Fraser N. Watts, Ph.D.
Positions
Profile
Fraser studied Psychology and Philosophy at the University of
Oxford before training as a Clinical Psychologist at the Institute
of Psychiatry in the University of London. After a period as Head
of the Department of Clinical Psychology at King's College
Hospital, Fraser moved to Cambridge to work as a Senior Scientist
at the Medical Research Council's
Cognition and Brain
Sciences Unit (then called the Applied Psychology Unit). While
with the Unit he founded a research group on information processing
approaches to emotional disorders, was the founding editor of the
journal
Cognition and Emotion, and served as the President of the
British Psychological Society.
Fraser was ordained in the Church of England in 1990 and is now
Vicar-Chaplain of
St. Edward King and
Martyr, Cambridge. In 1994 he took up the Starbridge
Lectureship in the Faculty of Divinity. His research has focused
particularly on psychology, and he has been Director of the
Psychology and Religion Research Group in the Centre for Advanced
Religious and Theological Studies since its foundation in 1996.
Research Interests
Fraser's research covers two broad fields -- that of the
interface between psychology and theology, and that of the
psychology of religion. Work carried out in the first of these
fields is summarised and integrated in his book
Theology and Psychology (Ashgate, 2002). It deals with (a)
the relationship between theological and reductionist approaches to
the human person, (b) issues and current controversies about
religious experience, both sociological and neuropsychological, and
(c) the mapping of a psychological perspective on to topics in
Christian doctrine. The next major project will be on theological
and psychological perspectives on the human emotions. Collaborative
work is in progress on the theology and psychology of forgiveness.
His book
Psychology for Christian Ministry (Routledge, 2002), written
with colleagues in the group, presents an approach to the
psychology of religion applied to a broad range of the work of the
Church. Work is in progress (with a grant from the Templeton
Foundation) on the experimental investigation of concepts of God,
and the relation between concepts of self and God. Collaborative
research with other group members is also in progress on the
organisational psychology of the church and church consultancy.
Select Publications
Watts, F. & Williams, M. (1988).
The Psychology of Religious Knowing. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Watts, F. (ed.) (1998).
Science Meets Faith. London: SPCK.
Watts, F. (ed.) (2001).
Perspectives on Prayer. London: SPCK.
Watts, F (2001) 'Shame, sin and guilt', in McFadyen
A. & Sarot M. (eds.)
Forgiveness and Truth. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, pp.
53-69.
Watts, F. (2002). 'Interacting cognitive subsystems
and religious meanings', in Joseph, R. (ed.)
Neurotheology: Brain, Science, Spirituality, Religious
Experience. San Jose: California University Press.
Watts, F. Nye, R. & Savage, S. (2002).
Psychology for Christian Ministry. London: Routledge.
Watts, F. (2002).
Theology and Psychology. Basingstoke: Ashgate.
Watts, F. & Gulliford, L. (eds.) (2004).
Forgiveness in Context. Theology and Psychology in Creative
Dialogue. London: T & T Clark International.
Watts, F. (2006). 'Human Dignity: Concepts and
Experiences', in Soulen R. K. & Woodhead L. (eds.)
God and Human Dignity. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.
Watts, F., Dutton, K. & Gulliford, E. (2006).
'Human spiritual qualities: integrating psychology and religion',
Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 9(3) 277-289.
Watts, F. (2007). 'Emotion regulation and religion',
in Gross J. J. (ed.)
Handbook of Emotion Regulation. New York: Guilford Press.
pp. 504-520.
Watts, F. (ed.) (2007).
Jesus and Psychology. London: Darton, Longman &
Todd.
Watts, F. (ed.) (2008).
Creation. Law and Probability. Basingstoke: Ashgate.
Watts, F. (2009). 'Darwin’s Gifts to Theology', in
Spurway N. (ed.)
Theology, Evolution and the Mind. Newcastle: Cambridge
Scholars Publishing.
Watts, F. (2010). 'The nature of light: perspectives
from theology and science',
Theology and Science, 8 (1) 39-50
