Imants Barušs
Encyclopedia
Imants Barušs is Professor of Psychology at King's University College
at The University of Western Ontario
, Canada.
, but then became preoccupied with existential questions, leading him into unconventional areas of study, with the result that he graduated in 1974 with an interdisciplinary BSc. After some years working as a roofer, he enrolled at the University of Calgary
and, in 1983, completed an MSc in mathematics with specialization in mathematical foundations, writing his thesis about forcing in topoi. He switched to psychology graduating in 1989 from the University of Regina
with a PhD in psychology and specialization in the study of consciousness. Since 1987 he has been teaching courses in psychology, mostly about consciousness, at King's University College, where he has risen to the rank of professor. He has served in a number of administrative roles including Chair of the Department of Psychology and member of the Senate of the University of Western Ontario
, and belong to various professional organizations including the Society for Scientific Exploration
and the New York Academy of Sciences
.
King's University College (University of Western Ontario)
This article refers to the King's College in London, Ontario. For the King's College in London, England, see King's College LondonKing's University College is a Catholic, co-educational liberal arts college affiliated with the University of Western Ontario.-History:It was founded as the "College of...
at The University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
, Canada.
Background
He started out in engineering science on a scholarship at the University of TorontoUniversity of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, but then became preoccupied with existential questions, leading him into unconventional areas of study, with the result that he graduated in 1974 with an interdisciplinary BSc. After some years working as a roofer, he enrolled at the University of Calgary
University of Calgary
The University of Calgary is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1966 the U of C is composed of 14 faculties and more than 85 research institutes and centres.More than 25,000 undergraduate and 5,500 graduate students are currently...
and, in 1983, completed an MSc in mathematics with specialization in mathematical foundations, writing his thesis about forcing in topoi. He switched to psychology graduating in 1989 from the University of Regina
University of Regina
The University of Regina is a public research university located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Founded in 1911 as a private denominational high school of the Methodist Church of Canada, it began an association with the University of Saskatchewan as a junior college in 1925, and was disaffiliated...
with a PhD in psychology and specialization in the study of consciousness. Since 1987 he has been teaching courses in psychology, mostly about consciousness, at King's University College, where he has risen to the rank of professor. He has served in a number of administrative roles including Chair of the Department of Psychology and member of the Senate of the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
, and belong to various professional organizations including the Society for Scientific Exploration
Society for Scientific Exploration
The Society for Scientific Exploration, or SSE, is a professional organization of scientists and other scholars committed to studying unusual and unexplained phenomena that cross traditional scientific boundaries and may be ignored or inadequately studied within mainstream science...
and the New York Academy of Sciences
New York Academy of Sciences
The New York Academy of Sciences is the third oldest scientific society in the United States. An independent, non-profit organization with more than members in 140 countries, the Academy’s mission is to advance understanding of science and technology...
.
Research interests
His interest is in all aspects of consciousness studies although his research has been focussed primarily on quantum consciousness, altered states of consciousness, self-transformation, mathematical modeling of consciousness, and beliefs about consciousness and reality.Books
- Science as a Spiritual Practice (Imprint Academic, 2007) This book argues that there are problems with materialism and that self-transformation could lead individual scientists to more comprehensive ways of understanding reality. It also contains an analysis of the philosophy of Franklin Merrell-WolffFranklin Merrell-WolffFranklin Merrell-Wolff was an American mystical philosopher. After formal education in philosophy and mathematics at Stanford and Harvard, Wolff devoted himself to the goal of transcending the normal limits of human consciousness...
and his mathematical approach to spirituality.
- Alterations of Consciousness: An Empirical Analysis for Social Scientists (American Psychological Association, 2003). The book is an overview of alterations of consciousness such as daydreaming, sleep, dreaming, hypnosis, and psychedelics.
- Authentic Knowing: The Convergence of Science and Spiritual Aspiration (Purdue University Press, 1996) This book tries to show how science and spiritual aspiration converge on fundamental questions about the nature of consciousness and reality when authentically pursued. The book includes chapters about authenticity (what it means to be true to oneself), science (what happens when science encounters the sublime), transcendence (the promise of enlightenment), theory (a theosophical model of reality), and self-transformation (adventures and misadventures of a spiritual aspirant).
- The Personal Nature of Notions of Consciousness: A Theoretical and Empirical Examination of the Role of the Personal in the Understanding of Consciousness(University Press of America, 1990) This book is his doctoral dissertation in which Baruss and his supervisor Robert Moore tried to circumscribe the state of scientific knowledge concerning consciousness in the mid-1980s and to better understand the disparity of notions of consciousness of the scientists and academics studying it. What we found, both through theoretical and empirical investigation, was that there is a material-transcendent dimension concerning beliefs about consciousness and reality that underlies the Western intellectual tradition, which, in particular, colours the manner in which research about consciousness is conducted. From the reviews: