Psychology – Rabbi Jon 's Website and Blog

October 9, 2025

I’m a Sophomore!

There is much momentous happening today, and I’m sure I’ll be back here or in some other way with thoughts on that. But for now I’m posting about another project. A couple weeks ago I started the second year of re-reading my college notes again, on (more or less) the calendar date when I wrote… Continue reading

Adam Smith, Books, College, Ethics, Freedom, Middot, Psychology, Social Theory, Tocqueville, USA, Young Jewish Adult

February 10, 2025

I’m a Second Semester Freshman

Okay, it’s second semester of my first year of college in this plan I'm doing, and already I’m a week and a half behind. I will catch up this week and then do the project the way I intended, which is a day at a time. “This semester”, I am taking first of all Introduction… Continue reading

Art, College, Education, History, Israel, Jewish Education, Psychology, Young Jewish Adult, Youth

January 29, 2025

Wrapping Up My First Semester

I am probably already getting a late start on my second semester of college review, so here I am bundling all my leftover notes about first term. I haven't mentioned my Hebrew literature class with Professor Safran. I don't know that I have notes. We read mostly Agnon stories, and talked a lot about his… Continue reading

Books, College, Ethics, Hebrew, Justice, Psychology, Tzedek, Young Jewish Adult, Youth

December 27, 2024

A Year of Jewish Ethics #7: Competition

The story of Yaakov and Esav is basically about an unending competition, which begins even in the womb over who will be born first. Esav wins, earning the birthright which would be relevant for inheritance way later — but Yaakov manages to get it from him in a deal for some lentil stew. The brothers… Continue reading

A Year of Jewish Ethics, Ethics, Parashat Hashavua, Psychology, Talmud, Toldot, Torah

December 8, 2024

College: Piaget, the Soviets, and the Last of Theory-Driven Psych for the Term

I'm much more interested now than I was back freshman year in the philosophy of language and communication. Not that I am that well-versed now, beyond the literary theory I got into for a time both for teaching literature and thinking about Tanakh (Bible). In that light, I'm noticing in my notes about Piaget where… Continue reading

College, Psychology

December 4, 2024

College: Piaget

Yes, I literally just wrote about the prior notes and theory minutes ago! I've always loved Piaget, even after all the critiques of the narrowness of his focus and of his research base. I rely on him all the time. Looking at the notes, I see immediately two things. One that I forgot, which is… Continue reading

College, Education, Psychology, Science, Young Jewish Adult, Youth

December 4, 2024

College: Organismic-Developmental Theory

I guess I'll say it was inevitable I'd fall behind but I am determined to catch up well before the "semester" ends. Fortunately, when I was in college reading period was after winter break… Heinz Werner's organismic-developmental theory seems like something I used to understand and now can't quite piece together. I'm pretty sure it… Continue reading

College, Psychology, Science, Young Jewish Adult, Youth

November 4, 2024

Back to College: The Self in Psychology and Philosophy

I’m noticing in my first semester of college review that I first learned two aspects of the same things at the same time. In developmental psychology, it was humanistic psychology, of the Lewin-Maslow varieties. It’s exciting to see in my notebook a half-page with my first encounter with “hierarchy of needs”, “self-actualization”, and “peak experiences.”… Continue reading

College, Education, Equality, Ethics, Psychology, Young Jewish Adult, Youth

October 30, 2024

A Year of Jewish Ethics #2: Moral Psychology (and Good Enough?)

Image of superhero is designed by Freepik This series of short teachings about Jewish ethics is mostly about the “what”, the principles of action. But that can’t be disentangled from moral psychology, which is the inner experience of trying to do the right thing. Torah discusses moral psychology as well as moral principles. As the… Continue reading

A Year of Jewish Ethics, Current Affairs, Ethics, Middot, Midrash, Noach, Noah, Parashat Hashavua, Psychology, Torah, Young Jewish Adult, Youth

October 28, 2024

Catching Up in College — My College Notes Project Continued

I got behind a few weeks on my project to read along in my college notes from of the current date in my first year. Now that the Jewish holy days are over, and despite all the demanding important things out in the world, I'm catching up today. First to psychology. I don't think I… Continue reading

Bioethics, College, Education, Gender, Psychology, Young Jewish Adult, Youth

September 24, 2024

Back to College #2: Utilitarianism; Gender and Psychological Theory

Looking at my notes from "Justice" and Psychology today — it's neat for me to see where the terms consequentialism and utlitarianism first entered my mental landscape. Professor Sandel did a nice job (and I did a good job in my notes) capturing both the simplicity of Bentham's theory and the nuance of Mill's revisions of it,… Continue reading

College, Equality, Ethics, Feminism, Gender, Inclusion, Justice, Middot, Psychology, Young Jewish Adult

September 24, 2024

Back to College #2: Utilitarianism; Gender and Psychological Theory

Looking at my notes from "Justice" and Psychology today — it's neat for me to see where the terms consequentialism and utlitarianism first entered my mental landscape. Professor Sandel did a nice job (and I did a good job in my notes) capturing both the simplicity of Bentham's theory and the nuance of Mill's revisions of it,… Continue reading

College, Equality, Ethics, Feminism, Gender, Inclusion, Justice, Middot, Psychology, Young Jewish Adult