Vision for a 21st Century Psychoanalysis

As we near completion of the first quarter of the 21st century, we are faced with an increasingly complex set of challenges with psychological and sociopolitical dimensions. What are the forms of inquiry that psychoanalysis may offer under these circumstances? And what queries must be posed to psychoanalysis to realize its potential?

The CIIS Psy.D. program is proud to announce our spring 2024 event, Vision for a 21st Century Psychoanalysis. Please join Prof. Jyoti M. Rao and Dr. M.G. Renu Cappelli at CIIS on Saturday, April 13th 10am-1pm PDT as they engage with these essential questions. This presentation will be an opportunity to engage with these pressing topics, with a particular emphasis on psychoanalysis as a method of dialogue with marginality within and in relationship with others.

Organized by Prof. David Cushman of the Clinical Psychology (Psy.D.) department, this hybrid conference is free to attend and open to the whole community. CPD credits for CA Psychologists and CE credits for licensed masters-level clinicians will be offered – please stay tuned for that information.

Click here to register for the In-Person event ↗

Click here to register for the Online event ↗ 

Presenter Bios

M.G. Renu Cappelli, LMFT, Ph.D., is a psychotherapist in private practice in San Francisco, and a candidate in psychoanalytic training at the San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis. In her practice she works with individuals, teens, and children. Prior to completing her MA in ICP at CIIS, she taught University courses in the general Humanities, in Gender Studies and Ethnic Studies, and in Art at UC Berkeley, UC San Diego, Stanford University, and the California College of Art. At CIIS, she has taught courses in the doctoral program in Human Sexuality, as well as in Integral Counseling Psychology. Her continuing learning, research, and commitments lie in fostering cross- pollination between socially responsive humanities, critical theory, and the philosophy and practice of psychoanalysis. Her publications include The Greater Good, co- authored with Jill Dolan (Theater Survey 52.1, 2011), and various conference presentations on the public life and relational stakes in art and performance.

Jyoti M. Rao, LMFT is a psychoanalyst and faculty at the San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis, and holds faculty appointments at other psychoanalytic institutions. Jyoti was formerly Core Faculty in the Integral Counseling Psychology Department at the California Institute of Integral Studies, where she also directed the intern program at the Pierce Street Integral Counseling Center. Her publications, which explore the intersection of socially located phenomena and unconscious process, have appeared in the Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association (JAPA); International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies; Parapraxis Magazine; and Psychoanalysis, Culture, and Society. Her most recent publication (in press,  JAPA), “Social Justice Activism as Interpretation in a Loewaldian World”, suggests that social justice activism is a form of spontaneously emergent psychoanalytic interpretation, and puts forth the relationship between activist, activism, and society in psychoanalytic terms. She is in private practice with adults in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Related Academic Program
Department of Clinical Psychology