Evidence of Impact

Updated 11.3.24

Three Principles Papers—Published, Forthcoming, and Under Review in Peer-Reviewed Academic Journals (1988-2022)

Kelley, T.M., Savard, D., Bowers, J., Pettit Jr., W. F., & Pransky, J. (Under Review).

An insufficient understanding of the human psychospiritual system: Testing an index of impairment view of general factor p. Journal for the Study of Spirituality.
ABSTRACT: Considerable research points to a common factor underlying an array of psychopathology. This putative common factor is known as general factor p (or p). Here, we test an index of impairment view of p. We speculate that the core fundamental impairment that
crosses multiple forms of psychopathology is an insufficient understanding of the human psychospiritual system (or HPS). We first describe the spiritual Principles that operate the HPS. Then we propose an index from an insufficient understanding of the HPS (i.e., our view of p) to unhealthy use of the Principle of Thought to psychopathology and obscured mental health. Next, we present a study that tests our view of p. The findings support each of our hypotheses. The mediation analyses show that the level of understanding of the HPS (i.e., level of p) is a significant mediator in the relationship between unhealthy use of the Principle of Thought and psychopathology, and between unhealthy use of the Principle of Thought and mental health. Also, in both relationships, the level of understanding of innate mental health is an even stronger mediator than the level of understanding of the Principle of Thought. Implications of these
findings for clinical practice and prevention are discussed.

Kelley, T.M., Savard, D., Bowers, J., Pransky, J., & Pettit Jr., W. F. (Under Review).
Understanding the human psychospiritual system as a mediator between maladaptive repetitive thought and psychopathology for adults exposed to adverse childhood experiences. Journal of Interpersonal Violence.
ABSTRACT: We posit that a major liability associated with the long-term detriment of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on adult mental health is that many adults exposed to ACEs have an insufficient understanding of the human psychospiritual system (HPS). We first review Principles1 that we posit account for the operation of the HPS. Then we propose a path from an insufficient understanding of the HPS to maladaptive repetitive thought (or MRT) to psychopathological symptoms and decreased mental well-being. Finally, we present a study that tests the mediating effect of understanding the HPS in the relationships between MRT and psychopathological symptoms and between MRT and mental well-being for 690 adults exposed to ACEs. The Sobel analyses show that understanding the HPS is a significant mediator between MRT and psychopathological symptoms, and between MRT and mental well-being. Also, for participants reporting 5 ACEs or more (n = 200), understanding the HPS is also a significant mediator in both relationships. Finally, in both relationships, understanding innate mental health is an even stronger mediator than understanding the Principle of Thought. Implications of these findings for clinical practice and prevention are discussed.

Kelley, T.M., Savard, D., Bowers, J., Pransky, J., & Pettit Jr., W. F. (Under Review).

The mediating effect of understanding the principle of Thought and innate mental health between maladaptive repetitive thought and psychopathology/mental health. Spiritual Psychology and Counseling.
ABSTRACT: Maladaptive repetitive thought (or MRT) is associated with most forms of psychopathology. However, despite the negative consequences, people continue to use MRT. Here, we test the mediating effect of the level of understanding of two psychospiritual factors—the Principle of Thought 1 and innate mental health (PT/IMH)—in the relationship between MRT and psychopathology and between MRT and mental health. Two groups are used: the first with formal exposure to the understanding of PT/IMH (n = 507); and the second with no formal exposure to the understanding of PT/IMH (n = 344). The results show that for both groups, the understanding of PT/IMH is a significant mediator in the relationship between MRT and psychopathology and between MRT and mental health. Also, compared with the no- exposure group, the understanding of PT/IMH is an even stronger mediator in both relationships for the exposure group. Finally,for both groups, and in both relationships, the understanding of innate mental health is a stronger mediator than the understanding of the Principle of Thought. Implications of these findings for clinical practice and prevention are discussed.

Kelley, T. M., & Pransky, J. (Under review at Cognition and Emotion) Maladaptive repetitive thought, psychopathology, and somatic illness: The innocent misuse of the Principles of Mind, Consciousness, and Thought.

Abstract: A large literature exists regarding people’s use of repetitive thought. However, several prevailing understanding gaps in this literature obscure a precise understanding of repetitive thought and its precipitants, motivators, maintaining factors and consequences. In this paper, the authors attempt to clarify these understanding gaps using the logic of a new theoretical perspective on thought, emotion, psychopathology, and mental well-being grounded in the Principles of Mind, Consciousness and Thought. We first review several domains of repetitive thought research and specify critical understanding gaps for each area. Next, we describe the Principles of Mind, Consciousness and Thought and explain how they appear to manifest within everyone to create their psychological life experiences. Then, we attempt to show that the primary source of the understanding voids in repetitive thought research is insufficient understanding of these Principles. Finally, we posit that via sufficient understanding of the Principles of Mind, Consciousness and Thought, people realize how to use the power of Thought in their best interest, engage in repetitive thought when responsive to the moment, avoid chronic mental stress, psychopathology, and somatic illness, and sustain mental well-being and resilient functioning.

Franklin-Smith, M., Parker, S., Jones, R. W., Kelley, T. M., Sharma, V., Skidmore, C., & Felix, F. The efficacy of Health Realization/Innate Health psychoeducation for individuals with eating disorders: A pilot study.

Published in SPIRITUAL PSYCHOLOGY AND COUNSELING Volume: 7 Number: 2 2022 June

Abstract: Eating disorders are associated with high rates of mortality, disability, and poor motivation for change. Psychological therapies are the first line treatment, yet outcomes are poor, and dropout rates high. Health Realization/Innate Health (HR/IH) psycho-education offers an alternative intervention which can be delivered in groups engaging participants’ innate capacity for wellbeing and resilience. Eight female participants with anorexia nervosa (mean age 27.75, SD 14.34) from the CONNECT Eating Disorders Service, United Kingdom attended and completed a 15 session HR/IH psycho-educational group facilitated by two HR/IH trained therapists in this pre-experimental, multiple single-case design pilot study. Standard general psychiatric and eating disorders clinical outcome measures were administered immediately before and after the group, and the quantitative data compared using SPSS. Qualitative feedback was gathered using a feedback questionnaire immediately after the group. Comparison of quantitative data indicated statistically significant improvement in participants’ weight (p=0.04), body mass index (BMI; p=0.04), and Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDEQ) global mean score (p=0.04). Clinically significant positive changes were also noted for Rosenberg’s SelfEsteem Scale (pre-mean=8.8; post-mean=11.9), Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation (CORE; pre-mean=1.6; post-mean=1.4), and Eating Disorders Quality of Life Scale (EDQLS; pre-mean=2.0; post-mean=1.4). High levels of participant and carer satisfaction and acceptability were also demonstrated. The HR/IH psycho-educational approach warrants further study as a brief intervention for adults with eating disorders.

Methods: Eight female participants from the CONNECT Eating Disorders Service in the United Kingdom attended a 15 session HR/IH psychoeducational group facilitated by two HR/IH trained therapists. Standard general psychiatric and eating disorders clinical outcome measures were administered immediately before and after the group and pre- and post-group quantitative data were compared using SPSS. Qualitative feedback data was gathered using a feedback questionnaire carried out by one of the therapists immediately following the group.

Results: All eight participants had a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa and all completed the HR/IH group. Comparison of pre- and post-group data indicated a statistically significant improvement in the participants’ weight, body mass index (BMI) and the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDEQ) global mean score. Clinically significant positive changes were also noted for Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale, the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation (CORE) and the Eating Disorders Quality of Life Scale (EDQLS). The HR/IH also demonstrated high levels of participant and carer satisfaction and acceptability.

Conclusion: The HR/IH psychoeducational approach warrants further study as a brief intervention for adults with eating disorders.

Read full article here.

Spark Curriculum
With over 700 participants, using both randomized and control groups, the results indicate that the SPARK curriculum is effective at producing statistically significant, positive changes in levels of mental wellbeing, decision-making, problem-solving and communication skills, emotional regulation and impulse control, and resilience in relation to bounce-back (during tough circumstance) and compassion toward others (during tough circumstances). Find out more in-depth information here: https://sparkcurriculum.org/spark-evidence-based-curriculum/

Psychology in the Schools
Social and emotional learning during early adolescence: Effectiveness of a classroom‐based SEL program for middle school students
Amy L. Green, Stephen Ferrante, Timothy L. Boaz, Krista Kutash, Brooke Wheeldon‐Reece
First published: 01 February 2021 Full Article: https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22487
Abstract: Early adolescence and the transition to middle school bring about many challenges for students and negative outcomes are not uncommon, including academic decline and social maladjustment. This developmental period is also marked by increased risk of mental health‐related difficulties. Strengthening students’ social and emotional competencies through the delivery of school‐based Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) programs has been suggested as one strategy for promoting positive development and preventing negative outcomes. In particular, the delivery of developmentally appropriate and evidence‐based SEL programs at the universal level of tiered supports has the potential to benefit many students. The current study presents findings from a randomized controlled trial of the Speaking to the Potential, Ability, and Resilience Inside Every Kid (SPARK) Pre‐Teen Mentoring Curriculum for 357 students from two schools. Results revealed that students who received the curriculum showed significant improvements in knowledge of curriculum content and principles; communication, decision‐making, and problem‐solving skills; emotional regulation; and resilience compared to students in the comparison condition. Results provide initial evidence for the efficacy of the SPARK Pre‐Teen Mentoring Curriculum for middle school students. Study strengths and limitations as well as directions for future research and program development are discussed.

Kelley, T. M., Wheeldon-Reece, B., & Lambert, E. The efficacy of mental health education for improving the well-being and Perceptions of School Climate for Students AtRisk for School Failure

Published in SPIRITUAL PSYCHOLOGY AND COUNSELING Volume: 6 Number: 2 2021 June

Abstract: This preliminary study investigates the efficacy of the SPARK Mentoring Program, a mental health education intervention grounded the psycho-spiritual Principles of Universal Mind, Consciousness, and Thought for improving the well-being and perceptions for school climate of students at-risk for school failure. Students at-risk for academic failure were assigned to a treatment group (n= 75), and a waitlist comparison group (n= 34). Pre-and post-intervention, participants in both groups completed the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale, the Acceptance component of the Difficulties in Emotional Regulation Scale, and the Social and Emotional Learning, High Expectations, Caring Adults, and Peer Climate components of the Alaska School Climate and Connectedness Survey. Compared to the control group, students receiving this intervention (thirteen 45–60-minute sessions during regular school hours) reported improved mental health evidenced by a significant increase in mental well-being, state of mind, and hope for the future, and improved perceptions of school climate evidenced by a significant increase in conflict resolution, valuing academic success, and relational trust with teachers, peers, and school community.

Read full article here.

Kelley, T. M., Pettit, W. F., Sedgeman, J. A., & Pransky, J. B. One Generic Mental Illness: A Principle-Based Psycho-Spiritual Explanation of General Factor p and Its Application to Spiritually Informed Clinical Practice.

Published SPIRITUAL PSYCHOLOGY AND COUNSELING Volume: 6 Number: 2 2021 June

Abstract: Multiple forms of psychopathology appear to have one common liability typically referred to as general factor p (or p). The possibility of a general factor of psychopathology begs several questions. If something substantive exists that accounts for patterns of comorbidity across myriad forms of psychopathology, what exactly is it? If higher levels of this factor account for more severe and sustained psychological ill-heath, what explains it and its developmental progression? If this factor exists, does it account for varying levels of mental health and the apparent decline in mental health from childhood to mid-life? Does this factor have a common prevention and remediation? The authors offer a possible answer, a new psycho-spiritual explanation of general factor p grounded in understanding the way people’s psychological life experiences are created via three universal Principles—Mind, Consciousness and Thought. Given this understanding of p, we propose a process from p to psychopathology. Then we offer a prevention and remediation for the ill-effects of our view of p which we call factor U. Factor U describes people’s awareness and sufficient insight-based understanding of the way these three Principles manifest within everyone. Finally, we apply our view of p to clinical practice emphasizing empirically supported mental health education grounded in factor U for preventing and remediating the ill-effects of p, thus reducing psychopathology and its symptoms, and naturally restoring a state of innate mental well-being.

Read full article here.

Kelley, T. M., Kessel, A., Collings, R., Rubinstein, B., Monnickendam, C., & Solomon, A. Evaluation of the iHEART mental health education programme on resilience and wellbeing of UK secondary school adolescents.

Published Journal of Public Mental Health. Vol 20, Issue 1, 2021

Abstract: There is abundant evidence of impaired mental well-being in adolescents and young adults. We present the findings of a preliminary study based on a novel structured mental health education programme – Innate Health Education and Resilience Training (iHEART) – in a cohort of secondary school adolescents in the UK. Methodology A curriculum-based 10-week programme was delivered by trained facilitators. 205 students enrolled in the study. An additional 64 participants were within an age-matched non-intervention control group. A non-randomised control mixed methodology approach was used. All students, pre- and post-programme, completed a quantitative questionnaire – the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Survey. Qualitative measures were used to assess participants’ perceptions of changes in their resilience and mental well-being. Findings Those who received the intervention showed a small improvement in mental well-being relative to those who did not; with a similar change in resilience. Qualitative findings regarding impulse control and emotional resilience provided positive findings.

Read full article here.

Kelley, T. M., Pettit, W. F., Sedgeman, J. A,. & Pransky, J. B. (2020) Psychiatry’s pursuit of euthymia: Another wild goose chase or an opportunity for Principle-based facilitation?

Published International Journal of Psychiatry in Clinical Practice 2021 Nov;25(4):333-335.

Abstract: The authors are encouraged that psychiatry appears to be moving toward including the positive as well the negative in its assessment and treatment. We are fearful, however, that to guide its pursuit of euthymia, psychiatry appears to be adopting the same failed “outside-in” paradigm that positive psychology adopted to direct its search for flourishing. In other words, psychiatry’s prevailing view appears to be that euthymia must be “put into” people via assisting them to adopt new positive beliefs and persistently practice various psychotherapeutic techniques. The authors posit that if psychiatry continues to view the positive through this “outside in” lens, its pursuit of euthymia, like positive psychology’s search for flourishing, will bear small fruit.

Read full article here.

Kelley, T. M. Hollows, J., Bowens, S., Kryvanos, A., & Pransky, J. The Efficacy of Principle-Based Correctional Counseling for Improving the Self-Control and Mental Health of People Incarcerated for Sexual Violence.

Published Violence against Women, Vol. 28, Issue 2, 2021

Abstract: This study is the first to test the efficacy of principle-based correctional counseling (PBCC) for improving the self-control and mental health of people incarcerated for sexual violence (SV). A total of 132 males incarcerated for SV were assigned to a treatment group that received cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) supplemented with intensive PBCC and a waitlist control group that received only CBT. Results using paired t-tests and an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) to control for pretest scores showed that compared with the control group, treatment participants showed a significant increase in affective well-being and a significant decrease in low self-control, depression, anxiety, and anger.

Read more here.

El-Mokadem, J. & DiMarko, K., Kelley, T. M., & Duffield, L. Three Principles/Innate Health: The efficacy of psycho-spiritual mental health education for people with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Published Spirituality in Clinical Practice. Advance online publication. 2020

Abstract: We investigate the efficacy of a psycho-spiritual mental health education intervention known as Three Principles/Innate Health (3P/IH) for improving the psychological and physical health of people with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Twenty-two adults diagnosed with CFS were randomly assigned to experimental groups. Participants in both groups completed the Chalder Fatigue Scale and the PROMIS fatigue, global health, anxiety, depression, sleep disturbance, and pain interference scales. Compared with the waitlist control group, participants receiving 3P/IH reported a significant increase in psychological and physical wellbeing and a significant decrease in depression, anxiety, fatigue, and pain interference. After receiving 3P/IH, waitlist control participants reported a significant increase in psychological and physical wellbeing and a significant decrease in anxiety, fatigue, and pain interference. The significant improvements reported by participants in both experimental groups were maintained at follow-up. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Read more here.

Kelley, T. M., Pettit, W. F., Pransky, J., & Sedgeman, J. (2019). A new “inside-out” view of general factor p.

Published European Psychiatry, 61, 85-87. 2019

Abstract: Research suggests that all forms of psychopathology have one common liability commonly known as general factor p. While several hypotheses have been offered regarding this common factor, p has yet to be clearly defined. We posit that researchers have come up short handed thus far in their search for general factor p because they have not been searching from the best vantage point. We propose a new “inside-out” perspective on p based on what we posit is the exclusivity of people’s understanding and use of the agency of thought in the etiology and maintenance of all forms of psychopathology and mental health.

Read more here.

Kelley, T. M., Hollows, J., Savard, D., & Pransky, J. (2019). Teaching health versus treating illness: The efficacy of intensive three principles correctional counseling for improving the mental health/resilience of people in an English prison.

Published Offender Rehabilitation, 58(8), 661-677.

Abstract: We investigate the efficacy of intensive three principles correctional counseling (3PCC) for improving the mental health of people in an English prison. 175 prison residents receiving intensive 3PCC and 127 control participants completed the Three Principles Inventory, Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale, Purpose in Life Test, and PROMIS depression, anxiety, and anger inventories. Compared with the control group, participants receiving intensive 3PCC showed a significant increase in three principles understanding, mental wellbeing, and purpose in life, and a significant decrease in depression, anxiety, and anger. At five-month follow-up each benefit shown at post-test was either maintained or significantly improved.

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Kelley, T. M., & Pransky, J. (2018) A new principle-based view of intimate partner violence and its prevention.

Published Partner Abuse, 9, 1, 58-74. 2018

Abstract: At present, no peer reviewed intervention has been shown to clearly and consistently prevent intimate partner violence (IPV) or reduce its recurrence. We propose that the limited effects of current IPV interventions reflect the field’s absence of fundamental principles that account for all psychological experience. We further posit that the principles that explain people’s psychological lives have been uncovered. We briefly describe these principles and delineate the process from exposure to the principles to improved mental health, and improved behavior. Then we use the logic of these principles to offer a formula to measure people’s propensity for IPV and provide the missing components in IPV prevention.

Read full article here.

Evans, D. R., & Pevalin, D. J. (2017). Using the principle-based model to improve well-being in school: A mixed-methods pilot study.

Published online june 2017 Sage Open.

Abstract: The contemporary school environment in England has been identified as stressful for both staff and pupils. School-based interventions aimed at improving well-being and mental health have shown mixed results. The Principle Based Model (PBM) of Mind, Consciousness, and Thought is an untried intervention in English schools and as a working model there is a paucity of research into its potential. The aim of this mixed-methods pilot study was to investigate the effectiveness of the PBM as a means of increasing the psychological well-being of staff and pupils. The study was a 16-week pre, post, and follow-up study using the Friedman Well-Being Scale (FWBS) as a measure of psychological well-being and analyzed using matched sample t tests and repeated measures ANOVA. The study was carried out in a high school in the east of England with 10 staff and nine pupils. The staff and pupils involved received the PBM as a psychoeducational program. During the follow-up period, six members of staff and one pupil were interviewed, and the transcripts analyzed using Thematic Analysis. The pre to post total FWBS scores showed an increase in psychological well-being for both staff and pupils but only the change for pupils was statistically significant. Post to follow-up total FWBS scores for both staff and pupils showed no significant change. This study provides some initial evidence to suggest that the PBM may be a useful tool for schools to utilize in attempting to increase psychological well-being.

Full article can be read here.

Kessel A., Neil, M., Marmer, E., & Malik, R. (2017). A superpower? An educational initiative? Or something else …

Published Journal of Public Mental Health, 16(4), 169-171. 2017

Abstract: Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to raise awareness of an understanding of “how the mind works” that has been gaining considerable traction in the coaching world and, increasingly, in the health education sphere. Design/methodology/approach: A brief review of the “Three Principles” understanding of how the mind works (including definitions of the principles of thought, consciousness and mind), and an assessment of the strengths and challenges of this understanding. Findings: Examples are provided of how this approach (labelled an educational initiative rather than a therapy) is being used professionally and how this understanding of how the mind works can make stress, anxiety and work-related problems appear different; recommendations include the establishment of a professional body, and the need for more research around the effectiveness of the approach. Originality/value: Despite the need for greater professionalization and more research evidence, the “Three Principles” understanding has huge potential to transform people’s lives – whether at work or home, for individuals with (or without) common mental health problems, and for those with chronic long-term conditions.

Read full article here.

Kelley, T. M., Hollows, J., Lambert, E. G., Savard, D., & Pransky, J. (2017). Teaching Health versus Treating Illness: The Efficacy of Three Principles Correctional Counseling with People in an English Prison

Published: International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, Vol 62, Issue 9, 2017

Abstract: Three principles correctional counseling (3PCC) posits that people in prison have inner mental health they have innocently obscured to varying degrees with their own thinking. 3PCC further posits that people in prison can rekindle and sustain this inner health via understanding how three psycho-spiritual principles—Universal Mind, consciousness and thought—coalesce to form people’s psychological experience. We review the three principles and explain how exposure to these principles can lead to improved mental health and behavior. Then we describe 3PCC and distinguish it from prevailing correctional counseling methods. Finally, we present a controlled preliminary study that examines the efficacy of 3PCC for improving the mental health and behavior of residents in an English prison. Our findings show that participants exposed to 3PCC showed a significant improvement in mental wellbeing and purpose in life, a significant reduction in depression, anxiety and anger, and improved behavior in the prison community.

Read more here.

Pransky, J., & Kelley, T. M. (2017). How the formless comes into form: A process by which Universal Mind powers consciousness and thought to create people’s psychological lives.

Published Cogent Psychology, 27 Apr 2017

Abstract: In a moment of spiritual enlightenment, Sydney Banks claimed to see” how three psycho-spiritual principles—Universal Mind, Consciousness and Thought—coalesce to create all psychological experience. While considerable literature exists that describes these principles, their spiritual basis, and the intervention grounded in them, little scientific evidence has been offered that might corroborate what Banks professed to understand through his realization. To help fill this gap, the authors propose a process by which formless energy comes into physical form within human beings via Universal Mind powering Consciousness and Thought to create people’s psychological lives. Further, the authors offer a scientific basis for what appear to be the steps or phases in this process. This view distinguishes three levels of thought and posits that thought at each of these levels precedes people’s every psychological experience—their sensations, perceptions, emotions—and their behavior. Ways that people can intervene in or affect this process in their best interests are proposed.

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Kelley, T. M., Alexander, J., & Pransky, J. (2017). Drawing-out resilience in children and high-risk adolescents via exposing them to three psycho-spiritual principles.

Published Journal of Child and Adolescent Behaviour, 5(2), 2017

Abstract: We propose that resilience is the most natural state for all children and adolescents. We further posit that because most children and adolescents have not been exposed to the principles that explain how people’s psychological experience is formed, they innocently obscure their inner resilience with their own thinking. We first describe three principles that appear to explain the psychological lives of all children and adolescents. Then we explain the source of natural resilience and how it is accessed. Finally, we present a preliminary study that examines the effects on the resilience of children and adolescents by exposing them to these principles. Compared to their controls, children and adolescents exposed to the principles showed a significant improvement in resilience with “high-risk” adolescents showing the greatest improvement and a significant reduction in risky behavior. Participants related these positive effects to insights regarding thought and innate resilience gained through understanding the three principles.

Read full article here.

Kelley, T. M., Pransky, J., & Lambert, E. (2016). Realizing improved mindfulness/flow/ mental health through understanding three spiritual principles.

Published Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health, Volume 19, 2017 – Issue 2, 2016

Abstract: A new spiritual understanding commonly known as the Three Principles proposes that mindfulness/flow/mental health is people’s most natural state and can be realized and sustained by everyone via insights gained through understanding three spiritual principles—Universal Mind, Consciousness, and Thought. We test this proposition for people exposed to the intervention grounded in these principles. The results appear to support our prediction that insight regarding “thought recognition” and/or “innate health via a clear mind” gained through understanding these spiritual principles will show a significant positive relationship with mindful attention, mindful acceptance, flow experience, and mental health.

Read more here.

Kelley, T. M., Pransky, J., & Lambert, E. (2016) Understanding spiritual principles or using techniques to realize and sustain optimal mental health.

Published Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health, 18(3), 217-238.

Abstract: The primary goal of positive psychology is understanding and facilitating optimal mental health. However, absent fundamental causal principles that explain human psychological experience positive psychology is unlikely to achieve this goal. We posit that fundamental causal principles may already have been uncovered and offer a study that tests the process from exposure to these principles to improved mental health. The results appear to support our prediction that insights regarding “thought recognition” and/or “innate mental health via a clear mind” gained through understanding these principles will show a significant positive relationship with hedonic well-being, eudaimonic well-being, social well-being and optimal mental health.

Read more here.

Kelley, T. M., Pransky, J., & Lambert, E. (2015). Realizing improved mental health through understanding three spiritual principles.

Published Spirituality in Clinical Practice, 2(4), 267-281.

Abstract: A new psycho-spiritual understanding commonly known as the Three Principles proposes that people can realize and sustain improved mental health via insights gained through understanding the spiritual principles of Universal Mind, Consciousness, and Thought. We test this proposition for people exposed to the Three Principles as an intervention. The results appear to support our prediction that insights regarding “thought recognition” and/or “innate mental health via a clear mind,” gained through Three Principles understanding, show a significant positive relationship with non-attachment and regulating negative emotions, and a significant inverse relationship with rumination, depression, and anxiety.

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Kelley, T. M., Pransky, J. & Lambert, E. A. (2015). Inside-out or outside-in: Understanding spiritual principles versus depending on techniques to realize improved mindfulness/mental health.

Published Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health 17(3), 153-171., 2015

Abstract: We examine the relationship between understanding the spiritual principles of Universal Mind, Consciousness and Thought and perceived dependence on mindfulness techniques to realize improved mindfulness/mental health. Participants exposed to the intervention grounded in these principles also reported practicing meditation and/or mindfulness-based intervention techniques. The results support our prediction that as participant’s understanding of these spiritual principles increases, their perceived dependence on mindfulness techniques to realize mindfulness/mental health will decrease and as participant’s perceived dependence on mindfulness techniques decreases, their ability to maintain well-being during unpleasant mood states will increase.

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Kelley, T. M., Pransky, J., & Sedgeman, J. (2014). Realizing resilience in trauma exposed juvenile offenders: A promising new intervention for juvenile justice professionals.

Published Journal of Child and Adolescent Trauma, 7, 143-151., 2014

Abstract: Considerable evidence suggests that untreated childhood trauma is a contributing factor to delinquency and juvenile justice system involvement. This paper describes a promising new intervention for at-risk youth and juvenile offenders with traumatic histories grounded in a model commonly referred to as the three principles. This intervention attempts to draw out the inner mental health and resilience in trauma exposed young offenders and provide them with a new perspective on their past traumas that can prevent them from infecting the present. First, the origin, nature, and logic of the three principles are described. Next, the three principles intervention is described and compared to cognitive and other trauma interventions. Then, several guideposts followed by effective three principles practitioners are described. Finally, empirical evidence is presented in support of the efficacy of this intervention with at-risk youth, juvenile offenders and adults with traumatic histories.

Read full article here.

Pransky, J., & Kelley, T. M. (2014). Three principles for realizing mental health: A new psycho-spiritual view.

Published Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, 9, 53-68., 2014

Abstract: We offer a new psycho-spiritual understanding of mental health grounded in the three principles of Universal Mind, Consciousness, and Thought. This understanding proposes that all people have innate mental health they can access and sustain regardless of past or present circumstances. We ﬁrst describe the three principles; explain how they appear to work within people to create their psychological lives; and present evidence in support of their spiritual basis. We then distinguish the intervention based on these principles from cognitive and other psychotherapies and describe several guideposts followed by practitioners grounded in this understanding. Finally, we offer empirical evidence of the effectiveness of three principles intervention.

Read full article here.

Kelley, T. M., and Pransky, J. (2013). Principles for realizing resilience: A new view of trauma and human resilience.

Published Journal of Traumatic Stress Disorders and Treatment, 2, 1, 2013

Abstract: This paper offers a new view of trauma and human resilience based on three principles for realizing resilience. This view challenges the current perspective of how and why traumatic events appear to induce and sustain painful symptoms from the outside, by explaining how these symptoms are created and maintained from within, regardless of circumstances. It proposes that all people can access innate resilience allowing them to move through loss and trauma with minimal distress, grace, and even positive emotions. It distinguishes between accessing innate resilience from coping with loss and trauma with social supports, personality traits, and management strategies. While more rigorous, controlled research is needed to document the efficacy of interventions based on these principles, existing supportive evidence is compelling and appears to warrant the field’s attention.

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Kelley, T. M. (2011) Thought recognition and psychological well-being: An empirical test of principle-based correctional counselling, Published Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, 11(2), 140-147. 2011

Abstract: Aims: To determine the relationship between thought recognition, a major construct of principle-based correctional counselling, and psychological wellbeing. Method: Following several weekly group sessions of Principle-Based Correctional Counselling, 54 adult prisoners on probation completed two measures of thought recognition and the Well-Being Inventory. In a follow-up study, 30 participants completed the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale. Results: Significant positive relationships were found between both measures of thought recognition and psychological wellbeing and, in the follow-up study, both measures of thought recognition and mindfulness. Discussion: Possible explanations for the relationship between thought recognition and psychological wellbeing, and thought recognition and mindfulness are discussed. Implications for practice: Teaching correctional clients the principles behind generic human psychological functioning, and the innate design behind human thinking, appears to improve their thinking and draw out their innate healthy functioning.

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Kelley, T. M., & Lambert, E. (2012). Mindfulness as a potential means of attenuating anger and aggression for prospective criminal justice professionals.

Published Mindfulness. 3(4), 261-274. 2012

Abstract: This study is the first to examine the potential role of mindfulness for attenuating anger and aggression in prospective criminal justice professionals. The Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, Aggression Questionnaire, Hostile Attribution Bias Scale, and Thought Recognition Inventory were administered to 272 undergraduate criminal justice majors. The results of a multivariate analysis of variance model indicated that dispositional mindfulness related negatively with self-reported aggression and hostile attribution bias and positively with thought recognition. A possible relationship between mindfulness and thought recognition may operate to influence other mechanisms to heighten mental health, as well as reduce anger and aggression. The potential benefits of mindfulness and thought recognition training for criminal justice professionals and prospective criminal justice professionals are discussed.

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Halcon, L. L., Robertson, C. L., & Monsen, K. A. (2010). Evaluating health realization for coping among refugee women.

Published Journal of Loss and Trauma, 15, 408-425.

Abstract: Many East African refugee women have experienced torture and trauma while fleeing from their home countries. Many also experience high rates of isolation, depression, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder after resettlement. Effective methods are needed for improving the mental well-being of this population. This pilot study (N1/419) tested the feasibility, accessibility, and acceptability of a strengths-based, community-delivered intervention with Somali and Ethiopian women refugees. Feasibility was established through recruitment, retention, participation, and participant response. Accessibility was established through providing meals, transportation, and child-care assistance. Acceptability was established through evaluating translated materials, cultural congruence, and perceived relevance. Results support testing in a full-scale controlled study.

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Kelley, T. M. (2008). Principle-based correctional counseling: Teaching health versus treating illness.

Published Applied Psychology in Criminal Justice. 4 (2), 182-202.

Abstract: Principle-based correctional counseling (PBCC) is based on the assumption that all offenders have innate mental health. Thus, the primary goal of PBCC is to teach offenders how to rekindle and experience their natural capacity for psychological well-being. PBCC accomplishes this by teaching offenders: (a) how the principles of Mind, Thought, and Consciousness create their experience from the inside-out, and (b) how to use their thinking agency in accord with its natural design. According to PBCC, as offenders understand these principles and realize how to use thought in their best interest, their overall psychological functioning improves. This paper describes the principles and assumptions behind PBCC and compares this paradigm to other contemporary correctional counseling models on several key dimensions. Finally, it summarizes research ﬁndings supporting the effectiveness of PBCC-based interventions with adolescent and adult offenders.

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Banerjee, K., Howard, M., Manheim, K., & Beattie, M. (2007). Comparison of health realization and 12-step treatment in women’s residential substance abuse treatment programs.

Published American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 33, 207-215. 2007

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to compare a relatively new therapeutic option for substance abuse treatment, Health Realization, and 12-Step approaches offered in women’s residential programs. The study was sponsored by a large California county’s Department of Alcohol and Drug Services, which had offered Health Realization treatment for a number of years. This study constitutes the first systematic evaluation of Health Realization as a substance abuse treatment program for adult women in a residential treatment setting. This was a randomized study with two observations-admission and 9 months post-admission. The results showed that clients in both Health Realization and 12-Step treatment exhibited comparable outcomes on domains such as substance use, criminal justice involvement, employment, housing, adverse effects of substance use and psychological well-being. Substance use declined significantly between admission and follow-up in both treatment groups, irrespective of duration of treatment. Similarly, adverse effects of substance use declined between admission and 9-month follow-up. Health Realization and 12-Step treatment offered comparable benefits for women in residential substance abuse treatment programs.

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Halcon, L. L., Robertson, C. L., Monson, K. A., & Claypatch, C. C. (2007). A theoretical framework for using health realization to reduce stress and improve coping in refugee communities.

Published Journal of Holistic Nursing, 25(3), 186-94. 2007

Abstract: Refugees have faced extraordinarily stressful situations in their past, and many continue to experience stress daily as they cope with the refugee adjustment experience. A strengths-based, community-focused intervention known as Health Realization (HR) is a promising strategy for nurses to promote positive psychological outcomes in these populations. Although similar in some ways to cognitive therapy, the HR intervention emphasizes the role of thought versus the content of thought. It does not promote actively changing intrusive or negative thoughts but rather promotes an understanding that allows a degree of detachment from thoughts–a shift in consciousness that can provide relief and facilitate healing. An adapted stress and coping model provides a theoretical framework to test the effectiveness of using HR with refugees, which in turn provides a solid foundation for research that can support or refute the existing substantial anecdotal evidence for the use of this intervention in holistic nursing practice.

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Sedgeman, J. A., & Sarwari, A. (2006). The effect of a health realization/innate health psychoeducational seminar on stress and anxiety in HIV-positive patients.

Published Medical Science Monitor, 12(10), 397–399. 2006

Abstract: Chronic stress and depression have a negative impact on immune functioning and threaten the well-being of HIV-positive patients. Although therapy methods, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, have been shown to reduce stress and depression in such patients, not all patients are willing or able to undergo therapy over time. The Health Realization/Innate Health (HR/IH) psychoeducational approach is a brief intervention alternative that can be presented in a classroom setting. It engages participants’ innate capacity to realize peace of mind. Eight volunteer participants from patients in the Positive Health Clinic at West Virginia University School of Medicine attended a 1-1/2 day HR/IH seminar called “Finding Your Natural Peace of Mind”. Shortly before the seminar started, the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) was administered by a Clinic staff member. The BSI was administered again immediately following the seminar. The BSI was mailed to the participants four weeks following the seminar with a return envelope. Participants’ confidentiality was maintained through a coded ID. Pre-, post- and follow-up results were compared. Each case was evaluated individually. The participant who pre-tested in the “psychiatric inpatient” range of the BSI showed no change after the seminar or at follow-up. The participants who tested in the non-patient normal range before the seminar showed some improvement after and at follow-up. The participants who scored in the “psychiatric outpatient” range entering the seminar all showed improvement that was sustained upon follow-up. The HR/IH psychoeducational approach deserves further study as a brief intervention for stress-reduction in HIV-positive patients.

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Sedgeman, J. A. (2005). Health realization/innate health: Can a quiet mind and positive feeling state be accessible over the lifespan without stress relief techniques?

Published Medical Science Monitor, 11, 47 –52. 2005

Abstract: Health Realization/Innate Health (HR/IH) questions long-held assumptions about chronic stress, and challenges current definitions of both stress and resiliency. HR/IH sets forth principles that explain why the experience of psychological stress is not an effect of causal factors beyond people’s control but is an artifact of the energetic potential of the mind. HR/IH describes the “cognitive factor” in stress not as the content of people’s thinking in response to stressors, but rather as a quality of the way people hold and use their thinking, referred to as state of mind. HR/IH hypothesizes that understanding principles that explain the nature and origin of thinking and experience offers a means to access innate protective processes that are healing and antibiosenescent reliably and consistently, without techniques. HR/IH suggests that the primary effort of mental health care could be to initiate life-long prevention of the state of chronic stress. In addition, HR/IH suggests that addressing mental well-being would have a broad impact on the incidence and course of the many physical illnesses that are known to be stress related. The brief therapeutic interactions of HR/IH draw upon people’s innate wisdom and recognition of the healthy perspective available to everyone. Anecdotal results suggest that people who gain insight into the principles that explain the nature of thought and experience and who realize how to re-access a natural, positive state of mind can and do experience sustained day-to-day peace of mind, wisdom and well-being, regardless of circumstances. HR/IH deserves rigorous scientific evaluation.

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Kelley, T. M. (2005). Mental health and prospective police professionals.

Published Policing. 4, 1, 6-27. 2005

Abstract: Purpose – To assess the mental health of members of the police force and expose any gaps existing at what should be its ideal level, with reference to aspiring policemen of the future. Aims – To explain the health realization model and give a deﬁnition of optimal mental health with speciﬁc reference to the police force. Design/methodology/approach – Employs the Well-Being Inventory, a survey instrument designed speciﬁcally to measure ﬁve dimensions of optimal mental health, to assess the mental condition of 179 prospective police professionals. Findings – The results of the survey appear to suggest that future job satisfaction for many prospective police professionals in the study could be less than optimal, with the implication that high notes of mental dysfunction in its various forms could be experienced. Practical implications – It is imperative that sound mental health instruction be incorporated into all future police training programs. However, further research needs to be done in order to advance a process which is at present only experimental. Originality/value – Emphasizes the value of teaching future police ofﬁcers the nature and source of optimal psychological functioning.

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Kelley, T. M. (2004). Positive psychology and adolescent mental health: False promise or true breakthrough?

Published Adolescence. 39, 154, 257-278.

Abstract: The emerging field of positive psychology has pledged to improve the mental health of American adolescents. Yet, without a principle-based conceptual foundation to guide its study of optimal youth functioning, positive psychology will ultimately fail to keep its promise. This paper suggests that the principles of Mind, Thought and Consciousness can provide positive psychology with a clearer understanding of optimal psychological functioning, serve as a unifying conceptual framework to guide its proposed mission, and lead to a true breakthrough in adolescent mental health. It first describes how the logic of these principles accounts for all subjective human experience. It then demonstrates how optimal mental health is generated, and how it can be maintained irrespective of present or past circumstances. Finally, it discusses how several contemporary models of positive psychology (i.e., Csikszentmihalyi’s flow. Seligman’s learned optimism, Goleman’s emotional intelligence, and Buss’s evolutionary perspective) can be simplified and clarified using the logic of the above three principles.

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Kelley, T. M. (2003). Preventing youth violence through Health Realization.

Published Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice. 1, 4, 369-387.

Abstract: This article proposes that youth violence is primarily a function of the generally poor mental health of American youth. It asserts, therefore, that the optimal solution to this vexing problem is to teach young people how to live in the experience of psychological health that is their birthright. It then suggests that this can be best accomplished by helping youth understand the principles behind Health Realization—a psycho-spiritual model that purports to account for all youthful behavior. The three principles behind Health Realization (i.e., Mind, Consciousness, and Thought) are delineated, contemporary research in support of its major assumptions cited, and the results of applied Health Realization programs with at-risk youth in clinical, educational, and community empowerment settings described.

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Kelley, T. M. (2003). Health Realization: A Principle-based psychology of positive youth development.

Published Child and Youth Care Forum. 1, 47-72. 2003

Abstract: While we have numerous research-based programs for youth aimed at curbing drug use, violence, suicide, teen pregnancy, and delinquency, we lack a rigorous principle-based psychology of positive youth development. Instead of focusing on fixing what is assumed to be missing or broken in at-risk youth, we need a psychology grounded in fundamental causal principles that reveal clearly how such children and adolescents can become self-motivated, socially competent, compassionate, and psychologically vigorous adults. While the emerging field of positive psychology has attempted to shift the field’s emphasis from understanding and treating youthful dysfunction to facilitating well-being and resiliency in young people, it lacks a principle-based foundation and continues to mistakenly endorse external causes of positive affect and prosocial behavior. This paper offers a unique, principle-based psychology of positive youth development commonly known as health realization (HR).The underlying principles of HR are delineated, contemporary research that supports its major assumptions cited, and the results of applied HR research with at-risk youth in clinical, educational, and community empowerment
settings described.

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Kelley, T. M., & Stack, S. A. (2000). Thought recognition, locus of control, and adolescent well-being.

Published Adolescence. 25, 139, 531-550. 2000.

Abstract: This paper reviews the underlying assumptions and principles of a new psychological paradigm, Psychology of Mind/Health Realization (POM/HR). A core concept of POM/HR, thought recognition, is then compared with locus of control (LOC), a well-known psychological construct. Next, the relationship of LOC to self-reported happiness and satisfaction is examined from the perspective of POM/HR, using a sample of 1,872 at-risk adolescents from 17 nations. The findings support POM/HR predictions that (1) locus of control would account for a slight portion of the variance in adolescent happiness and satisfaction, (2) circumstances that are external in nature would account for additional variance in happiness and satisfaction, and (3) there would be little difference in self-reported happiness and satisfaction between adolescents self-reporting high and low internal LOC. Further, it was conjectured that the adolescents mistook superficial emotions, such as excitement and security, for genuine feelings of well-being. Finally, the implications for prevention and intervention efforts with at-risk adolescents are discussed.

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Additional Peer-Reviewed Publications about 3P

Kelley, Thomas M. (2005). Natural resilience and innate mental health. (Refereed Comment) American Psychologist, 56, 1, 36-37. American Psychologist. 60, 3, 265.

Kelley, Thomas M. (2001). The need for a principle-based positive psychology. (Refereed Comment) American Psychologist, 56, 1, 36-37.

Kelley, T. M. (1996). A critique of social bonding and control theory of delinquency using the principles of Psychology of Mind. Adolescence. 31, 122, 321-327.

Kelley, T. M. (1993). Neo-cognitive learning theory: Implications for prevention and early intervention strategies with at-risk youth. Adolescence. 28, 110, 439-460.

Kelley, T. M. (1993). An advanced criminology based on Psychology of Mind. Offender Rehabilitation. 19, 173-190.

Kelley, T. M. (1990). A neo-cognitive model of crime. Offender Rehabilitation. 16, 1-26.

Mills, R., Dunham, R., & Alpert, G. (1988). Working with high-risk youth in prevention and early intervention programs: Toward a comprehensive wellness model. Adolescence, 23(91), 643-660.