Clinical Psychology Flashcards
(294 cards)
Similarities in psychodynamic psychotherapies
Human behavior is motivated largely through unconscious processes
Early development has a profound impact on functioning
Universal principles explain personality development
Insight into unconscious processes is key for psychotherapy
Types of psychodynamic psychotherapies
Freudian psychoanalysis
Adler’s individual psychology
Jung’s analytical psychotherapy
Object-relations
Freud’s Personality Theory is comprised of what two subtheories
Structural (drive) theory
Developmental theory
Freud’s structural (drive) theory
Id, ego, superego
Id - present at birth, life and death instincts, operates on pleasure principle
Ego - develops at 6mo, moderates conflict between id and reality (to-be superego), operates on reality principle
Superego - develops 4-5yo, internalization of society’s values learned through rewards and punishment as a child
Freud’s developmental theory
Emphasizes sexual drives of the id.
Personality is based on your navigation of five psychosexual stages (oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital).
Over- or under-stimulation is related to a certain personality outcome
Freudian anxiety
Anxiety is a warning to the ego of an impending threat
When the ego cannot rationally defend off the threat, defense mechanisms are utilized
Are defense mechanisms good or bad
Can be adaptive, but when they become the ego’s default way of managing conflict, they can lead to dysfunction
Types of defense mechanisms
Repression (most basic) - keeps ids drives and needs unconscious
Reaction formation - avoiding an anxiety-provoking impulse by expressing its opposite
Projection - when a threatening impulse is attributed to someone else
Commonalities among defense mechanisms
They are unconscious
Serve to deny or distort reality
Psychoanalytic theory of dysfunction
Stems from unconscious and unresolved conflict
Phobia - displacement of anx onto a symbolic object
Depression - object loss coupled with anger toward the object turned inward
Mania - defense against libidinal or aggressive urges that threaten to overwhelm the ego
Goals of psychoanalytic therapy
Make the unconscious conscious
Integrate previously repressed material into the personality
Psychoanalytic treatment techniques
Primary: analysis of free association, dreams, transference…
Three components of psychoanalytic analysis
Confrontation - making statements to help the client see their behavior in a new way
Clarification - clarifying feelings and restating their remarks in clearer terms
Interpretation - connecting current behavior to unconscious processes
Psychoanalysis has been improved through what three techniques
Catharsis - emotional release resulting from the recall of unconscious material
Insight - into relationship btwn unconscious and current behaviors
Working through - assimilate new insights into his or her personality
Approach adopted by Adler
Teleological approach - behavior is largely guided by a person’s future goals
(Rather than determined by past events)
Teleological Approach
Developed by Adler
A persons behavior is motivated by future goals
Rather than determined by past events
Personality theory of Adler’s Individual Psychology
How you choose to compensate for feelings of superiority (and work towards superiority) determines your style of life (personality)
Style of Life
Adler’s Individual Psychology
- How you work to achieve superiority
Healthy - goals that reflect optimism and care for others
Unhealthy (mistaken) - goals that reflect personal achievement and power
Around what age does your Style of Life develop
Fairly well established by 4-5 years of age
Healthy Style of Life
Adler’s Individual Psychology
Marked by goals that reflect optimism, confidence, and concern for the welfare of others
Unhealthy (mistaken) Style of Life
Characterized by goals reflecting self-centeredness, competitiveness, and striving for personal power
Adler’s view on maladaptive behavior
Mental disorders represent a mistaken style of life and maladaptive ways to compensating with inferiority
- Preoccupation with power
- Disregard for social interest
Adlerian Lifestyle Investigation
Used to identify the clients style of life
Yields information about a clients family constellation, hidden (fictional) goals, and distorted beliefs and attitudes (basic mistakes)
Goals of Adlerian psychotherapy
Help the client understand their style of life and it’s consequences
Reorient beliefs and goals to support a more adaptive lifestyle