ABSTRACT
Chapter 2 explains how the method originated out of the author’s psychotherapeutic practice with mental imagery and evolved as an approach for creative and work-related projects. It includes a description of the author’s therapeutic practice with three primary mental images, conceived of as conceptual metaphors, and gives an account of developing a research-informed functional framework for practice: the Interactive Communicative model of mental imagery (IC). The model is explained in detail, in particular how it differentiates out a commonly accepted basic distinction between receptive and directive imagery into a set of specific functions. It then goes on to explain how a further iteration of this functional framework makes it suitable for using the method for other purposes than therapy. The chapter considers that the method’s key characteristic, its effectiveness, is predicated on the way that it facilitates an ongoing dynamic productive dialogue between the conceptual and experiential self. The discussion includes the method’s particular advantages for representing and working with creative and work-related projects – it allows the creative process to unfold on its own terms but also makes it open to some conscious shaping in the form of deliberate interventions. The chapter concludes with some thoughts about the importance of developing theoretical support for the applications of mental imagery presented in this book, particularly with regard to its breadth of functionality.
