modern Man''. In 1963, Progoff put forward the method of Psyche-Evoking in ''The Symbolic and the Real''. In 1966, Progoff drew from the principles described in these books to introduce the Intensive Journal method of personal development, the innovation for which he is most remembered. This is a nonanalytic, integrative system for evoking and interrelating the contents of an individual life. Progoff wrote two books describing the method: ''At a Journal Workshop'' and ''The Practice of Process Meditation''. The system's popularity spread rapidly. As the public use of the method increased, the National Intensive Journal Program was formed in 1977. It supplied materials and leaders for the conduct of Intensive Journal workshops in the United States and other countries in cooperation with local sponsoring organizations. The Intensive Journal education program was expanded upon in 1983 with the publication of ''Life-Study'', which described the application of the Intensive Journal process in experiencing the lives of significant persons from past generations.Jung's Psychology and its Social Meaning (Third Edition): About the Author. Ira Progoff. Dialogue House Library. 1985.

Events

* Served in

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

era * Received PhD in

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

from

New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR) is a graduate-level educational institution that is one of the divisions of The New School in New York City, United States. The university was founded in 1919 as a home for progressive era thinkers. NSSR ...

in New York City * 1952, 1953, 1955: Studied with

Carl Jung Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. Jung's work has been influential in the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, archaeology, literature, philo ...

in Switzerland as a Bollingen Fellow * 1959-1971:

Depth psychologist Depth psychology (from the German term ''Tiefenpsychologie'') refers to the practice and research of the science of the unconscious, covering both psychoanalysis and psychology. It is also defined as the psychological theory that explores the rela ...

and Director of the Institute for Research in Depth Psychology at

* 1975: ''At a Journal Workshop'' first published, popularizing basics of Intensive Journal Method * 1998: Died of

progressive supranuclear palsy Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a late-onset degenerative disease involving the gradual deterioration and death of specific volumes of the brain. The condition leads to symptoms including loss of balance, slowing of movement, difficulty ...

in January 1998.

Selected works

''This is a partial, chronological list of Progoff's books:'' * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

References

External links

Dialogue House biography of Progoff

{{DEFAULTSORT:Progoff, Ira 1921 births 1998 deaths 20th-century American psychologists American psychotherapists The New School alumni Drew University faculty Jungian psychologists

Events

Selected works

See also

References

External links