Jared C. Parker
Psychology

Jared C. Parker

Assistant Professor of Psychology

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“Throughout our investigation it has emerged that the certainty achieved by using scientific methods does not suffice to guarantee truth. This especially applies to the human sciences, but it does not mean that they are less scientific; on the contrary, it justifies the claim to special humane significance that they have always made. The fact that in such knowledge the knower’s own being comes into play certainly shows the limits of method, but not of science. Rather, what the tool of method does not achieve must—and really can—be achieved by a discipline of questioning and inquiring, a discipline that guarantees truth.”
— Hans-Georg Gadamer

Faculty Information

Additional Faculty Information for Jared C. Parker

Education

B.S. in Psychology, Brigham Young University, 2013
M.S. in Existential, Phenomenological and Depth Psychology, University of Dallas, 2018
Ph.D. candidate in Applied Social Psychology, Brigham Young University

 

Biography

It is hard to say exactly where I am from. I was born in Annapolis, MD, but my family moved frequently as I was growing up (my father worked for the Department of Defense as a linguist). Consequently, I spent six years in Seoul, Korea in the 1990s and spent my middle school and high school years in Hawaii. For most of my adult life I have lived in Utah—Salt Lake City, Provo, or somewhere in between. In 2014, I met Ashley Aland, and we courted on the walls of the various rock climbing gyms scattered throughout Salt Lake City. We married in the summer of 2015 and now have three beautiful children: Charlotte (Lottie), Max, and Matilda (Tilly).

I obtained my B.S. in psychology from Brigham Young University, a M.S. from the University of Dallas, and I completed my Ph.D. at Brigham Young University where I worked with Dr. Ed Gantt on theoretical, philosophical, and methodological problems in psychology. Presently, my research centers on the intersection of psychology, the philosophy of science, and philosophical hermeneutics. How are the human sciences distinct from the natural sciences? What role do understanding and interpretation play in psychological research? How should psychologists think about their research methods? Does good psychological research require something akin to wisdom or virtue, or is it mainly a rational-analytic endeavor? These are the questions that have guided my research thus far.

Moving forward, I am interested in studying the phenomenology of addiction, specifically, the spiritual dimensions of addiction recovery. I am also fascinated by recovery communities like Alcoholics Anonymous an am interested in understanding how members of those communities conceive of addiction and recovery. In all of these areas, my research has been heavily influenced by the writings of William James and by the ideas of hermeneutic philosophers like Martin Heidegger, Hans-Georg Gadamer, and Charles Taylor.

When I’m not reading, writing, or teaching, I enjoy outdoorsy stuff like hiking, rock climbing, and hunting for mushrooms.