What is Jungian Psychotherapy?
Jungian Psychotherapy is a form of advanced psychological therapy that utilises the theories of Swiss psychiatrist, Carl Jung. In this approach, the client is encouraged through talking therapy to become more aware of ‘underlying’ or ‘unconscious’ psychological factors influencing their thoughts, feelings and behaviours.
Jung called one layer of these unconscious factors ‘complexes’, with the Mother and Father complexes being the most obvious. In the first phase of Jungian psychotherapy, the psychotherapist helps the client understand how their parental complexes may be hindering the development of their own individuality (or individuation).
“When we experience unhelpful, irrational, self-defeating thoughts or behaviours, it is likely that our complexes are the cause. Consequently, when these psychological disturbances are beyond our conscious control and we are unable to rationalise them away with Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT), a person may need a deeper treatment such as Jungian psychotherapy.
In this approach, the psychotherapist often encourages clients to engage with their dream material to shed light on these underlying issues. As Jung suggested, when we become conscious of psychological material that was previously unconscious, inner tension eases. As a result, we can accept our particular individuality and live a more complete or ‘whole’ life.”
Jungians see many psychological disturbances as arising from a sense of alienation from the ground of our being. Jungian psychotherapy therefore aims to facilitate a reconnection with soul and restore meaning, purpose, fellow-feeling , creativity and joy.
Jung based his psychological theories primarily on dispositional factors, proposing that inherited traits or ‘archetypes’ determine our behavioural patterns. His theories, therefore, emphasise the role of both ‘nature’ as well as ‘nurture’ in personality development.
Jung’s theories form the basis of the widely used personality test, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and he also coined the terms ‘extrovert’ and ‘introvert’.
Michael Peyton has had extensive post-graduate training in Jungian Psychotherapy at the Jung Institute in Zurich, Switzerland. Michael also has special interest in the work of James Hillman who is considered one of the most influential of the post-Jungians.
Literature on the efficacy of Jungian (a form of psychodynamic) psychotherapy can be found below: