Roberto Assagioli's basic psychological approach and contributions to psychology of religion

This study aims to examine psychosynthesis theory of Roberto Assagioli, seen as one of the pioneer figures of humanist and transpersonal psychology. He set up his theory recognizing that psychoanalysis which was the dominant psychology school at that time, is not necessarily enough to understand psychological constitution of human being. It is very brilliant for transpersonal psychology to give new levels to unconsciousness and to establish a holistic-synthetic and progressive personality structure to understand self on horizontal development and transpersonal self on vertical development. When Assagioli starts his medicine and psychology education, he is interested in psychoanalysis. His analytic research, studies and translations of psychoanalytic literature causes him to be seen as the representative of dynamic psychology in Italy. However, he realizes very soon that psychological structure of human being is not consist of only the basement- unconscious and developes a holistic-synthetic approach which he calls psychosynthesis. Psychosynthesis is a cure model for psychological disturbances at the same time it is a personal development model which organizes human being around his/her personal conscious center called self. This center is a synthsizing center setting up the whole personality in a very functional and dynamic way. In Assagioli's approach, psychological structure is beyond the unconscious. Freud's unconscious correspond to Assagioli's lower unconscious. He brings on new levels to unconscious. Superconscious (higher unconscious) is a critically important concept to indicate higher potantial and transpersonel experiences of human being and to make them sensible in psychology. Psychosynthesis has two levels as personal psychosynthesis and transpersonal psychosynthesis. First one focuses on the self and self realization, by detaching all contents of conscious and unconscious and focuses on finding and unifying with this pure center which is self. Second one is a higher development for human being. Therefore it starts a higher journey to his/her higher levels, values and potantial. It is hoped to realize the higher self which is the source of self. This new Self (Assagioli prefers to use Self with capital S to define higher self) is the only one Self actually. Conscious self is only a reflection of the higher self which is immortal and permanent. Assagioli gives attention to the difference of superconsious experinces and transpersonal psychosythesis experiences. It does not mean that each transpersonal and mystical experience is a unified sprital psychosynthesis experience. Higher self experince is beyond the extraordinariness. In addition to his original authotantic concepts such as superconscious, self, higher self and dis identification, he gives importance to will. Definition of will, qualities of will and development of will as a techique for psychosynthesis are his another study areas. Our thesis endeavours to indicate how much useful and valuable the concepts of Assagioli are in the scope of psychology of religion and transpersonal psychology that focuses on personality which has spiritual side beyond the personal side. We kindly hope with this study to contribute to the psychology of religion in Turkey. Key words: Roberto Assagioli, psychosynthesis, self/I, higher self, transpersonal psychosynthesis, will