The Image and the Unconscious

Abstract

PRECISCette étude se concentre sur 1'emplo~i d'images mentales dans des th6rapies analytiquement orient6es. La premiere partie pr6sente une breve discussion de quelques questions psycho'linguistiques importantes qui portent sur 1'emploi d'images dans la psychoth6rapie. La deuxieme parties discute les observations d'images spontan6es par les practiciens analytiques, et montre le rapport de ces images a la cognition linguistique-rationnelle et à. l'organisation inconsciente. La troisi6me partie fait sortir la fonction particulièrement unique de certaines images, qui comportent une abondance de matériel charge de phenomenes affectifs, comme symboles; et la quatrieme partie 6lucide la puissance de ces symboles, qui sont surtout visuels, par le travail de plusieurs practiciens qui ont beaucoup utilise des images induites. INTRODUCTION VERBAL language has long been the most widely used source of data for clinical inferences; recently, however, an increasing number of therapists have turned to images for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. This paper focusses upon the use of mental imagery in analytically oriented therapies. The first segment presents a brief discussion of some important psycholinguistic questions that bear upon the use of images in psychotherapy. The second part discusses the observations of spontaneous images by analytical therapists and shows the relation of these images to linguistic-rational cognition and to unconscious organisation. The third section brings out the unique function of certain images as symbols containing a wealth of affect-laden material and the fourth portion illustrates the potency of these primarily visual symbols with the work of several depth-therapists whom have made extensive use of induced imagery. LANGUAGE AND PSYCHOTHERAPYLanguage with its implicit logic and classificatory organisation is the medium of psychotherapy, for through it the clinician contacts, knows and interacts with his target structure, whether he calls it 'personality', 'l~i'bidinal organisation', 'cognitive structure' or ~behaviour'. Pavlov (1927) expressed the belief that humans are always engaged in conditioning themselves to the internal signals of covert speech or linguistic images. The relation of inner speech to perceptions, values and beliefs, connects the individual to his social universe. Internal speech is not original, but has its origin in the utterances of others, particularly of the parents. The child learns the vocabulary involved in his socialisation and also a linguistic syntax that amounts to a set of rules for logical thought. From this linguistic matrix emerge the percep'tons, values and beliefs the individual holds about himself and other persons. It is from this connection that the psychological importance of the Whorf-Sapir hypothesis (Whorf, 1956) derives. Is it true that language 'determines' cognition; that is, can linguistic form significantly limit logical progression, conceptualisation and perception and thereby profoundly affect emotional reactions and behaviour? It ...

A qualitative study of the therapist's spontaneous mental imagery and its impact on therapeutic process

“…Another way of understanding imagery was as some form of intermediary agent, either as a ‘transitional object’ facilitating a shift from one psychic space to another, or as a bridge between the non‐verbal (embodied SMI) and the verbal. This latter concept resonates with models of the mind proposed, for example, by Panagiotou and Sheikh (), Bucci () and Schaverien ().…”

A qualitative study of the therapist's spontaneous mental imagery and its impact on therapeutic process

“…This latter concept resonates with models of the mind proposed, for example, by Panagiotou and Sheikh (1977), Bucci (2009) andSchaverien (2007).…”

The Silent Partner: Uses of Imagery in Counseling

“…6. Images tend to bypass the defenses and the usual inhibitions that may occur in verbal blockage, thus opening up wider avenues for exploration in therapy (Panagiotou & Sheikh, 1977;Singer, 1974).…”