What is Process Work?

Process Work is an innovative approach to individual and collective change that brings psychology, group dynamics, spirituality, and creative expression together in a single paradigm. An offshoot of Jungian psychology, Process Work was developed by Jungian analyst Arnold Mindell in the 1970s when Mindell began to research illness as a meaningful expression of the unconscious mind. He discovered that the unconscious manifests not only in nighttime dreams but also in physical symptoms, relationship difficulties, addictions, and social tensions. Drawing from his background as a physicist, as well as from Taoist principles, shamanism, Zen Buddhism and communication science, Mindell formulated the idea of the 'dreaming process,' a coherent and meaningful flow of experiences that underlies all life events.

Over the last thirty years of application and research by Arny and Amy Mindell and associates, Process Work is now described as an "awareness practice," because its emphasis is on awareness, both the practitioner's and the client's, rather than on any particular intervention.

Process Work theory and methods encompass a broad range of applications: inner work or self-therapy; facilitation for groups and organizations; conflict resolution; therapy with individuals, couples, and families; working with physical illness, comatose and remote states of consciousness; death and dying; and behavioral health issues such as addiction, depression, anxiety, and panic disorder.

For opportunities to learn Process Work methods visit our Training and Classes pages.

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