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Dr Gregg Henriques
Professor of Graduate Psychology
James Madison University

About...

Dr. Gregg Henriques is a Professor of Graduate Psychology at James Madison University, where he has worked since 2003. He is a clinical and theoretical psychologist, and founder of UTOK, the Unified Theory of Knowledge, which is a new system of thought that bridges the sciences and humanities into a coherent whole. Dr. Henriques has authored three books, UTOK: The Unified Theory of Knowledge (2024), A New Synthesis for Solving the Problem of Psychology: Addressing the Enlightenment Gap (2022), and A New Unified Theory of Psychology (2011). He has published many professional papers in the field’s top journals, and has a popular blog on Psychology Today, called Theory of Knowledge, which has almost 500 essays and received over 10 million views. Dr. Henriques is a fellow of the American Psychological Association, the 2022 President of the Society for the Exploration of Psychotherapy Integration, and the founder of the UTOK Society. He teaches classes in psychotherapy, personality, personality assessment, cognitive psychology, and social psychology. He received his PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Vermont, did his postdoctoral training under Aaron T. Beck at the University of Pennsylvania, and is a licensed clinical psychologist in Virginia.

Keynote

Fostering Adaptive Living in the Next Generation

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Adaptive living is a central concept in UTOK, the Unified Theory of Knowledge. UTOK defines adaptive living as the process of realistically maximizing one’s valued states of being, relative to the environment and one’s potential over time. Key domains of adaptive living include healthy habits, emotional intelligence, good relationships and adaptive thinking. 

 

This keynote address will share with educators how to define adaptive living, why it is central to human well-being, and how to cultivate it in our selves, relationships, and schools. It will summarize the concept of “psychological flexibility,” which has been described as a “super power” in mental health that is associated with flourishing in times of stress, good outcomes in psychotherapy, and resilience against depression and anxiety. A crucial element of psychological flexibility is adaptive thinking. This talk will share the key elements of adaptive thinking, contrast it with patterns of maladaptive thinking, and describe how it is developed using an innovative, integrative approach to psychological mindfulness called “CALM-MO”. It will explain how CALM-MO integrates the best, most recent empirical research on enhancing psychological flexibility and adaptive thinking, and show summarize why it can be easily taught. 
 

Masterclass

Learning Skills for Adaptive Living


Grounded in a new unified approach to psychological science and therapy that can assimilate and integrate key insights into a coherent whole, called UTOK, the Unified Theory of Knowledge, this master class will elaborate on the elements shared in the keynote to give participants a clear framework for understanding and teaching about (a) adaptive living; (b) maladaptive patterns; (c) keys to adaptive thinking that foster psychological flexibility; and (d) a new, innovative way to teach psychological mindfulness called “CALM-MO”.


Much research has demonstrated the mental health of the younger generation is poor and getting worse. To thrive in the next generation, students (and teachers and principals) will need to learn about adaptive living, which entails healthy habits, good emotional intelligence, good relationship skills, and adaptive thinking. This masterclass will teach participants how and why maladaptive patterns of thinking, feeling, relating, and acting emerge. Specifically, a “neurotic loop” forms if and when an individual reacts to a negative situation in a closed, critical, and defensive manner. Such reactions result in avoidance, blame or misguided control, which in turn results in inflexible and restricted paths that end up making the situation worse. This masterclass will help explain these neurotic loops to participants, so that they can see them in themselves and others. 

 

With a frame for understanding problematic ways of responding, this masterclass will then guide participants into a more adaptive framework. Specifically, principles of adaptive thinking and psychological flexibility will be introduced and evidence supporting their importance will be summarized. Then participants will be introduced to UTOK’s innovative, integrative approach to psychological mindfulness called CALM-MO. Participants will learn how to “shine a CALM-MO light” on neurotic loops. The result is a powerful tool to enhance adaptive living that can be shared with individuals, groups, or students. 

Learning Outcomes:


Participants will:

  1. Develop an understanding of maladaptive reactions called “neurotic loops” and why they lead to depression and anxiety

  2. Learn about adaptive thinking and psychological flexibility and why it is crucial for fostering adaptive living.

  3. Learn about CALM-MO as an integrative approach to psychological mindfulness that can promote adaptive thinking.

  4. Discuss ways that educators might help students learn about neurotic loops, adaptive living, and CALM-MO in different educational contexts.

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