Faith ‘Fey’ Harkey | The New Dissociationism

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July 10, 2026

Readers who are familiar with the previous version of my website may recall that the imaginal stood as as a central theme — the imaginal not as the imaginary or unreal, but rather as a concept which captures the subtler forms of experiences like dreams, imagination, and the inner life. And, though this new web incarnation emphasizes what I am calling ‘the new dissociationism,’ none of that imaginal emphasis is going away.

Dissociation is nothing if not inward and subtle, a process deeply braided with the imaginal. But as I complete my doctoral thesis and consider how best to communicate that work, I begin to understand that my research might best be understood as a re-visioning^{footnote 1} of the process-phenomenon called dissociation. With each new article, paper, and book-length project — all available on this site, open access — I hope to throw open the windows on a new dissociationism. Some will be new vistas on old ideas, while others call for fresh views — a bit of a shakeup.

In order to understand, however, my thematic focus on new dissociationism, we will need to spend some time with the old dissociationism. And for that, we need to pay a visit to the past:

Towards a ‘new dissociationism’

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Complex pyschology

How does it feel when a complex is active?
Our complexes are a living part of our psyches. Here we consider what it feels like when a complex is active.
Multiple personality:
The complex psychology of Dissociative Identity Disorder
Previously known as Multiple Personality Disorder, DID opens the door to a complex-based understanding of the plural psyche.
Superpowered:
Celebrating the complex-driven psyche
Too often cast as villains, our ‘multiple personalities,’ are, in truth, the superheroes of our unconscious psyche.
It’s a complex story:
Complex in fairy tale and myth
Myths and fairy tales reflect the processes of psyche, the nature of our complexes, and the archetypes that underlie them.
Daughter of God:
The personal complex in the life of Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc’s story offers a study of the personal complex in psyche, in religion, and in our wider human narrative.
Three archetypal images for complex psychology: Saturn, Mercury and Matangi
Here we explore the archetypal images of Saturn, Mercury, and Matangi, each with a unique connection to complex psychology.

Imaginal practice

Imaginal research:
Exploring the unconscious psyche
Imaginal research enters into the terrain of imagination, and establishes a legitimate means of discovering knowledge.
The imaginal: Why it matters
The unconscious psyche is the source of our imagination, the arena of our dreams, the origin of our art and literature, of our most rightening impulses and our loveliest aspirations.
What is imaginal ethics?
Our inner ‘others’ — who are these figures, and why do we need to approach them ethically?
Perfected friendship:
Rethinking our approach to inner relationships
From the perspective of complex psychology, Aristotle’s teleia philia can be applied to our inner relationships.
Machiavelli:
Academy of active imagination
A close reading of Niccolò Machiavelli reveals insight into his imaginal practice and his unconscious psyche.
Tools and resources for imaginal work
Whether you are a clinician, a creative, or a general-interest reader, here you’ll find resources to go deeper into your own imaginal world.

New Jungian perspectives

Towards a new dissociationism
It is time to flip the predominant narrative around dissociation, to acknowledge illness states, but to establish that dissociation is foundational and essential to psyche.
The torch-bearers:
Jungian applications in gifted studies
There is a connection between Jungian thought and the field of gifted studies, including applications in the clinical setting.
Mistaken identities:
Making sense of Jung’s anima/animus
Here we challenge Jung’s original conception of the anima and animus, suggesting the theory may depict not two intrapsychic figures, but four.

Monographs.