Tarot and Psychology

Haizea said:

I don't remember having seen an example of a reading that was purely psychological. I've been reading the other threads linked, but as this is the new one, I ask here: if any of you know where I can find some Reading Exchange, or any reading that was only psychological, tell me where it is, please.

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I think any reading done for oneself in the interest of personal growth could be considered psychological in nature.

ETA: I'm not sure anything is ONLY psychological, just as I'm not sure anything is ONLY spiritual or sociological or divinitory anything else.

Morwenna said:

I have a friend who uses Tarot as a tool in her counseling practice, but I don't know the details. But I myself, though never having formally studied psychology except for a couple of survey courses, have always been fascinated by the subject, especially the Jungian and its spinoffs. In fact all the readings I do for myself are analytical ones, and one of my pet spreads is one based on Jungian functions. I'm also very interested in the Myers-Briggs testing system and Keirsey's as well, and I find that Tarot works very well with these concepts.

In fact I'll be watching this thread to see what books others recommend!

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I've been reading about some of the correlations between the Myers-Briggs system and the Tarot Court Cards, it is a very interesting parallel. I'm glad you mentioned this!

I also agree with the comment that bringing Tarot into a counseling setting can be very difficult since it seems to stray away from the more scientific, physical and cognitive approaches. It is good to see that some folks have been able to see Tarot implemented with positive results too.

I think (and this is just my opinion) that the interplay between physical and Psychological causes for disorders is one that shouldn't be ignored. While there are certainly biological causes for anxiety, depression and a myriad of other difficulties, I believe there are psychological components as well. Treating one and not the other can hinder the effectiveness of treatment. Medicating and treating a physical symptom may not always get to the root, or all of the roots of someone's troubles. I believe that sometimes deviation from the strictly medical approach can potentially give the patient/client a feeling of empowerment and more control over their troubles. I think Tarot can be one of many many ways to meet that need.

I'm hoping that my paper will be able to present some practical uses for Tarot in therapy. There are a lot of variables that come into play with each client, so the best approach will differ greatly. My goal is to at least supply some concepts from a variety of Psychological theories that support the viability of Tarot under appropriate circumstances. A card system called the MARI Card Test is utilized in therapy, and that has received some positive attention. Hopefully this is an indicator of some level of openness to innovative techniques.

Thanks again for all of the comments, everyone!

well they given you enough to browse through , I've wante dto read about it myself , but as I am not super good at tarot yet I havent dared to venture into psycological tarot books


I do hope you'll share your knowledge with us.

Haizea said:

I don't remember having seen an example of a reading that was purely psychological. I've been reading the other threads linked, but as this is the new one, I ask here: if any of you know where I can find some Reading Exchange, or any reading that was only psychological, tell me where it is, please.

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well you could always ask for one in the trading section, as there seem to be others who quite like it , but there are probably very few who could actually do a strictly psycological reading.

I didn't see this mentioned, if it was then oops lol

Have you heard of OH Cards?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OH_Cards

I always thought Tarot could be used as a variation of this sort of method. For instance I had a manager once who was a recovering drug addict. He always said the one thing that kept him going, and what helped him in the recovery process, was when he got into religion. Because he had turned to religion first before seeking the proper help he needed. I kinda wonder what help Tarot could actually provide psychologically, since there are all kinds of treatment methods and options spiritually and religiously. Tarot is both concrete and abstract, you have a very tangible tool that can be seen and touched. However the cards have all these concepts and symbols that almost compliment psychology and some of the abstract concepts surrounding thought and the psyche.

I have no idea if this story would help but it's a practical application I would think. One example I have from over a year ago, is I did a reading for a friend who had recently lost their grandfather. The question for the reading was framed, "Is there any sort of message my grandfather wanted to leave me." Regardless of the content of the reading, it was interesting seeing the change in how she handled her grandfather's death after the reading. Because she wasn't present at the hospital when he died and didn't get much closure, so she seemed most upset about that if anything. However during the reading she just opened up at different points and shared all these stories she had. So even if the reading was way off, it did seem to provide an opening point where she felt comfortable talking about what happened.

So it makes me wonder what sort of affect using Tarot could have on getting people to open up and handle some issues. I think there could be room for ethical problems as well, like imagine a psychologist using Tarot to have a patient relive a traumatic experience like rape or abuse. Reminds me of what happened on this show on the Style network called Ruby, where she went to a Reiki session and it seemed to unlocked some traumatic memories where she had to stop the session.

Minotauro said:

well you could always ask for one in the trading section, as there seem to be others who quite like it , but there are probably very few who could actually do a strictly psycological reading.

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You've given me an idea. I think I will try this, but first I need to know of a spread...so will ask for a psychological spread in that section.

Mythic Silence, some of my ideas about what you intend to do. You can't use a classic deck like Raider Waite, because there are many scary pictures. So first you need to find a deck good for your goal. Or make it yourself. That part in itself could be good for a study...how to elaborate a set of cards that could help a psychologist in understanding some issue together with his clients. Hmm, also designing especial spreads could be a very interesting research.

I first have thought that there are oracles with many interesting messages (I have one, Bach Flowers), but those are not the best if what you try to do is to analyse a situation or conflict. At least I don't know how to do this with it.

Haizea said:

Mythic Silence, some of my ideas about what you intend to do. You can't use a classic deck like Raider Waite, because there are many scary pictures. So first you need to find a deck good for your goal. Or make it yourself. That part in itself could be good for a study...how to elaborate a set of cards that could help a psychologist in understanding some issue together with his clients. Hmm, also designing especial spreads could be a very interesting research.

I first have thought that there are oracles with many interesting messages (I have one, Bach Flowers), but those are not the best if what you try to do is to analyse a situation or conflict. At least I don't know how to do this with it.

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I've actually seen a copuple of jungian/psycological tarot/ cards you coulkd ask about them in the decks section too

Minotauro said:

I've actually seen a copuple of jungian/psycological tarot/ cards you coulkd ask about them in the decks section too

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He might be interested in testing them then.

I personally don't have enough knowledge of Psychology as to work with a deck with that name.

Haizea said:

He might be interested in testing them then.

I personally don't have enough knowledge of Psychology as to work with a deck with that name.

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neither have I XD it sounds like such a specialized deck , I hope to see more psycological tarot threads , about their studies and findings and how hard it is so maybe perhaps I could evenbtually join in =P

Minotauro said:

neither have I XD it sounds like such a specialized deck , I hope to see more psycological tarot threads , about their studies and findings and how hard it is so maybe perhaps I could evenbtually join in =P

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You already gave me the idea before. What someone like you or me need is not a psychology deck, but a psychological spread: one where we can try to analyse feelings, thoughts, maybe environment...what type of thoughts the querent needs to put in his/her mind to succeed....with no outcome.