COU102A - Exploring Existential and Psychodynamic Counselling Theories

This essay provides an overview of existential and psychodynamic therapy theories, exploring their core principles, strengths, and weaknesses. Existential therapy focuses on free will, self-determination, and the search for meaning, emphasizing the client's capacity to develop rational choices and attain their maximum potential. The author aligns their personality with this approach, emphasizing the importance of a therapeutic relationship and authentic engagement with the client. Strengths include addressing underlying anxieties and promoting long-term personal growth, while weaknesses include limited applicability and potential harm for individuals not open to existential exploration. Psychodynamic therapy, on the other hand, focuses on unconscious processes and the influence of past experiences on present behavior. The author's communication skills and empathy align well with this approach, facilitating the development of a therapeutic relationship and exploration of past events. Strengths include addressing repressed emotions and improving overall quality of life, while weaknesses can include the time committment required to see results. The essay concludes by highlighting the importance of understanding both theories for effective counseling practices.

Running head: THEORIES OF COUSELLING
THEORIES OF COUSELLING
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

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THEORIES OF COUSELLING
Introduction:
Different types of psychotherapy theories are designed in ways by which they can
provide a framework for therapists as well as counsellors for successfully interpreting client
behaviour, their thoughts as well as their feelings. These therapies usually help the counsellors to
help the clients by navigating the journey of the client from the time of diagnosis to that of post
treatment (Corey, 2015). Researchers have therefore stated that theoretical approaches are
understandably an integral part of the therapeutic process. However, therefore different types of
methods of counselling and it might become difficult for the counsellors or the students to
understand the correct method that they can select for their patient (Hoffman et al., 2015). They
need to develop ideas about each of the techniques and align their personal attributes in ways by
which they can provide such therapy to the clients successfully. This assignment will mainly
discuss the ways that existential and psychodynamic psychotherapy are helpful for patients and
how the professionals can develop themselves to conduct such therapy sessions successfully.
Description of the model therapy:
Existential therapy is mainly seen to focus on free will, self-determination as well as the
search of “meaning”. This therapy mainly focuses on the clients rather than the symptoms. The
approach is mainly seen to emphasize the capacity of the client to develop and build rational
choices and thereby attain their maximum potential. Researchers have stated that existential
crisis stresses on four important views. This therapy believes that all people have the capacity for
self-awareness. Moreover, it also relies on the fact that every people has a unique identity that
can be only known and understood through the relationship with others. People should also
recreate themselves because this therapy considers that life means constant changes. It also

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considers anxiety to be a part of human condition. This therapy is seen to use positive approach
that not only applauds human capacities as well as aspirations but also at the same time would be
simultaneously acknowledging human limitations. If one tries to analyse the main roots upon
which the foundations of this type of therapy is based, one can see that the main fundamental
belief that this therapy is based on is quite unique (Vos et al., 2015). It believes that people
experience intraphysic conflicts mainly due to their interaction with certain different conditions
that are inherent in human existence. These are known as givens. The theory helps in recognising
four existential givens. These are freedom as well as associated responsibility, isolation, death as
well as meaninglessness. When an individual develops confrontation with any of the
aforementioned conditions or that of givens, he immediately is filled with a particular type of
dread that is referred to by psychologist as existential anxiety (Vos et al., 2015). Researchers
have conducted experiments where they have found that the anxiety is responsible for reduction
of a person’s philosophical, physical, social as well as spiritual awareness that may in turn lead
to long-term consequences.
Alignment with my personality:
I have developed good knowledge on this form of therapy in such away by which I have
been able to align my views with that of the views practiced by this therapy. I have understood
the fact that in order to provide the best care approach, I need to develop a therapeutic
relationship with the patient as researchers say that it is one of the most important aspect of this
form of approach. I should never act like a distant expert who would magnanimously guide the
client through self-discovery. In place, I would try to be a friendly person who has also
experienced existential anxiety and fear and therefore would aim to guide others through the
difficult process of accepting and living with the inevitabilities of human life. My personality

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indicates me not to be a passive as well as neutral presence in the therapy room. My personality
dictates me to be an active participant in the therapy sessions and thereby must engage
authentically with the client so that I can facilitate healing of the patient. Researchers are of the
opinion that in existential therapy, putting up a composed as well as professional font can harm
the patient more than it would help him (Rayner & Vitali, 2014). I believe that my personality is
such that it would help the client to engage with me successfully so that we both can connect on
a personal level that would help in positive outcomes. I am quite friendly, patient and empathetic
towards others and therefore this form of my personality would help me to gain trust of the
patient. Once I develop trust and therapeutic relationship with patient, I will be able to
understand clients; fear and anxiety and these would help me to counsel him in ways by which
he would feel empowered in life.
Strength:
One of the most important strength of this theory is that it does not rely on the immediate
symptoms of the patients but usually believe to provide interventions in ways by which the
clients can evolve from anxiety and fear and develop motivations to alter life choices to lead
better quality lives. Therefore, the effects of this therapy is long lived that ensures the patient to
overcome internal barriers that prevents attaining stability of mental and emotional health
conditions and live peaceful life with balanced emotions and empower themselves to overcome
challenges in life revolving around anxiety and fear. Its strength can be explained with the help
of an example (Schneider, 2015). Psychological problems such as substance abuse disorders
results in an individual due to his inhibited ability for making authentic , self directed as well as
meaningful choices of the different ways he should live according to existential approach.
Therefore, the strength of this approach is that in place of providing importance to the symptoms,

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it tries to measure the ability of person to control his situations. Thereby interventions of this
type of therapy would mainly aim to increase self awareness and self understanding. They
mainly try to comprehend and thereby alleviate variety of symptoms like excessive anxiety,
alienation, nihilism, apathy, addiction, despair, avoidance, shame, rage, resentment,
embitterment, purposelessness, psychosis, and violence (Madison, 2014).
Weakness:
One of the weaknesses of this therapy is that it cannot be sued as an universal therapy
meaning that it cannot be applied to every individual in every situations. Researchers have found
out that often many situations arise when such therapy is not at all suitable and that other forms
of therapies are found to more effective in the circumstances. Another important weakness of the
therapy is that it mainly focuses on the main anxieties of human life that result in blindness to
more immediate scholars. This therapy may also seen to ignore the underlying issues that a client
is facing (Rubin et al., 2016). This therapy is also not suitable for those who are not trying to
dive into any forms of existential depths. Many people are there who purposely avoid
confrontation of the ideas and hence, for them, the therapy is harmful for those. It might happen
that not all individuals may like to embrace existential ideas at every moment. Therefore, for
such individuals, when therapists may apply this form of therapy, it may push them into
considering death, meaninglessness, or isolation that may in turn have negative consequences.
This may include deep depression, suicidal thoughts and even suicide attempts (Peterfreund,
2016).

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Psychodynamic therapy:
Psychodynamic therapy is also termed as insight-oriented therapy and is seen to mainly
focus on unconscious processes that are manifested in the present behaviour of the person. The
main goals of the therapist undertaking the psychodynamic theory is to analyze the self-
awareness of the client and at the same time understand the influence of the past on the present
behaviours. Researchers are of the opinion that psychodynamic approach mainly helps to enable
the clients to examine the unresolved conflicts as well as symptoms that are seen to arise from
different dysfunctional relationships (Levi et al., 2016). They also tend to analyse the results of
these that manifest the clients to develop the feeling of need or desire to abuse various kinds of
substances. One of the most important aspect of this form of therapy is that this healing and
change procedure is a long term psychodynamic therapy as it requires at least 2 years of sessions.
This mainly is because of the goals of this therapy mainly depends on the changing of the aspect
of one’s personality as well as identity or involves successful integration of the key
developmental learning that was possibly missed while the client was struck at an earlier stage of
emotional development (Dreissen et al., 2015). In this type of therapy, experts are seen to review
different types of emotions, thoughts as well as early life experiences and different beliefs that
ultimately helps to gain insight into the lives of the patient as well as their present day problems.
It also helps to evaluate the patterns that the clients have gradual developed over time. The main
concept of this therapy is that the clients should be able to understand how they should avoid
distress and develop defence mechanisms that help them to cope so that they can take steps to
change these patterns.

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Alignment with my personality:
I am quite friendly in nature and have excellent communication skills. I practice non-
verbal communication attributes that helps the opposite persons to rely on me and trust on me. I
am able to express my genuine feeling in proper ways that makes the opposite person to engage
in two-way communication method. I have the capability to develop rapport and build strong
relationship with my friends and acquaintances that help in effective collaborative work output
(Leissenring et al., 2016). This therapy mainly focuses on developing knowledge about past
experiences, beliefs and relationships of the clients to know the ways they are affecting the
present. Therefore, in order to develop ideas about such past events, it is important for the client
to engage in effective communication with the client in order to get enlightened about the
client’s experiences and beliefs. Therefore, I would be able to establish a therapeutic relationship
with that of client as this is one of the central focus on application of the therapy. Moreover,
researchers are of the opinion that transference in the therapy is also important like transferring
the feeling of the client for his parents to that of the therapist can help in illuminating the ways
by which early life relationships affect the patient in the present days (Leischenring et al., 2017).
I have very keen observation power and critical thinking ability. Therefore, it can help people to
understand their role in the patterns of the relationship and thereby I will be able to empower
them to transform the dynamic.
Strengths of the therapy:
The psychodynamic therapy is mainly seen to incorporate techniques as well as therapies that are
very different from other forms of therapies. This therapy mainly focuses on the recognition,
acknowledgement, developing understanding and thereby expression and overcoming of the

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negative and contradictory feelings and repressed emotions. This helps in the development of the
interpersonal experiences and relationship of the patient. This is unlike the previous therapy as it
helps in analysing the past as experiences do have many contributions to present conditions of
life. The strength of this therapy is that it helps in overall development of the quality of life of the
patient as it helps in the patient to understand how their repressed earlier emotions affect current
decision-making, relationships and behaviours (McArthy et al., 2016). Patients become
empowered to learn, analyse and resolve their current relationships through this deep exploration
and thereby analyse earlier experiences and emotions.
Weakness:
One of the most important weaknesses of this therapy is that it is time consuming. It
means that the therapy takes a long time to ensure completion and development of the condition
of the client but fails to provide immediate care to patient. It might not yield the client with
immediate relief that might affect the present quality of life of the client and might make them
anxious about their situations. Moreover, the other weakness is that the successful results of the
psychodynamic therapy are that they are subjective and are very case based. The therapists
cannot generalise the results. Many of the researchers have also put forward another limitation of
the research that as the therapy tends to simplify the human mind in the id, ego and superego and
the five psychosexual stages, the entire approach becomes reductionist (Levi et al., 2016). It is
unfallsiable that is, it difficult to prove wrong. The approach is unscientific in its analysis of
human behaviour.

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Conclusion:
Critical analysis of both the theories has helped to know that they are based on different
principles and focuses on different areas for treatment of the clients. While the existential
therapy tried to focus on the present internal conflicts, the psychodynamic theory is based on the
experiences and beliefs of the patient that affect the stability of life. The previous theory is not
based on past experiences and mainly truies to focus on the present conflicts within the
individuals that result in existential crisis. On the other hand the later therapy mainly focuses the
pst xperinces of the realstionships as reaserchers believe that such events may have impacts on
the present day lives. Therefore, identifying the therapy that is aplicable for a client requires
critical thinking skills and knowledge of the therapists. As a counsellor, every individual need to
know about the benefits and weakness of the therapies to provide high quality care to clients.

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