Slave to instinct, power-hungry or helmsman of the ship of Fate
The merit of traditional psychoanalysis is that it was able to isolate and structure the deterministic nature of certain mental processes.
But, considering the psychological phenomenon of man only as a product of his instincts, psychoanalysis was forced to recognize the predestination of human life as a final and unquestionable truth. And not just admit, but also conclude: our psychological reactions are nothing more than the result of the work of these structured and predictable instinctive mechanisms. The main danger of the psychoanalytic concept of Sigmund Freud, which assigns a person the passive role of a slave to instincts, is that sooner or later it inevitably leads to fatalism. That is why, Frankl notes, the vast majority of neurotic patients are united by blind faith in the “sword of Damocles of Fate.” He categorically rejects Freud’s concept, which categorically classifies geniuses as sexual deviants, quoting him himself: “Sometimes a cigar can remain an ordinary cigar and nothing more.”
Agreeing with Freud that a person’s life path as a whole is predetermined, Viktor Frankl, at the same time, makes the most important reservation: our instincts are nothing more than proposals for choosing one or another form of behavior, and the final decision is what to do with these proposals remains with us. It is this, our Self, that freely shapes our attitude to what is happening. And the emotional shade in which this happening will be painted directly determines whether our life will turn into an endless, meaningless struggle and torture or will be filled with meaning and vivid experiences even against the backdrop of events that are tragic for us.
A person, Frankl is sure, acts as a subject of desire: “I want,” and not as a blind toy of fate. And it is precisely this decision-making algorithm, in his opinion, that always works, regardless of what the sum of unconscious impulses is pushing us to at the current moment. Thus, the ego is eternally opposed to the instincts that reflect the aspirations of the unconscious id. Needing their energy, our I, at the same time, never remains passively carried away by them.
The will to meaning in Frankl's understanding is opposed to both the Adlerian concept of a person's desire for self-affirmation, superiority and power, compensating for an inferiority complex, and the principle of the pursuit of pleasure - the quintessence of Freudian psychoanalysis. Viktor Frankl’s concept of the pursuit of meaning is a fundamental “motivator” of a person, encouraging him not to seek comfort, but to meaningfully move towards some goal that the person considers worthy of himself.
“Sailing does not mean leaving the ship to the will of the wind. On the contrary, a skilled helmsman, using sails and wind, will be able not only to direct the ship in the desired direction, but also to provide it with maximum speed,” Frankl liked to repeat.
History of creation
The founder of logotherapy, Viktor Frankl (1905-1997) is a man of amazing destiny. Austrian psychiatrist, neurologist, psychologist. It is difficult to count how many people in his lifetime he saved from suicide and how many continue to get rid of these thoughts now, thanks to his teaching.
Initially, he was keen on the ideas of Sigmund Freud, but soon he not only moved away from them, but also opposed psychoanalysis to his direction. Before the war, for 10 years he implemented his own program to support students. During this time, there was not a single case of suicide among those with whom he worked, although this had previously been not uncommon.
Everything changed with the Nazis coming to power. Victor was prohibited from practicing medicine because of his Jewish origin. In 1942, he, along with his wife and parents, were deported to the Theresienstad concentration camp. It was there that Frankl's logotherapy took shape as an independent direction.
Victor noticed that all the camp prisoners were divided into two groups. Some were depressed, deeply unhappy, constantly suffering and often took their own lives, either throwing themselves onto the barbed wire fences or refusing to eat. Others, despite exactly the same conditions, tried to patiently endure all the hardships, ate in silence, worked just as silently and never complained.
Frankl began to secretly work with prisoners and conduct conversations. He concluded that the first group of prisoners had no reason to exist, while the second group tried to survive for some purpose. Some did this because their relatives were waiting for them in the wild. The second - because they wanted to finish an unfinished novel. For others, religion did not allow this. Everyone had their own motivation.
Based on his observations and conclusions, Viktor Frankl began to save those who could no longer endure the hardships of the concentration camp. He talked with them, convinced them, helped them find the meaning of life.
In 1944 he was transferred to the Dachau camp, where he was not allowed to practice or communicate with other prisoners. That same year he lost all his loved ones - his wife and mother were killed, his father died of illness.
In 1945 he was released. Literally immediately from his pen came the book “Say YES to Life” about his stay in a concentration camp, which became famous all over the world.
For about 25 years, Frankl headed the Vienna Neurological Clinic, then taught at the University of Vienna and lectured at Harvard. He married second time. His daughter became a famous child psychologist. He traveled to many countries with seminars, including Russia. His books have been translated into more than 20 languages. Thousands of patients were grateful to him, whom he saved from depression and suicidal thoughts.
Returning meaning is the main goal of logotherapy
We do not find and will not find peace for ourselves until we find the meaning and purpose of our life. When meaning is lost, neuroses develop, which become its “replacement” and are treated only by means of logotherapy, which restores the feeling of meaningfulness of what is happening.
The therapeutic effect of logotherapy tools, applied correctly and as intended, demonstrates quick, pronounced and stable results. According to Frankl, the techniques and principles used in traditional psychoanalysis and psychotherapy can only reveal in consciousness an echo of the deep phenomena occurring in mental life, while logotherapy draws a person’s attention and consciousness to his truly spiritual essence. The principles of logotherapy lead a person to realize his personal responsibility - the alpha and omega of human existence.
The question of meaning - the cornerstone of Frankl's teachings, to one degree or another, consciously or unconsciously concerns each of us. At the same time, denial of the meaning of life, Frank warns, cannot be considered a sign of mental pathology, since behind these doubts lie truly human worries and experiences. This is a sign of “man within man,” since only man has the ability to reflect on the meaning of his existence and doubt it.
Frankl is sure: spiritual problems reflect the level of a person’s dignity - the degree of meaningfulness that he has achieved or to which he strives. This is especially true for people who have lost loved ones to whom they dedicated their entire lives. Their meaning was lost overnight, along with their spiritual core. At such moments, finding themselves face to face with an uncompromising fate, they see no point in resisting it. If a person fails to find compelling enough reasons for continuing to live, then the natural logical outcome for him will be the idea of suicide. And here the possibilities of therapeutic practices alternative to logotherapy often lose their relevance.
The search for meaning at some stages of life can completely take over a person, tearing him away from the surrounding reality. But since human activity is impossible without a historical context, such periods of independent search may eventually end in a nervous breakdown. Then a person distorts reality, and his actions are determined not by the past, present or future, but by the abstract “extra-historical” present. Therefore, many suffering from neurosis often see the solution in finding themselves in places where the struggle for existence is absent or is of a “symbolic” nature.
Application in practice
When working with children
Logotherapy is quite applicable at an early age, starting in kindergarten. Specialists work with children who are withdrawn, apathetic, uninterested in anything, as well as those who have experienced the death of one of their parents. Depending on the situation, different methods are used.
- Verbalization of experiences
Little children are not able to reflect deeply and look at themselves from the outside. Therefore, logoanalysis is built in a different way - through toys or a fictional fairy-tale character. The specialist tells the child a story that is as similar as possible to his, which supposedly happened to a baby elephant (for example). Then a dialogue is built about how the baby elephant feels, how he should behave and how he can be helped.
- Free Word Associations
A diagnostic technique used in logotherapy that allows one to understand how a child’s relationships with parents, educators and other children are built.
When working with problem children, logotherapists also actively use various art techniques: drawing, modeling, fairy tale therapy.
When working with teenagers
Many psychotherapists believe that logotherapy is one of the most effective areas for treating adolescent suicidal tendencies. Deviant behavior is the result of the decay of moral ideals in society. Therefore, dereflection is actively used here, aimed at the formation of meaningful life orientations and one’s own values.
Help in understanding the meaning of life has a beneficial effect on mental health. After a course of treatment, teenagers begin to understand how harmful and destructive alcohol and drugs are. They try to consciously choose their moral ideals, without looking back at existing idols.
Not long ago, a new subdirection was created, which was called “LogoArt Therapy”. Her goal is to help teenagers find themselves in this life and realize their creative potential.
Noogenic neurosis – a black mark of civilization
Initially, a person contains the potential to become a saint or turn into a pig. A person’s abilities, instincts and environment largely influence his choice, but the final decision about who or what to become is made by him. The dilemma of modern man, according to the deep conviction of Viktor Frankl, is that “instincts are not able to tell him what he should do, and the spiritual traditions of society no longer determine what should and should not be done.”
Frankl called the state of a person who does not see meaning in his life and does not strive to find this meaning an existential vacuum. If neurotic symptoms are mixed into the painful state of emptiness and apathy, noogenic or existential neurosis can develop. The clinical forms of noogenic neuroses may be different, but what they have in common is a blockage of the will to meaning. According to B. Wallman, noogenic neurosis manifests itself in a person’s complete inability to find the meaning of life and is accompanied by a painful feeling that life, struggle and hope are absolutely meaningless. A person susceptible to neurosis is unable to determine the goal and direction of further development and is completely indifferent to the successes he achieves in society.
Logotherapy gives a person the opportunity to break the vicious circle associated with unresolved philosophical and spiritual problems and identify ways to solve the problems that life has set for him. It is fundamentally important that the mere understanding that supermeaning exists has a positive psychotherapeutic effect on a person.
Concepts
Frankl took the ideas of existentialism as the conceptual foundations of his direction, namely:
- the teachings of Socrates, Aristotle and Epicurus, which helped people understand themselves through awareness of the essence of the world around them,
- philosophy of Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Sartre, Camus: life is a series of conflicts and suffering that lead to a rethinking of values and personal development,
- Husserl's phenomenology: suffering purifies a person,
- directly the existentialism of Jaspers and Binswanger: the goal is to comprehend and change life, with full acceptance of responsibility for the choice of values,
- design analysis by Medard Boss: life is the present moment without looking back at the past.
These ideas, combined with the vast experience gained in the camp, served as the basis for logotherapy. In Russian psychology, the ideas of this direction are poorly represented, despite the fact that Frankl gave lectures and seminars in Russia.
The semantic sphere of personality development is partially revealed in the works of Vygotsky, Rubinstein, Leontyev, Petrenko, Artemyeva. Research in terms of meaning formation was carried out by Znakov, Asmolov, Agafonov, Chudnovsky, Karpova. Today the direction is actively developing. In particular, the Viktor Frankl Center operates in St. Petersburg, whose employees put his ideas into practice.
This area is much more developed in Europe. Frankl left behind students who now officially represent foreign concepts of logotherapy. This is Alexander Battiani, a professor at the University of Vienna, the Austrian Academy of Sciences, who oversees the work of the Frankl Center in St. Petersburg. As well as psychotherapists Alfried Längle and James Crumbo, PhD Elisabeth Lucas and Dr. Eleanor Frankl (Victor’s second wife).
Logoanalysis. Key points and tools
Helping a person in search of meaning would be impossible without an effective, harmonious method of analysis that takes into account all the features and all the strengths of logotherapy. Logoanalysis became such a technique, the subject of which is the study of the value basis and individual “life map” of the patient. The author of logoanalysis is one of Viktor Frankl’s students, American psychotherapist James Crumbo, who managed to propose a practical system for “inventorying” a patient’s life.
Two main methods of logoanalysis:
- Expanding the field of consciousness.
- Stimulating creative imagination.
Each of the sequential steps taken during the consultation is accompanied by a detailed discussion with the logotherapist. A correctly structured communication scheme allows the patient to strengthen the skills of critical self-assessment, achieve insight and not repeat his main life mistakes in the future.
Key theses of logoanalysis:
- The answer to any question already exists, even if it is not currently visible.
- The solution to our problems must be found within ourselves. The ultimate goal is deep spiritual insight.
- Insight is achieved through a deep, penetrating look at one’s own life (life inventory) when connecting the tools of creative imagination.
Methods of dereflection and paradoxical intention
The main cause of aggression, depression, alcoholism and drug addiction, according to Viktor Frankl, should be sought in the existential vacuum of the patient. But, when constructing a therapeutic scheme, logotherapy pays the main attention not to the past and present, but to the patient’s future, or more precisely, to the meanings and tasks that he will have to accomplish in the future. It is also important to break the feedback loop and overcome the mechanisms that keep the patient with neurosis in a vicious circle of his erroneous ideas. This allows one to overcome the typical neurotic fixation on one’s inner experiences and switch attention to a life filled with meanings and values that are most directly related to one’s personal abilities. Frankl called the method of logotherapy, which allows one to overcome the obsessive tendency to introspection and self-torture, dereflection.
A separate section of logotherapy is devoted to the treatment of phobias and obsessive-compulsive disorders. In the light of the theory of meaning proposed by Viktor Frankl, he developed the so-called method. paradoxical intentions, the essence of which is to offer the patient a seemingly contradictory attempt to emotionally experience his phobia. Such an experience can be a frightening situation, action or object that he associates with exclusively negative feelings and sensations.
The key advantage of the method of paradoxical intentions is its versatility: it remains effective regardless of the nature, cause and stage of the phobia, contrary to the traditional ideas of psychotherapy, which insists on identifying the etiology (cause) of painful addiction and building a unique treatment regimen on its basis.
Indications
- Life crisis
- family problems,
- depression or stress,
- causeless anxiety, panic attacks,
- addictions of various kinds: alcohol, drugs, gaming,
- obsessive-compulsive disorder,
- phobias,
- sleep problems,
- sexual dysfunction,
- life situations associated with incurable diseases, death of a loved one,
- dissatisfaction with oneself, boredom, apathy, indifference, disappointment.
