Dream therapy

Question 1

How do the assumptions of the psychodynamic approach apply to dream therapy?

Answer 1

Human behaviour is heavily influenced by the unconscious mind and its hidden fears, desires and conflicts.
Unconscious drives cannot be easily accessed yet they are considered to have the greatest influence on behaviour.
This approach also considers that childhood experiences have significant impact on adult emotions and behaviour.

Question 2

How can the influences of childhood experiences assumption be applied to dream therapy?

Answer 2

Traumatic memories may be buried deep in the unconscious may be related to current experiences, but they may also be related to childhood events that are still troubling the individual.
These troubling events may move from the unconscious into dreams as a means of working through traumatic past events.

Question 3

How can the tripartite personality assumption be applied to dream therapy?

Answer 3

It is considered that the demands of the id, with desires that are unacceptable at any other time, are relegated to our dreams.
The purpose of dreaming is to allow our unacceptable base needs and wishes to be acted out in an acceptable way. Without that release they could build up and threaten sanity.

Question 4

What are the key points of psychoanalysis?

Answer 4

The main therapy based on the psychodynamic approach.
The main aim of it is to make the unconscious conscious so that people become aware of such unconscious influences.
By helping the client uncover those underlying conflicts in the unconscious mind the client can work to bring it to the conscious mind so it can be addressed and dealt with.

Question 5

What are the main components of dream therapy?

Answer 5

The unconscious mind expresses itself through dreams and by analysing the content of an individual’s dreams it can therefore reveal the unconscious.

Question 6

What are the key points about the symbolic nature of dreams?

Answer 6

According to Freud, although dreams represent unfulfilled wishes, their contents are expressed symbolically.
The real meaning of a dream (latent content) is transformed into a more innocuous form (manifest content).
Freud believed it was necessary to consider these symbols in the context of a person’s life.
Freud didn’t support the idea of dream dictionaries. He also recognised that not everything in a dream is symbolic.

Question 7

What are the key points about the role of the therapist?

Answer 7

The role of the therapist to reverse the dreamwork process.
The decode the manifest content back to the latent content.
They shouldn’t offer just one interpretation of a dream.
They should suggest various interpretations based on the patient’s feedback and knowledge of their life experiences. This will allow the patient to select the interpretations that make the most sense to them.

Question 8

What’s the definition of latent content?

Answer 8

The real meaning of the dream.

Question 9

What’s the definition of manifest content?

Answer 9

The content you actually experience.

Question 10

What are the key points about dreams as wish fulfilment?

Answer 10

Freud believed that all dreams were the unconscious fulfilment of wish that couldn’t be satisfied in the conscious mind.
Dreams protect the sleeper (primary - process thought) but also allow some expression to these buried urges (wish fulfilment).

Question 11

What are the key points about dreamwork?

Answer 11

The latent content of a dream is transformed into manifest content through the process of dreamwork.
Dreamwork consists of various processes.
These processes are applied to repressed wishes to produce the content of the dream that is experienced.

Question 12

What’s condensation in regard to dream therapy?

Answer 12

Dream thoughts are rich in detail and content, but these are condensed to the brief images in a dream. One dream image stands for several associations and ideas.

Question 13

What’s displacement in regard to dream therapy?

Answer 13

The emotional significance of a dream object is separated from its real object or content and attached to an entirely different one so that the dream isn’t ‘censored’. (Freud uses the concept of a ‘censor’.)

Question 14

What’s representation in regard to dream therapy?

Answer 14

A thought is translated into visual images.

Question 15

What’s symbolism in regard to dream therapy?

Answer 15

A symbol replaces an action, person or idea.

Question 16

What’s secondary elaboration in regard to dream therapy?

Answer 16

The unconscious mind collects all the different images and ties them together to form a logical story.
This further disguises the latent content.
The actual dream material may be supplied from recent events in a person’s waking life.

Question 17

What did Solms (2000) study and find?

Answer 17

Used PET scans to highlight the regions of the brain that are active during dreaming.
The results showed that the rational part of the brain is inactive during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep.
However, the centres concerned with memory and motivation are very active.

Question 18

What is the methodological issues evaluation point?

Answer 18

Much of the research into dreaming is conducted in sleep laboratories.
For example:
The relationship between REM sleep and dreams.
It can therefore be questioned whether the sleep / dream state is as authentic as when under normal conditions.
Makes it impossible to conclude that dreaming is the same as in everyday life.
The ecological validity of dream research therefore questioned.
Many studies into dreaming are conducted on humans and animals that have been deprived of significant amounts of sleep or particular stages of sleep.
Significant disruption will impair important biological functions.
For example:
The secretion of hormones and neurotransmitters.
These may act as confounding variables.

Question 19

What is the subjective interpretation evaluation point?

Answer 19

Dream analysis is a highly subjective process.
Interpreting the manifest content and coming up with its underlying meaning (latent content) relies on the subjective interpretation of the therapist.
The dream that is being interpreted is a subjective report of the dreamer and may not be reliable information.

Question 20

What did Schredl et al (2000) find?

Answer 20

Found in a survey of psychotherapists in private practise that approximately 70% of patients reported benefits of working through dreams.

Question 21

What did Hobson and McCarley (1997) argue?

Answer 21

Dreams are nothing but commands sent from the brain and are simply a form of “thinking that happens while we sleep”.

Question 22

What is the therapist - client relationship evaluation point?

Answer 22

Potential power imbalance between the therapist and the patient.
The therapist takes the expert role.
They offer the patient insight into their unconscious.
The patient is reliant on the therapist in making progress through the therapy.
Could lead to over - dependence on the therapist.

Question 23

What are the key points about false memory syndrome (FMS)?

Answer 23

Condition in which a person’s identity and relationships are affected by strongly believed but false memories of traumatic experiences.
These false memories can come into light during psychoanalysis when the therapist claims to have uncovered past, traumatic events.
Supporters of FMS suggest that a patient is likely to believe the therapist as they are an authority figure.

Question 24

What did Toon et al (1996) suggest?

Answer 24

Therapists may induce false memories so that the therapy will take longer and they will make more financial gain.
The result of FMS is that the patients may experience much anxiety because of ‘memories’ of events that didn’t even happen.

Question 25

What is the emotional harm evaluation point?

Answer 25

Therapist may guide a client towards an insight or interpretation that proves to be emotionally distressing.
Although this insight may be necessary for recovery, the distress caused may be greater than the distress that the client is experiencing as a result of the current problem.
It’s important that psychotherapists warn their clients of this danger before they engage in the therapy.