about
Like most people I am fascintated by how we experience the world around us and this interest has run through and guided all aspects of my creative life. On this website I introduce readers to my writing, artwork and teaching which falls within the areas of psychology, philosophy, art and animal behaviour (concentrating on birds).
In an attempt to provide some initial answers to the enormous area covered in the above questions I have developed a qualitative and philosophical perspective, employing a facet theoretical and mapping sentence approach: a research method I have taken from the social sciences. I have conducted research, published articles and books and have taught in the areas of: applied psychology; research methods; consumer psychology and facet theory in both the United States and the United Kingdom.
Overall Research Strategy
My research is concerned with the categorial understanding that humans have of their world and how such understanding underpins and facilitates behaviour. This interest draws upon several branches of psychology, philosophy, psychometrics and research methods in my research into cognition, behaviour and experience. Over three plus decades I have developed a qualitative and philosophical orientation within the facet theory perspective and an approach to research known as the declarative mapping sentence (DMS). The DMS has facilitated my being able to advance an ontological and mereological understanding of many aspects of the lives of both human and non-human animals.
The theoretical framework that I have proposed has enabled me, my students and collaborators to conduct empirical investigations that has allowed the development of the facet theory approach outside of its traditional quantitative, psychometric applications. This has been brought about by conducting studies within areas such as education, marketing, consumer behaviour, business, management, environmentalism, health and wellbeing, medical practice, avian cognition and many other areas. The qualitative facet theory approach, along with the declarative mapping sentence, is continuing to enable research to be conducted and knowledge to be developed in areas of behaviour and experience that involve complex arrays of multiple variables within the situation of the behaviour’s occurrence. My visiting positions at Oxford, Cambridge, Durham and several other universities have, and continue to, enable me to expand my research and my writing.
My publications include a dozen books and my articles have appeared in leading journals such as: Frontiers in Psychology; International Journal of Social Research Methodology; Psychometrika; Environment and Behavior; Multivariate Behavior Research; Perceptual and Motor Skills; Personality and Individual Differences. My teaching also embraces and directly involves the conceptualising of behaviour (in its broadest sense) as being complex, holistic and best understood using multivariate approaches and complex qualitative approaches. My publications have applied facet theory within contexts that include: fine art; philosophy; health; business; consumer behaviour; psychology; environmental concern; anthropology and other disciplines. I have also developed facet theory and mapping sentences as a guide to therapeutic counseling interventions.
I hold PhDs in both psychology and fine art and I am a professor teaching ethnography and applied psychology at Emerson College, Boston, USA.
I am an honorary fellow in the Philosophy Department at the University of Durham, UK; a visiting professor in psychological research methods in the School of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire, UK; a visiting professor in health research in the School of Health Science at the University of Suffolk, UK; and a visiting professor in the School of Behavioral Sciences and Psychology, at the College of Management Academic Studies, Rishon Lezion, Israel.
I have previously held visiting teaching and research positions in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Oxford; in the Psychology Department at Cambridge University; Birmingham, Cardiff and Tufts Universities and have held honorary and visiting appointments at institutions such as Harvard University, USA; York University, Canada: and Birmingham University, UK. I am a fellow of the Massachusetts Psychological Association in the US and a Chartered Psychologist and an Associate Fellow of the British Pshychological Society.
As well as this website, I also have a web presence on the following sites:
My writing is concerned with the process of asking questions about how we experience and form our sense of reality. My research interests have led me to further develop my research and writing into theoretical aspects of measurement resulting in me teaching several forms of quantitative and qualitative research classes. The questions I have asked have included theoretical explorations that enquire into how we undertake asking questions. I have also conducted research and written about the articulation of questions that have addressed several areas of human behaviour.
My main research interest and area of publication is facet theory and I have seminally developed the facet theoretical research orientation into qualitative as well as quantitative forms of data. I have also extended facet theoretical approaches and mapping sentence research into the discipline of philosophy and within the humanities. My education is both as an environmental psychologist and as a fine artist and these feed into my eclectic appreciation for attempting to understand the experience of being human and has led me to study areas such as cognition, fine art and religious experience.
The ontological and mereological structure of our understanding of many life areas resides centrally within my interests. My research has made particular reference to environmental attitudes and behaviours, as well as the above-mentioned areas within the social sciences and humanities. My psychometric background constitutes the underpinning for my research and I have applied the rigour of quantified approaches to my philosophical and qualitative writing.
current research
My most recent research is concerned with the application of facet theory and the mapping sentence to study the behaviour (mainly intellectuall indicative) of corvids (members of the crow family). This research is associated with my visiting academic status at Cambridge University working with Professor Nicola Clayton in her Comparative Cognition research centre. This research is investigating the opinions of scientists working in corvid behaviour. I have a PhD student, Uta Jurgens, who is investigating ethological aspects of human relationships with 'problem species' including the carion crow.
At present I am also conducting field research into art professionals' perception and understanding of three-dimensional, non-figurative artwork.
During 2015 - 2016 I was a visiting researcher in the department of philosophy at the University of Oxford. The research I am conducting at Oxford is into the use of mapping sentences and facet theory in order to structure philosophical understanding of human behaviour and experience.
upcoming events
This website is under continual development so please check out all of my pages and check back regularly for updates.
