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Existential Psychodynamic Research

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Existential counseling is a humanistic theory focused on helping people achieve their full potential. It is a philosophical approach to counseling as it is loosely based upon existential philosophy and is not tied to any particular therapeutic technique. Existential therapy encourages individuals to develop a complete comprehension of their meaning of life and purpose of existence in this world. Most often a counselor will develop a personal style of counseling. Furthermore it is not tied to any particular counseling technique but does promote a therapeutic counseling relationship, which also promotes an individual’s personal growth and development. In so doing it will assist clients in resolving the inherent struggle of discovering their personal …show more content…

Adler placed great importance upon decision making and through it, creating meaning in life. There are four main themes of existentialism, these are death, freedom, isolation, and meaninglessness. Each person must confront the personal fears and revelations inherent in the question of ‘What is the ultimate meaning of human existence?’ (Frankl, 1997). It is the belief of existential therapists that without resolving these ultimate questions results in the creation of an ‘existential vacuum’ that leads to existential anxiety which is the source of many psychological problems that individuals face (Frankl, 1997). The ultimate concern of death causes existential conflict, this conflict is due to the knowledge that life will end and the human desire to continue to exist. In an existential sense freedom comes hand and hand with responsibility. The existential concern with isolation is not that an individual is isolated from others, instead it is the concern of being isolated from parts of one’s …show more content…

This great conflict is between an entity that yearns for meaning and the seemingly meaningless universe it inhabits. These feelings of emptiness and meaninglessness constitute what is known as an ‘existential vacuum’ and presents itself in the form of boredom and apathy. Boredom is often seen in a loss of interest in the world, apathy is seen as a lack of will to do something of importance or change something in the world (Frankl, 1997). According to Frankl (1997), addiction, aggression, and depression are all the result of this sense of futility. Society today is more existentially minded due to a feeling of being lost and the belief that life is without meaning. Beyond these issues existential therapy is more applicable today because of the multitude of people dealing with the triad of pain, guilt, and death. By facing an unchangeable fate one can transcend and grow beyond themselves through adaptation or change. By using existential therapy a person can change suffering into human triumph and accomplishment, producing change from guilt, and seeing within death the incentive to act while one is still alive (Frankl,

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The concept of existential therapy derives on human experiences and how one relates to the world. Two books that have an emphasis on this concept include The Big Picture by Sean Carroll and a short story—San Manuel Bueno, Martyr— in Abel Sanchez and Other Stories. Throughout his book, Carroll focuses on what it means to exist (or not exist) in the world, and just how insignificant the life span of individuals are relative to the existence of the universe. Similarly, Don Manuel, the protagonist and suffering priest in the short story San Manuel Bueno, Martyr, experiences a sense of emptiness and guilt; he consistently doubts his beliefs and place in the world. If given the opportunity, could Carroll assist in the rehabilitation of a discouraged

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At the heart of existentialism theory is that of personal freedom and the freedom of

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In this week’s summaries the topic of the purpose of life is brought up for discussion. Each essay gives a different view on the meaning of life. All three essays bring up different views on what the meaning is in one’s life or what makes a life worth living. Susan Wolf said “Someone who is actively engaged may also live a meaningless life, if the objects of her involvement are utterly worthless.” (798 Wolf).

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Pope Paul IV once said, “Somebody should tell us, right at the start of our lives, that we are dying. Then we might live life to the limit, every minute of everyday.” There will inevitably be times of loss, futility and alienation in human lives. It is the natural rhythm of human existence. Facing our own mortality or the transience of those who are close to us will always impel humans to examine their priorities, love for others and fundamental values and principles.

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For instance, as humans, we cannot live forever; however, we can choose what importance we provide for death. We can view it as something frightening, and we will, tormented by this thought, ruin our entire life, yet we can additionally see it as the typical end of a regular cycle, or a rest that eases the suffering, and accordingly provide a positive value for death. A large portion of our judgments are negative and express nervousness, anger or rejection. By tackling those judgments with reflection and change, we achieve bliss.

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The harsh realities of the industrial revolution created a climate of fear and anxiety about the human condition, which made many people more receptive to existential ideas. The birth of the existential movement took place following World Wars I and II and influential philosophers such as Kierkegaard, Nietzsche and Sartre, who were in conflict with the predominant ideologies of their time, were committed to exploring and understanding human experience. Existentialism has three main branches; Christian existentialism represented by Kierkegaard, Jaspers, Marcel and May; aethestic existentialism represented by Sartre, Camus and Nietzsche and Jewish existentialism represented by Buber, Yalom and Frankl. (Professor M.L.O Rourke Handout October 2016). The Humanistic version of existential therapy predominantly thrived in America, through the work of Yalom (Van Durzen,

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Albert Camus, a French existentialist philosopher, believes that an individual who is unsatisfied with life will attempt to reject and try to find meaning elsewhere. One of Camus’ themes of thought was the absurd. “The absurd expresses a fundamental disharmony, a tragic incompatibility, in our existence.” (Feiser ) This view gives an individual the ability to use “free will” in order to pursue a life void of meaning.

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Existentialism is a cultural movement that flourished in Europe in the 1940s and 1950s. It may be defined as the philosophical theory which holds that a further set of categories, governed by the norm of authenticity, is necessary to grasp human existence. To approach existentialism in this categorical way may seem to conceal what is often taken to be its “heart” (Kaufmann, 1968), namely, its character as a gesture of protest against academic philosophy, its anti-system sensibility, its flight from the “iron cage” of reason (Crowell, 2004). Existentialism has many different themes, one of which is Freedom and Choice. If any single thesis could be said to constitute the doctrine of existentialism, it would be that the possibility of choice is the central fact of human nature.

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In Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, there are scenes that trick the audience into thinking that it will give them the movie’s view on the meaning of life. The film, however, never actually gives the audience a real, serious answer to the questions that relate to life’s meaning; by doing this, the people who created the film probably wanted the audience to make up their own views and answers to life’s meanings and purposes (a loosely defined meaning of existentialism). In existentialism, existentialists reject proposed systems that have a definitive answer to the questions involving the meaning and purpose of life; they freely choose standards of values on the human condition, which asks questions, like “Why am I here,” “What does it mean to be human,” or “How should I live my life?” According to Mitchell’s Roots of Wisdom, the idea of existentialism “emphasizes the uniqueness and freedom of the human person as an individual (what makes each life a unique, personal experience) as opposed to the essence of a human being (what makes all of us alive).”

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CITR Rough Draft Essay World War II had ended for America and instead of trying to come together as a nation some felt the need to exist as individuals. The Existentialist evolution came from Europe during the 1950’s. Existentialism came along in the United States at the same time segregation in schools was ruled unconstitutional, the Korean War had begun, and the Warsaw Pact had been signed. Existentialism was a time in America where some people emphasized the existence of the individual as a responsible and free agent. Existentialist believed that their development was based off their acts of will.

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But in counselling our worldview is define by how we think about everyday matters, cause of behaviour that trigger emotional distress and problems. (Meleod, 2007) state that to be a “good” counsellor we must know our self-awareness, belief values and what our personal feeling and thoughts are, and how it can help us engage with clients in the counselling practice. While Egan state that it important for counsellor to believe in the counselling process and formed a good therapeutic relationship that allow clients to trust them and feel accepted without being judge regardless of their problem or cultures. (Egan.

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Nietzche´s Übermensch or Superman is possibly one of the most important philosophical concepts in regard to human psychology but, in order to even come close to comprehending the concept one must first understand the fundamental components of the broader philosophical concept of Existentialism. Existentialism is the term applied to the body of work of late 19th and early 20th century philosophers, starting from the danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard who without using the term proposed that “an individual not bound by society or religion is solely responsible for giving a meaning to life and living it passionately and sincerely or authentically”. This followed by a plethora of philosophers who adopted this idea and givng it further meaning

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1157 Words | 5 Pages

Gentrification is a problem that has taken place in many major cities across the country, and is an even bigger problem today. As gentrification becomes more common, it has become more controversial, too. Gentrification is the process in which urban neighborhoods or cities get rebuilt or renovated, resulting in increased property values and eviction of lower-income families and small businesses. Gentrification normally takes place in bigger cities like D.C, Boston, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Nashville, and Baltimore. The purpose of the process is to improve and upgrade cities to make them more presentable and efficient.

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To further understand how to deal with suffering, one must explore suffering’s origin and what it means to suffer. What is suffering then? “Simply stated, suffering is anything which hurts or irritates” and “covers a wide spectrum; it can be pain or grief even emotional pain on a personal level”

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The argument Jean-Paul Sartre, a French philosopher, presents on existentialism helps to prove the foundation which is “existence precedes essence”. Existentialism is normally understood as an ideology that involves evaluating existence itself and the way humans find themselves existing currently in the world. For the phrase existence precedes essence, existence’s etymology is exsistere or to stand out while the term Essence means “being” or “to be” therefore the fundamental of existentialism, literally means to stand out comes before being. This can be taken into many different ideas such as individuals having to take responsibility for their own actions and that in Sartre’s case the individual is the sole judge of his or her own actions. According to him, “men is condemned to be free,” therefore “the destiny of man is placed within himself.”

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