Week Five Flashcards
psychodynamic theory
- Goal setting with children
- Consider developmental stage
- Crises and goal setting
- The counsellor will have therapeutic goals. Mutual goal-setting is not possible
- Multicultural contexts
- Monk, Winslade, Sinclair (2008) – refer to Sue and Sue (2007) – Asian Americans, African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans – have short term/immediate goals; whites – long-range goals. “Goal setting is a product of class differences and economic advantage”.
sigmund freud
- First born son of Jewish parents
- Had many interests – chose to study Medicine
- Originator of Psychoanalysis
- Devoted his life to create the model of the human psyche and personality and psychoanalysis
- Prolific writer (Collected Works in 24 Volumes)
- Ardent worker – had a extremely busy practice
- Died in London in 1939
freud’s model of personality
conscious
preconscious
unconscious
ego
superego
id
id
Id: the ‘child’ – ruled by the Pleasure Principle, original system of personality at birth,
• The seat of the instincts, needs and wants
• Pleasure principle seeks to reduce tension, avoiding pain and gaining pleasure
• ID is largely unconscious or out of awareness
superego
the ‘parent’ – ruled by the Moral Principle,
• Judicial part of the personality,
• Superego aims to inhibit the id impulses
• Idealistic and moral intentions à “ good or bad “ and “ right or wrong “ thinking , striving for perfection
• internalisation of parental and societal values and aims
ego
the ‘adult’ – ruled by the Reality Principle
• The executive part of the personality – governs and controls and regulates personality
• Controls consciousness and checks and controls impulses from the Id
• Seat of rational intelligence
• Distinguishes between inner and outer reality of experience
central constructs
Freud’s view is that Libido (sexual drive or innate urges)and Death (destructive energies, aggressive drive) instinct both operate in humans determine what they do and why
conscious
rational reality awareness
unconscious
Dreams of symbolic representations of unconscious needs, inner conflicts, unfulfilled wishes, Id-Superego conflicts, slips of the tongue (Freudian slips), free association material, symbolic content of psychotic symptoms.
• Repressed material - freud assumed dreams were repressed material we encountered throughout the day.
• Young saw dreams as a predictor of the future or a prediction of how we will develop as a person.
preconscious
habits, denial, habitual repetitive patterns we are semi-aware of
anxiety
Conflict between Id, superego and ego
Reality anxiety: Reaction to real threats from the external environment
Moral Anxiety: arising from the potential violation of the individual conscience (Superego, moral codes)
Neurotic Anxiety: generated when instinctual urges (Id) threaten to surface to levels of consciousness and pose a danger to Ego integrity
ego defence mechanisms
- Normal behaviours to help cope with anxiety
- Help person moderate anxiety – adapt to feedback, learning, in order to develop
- Prevent the Ego from being overwhelmed by guilt, shame, anxiety
- Protect the Ego (“ protect face” )
- These defence mechanisms are called as such because they arise due to conflicts with our ego.
- Denial is the most common.
projection
attributing unacceptable behaviour to others
reaction formation
: expressing the opposite
Saying the opposite in order to save face.
i.e. doesn’t get the job so they state that they never wanted it anyway.
sublimination
diverting psychic energies into more acceptable channels
introjection
(pos. or neg): Internalizing values from parents or teachers, therapist,
compensation
masking perceived weakness, making up for limitations in other areas (focusing on accomplishments rather than on weakness)
repression
exclusion from awareness
denial
denial or distortion of reality, fear of ego overwhelm
regression
reverting to an earlier life stage
i.e laughing excessively when uncomfortable.
Throwing ‘tantrums’ when we don’t get our way.
rationalisation
finding reasons for explaining“ bruised ego”
displacement
shifting to a safer target
If we are angry with an authority figure in our life (boss etc.) it is common for us to take this anger out on partners or friends etc.
psychosexual development
Stages focused on the satisfaction of sexual drives through erotogenic zones of the body
Emphasizes influences on childhood development
Is age related
Deprivation or overindulgence leads to Fixation
Childhood stages and parental figures have a significant impact on the adult personality
Root of dysfunctionality and pathology, attachment
Modern research around attachment theory gives support to these stages stating that the first three years of life are extremely important.
oral stage
Oral (1st year) : Safety, love, fear, nurturing, can later be related to mistrust/rejection, ability or fear of forming trusting relationships,
anal stage
Anal (1-3) : related to power, control, autonomy, learning, independence, express negative feelings, rage, aggression
phallic stage
Phallic (3-6): related to sexual attitudes, gender identification, (parental attitudes to the child’s emerging sexuality – influences in adult life
latent stage
Latent: (6-12) development of social skills, friends, social identity,
genital
Genital(12-continuous) : core characteristics of mature adulthood, creative investment of sexual energies into relationships, caring for others, education, profession, art music etc
therapeutic techniques
Free Association: facilitation of uncensored revelations of client’s thoughts and feelings
Dream Analysis: exploring the latent content of clients’ dreams
Transference: working through of the clients’ personal reactions to the therapist
Counter-transference: therapist’s processing of his/her reactions to the client
Resistance: evidence of clients’ avoidance to develop
Interpretation: therapist offering of deeper meanings and explanations to client revelattions
goals of therapy
Relate current aversive life experiences to unresolved psychic conflicts of the past
Enhance insight and deeper awareness through interpretation of the clients’ past
Sensitive application of specific techniques to bring into conscious awareness those thoughts, feelings and memories buried in the unconscious
Appropriate and timely confrontation of clients’ defense mechanisms promote healthy functioning through strengthening of the Ego
existential therapists
Viktor Frankl
Rollo May
Irvin Yalom
existential dimensions
- Existential therapy is based on the philosophy of existentialism of the 19th Century
- Several proponents with different emphases
- Focus on concerns rooted in our human existence
Existential ideas used by therapists of different persuasions
basic philosophy of existential therapy
- Exploration of the reality of existence; the problems “of life “ not the problems “in life”
- The three distinct areas to explore are:
Umwelt - understanding existence in
relation to the physical world
Mitwelt - understanding existence in
relation to others
Eigenwelt - understanding existence in
relation to the self
Clients focus on how to find strengths in how to deal with problems “in life”
existential dimensions
- The individual is the author of their own life
- Freedom without responsibility is chaos
- Responsibility without freedom is tyranny and autocracy
- The freedom to choose creates existential guilt
- The question is: how do I follow my life authentically and take responsibility
- Client examines his/her own social and cultural conditioning – finds own inner truth – makes authentic choices
Self determination in life – committing to inner values and acting accordingly
search for meaning in existence (existential)
- Create and discover meaning within own existence through commitment
- discover own internal valuing system
- To live purposefully and find and follow own direction in life
- To make the best out of a given situation “ tragic optimism”
- To deal with a sense of Anxiety that is normal to humanity
anxiety (existential)
- Anxiety is part of being human
- Existential anxiety is a sense of Dis-ease
- Takes away the illusion of security
- Challenges us with living with ambiguity and uncertainty of life
- Challenges the person to grow and take action
- Challenges person to take responsibility and living purposefully and fully
self awareness (existential)
- Discovery of self as separate within the connections we have
- Ability to observe connections and boundaries
- Ability to affirm and validate difference
- Ability to relate to others out of a sense of wholeness and not need or adaptation or deprivation
- Ability to live in the present
Ability to observe own actions and take responsibility
search of identity (existential)
- We are basically ultimately alone – in being responsible for ourselves
- Building a good relationship to one-self
- Validate aloneness (not loneliness)
- Acceptance of mortality – life is finite
- Ability to distinguish between attachment out of deprivation and mutually affirming relationships
finiteness
- Life is a journey
- Life is finite – death will eventually happen
- Acceptance of mortality
- Making the most out of the space between birth and death – applying oneself to this journey
- Living every day fully and taking responsibility
the therapeutic process (existential)
- The therapist has undergone in depth existential self development
- Phenomenological approach – client’s experience is taken as their own unique reality
- Therapist is very real and authentic
- Therapist works in the here and now with the client
- Therapist is a guide and often self discloses own experiences in order to model how to deal with situations in new ways
theraputic techniques (existential)
- Three phases:
- (1) Exploration of client’s world view with reference to the reality of being
- (2) Examining and restructuring value systems in relation to the Existential Dimensions
- (3) Transferring new learning to enable client to better manage the problems ‘in life’. Internalized values create new actions and meaning
therapeutic elements (existential)
Openness to creativity in therapeutic encounter
Therapist self disclosure about process and/or therapist‘s own existential struggles
Dream analysis- evidence of issues around existential dimensions
Guided fantasy- reflecting on one’s death - with view of life (Epitaph)
Therapist challenges resistance as a way to grow
Client needs to take responsibility in order to find new meaning (roadblocks like old fears are looked at – then actions taken)
Therapist - client relationship is important
Client is encouraged to is not dependant
goals of existential therapy
- Helping clients to live authentic lives; challenging them to face obstacles and concerns with courage “ the Courage to be”
- “I am responsible for my own happiness in my life“
- “ My happiness dependent on me and my actions in life”
- Self determination in life - pursuit of a meaningful life
- Helping clients to live fully within the constraints of life
- The more I have been present in my life – the easier I can let go into death
- Live life authentically – out of an inner truth (inner valuing)
