Unit 2 Existential Therapy

This unit will discuss the nature and elements of existential therapy. It will highlight Victor
Frankl's logotherapy, which focuses on helping clients find meaning in life.

Topic Learning Outcomes:

1. Demonstrate comprehension of the key concepts and processes of existential therapy.
2. Apply existential therapy techniques and processes to assist clients in difficulties.
3. Critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of existential therapy, particularly with
respect to the applicability of the therapy to different client populations and the problems
presented.

Engage: Overview of Existential Therapy

Explore: The Therapeutic Process
Explain: Logotherapy
Explore: Strengths and Limitations of Existential Therapy
Evaluate: Summative quiz (discretion of Faculty)

ENGAGE

OVERVIEW OF EXISTENTIAL THERAPY

 Existential psychology emphasizes the idea that people are engaged in searching
meaning. Hence, therapeutic practice is based on the understanding of what it
means to be human - not on resolving the unconscious conflicts and childhood
experiences of an individual.

 The existential view of human nature is partially captured by the idea that existence
is never fixed, and that we continually build ourselves through our personal projects.
We continuously evolve, change, and respond to the tensions and needs that arise.

 Existential psychology rejects the mechanistic views of Freudians. As mentioned

earlier, existential psychology sees people as engaged in the search of meaning.
Aside from this, it stresses the idea that a crucial facet of
personality is decision-making. Thus, an individual’s
personality is not only who a person is, but also who the
person might become. Decision-making is a part of human
nature. Choices lead the person into the future with an
anxiety that stems from the inability to predict and control the
unknown. However, as mentioned, the experience of anxiety is
part of being human.

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  Similar to client-centered therapy, existential therapists give importance to
client- therapist relationship. The presence of the therapist places an important role
on the therapeutic relationship. The person-to-person encounter is needed in order
to elicit positive change. Moreover, the therapist’s authenticity (eg. sharing their
reactions, empathy) is important in deepening the therapeutic relationship. The
therapist’s authenticity is also an invitation to the client to be real since the
therapist is modelling authenticity to the client. If the therapist is inauthentic and
guarded, the client will also remain guarded and persist in their inauthentic ways.

 Basic Assumptions (VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE):

1. Emphasizes on choice, freedom, responsibility, and self-determination of the individual

2. It notes that clients are “authors” of their lives
3.In the midst of a meaningless world, individuals are challenged to accept their aloneness
and create meanings in their lives.
4. Being aware of oneself acts as a catalyst for finding meaning

 Key Concepts/ Key Propositions in Existentialism:

1. We have the capacity for self-awareness.

2. We are basically free beings and we must accept the responsibility that
accompanies our freedom.
3. We have a concern to preserve our uniqueness and identity; we come to know
ourselves in relation to knowing and interacting with others.
4. The significance of our existence and the meaning of our life are never fixed once
and for all. Instead, we re-create ourselves through our projects (life projects).
5. Anxiety is part of the human condition.
6. Death is also a basic human condition and awareness of it gives significance to living.

EXPLORE: THE THERAUPEUTIC PROCESS

Therapeutic Goals
Existential therapy is an “invitation” to clients to recognize the ways in which they are not
living fully authentic lives, and to make choices that will lead to their becoming of what
they are capable of being. Basically, the ultimate goal of existential therapy is to help the
client achieve a state where awareness and decision-making is exercised responsibly.
Through therapy, one has to learn to take responsibility and accept the consequences
of their own

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 decisions and to tolerate the anxiety that they experience as they move forward and
towards change.

Therapist’s roles and functions

As we have seen, existential psychology is concerned with self-

awareness, search for meaning, decision-making and dealing with
anxiety that is part of being human. Hence, existential therapists
are primarily concerned with understanding the subjective
world of clients to help them come to new understandings and
options. They are concerned with clients avoiding
responsibility. When clients complain about their situation and
often blame others, the therapist will likely ask how they
contributed to their situation. Here,
the therapist is inviting the client to accept personal responsibility.

Existential therapists deal with client who have what is called a restricted existence - where
clients have limited self-awareness and are vague about the nature of their problem. Aside
from this, they see few options for dealing with life situations and they tend to feel helpless.
Hence, a role of the therapist is to assist the client in recognizing the ways in which
they constrict themselves and the consequences of such constrictions.

Simply put, the therapist will hold a mirror so that the client can engage
in self-confrontation. This way, the client can see how they became the
way they are and how they might change. Once the client is aware of
these things, they can begin the process of change - that is, to start
accepting responsibility for changing their future.

Therapeutic technique
One thing to remember when using existential therapy is that it does not emphasize
techniques. This is because, using a technique implies that the client is an “object” to which
those techniques are applied. However, since we are talking about humanism,
phenomenology, and existentialism, we consider the client as a “subject” - a human being
with essence. Hence, the emphasis is on understanding and experiencing the client as
a unique essence. Therapy should be an encounter for the client by which it would enable
the client to come closer to experiencing the self. Through this experiencing of the self, the
client can learn to attach meaning and value to life.

Nonetheless, there are techniques developed. Still, even if there are techniques, emphasis
is given on the client and the relationship.

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 EXPLAIN: TECHNIQUES TO EXISTENTIAL THERAPY

LOGOTHERAPY

Please Watch: Finding Meaning in Difficult Times (Interview with Dr. Viktor Frankl
Link: https://youtu.be/LlC2OdnhIiQ

This form of existential therapy was introduced by Viktor Frankl. This is

designed to help clients find meaning in life. However, the therapist will
NOT tell the client what their particular meaning in life should be.
Rather, the therapist will point out that they can create meaning in life,
even in suffering (as Frankl noted, even in suffering, there is meaning). It
urges the client to find meaning in what appears to be a callous,
uncaring, and meaningless world.

Logotherapy is said to complement traditional psychotherapy. Meaning, you can use this
hand-in-hand with other forms of psychotherapy, such as psychoanalysis. However,
Frankl noted that when the essence of a particular problem is rooted in the feelings
of meaninglessness or the futility of life, then logotherapy is the choice of therapy.
Logotherapy aims to help the client develop a sense of responsibility and obligations
to life. There are two techniques as described by Frankl: Paradoxical Intention and
De- reflection

1. Paradoxical Intention
This is a popular technique in which the client is told to consciously attempt to perform a
behavior or response that is the object of anxiety and concern. The idea is to replace fear
with a paradoxical wish.

Anxiety neuroses and conditions determined by anxiety and fear (eg. stuttering and
forgetting lines when talking to others, feelings of inferiority and so on) are characterized
by anticipatory anxiety, by which it produces exactly the condition that the client fears. In
turn, it reinforces the anticipatory anxiety, thus creating a vicious cycle until the
client avoids the situations that may evoke his fears.

For example, client X is anticipating that he may embarrass himself by forgetting his lines
when speaking in front of his classmates. When it was his turn to speak in front of the class,
he actually forgot his lines. Because of this incident, he then kept anticipating that he
may forget his lines again whenever there will be activities which require him to speak in
front

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 of others. Eventually, the client will avoid - for instance, by skipping his class when it is
his turn to speak.

According to Frankl, this withdrawal or avoidance of the anxiety and fear-provoking

situations is called wrong passivity. Thus, paradoxical intention aims to substitute wrong
passivity with right passivity by asking the client to do that which he anticipates to fear.
In the case of client X, the therapist might instruct him to intentionally “forget his lines”
when speaking in front of others. According to Frankl, the paradoxical fact is that the
client will be unable to forget his lines when he tries to do that which he fears he will do.
That is why it is called “paradoxical intention”

Paradoxical intention is carried out in a humorous setting as much as possible. Meaning,

the therapist must do this in a light and not-so serious tone. As Allport stated, “the
neurotic who learns to laugh at himself is on the way to self-management”. Through this,
change of attitude toward the symptom and situation may take place. In turn, this
enables the client to detach himself from the neurosis.

2. De-reflection
For de-reflection, the client will be instructed to ignore a troublesome behavior. This is to
substitute wrong activity with right activity. It attempts to divert the client’s attention to
more constructive activities and reflection, rather than engaging in compulsive self-
observation and giving excessive attention to their own responses and bodily
reaction. Through de-reflection, the client is able to ignore his neurosis by focusing his
attention away from himself.

ELABORATE

Of course, just like any other therapy, existential therapy has its strengths and
limitations.

STRENGHTS AND CONTRIBUTIONS

1. It puts the client as the “central focus”

2. It stresses the importance of the client’s experiences and awareness.
3.It emphasizes freedom, responsibility and the capacity to redesign one’s life by choosing
awareness.
4. It encourages clients to live life by their own standards and rules
5. Future-oriented approach as the significant element of time for human beings

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 LIMITATI ONS

1. It lacks a systematic statement of principles of existential therapy (procedures and

methods are vague)
2. It lacks consistent underlying structure
3. Adequate level of functioning is needed. Hence, it may not be applicable for clients
whose cognitive functioning is low. It may also not be applicable to clients with extreme
crisis who need direction
4. The spiritual aspect is seen by Frankl as a separate dimension of man but some
psychologists noted that it should be included as part of man’s psychological aspect
5. It is criticized as teaching or preaching (convincing, instructing, training, leading
suggesting, persuading)

REFERENCES:
Corey, G. (2017). Theory and Practice of Counseling and Psychotherapy (10th edition).
Cengage Learning.
Trull, T. & Prinstein, M. (2013). Clinical Psychology (8th edition). Belmont, CA: Cengage
Learning.
Saint Louis University. Clinical Psychology Manual (Psych 25).

Images:
All images were obtained from various sources, but are under Creative common license.

 Image 1 (Woman Worrying)

Link: https://creazilla.com/nodes/35808-businesswoman-is-worrying-clipart
 Image 2 (Helping hand)
Link: https://pixy.org/961265/
 Image 3 (Holding a mirror)
Link: https://www.pickpik.com/man-rectangular-framed-mirror-sheet-illustration-58876

Property of and for the exclusive use of SLU. Reproduction, storing in a retrieval system, distributing, uploading or posting online, or transmitting in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise of any part of this document, without the prior written permission of SLU, is strictly prohibited.
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  Image 4 (Professor holding a magnifying glass cartoon by Videoplasty.com)
Link: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Professor_Holding_a_Magnifying_Glass_Cartoon.svg

Property of and for the exclusive use of SLU. Reproduction, storing in a retrieval system, distributing, uploading or posting online, or transmitting in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise of any part of this document, without the prior written permission of SLU, is strictly prohibited.
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