Finding Truth in Constructivist Psychotherapy
Science is a construction of the human mind. The theories, approaches, and methods that are used in any scientific field have gradually developed over time to become an objective standard of evaluation. As science continues to evolve, new approaches to obtaining knowledge about the world around us must be considered, and at the same time these new approaches must be evaluated within the present context of what is considered to be science. In doing so, conflict and confusion will arise as new concepts meet the critical evaluation of the old. The appraisal of and criticism of a new approach to psychological therapy is one example of such a situation. By looking at the evaluation of constructivist psychotherapy, one can bring this conflict and confusion into the light of understanding.
Since its dawning at the turn of the century, psychotherapy has faced a myriad of objections in regard to its validity as a scientific practice. With the introduction of psychoanalysis in the late 1800’s, Freud opened the doors to a field that would mature as the next one hundred years progressed. Throughout its evolution, psychotherapy has been evaluated for its capacity to deal with clients on an individual basis and at the same time maintain the objective viewpoint which science requires. In what Robert Neimeyer considers a "postmodern context" of scientific, social and political themes, a new philosophical approach to psychotherapy has developed. This approach, called constructivism, is based on a subjective interpretation of reality and how that interpretation affects human thought processes. In "An Appraisal of Constructivist Psychotherapies", Neimeyer looks at how constructivism has devel...
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...ury. The world of classical Newtonian physics was turned upside down and inside out with the arrival of a new class of physicists and astronomers. At the head of that class was a young German scientist named Einstein, who with his theory of relativity redefined our concept of mass, energy, and the like. Now that we bring the second half of this century to a close, perhaps psychology is also ready for such a revolution. Certainly, parallels can be made to what is currently going on in the world of psychotherapy. New approaches are developing under the influence of a changing social conscience. The classical approaches to patient therapy revolve around traditional cognitive perspectives, which follow a linear, systematic set of guidelines. The constructivist approach to is a much more complex, yet encompassing form of psychotherapy that deserves continual exploration.
Psychodynamic approaches often come under a lot of criticism as they fail to be explicit about the underlying bases of the theory. Cognitive theories are not very comfortable with explaining emotions and behavioural theories have difficulty explaining the mechanisms of improvements.
Capitalism as an economic system has not been around for a very long time. Stanford indicates that this economic system began in the mid-1700s in Europe . For a considerably young system, it almost seems impossible to imagine a different way of living. Capitalism has become deeply embedded in our social structures; it is naturalized as a way of doing day to day things. If this is the case, then we as humans have a long way to go if we are to achieve social and economic justice. The question I aim to explore is whether capitalism is capable of achieving socio-economic justice. I am arguing that it cannot achieve justice because there is too much focus on profit rather than people and it dislocates the consumers from the modes of production which indirectly promotes social inequality. Our current economic system which I will be interchangeably using as capitalism throughout the paper will examine why the focus on profit is detrimental to the social well-being of people and explain how capitalism is divisive and why this can pose negative outcomes for individuals and communities. It is with these arguments that outline the need for a fundamental change to how our economy is structured and managed.
What is unique about constructivism is its ability to examine problems from the client’s point of view is that it allows individuals to create their own reality during counseling appointment. According to Pamelia Brott (2004), therapists act more as facilitators of change than therapeutic leaders, the client is viewed as the agent of change (191). The constructivist perspective reality comes into being through the interpretations of what the world means to the client individually (p.192). As Sharf (2015) explains, “…in the act of knowing, it is the human mind that actively gives meaning and order to that reality to which it is responding…" (p.455). Because of this the constructivist perspective does not provide a single theoretical structure as each counseling session is unique in providing client’s a solution that is applicable to
According to the United Nations, thousands of people are smuggled across borders worldwide, and it now has reached an estimated 800,000 victims (“Human Trafficking Statistics”). By letting this continue, the numbers will only grow and continue to keep growing. Of the 600,000 to 800,000 men, women, and children who have been trafficked across international borders each year, approximately 80 percent are women and girls (“End of Human Trafficking Now”). The United Nations should be more proactive in both preventing and eliminating human trafficking because 161 out of 192 countries are involved with human trafficking (“Human Trafficking Statistics”) and the leaders of every country need to come together to end this phenomenon.
Human Trafficking has become a major issue in Europe, especially in Bulgaria, which is at its pinnacle for poverty rankings. Another reason Bulgaria is said to be a “paradise” in human trafficking is because of the collapse of the socialist regimes in the late 1980s. Americans don’t hear about the subject and problems of trafficking as much, so not much is understood in the logistics and why it’s such a problem. Innocent women and children are constantly being taken and put into an abominable world of forced sex and labor. Society needs to fight against these traffickers. Law enforcement needs to enforce more discrepant punishments to those involved in the trafficking of human beings, and increase cooperation, coherence and visibility in human trafficking in both destination and transit countries. Help needs to be provided for people who have been trafficked and start a plan to stop any future victims of trafficking. The demand for cheaper products in Europe has rose, therefore increasing the amount of human trafficking. If more countries refused to buy such products, the demand for slavery would decrease, and the Human Trafficking statistics would then decrease.
Westen, D. (1998). The scientific legacy of Sigmund Freud: toward a psychodynamically informed psychological science. Psychological Bulletin, 124(3), 333.
Capitalism has been proven time and time again to be the most "effective" (in terms of production) economic system in existence, but this is only secondary to the primary fact that it is the only moral economy. In Atlas Shrugged Ayn Rand shows that, by its very nature, capitalism is freedom: the freedom for a man to do what he wants to do with the product of his own mind and effort and, the corollary to that, the freedom to live.
...entation, or several, in which they choose to practice in their professional career. Psychoanalysis and Person-Centered Therapy are just two, out of over four hundred types, of counseling approaches in use today. The constructs and theories are extremely different, however, neither can be considered right nor wrong. They are simply based on different beliefs, assumptions and viewpoints of human development and their behavior. Although, however different and unique, there are still similarities between the two types of therapy approaches. Through case examples, such as the case of D and the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder, the techniques and outcomes of different treatment approaches can be see in real life examples. Past research and writing support brings about contradictions, criticism and treatment outcomes to the theories and those who developed them.
Sigmund Freud and Albert Ellis are widely recognized as two of the most influential psychotherapists of the twentieth century. “It is argued that the striking differences in their therapeutic systems, Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) and psychoanalysis, respectively, are rooted in more fundamental theoretical differences concerning the essential nature of client personality” (Ziegler 75). This paper will discuss in detail, both Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytical Therapy and Albert Ellis’ Rational Emotive Therapy, as well as compare and contrast both theories.
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...
I decided early on that I would allow myself to experience these feelings fully, because in order to be a good therapist, I need to be able to understand how the client might be feeling. I am still just beginning this journey, but I have every intention of becoming more open to embracing the new awareness that I have found in this class. This paper describing my philosophy will incorporate all three of these systems of psychotherapy in what I believe to be a clear and cohesive manner.
Latorre, M. (2000). A Holistic View of Psychotherapy: Connecting Mind, Body, and Spirit. Perspectives in Psychiatric Care, 36:2, 67-68.
“There is 12.3 million victims of human trafficking and forced labor worldwide at any given time according to Hepburn and Simon, 2010, and the highest number is for sexual exploitation (Hepburn & Simon, 2010). The kidnapping of 200 Nigerian girls by the militant Islamic group called Boko Harem in 2014 is a form of human trafficking. Human trafficking disguises itself in different ways to entrap victims. Human traffickers can operate through various businesses that blend into communities and look legitimate but are actually human trafficking hubs. Some of the frequent places are massage parlors and strip clubs. In society today the brothel owners, pornography producers and pimps know the high profit that women and children generate and place these orders for traffickers to fill (Hodges, 2008). They are transported in similar ways guns and drugs are smuggled into the United States. The majority are trafficked through Russia, Germany, France and Canada and in up in the United States where they are threatened, beaten, and forced drugs to cooperate. Also you have those who are runaways, or families might have sold them for money in their country, and then you have some who come by the way of mail order brides (Potts,
According to Freud, personality is built from internal psychological forces. The theory provides an elaborative framework which describes human personality. Through the theory, new treatments were derived to help people in mental distress. Freud encouraged a more positive way to approach psychological distress so that even the mental illnesses themselves could be treated; many of the therapies that the theory suggested have helped to treat people with different psychological issues. Another strength of the theory is that it acknowledges the existence of a subconscious which has an impact on our behavior and not only superficial thoughts. The theory was an eye opener to health professionals of the time, by introducing insights into the human mind, and how it functions, the psychoanalysis approach became greatly important for dealing with psychological treatment (Langs 83). Many researchers claim that, even though the psychoanalysis theory has its strengths, the weaknesses outweigh them in that, from the start, this theory had no scientific evidence, only theoretical explanations. For example, the psychodynamic model explains why or what causes abnormalities in children but it lacks research evidence to back it up. Sigmund Freud based all his arguments in his own analysis. It is evident that psychoanalysis is mainly dependent on what the therapist
Human Trafficking has been an ongoing issue for centuries all over the globe. In more recent times, there has been a dramatic increase shown in reports of the number of people being trafficked in eastern Europe due to various factors. One of the main contributing factors to the increase of human trafficking in eastern Europe is known to be the collapse of the soviet union, 1991, in Europe. “The collapse of the soviet union ended seventy years of centralized social, political, and economic controls that guaranteed employment and social security for all” (Kate Transchel). These controls ...