Psychodynamics are a group of techniques and approaches to therapy which adjust mental forces to create change. The mental forces in question are many and various and are largely believed to be unconscious. There are many different ‘schools’ of thought and therapy which use the psychodynamic approach. Although these ‘schools’ often appear quite different there are some common features.
Common features of Psychodynamic therapy
If I were to summarise psychodynamics in a single sentence it would be.
‘Bringing the unconscious into consciousness.’
This comes with the implication that with conscious awareness change will occur. However, how this is achieved may vary between schools. Shedler (2010) identified seven key areas which the psychodynamic therapist will use to access the unconscious.
- Identification and expression of emotion – The therapist helps the patient to identify the emotions they experience.
- Avoidance of distressing thoughts/feelings – By highlighting and discussing possible acts of avoidance the therapist helps the patient to recognize ways in which they are keeping themselves stuck in old feelings.
- Recurring themes or patterns – The therapist helps to highlight when the patient has experienced or done the same thing repeatedly and will seek to uncover what is behind that.
- The past and early life learnings – These are explored to help identify the origins of later life patterns and with the possibility that they may be changed either by insight or catharsis.
- Interpersonal relationships – This is done to look at the development of attachment style, the use of social dominance/ submission, the adoptions of social roles (performance of gender) and types and degree of adjustment to achieve social conformity (masking).
- The therapy relationship – The intensity of the therapy relationship can highlight the dynamics a person lives with and plays out. This can help bring these dynamics forward for conscious exploration.
- Wishes/ dreams/ fantasies – These areas are full of material which highlights unconscious needs, wants and desires. These can be brought into conscious awareness and then explored.
Despite the subsequent development of psychotherapeutic approaches such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Mindfulness approaches, psychodynamics remain popular. This is largely because they appear to have a lasting and broad impact upon people (Henkel,, Zimmermann, Volz, Huber, Staats,& Benecke, 2025). However, I strongly suspect that in addition to the this there is a powerful appeal in a psychotherapy which addresses things in a deeper way. Psychodynamics address the big questions of identity
Psychodynamics and hypnotherapy?
The author
Dr Matt Krouwel PhD is a hypnotherapists with over 25 years experience of both patients and teaching and is a member of both the NCH and the BSCH. He has taught psychodynamics in hypnotherapy around the world and sees patients both online and in Birmingham (UK).
References
Henkel, M., Zimmermann, J., Volz, M., Huber, D., Staats, H., & Benecke, C. (2025). The long-term effectiveness of psychodynamic and analytical psychotherapy in routine care: Results from a naturalistic study over 6 years. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 93(12), 814.
Shedler, J. (2010). The efficacy of psychodynamic psychotherapy. American psychologist, 65(2), 98.