Allan Combs
Encyclopedia
Allan Combs is a consciousness
researcher, neuropsychologist
, and systems theorist
. He considers his most significant work to be the development of a developmental
/evolutionary model of the mind
using concepts from systems science
. Much of this was accomplished in collaboration with his friend and colleague Stanley Krippner
. He is also widely known for his collaboration with Ken Wilber
on the Wilber-Combs lattice.
Professor Combs is the author of over 200 articles, chapters, and books on consciousness and the brain. He holds a full-time appointment at the California Institute of Integral Studies
and a part-time appointment at Saybrook Graduate School. He is also Professor Emeritus at the University of North Carolina-Asheville and Academic Director for the Conscious Evolution Master's Degree Program at The Graduate Institute as well as a visiting professor in Leadership and Conflict Analysis at Antioch University Midwest.
Combs is a co-founder of the Society for Chaos Theory in Psychology and the Life Sciences, a member of the General Evolution Research Group, the Integral Institute
, and the one-hundred member Club of Budapest
. He is Co-Editor of the Journal of Conscious Evolution, Associate Editor of Dynamical Psychology, and serves on the Editorial Boards of a variety of scientific journals. He was the winner of the 2002-2003 National Teaching Award of the Association of Graduate Liberal Studies Programs, and in the same year the held the UNCA
Honorary Ruth and Leon Feldman Professorship.
Allan lives in Santa Rosa, California, with his wife Julie and two corgi dogs named Bonnie and Clyde. His daughter Monica Combs works as an artist and tattoo master in Asheville and Waynesville, North Carolina, and his daughter Mollie Dezern lives in San Francisco.
Consciousness
Consciousness is a term that refers to the relationship between the mind and the world with which it interacts. It has been defined as: subjectivity, awareness, the ability to experience or to feel, wakefulness, having a sense of selfhood, and the executive control system of the mind...
researcher, neuropsychologist
Neuropsychology
Neuropsychology studies the structure and function of the brain related to specific psychological processes and behaviors. The term neuropsychology has been applied to lesion studies in humans and animals. It has also been applied to efforts to record electrical activity from individual cells in...
, and systems theorist
Systems theory
Systems theory is the transdisciplinary study of systems in general, with the goal of elucidating principles that can be applied to all types of systems at all nesting levels in all fields of research...
. He considers his most significant work to be the development of a developmental
Developmental psychology
Developmental psychology, also known as human development, is the scientific study of systematic psychological changes, emotional changes, and perception changes that occur in human beings over the course of their life span. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to...
/evolutionary model of the mind
Mind
The concept of mind is understood in many different ways by many different traditions, ranging from panpsychism and animism to traditional and organized religious views, as well as secular and materialist philosophies. Most agree that minds are constituted by conscious experience and intelligent...
using concepts from systems science
Systems science
Systems science is an interdisciplinary field of science that studies the nature of complex systems in nature, society, and science. It aims to develop interdisciplinary foundations, which are applicable in a variety of areas, such as engineering, biology, medicine and social sciences.Systems...
. Much of this was accomplished in collaboration with his friend and colleague Stanley Krippner
Stanley Krippner
Stanley Krippner is an American psychologist, and an executive faculty member and Professor of Psychology at Saybrook University in San Francisco...
. He is also widely known for his collaboration with Ken Wilber
Ken Wilber
Kenneth Earl Wilber II is an American author who has written about mysticism, philosophy, ecology, and developmental psychology. His work formulates what he calls Integral Theory. In 1998, he founded the Integral Institute, for teaching and applications of Integral theory.-Biography:Ken Wilber was...
on the Wilber-Combs lattice.
Professor Combs is the author of over 200 articles, chapters, and books on consciousness and the brain. He holds a full-time appointment at the California Institute of Integral Studies
California Institute of Integral Studies
California Institute of Integral Studies is a private institution of higher education founded in 1968 and based in San Francisco, California. It currently operates in three locations just south of the Civic Center district...
and a part-time appointment at Saybrook Graduate School. He is also Professor Emeritus at the University of North Carolina-Asheville and Academic Director for the Conscious Evolution Master's Degree Program at The Graduate Institute as well as a visiting professor in Leadership and Conflict Analysis at Antioch University Midwest.
Combs is a co-founder of the Society for Chaos Theory in Psychology and the Life Sciences, a member of the General Evolution Research Group, the Integral Institute
Integral Institute
The Integral Institute is a think-tank founded in 1998 by American author Ken Wilber. The purpose of the Institute is to gather and attempt to integrate the various viewpoints found in a number of major fields of knowledge...
, and the one-hundred member Club of Budapest
Club of Budapest
The Club of Budapest is an international organization founded in 1993 by Ervin Laszlo to expand beyond the exclusively scientific purpose of The General Evolution Research Group to try to mobilize the full cultural resources of humanity to meet the challenges we face.-Club's mission:“The Club of...
. He is Co-Editor of the Journal of Conscious Evolution, Associate Editor of Dynamical Psychology, and serves on the Editorial Boards of a variety of scientific journals. He was the winner of the 2002-2003 National Teaching Award of the Association of Graduate Liberal Studies Programs, and in the same year the held the UNCA
University of North Carolina at Asheville
The University of North Carolina at Asheville is a co-educational, four year, public liberal arts university. The university is also known as UNC Asheville. Located in Asheville, Buncombe County, North Carolina, UNCA is the only designated liberal arts institution in the University of North...
Honorary Ruth and Leon Feldman Professorship.
Allan lives in Santa Rosa, California, with his wife Julie and two corgi dogs named Bonnie and Clyde. His daughter Monica Combs works as an artist and tattoo master in Asheville and Waynesville, North Carolina, and his daughter Mollie Dezern lives in San Francisco.
Citations
- Combs, A. (2002). The Radiance of being: Understanding the grand integral vision; Living the integral life. St Paul, MN: Paragon House.
- Combs, A. (2009). Consciousness explained better: Towards an integral understanding of the multifaceted nature of consciousness. St Paul, MN: Paragon House.
- Combs, A. (Ed.). (1910). Special issue of Journal of Consciousness Studies: A Victorian’s Guide to Consciousness. 17 (11-2).
- Combs, A., Germine, M, & Goertzel, B. (Eds.). (2004). Mind in time: The dynamics of thought, reality, and consciousness. Hampton, Cresskill, NJ.
- Combs, A., & Holland, M. (1990). Synchronicity: Through the Eyes of Science, Myth, and the Trickster. New York: Paragon House. (Second edition with forward by Ervin LaszloErvin LászlóErvin László is a Hungarian philosopher of science, systems theorist, integral theorist, originally a classical pianist. He has published about 75 books and over 400 papers, and is editor of World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution...
; 1995. Third edition with foreword by Robin Robertson; 2001.) - Combs, A. (Ed.), LaszloErvin LászlóErvin László is a Hungarian philosopher of science, systems theorist, integral theorist, originally a classical pianist. He has published about 75 books and over 400 papers, and is editor of World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution...
, E., Artigiani, R., & Csányi, V. (1996). Changing visions: Human cognitive maps, past, present and future. London: Adamantine Press; Westport, CT: Praeger. - Combs, A., Pfaffenberger, A., & Marko, P. (Eds.). (2011). The postconventional personality: Empirical perspectives on higher development. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.
- Ervin LaszloErvin LászlóErvin László is a Hungarian philosopher of science, systems theorist, integral theorist, originally a classical pianist. He has published about 75 books and over 400 papers, and is editor of World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution...
, E., & Combs, A. (2011). Dreamer of the Earth: The Relevance of Thomas Berry, prophetic visionary (1914-2009). Selected essays. Rochester, Vermont: Inner Traditions. - Robertson, R., & Combs, A. (Eds.). (1995). Chaos theory in psychology and the life sciences. Hillsdale, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum.
- Sulis, W., & Combs, A. (Eds.). (1996). Nonlinear dynamics in human behavior. Singapore: World Scientific.
External links
- Source Integralis, Combs' website
- Saybrook Graduate School
- California Institute of Integral Studies
- The Graduate Institute
- University of North Carolina-Asheville
- The General Evolution Research Group
- The Society for Chaos Theory in Psychology and the Life Sciences
- Integral Institute
- Club of Budapest
- Journal of Conscious Evolution
- Dynamical Psychology