How Have Psychodynamic Therapies Changed Since Freud? Introduction The psychodynamics theory which was introduced by Freud to understand the human mind and psyche, reached a new level in the continuous analysis from therapists. Psychodynamics originally has been explained as a study of various psychological forces that affect human behavior which is related to early experiences. It specifically discusses the connection between the conscious and subconscious motivations. The theory was further analyzed and developed by Melanie Klein, Carl Jung and Alfred Adler. Based on the theory, the psychodynamic therapy evolved to help patients through psychoanalysis. With time other therapies like individual, group and family therapy evolved to offer treatment by understanding the present day complexities in more detail. The main aim of the therapy is self –awareness through identifying the various influences of many past events in life. The therapies are continuously evolving since it was introduced by Freud to help in solving a variety of psychological disorders within people. Contemporary development in the Psychodynamic therapy Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung penned Psychology of Dementia Praecox in 1907 in which he discussed about the Freudian concept of psychodynamic thoughts, however he incorporated new analysis and fresh research alongside the Freudian literatures. In his discussion, he included new concepts like wholeness of psyche; individual is composed with ego, collective unconscious, archetypes which are composed of tension that comes from spontaneity, recognizing the spiritual side of the human psyche (Ballen, 1997). John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth studied imprinting and developed the attachment theory. He rejected ... ... middle of paper ... ...). Freud scientifically reappraised (1st ed.). New York: Wiley & Sons. Fonagy, P. (1999). Relation of theory and practice in psychodynamic therapy. Journal Of Clinical Child Psychology, 28(4), 513--520. Freud, S., Strachey, J., Freud, A., Rothgeb, C., & Richards, A. (1953). The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud (1st ed.). London: Hogarth Press. Leichsenring, F., & Leibing, E. (2003). The effectiveness of psychodynamic therapy and cognitive behavior therapy in the treatment of personality disorders: a meta-analysis. American Journal Of Psychiatry, 160(7), 1223--1232. Messer, S., & Warren, C. (1995). Models of brief psychodynamic therapy (1st ed.). New York: Guilford Press. Westen, D. (1998). The scientific legacy of Sigmund Freud: toward a psychodynamically informed psychological science. Psychological Bulletin, 124(3), 333.
ADLER, Mortimer J. Editor in Chief. Great Books of the Western World. The Major Works of Sigmund Freud. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., 1996.
Sigmund Freud is considered to be one of the most studied and respected historical figures in psychology. Freud has had a huge impact on the way we think today. He also is responsible for creation psychoanalysis. Sigmund Freud is even known as the “father of psychoanalysis”. Through endless contentious theories such as, the Case of Anna O, the Unconscious Mind, the Psyche, and the most infamous of his theories, the Psychosexual stage, Freud has generated many fans and supporters. His works has earned him a place in the list of psychology legends today.
Freud S et al, 1995 The Complete Correspondence of Sigmund Freud and Ernest Jones, 1908-1939., Belknap Press, Harvard University Press,ISBN 067415424X
Roth, A., Fonagy, P. (2005). What works for Whom? A Critical Review of Psychotherapy Research. US: Guilford Press.
In the year 1896, a new term “theory of psychoanalysis” was invented by Sigmund Freud in which “it refers to all the processes that take place in our mind of an unconscious way and to a form of treatment of the nervous disorders” (Rodriquez). Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, was an Austrian neurologist who created and developed an entirely new approach to discover about the personality and the subconscious of the human. His creation in the psychology field was “at once a theory of the human psyche, a therapy for the relief of its ills, and an optic for the interpretation of culture and society” (Jay). Sigmund Freud is regarded as one of the most influential and controversial characters of the twentieth century due to his discoveries in many aspects of the field of psychology included Freud’s self-analysis that he left behind.
The main contemporary forms of psychodynamic treatment are psychoanalysis, which is intensive and long term and psychodynamic psychotherapy, which relies on the same principles but is more conversational. Researchers have found that all psychotherapies are relatively effective, although some treatments are superior for some disorders. According to Renner, Morrissey, Mae, Feldman and Majors (2011), there are four major approaches to therapy for psychological disorders. Psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive and humanistic approaches each have their own characteristics in relation to therapy. Psychodynamic therapists share the belief that a patient’s psychological disorder is the result of the person’s unconscious.
Freud, Sigmund. Beyond the Pleasure Principle: The Standard Edition. New York: W.W. Norton, 1990. Print.
Shedler (2010) also used psychodynamic therapy to understand and approach the manifested thoughts that occur throughout a lifetime, just as Freud (1910) discused in his lectures. This therapy unveils anything that is avoided or unexplored in someone’s life due to trauma or a dramtic event. Shedler found in a meta-analysis that people with bordline personality disorder and received psychodynamic therapy had a better outcome in symptom treatments and treatments for furutre issues than people in other types of behavioral therapy. In Freud‘s (1910) lectures, he explains the steps that are needed to take in his psychoanalytic therapy. Shedler (2010) discusses following the procedural rules for treatment may not be as successful as past therapies
Summers, R.F., & Barber, J.P. (2010). Psychodynamic therapy: A guide to evidence-based practice. New York: Guildford Press.
Freud for Historians. By Peter Gay. (Oxford University Press, 1985. Pp. vii + 252. Preface, bibliography, acknowledgments, index.)
iv[iv] As quoted by in a lecture on Sigmund Freud, available at http://www.bham.ac.uk/english/bibliography/CurrentCourses/Freud/FreudLecture.html, 12 December 2001.
Psychodynamic therapy grew out of the practices of Freudian psychoanalysis which is laid on the opinion that a persons' behavior is affected by the unconscious mind and by the past events and experiences. Psychodynamic therapy normally requires longer time (to some extent two years) as it set on a journey to overhaul an aspect of persons' identity, personality or to effect a key developmental learning missed while an individual was stuck at the earlier stage of emotional development (Goldbreg, 2014).
Messer, S.B. (2001). What Makes Brief Psychodynamic Therapy Time Efficient. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 8, 5-22.
The first theory Psychodynamic theory presented by Sigmund Freud, is based on how a person’s self-awareness and understanding of the past on present behavior. Psychody...
The longevity of success using psychoanalysis becomes a testimony to Freud’s in-depth study of the human mind. His forty plus years of work in the field were spent on the development of the main principles of psychoanalysis along with the techniques and methods used by the analyst. His work was furthered by his daughter and later adopted then adapted by Erikson. What seemed so revolutionary in the 1890’s and beyond has now become widely accepted by most all schools of psychological thought and its study.