Dynamic psychotherapy Flashcards
Unacceptable ideas that are pushed out of the conscious into the unconscious
Repression
Words that slip out during conversation which can give clues to someone’s unconscious thoughts
Parapraxes/Freudian slips
When a patient is encouraged to say whatever comes into their mind
Free association
Where two or more unconscious impulses are turned into a single image within a dream
Condensation
Where one unconscious impulse is seen in multiple images within a dream
Diffusion/irradiation
Where the energy within one thought is transferred to another idea within a dream
Displacement
Where a highly charged thought is replaced with a more innocent/less emotionally charged thought
Symbolic representation
Example of symbolic representation
Someone’s wish to shoot their father becomes an image of them shooting a stag
Freud’s destructive, death instinct
Thanatos
Freud’s life affirming instinct
Eros
Three regions within Freud’s topographical model of the mind
Unconscious
Preconscious
Conscious
Area of the topographical model of the mind which is governed by the pleasure principle
Unconscious
Area of the topographical model of the mind which is governed by primary process thinking
Unconscious
Type of thinking within psychotherapy which is not restricted by logic or reality
Primary process thinking
Area of the topographical model of the mind which forms a barrier to stop unacceptable wishes or thoughts
Preconscious
Area of the topographical model of the mind which linked with reality
Conscious
Type of thinking within psychotherapy which is bound by logic, time and space
Secondary process thinking
Regions within Freud’s structural model of the mind
Id
Ego
Superego
Area of the structural model of the mind which holds someone’s instincts and base wishes
Id
Area of the structural model of the mind which acts as a moral conscience
Superego
Area of the structural model of the mind which mediates between instinctual desires and morals
Ego
Subarea within the structural model of the mind which is an image of how the person should if they could be their best possible self
Ego ideal
Freud’s psychosexual stages of development
Oral
Anal
Phallic
Latent
Genital
Age during the oral stage of psychosexual development
Birth to 18 months
Age during the anal stage of psychosexual development
18 months to 3 years
Age during the phallic stage of psychosexual development
3 to 5 years
Age during the latent stage of psychosexual development
5 years to puberty
Age during the genital stage of psychosexual development
Puberty to adulthood
Focus during the oral stage of psychosexual development
Sucking
Feeding
Problems caused in adult life by a fixation on the oral stage of psychosexual development
Alcoholism
Excessive eating
Focus during the anal stage of psychosexual development
Being able to control the anal sphincter and the control that comes with that
Problems caused in adult life by a fixation on the anal stage of psychosexual development
OCD
Focus during the phallic stage of psychosexual development
Discovering the genitals
Differentiating between boys and girls
Stage of psychosexual development at which children develop the Oedipal and Electra complexes
Phallic
Idea behind the Oedipal complex
The idea that a young boy wishes to kill his father in order to marry his mother
Idea behind the Electra complex
The idea that girls develop penis envy and want to be with their father in order to have a baby
Neo Freudian who developed the paranoid schizoid and depressive positions
Melanie Klein
Idea behind the paranoid schizoid position, held by young babies and children
The world is divided into good and bad
If the infant’s mother does not immediately meet its needs she is thought of as bad
The infant has destructive thoughts about the mother
They worry the mother will retaliate to punish them (paranoid)
This causes them to retreat and cut off their mother (schizoid)
Idea behind the depressive position, held by older children and adults
The child is able to see the mix of good and bad of things in the world
They are able to see good and bad qualities in their mother
They feel bad about their previous thoughts towards their mother
Neo Freudian who developed the school of analytic psychology
Carl Jung
Jung’s term for humankind’s collective past
Collective unconscious
Jung’s term for images used around the world to represent certain ideas e.g. the Hero character
Archetypes
Jung’s term for the mask covering someone’s true personality, the part of themselves they allow the world to see
Persona
Jung’s term for the unconscious feminine aspect of a man
Anima
Jung’s term for the unconscious masculine aspect of a woman
Animus
Jung’s term for the personification of the unacceptable parts of someone’s personality
Shadow
Jung’s term for the process where someone develops self identity
Individuation
Neo Freudian who developed the terms extraversion and intraversion
Jung
Neo Freudian who developed the terms extraversion and intraversion
Jung
Neo Freudian who developed the idea of the transitional object
Winnicott
Neo Freudian who developed the idea of the good enough mother
Winnicott
Winnicott’s term for the area between fantasy and reality, where children develop psychologically
The transitional zone
Winnicott’s term for an object given to a child by an important person which has a special meaning to them
Transitional object
Idea behind Winnicott’s good enough mother
A mother who fulfils her caring role but also allows the child to gradually see her as not perfect which helps their independence
Neo Freudian who developed the idea of libidinal, antilibidinal and ideal parts of an object
Fairbairn
The idea within psychotherapy that all human thoughts and behaviour are a result of childhood experiences and innate drives rather than being spontaneous
Psychic determinism
Within psychotherapy, the relationship the therapist and patient have when they are working together towards a common goal
Therapeutic alliance
Three areas in which a psychotherapy patient can break the therapeutic relationship
Continuity issues
Acting in
Acting out
Way in which patients can break the therapeutic relationship by halting the progression of sessions
Continuity
Way in which patients can break the therapeutic relationship by acting a certain way within a session
Acting in
Way in which patients can break the therapeutic relationship by acting a certain way outwith the session
Acting out
Examples of continuity issues within psychotherapy
Lateness
Absences
Taking breaks
Examples of acting in within psychotherapy
Physical contact
Bringing gifts
Asking the therapist repeated questions
Silence
Examples of acting out within psychotherapy
Self harm
Alcohol use
Drug use
Suicide
The feelings and thoughts given to the therapist during psychotherapy which are actually coming from another person in the patient’s past
Transference
Three types of transference described by Kohut
Mirroring transference
Idealising transference
Twinship transference
Kohut’s type of transference where the patient feels inadequate and needs the therapist to reassure them constantly
Mirroring transference
Kohut’s type of transference where the patient thinks of the therapist as being perfect, which they then internalise to improve their own self esteem
Idealising transference
Kohut’s type of transference where the patient expects the therapist to act and feel the same as they do
Twinship transference
The therapist’s feelings towards the patient which often relate the patient’s transference
Counter transference
A psychotherapy patient’s wish to keep the relationship with their therapist similar to past relationships they have had
Transference resistance
Within psychotherapy, the idea that a step forward e.g. a realisation, is often followed by a step backwards e.g. an episode of acting out
Negative therapeutic reaction
Within psychotherapy, the idea that someone can be repelled to repeat a traumatic event, or to create traumatic circumstances
Repetition compulsion
Within psychotherapy, the activation or showing of a patient’s personality which is normally hidden
Regression
Immature defence mechanisms
Acting out
Regression
Denial
Defence mechanism where someone acts on their unconscious wish
Acting out
Defence mechanism where someone reverts back to an earlier stage of development
Regression
Defence mechanism where someone refuses to accept a reality which they do not like
Denial
Psychotic/Kleinian defence mechanisms
Splitting
Idealisation
Denigration
Projection
Projective identification
Defence mechanism where someone sees things as entirely good or bad
Splitting
Defence mechanism where someone sees something as entirely good
Idealisation
Defence mechanism where someone sees something as entirely bad
Denigration
Defence mechanism where someone sees a part of their personality they do not like as belonging to someone else
Projection
Defence mechanism where someone takes in someone else’s projection and acts as if they did have that personality trait
Projective identification
Neurotic defence mechanisms
Repression
Intellectualisation
Rationalisation
Reaction formation
Undoing/magical thinking
Displacement
Defence mechanism where someone keeps a difficult reality out of their conscious
Repression
Defence mechanism where someone ignores the emotions associated with an event
Intellectualisation
Defence mechanism where someone explains away a thought they would rather not have had
Rationalisation
Defence mechanism where someone does the opposite of what they really want to do
Reaction formation
Defence mechanism where someone believes that by doing a particular action they can affect things around them
Magical thinking
Defence mechanism where someone attempts to make it as if they have not done a particular action
Undoing
Defence mechanism where someone directs their emotions towards someone else, rather than the person they really feel those emotions towards
Displacement
Mature defence mechanisms
Humour
Sublimation
Altruism
Defence mechanism where someone acts out the energy from an unacceptable wish in a more acceptable way
Sublimation
Differences between exploratory and supportive psychotherapy regarding timing
Exploratory - time limited
Supportive - used as an when needed
Differences between exploratory and supportive psychotherapy regarding the focus of the sessions
Exploratory - focuses on childhood trauma and developmental issues
Supportive - focuses on current issues
Differences between exploratory and supportive psychotherapy regarding the aim
Exploratory - aims to explore the cause behind the patient’s difficulties
Supportive - aims to develop coping strategies for the patient’s difficulties
Differences between exploratory and supportive psychotherapy regarding suitable patients
Exploratory - patients must have some frustration tolerance and be psychologically minded
Supportive - can be used even in patients have poor frustration tolerance or are not psychologically minded
Differences between brief and extended dynamic psychotherapy regarding the patient’s issues
Brief - patient should have a single, well demarcated problem and otherwise be functioning well
Extended - patient can have more complex or longstanding difficulties in multiple areas
Methods of accessing the unconscious mind within dynamic psychotherapy
Dreams
Free association
Parapraxes
Abreaction
Description of abreaction within psychodynamic psychotherapy
Recalling a traumatic event, and releasing previously repressed associated emotions
Elements of therapy specific to brief dynamic therapy compared to extended dynamic therapy
Choosing a focus area
The therapist actively guiding the therapy
Early addressing of positive transference
Early addressing of countertransference issues
Patient factor which suggests a likely poor response to dynamic psychotherapy
Multiple episodes of acting out
Personality disorder often seen as a contraindication to psychdynamic psychotherapy
Antisocial personality disorder
