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Students in the Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology programs learn to work in prevention and treatment modalities with families, infants, children and adults. Study Options
The following description applies to all graduate programs in Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology.
Guiding Perspective and Principles The Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology Programs specialize in the extraordinary new discoveries in research and in ground-breaking clinical work that examine this earliest of human developmental periods. Conception, life in the womb, birth and bonding, and the beginning experiences as an infant in the family shape our sense of self and our lives at all levels of our being--physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual. This program of study provides an exquisite opportunity for students to help mothers, fathers and infants/children have the most optimal early foundation available. The program also prepares students to work with individual adult clients, couples and families. The goal of the Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology Programs is to prepare students to become effective therapists, educators and service providers who are knowledgeable in both traditional psychotherapeutic modalities and prenatal and perinatal approaches to psychotherapy. The programs are based on the perception that at any age, when we listen to, come into relationship with, and integrate our early prenatal and infant experience, we have the opportunity to re-constellate our foundational constructs and perhaps the very fabric of our being. In this process, students come to understand the impact of this formative time as well as the depth of possibility that we as humans have to live creative and satisfying lives. In addition to helping clients at any life stage ameliorate less than optimal beginnings, there is a focus on healthy function and prevention through processes of education and optimal experience. In so doing, we engender hope and an array of conscious choices that promote integrity, dignity and compassion for self and others. The course of study in the prenatal and perinatal developmental area covers the foundations of this psychological science and includes new paradigms from a number of disciplines. The latest developments in embryology, neurobiology, attachment theory, theories of trauma and the origins of psychopathology form an important foundation of the curriculum. Orientations of body, self and soul are included through our somatic perspective. Rigorous academic standards are a key component in developing scholarly work of the highest quality and include mentoring of the individual student's research ideas and career goals. Student and faculty participation in the creation of a synergistic learning community supports this unique approach. The growing depth and breadth of research and clinical experience across a number of disciplines demonstrates that when we, as adults, can make sense of our past, can create a coherent narrative of our early lives, we can help others create secure attachments and healthy lives. In this light, students are encouraged to explore their own unique early experiences and move toward wholeness, to move past the illusions of early constricting conditioning, perceptions and beliefs and assist clients in doing the same. From this expanded perspective, students also glimpse the prenatal and perinatal experience as the gateway from the world of spirit that introduces us to our physical world. At Santa Barbara Graduate Institute, this holistic, transpersonal view guides our beliefs, perceptions, and experiences as well as clinical practice and teaching. It is within this context that prenatal and perinatal psychology is explored. Admission to the Program Successful pre/perinatal psychology students come from all over the world and have a wide variety of academic backgrounds, including psychology, the humanities and the arts as well as fields involving early development. Students generally have experience or a strong interest in working with young families, infants and children. In addition, many have an interest in helping adults come into relationship with and heal their earliest experiences. This program is also designed to meet the needs of childbirth and parent educators, infant/child/family therapists and caseworkers, paraprofessionals, and individuals interested in incorporating a more in-depth understanding of the pre- and perinatal human developmental period into their work. The program seeks students who have are avid learners, welcome introspection and self-development and have a desire to make a difference. Students must be able to benefit from and contribute to an educational community. Because of the experiential aspect of the program and its focus on early material, it is important for students to be emotionally well resourced in order to cope with the feelings that can emerge in the course of pursuing rigorous intellectual studies. Program Objectives The educational objectives of the Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology Program are to:
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