Milena Stateva, PhD Senior Researcher/ Consultant at the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations spoke about the role of the Tavistock Institute for the development of theory and practice in the fields of group relations, organisational development and applied social psychology.
The presentation was a keynote during the National Scientific-Practical Conference of the Bulgarian Society of Psychologists, entitled ‘Group Dynamics, Organisational Development, Applied Social Psychology’ during 18-19 December 2015 in Sofia, Bulgaria.
The presentation looked at what is broadly known as the ‘Tavistock tradition’ in psychology. Historically, it provided an overview of group relations theory and practice and of organisational development, also positioning the current developments surrounding the Tavistock Institute Action Learning Space in the disciplinary space between the two. Milena emphasised the role of the psychoanalytic and other contributions to social psychology. Instead of conclusions, she raised three questions that are guiding her current work:
- What if the consequences of our actions and inactions were eternal?
- Does love matter in organisational life today?
- Is wondering important in our scientific pursuits?