Interdisciplinarity and Dialogue in Psychology

Going back from Sophia

Rodrigo Hésed, a Brazilian psychologist and psychotherapist, attended the Master’s program at the IUS during the 2008-2010 academic years. Today he is practicing in Fortaleza, the capital of the State of Cearà, which has two and a half million inhabitants. His days are divided up between work at the private practice that he opened, and his collaborative work with the Department for Human Rights in the State Administration. Rodrigo is also a young poet and an appreciated blogger by his friends.

 

“The two years dedicated to the foundations and perspectives for a culture of unity,” so he expressed himself, “have allowed me to acquire important theoretical and operational tools which help me today in my work. Among the many aspects of Sophia, I would like to underline in particular its interdisciplinary profile.”

 

We asked him to give us more details about his experience.

 

 

 

Were you satisfied with your studies at Sophia?

 

It was a unique opportunity: to study in an environment rich with cultural diversity taught me to read reality with a more open attitude. Today, just to give you an example, my work brings me in the midst of very poor communities, in order to establish in those regions an inter-institutional network that protects their fundamental rights. And it was the period that I spent at Sophia that gave me some essential keys of interpretation and intervention tools. Among other things, I am continuing to study and my readings in these months are spontaneously directed to the research that I had begun at the IUS. Now I hope to add another chapter to the thesis which I presented.

 

 

In which environment does the contribution given by Sophia stand out the most?

 

It is something that comes out in my work, every day: when I see colleagues in difficulty, when communication is self-centered, or is misconstrued… I know that there is an anthropology of dialogue that allows me to work with everyone, by practicing some original competencies, of which I have begun to experience the extra value they hold.

 

And then I recall a whole series of information that I learned, and I see that I am capable of conversing on very different topics, covering many diverse fields…. Unfortunately, many professionals tend to close themselves in on their own individual research, but the security that they seek is not to be found there.

 

That “sophia” to which the Institute of Loppiano aspires to - the seeking of wisdom - I think blossoms right from the sincere encounter between reflection and experience, and experience is always an open forum. I lived a few unforgettable moments at the IUS when I managed to open up completely to welcome the other, also his/her way of thinking. In this path, I have re-discovered also the tools of psychology more critically and, at the same time, I am more open to its potential.

 

 

So what plans do you have ahead of you now?

 

Before the Master’s program, I had already studied philosophy, while I had no real in-depth background in economics or politics. Now I see that my original CV draws interest: various institutions have called on me for some input, to deepen some subject areas.

 

Among other things, in the different work spheres, I see that they recognize I have a specific competency for creating a more collaborative work environment, also and perhaps right when there are tensions in carrying out and evaluating some decisions.

 

In fact, social psychology teaches that there is no greater therapeutic technique than that of listening, an attending that knows how to really risk everything, a creative attending, therefore, that supports the others in their journey, until they re-discover their innate dignity and the gift they are called to share in life. This is the new horizon that has been opened up to me and for my journey.