Psychotherapy and Politics International (E-Journal)
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We are not in this together: Psychotherapy and pandemic emotions
Get PDFThe COVID-19 pandemic has led to waves of publicly expressed feelings of fear, grief, rage, pride and powerlessness. Psychotherapists in Australia have seen an increase in their client numbers during this time when many others have lost their jobs amidst a public health response that has further entrenched divisions between rich and poor. These public feelings have been very present in the therapy room as people try to make sense of their experiences of the global pandemic and their responses to restriction and exposure. This article asks how psychotherapists can engage with these pandemic emotions in a way that facilitates social change and interrogates psychotherapy’s historically apolitical stance on the role of emotion and emotional expression
The return of Freud's group psychology. A popular Chilean revolt approach
Get PDFThis article develops from the revolt, or social outbreak that took place in October 2019 in Chile. With protests in all parts of continental Chile, these mobilisations have become the largest and longest mass mobilisations in the country's history, bringing together a significant number of anti-neoliberal demands, which ended up overturning the legitimacy of the development model established by General Pinochet's dictatorship (1973–1990) and deepened during all post-dictatorial governments (1990–2021). In this paper, the Freudian conceptions of masses are questioned, fundamentally embodied in Group Psychology and Analysis of the Ego, as well as in a subsidiary way in Totem and Taboo and On Narcissism. It is observed that the mobilisations in Chile lacked a leader, which challenges Freud's conclusions. In this way, it is postulated, making use of Rozitchner's work, that the mass is a contingent historical subject, whose conformation logics are open and influenced by its circumstances. Making use of Laclau's reception of nominalism, a reading of the October masses is offered as articulated by a signifier (‘dignity’) that serves as a symbolic support for the libidinal bond of its members
Inside out, outside in: Transforming mental health practices
Get PDFInside out, outside in: Transforming mental health practice
Naked society: Global selves in the age of pandemics
Get PDFThis article represents essentially a call for social and political responsibilities in the age of a pandemic, namely the on-going global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019. In articulating his ideas, the author draws on transactional analysis and psychoanalytically informed reflections on individual and social processes that are involved in response to the current global health crisis
The impact of power dynamics when counselling clients with problematic substance use
Get PDFThe purpose of this study is to explore the power dynamic when working with clients who use substances in a problematic way. The concept of power, including the meaning and nature, has been widely researched and debated. Similarly, numerous studies regarding therapeutic work with substance users are also available. However, there is a lack of material which links the two fields. An implicit power imbalance exists between therapist and client that is particularly relevant to this client group; and the egalitarian nature of person-centred counselling seeks to minimise this disparity. This study seeks to identify the nature of power within a therapeutic context and explore the impact of power dynamics when working with clients who use substances. Themes identified are (1) Diverging definitions of power; (2) Power dynamics within therapy; (3) The stance of person-centred counselling; (4) Issues when working with substance misuse; (5) The importance of disadvantageous external factors on the experience of personal power and (6) The efficacy of the person-centred approach in this field. Findings revealed that power can be experienced implicitly as well as explicitly, and that therapist awareness of the power imbalance is crucial. Furthermore, clients with problematic substance use frequently experience adversity on several levels and have an increased vulnerability to feelings of powerlessness. This study contributes to the research into the efficacy of person-centred counselling when working with this demographic
Feeling heavy too: Thoughts on the concept of vicarious trauma
Get PDFFeeling heavy too: Thoughts on the concept of vicarious traum
Locked down or locked up: 131 Days in immigration detention
Get PDFLocked down or locked up: 131 Days in immigration detentio
Introduction to the special section: Indigeneity in Europe
Get PDFIntroduction to the special section: Indigeneity in Europ