1. PSYCHODYNAMIC THEORIES
EGO PSYCHOLOGY

2. WHAT ALL PSYCHODYNAMIC PERSPECTIVES ARE MORE OR LESS CONCERNED WITH
The Drives
Pleasure
Aggression
Relationship
Mastery and Competence

3. WHAT ALL PSYCHODYNAMIC PERSPECTIVES ARE MORE OR LESS CONCERNED WITH - II
Unconscious motivational and emotional processes
Conflict and compromise among opposing needs (internal vs. internal needs, or internal needs vs. external constraints)
Defense / Coping mechanisms
The roles of attachment and relationship experiences in personality development
(Ego psychology is attuned to these issues but does not necessarily act on them all; the practitioner can stay in the present, and focus on the person’s conscious life.)

4. EGO PSYCHOLOGY EGO
People are born with an ego ( a natural capacity to adapt to the environment) that develops throughout the lifetime
Your “ego” is pretty much your conception of “who you are”; it is the “you” that thinks, feels, and acts in a reasonably consistent manner
It is everything you do to reflect, plan, and act in ways that allow you to “fit in” more or less adequately with the environment in which you live
BUT - there are unconscious elements of the ego
To say this more academically, the ego is the part of the person’s mind that negotiates between his or her basic needs and the demands of the environment.
In social work, ego psychology ALWAYS emphasizes the person - environment perspective.

5. EGO PSYCHOLOGY The Ego Conscious Awareness
_____________________________________________
Unconscious mental processes
The Ego

6. A WORD ABOUT EMOTIONAL FUNCTIONING IN EGO PSYCHOLOGY
Emotions are feeling states with specific survival value
Primary emotions are biologically programmed (Happiness, sadness, fear, anger, interest / excitement)
Secondary emotions are learned
Problems in social functioning may occur as:
Emotions do not achieve their aim of changing our relationship with the
environment to facilitate adaptation
We may deny, distort, avoid, or repress an emotion, and thus be unable to constructively manage a person-environment challenge
Emotional experiences may be poorly regulated (either minimized or not
controlled).

7. MAJOR EGO FUNCTIONS - I (and questions to consider in their assessment)
Awareness of the External Environment: Is the client oriented to time, place, and person? Is there evidence of a thought disorder (hallucinations, delusions, loose associations)?
Judgment: When making decisions, can the client choose behaviors that are likely to promote good adjustment and movement toward goals? Does the quality of the client’s judgment vary in different circumstances?
Sense of Identity: Does the client have a reasonably coherent physical and psychological sense of self? Does the client maintain appropriate “psychological” boundaries from others?

8. MAJOR EGO FUNCTIONS - II
Impulse Control: Does the client control his or her actions in accordance with social norms? Does the client ever lose control of behavior or emotions to a degree that creates significant problems in social functioning? Is the client internally constrained from action or emotional expression?
Interpersonal (Object) Relations: Does the client manage his or her relationships appropriately (toward personal goal attainment)? Does the client act as if other people are unique rather than replications of people from the past? Does he or she manage some types of relationships (such as work or social relationships) better than others (family or other intimate ties)?
Regulation of Thought Processes: Can the client control and direct thoughts toward objects that are functional for goal attainment? Are the client’s actions goal focused? What are the client’s strengths? What are the client’s motivations?

9. MAJOR EGO FUNCTIONS - III
Defense / Coping Mechanisms: Which defenses are prominent? Are they rigid or flexible? Do they seem to be adaptive or a source of conflict for the client?
Stimulus Regulation: Can the client screen and select external stimuli to maintain a focus on relevant life concerns? Does the client tend to become overwhelmed or underwhelmed?
Cognitive Functions: Is there evidence of impairment in attention, concentration, memory, or learning? Does the client have skills in any of these areas? If impairment exists, is it organic in nature?

10. DEFENSES IN EGO PSYCHOLOGY
These are coping mechanisms utilized to protect against anxiety; they also distort reality to varying degrees
Comparing flexible (healthy) with rigid (unhealthy) defenses
Future vs. past orientation
General reality adherence vs. significant distortion
Is adaptive functioning and goal achievement promoted?
Does the defense minimize internal and interpersonal conflict?

11. AN EXAMPLE OF THE COMPLEXITY OF DEFENSES: ADAPTIVE VS
AN EXAMPLE OF THE COMPLEXITY OF DEFENSES: ADAPTIVE VS. MALADAPTIVE DENIAL
Denial of fact (an event has occurred) vs. denial of implication (what it means)
When change is possible, denial may be maladaptive
When change is not possible, denial may be adaptive (at least for awhile)
The timing of denial (it may serve a positive purpose of helping us “gather our resources” to eventually deal with the challenge)
Levels of denial
Facts
The threat created by the information (its personal relevance)
The urgency of the need to respond
Emotional reactions

12. SOME ASSESSMENT ISSUES RELEVANT TO EGO PSYCHOLOGY
Reality Testing
Orientation to time, place, and person
Reaching appropriate conclusions about cause and effect relationships
Reasonably accurate perceptions of external events and the intentions of others
Differentiating one’s own thoughts and feelings from those of others
Self-Concept
Self-esteem
An awareness of one's strengths and limitations
An acceptance of one’s strengths and limitations

13. SOME ASSESSMENT ISSUES RELEVANT TO EGO PSYCHOLOGY - II
In addition to physical, cognitive, and behavioral assessment ……
Assess Emotional Functioning
Capacity for emotional expressiveness and control
Range of emotions the client expresses
Appropriateness of affect (blunting?)
Any evidence of mood disorders (such as depression, suicide)
The social worker must understand cultural differences in
emotional expression

14. TWO TYPES OF INTERVENTION IN EGO PSYCHOLOGY
Ego Support
Psychological and environmental
May be short or long-term
Accentuates client strengths
Promotes reflection, problem solving, motivation, action
Ego Modification
More psychological, less environmental
Tends to be longer-term
Attacks defenses, arouses anxiety
Seeks depth in uncovering developmental arrests and adjusting
patterns of perception and action

15. INTERVENTION STRATEGIES IN EGO PSYCHOLOGY: EXPLORATION / VENTILATION
What the Social Worker Does
Elicits the client’s feelings about an area of concern
Helps the client:
Express those feelings
Explore those feelings
Maintain a focus on relevant feelings

16. What The Technique Does For The Client
Feels less alone, less overwhelmed, more in control
Is freed from incapacitating anxiety, guilt, depression
Sees problems as more manageable
Is moved to action
Develops greater hope, confidence, motivation, self- acceptance
More clearly recognizes his or her emotional reactions and emotional style
Acquires insight
Lowers defenses
Develops positive feelings about the social worker

17. PARTIALIZING (STRUCTURING)
What the Worker Does
Breaks down problems into manageable parts
Focuses the intervention and the client’s attention
Observes time limits
Assigns homework (client activities outside the session)
Engages in reflective discussion of the above steps (if practical) to promote the client’s insight

18. What This Technique Does for the Client
Relieves the client’s sense of being overwhelmed
Provides an action focus for clients who have an “action” orientation
Provides new opportunities for learning
Stimulates effort from the client
Success experiences enhance the client’s sense of mastery and competence

19. PERSON - SITUATION REFLECTION
What the Social Worker Does
Makes comments, asks questions, offers tentative explanations that
promote the client’s reflective capacity
Leads rational discussion of the pros and cons of the client’s taking
certain actions
Assumes a moderately directive and structured stance, perhaps including
confrontation
Provides here and now interpretations (tentative explanations) of client
behaviors

20. What This Technique Does for the Client
Promotes a clearer evaluation of feelings, self-concept, attitudes, and
values
Produces a better understanding of others or some external situation
Increases insight into the nature of his or her behavior and its effects on
others
Improves judgment and the ability to consider a wider range of
problem solving options

21. EDUCATION What the Worker Does
Provides information about environmental resources
Provides information essential to the client’s functioning (biological,
psychological, or social)
Helps the client understand the effects of behavior on others
Helps the client understand others’ needs and motivations
May involve role plays, planning, promotion of new client behaviors

22. What This Technique Does for the Client
Increases options for change
Increases “fund of knowledge” for problem-solving activities
Increases insight
Increases investment in the process of intervention, if the worker’s
strategies are perceived to be comprehensive

23. ADVICE AND GUIDANCE (DIRECT INFLUENCE)
What the Worker Does
Makes suggestions about ways of thinking, reviewing feelings, or behaving
Explores the client’s expectations when advice is requested (and if the
request is denied, explains why)
Gives advice in a context of reflective discussion, if possible
Often guides the client to a decision rather than giving direct advice
States an opinion
Emphasizes a course of action the client is already contemplating
Cautions the client against certain actions
Manages the risks of giving advice openly with the client
Avoids giving advice about most major life decisions
Usually gives advice or makes suggestions tentatively
Always acts to meet the client’s (not the worker’s) needs

24. What This Technique Does for the Client
Promotes adaptive behavior for the client who is overwhelmed or in crisis
Provides tentative solutions to problems or challenges that can be implemented and then reviewed
(This technique may be required to connect with or meet the intervention expectations of some client populations)

25. DEVELOPMENTAL REFLECTION What the Social Worker Does
Utilizes exploration / description / ventilation
Assumes a directive, structured stance to get at appropriate topics for
reflection
Explores connections between the client’s present state and past
experiences with comments, questions, and tentative explanations
Intentionally arouses the client’s anxiety at times
Helps the client to better understand (interpret) past issues that may be
influencing the present problem, and ways of dealing with these
Points out and confronts the client’s maladaptive and contradictory (words
vs. actions) thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
Utilizes the nature of the clinical relationship to help process these issues

26. What This Technique Does for the Client
Helps identify and consider long-standing patterns of functioning,
including defenses and their relative effectiveness
Encourages new habits of thought about the past and the ways it
affects current behavior
Promotes insight into patterns of behavior that may stem from
irrational feelings, conflict situations, or a developmental “arrest”
Provides a rationale for experimenting with new patterns of thought
and behavior (not unique to this technique)
(This technique can be used with clients who have a capacity for
reflection, but generally not with children and many younger
adolescents)

27. THE EGO AND THE ENVIRONMENT: DIVERSE POPULATIONS
SOCIOPOLITICAL CONTEXT
OF ENVIRONMENT
Memberships
Race
Gender
Economic Status
Socialization
Health
Vulnerability to Trauma
Oppression
Culture and Acculturation
Stigma
PERSON
EGO
Ego Functions
Coping Mechanisms
Mastery & Competence
Focus on memberships and strengths; build confidence, self esteem, personal power; provide options and choices; link client with resources; connect to mutual aid and peer groups, encourage collective and political action