Psychoanalytic Therapy (1)

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Basic Concept of Psychoanalytic Therapy

• Human beings are basically determined by psychic energy and by early experiences.

• Unconscious motives and conflicts are central in present behavior.

• Early development is of critical importance because later personality problems have their roots in repressed childhood conflict.

Psychoanalytic Approach

• Here and now approach

• Geared more on structuring the personality.

• Focus on mutual transference and countertransference.

• Focus on practical concern than fantasy material

Id, Ego, Superego

Structures of personalities in Psychoanalytic Therapy

Id

pleasure principle, demanding, insistent, avoids pain, amoral, illogical, satisfies instinctual needs, seat of instincts.

Ego

reality principle, “traffic cop”, controls consciousness, logical, seat of intelligence and rationality

Superego

judicial branch, moral, strives for perfection.

Anxiety

a feeling of dread, motivates us to do something, warns us of impending danger. (Psychoanalytic Definition)

Reality, Moral, and Neurotic Anxiety

Types of Anxiety

Reality anxiety

characterized by a fear of the external world and potential dangers within it. This form of anxiety arises when an individual perceives a threat or danger from their environment, which may be realistic or exaggerated

Moral anxiety

Type of anxiety that arises from conflicts between the individual and their moral standards or values, leading to feelings of guilt or shame. Fear of one’s own conscience.

Neurotic anxiety

a type of anxiety experienced when an individual has a fundamental conflict within their psyche, particularly between the id and the superego. It typically manifests as an irrational fear concerning potential punishments or consequences resulting from suppressed desires or urges.

Repression

A Defence Mechanism: involuntary removal of something from consciousness, buried painful events of the first 5-6 years of life

Denial

A defense mechanism: Refusing to accept reality or facts, thereby blocking external events from awareness.

Reaction Formation

A defense mechanism: Converting unwelcome thoughts or feelings into their opposite, to protect oneself.

Projection

A defense mechanism: Attributing one’s own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to someone else.

Displacement

A defense mechanism: Shifting emotional impulses from a threatening target to a safer one.

Sublimation

A defense mechanism: Channeling unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable or constructive activities.

Regression

A defense mechanism: Reverting to behaviors characteristic of an earlier stage of development in response to stress.

Introjection

A defense mechanism: The internalization of the beliefs and values of others, often taken on without critical evaluation or understanding, leading to the formation of one’s own identity or self-concept based on external influences.

Identification

A defense mechanism where an individual unconsciously adopts the traits or beliefs of another person, often to enhance self-esteem and cope with feelings of inadequacy by aligning with those perceived as successful or admirable.

Psychosexual Stages

proposed by Sigmund Freud, outline the emotional and physical development children experience during the early years of life.

Oral Stage

• (0-18 months): pleasure-seeking focus on the mouth through activities like sucking and chewing. Key conflict is weaning off breastfeeding or bottle-feeding.

• fixation→ seeking pleasure through mouth- related behaviors (e.g., smoking, overeating) or being excessively

  dependent on others.

Anal stage

• (18 months - 3 years): pleasure shifts to bowel movements and control. Key conflict involves toilet training and establishing self-control.

• fixation → being overly organized and controlling (anal-retentive) or being disorganized and messy (anal-expulsive).

Phallic stage

• (3-6 years): increased awareness of genitals. Children develop attraction to opposite-sex parent and rivalry with same-sex parent.

• fixation → difficulty forming healthy relationships, potential issues with self-esteem or gender identity.

Latency stage

• (6 years - puberty): sexual feelings are dormant. Focus shifts to social and intellectual growth, forming same-sex friendships.

• successful progression → developing social and cognitive skills, contributing to healthy adult development.

Genital stage

• (puberty - adulthood): sexual interests mature. Individuals seek out romantic partners and engage in mature sexual relationships.

• fixation → struggles in forming mature relationships if earlier stages' conflicts are unresolved.

Transference

The cornerstone of psychoanalysis. Therapist assumes ananonymous stance or blank screen, clients make projections onto them.

Verbal Productions

the heart of Psychoanalytic Therapy.

Free association

“Say whatever comes to mind” fundamental rule or central technique, without censorship, opens the doors to unconscious wishes, fantasies, conflicts, and motivations. Leads to recollection.

Dream Interpretation

pointing out and teaching client the meaning of behaviors manifested in dreams.

Dream Analysis

• important procedure in uncovering unconscious material.

• “dreams are royal road to the unconscious”, some motivations are so unacceptable to the person that they are expressed in disguised and symbolic form rather being revealed directly.

Latent Content

• This refers to the hidden, unconscious thoughts, desires, and motivations that underlie the dream. These elements are often painful, threatening, or socially unacceptable, so they are transformed into more palatable forms in the dream itself.

• Usually disguised and expressed symbolically to avoid direct confrontation with the dreamer's suppressed emotions or wishes.

Manifest Content

• The surface story or imagery that the dreamer consciously recalls upon waking. This is the dream as it appears to the person, and it may seem nonsensical or puzzling.

• Typically a distorted version of the latent content, shaped to make it less threatening or distressing.

Dream Work

The process by which the unconscious material (latent content) is transformed into the manifest content of the dream is referred to as dream work.

Condensation

Dreamwork Mechanism: Several ideas or wishes are combined into a single image or symbol in the dream.

Displacement

Dreamwork Mechanism: Emotional significance is transferred from an important or threatening object to a less threatening one

Symbolization

Dreamwork Mechanism: Objects or events in the dream stand in for repressed thoughts or feelings

Projection

Dreamwork Mechanism: The dreamer attributes their own unacceptable feelings or desires to others

Secondary Revision

Dreamwork Mechanism: The brain reorganizes the dream into a more coherent narrative upon waking, often obscuring the deeper meaning

Analysis of Transference

Psychoanalytic Technique: central technique, allows to achieve here and

now insights.

Analysis of Resistance

Psychoanalytic Technique: anything that work against the progress, defense against anxiety and fear of change. Resistance needs to be recognized and dealt with. Exploring resistance is valuable to the process.

Analytical Psychology (Carl Jung)

elaborates explanation of human nature combines ideas from history, mythology, anthropology, and religion. For him, our personality is shaped by who and what we have been and what we aspire to be in the future.

Individuation

In Analytical Pscyhology: it is the harmony and integration of conscious and unconscious aspects of personality. The process of achieving balance.

Collective Unconscious

the deepest level of psyche containing the accumulation of inherited experiences of human and prehuman species, inside this are the Archetypes

Archetypes

core concepts in Jungian psychology, introduced by Carl Jung. These are universal symbols or patterns that exist in the collective unconscious, a part of the psyche shared by all humans.

Persona

Archetypes: represents the "mask" or the outward face that an individual presents to the world. It is the social identity shaped by cultural norms and expectations.

Anima

Archetypes: the feminine aspect present in men, representing qualities like emotion, intuition, receptivity, and empathy. In women, this manifests more in the unconscious as an idealized image of femininity.

Animus

Archetypes: the masculine aspect present in women, representing qualities like strength, assertiveness, rationality, and independence. It manifests unconsciously in men as an idealized image of masculinity

Shadow

Archetypes: the dark, repressed, or hidden aspects of the self. It encompasses the traits, impulses, and qualities that an individual disowns because they are considered unacceptable or undesirable by the conscious mind. The most powerful and dangerous archetype and often manifests in projections.

The Self

Archetypes: the central archetype in Jungian psychology, representing the integrated whole of a person, where consciousness and unconsciousness come together in harmony. Includes the entire psyche, encompassing both the ego and unconscious. Symbolizes the realization of one's true nature and the wholeness of the individual, representing the ultimate goal of psychological development.

Ego Psychology

Proposed by Ana Freud. It focuses on the role of the ego in regulating the individual's behavior, emotions, and interactions with the external world.

Object Relations Theory

Proposed by Margaret Mahler. Focuses on how early relationships with primary caregivers (often termed "objects") shape the development of the self and the individual’s ability to relate to others throughout life

Self-Psychology

Proposed by Heinz Kohut. Focuses on the development and functioning of the self. Kohut believed that the self is formed through interpersonal relationships, and specifically through relationships with self-objects—people or things that are experienced as essential to the individual's sense of self.

Relational Model

A model of psychoanalysis that emphasizes the importance of the therapist-client relationship in shaping therapeutic outcomes. It suggests that the therapeutic relationship itself is a primary avenue for understanding the patient’s issues and for facilitating change.

Brief Psychodynamic Therapy

A form of psychoanalysis that focuses on resolving emotional issues in a shorter time frame than traditional long-term psychoanalysis. Goal-oriented and structured.

Limitations of Psychoanalytic Therapy

Long time commitment to therapy, expense, limited application to diverse client population, questionable benefits.