So many fiction writers have asked writer/psychologist Carolyn Kaufman about psychological disorders, treatments, and concepts that she realized the information is either not available or not available in a form that's easily accessible to writers.
Psychology has evolved so quickly in the past fifty years that many people don't realize their knowledge of the field is outdated. And thanks to the publicity some of psychology's early mistakes received, many inaccuracies have lasted far longer in fiction than they have in real life.
Though the psychological and psychiatric communities are attempting to reach out to writers, they haven't yet found a good way to do it. Someone needs to bridge the gap, Kaufman thought, and it's going to be me!
Kaufman received her Bachelor of Arts in English/Writing from Otterbein College and her clinical Doctorate of Psychology (Psy.D.) from the APA-accredited Wright State University School of Professional Psychology. She completed her internship at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania.
As a therapist, she has worked with individuals, couples, and groups, with specialized training in issues relevant to college students, crisis intervention, domestic violence, media psychology, and relationship problems.Her areas of interest include crisis and trauma, relationships, creativity, business psychology, and media psychology.
In addition to her freelance work, Kaufman is an assistant professor at Columbus State Community College and occasionally teaches at her alma mater, Otterbein. She always emphasizes the practical application of psychology to everyday life, which has transferred well into her work with writers.
Kaufman has written not only for print but also for digital media, and is often quoted in magazines and newspapers as an expert resource, as with Marie Claire, The Boston Globe, Wired, and Shape magazine.
You can browse samples of her work for magazines, marketing, entertainment, education, and academia. Previous and current writing clients include: Woman's World magazine, McGraw-Hill Higher Education, Total Image Specialists, Matrix Integrated Psychological Services, Sandy Frank Entertainment, Allyn & Bacon/Longman Publishing, John Wiley & Sons, and various contract projects through Editor's Ink.
You can check out just a few of her media appearances below:
Woman's World magazine |
Desert Sun |
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Clarion-Ledger |
Health & Medicine |
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Southeast Texas Live |
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You can also take a look at her curriculm vita or contact her.
The term archetype seemed fitting because it could refer to both creative works and psychological concepts. Though the word existed before Jung used it, his ideas connected human storytelling and myth to meaning, and taught us why we respond more powerfully to some stories than others.
Archetype: the original model from which all similar patterns, objects, or concepts are merely copied, derived, or emulated.
Archetype: an image, pattern, or symbol shared by all humans in all ages via a collective unconscious; archetypes are thereby imbued with powerful psychological meaning.
