PROFESSIONAL INTERESTS AND SPECIALITIES
I am a clinical and a forensic psychologist, now in retirement and no longer practising. I started out in clinical psychology in 1974. Before then, I worked (from 1970) as a research psychologist in a hospital for patients with brain damage. I have also held part-time teaching and lecturing posts at universities. In 2001 I qualified in forensic psychology and worked half-time as a consultant, and eventually lead, psychologist for over 10 years in a medium secure hospital.
HUMANISM
I have undertaken Schools Speaker training courses with Humanists UK and give talks and lessons on humanism to religious
education classes in schools. I am also able to give presentations on humanism to other groups.
I have undertaken Humanist UK's training in non-religious pastoral care and am a volunteer in the multi-faith chaplaincy at a university. In the past I have also volunteered in this capacity with psychiatric inpatients and at a day centre for people with life-limiting illnesses.
SKEPTICISM
For over 25 years I have been very active in 'the Skeptic movement' as it is sometimes called. Here's some of the activities I have been involved in:
UNIVERSAL AWARENESS
Why was I born the person I am and not someone else?
If something had prevented me from being born, would I still have
been born, but as someone else?
What happens to me when I die?
The expression 'universal awareness' (or, more commonly,
'universal consciousness') is used in different ways by different writers when describing their own ideas and
beliefs about those profound questions that we ask ourselves; questions about our existence, our identity, and
our ultimate fate. What I refer to as Universal Awareness is a carefully reasoned, materialistic account of how
our self-awareness (our awareness of being the person we are) can be construed at the universal level. This
involves no occult, religious or supernatural ideas or entities, and stays strictly within the bounds of
existing scientific knowledge. The title of my latest book (June 2025) is The Meaning of Universal Awareness: A Rational Foundation
(Kindle Self-Publishing)'. This is a follow-up to the first (2011) and second (2022) editions of my book
Universal Awareness: A Theory of the Soul. Click here for my blog, The Meaning of Universal Awareness: A Rational Foundation
Let me Help you Create your own Personal Philosophy
I manage a website that aims to help people develop their own personal philosophy by thinking about the big meaning-of-life questions, such as how the world, including human life, came about; what is our ultimate destiny; whether there's a purpose to it all; what being 'a good person' means to you; what makes the world 'a good place'; and so on. The website is called 'My Personal Philosophy' because it's all about what you yourself think and believe, although this may be based on existing religious and philosophical teachings. It is hoped that it will help you remain aware of and committed to those ideals and principles which are important to you, especially when meeting the ups and downs of everyday life, conflicts, uncertainty, moral and ethical challenges, and so on. I welcome comments, suggestions for improvements, and ideas for taking this further.
