Theories of Counseling: Test One

Chapter 2, 4, 7

Therapeutic Goals of Psychoanalytic

• Make the unconscious conscious 

• Strengthen the ego so behavior is guided more by reality and less by unconscious impulses

Freud’s Structure of Personality

Id, Ego, Superego

Id

• Present from birth and largely unconscious

• Driven by instincts and the pleasure principle

• Wants immediate gratification and avoidance of pain

Ego

• The rational part of personality

• Operates according to the reality principle

• Mediates between the id, reality, and superego

Superego

• Represents morals, values, and ideals learned from parents and society

• Judges behavior as right/wrong and can produce pride or guilt

Defense Mechanisms

• protect the ego from being overwhelmed by anxiety

List of defense mechanisms

• Repression: pushing threatening thoughts + feelings out of awareness

• Denial: refusing to acknowledge threatening reality 

• Reaction formation: expressing the opposite of an unacceptable impulse

• Projection: attributing your own unacceptable feelings or impulses to someone else

• Displacement: redirecting feelings from the original target to a safer target

• Rationalization: creating acceptable explanations for behavior

• Sublimation: redirecting unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable activities

• Regression: returning to behaviors from an earlier developmental stage

• Introjection: taking in the values or standards of others

• Identification: identifying with people/groups perceived as successful or worthwhile

• Compensation: emphasizing strengths to make up for perceived weaknesses

Therapist Role is Psychoanalytic

• “blank screen”

• therapists use interpretation to help clients understand unconscious patterns

transference

•  the client unconsciously redirects feelings, experiences, and attitudes from important past past relationships onto the therapist

  • Brings past relationship patterns into the present therapeutic relationship

  • Examining transference helps clients recognize repetitive patterns in their relationships

  • Not every positive or negative feeling toward a therapist is transference

Countertransference

• the therapist’s emotional reactions to the client, which may be influenced by the therapist’s own experiences and conflicts

  • Can interfere with therapy is the therapist is unaware of it

  • However, contemporary approaches recognize that countertransference can also provide valuable information about the client and the therapeutic relationship 

  • Self-awareness, supervision, and personal therapy can help therapists manage it

Major therapeutic techniques of psychoanalytic therapy

1.) Maintaining the analytic framework 

• Maintaining consistent boundaries, meeting times, fees, roles, etc. 

2.) Free association (a central technique to psychoanalysis!!!!)

• Client says whatever comes to mind without censorship

• Helps reveal unconscious wishes, conflicts, memories, and feelings

3.) Interpretation

• Therapist helps explain the meaning of behaviors, dreams, resistance, defenses, and relationship patterns

• Should be appropriately timed and generally begin with material closer to conscious awareness

4.) Dream analysis 

• Dreams provide access to unconscious material

• Manifest content: what the dream appears to be about

• Latent content: hidden unconscious wishes, fears, motives, and meanings

• Dream work: process through which threatening latent material is transformed into safer manifest content

5.) Analysis of resistance

• Resistance: anything that interferes with therapeutic progress or prevents unconscious material from entering awareness

• Resistance often protects clients from anxiety or painful material

• Rather than simply eliminating it, therapists explore what the resistance means

6.) Analysis of transference (a central technique to psychoanalysis!!!!)

• Therapist helps client recognize how past relationship patterns are being repeated in therapy

• Allows clients to work through old conflicts and develop healthier patterns

ego psychology

• emphasizes the ego’s ability to cope, adapt, and achieve mastery throughout life

self psychology

• emphasizes how relationships contribute to development of the self

Relational psychoanalysis

• views therapy as an interactive process between therapist and client

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

• 1.) physiological needs: food, water, and other basic survival needs

• 2.) safety needs: security, stability, and protection

• 3.) love and belonging: relationships, affection, connection

• 4.) esteem: self-respect, confidence, recognition

• 5.) self-actualization: achieving one’s full potential

• 6.) self-transcedence: finding meaning and purpose beyond oneself

Person-Centered View of Human Nature

• People are naturally trustworthy, resourceful, and capable of change

• Individuals have an inherent ability to understand themselves

• Actualizing tendency

• Clients are viewed as experts on their own experiences and are responsible for directing their growth

Actualizing tendency

• the natural drive toward growth, fulfilment, autonomy, and self-determination

Three Essential Therapist Qualities in Person-Centered

1. Congruence (genuineness)

2. Unconditional Positive Regard

3. Accurate Empathic Understanding

Congruence

• MOST IMPORTANT

• Genuineness

• Therapists are authentic and honest rather than presenting a professional facade.

• Their internal feelings and external expressions are consistent.

Unconditional Positive Regard

• Therapists demonstrate genuine acceptance, warmth, and respect without placing conditions on their caring.

• Clients are accepted as people even when therapists do not approve of particular behaviors.

• Creates a safe environment where clients can explore difficult experiences without fear of judgment.

Accurate Empathic Understanding

• Therapists attempt to understand clients' feelings and experiences from their perspective.

• Empathy involves understanding the client's internal world without losing one's own identity.

• Different from sympathy, which involves feeling sorry for someone.

• Encourages trust, emotional exploration, self-awareness, and positive therapeutic outcomes

Person-Centered Therapeutic Goals

• Client becomes more self-aware

• Increase clients independence, self-awareness, and ability to manage future challenges

• Encourages clients to recognize and move beyond the social roles that prevent authentic living

• Clients establish their own therapeutic goals

Therapists function + role in person-centered

• Facilitators of personal growth

• Therapist attitudes and personal qualities are more important than specific therapeutic techniques

Clients experience in person-centered therapy

• Clients often begin therapy experiencing incongruence (mismatch between self-concept and actual experiences)

  • May feel helpless, vulnerable, or dependent on therapist

• As therapy progresses, clients become more open to their feelings and experiences

• Increased self-awareness

• Viewed as active participants capable of directing their own healing

External locus of evaluation

letting someone else’s evaluation be what you believe about yourself

Techniques in person-centered

• not really any… active listening

• more focused on how therapist is interacting with client

latent content (in dream analysis)

hidden unconscious meaning of a dream

manifest content (in dream analysis)

the remembered storyline or imagery of a dream