Kim Bateman

Kim Bateman

Ph.D.

CA, US
Humor in the face of challenges: helping your organization think, feel, and laugh their way through hard times.

Kim Bateman, Ph.D. is a  storyteller, psychologist, and college administrator. Her research interests include organizational psychology, bereavement, and humor and she has delivered many notable keynote addresses, including: "There's a fox under my bed and pixie dust in my hair," at the Developmental Psychology Conference, "The Psychology of Humor" at the Women's Wellness Conference, and "College Culture through the song lyrics of Bob Marley," at the Community College League of CA conference. She recently presented a TEDx talk called "Singing Over Bones" and is the author of a book on the same subject called "Crossing the Owl's Bridge: A Guide for Grieving People who Still Love" (Chiron Publications, 2016). Dr. Bateman serves as the Executive Dean of the Tahoe-Truckee Campus of Sierra College.

Kim Bateman, Ph.D. is a  storyteller, psychologist, and college administrator. Her research interests include organizational psychology, bereavement, and humor and she has delivered many notable keynote addresses, including: "There's a fox under my bed and pixie dust in my hair," at the Developmental Psychology Conference, "The Psychology of Humor" at the Women's Wellness Conference, and "College Culture through the song lyrics of Bob Marley," at the Community College League of CA conference. She recently presented a TEDx talk called "Singing Over Bones" and is the author of a book on the same subject called "Crossing the Owl's Bridge: A Guide for Grieving People who Still Love" (Chiron Publications, 2016). Dr. Bateman serves as the Executive Dean of the Tahoe-Truckee Campus of Sierra College.

We're Jammin': Organizational Culture

From the blissful state of "One Love" to the impetus to "Get Up, Stand Up, Stand Up for Your Rights," many relationships transition from oneness, to separation. With wisdom, they may progress to the state of rapproachment--or a mature re-establishment of respectful connectivity.
Using psychological theory, a folk tale, the song lyrics of Bob Marley, and good-natured humor, Dr. Bateman outlines the tasks inherent in practicing the art of reconciliation. Particular emphasis is placed on...
Audience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changingHumorous / Funny

The Psychology of Humor

From Mockery (the Darwin Awards) to Sarcasm (National Sarcasm Society- like we need your support), comedy can be viewed as a diagnostic tool for the investigation of enduring questions about the human condition. Humor has a critical purpose (What's wrong? What needs to be expressed?). Humor has a cohesive function (We're in this together), as well as a divisive effect (You're not us). And, it serves a coping function (We'll make it through). This thought...
Audience ActivityEducational / InformativeHumorous / Funny

Singing Over Bones

Although we do have to say good-bye to our material relationship, we are also being presented with a chance to say hello to a different type of relationship. In Singing Over Bones, Dr.Bateman illustrates creative outcomes to mourning that allow one to recognize, contain, release, and yet stay in relationship and keep loving.
BereavementAudience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changing

A Mythological Guide to GriefWork

Drawing from the anatomy of bereavement as presented in a Tlingit folktale, Bateman will discuss the universal themes of loss as experienced by one who is grieving. In many worldwide stories, the end of a material relationship is also seen as the beginning of a different kind of relationship.  Though physically gone, the deceased often become psychologically more present, providing important information about the nature...
BereavementAudience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changing

Symbolmaking in Bereavement: The Temples at Burning Man

The Temples at Burning Man are a collection of private and public pieces commemorating those who have died. The artwork, objects, and words offer richly complex views of the bereavement process. Temple themes, selected pieces and participant interviews are profiled to illustrate the cathartic effect of symbol-making in bereavement. Archetypally, symbols can be seen as connecting the unconscious with the conscious, the instinctual with the rational, and can join...
BereavementAudience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changing

The Dead in Dreams: GriefWork

It has been a common finding among modern theorists that dreams about the deceased are a healthy attempt by the bereaved to resolve conflicts, surrender attachments, and deal with feelings of abandonment. In this paradigm the dream image is seen as an internally generated memory trace, or introjection.  In contrast, pre-scientific cultures and modern tribal peoples have held longstanding beliefs about the veracity of these communications from the dead.  Perhaps the dream image...
BereavementAudience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changing

Wicked Witches and Big Bad Wolves: The Wild Within

Hedges of thorns grow around sleeping castles, wolves swallow innocent maidens, and heros get lost in labyrinths both internal and external. The complex topography of the collective imagination is reflected in traditional folk tales: tensions mirror our own dynamics, emotions, and offer pathways through angst. Modern children's stories have lost thise reflective quality (rather than teaching about sitting with and through ambiguity, they promise happily ever after). The result is a culture...
Entertainment-basedAudience ActivityEducational / Informative

Research Based strategies for High Quality Teaching

This interactive workshop presents principles integrated from organizational behavior theory, and cognitive, developmental, educational, and social psychological research. Professors participate by visiting seven stations which explore findings about student learning. They share their own experiences in relation to constructs such as:  students' past experiences can help or inhibit assimilation of new material, what really motivates students, and how students' developmental level can...
EducationAudience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changing

A Depth Psychological View of Addiction: Icarus Falls

Explore some of the archetypes of addiction: The demon lover, the labyrinth, the hostage, the gambler, the trickster, the cripple and ultimately, the grim reaper. In this interactive workshop, recurring dynamics in addiction will be examined with a focus on connecting the mythic with the personal.
MotivationAudience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changing

Ugly Ducklings, Every One: The Curse of Ideal Masculinity/Feminity

A visually rich and interactive presentation based on the classic children's tale, "The Ugly Duckling." The archetype of the unusual or "ugly" appears in our cultural narratives and as an image, can help us negotiate the crossfire of mixed messages about ideal femininity and masculinity. The talk is designed to engage and provide the impetus to move from disenfranchisement to empowerment.
Audience ActivityEducational / InformativeInspirational / Life-changing

There's a Fox Under My Bed: The Importance of Play

This workshop will help you re-discover these qualities, and incorporate them into your daily life.
Entertainment-basedAudience ActivityEducational / InformativeHumorous / Funny