empathy exam 2- part 1

Mental illness in early history

Mental illness was often interpreted as evidence of evil possession.

Trepanning

An early practice involving drilling or scraping holes into the skull as a treatment for mental disturbance.

Historical shift in mental illness treatment during the 1800s

Growth of madhouses and later mental hospitals, initially framed as humanitarian reform.

Problem with early mental hospitals

Many treatments were ineffective, harmful, and unethical despite reform goals.

Josef Breuer and Sigmund Freud

Key figures in the early development of psychoanalysis.

Transference

Client redirects feelings associated with important people in life onto the therapist.

Countertransference

Therapist transfers their own unresolved feelings or attitudes onto the client.

Freud's view of countertransference

Therapists should avoid allowing their own feelings to shape treatment.

Major criticism of psychoanalysis

It often explains too much and produces interpretations that are difficult to test.

Carl Jung, Alfred Adler, Anna Freud, Otto Rank

Major psychoanalytic followers associated with Freud's tradition.

Carl Rogers

Therapist most associated with humanistic or client-centered therapy.

Client-centered therapy core idea

Insight and goals should emerge primarily from the client.

Non-directive therapy

Therapist avoids controlling the session and allows the client to guide exploration.

Unconditional positive regard

Accepting the client without judgment while helping them tolerate weaknesses.

Genuineness in Rogerian therapy

Therapist should be authentic rather than performing a detached role.

Empathy in Rogerian therapy

Central therapeutic tool involving careful attention to the client's emotional experience.

Active listening

Summarizing, paraphrasing, inviting clarification, and reflecting feelings.

Example of active listening

"It seems like you are disappointed; am I right?"

Gloria tapes

Recorded comparison of three major therapists using the same real client.

Three therapists in the Gloria tapes

Carl Rogers, Fritz Perls, and Albert Ellis.

Gestalt psychotherapy

Present-oriented psychodynamic therapy associated with Fritz Perls.

Cognitive-oriented therapy

Therapy associated with Albert Ellis and Aaron Beck.

Behavioral approaches

Therapies influenced by B.F. Skinner including systematic desensitization, modeling, and token economy.

Abraham Maslow

Key figure associated with humanistic psychology.

Erich Fromm

Important thinker associated with humanistic and psychodynamic traditions.