Ch. 13 Therapies for Psychological Disorders

A general term for any treatment process; in psychology and psychiatry, therapy refers to a variety of psychological and biomedical techniques aimed at dealing with mental disorders or coping with problems of living.

Therapies based on psychological principles (rather than on the biomedical approach); often called "psychotherapy"

Treatments that focus on altering the brain, especially with drugs, psychosurgery, or electroconvulsive therapy.

Psychotherapies in which the therapist helps patients/clients understand (gain insight into) their problems.

Psychotherapies that focus on communicating and verbalizing emotions and motives to understand their problems.

The form of psychodynamic therapy developed by Sigmund Freud. The goal of pyschoanalysis is to release conflicts and memories from the unconscious.

The Freudian technique of analyzing and interpreting the patient's relationship with the therapist, based on the assumption that this relationship mirrors unresolved conflicts in the patient's past.

Therapies for mental disorder that were developed by psychodynamic therorists who embraced some of Freud's ideas but disagreed with others.

Treatment techniques based on the assumption that people have the tendency for positive growth and self-actualization, which may be blocked by an unhealthy environment that can include negative self-evalutation and criticism form others.

A humanistic approach to treatment developed by Carl Rogers, emphasizing an individual's tendency for healthy pyschological growth through self-actualization.

Carl Roger's technique of paraphrasing the clients' words, attempting to capture the emotional tone expressed.

Emphasizes rational thinking (as opposed to subjective emotion, motivation, or repressed conflicts) as the key to treating mental disorder.

Any form of psychotherapy done with more that one client/patient at a time. Group therapy is often done from a humanistic perspective.

Groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, that provide social support and an opportunity for sharing ideas about dealing with common problems. Such groups are typically organized and run by laypersons, rather than professional therpists.

Another term for behavior therapy.