The Definition Of Psychotherapy Essay, Research Paper

The definition of Psychotherapy is a treatment of mental or emotional disorder or of related bodily ills by psychological means. There are three different types of psychotherapy, which are used today. First there is the method that was based upon Freud s concepts, psychoanalysis. This therapy makes use of things such as free association, interpretation, transference, alriaction, insight, and working through. The second method is a group of therapies, which try to correct behavioral problems. First in the group is desensitation which is a counter-conditioning process. Then there is anxiety hierarchy by which the client ranks his or her anxiety. Next, there is assertive training that helps the person develop better coping techniques. Positive reinforcement, which is the same thing that most parents use for their own children, is when there is praise given for new skill. Last there is cognitive training where the person s thoughts and expectations are trained to mediate a behavioral change. The last method is also a group of different therapies, but it mainly consists of a therapy that was developed by Carl Rogers. Mr. Rogers therapy is client-centered which comes from the idea that the client is the best expert on himself and capable of working out solutions to his or her problems. The client-centered therapy is what is used in what is called group therapy, but the only difference is that the client s problems are worked out in the presence of others. This detail helps to save time and to show the client that they are not alone. When Mr. Rogers started using the idea, he used it to resolve emotional problems, but it has expanded to include teaching clients how to deal with others. There are three types of groups: encounter groups, T-groups, and family therapy groups. There are also other approaches to the client-oriented therapy such as the electric approach and plactbo approach. The electric approach is selecting from different techniques for individual clients. Then there is plactbo which is a substance which dies not affect the patient but he or she believes that is has healing power. Then there is the therapy that is called Gestuct where the therapist helps a person fit the pieces together in his or her head. There are two other different types of therapy that are also considered humanistic therapies. One is called rational emotive analysis, which was developed by Albert Ellis. He believed that people behave in deliberate and rational ways, given their assumptions about life. Then there is Trarsactional Analysis, which was developed by Eric Buine. This was not only a method of therapy, but a theory of personality as well. The theory states that people function and experience their world from one of three perspectives: child ego, adult ego, or parent ego. While using this type of therapy a therapist might use what is called contingency management where a patient decides what old behavior needs to be eliminated and what new, desirable behavior needs to appear.