Hjalmar Sundén (1908–1993) was a Swedish

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

, known for his contributions to the

psychology of religion Psychology of religion consists of the application of psychological methods and interpretive frameworks to the diverse contents of religious traditions as well as to both religious and irreligious individuals. The various methods and frameworks ...

and for his development of "role theory".

Biography

Sundén studied in Paris, where he interviewed the French philosopher

Henri Bergson Henri-Louis Bergson (; ; 18 October 1859 – 4 January 1941) was a French philosopher who was influential in the traditions of analytic philosophy and continental philosophy, especially during the first half of the 20th century until the S ...

. Bergson's

philosophy of religion Philosophy of religion is "the philosophical examination of the central themes and concepts involved in religious traditions". Philosophical discussions on such topics date from ancient times, and appear in the earliest known Text (literary theo ...

was to become the subject of Sunden's doctorate, after he had studied theology at the

University of Uppsala Uppsala University (UU) () is a public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially founded in the 15th century, the university rose to s ...

(he received his doctorate in 1940). After receiving his doctorate, Sundén, unable to obtain a university post for some time, taught psychology and religion at various schools in the

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

region. In 1959, Sunden published details of his role theory in ''Religionen och rollen''. This book helped Sundén to obtain a university chair. He was the first person to occupy a chair in the Psychology of Religion at the

and first person to hold such a post in any Nordic country.

Role theory

Sundén's role theory states that as people learn from sacred texts, they identify with certain roles in these texts, so that they may begin to see ordinary experience as a

religious experience A religious experience (sometimes known as a spiritual experience, sacred experience, mystical experience) is a subjectivity, subjective experience which is interpreted within a religious framework. The concept originated in the 19th century, a ...

. Sundén's role theory may be considered a social constructivist approach to religious experience. His approach stands in contrast to essentialist approaches such as the perennial psychology of Robert K.C. Forman.

Influence

Sundén's role theory has been influential in the psychology of religion as taught by the Dutch psychologist Jan van der Lans. His student Nicolette Hijweege used Sundén's role theory for PhD-research on conversion among Dutch reformed Christians. In 1987, the ''

Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion The ''Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion'' (''JSSR'') is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Wiley-Blackwell in the United States under the auspices of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, dedicated to ...

'' launched a special issue on Sundén's role theory. An account of his work in the English language was prepared by his Finnish supporters, Holm and Belzen (1995). Sundén's role theory as applied to mystical experience is discussed by Wulff (2000). Wulff notes a study by Lars (1987), in which people were undergoing Zen training were more likely to report a

mystical experience A religious experience (sometimes known as a spiritual experience, sacred experience, mystical experience) is a subjective experience which is interpreted within a religious framework. The concept originated in the 19th century, as a defense ag ...

if they had a religious frame of reference. Wulff also notes criticisms of Sunden's role theory, noting how it fails to explain how mystical experience arises in the first place. Spilka e.a. mention Sundén's role theory as a promising approach for the psychology of religion.Spilka e.a. (2003), ''The psychology of religion: an empirical approach''

Writings (selection)

* ''Gud - ödet - slumpen'' 1947 * ''Personligheten och det gemensamma bästa / Jacques Maritain'' 1949 * ''Rudolf Steiner. En bok om antroposofin'' 1962 * ''Religionen och rollerna: ett psykologiskt studium av fromheten'' 1959 * ''Kristusmeditationer i Dag Hammarskjölds Vägmärken'' 1966 * ''Älgskyttar, helgon och exegeter: några religionspsykologiska essäer'' 1969 * ''Den heliga Birgitta: ormungens moder som blev Kristi brud'' 1973 * ''Religionspsykologi: problem och metoder'', with: Gustaf Ståhlberg 1974 * ''Mora-prosten mäster Jacob Boëthius'' syndabekännelse av år 1707: med en kort levernesbeskrivning och kommentar. * ''Om synd och nåd, medveten strävan och omedvetet motstånd": ett fromhetsdokument från stormaktstiden'' 1977 * ''Persona och anima: en tillämpning av C. G. Jungs psykologi på sex författare: Karlfeldt, Strindberg, Camus, Lagerkvist, Heliga Birgitta, Moraprosten Jacob Boethius'' 1981 * ''Konungen och riket: om den gudomliga världsstyrelsen'' 1983 * ''"Glöm inte bort vad du har": religion - auktoritet: indiskt eller kristet?'' 1985 * ''Zen: historik, analys och betydelse'' 1995

References

Sources

* Holm, N.G. & Belzen, J.A. (1995). ''Sundén's Role Theory: Impetus to Contemporary Psychology of Religion.'' Åbo: Åbo Akademi. * Wulff, D. (2000). "Mystical Experience". In Cardena, E., Lynn, S.J. & Krippner, S. (eds.). Varieties of Anomalous Experience: Examining the Scientific Evidence. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. . pp 397ff. * The special edition of

, Volume 26 (number 3) for 1987, which includes articles on Sundén's theory by people such as Kallstadt, Holm and Wikström.

External links

James M. Nelson, ''Sunden and Role Theory''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sunden, Hjalmar 1908 births Swedish psychologists 1993 deaths Psychologists of religion 20th-century psychologists