Research Paper on "Existential Therapy: History and Application"

Research Paper 6 pages (1938 words) Sources: 5

[EXCERPT] . . . .

The strengths of existential therapy therefore include effective treatment of psychosocial problems, whether chronic or acute.

Weaknesses of Existential Theory

Schneider and May (1995) caution therapists confronted by clients who may be suffering from an acute crisis, paranoia, severe lack of self-confidence, neurological damage, or cultural estrangement, because the use of other therapeutic tools, such as medication, hospitalization, and cognitive-behavioral techniques may be more productive. Merging these different techniques with existential therapeutic strategies can also be highly efficacious.

Conclusions

Existential psychology emerged from a cauldron of psychological theories stewing at the end and beginning of the 19th and 20th centuries, respectively, primarily as a reaction to the reductionist thinking that had grabbed the attention of Europe and North America. In the aftermath of two world wars, however, a backlash against this reductionist approach to human behavior provided fuel for an existentialist movement. With time, American psychologists caught the fever and began to champion its efficacy. In modern America and much of the rest of western medicine, the increasing focus on evidence-based practice demands that applied existential psychology be tested using scientific methods. One such study was presented here, which examined the efficacy of existential therapy in patients who had just had major cardiac surgery. By most measures, existential psychology was shown to be very effective in reducing the prevalence of morbidity in these patients. The limitations of existential psychology are primarily related to special patient groups, such as those in an acute crisis or suffering from neurological damage. A reasonably intact intellect is therefore required for any patient or client to begin the process of personal liberation into 'being.'

References

Bakris, G. (1977). Existential psychology. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 4(3), 13-20.

De Castro, A. (2009). Rollo May's critical position in psychology. The concept of comprehension applied to dysfunctional experiences, health, and psychotherapy. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 49(4), 462-483.

Halling, S. & Nill, J.D. (1995). A brief history of existential -- phenomenological psychiatry and psychotherapy. Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 26(1), 1-45.

Hoffman, L. (2009). Introduction to existential psychology in a cross-cultural context: An East-West dialogue. In L. Hoffman, M. Yang, F.J. Kaklauskas, & A. Chan (eds.) Existential Psychology East-West (pp. 1-68). Colorado Springs, CO: University of the Rockies Press.

May, R. (1969). The emergence of existential psychology. In R. May (ed.), Existential Psychology, 2nd edition (pp. 1-48). New York: Random House.

Roncella, A., Pristipino, C., Cianfrocca, C., Scorza, S., Pasceri, V., Pellicia, F. et al. (2013). One-year… READ MORE

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