Lecture 3 - Psychodynamic and Person-centered approaches

Question 1

Psychoanalytic/psychodynamic approach

Answer 1

Freud (1856-1939), Austrian neurologist

Founded the psychoanalytic school of psychology– Observations of clinical patients

Explanation of problematic psychological
functioning– Unconscious conflicts within the person

Question 2

Levels of consciousness

Answer 2

Repression

No clear division, rather different
degrees
– Dreams
– Stressful times in symptoms of illness
or psychological disturbance
– Alcohol or drugs

Question 3

The nature of human beings and the source of Human Motivation

Answer 3

Lies in the structure and development of
personality

Libido
– Child born with fixed amount of mental energy
– Adult sexual drives

Human motivation
– To satisfy basic instinctual drives
* Sexual drives
* Life-preserving drives

Question 4

Structure of Personality

Answer 4

Instinctual needs
Rational thinking
Moral standards
-> generate psychopathology

Question 5

Id, Ego, and Superego

Answer 5

Id
– Instinctual drives (nursing, defecating etc.), instant
gratification
– Primitive energy present at birth

Ego
– Evolves as child develops and learns how to be socially
acceptable, controls urges of the Id

Super Ego
– Acts as conscience helping decide right and wrong

Question 6

Defence Mechanisms

Answer 6

When Id, Ego and Superego are in balance
– Psychological health maintained

When in conflict
– Behaviour can indicate psychopathology

In order to reduce conflict (stress and
anxiety)
– defense
mechanisms

Question 7

Repression

Answer 7

Supressing bad memories,
or even current thoughts
that cause anxiety

Question 8

Regression

Answer 8

Moving back to an earlier developmental stage

Question 9

Rationalisation

Answer 9

Finding a rational explanation for something you’ve done wrong

Question 10

Sublimation

Answer 10

Transforming impulses into something constructive

Question 11

Stages of psychosexual development

Answer 11

Freud also believed psychopathology also caused by how child negotiated stages of development

-progressive periods of development from infancy to maturity

Unsuccessful at a particular stage

-individual fixated at that stage of development

Question 12

Stages of Psychosexual Development

Answer 12

Oral stage - birth to 1 year

Anal stage - from 1 to 3 years

Phallic stage - 3-5 years

Latency stage - 5 to 12 years

Genital stage - around 12 to 18 years or older

Question 13

Adult fixation - Anal

Answer 13

toilet-training - developing ego -> control and cleanliness or reckless and impulsive

Question 13

Adult fixation - Oral

Answer 13

Mouth -> over-eating, smoking, drinking, over-dependence on others

Question 14

Adult fixation - Phallic

Answer 14

Supressing bad memories,
or even current thoughts
that cause anxiety
->
Difficulty with authority,
aggression, relationship difficulties
and possibly anti-social sexual
behaviour

Question 15

Psychodynamic Formulation

Answer 15

A formulation takes general concepts from
theory and applies them to a particular
individual and their difficulties (Johnstone
& Dallos, 2014).

A psychodynamic formulation–
‘Explains how and why a patient’s equilibrium
has become disturbed and how the problems
or symptoms have arisen and are maintained’
(Johnstone & Dallos, 2014, p.7)

Question 16

Clinical Perspective: Core Ideas

Answer 16

Psychological or emotional pain– Life is difficult and demanding and our psyche is constructed in a way to deal with it

These struggles create ‘turbulence’ in mental life

This results in our developing ways of avoiding pain (unconscious)

The unconscious elements of our ‘internal world’ have a fundamental influence on how we live our lives

Our unconscious attempts to avoid pain often fail, but our awareness is limited and so they are repeated over and over again

Failing defences are what give form to, and maintain patterns of, psychological disorder

Question 17

Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Approach

Answer 17

+ Extremely influential in explanations and treatments
- Central concepts hard to objectively define and measure - limits modern-day evidence-based research
- No longer explanation or treatment of choice for most psychological problems

Question 18

Psychodynamic Approaches: Theories & Therapies

Answer 18

Theories: Assume unconscious conflicts develop early in life

Therapies: To reveal unconscious conflicts that may be causing symptoms of psychopathology

Question 19

Psychoanalysis - Freud

Answer 19

Based on theoretical ideas of
Freud (1856-1939)
Aim:– Bring unconscious conflicts into awareness– Help client understand source of conflicts
* Identify past experiences/discuss nature of important relationships– Help client towards a sense of control over behaviour, feelings and attitudes

Question 20

Psychoanalysis techniques

Answer 20

Free association
Dream analysis

Question 21

What is Transference?

Answer 21

Feelings of patient for therapist
Initially seen as a nuisance, but later encouraged as a re-enactment of earlier significant relationships
Exploration of transference used as a therapeutic tool
Counter transference = reactions of therapist to patient

Question 22

What is free association?

Answer 22

patient is encouraged to speak freely about thoughts, feelings, emotions etc.

Question 23

What is dream analysis?

Answer 23

Analysing content in dreams:
Manifest content - literal
Latent content - deeper meaning

Question 24

Subjectivity of psychoanalysis

Answer 24

Analyst interprets info from all above sources
- helps client to identify underlying conflicts and develop ways of dealing with them

Question 25

Humanistic Approach

Answer 25

People have the ability to
– Acquire self-awareness
– Develop values and a sense of meaning in life
– Pursue freedom of choice

If these abilities are encouraged/developed
– Conflict, emotional distress and psychopathology can often
be resolved
– Gaining insight, personal development and self-actualisation

Focus on ameliorating psychopathological symptoms

Question 26

Person-centered approach

Answer 26

Developed by Carl Rogers (1902-1987)
- American psychologist and counsellor

• One of the founders of humanistic psychology
• Influence around the world

Question 27

Philosophical underpinnings of Person-Centered Approach

Answer 27

– Humanism
* Dignity and worth of human beings– Existentialism
* Individuals play an active role in shaping own lives– Phenomenology regarding nature of reality
* We all function within a perceptual or subjective
frame of reference (Rogers, 1956)

Question 28

Humanism

Answer 28

Belief in dignity and worth of an individual

People are rational and have capacity for
truth and goodness

Humanistic approach to personality
– Based on a model of growth
– Strive to achieve/become because of a fundamental human need for fulfilment/self actualisation

Achieved through actively searching for
meaning in life
– Continual challenge or journey which is to be experienced

Question 29

Existentialism

Answer 29

A philosophical movement

Emphasises choice, freedom and individual
existence

Major themes:
– Concrete individual existence
– Individual vocation
* Finding a unique meaning for your own life
– Choice and commitment
* Freedom to choose entails commitment and
responsibility to choose their own path
* Refusing to choose/not choosing is making a choice

Question 30

Phenomenology

Answer 30

Noticing events, feelings, experiences, NOT
interpreting them
To put aside assumptions
– Start with a clean slate
To contemplate, notice and observe, treating
the experience as unique
To achieve an accurate description of what is
being experienced and the way in which it is
being experienced

Question 31

Rogers’ Fundamental Belief re: Human Nature

Answer 31

Organisms, including human beings, have a
natural, internal, positive developmental
drive towards growth and fulfilment
– Even in the worst conditions

Human beings, although they possessed a
universal actualising tendency, were unique– So the process of self-actualisation will be distinct and specific to each individual

Question 32

The actualising tendecy

Answer 32

‘…there is one central source of energy in the
human organism…it is a function of the whole
organism rather than some portion of it;
and…is perhaps best conceptualised as a
tendency towards fulfilment, toward
actualisation, toward the enhancement and
maintenance of the organism (Rogers, 1963)’.

Question 33

Rogers’ Theoretical Ideas re: Personality

Answer 33

Set out in 19 propositions (Rogers, 1951)
Describe
– How people change
– Under what circumstances people change
– Why particular relationship qualities promote
change

Question 34

Carl Rogers Theory of Personality

Answer 34

Organismic valuing
Positive regard/Positive self-regard
Conditional positive regard
– Conditions of worth
Conditional positive self-regard
Real self/Ideal self (self-concept)
Incongruity
Defenses

Question 35

Person-centered Theory

Answer 35

• Difficult to evaluate - some concepts not easy to define (e.g. UPR)
  + Lead to development of widely used therapeutic approach
• Overly optimistic view
  + Mechanisms re: how we evaluate our own behaviour well described (i.e., conditions of worth)

Question 36

Humanistic Therapies

Answer 36

A reaction to previous thinking about human experience

Psychoanalysis - Pessimistic view of human nature, People selfish and driven by sexual and
aggressive impulses

Behaviourism - Objectifying and
dehumanising the person, emphasising the
environment in determining behaviour

Question 37

Humanistic Therapies emphasizes what?

Answer 37

– Human nature as essentially positive
– Choices, values and purpose in life
– Client’s inner resources for change
– Problems a result of not accepting responsibility for one’s actions

Question 38

What are some Humanistic Therapies?

Answer 38

– Enable acceptance of responsibility for actions
– Foster awareness of subjective experiences
– Fulfil potential for personal growth

Question 39

Person-Centered Therapy

Answer 39

-A way of being
-Rests on a deep respect for, and trust in, the
individual’s capacity for growth and
development
-Not provide a set of rules, techniques to control the process
-Non-directive
- Requires a commitment to encounter clients in a direct person-to-person manner

Question 40

The Core Conditions for Person-Centered Therapy

Answer 40

The counsellor activates the self-healing
process (self-actualising tendency) by
providing ‘core’ helping conditions
Rogers (1957) put forward six core
conditions:
1.Two persons are in psychological contact
2.The client is in a state of incongruence, being
vulnerable or anxious
3.The therapist is congruent or genuine

Question 41

Core conditions cont.

Answer 41

4. The therapist experiences unconditional positive regard for the client (non-judgemental warmth or acceptance towards the client)
5. The therapist experiences an empathic understanding of the client’s internal frame of reference and endeavours to communicate this experience to the client
6. The communication to the client of the therapist’s empathic understanding and unconditional positive regard is to a minimal degree achieved

Necessary AND Sufficient

Question 42

The Process of Change

Answer 42

Rogers believed
– Ideal for human beings to be in a state of becoming (striving to become fully
functioning)

Based on research into his own practice re: change process in counselling
– Rogers developed: Theory of the seven stages of process (Rogers, 1961)
* Stages a flowing continuum rather than fixed
and discrete

Question 43

7 Stages of Process (Rogers, 1961)

Answer 43

Stage One: The client is very defensive, and extremely resistant to change.

Stage Two: The client becomes slightly less rigid, and will talk about external events or other people.

Stage Three: The client talks about him/herself, but as an object and avoids discussion of present events.

Stage Four: The client begins to talk about deep feelings and develops a relationship with the counsellor.

Stage Five: The client can express present emotions, and is beginning to rely more on his/her own decision making abilities and increasingly accepts more responsibility for his/her actions.

Stage Six: The client shows rapid growth towards congruence, and begins to develop unconditional positive regard for others. This stage signals the end of the need for formal therapy.

Stage Seven: The client is a fully functioning, self-actualising individual who is empathic and shows unconditional positive regard for others. This individual can relate their previous therapy to present day real-life situation.