Counseling Finals

A: Born 1856 in Moravia; moved to Vienna in 1860.

Q: Where and when was Sigmund Freud born, and where did he move?

A: Studied medicine at University of Vienna.

Q: What was Freud’s educational background before becoming a doctor?

A: Studied the nervous system until 1896.

Q: What field did Freud initially focus on in his academic career?

A: Charcot (hypnosis) and Breuer (catharsis).

Q: Who influenced Freud’s early work in psychology and how?

A: Studies in Hysteria (1895), with Breuer.

Q: What was Freud’s first major published work and its collaborator?

A: The Interpretation of Dreams.

Q: What famous book did Freud publish in 1900?

A: The Psychopathology of Everyday Life.

Q: What 1901 work explored errors in everyday behavior?

A: New Introductory Lectures in Psychoanalysis.

Q: Which 1933 book summarized Freud’s psychoanalytic theories?

A: Unconscious, self-analysis, personality structure.

Q: What are Freud’s key conceptual contributions to psychology?

A: Clark University, 1909.

Q: Where did Freud present psychoanalysis in the U.S.?

A: By 1925, worldwide recognition.

Q: When was Freud internationally recognized as a leading theorist?

A: Fled to England for safety.

Q: How did Freud respond to the Nazi threat in 1938?

A: Died 1939, in England, age 83.

Q: When and where did Freud die?

A: Named top 20th-century thinker by Time.

Q: How has Freud’s legacy been recognized in modern times?

• Mind Structure

• Instinctual Drives

• Family Influences

• Society’s Attitudes

• External Environment

Psychoanalysis Model
Focus Areas:

• Unconscious Determinism

• Understanding Unconscious Motivations

• Mental Development and Coping

• Learning and Insight

Psychoanalytic Counseling Foundations
Key Concepts:

Theory of Counseling (Freud)

Counseling Based on Personality Theory

Key Concepts:

• Cathexis and Anticathexis

• Anxiety

• Defense Mechanisms

• Psychosexual Stages

Goal:
Make the unconscious conscious

Catharsis

• Talking out problems to release repressed emotions

• Neurosis linked to forgotten traumas

• Treatment: Recall and confront trauma both intellectually and emotionally

• Inspired by Breuer’s work (Studies in Hysteria, 1895)

• Example: A client experiences recurring anxiety attacks. Through therapy, they recall a forgotten childhood event involving parental neglect. Talking through this memory brings emotional release and reduces the anxiety.

Free Association

• Freud used a couch to help patients relax

• Replaced hypnosis with free association

• Clients express all thoughts without filtering

• Counselor looks for patterns and offers interpretation

• Example: A client says, “I saw a bird… then thought about my father yelling… then I felt scared.” The therapist notes a pattern of authority and fear, linking it to unresolved father-related conflict.

Storytelling in Counseling

• Helps children express emotions indirectly

• Makes consequences of behavior clearer

• Mutual Storytelling Technique by Richard Gardner

• Example: A child tells a story about a lonely turtle who gets angry easily. The counselor listens and helps the child rewrite the ending, where the turtle learns to make friends by staying calm—helping the child process their own anger and loneliness.

Bibliocounseling

• Reading books about relatable issues

• Helps children explore solutions and appropriate behaviors

• Topics: Sex, disability, divorce, death

• Example: A child coping with parental divorce reads a story about a character with the same experience. Through discussion, the child expresses their feelings and discovers healthy ways to adjust.

• Dreams

• Parapraxes (slips)

• Humor

Interpretation in Psychoanalysis
Three Major Areas:

Dreams

• Dreams express unconscious wish fulfillment

• Called the "royal road to the unconscious"

• Counselor interprets symbolism

• Example: A client dreams of climbing a never-ending staircase. The counselor interprets it as a symbol of the client's anxiety about constant pressure to succeed.

Parapraxes (Freudian Slips)

• Slips of the tongue reveal unconscious thoughts

• Counselor arranges these into a conscious pattern

• Example: A person intending to say "I'm glad to meet you" says "I'm mad to greet you," revealing hidden irritation.

Humor

• Jokes and satire release repressed thoughts

• Counselor identifies underlying themes and their origins (id/superego)

• Example: A client frequently jokes about being controlled by their parents. The counselor explores possible unresolved dependency or rebellion.

Transference

• Client transfers feelings from past figures to the counselor

• Often stems from unresolved childhood issues

• Example: A client begins to view the counselor as a strict parent, revealing unresolved fear of authority.

Resistance

• Client avoids certain thoughts or topics

• Counselor must build trust to reduce resistance

• Example: A client constantly changes the subject when discussing their father, signaling emotional discomfort.

Incomplete Sentences Technique

• Projective technique to explore client thoughts and feelings

• Especially useful for anxious or quiet children

• Example Prompt: "When I grow up, I want..."

• Example Response: "…to disappear" — may indicate feelings of worthlessness or depression.

Play Therapy

• Developed by Anna Freud

• Uses play as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool

• Helps resolve developmental issues (fixation, regression)

• Allows children to role-play adult roles and process stages of development

• Example: A child repeatedly buries toys in sand, which may symbolize suppressed grief or fear of loss.

Expressive Arts Techniques

Definition: Creative methods used in therapy to help children express thoughts and emotions nonverbally.

Activities: Self-portraits, painting, music, dance, Squiggle Game (Winnicott)
Benefits: Boosts self-esteem, trust, communication, emotional regulation, and problem-solving
Example: A child’s evolving artwork reflects emotional growth

• Strengthen the ego

• Enable indirect emotional expression

• Teach consequences

• Resolve past conflicts through reenactment

• Educate on sensitive issues

• Match interventions to developmental stage

• Support emotional and behavioral growth

Goals of Psychoanalytic Child Counseling

• Holistic view: People are unified beings.

• Social context: Environment and relationships shape behavior.

• Choice: Individuals choose how to live, despite past influences.

• Social interest: Connection, not sex, drives behavior.

• Goal-driven: Actions aim for significance and belonging.

• Subjectivity: Personal meaning matters most.

Core Concepts of Adlerian Theory

Adlerian Approach in Practice

Integrates analytic, behavioral, cognitive, and systemic elements.
Applied in individual, group, and educational counseling settings.

Adlerian Counseling Process

• Brief, directive, and focused on the present/future (typically under 20 sessions)

• Counselor acts as an educator and encourager

• Key tools:

  • Early recollections

  • Family constellation

  • Birth order

  • Exploration of mistaken beliefs

• Goal: Gain insight → Build courage → Take new action

• Early recollections

• Family constellation

• Birth order

• Exploration of mistaken beliefs

Adlerian Counseling Process

Key tools:

Gain insight → Build courage → Take new action

Adlerian Counseling Goal:

Gemeinschaftsgefühl - Social Interest

• Humans are naturally social; survival depends on cooperation

• Social interest = Belonging + Willingness to contribute

• Ideal: Give more than you receive; live cooperatively

• Community life

• Work

• Love/relationships

• Self-acceptance

• Spirituality

• Parenting

Six Life Tasks (Requiring Social Interest)

• Biological: Physical limits → can encourage social interest

• Cosmic: Mortality awareness → promotes humility

• Personal: Feeling “less than” → often hinders social interest

Three Types of Inferiority (Dreikurs, 1989)

Physical limitations or disabilities that remind us of our dependence on others.
→ Can foster empathy and cooperation (social interest).
Example: A child with a speech delay becomes more observant and kind, building close friendships by showing compassion.

Biological Inferiority

The existential awareness that we are small and mortal in the vast universe.
→ Encourages humility and deeper connection to others and meaning.
Example: After surviving a natural disaster, a person becomes more involved in community service, feeling connected to something larger.

Cosmic Inferiority

Subjective feelings of being “less than” others due to upbringing, comparison, or failure.
→ Often leads to overcompensation or social withdrawal, reducing social interest.
Example: A teen who feels academically inferior may isolate or act out in class to hide insecurity.

Personal Inferiority

Healthy people

strive for personal growth in all areas.

Unhealthy people

strive for superiority over others.

Inferiority Complex

When personal inferiority leads to a constant need for power or avoidance.

Two maladaptive responses:

• Striving for power/achievement (sometimes at others’ expense)

• Avoiding risks and connection due to fear of failure

Counseling goal: Transform inferiority into motivation for connection and contribution

Assessing Social Interest

High social interest

Focus on contribution and shared joy
Example: A client says, “Helping my coworkers succeed makes me feel fulfilled,” showing concern for others and shared success.

Low social interest:

Focus on power, possessions, complaints, and blame
Example: A client says, “People are just obstacles in the way of my goals,” indicating a self-centered and disconnected mindset.

Social interest

is central to mental health.
Counselors observe how clients describe themselves and their problems.

Alfred Adler

• Broke from Freud over the role of social context

• Founded Individual Psychology (1912)

• Emphasized birth order, early recollections, and lifestyle

Rudolf Dreikurs

• Promoted Adler’s work in the U.S.

• Focused on child behavior and parenting without punishment or reward

Ansbachers

Preserved Adler’s original writings

James Bitter

Developed Adlerian brief and family therapy

Jon Carlson

Applied Adlerian methods to couples and diverse groups

Dinkmeyer, McKay, McKay

Created the STEP parenting program

Harold Mosak

Wrote practical Adlerian counseling guides

Thomas Sweeney:

Integrated positive psychology into Adlerian practice

1. Establish an Egalitarian Relationship

2. Assess Lifestyle and Private Logic

3. Encourage Insight and Self-Understanding

4. Educate and Reorientate

🧩 Four Phases of Adlerian Counseling

1. Establish an Egalitarian Relationship – Four Phases of Adlerian Counseling

The counselor builds a collaborative, respectful relationship with the client.

• Warm, trusting, and non-hierarchical approach

• Counselor treats the client as an equal partner

• Emphasizes the client’s strengths and potential

• 💡 Example: A therapist greets a teenager with genuine curiosity about their story, not as a “problem to fix,” but as a person with insight into their own life.

2. Assess Lifestyle and Private Logic – Four Phases of Adlerian Counseling

The counselor gathers insight into how the client views themselves, others, and life.

• Explore early recollections, birth order, and family dynamics

• Identify the client’s “private logic” (personal beliefs shaping behavior)

• Assess level of social interest and life goals

• 💡 Example: A client recalls always feeling overlooked as the middle child—this belief guides their tendency to avoid speaking up at work.

3. Encourage Insight and Self-Understanding – Four Phases of Adlerian Counseling

The client gains awareness of how their beliefs influence behavior.

• Insight is used to inspire—not just explain—change

• Focus on meaningful patterns rather than isolated symptoms

• Client connects past experiences to present issues

• 💡 Example: After reflecting on how their perfectionism stems from early pressure to “never disappoint,” a client realizes it’s okay to make mistakes.

4. Educate and Reorientate – Four Phases of Adlerian Counseling

The counselor supports the client in adopting new beliefs and behaviors.

• Challenge unhelpful private logic

• Encourage risk-taking, trying new behaviors

• Teach skills like assertive communication, empathy, or problem-solving

• 💡 Example: A shy client starts initiating conversations using skills practiced in sessions and finds new confidence in social situations.

Egalitarian

– Respect for Client Autonomy
The counselor and client are viewed as equals in the therapeutic process.

• The therapist collaborates rather than controls

• Client’s choices and inner wisdom are honored

• 💡 Example: The counselor says, “You know yourself best—my role is to help you explore your options.”

Encouragement

– Belief in Growth and Strengths
Adlerians see encouragement as essential for change.

• Emphasizes client potential and effort, not just outcome

• Builds hope and motivation by recognizing progress

• 💡 Example: “You’ve taken a hard step by just showing up here today. That says a lot about your courage.”

Empathy

– “To See with the Eyes of Another” (Adler)
Understanding the world from the client’s perspective is foundational.

• Deep listening and emotional attunement

• Helps clients feel safe, validated, and understood

• 💡 Example: A counselor reflects, “It sounds like you’ve felt invisible for a long time—that must be exhausting.”

Directive

– Gentle Guidance, Not Control
Therapist offers insight and suggestions, but the client remains in charge.

• Educational tools are offered respectfully

• The client is free to accept or reject advice

• 💡 Example: “Here’s one way to look at this—see if it fits for you.”

Parenting Style – Lifestyle Assessment

• Focuses on pampering (overprotection) vs. neglect

• Key insight: The child’s perception matters more than the objective reality

Sample Questions:

• How did you get what you needed or wanted?

• How did your parents respond to you?

• Which child had the most influence over them?

Family Constellation & Birth Order – Lifestyle Assessment

• Birth order influences how a child sees themselves within the family

• Focuses on subjective meaning, not just position

General Traits by Birth Order:

• Oldest: Responsible, seeks superiority

• Second: Competitive or discouraged

• Middle: Mediator, may feel "squeezed"

• Youngest: Charming, attention-seeking

• Only: Mature, independent, may struggle socially

Sample Questions:

• What roles did each child play?

• How did your parents reinforce or discourage those roles?

• Were there “favorites” or alliances?

Early Recollections (ERs) – Lifestyle Assessment

• Memories before age 7 that reflect key beliefs and emotions

Sample Questions:

• What is your earliest memory?

• What did you feel, understand, or learn from it

Basic Mistakes – Lifestyle Assessment

• Faulty beliefs developed early in life

• Unconscious but revealed through patterns and behavior

1. Overgeneralizations

Drawing broad conclusions from limited experiences.

• 💬 Belief: “Everyone leaves eventually.”

• 🧠 Impact: Leads to distrust and emotional withdrawal.

• 💡 Example: After one breakup, someone avoids future relationships out of fear of abandonment.

2. False Goals of Security

Setting unrealistic conditions for emotional safety.

• 💬 Belief: “If they love me, they’ll never hurt me.”

• 🧠 Impact: Creates rigid expectations in relationships.

• 💡 Example: A person becomes controlling or clingy to avoid being hurt.

3. Misperceptions of Life and Its Demands

Expecting life to operate by fixed rules of fairness or ease.

• 💬 Belief: “Life should be fair.”

• 🧠 Impact: Results in chronic frustration and victim mindset.

• 💡 Example: A student feels hopeless because they studied hard but still failed.

4. Minimizing Self-Worth

Internalizing negative self-beliefs that block growth.

• 💬 Belief: “I don’t deserve love.”

• 🧠 Impact: Undermines confidence and fuels self-sabotage.

• 💡 Example: Rejecting compliments or healthy relationships due to feelings of unworthiness.

5. Faulty Values

Defining self-worth by external validation or material success.

• 💬 Belief: “My worth depends on success.”

• 🧠 Impact: Causes anxiety, perfectionism, or burnout.

• 💡 Example: Someone feels like a failure if they’re not constantly achieving something.

1. Overgeneralizations

2. False Goals of Security

3. Misperceptions of Life and Its Demands

4. Minimizing Self-Worth

5. Faulty Values

the five types of basic mistakes in Adlerian theory:

Organ Inferiority (Physical Weak Points)

• Refers to actual or perceived physical weaknesses

• Can influence lifestyle by creating a sense of inferiority and prompting compensation

• Examples: Chronic illness, disability, poor athletic ability, body image concerns

Dream Analysis (Adlerian Style

• Unlike Freud, Adler saw dreams as problem-solving tools, not expressions of repressed sexual desires

• Dreams reflect the client’s style of life and current struggles

• Meaning is unique to the dreamer—not imposed by the counselor

• Themes like being stuck, blocked, or delayed may signal helplessness or externalized blame

“The Question” (Purpose of Symptom)

• Ask: “What would be different if you didn’t have this problem?”

• Uncovers secondary gains or hidden purposes behind symptoms

• Example: A person with depression may unconsciously use it to avoid pressure or gain support/approval

Encouraged Person

• Response: Shows a “can-do” attitude, engages with others positively

• Context: Typically well-adjusted and socially connected

• Example: A student who struggles academically but seeks help, works with peers, and stays motivated

Neurotic Symptoms

• Response: Displays a “yes-but” attitude—acknowledges issues but avoids change

• Context: Uses symptoms (e.g., anxiety, procrastination) to escape responsibility

• Example: A client says, “I want to get better, but I can’t because no one supports me,” despite available help

Psychotic Symptoms

• Response: Withdraws from reality; struggles to meet basic social expectations

• Context: Severe disconnection from reality, often requiring medical or psychiatric support

• Example: A person with delusions who isolates themselves and cannot function in daily life

Personality Disorders

• Response: Rigid, controlling, with a “my way or no way” attitude

• Context: Lacks flexibility in relationships and has difficulty cooperating

• Example: A client with narcissistic traits who demands praise but refuses feedback or compromise

Work

• Involves contribution to society through jobs, school, chores, or volunteering

• Example: A student helping classmates study or a teen taking responsibility at home

Friendship / Communal Life

• Refers to forming and maintaining meaningful social bonds

• Example: Someone who values cooperation, listens to others, and participates in group activities

Love Relationships

• Requires deep connection, intimacy, and mutual respect

• Example: A partner who prioritizes emotional support and shared goals over control

Self-Acceptance (modern addition)

• Involves recognizing one's strengths and limitations with compassion

• Example: A person with anxiety who acknowledges their struggle but doesn't define themselves by it

Spirituality

• Represents connection to something greater than oneself (e.g., nature, faith, purpose)

• Example: Finding meaning through meditation, service, or belief in a higher power

Parenting

• Demands emotional maturity, empathy, and the ability to guide and nurture others

• Example: A parent who encourages independence while offering warmth and structure

DSM Approach

• Descriptive – lists observable symptoms

• Pathology- and deficit-based

• Focuses on external behavior

Adlerian Approach

• Explanatory – seeks underlying causes

• Strength-based, focused on encouragement

• Focuses on internal, subjective experience

Axis I:

• DSM: Clinical disorders

• Adlerian: Symptoms seen as coping strategies

Axis II:

• DSM: Personality disorders & mental retardation

• Adlerian: Lifestyle – patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting

Axis III:

• DSM: General medical conditions

• Adlerian: Organ inferiority – physical weaknesses influencing the psyche

Axis IV:

• DSM: Psychosocial and environmental problems

• Adlerian: The “shock” – triggering life event or stressor

Axis V:

• DSM: Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF)

• Adlerian: Life task functioning – ability to engage in key areas of life

= Empathy + Cooperation + Community feeling

Social Interest = ___ + ___ + ___

• Work

• Love

• Friendship

• Self-acceptance

• Spirituality

• Parenting

Adlerian - Life difficulties often arise in six key tasks:

Early Phase Goals

• Address immediate crisis or presenting symptoms

• Example: Reduce insecurity that causes depressive thoughts or jealousy in relationships