Conscious and Unconscious Processes Psychodynamic, Cognitive, and Neurophysiological Convergences

by Shevrin, Howard; Bond, James A.; Brakel, Linda A. W.; Hertel, Richard K.; Williams, William J.

• ISBN13: 9781572300910
• ISBN10: 1572300914
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1996-05-24
• Publisher: The Guilford Press

Summary

The notion of an unconscious mental life has been subject to debate for over a century. Psychodynamic practitioners generally understand clients' consciously experienced symptoms to reflect conflict within an unconscious realm; cognitive psychologists, on the other hand, doubt the validity of this psychodynamic understanding of unconscious processes. This volume attempts to bridge the theoretical gulf between the two approaches by providing objective evidence for unconscious conflict in psychopathology. Integrating psychodynamic, cognitive, and neurophysiological methods, the authors have developed an experimental model using brain wave measurements that can differentiate types of unconscious processes. The volume provides a unique synthesis of clinical and experimental findings and blazes a new pathway for the study of brain mind interaction.

Author Biography

Howard Shevrin, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology in the Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology, and Director of the Ormond and Hazel Hunt Event-Related Potential Memorial Laboratory at the University of Michigan, a faculty member of the Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute, and a psychoanalyst.

James A. Bond, Ph.D., is a clinical and design consultant to the research and has a private psychotherapy practice.

Linda A. W. Brakel, M.D., a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan, is a faculty member of the Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute, and has a private psychoanalytic practice.

Richard K. Hertel, Ph.D., a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan, is a faculty member of the Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute, and has a private psychoanalytic practice.

William J. Williams, Ph.D., who has a special expertise in the development of methods for analyzing biological signals, is Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(11)
Part I. Theory	11	(56)
Psychoanalytic Theory	13	(25)
Cognitive Theory	38	(20)
Psychophysiological Theory	58	(9)
Part II. Methods	67	(64)
The Psychodynamic Clinical Method and Word Selection Procedure	69	(22)
The Subliminal Cognitive Method	91	(18)
The Psychophysiological Method	109	(22)
Part III. The Experiment	131	(14)
Experimental Procedures and Results	133	(12)
Part IV. Clinical Cases	145	(114)
The Case of Mr. A	149	(38)
The Case of Mr. B	187	(44)
The Case of Mr. C	231	(28)
Part V. Conclusions	259	(22)
Implications and Future Directions	261	(20)
Appendix A: Word Selection Algorithms	281	(2)
Appendix B: Time-Frequency Distributions	283	(2)
References	285	(10)
Index	295