Chapter 17 pt. 1: Psychoanalysis, Humanistic, and Behaviorism Therapies

Imagine a good friend of yours has approached you about a problem he or she has developed recently. The friend describes several symptoms, including increased feelings of depression, crying spells, loss of interest in activities, and changes in eating and sleeping patterns. You have asked enough questions to assume the person is clinically depressed. Assume the role of therapist and develop some possible interventions. Come up with 3 possible ideas to help your friend.

2 Major Types of Therapy 1. Psychological Therapies: employ interaction (usually verbal) between trained professional and a client with a problem 2. Biomedical: therapies directed at a patient’s nervous system. VS.

Psychotherapy Differs Depending on the Perspective of Therapist Psychotherapy: emotionally charged, confiding interaction between a trained therapist and someone who suffers from psychological difficulties. There are different types based on personality theories we discussed: 1. Psychoanalytic 2. Humanistic 3. Behavioral 4. Cognitive

Eclectic Approach Takes a Smorgasbord Approach Eclectic Approach: uses a variety of different techniques from various theories of therapy depending on the problem of the individual. More than half of therapists take this approach.

Insight Therapies All insight therapies agree that their goal is to help clients develop insight about the cause of their problems and that insight will lead to behavior change; problems decrease as self-awareness increases. Insight Therapies Include: 1. Psychoanalytic (Psychodynamic) 2. Humanistic (Client Centered) 3. Cognitive Most often used to treat depression, eating disorders, and marital problems.

Psychotherapy One: Psychoanalysis Psychoanalysis’ main assumption? Goal of psychoanalysis?

How do Psychoanalysts Unmask Your “Repressed Anxiety?” 1. While doing free association there will be blocks in your flow. Analysts interpret these blocks as Resistance. Resistance: the blocking from consciousness of anxiety-laden material. Based on your resistance the analysts will try to provide accurate interpretations: noting supposed meaning behind blocks in flow to provide patient with insight (reason behind your problems). 2. Psychoanalysts also interpret dreams’ latent content (underlying meaning).

How do Psychoanalysts Unmask Your “Repressed Anxiety?” 3. Interpreting Transference After revealing extremely personal things about themselves to therapists, patients often start to feel positive or negative feelings towards their analyst. Freud argued that the feelings you feel towards a therapist represented transference: patient’s transfer to the analyst of emotions linked with other relationships (such as love or hatred for a parent).

Criticism of Psychoanalytic Therapy 1. Built on assumption that repressed memories exist. 2. Interpretations can not be proven right or wrong. 3. Is very time-consuming and costly…usually takes several years to achieve insight.

Interpersonal Psychotherapy as an Alternative To Psychoanalysis Interpersonal Psychotherapy: occurs in much shorter session and also aims to to help patients gain insight into the roots of their difficulties. However instead of focusing on past, this approach focuses on current relationships and how to deal with problems….looking for symptom relief instead of personality change.

Psychotherapy Two: Humanistic Approach Humanistic perspective hopes to boost self-fulfillment by helping people grow in self-awareness and self acceptance. Main Focuses: 1. The present and future 2. Conscious Rather than Unconscious Thoughts 3. Individual Responsibility (free will) for feelings 4. Promote growth instead of cures.

Carl Rogers’ Client or Person Centered Therapy Most widely used humanistic technique is client (person) centered therapy: technique which involves active listening within a genuine, accepting, empathetic environment to facilitate clients’ growth. Active listening: technique in which therapist is non-directive towards client and empathizes with them by echoing, restating, and clarifying their feelings.

Client Centered Therapy Promotes Self-Awareness When given unconditional positive regard clients start to accept themselves including their faults and feel more valued and whole.

Psychotherapy Three: Behavior Therapies Focus on Learning Unlike previous 2 psychotherapies, behavior therapies are not interested in the underlying cause of the problem or in achieving self-awareness. Behavior Therapies: assume the problems are the behaviors themselves and look to use well-established learning principles to eliminate the unwanted behavior. Usually used to treat anxiety disorders, drug addictions, bedwetting, sexual dysfunctions, and autism.

Behavior Affects Biology Biofeedback: uses a system that records physiological processes such as heart rate, muscle tension, and skin temperature. Patient can use immediate information to see degree which they can change anxiety-related responses to lessen physiological arousal.

Classical Conditioning Techniques Argue that learned responses like phobias can be unlearned through counterconditioning. Counterconditioning: behavior therapy that conditions new responses to stimuli that trigger your unwanted behaviors. Ex: pair fear of heights with relaxing stimuli.

Two Types of Counterconditioning: Systematic Desensitization and Aversive Conditioning 1. Systematic Desensitization: exposure technique used to commonly treat phobias. Associates a pleasant relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety-triggering stimuli until anxiety towards stimuli is eliminated. Goal is to extinguish previously learned response. Key to enacting procedure is move gradually. Also called Graduated Exposure Theory

Anxiety Hierarchy Before beginning the process of systematic desensitation: therapists have patients create an anxiety hierarchy: list of fears related to phobia from least to most terrifying. Ex: School Phobia 1. Thinking about school (least terrifying) 2. Riding the bus 3. Walking the halls 4. Sitting in class (most terrifying)

More Aggressive Exposure Therapy Flooding: involves immediately exposing client to a stimulus that causes undesirable response to show that stimulus isn’t dangerous. Flooding can lead to extinction of fear.

Less Aggressive Exposure Therapy (Not in Book) Implosion: patient imagines stimulus rather than being exposed to actual negative stimulus…hopes to reduce anxiety. Usually used as first step in systematic desensitization.

Using Virtual Reality For Exposure Therapy

Second Type of Counterconditioning 2. Aversive Conditioning: is the opposite of systematic desensitization. Looks to reverse a negative behavior by associating an unpleasant state with an unwanted behavior.

How Could We Use Aversive Conditioning To Reform a Convicted Child Molester?

Aversive Therapy for Alcoholics Although initially successful why doesn’t aversive therapy usually stop people from permanently drinking? UCS (drug) UCR (nausea) CS (alcohol) CR

Operant Conditioning Therapy What is Operant Conditioning? Token Economy: procedure that rewards desired behavior. Patient exchanges a token of some sort, earned for good behavior, for various privileges or treats.

Observational Learning’s Impact on Therapy Bandura’s theories on modeling were extended to therapy when it was shown that Clients learn through observation of appropriate behavior (and Rewards) and will be encouraged to imitate the behavior.

Criticism of Behavior Therapy?