Archaeology of Psychotherapy in Korea

This is a valuable addition to the literature which looks at the impact of Asian culture on psychotherapy. The history of psychotherapy contains many metaphors illustrating the subtle principles behind human behaviour and mental health. Haeyoung Jeong brings to our attention the richness of Korean philosophy and its approach to psychotherapy, including the Buddhist and Indigenous traditions, and the metaphors that enlighten their approach. This is a great resource for all therapists interest in an integration of Eastern and Western ideas of psychotherapy.

Ann Moir-Bussy, Program Leader and Senior Lecture in Counselling, University of Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia.

A good example of the collision of Western mental health perspective with a non-Western culture is reflected in Haeyoung Jeong's Archaeology of Psychotherapy in Korea: A Study of Korean Therapeutic Work and Professional Growth. In this work, she documents the development of mental health ideas and practices in Korea from ancient times to the present. [...] [Her] examination of pre-Western psychotherapy in Korea does provide useful material about specific traditional Korean mental experiences and 'folk' psychotherapeutic practices for the Western-trained psychotherapist [...] Many of her conclusions could easily be used to start a transcultural dialogue about Koreans' unique mental experience. [...] Jeong, in some ways, starts a possible transcultural dialogue [...] very helpful for any psychotherapists who treats Korean patients."

Ronald Teague, PsycCRITIQUES, October 2015