What are the aims and methods of psychoanalysis? (1)Although most of today’s therapists do not practice therapy as Sigmund Freud did, his psychoanalytic techniques survive. Psychoanalysis is part of our modem vocabulary, and its assumptions influence many other therapies. (2)Psychoanalysis assumes that many psychological problems are fueled by childhood’s residue of supposedly repressed impulses and conflicts. Psychoanalysts try to bring these repressed feelings into conscious awareness, where the patient can deal with them. By gaining insight into the origins of the disorder - by fulfilling the ancient imperative to know thyself” in a deep way - the patient “works through” the buried feelings. The theory presumes that healthier, less anxious living becomes possible when patients release the energy they had previously devoted to id-ego-superego conflicts. Methods (3) Psychoanalysis is historical reconstruction. Its goal is to unearth the past in hope of unmasking the present. But how? (4) When Freud discarded hypnosis as unreliable, he turned to free association. Imagine yourself as a patient using the free association technique. The analyst invites you to relax, perhaps by lying on a couch. He or she will probably sit out of your line of vision, helping you focus attention on your internal thoughts and feelings. Beginning with a childhood memory, a dream, or a recent experience, you say aloud whatever comes to your mind from moment to moment. It sounds easy, but soon you notice how often you edit your thoughts as you speak, omitting material that seems trivial, irrelevant, or shameful. Even in the safe presence of the analyst, you may pause momentarily before uttering an embarrassing thought. You may make a joking remark or change the subject to something less threatening. Sometimes your mind may go blank or you may find yourself unable to remember important details. (5) To the psychoanalyst, these blocks in the flow of your free associations indicate resistance. They hint that anxiety lurks and that you are repressing sensitive material. The analyst will want to explore these sensitive areas by making you aware of your resistances and by interpreting their underlying meaning. The analyst’s interpretations - suggestions of underlying wishes, feelings, and conflicts - aim to provide people with insight. If offered at the right moment, the analyst’s interpretation - of, say, your not wanting to talk about your mother - may illuminate what you are avoiding. You may then discover what your resistances mean and how they fit with other pieces of your psychological puzzle. (6) Freud believed that another clue to repressed impulses is your dreams’ hidden content. Thus, after inviting you to report a dream, the analyst may offer a dream analysis, suggesting its hidden meaning. (7) During many such sessions you will probably disclose more of yourself to your analyst than you have ever revealed to anyone. Because psychoanalytic theory emphasizes the formative power of childhood experiences, much of what you reveal will pertain to your earliest memories. You will also probably find yourself experiencing strong positive or negative feelings for your analyst. Such feelings may express the dependency or mingled love and anger that you earlier experienced toward family members or other important people in your life. When this happens, Freud would say you are actually transferring your strongest feelings from those other relationships to the analyst. Analysts and other therapists believe that this transference exposes long-repressed feelings, giving you a belated chance to work through them with your analyst’s help. By examining your feelings toward the analyst, you may also gain insight into your current relationships. (8) Note how much of psychoanalysis is built on the assumption that repressed memories exist. That assumption is now questioned. This challenge to an assumption that is basic to so much of professional and popular psychology is provoking intense debate. (9) Critics also say that psychoanalysts’ interpretations are hard to refute. If, in response to the analyst’s suggested interpretation, you say, “Yes! I see now”, your acceptance confirms the analyst’s interpretation If you emphatically say, “No! That doesn’t ring true,” your denial may be taken to reveal more resistance, which would also confirm the interpretation Psychoanalysts acknowledge that it’s hard to prove or disprove their interpretations. But they insist that interpretations often are a great help to patients. (10) Traditional psychoanalysis is slow and expensive. It requires up to several years of several sessions a week with a highly trained and well-paid analyst. (Three times a week for just two years at $100 or more per hour comes to about $30,000.) Only those with a high income can afford such treatment (11) Although there are relatively few traditional psychoanalysts, psychoanalytic assumptions influence many therapists, especially those who make psychodynamic assumptions. Psychodynamic therapists try to understand patients’ current symptoms by exploring their childhood experiences, they probe for supposed repressed, emotion- laden information. They seek to help people gain insight into the unconscious roots of problems and work through newly resurrected feelings. Although influenced by Frend’s psychoanalysis, these therapists may talk to people face to face (rather than out of the line of vision), once a week (rather than several times weekly), and for only a few weeks or months (rather than several years). According to psychoanalysis, what two things from childhood feed psychological
According to psychoanalysis, what two things from childhood feed psychological problems?