Psychoanalysis

& Psychodynamic
Psychology
a modular unit lesson plan/
teaching resource for high
school psychology teachers
James Hansell, PhD
University of Michigan

Joshua Ehrlich, PhD

Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute

Wendy Katz, PhD

Columbia University

Howard Lerner, PhD

Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute

Katherine Minter, MA
Westwood High School, Round Rock ISD, Austin, TX

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Psychoanalysis
& Psychodynamic
Psychology
a modular unit lesson plan/
teaching resource for high 1
school psychology teachers
James Hansell, PhD
University of Michigan

Joshua Ehrlich, PhD

Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute

Wendy Katz, PhD

Columbia University

Howard Lerner, PhD

Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute

Katherine Minter, MA
Westwood High School, Round Rock ISD, Austin, TX
2
contents
5 Introduction

7 Procedural Timeline

9 Content Outline

21 Activity 1: Psychological Viewpoint Questionnaire (Pretest)

25 Activity 2: Develop a Dream Chart

3
27 Activity 3: Id, Ego, Superego Identification Activity

29 Activity 4: Defense Mechanisms Quiz

31 Activity 5: Draw a Picture Projective Test

33 Activity 6: Create a Jungian Mandala

35 Activity 7: Psychodynamic References in Popular Culture

37 Appendix: Resources

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Katherine Minter, MA
Westwood High School,
Round Rock ISD, Austin, TX

T
ime Magazine’s cover story for the November 1993 issue was titled “Is 5
Freud Dead?” Newsweek presented a story titled “What Freud Got Right”
in its November 11, 2002, issue, and the May 2004 issue of Scientific
American contained an article titled “Freud Returns,” along with a counterpoint
article titled “Freud Returns? Like a Bad Dream.” It seems that the answer to the
question “Is Freud dead?” is, apparently, no!

With so much to cover in a high school psychology course, particularly if you

are guided by the International Baccalaureate (IB) or Advanced Placement (AP)
curriculums, you may wonder if you should cover Freud and psychoanalysis at
all. One overriding point should convince you to do so: Freud and his ideas have
become a part of the Western canon, with multiple sources alluding to Freudian
concepts and psychoanalytic terms popping into media as diverse as television
sitcoms, newspaper editorials, magazine cover stories, cartoons, Saturday
Night Live skits, as well as literary works. A well-educated person “knows”
what Freud and his followers were all about, and it adds to the richness of
experience to understand these concepts, their wide applications in our culture,
and the increasing validation through science of many Freudian principles and
approaches.

To believe that “Freud is dead” and thus not teach psychoanalysis at all would
be undereducating our students about one of the most brilliant and influential
figures of the 20th century. In fact, at the turn of the new millennium (2000), A&E
Television polled respected people from all walks of life from all over the world to
come up with their list of The 100 Most Influential People of the Last Millennium.
In that poll, Guttenberg (inventor of the printing press) was #1, and Sigmund
Freud was #8.

Sigmund Freud coined the term “psychoanalysis,” and everything related to him
and his theory is identified by that term. Eventually, Freud attracted followers,
students interested in learning about psychoanalysis. As might have been
expected, some of these students, several of them geniuses in their own right,
eventually came to disagree with Freud on certain key concepts or points.
Freud tended to be inflexible about his theory. Consequently, when some of
his followers felt compelled to break away from Freud and develop their own
versions of unconscious dynamics, they could no longer employ the term
“psychoanalysis.” Thus, Carl Jung came up with “analytical psychology,” and
Alfred Adler with “individual psychology,” as just two examples. Now, the umbrella
term “psychodynamic” encompasses not only the parent theory of Freud’s
psychoanalysis, but all the offshoots of psychoanalysis as well.

It may be important to keep in mind that psychoanalysis is widely misunderstood,

both by the lay public and even by some professionals in the field. Perhaps the
most common misunderstanding is that psychoanalysis began and ended with
Freud—that is, as a historical, not a current, discipline. In fact, contemporary
psychoanalysis/psychodynamic psychology is alive and well in theory and
practice. Psychoanalysis is actually experiencing something of a renaissance as
a therapy (partly as a backlash against “quick fix” therapies and medications),
as a theory (since cognitive psychology and neuroscience have recently
“rediscovered” the unconscious), and as an interpretive tool (in other social
sciences). As a result, this lesson plan attempts to cover psychoanalysis both
as a historical subject and as an important current theory and practice within
modern psychology.

This lesson plan is designed to give you, the teacher, sufficient background to
pick and choose which parts of this unit you want to teach. Certainly not all of
it can be covered in a typical introductory course; there is just not enough time
in any one class or longer unit to go into the detail presented here. Teachers
should note that previously produced TOPSS unit lesson plans—Treatment
of Psychological Disorders, States of Consciousness, Motivation and
Emotion, Abnormal Behavior, and Personality—also include some material on
psychoanalysis/psychodynamic theory. Teachers are encouraged to use this unit
6 plan to supplement the materials in these other units.

This unit lesson plan was developed as a modular lesson plan for high school
psychology teachers. The information provided in this unit can be used as a
complete unit on psychodynamic theory, but it has been created so that
teachers can use each lesson separately during a psychology course.
Lesson I provides an overview of Sigmund Freud and Psychoanalytic Theory.
Lesson II covers Psychodynamic Perspectives on Development and Personality.
Lesson III, Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Dreams, can also be used while
teaching states of consciousness to students. The fourth lesson focuses on
Psychodynamic Theories of Motivation and Emotion. Lesson V, Psychodynamic
Perspectives on Mental Disorders and Treatment, can also be used to
supplement other TOPSS materials on abnormal psychology and treatment of
psychological disorders. Lesson VI provides teachers with information on Neo-
Freudians and Contemporary Psychodynamic theories.

Note. The authors thank Joanne Callan, PhD, of the Alliant International
University, San Diego, CA, for her review of this unit; Ludy Benjamin, Jr.,
PhD, of Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, for granting permission
for the use of several of the activities and the discussion questions
included in this unit; and Division 39 (Psychoanalysis) of the American
Psychological Association (APA) as well as the Education Initiative of the
American Psychoanalytic Association (APsaA) for their support and review
of this unit.
procedural timeline

7
Lesson I. Overview of Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theories (p. 9)

Activity 1: Psychological Viewpoint Questionnaire (Pretest) (p. 21)

Lesson II. Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Human

Development and Personality (p. 11)

Lesson III. Psychodynamic Perspectives on Dreams (p. 12)

Activity 2: Developing a Dream Chart (p. 25)

Lesson IV. Psychodynamic Theories of Motivation

and Emotion (p. 13)

Activity 3: Id, Ego, Superego Identification Activity (p. 27)

Activity 4: Defense Mechanisms Quiz (p. 29)

Activity 5: Draw a Picture Projective Test (p. 31)

Lesson V. Psychodynamic Perspectives on Mental Disorders

and Treatment (p. 15)

Lesson VI. Contemporary Psychodynamic Theory (p. 17)

Activity 6: Create a Jungian Mandala (p. 33)

Activity 7: Psychodynamic References in Popular Culture (p. 35)

content outline

Lesson I. Overview of Freud’s 9

Psychoanalytic Theory
See Activity 1: Psychological Viewpoint Questionnaire (Pretest) (p. 21)

I. Introduction
A. The terms psychoanalytic and psychodynamic are sometimes used
interchangeably, but “psychoanalytic” properly refers more narrowly to
Freudian theory, while “psychodynamic” is the broader term encompassing
all the theories derived from Freud’s work.

B. Psychodynamic theory is a large and still evolving school of thought. While it

is most closely associated with Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), the founder of
psychoanalysis, much of today’s psychodynamic theory differs vastly from
Freud’s original ideas.

C. Psychodynamic theory, despite criticism that it is unproven, continues to be a

popular and influential approach to explanation and treatment and is, in fact,
supported by a substantial research basis. Psychoanalytic theory also has a
particular place of importance in the field of psychology as the first and most
comprehensive theory of personality and psychopathology.

D. This lesson will cover the theories of Freud; the other lessons in this unit
explore psychodynamic theories and treatments more broadly.

II. Freud’s Early Model

reud’s early clinical experiences—Young Dr. Freud was particularly
A. F
influenced by a case described to him by a Viennese colleague, Dr. Josef
Breuer (1842–1925). “Anna O” (whose real name was Bertha Pappenheim)
had serious symptoms of hysteria—physical symptoms without a physical
cause. Breuer hypnotized Anna O. and asked her to tell him as much
as possible about circumstances that had led to her symptoms. Anna
O., under hypnosis, was able to tell Breuer about upsetting events that
clearly explained her symptoms, events she had previously been unable
to remember. After she described these upsetting events and expressed
the emotions that had originally been associated with them, the symptoms
disappeared.

B. Freud’s theory of the mind—From the example of Anna O. and similar

experiences with his own patients, Freud came to the conclusion that there
must be a division within the mind, since patients with hysterical disorders
were unaware of some of the memories, thoughts, and feelings that emerged
under hypnosis. Furthermore, Freud argued that being unaware of such
memories (which were invariably unpleasant) was connected to having
pathological symptoms and that when these memories and feelings were
verbally expressed, the symptoms disappeared. Freud’s idea that the mind is
divided into an “acceptable” (usually conscious) part and an “unacceptable”
(usually unconscious) part and that certain dynamic tensions or conflicts
between these two parts can cause mental symptoms is at the core of
psychoanalytic theory. Freud also developed a theory about the contents of
the Unconscious, its origin in childhood psychosexual development, and how
and why it is repressed, or pushed out of conscious awareness. Freud viewed
consciousness as simply “the tip of the iceberg” of mental life, with the
unconscious part of the mind represented by the bulk of the iceberg, hidden
underwater.

C. Freud’s interest in “normal” phenomena—Another major development in the

early part of Freud’s career was his discovery, through studying dreams,
jokes, art, and other phenomena, that the division in the mind between the
unacceptable (unconscious part) and the acceptable (conscious part) exists
10 in everyone, not just in people with mental disorders. Freud thought that most
mental disorders were exaggerations of universal mental conflicts and that
pathology results only when a person has failed to find a good solution to
these universal emotional conflicts.

III. Freud’s Later Model

A. Freud’s problems with his early model of the mind—Toward the end of his
career, Freud made major revisions in his theory of the mind. He became
dissatisfied with his original model of the mind as divided between the
Unconscious (full of unacceptable childhood desires) and the Conscious
(adult, rational thinking). This model, known as the topographic theory, also
included the Preconscious, which contains thoughts that are not the focus
of conscious attention at any given moment, but are not unacceptable, and,
therefore, are not repressed. But Freud realized that the repressing forces
in the mind are also unconscious (people usually aren’t aware that they
are repressing something), which created a contradiction in his theory. In
addition, he noticed that the repressing forces themselves are often irrational,
containing harsh and distorted childish ideas about what is unacceptable
and requires repression.

B. Freud’s structural theory—To fix these problems, Freud developed a new

theory known as the structural theory of the mind. In the structural theory,
the mind is divided into three psychic structures: the Id (consisting of
childhood desires and general pleasure seeking, similar to the topographic
Unconscious), the Superego (the realm of moral judgments that determine
what is acceptable and unacceptable), and the Ego (the part of the mind that
is oriented to reality and the external world and has to reconcile the demands
of the id and superego while developing the skills and abilities necessary to
function effectively in the world). Freud said “the Ego serves three masters:
the Id, Superego, and Reality.”
reud’s structural theory of psychopathology—According to structural
C. F
theory, psychopathology results when conflicts involving the Id, the Ego, the
Superego, and reality are not successfully negotiated by adaptive defense
mechanisms and coping strategies. For example, a child’s hostile feelings
toward a younger sibling might conflict with his or her strict Superego idea
that aggressive wishes are bad and dangerous. If the Ego were unable
to find an adaptive solution to this conflict, the child might experience
psychological symptoms, either during childhood when conflict first arises or
later in adulthood when an event (for example, the hiring of a new, younger
coworker) revives this childhood conflict.

Lesson II. Psychodynamic Perspectives on Human

Development and Personality
I. Introduction
A. Psychodynamic theories are in a state of constant evolution.

B. The importance of human development from birth onward is a crucial

assumption shared by all psychodynamic models.
1. Early child development is critical and formative for later adult personality
and functioning.
2. The influence of early parent–child relationships and the security of
attachments is crucial for later adult relationships and personality traits. 11

II. Freudian Developmental and Personality Theory

A. Development proceeds through “psychosexual” stages driven by sexual
energy called libido or Eros.
1. Children are not miniature adults but have distinct emotional and
cognitive needs, capacities, and experiences.
2. Stages unfold in a predetermined sequence.
3. Each stage revolves around a bodily “erogenous zone,” a part of the
body in which libido is concentrated.
4. “Fixations” at certain developmental stages can be caused by either too
little or too much gratification—too little or too much libidinal satisfaction.

B. F
reudian psychosexual stages were developed by Freud and his followers,
including his daughter Anna Freud, who worked directly with children.
1. Oral stage (birth–18 mos.)—erogenous zone: mouth
(a) P
sychological themes—feeding, nurturing, safety, trust
(b) “ Orally fixated personality”—dependency and neediness as
prominent traits
2. Anal stage (18 mos.–3 years)—erogenous zone: anus
(a) P
sychological themes—control, autonomy, separateness from
parent
(b) “ Anally fixated personality”—stubborn, retentive, controlling, rigid,
expulsive, and stingy as typical traits

3. Phallic-oedipal stage (3–6 years)—erogenous zone: genitals
(a) P
sychological themes—exhibiting prowess, achievement,
competition
(b) O
edipus complex—rivalry, jealously, and competition with one
parent, usually the same-sex parent, and desire to possess the
other parent
(c) H
ealthy adult personality and ability for close relationships
depends on reasonably good resolution of the Oedipus complex
4. Latency stage (6 years–puberty)—libidinal energy subsides; psychic
energy directed toward socialization and learning life skills
Psychological themes—decrease in conscious sexual feelings; more
interest in learning and extrafamilial relationships as child starts
developing interest in outside world and further separates from parents
5. Genital stage (puberty–adulthood)—erogenous zone: genitals
Psychological themes—reemergence of unconscious Oedipal feelings;
however, ego and superego development now causes this energy
typically to be redirected toward peers and potential sexual and life
partners

Note. For other psychodynamic developmental and personality theories,

see Lesson VI.

Lesson III. Psychodynamic Perspectives on Dreams

Freud’s 1900 book, The Interpretation of Dreams, introduced his theory of
12 dreams as part of his understanding of how the mind works. Psychoanalysts
have continued to theorize and develop their understanding by incorporating
information from other fields, like neurology, but the basic psychodynamic
approach to dreams has changed little since Freud’s day. Freud viewed dreams
as “the royal road to the Unconscious.”

I. Background
Freud’s theory of dreams emerged out of his work with hysterical patients
and the model of the mind that he developed through understanding their
symptoms.
A. Hysterical patients had physical symptoms with no physical explanation.
Freud realized that the symptoms were symbolic expressions of something
mental.

B. Freud developed the idea that the mind was divided into conscious,
preconscious, and unconscious parts, with unacceptable thoughts and
wishes kept out of a person’s awareness through repression. The repressed
parts were thought to be constantly pressing toward conscious expression.

C. The body was important not only to express feelings symbolically, but also
because body experiences and sensations were the basic experiences of
people that shape their mental experience from early on.

D. Freud used the technique of free association and found that by following his
patients’ thoughts he could trace symptoms back to repressed wishes and,
in doing so, relieve the symptoms.
II. Freud’s Theory of Dreams
Through analyzing his own dreams and the dreams of his patients, Freud found
that dreams represented the fulfillment of repressed wishes. The wishes were
based on very early infantile wishes that moved toward consciousness in the
form of unacceptable thoughts. These thoughts, the latent dream thoughts
(also known as the latent content of the dream), would become disguised
by a process called “dream work” in order to pass by the censorship of the
preconscious mind.
A. Dream work had to present thoughts in a visual form, but with some sort of
disguise.

B. Often the dreamer made use of events from the day before that could be
linked to the dream thoughts by some kind of association. Freud called this
“day residue.”

C. To disguise the thoughts in the dream, the mind used two main mechanisms:
displacement, in which one thing stands for another; and condensation, in
which two or more ideas are represented by one element in the dream.

D. The disguised dream elements were then combined by a process called

“secondary revision” into a story with a narrative line, creating a “decoy
meaning.”

E. The end result was called the manifest content of the dream, and the
dreamer’s free associations to the elements of the dream would lead back to
the latent dream thoughts, or latent content.
13
F. Freud understood nightmares to be dreams in which the disguise was not
sufficient and the underlying unacceptable idea was coming too close to
consciousness, arousing anxiety.

III. Contemporary Psychodynamic Ideas About Dreams

A. Many of today’s psychoanalysts are less focused on dreams as the “royal
road to the Unconscious” and more likely to view dreams as having meaning
in the context of the relationship between analyst and patient.

B. Some psychoanalysts have challenged Freud’s theory that all dreams are
wish fulfillments. Kohut (see Lesson VI) saw some dreams (self-state dreams)
as symbolic representations of a person’s unconscious feelings about himself
and his own mind.

C. Freud and later analysts observed that some recurrent dreams were attempts
to master a trauma by reliving it.

See Activity 2: Developing a Dream Chart (p. 25)

Lesson IV. Psychodynamic Theories of Motivation

and Emotion

I. Psychodynamic Theories of Motivation

One of the distinctive features of psychodynamic theories of motivation is the
idea that much of what motivates us is unconscious, or outside of awareness.
Psychodynamic theory suggests that many of our basic, underlying motives
are disturbing to us, and therefore repressed or distorted by other defense
mechanisms that permit self-deception. There are several different subtheories
within psychodynamic theory about basic human motives:
A. Drive or instinct theory—Freud focused on biologically based drives
and a “dual instinct” model. At first, he posited a sexual drive and a self-
preservative drive as the “dual” instincts; later he revised this duality to a life
instinct (Eros-Love) and a death instinct (Thanatos–Aggression).

B. Modern structural theory—In this theory, motivation is more complicated

because of the influence of the Ego (similar to the self, but partly
unconscious-–see Lesson Plan I) and the Superego (conscience) in addition
to the instinctual Id. The Ego tries to channel Id instincts (e.g., sexual and
aggressive wishes) into acceptable outlets through “compromise formations”
in which the Id, Ego, and Superego are all partially satisfied. For example,
a man with strong exhibitionistic sexual motives might end up as an actor,
thereby both satisfying and disguising his underlying unconscious motives to
exhibit himself.

See Activity 3: Id, Ego, Superego Identification Activity (p. 27)

C. Object-relational theory and attachment theory—Object-relational and

attachment theorists emphasize the need for human contact and relatedness
as a primary motive as strong as or stronger than sexual and aggressive
motives. These theorists emphasize the basic human needs for caretaking,
protection, safety, nurturance and the like, rather than seeing people as
primarily pleasure-seeking organisms.

elf-psychology—In Kohut’s self-psychology (see Lesson VI), the basic

D. S
human need is for relationships that foster the development of a cohesive,
strong sense of self and self-esteem. Kohut viewed sexual and aggressive
motives as secondary to these relational needs; for example, aggression is
14 seen as a response to the frustration of unmet self needs.

II. Psychodynamic Theories of Emotion

As with motivation, psychodynamic theory posits that emotions can be,
and often are, unconscious. This used to be a controversial proposition, but
is now well supported by experimental, as well as clinical, evidence. The
idea of unconscious emotions may seem surprising until one thinks about
commonplace events such as not realizing that one is angry or sad until
emotions erupt unexpectedly, or talking to someone who is clearly scared but
does not realize it. A central aspect of contemporary psychodynamic clinical
theory is that many mental disorders are based on unconscious emotions with
which people are struggling, such as unconscious rage or guilt.

A. Discharge/drive theory of emotion—Freud originally viewed emotion as a

strictly conscious process that consisted of the feelings experienced when
instincts were discharged or gratified. This early view had many problems,
and Freud revised it when he developed the structural theory of emotion.

B. Structural theory of emotion—In this theory (with the Id, Ego, and Superego
as psychic structures), emotions are understood as responses of the Ego
to the internal and external environment which have an evolved, adaptive
function. Anxiety is seen as the basic negative emotion (or affect). It serves
the purpose of signaling us to dangerous situations and preparing us to
respond. Other important negative emotions are depressive affect, guilt,
shame, and envy. All of these have an adaptive role, but they can also
become overwhelming and may trigger defense mechanisms that may push
them out of awareness. In psychodynamic therapy, therapists try to help
patients learn to tolerate unpleasant emotions without being overwhelmed
or resorting to maladaptive defense mechanisms. Common defense
mechanisms include the following:
• Repression: Motivated forgetting
• Denial/minimization: Ignoring or minimizing particular facts
• Projection: Attributing one’s own feelings to someone else
• Rationalization: A false but personally acceptable explanation
for one’s behavior
• Displacement: Transferring a feeling about one situation or person
onto another situation or person
• Reaction-formation: Turning an unacceptable feeling into its opposite
• Isolation of affect/intellectualization: Avoiding painful feelings by
focusing only on ideas
• Compartmentalization: Keeping different parts of one’s emotional life
separate
• Undoing: Using ritualized behavior to create an illusion of control
• Dissociation: Trancelike detachment
• Splitting: Viewing self or others as all-good or all-bad to ward off
conflicted or ambivalent feelings
• Withdrawal/avoidance: Emotional or behavioral flight from painful situations
• Fixation: Clinging to a particular developmental phase
• Regression: Returning to an earlier developmental phase
• Turning against the self: Redirecting an unacceptable hostile impulse
toward someone else toward oneself instead
• Sublimation: Redirecting unacceptable impulses into a socially
approved activity

See Activity 4: Defense Mechanisms Quiz (p. 29)

15
See Activity 5: Draw a Picture Projective Test (p. 31)

bject-relations and attachment theories of emotion—These theories focus

C. O
especially on the emotions that are central to human relationships and help
regulate them. For example, intense anxiety is a natural infant response to the
absence of a parental caretaker, and depressive affect is a natural response
to the loss of interpersonal relationships. These theorists view emotions as
communicative responses that facilitate needed human contact and thus
serve adaptive survival functions.

Lesson V. Psychodynamic Perspectives on Mental

Disorders and Treatment
I. Mental Disorders
Modern psychodynamic theory has developed several different but overlapping
approaches to explain psychopathology (mental disorders and human
emotional suffering). These include object relations theory and self-psychology
in addition to what is called modern structural theory, derived from Freud’s
structural model of the mind, which he introduced in the 1920s. We focus here
on the modern structural theory of psychopathology.

A. M
odern structural theory (based on Freud’s structural theory of the mind)—
This theory focuses on the individual’s need to find the most effective balance
among the expression of instinctual wishes (e.g., sexual and aggressive
desires), Superego reactions (e.g., guilt), and the best possible adaptation to
the environment.

B. Compromise formation—The theory of compromise formation is central

to modern structural theory. According to the theory of compromise
formation, the mind works to allow an instinctual wish the greatest freedom
of expression with the least unpleasant emotional consequences (e.g., guilt,
anxiety, depression). In other words, the Ego tries to find the best compromise
between the Id, the Superego, and the demands of reality. All expressions of
the mind—thoughts, jokes, symptoms, dreams—are compromise formations.

C. Pathological compromise formations—Pathological compromise formations

lie at the core of psychopathology. Pathological compromise formations are
characterized by excessive guilt, insufficient gratification, or overwhelming
anxiety or depression. They are defined as “neurotic” if the compromise
formations cause mild but significant distress or impairment.
1. The role of unconscious guilt—Unconscious guilt plays a central role in
psychodynamic theories of neurotic difficulties, leading, for instance, to
inhibitions (inability to act) or self-destructive behaviors.
2. The centrality of unconscious processes—Compromise formations work
outside of consciousness: Symptoms are experienced consciously, while
the underlying conflicts are not.
3. The wide range of psychological difficulties—While Freud focused on
neurotic difficulties (e.g., anxiety disorders), psychoanalysts in recent
decades have addressed a much wider range of disorders, including
“borderline” (in between neurotic and psychotic) disorders.

II. Psychodynamic Approach to Treatment

Psychoanalysts create conditions for treatment based on their understanding of
how the mind works and how psychological difficulties evolve. Major features of
psychoanalytic treatment—e.g., frequent sessions; patients’ lying on a couch,
rather than sitting face to face; empathic listening to the patient’s life story; “free
associations”; attention to the unconscious—are carefully designed to facilitate
insight into the deeper roots of the patient’s psychological difficulties and to
16 encourage emotional growth. Psychodynamic psychotherapy shares these
aims, but is a less-intensive process, usually of shorter duration, and generally
conducted face to face.

A. The treatment “frame”

1. Frequency and duration—Psychoanalysts tend to see patients frequently
(multiple sessions per week) and over extended periods of time to
develop a deep and trusting therapeutic relationship and facilitate the
gradual emergence and improvement of the patient’s central emotional
conflicts, childhood fixations, and compromise formations.
2. The couch—Many patients in psychoanalysis lie on a couch, which can
facilitate focusing on the patient’s fantasies, thoughts, feelings, and the
emergence of unconscious material. The analyst sits out of the line of
vision of the patient in order to help the patient focus attention on their
internal experience. In psychodynamic face-to-face therapy, the therapist
will also try to encourage the patient to reflect on inner experience.
When working with children, psychoanalysts use play instead of “free
association” as the medium of communication. Children will be provided
with toys and art materials with which they can express their feelings and
concerns.
3. The analyst’s quietness—Analysts are not silent, but they tend to be quiet
much of the time, listening carefully to the patients’ associations and
working with the patients to better understand the patients’ thoughts and
feelings. The analyst’s interpretations of underlying feelings, conflicts,
and wishes help to provide the patient with insight. Some psychoanalysts
have a more active style than others, and all psychoanalysts are more
verbal and interactive with certain patients, including child patients.
B. Resistance
1. Definition—While patients come to psychoanalysis seeking help, they
also can fear engagement in therapy and at certain points most patients
exhibit some resistance to getting better for various reasons. Resistances
usually reflect central anxieties with which the patient is struggling in life,
and the resistances actually help the analyst identify these anxieties.
2. Example of resistance—As an example, consider a patient who came for
help with his detachment from feelings and his inability to trust people. In
early sessions, his intellectualization and mistrust of the analyst reflected
a resistance that the analyst noted and interpreted to the patient, helping
the patient understand his general problems in trusting others.

C. Transference
1. Definition—Patients experience with their psychoanalyst (and with
other people in their lives) wishes, memories, fantasies, problems, and
characteristic modes of interacting that are rooted in and repeat early
childhood relationships.
2. Examples of transference—Transferences affect all of an individual’s
relationships but emerge with particular clarity in analysis over time. As
one example, a patient who had an overbearing, critical parent might
fear that the analyst will be critical and harsh. Another patient who
had a depressed unaffectionate parent might experience the analyst’s
quietness as a lack of interest and caring.

D. Countertransference
1. Definition—Countertransference refers to the thoughts and feelings of 17
the analyst toward the patient. The analyst must carefully monitor the
countertransference so that it does not interfere with the treatment.
2. Using the countertransference clinically—The analyst’s
countertransference reactions can be extremely helpful in understanding
the patient’s personality and emotional conflicts. For example, the
patient may generate certain feelings in the analyst that help the analyst
understand how the patient generally affects people.
3. The analyst’s analysis—Psychoanalysts go through their own
psychoanalyses, in part to understand their own transferences so that
they can deal as thoughtfully and effectively as possible with their
patients.

III. Therapeutic Effectiveness of Psychoanalysis

Research—Both controlled studies and case reports have demonstrated
the effectiveness of psychodynamic treatment for many different disorders,
including anxiety disorders, mood disorders, personality disorders, and
others, as well as common life problems such as relationship or achievement
difficulties. Both traditional psychoanalysis and shorter-term versions of
psychodynamic therapy have been shown to be effective when conducted by
properly trained professionals for suitable patients—those who are interested in
and capable of insight-oriented treatment.

Lesson VI. Contemporary Psychodynamic Theory

In contemporary psychodynamic theory, several distinct schools of thought
coexist with Freudian theory, though most retain an emphasis on emotional
conflict, unconscious processes, and the continuing, repetitive influence of
experiences from childhood and adolescence on adult life. These other schools
can, for the most part, be viewed as either having revised some of Freud’s
ideas (thus “neo-Freudian”) or as having focused on and further developed
a particular part of Freud’s theory. Some of the most influential alternative
psychodynamic schools are Kleinian psychoanalysis, object-relational and
attachment psychodynamic theories, Heinz Kohut’s “self-psychology,” Jungian
psychoanalysis, and neo-Freudian theories such as those of Alfred Adler, Karen
Horney, and Erik Erikson.

I. Kleinian Psychoanalysis: Melanie Klein

The Kleinian school, named after Melanie Klein (1882–1960), a contemporary
of Freud’s daughter Anna (herself an important psychoanalytic figure), focuses
on the sexual and aggressive wishes and conflicts of early childhood, with
less emphasis on the Ego and Freud’s structural model of the mind. Modern
Kleinians are especially interested in the influence of archaic fantasies formed in
early childhood on adult functioning and look for their presence in the treatment
relationship. Kleinian psychoanalysis is especially popular in South America and
in England.

II. “Object-Relational” and “Attachment”

Psychodynamic Theories
Other schools of psychodynamic thought, the object-relational and attachment
perspectives, have been developed by many theorists (including John Bowlby,
Margaret Mahler, Mary Ainsworth, Donald Winnicott, Otto Kernberg and others)
and emphasize problems in children’s primary relationship attachments to
their early caregivers as the source of later problems or health. The object-
relational school picks up on two elements of Freud’s theory that he never
fully developed. One is the idea that the Superego and the Ego are largely
formed as a result of identifications with early caregivers (the “objects” in the
child’s environment). In other words, parents and other loved figures are crucial
18 role models for the moral ideals of the child’s developing Superego and for
the coping and defensive style of the Ego. The second idea is that children
develop mental models of how relationships work based on their experiences
with their family members. For example, a child raised in a relaxed and happy
atmosphere learns to feel relaxed and happy in relationships and seeks out
such relationships later in life. On the other hand, a child raised by anxious
or depressed parents might be prone to internalize an anxious or depressive
view of relationships that may contribute to relationship problems in later life.
Object-relations and attachment theories focus mainly on early child-caregiver
relationships, with less focus on psychosexual stages. These theories assume
that basic human motivation is for interpersonal connection, not sexual or
aggressive instinctual satisfaction. They focus on the child’s psychological
internalization and identification with important caregivers (parents) as bases of
personality traits (e.g., becoming like one’s parents). Longitudinal research on
infants in relationship to mothers confirms the lifelong effects of the quality of
early childhood attachments for later personality and relationships.

III. Heinz Kohut’s Psychodynamic “Self-Psychology”

Another contemporary psychodynamic school that rests on similar assumptions
about early relational attachments is based on the work of Heinz Kohut (1913–
1981). Kohut began his psychoanalytic career as a close follower of Sigmund
Freud and Anna Freud, but he gradually came to believe that the most important
cause of psychopathology was not emotional conflict but unempathic parenting
(parenting that is cold, harsh, or emotionally not attuned to children), which
interfered with the development of healthy self-esteem. Kohut felt that the kinds
of mental conflict Freud described could all be traced to empathic failures in the
parent–child relationship.
Key concepts in Kohut’s psychodynamic “self-psychology”

1. Development proceeds when a child finds “self objects”—caregivers who

perform necessary functions for the child and help strengthen the child’s
sense of self
(a) Mirroring self-objects—caregivers who reflect back the child’s feelings
and strengths
(b) Idealizing self-objects—caregivers who can be idealized to help the
child feel important, safe, and strong
2. N
arcissistic personality—grandiose, entitled, empty, and/or insecure
personality, which develops when the child’s self-object needs are not
adequately met

IV. Jungian Psychoanalysis

Carl Jung (1875-1961) began as a follower of Freud but felt Freud
overemphasized sexual motivation. Jung was more interested in the influence
of the “collective unconscious,” a body of universal symbols and experiences
he believed were passed through generations. Jungian psychoanalysts focus
on interpreting the symbolic archetypes in patients’ dreams and fantasies. Jung
also believed that females have an “animus,” or male side, and males have an
“anima,” or female side. In addition, Jung emphasized that all humans have a
“shadow,” the dark (evil) side of human nature.

See Activity 6: Create a Jungian Mandala (p. 33)

V. Neo-Freudians 19
A. A
lfred Adler (1870-1937) was an early follower of Freud, but he later founded
his own distinct school of thought emphasizing the centrality of inferiority
feelings (the term “inferiority complex” derives from Adler). Adler believed
that an inferiority complex gives rise to the “drive for superiority” that can last
a lifetime.

B. Karen Horney (1885-1952) was one of the earliest feminist psychoanalysts.

She argued that Freud’s theory of little girls’ “penis envy” underestimated
the role of cultural influences (like sexism) that contributed to girls’ feelings
of inferiority; she saw women’s strivings for power as a response to social
inequality rather than penis envy. Horney postulated that we develop “basic
anxiety” early in life and, if unresolved, develop “basic hostility” toward others
as adults.

C. Erik Erikson (1902-1994) focused on the full human life cycle, describing
eight stages of psychosocial development, which are stages of conflict from
birth to death, in contrast to Freud’s primary emphasis on childhood stages
of psychosexual development. Erikson believed the first stage, trust vs.
mistrust, was the most important.*

See Activity 7: Psychodynamic References in Popular Culture (p. 35)

continued on next page

* See Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development on page 20.

Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development
Stage Approximate age

Trust vs. Mistrust Infancy Birth–1 year

Autonomy vs. Shame and 1–2 years

Doubt Toddlerhood

Initiative vs. Guilt Preschooler 3–5 years

Competence vs. Inferiority 6–12 years

Elementary Schooler

Identity vs. Role Confusion 13–20s

Adolescence

Intimacy vs. Isolation 20s–40s

Young Adulthood

Generativity vs. Stagnation 40s–60s

Middle Adulthood
20 Integrity vs. Despair Late Late 60s and older
Adulthood
activity 1:
psychological viewpoint
questionnaire (pretest)
Jeffrey S. Nevid, PhD
St. John’s University,
Jamaica, NY

Instructions
Read each of the following statements and decide if you more AGREE with
the statement or more DISAGREE with the statement. Write an “A” next to
those statements with which you agree more than disagree, and write a “D”
next to those statements with which you disagree more than agree. Express
your opinion about every statement even though you may have some trouble
deciding in some cases.

_____ 1. In attempting to understand human beings, one should stick to what
can be directly observed and avoid theory or concepts that cannot be
seen or observed. 21

_____ 2. E
vents taking place in the present are systematically linked to events
that have occurred in one’s past.

_____ 3. A
specific piece of human behavior cannot be understood without
considering the person and his or her life as a whole.

_____ 4. People
are basically good (as opposed to evil or neutral). If left to
a natural state without external controls, they will seek health and
personal growth while respecting the rights of others to do the same.

_____ 5. A
person’s character is largely determined before he or she reaches
adulthood. The only real changes that one can expect from an adult
are relatively small ones, and these occur slowly over long periods
of time.

_____ 6. G
eneral laws of behavior and experience that apply to all people are
not very helpful if you want to understand a particular individual.

_____ 7. M
uch of behavior, both conscious and unconscious, is directed by
unconscious impulses and motivations.

_____ 8. A
ggression is an inherent and inescapable part of human nature.

_____ 9. P
eople are capable of making major and lasting changes in
themselves within a relatively brief period of time.

_____ 10. H
uman behavior can be understood as a continuous attempt to
increase pleasure and avoid pain and discomfort.

activity 1 continued on next page

activity 1 continued from previous page

_____ 11. There are no values inherent in human nature or in the human
condition­‑only those that are discovered or learned through
experience.

_____ 12. Learning processes play a major determining role in the formation of
personality and human behavior.

_____ 13. Events that occur early in life are more important in determining
one’s adult personality and behavior than are similar events after the
person reaches adulthood.

_____ 14. Looking inside a person for the causes of behavior (for needs,
impulses, motivations, etc.) is probably more misleading than
enlightening.

_____ 15. The use of scientific experiments is not an appropriate way to try to
understand the psychology of behavior.

_____ 16. People are neither inherently good nor basically selfish.

_____ 17. In order to change a present pattern of behavior, it is important for the
person to explore the past, particularly childhood, to find causes of
behavior.

_____ 18. Little or none of what people do is the result of free will. Behavior is
controlled by lawful principles, and free choice is an illusion.
22
_____ 19. The therapist who wants a person to change should not give advice
or suggestions. Rather, the best approach is for the therapist to allow
the person to talk and explore his or her feelings without direction or
evaluation.

_____ 20. A person is free to be what he or she wants to be.

Go to scoring guide.

Reprinted With Permission From

Rathus, S. A., & Nevid, J. S. (2004). Psychology and the challenges of life
(9th ed.). New York: Wiley.
Scoring Guide
Psychological Viewpoint Questionnaire

Below are 20 horizontal lines of letters and four vertical columns. First, look at
your answer to Question #1. If you answered “A,” then CIRCLE all the As on
horizontal line 1 (in this case there would be two As). If you answered “D,” then
circle all of the Ds on horizontal line 1 (in this case there would also be two
circles). Proceed to circle all of the matching letters on each line to your answer
choice for each of the 20 horizontal rows. Another example: for Question #3, if
your answered “D,” you would have only one circle on line 3 since there is only
one D.

QUESTION B E H P

1. A A D D
2. A D D A
3. D A A A
4. D D A D
5. D D D A
6. D A A D
7. D D D A
8. D D D A
9. A A A D 23
10. A D D A
11. A A D D
12. A D D A
13. D D D A
14. A D D D
15. D A D D
16. A A D D
17. D D D A
18. A D D A
19. D A A A
20. D A A D
______________________________

Totals ____ ____ ____ ____

Counting vertically down the columns, count how many circles there are in
each of the four columns and place that number on the line under the column
(above). Which column has the largest number? The next largest? Below are the
four orientations/perspectives represented by each letter. Rank them 1, 2, 3, and
4 according to which one has the greatest number of circles (or “agreements”)
with your general ideas about behavior and mental processes. This scoring
should indicate what you believe at this point in your study of personality.

_____ B = Behaviorism
_____ E = Existential
_____ H = Humanistic
_____ P = Psychodynamic
activity 2:
develop a dream chart

25
Students often want to spend a great deal of time on dreams and dream
analysis. This activity satisfies their need to explore their dreams and make
some interpretations.

Instructions
1. Over the next 2 weeks at bedtime, you will “self-suggest” to yourself that you
will remember your dreams during the night.

2. Place some paper (or a little notepad) and a pen near the bedside. During
the night if you wake up to turn over or use the restroom, briefly record
anything at all that’s in your mind, particularly content and images that
you believe were in a dream. Do this again the minute you wake up in the
morning. “Translate” any illegible writing so you can read it later.

3. Daily, copy what you’ve recorded on to your Dream Chart.

4. At the end of 2 weeks, do you have any insight into what your dreams
have been about? Have you seen an increase in the number of dreams
you remember (due to the self-suggestion)? Are there any patterns or
consistencies?

activity 2 continued on next page

activity 2 continued from previous page

5. What have you learned about your dreams from this activity?

Name: _______________________________________________________

Class: _______________________________________________________

Week 1 Day/Date Images/Content/Sensory Detail Interpretation

26

Week 2 Day/Date Images/Content/Sensory Detail Interpretation

activity 3:
id, ego, superego
identification activity

Instructions 27
Read the following situational descriptions and identify which of Freud’s
personality components are at work here.

Situation 1
Mary has been studying for weeks for the final exam in calculus. The test is
Monday. On Friday afternoon her boyfriend, Paul, tells her that he has tickets
for the Saturday and Sunday performances of the annual Shakespeare Festival.
Mary loves Shakespeare and would really like to spend time with Paul but feels
guilty and anxious about it because she must continue to study for the exam.
She eventually realizes that she can tell Paul that she must study on Saturday,
but would love to go with him on Sunday.

Situation 2
Tom has just gotten his driver’s license. His parents allow him to drive to and
from school, but nowhere else before or after. His friends want him to drive them
to the video arcade on the way home, which is about 2 miles out of his way. Tom
feels nervous at first, and then starts thinking how mean his friends’ suggestion
is and that he should find new friends who won’t ask him to break rules.

activity 3 continued on next page

activity 3 continued from previous page

Activity 3: Answer Key

Situation 1
Mary’s Id wants her to go with Paul all weekend, since she loves Shakespeare
and wants to spend time with Paul. Her Superego wants her to study all
weekend for her calculus final exam. Her Ego is able to reconcile the Id and
Superego by allowing her to study on Saturday and attend the performance on
Sunday.

Situation 2
Tom feels a conflict between his wish to accommodate his friends, his wish for
his parents’ approval, and his moral Superego need to be honest and do the
right thing. The best compromise his Ego is able to come up with is to think
about finding different friends; a person with a stronger Ego might find a better
compromise.

Adapted From
This activity was developed by teachers and the National Science Foundation
Summer Institute at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 1992, under the
leadership of Dr. Ludy Benjamin.

28
activity 4:
defense mechanisms quiz

Instructions 29
Match the statements below with the following defense mechanisms.

A. Repression
B. Regression
C. Reaction Formation
D. Rationalization
E. Displacement
F. Projection
G. Denial

_____ 1. S
am’s girlfriend just broke up with him over the phone, making him
very angry. Sam reacts by yelling at his dog.
_____ 2. J ulie has just failed her psychology class. She tells her friend, “I only
failed because this is an impossibly difficult class.”
_____ 3. J ohn’s wife asks him to stop on his way home and pick up some
grocery items, including a pound of liver. John hates liver, so he puts
it last on his list. After picking up the several items, John comes home
and his wife asks for the liver. John then realizes he forgot to buy liver.
_____ 4. D
avid was recently told by his doctor that he has an incurable from of
cancer. David believes the doctor read the wrong X-ray.
_____ 5. M
ary walks in to work in a very grumpy mood. The first person she
meets is Jan, who looks up and says, “Hi.” Mary replies, “Boy, you are
in a lousy mood this morning.”
_____ 6. S
arah has just had a child she really did not want to have. She feels
guilty about this and reacts by being overprotective of the child.
_____ 7. L
arry, a 50-year-old successful business executive, still calls his
mother for consolation when things go wrong in order to feel better.

activity 4 continued on next page

activity 4 continued from previous page

Answer Key
1. E
2. D
3. A
4. G
5. F
6. C
7. B

From
Activities developed by teachers at the NSF Summer Institute at Texas A&M
University, College Station, TX, 1992, under the leadership of Dr. Ludy Benjamin.

30
activity 5:
draw a picture
projective test
Instructions
Draw a picture in each of the six boxes below. Incorporate the figures in the
boxes as part of your drawings. Draw whatever you like in the sixth box. As you
work, keep in mind that there are no right or wrong answers.

1. 2. 3.

• ◊
31

4. 5. 6.

| |
| |
From
Activities developed by teachers at the NSF Summer Institute at Texas A&M
University, College Station, TX, 1992, under the leadership of Dr. Ludy Benjamin.
activity 6:
create a Jungian mandala
Katherine Minter
Westwood High School
Round Rock ISD, Austin, TX

Due date: 33

Mandala—a graphic, symbolic pattern of the universe; always a

circle with parts, each representing universal attributes; in Jungian
psychology, a symbol representing efforts to reunify the self to the
universe.

Instructions
Each student will create a unique, personalized mandala. Besides
following the few guidelines below, particularly those regarding
shape and size, there are no requirements. However, everything
must have a meaning that you assign to it: colors used, shapes,
symbols, concept of inside/outside, up/down, placement on the
space, directional attributes, light/dark, and so on.

Guidelines
1. The mandala MUST be a circle.

2. The completed mandala must not exceed a 12-inch diameter or

fall under a 6-inch diameter.

3. This is NOT a “collage/montage.” Therefore, you should have no

words on it, no cut-out pictures from magazines, or downloaded
images from the computer—it is important that this is your
creation.

4. Your name as a creator goes on the BACK only, along with a

complete heading that includes your class, period, and the date.

activity 6 continued on next page

activity 6 continued from previous page

5. Also on the back, you must type and attach an explanation of the symbolism
of your mandala. Type no larger than a 12-point font size and no smaller than
a 10-point font size. Include in this write-up what the shapes, colors, symbols,
placement, etc., mean to you. This sheet should be cut to fit within the
contours of the mandala and carefully glued (not stapled) to the back. The
edges of this glued sheet should not exceed the edges of the circle. Every
choice you have made in creating your mandala should be addressed.

6. Carl Jung believed that if we become insightful and open to universal

messages available to us through our “collective unconscious,” as well as
recognize “truths” in archetypal images and symbols, we can then begin
to reunify our self with its universal energy source. Creation of a personal
mandala is an attempt to begin this process. (Note. Symbols can be
archetypal. Consider these worldwide, ancient, and modern ideas: the “hero”
going out/coming back; earth, water, wind, fire; coming-of-age rites and
passages; “Mother” Earth; the ugly duckling becoming a swan idea; death/
rebirth (the phoenix), etc.

Front

34

Text about mandala

symbols and
siginicance to you.
Your Creation

Back

full name __________

class period _______
date ______________

© Copyrighted by Katherine Minter.

Permission granted to copy for classroom instruction only.
activity 7:
psychodynamic references
in popular culture
Katherine Minter
Westwood High School
Round Rock ISD, Austin, TX

Freudian and other psychodynamic allusions are all around us. Our 35
culture is still fascinated by the “Oedipus Complex,” “penis envy,”
“archetypes,” “fixations,” “phallic symbols,” and “anal retentive
personalities.”

This activity should be presented at the conclusion of the unit

covering psychodynamic theories.

Instructions
1. Students may be on the lookout for allusions and references to
Freud and/or the other psychodynamic theorists.

2. When they see an allusion or reference (magazine, newspaper,

billboard, book cover, cartoon, drawing, etc.), they should:

(a) Cut it out and mount it on a plain piece of paper.

(b) Explain what it is an allusion or reference to.
(c) Explain what the allusion or reference means (Why was it used
in this way?).

3. When they hear an allusion or reference (nightly news, TV show,

someone in daily life making a reference, etc.), they should:

(a) Write down the time, date, and situation in which it occurred.
(b) Write down the allusion or reference and how it was used.
(c) Explain what the allusion or reference means.

During this time in my own classroom, I have a bulletin board I’ve

cleared, and all these “extra credit” allusions begin getting posted
on the board. Each time we have a new one arrive, the person

activity 7 continued on next page

activity 7 continued from previous page

explains it to the class. All the classes examine the board each day to see
“what’s new.”

I apply each new extra credit entry on a quiz or test. Limit: Three per student.

Discussion Questions
1. Recognizing that protection of self-esteem is one of the major reasons a
person develops defense mechanisms, choose any one of the defense
mechanisms and create an example of how a person uses it to protect self-
esteem.

2. Emil’s right arm is paralyzed, but physicians find no physical cause for the
paralysis. Using what you’ve learned about psychodynamic theory, write an
explanation of the dynamics that might be going on among Emil’s psychic
structures (id, ego, and superego) causing this paralysis.

3. You are a psychoanalyst in the Freudian tradition. A patient comes in

complaining about his father. Write a report about your therapy session with
this patient, illustrating at least three correct Freudian therapeutic techniques
and how they were used with this patient in this session.

4. Create a conversation among Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, Karen Horney, and
Erik Erikson in which they discuss parent–child relationships.
36
5. Compare and contrast the functions of the three psychic structures of the
mind according to Freud.

6. Discuss some adverse effects of over-use of defense mechanisms.

7. Discuss two projective techniques to assess personality functioning. What

does research suggest about the validity of these tests?

8. How might a psychoanalyst explain an introverted (shy) personality?

9. How have Carl Jung’s archetypes been used in philosophy, theology, and
the arts?

10. Compare and contrast Freud’s and Horney’s views of women.

11. How do Erikson’s views of the identity vs. role confusion in adolescence
stage match with your own experience?

12. Discuss how the “Zeitgeist” (the “spirit of the time”) may have influenced
Freud and the development of his theory of psychoanalysis.

Adapted From
Some of these questions were adapted from questions presented in the
Personality Lesson Plan developed at the NSF Summer Institute of Texas A&M
University, College Station, TX, 1992, under the leadership of Dr. Ludy Benjamin.
appendix: resources

Prepared by
Richard Lightbody, MD, &
Deborah Hefling, Librarian,
Cleveland Psychoanalytic Center

Books and Articles 37

Blackman, J. S. (2004). 101 Defenses: How the mind shields itself.
New York: Brunner-Routledge.
Blackman aims “to provide a framework that explains the origin,
properties, and causes of defensive activity” (p. ix).

Brenner, C. (1990). Elementary textbook of psychoanalysis (Rev.

ed.). New York: Anchor Books.
Elementary Textbook of Psychoanalysis is an interesting text,
often used on college reading lists. If it seems a bit out of date,
Brenner’s recent book, Mind in Conflict, may also be a good
introduction.

Chessick, R. D. (2000). What is psychoanalysis? Journal of the

American Academy of Psychoanalysis, 28, 1-23.
Chessick answers the question of what psychoanalysis is.

Engel, G. L. (1975). The death of a twin: Mourning and anniversary

reactions. Fragments of 10 years of self-analysis. International
Journal of Psychoanalysis, 56, 23-40.
The Death of a Twin is a brief but rich clinical paper.

Fraiberg, S. H. (1959). The magic years: Understanding and

handling the problems of early childhood. Oxford, England:
Charles Scribners’ Sons.
The Magic Years is based on psychoanalytical theory,
clinical practice, and other research. The book deals with the
psychological problems of the first 5 years of early childhood.
Freud, S. (1935). A general introduction to psychoanalysis. Oxford, England:
Liveright.
Sigmund Freud’s introductory lectures, published in paperback as
A General Introduction to Psychoanalysis, are still the best and most
interesting introduction to psychoanalysis ever written, even though many
developments have ensued. It still gives the best feel for psychoanalysis—
and is presented in a language intended for the intelligent public.

Gluck, L. (1995). Proofs and theories. New York: HarperCollins.

In Proofs and Theories, poet and Pulitzer Prize winner Gluck expounds the
value of her analysis.

Greenberg, J. (1964). I never promised you a rose garden. New York: Penguin.
This classic by J. Greenberg is about her descent into psychosis when she
was 16 years old, her 3 years in mental institutions, and her later recovery.

Hall, J. S. (1998). Deepening the treatment. Lanham, MD: Jason Aronson/Rowan

& Littlefield.
Deepening the Treatment is a psychoanalytically oriented book and
recommended reading for students of psychotherapy.

Hall, J. S. (2004). Roadblocks on the journey of psychotherapy. Lanham, MD:

Jason Aronson/Rowan & Littlefield.
Roadblocks on the Journey of Psychotherapy illustrates resistances that can
impede psychoanalytic psychotherapy and the forms that these resistances
take.
38 Lear, J. (2005). Freud. New York: Routledge.
Written by Jonathan Lear, a philosophy professor at the University
of Chicago, Freud is a summary of his teachings about Freud to
undergraduates. Lear shows how Freud also made fundamental
contributions to philosophy and why he ranks alongside Plato, Aristotle,
Marx, and Darwin as a great theorist of human nature.

Leavy, S. (1980). The psychoanalytic dialogue. New Haven, CT: Yale University
Press.
The Psychoanalytic Dialogue is a good book for starters.

Lichtenberg, J. D. (1985). The talking cure: A descriptive guide to

psychoanalysis. Hillsdale, NJ: Analytic Press.
The Talking Cure is a well-written book for the layman about psychoanalysis.

Lindner, R. (1955). The jet-propelled couch. In R. Lindner, The fifty minute hour:
A collection of true psychoanalytic tales. New York: Holt Rinehart.
The Fifty Minute Hour contains a variety of stories that look at the self of the
analyst. The Jet-Propelled Couch portrays a therapist who becomes lost in
his patient’s science-fiction fantasies.

Menaker, D. (1998). The treatment. New York: Washington Square Press.

The Treatment is a funny and tender book about 32-year-old Jake Singer,
who is living an anxiety-filled life in New York City in the late 1990s.

Rossner, J. (1984). August. Waterville, ME: Thorndike Press.

August is easy, fun, talks about transference, and gives a good example of
a fairly raucous treatment, taken from the author’s own analysis.
Schachter, J. (Ed.). (2006). Transforming lives: Analyst and patient view the
transforming power of psychoanalytic treatment. Lanham, MD: Rowan &
Littlefield Publishers.
In this book, psychoanalysts’ and patients’ descriptions of treatment and
the analysts offer a wide variety of theoretical positions. Written for the
general public, the book contains jargon-free and detailed summaries of
successful analytic treatments by analysts of very different persuasion. The
book includes commentaries written by four of the patients about their own
treatment.

Stockton, W. J. (2005). Now it all makes sense. Ivy, VA: Free Will Publishing,
L.L.C.
The author wrote it free of jargon, specifically for the general reader
as well as for students and less-experienced therapists. At www.
NowItAllMakesSense.com, you can order the book and read a sample
chapter and the book’s reviews, which are headed by Richard Simons,
other notable colleagues, and several general readers. Now It All Makes
Sense is composed of 11 chapters. After an introductory chapter, it shows
the detailed dialogue between a self-knowledge psychotherapist and
patient, then discusses the patient’s condition, the reasoning behind the
therapeutic intervention, and how self-knowledge psychotherapy works.

Vaughn, S. (1997). The talking cure: The science behind psychotherapy. New
York: Putnam.
In this book, the author uses a lot of clinical material to demonstrate how
analysis works and also hypothesizes about how analysis may alter neural
pathways.
39

Viorst, J. (1986). Necessary losses. New York: Simon and Schuster.

Necessary Losses is an accessible and authentic version for the general
public of what psychoanalysis is about.

Volkan, V. D. (1984). What do you get when you cross a dandelion with a rose?
The true story of psychoanalysis. New York: Jason Aronson.
This book provides a case report of one psychoanalytic interaction. Volkan
attempts to demonstrate how meaning can be formulated from the patient’s
communications. Includes a sound cassette.

Weinberg, G. H. (1990). The taboo scarf and other tales (1st ed.). New York: St.
Martin’s Press.
The Taboo Scarf provides a rare look at psychotherapy from the perspective
of the therapist. Drawn from Weinberg’s experiences as a therapist in New
York City, the stories in this collection are compelling portraits of patients he
has treated over the years.

Yalom, I. D. (1989). Love’s executioner and other tales of psychotherapy.

New York: Harper Perennial.
Love’s Executioner is a collection of 10 stories about therapeutic
encounters. The book looks at the relationship between a psychotherapist
and a patient.

Zweig, S., Paul, E. (Trans)., & Paul, D. (Trans). (1932). The mental healers: Franz
Anton Mesmer, Mary Baker Eddy, Sigmund Freud. New York: Viking Press.
Zweig presents three exciting biographies of Mesmer, Eddy, and Freud.
Regarding Dreams in Particular

American Psychoanalytic Association. (n.d.). Current ideas about REM sleep,

dreams and dreaming: Confirmations of psychoanalytic ideas about
dreams. Retrieved May 6, 2008, from http://www.apsa.org/Portals/1/docs
/Psychaonalytic%20Ideas%20about%20Dreams.doc

American Psychoanalytic Association. (2006). Questions and answers about

The Interpretation of Dreams. Retrieved May 6, 2008, from http://www.apsa.
org/ABOUTPSYCHOANALYSIS/QAINTERPRETATIONOFDREAMS/tabid/208/
Default.aspx

Gamwell, L. (Ed). (1999). Dreams 1900-2000: Art, science and the unconscious
mind. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Written 100 years after the 1900 publication of Freud’s The Interpretation of
Dreams, Dreams 1900-2000 is a collection of essays that examine the roles
that dreams have played in 20th-century art and science. Published by the
Cornell University Press History of Psychiatry Series.

Grinstein, A. (1968). On Sigmund Freud’s Dreams. Oxford: Wayne State

University Press.
This book gives information about the things to which Freud refers in his
book The Interpretation of Dreams. Though it can be dull and pedestrian
reading, it does have information that satisfies one’s curiosity.

McLeod, M. N. (1992). The evolution of Freud’s theory about dreaming.

Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 61, 37-64.
McLeod demonstrates that Freud revised his original theory about dreaming
40 and traces the evolution of Freud’s concepts about dreams.

Stewart, W. A., & Freeman, L. (1972). The secret of dreams: A key to Freudian
dream analysis. New York: Macmillan.
The Secret of Dreams is a popular guide for the ideas in The Interpretation
of Dreams.

Welsh, A. (1994). Freud’s wishful dream book. Princeton, NJ: Princeton

University Press.
This short book provides a commentary on Freud’s The Interpretation of
Dreams.

Westen, D. (1998). The scientific legacy of Sigmund Freud: Toward a

psychodynamically informed psychological science. In Psychological
Bulletin, 124, 333-371.

Westen reviews research in cognitive, social, developmental, and

personality psychology that supports many of the propositions of
contemporary psychodynamic theory.
Biographies of Sigmund Freud

Gay, P. (2006). Freud: A life for our time. New York: Norton.
Freud: A Life for Our Time is an extensive biography of Sigmund Freud.

Reef, C. (2001). Sigmund Freud: Pioneer of the mind. New York: Houghton Mifflin.
Reef’s piercing biography deftly interprets the life of the father of psychoanalysis and
one of the most influential men of the 20th century. Though this biography was written
for children ages 9 to 12, this book is an excellent read for those wanting a quick, well-
written biography.

For additional articles, please visit:

American Psychoanalytic Association. (n.d.). Recommended resources. Retrieved May

6, 2008, from http://www.teachpsychoanalysis.com/RECOMMENDEDRESOURCES/
tabid/391/Default.aspx

Films and Film-Related Resources

Gabbard, G. O., & Gabbard, K. (1999). Psychiatry and the cinema (2nd ed.). Washington,
DC: American Psychiatric Association.
An invaluable reference tool regarding the depiction of therapy and therapists in film.

Redford, R. (Director). (1980). Ordinary people [DVD/VHS].

(Available from www.amazon.com.)
Ordinary People, starring Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore, shows us how
ordinary individuals and families can come undone by events beyond their control. One 41
reads this book and comes away realizing that strength and weakness are not always
what they appear to be. Sometimes the weaker are the stronger after all.

Rudavsky, O. (Director). (2006). The treatment [DVD]. (Available from http://movies.yahoo.

com/movie/1808746848/buyvideo or see http://www.treatmentmovie.com/.)
Based on the novel of the same name by Daniel Menaker. High school teacher Jake
Singer is at loose ends in New York City and neck deep in psychoanalysis with the
outrageous Dr. Morales when he meets the enigmatic and beautiful widow Allegra
Marshall. Rated PG13.

Soderbergh, S. (Director). (1999). The limey [DVD]. (Available from www.amazon.com.)

Terrific depiction of the psychological phenomenon of repetition compulsion, starring
Peter Fonda and Terence Stamp. Rated R.

Zagdansky, A. (Director). (1989). Interpretation of dreams [VHS]. (Available from Facets

Multimedia, 1517 W. Fullerton Ave., Chicago, IL 60614; 773-281-9075; sales@facets.
org; or www.facets.org.)
Interpretation of Dreams is filmed in Russian with English subtitles. Twentieth-century
Russia is the less-than-willing subject of this close psychoanalytic interpretation,
inspired by Freud’s book of the same name. Archival and newsreel footage together
with commentary employing the psychoanalytic method offer great insights that clarify
such cataclysmic events as the rise of Stalin and the Cold War. This acclaimed film has
been called “truly magical and extraordinary” and “an astonishing marriage of Freudian
thinking and history.”
Additional Activities from
APA Activities Handbooks
Fernald, P. S., & Fernald, L. D. (1987). The sentence completion test. In V. P. Makosky, L. G.
Whittemore, & A. M. Rogers (Eds.), Activities handbook for the teaching of psychology
(Vol. 2).Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Greider, J. J. (1981). Defense mechanisms. In L. T. Benjamin, Jr., & K. D. Lowman (Eds.),

Activities handbook for the teaching of psychology (Vol. 1). Washington, DC: American
Psychological Association.

Schick, C., & Arnold, J. D. (1987). Increasing students’ self-awareness of their theoretical
orientation toward personality. In V. P. Makosky, L. G. Whittemore, & A. M. Rogers (Eds.),
Activities handbook for the teaching of psychology (Vol. 2).Washington, DC: American
Psychological Association.

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