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The Tree of Knowledge (ToK) System is a theoretical approach to the unification of psychology developed by Gregg Henriques, associate professor and Director of the Combined-Integrated Doctoral Program in Clinical and School Psychology at James Madison University.〔("About Me" section of the ToK System website )〕 The outline of the system was published in 2003 in ''Review of General Psychology''.〔Henriques, G.R. (2003). (The Tree of Knowledge System and the Theoretical Unification of Psychology. ) ''Review of General Psychology, 7,'' 150-182.〕 Two special issues of the ''Journal of Clinical Psychology'' in December 2004〔(''Journal of Clinical Psychology''. (December 2004). Special Issue: Defining Psychology: Articles and Commentaries on a New Unified Theory (Part 1) Issue Edited by Gregg R. Henriques. Volume 60 Issue 12 , Pages 1203 - 1315 )〕 and January 2005〔(''Journal of Clinical Psychology''. (January 2005). Special Issue: Defining Psychology: Articles and Commentaries on a New Unified Theory (Part 2) Issue Edited by Gregg R. Henriques. Volume 61 Issue 1 , Pages 1 - 139 )〕 were devoted to the elaboration and evaluation of the model. The latest evaluation of this model appeared in a December 2008 special issue of ''Theory & Psychology''.〔(''Theory & Psychology''. (December 2008). Volume 18, No. 6 )〕 The Official Website on the Tree of Knowledge System claims that the ToK is :''...a new unified theory of knowledge that maps the pieces of the scientific puzzle in a novel way that connects Quantum Mechanics to Sociological processes and everything in between into a coherent whole. The most novel aspect of the ToK is its visuo-spatial depiction of knowledge as consisting of four dimensions of complexity (Matter, Life, Mind, and Culture) that correspond to the behavior of four classes of objects (material objects, organisms, animals, and humans), and four classes of science (physical, biological, psychological, and social).''〔(ToK FAQ )〕 ==The "problem of psychology"== Henriques argues that the most difficult problem in psychology as a discipline is that while there is incredible diversity offered by different approaches to psychology, there is no consensus model of what ''psychology'' actually is.〔Henriques, G.R. (2003). (The Tree of Knowledge System and the Theoretical Unification of Psychology. ) ''Review of General Psychology, 7,'' 150-182.〕〔Henriques, G.R. (2004). (Psychology Defined ). ''Journal of Clinical Psychology, 60,'' 1207-1221.〕 According to the ToK System, the "problem of psychology", (as Henriques puts it), is that a clear definition, an agreed upon subject matter, and a coherent conceptual framework have eluded its students for its entire history. He further argues that the patent tendency of psychology has been toward theoretical and substantial fractionation and increasing insularity among the “specialties.” In other words, the discipline has fragmented into different schools of thought and methodology, with no overall framework to interpret and integrate the research of different areas. At its best, the different approaches are a strength of psychology; different approaches lead to novel ideas, and prevent psychologists from clinging to a paradigm that fails to explain a phenomenon. At its worst, adherents of one particular school cling to their beliefs concerning the relative importance of their research and disregard or are ignorant of different approaches. In most cases, individual psychologists have to determine for themselves which elements of which perspective to apply, and how to integrate them into their overall understanding. The reason for psychology’s fractionation, according to the ToK, is that there has been no meta-theoretical frame that allows scholars to agree on the basic questions that need to be addressed. As such, the different schools of thought in psychology are like the blind men who each grab a part of the elephant and proclaim they have discovered its true nature. With its novel depiction of evolving dimensions of complexity, the ToK allows scholars finally to see the elephant. In his 2003 ''Review of General Psychology'' paper,〔Henriques, G.R. (2003). (The Tree of Knowledge System and the Theoretical Unification of Psychology. ) ''Review of General Psychology, 7,'' 150-182.〕 Henriques used the ToK System with the attempt to clarify and align the views of B.F. Skinner and Sigmund Freud. These luminaries were chosen because when one considers their influence and historical opposition, it can readily be argued that they represent two schools of thought that are the most difficult to integrate. Henriques used the meta-perspective offered by the ToK to argue how one can retain the key insights from each school of thought, identify errors and points of confusion, and integrate the insights into a coherent whole. Cultural and personality psychologist, Michael Katzko,〔(Homepage of Michael Katzko )〕 however critiques Henriques' position on "the problem of psychology": :''There is a very good reason for skepticism regarding the repeated claims that the one unique problem of psychology, applicable across the entire discipline, has been identified and that the ToK System solves it. The reason is given by the detail with which alternatives have been worked out, be they historical studies of institutional development or critical commentaries on the rhetorical structure of psychology’s literature.''〔Katzko, M.W. (2008). Pruning the Tree of Knowledge. ''Theory & Psychology, 18,'' 817-828. (Abstract )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Tree of Knowledge System」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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