Abstract
This chapter explores the scope, depth, and application of contemporary psychodynamic theory to clinical social work. It opens by refuting several commonly held misconceptions about the psychodynamic approach: that it is synonymous with Freudian psychoanalytic treatment, attends only to internal conflicts rather than to person–environment transactions, and has little empirical support. In fact, the guiding assumptions of psychodynamic theory—the importance of attachment and early development on later functioning; the impact of trauma; the need for sustaining relationships, ego integrity, and a sense of agency; the way the external world is taken in and becomes part of us—are critical to clinical practice. In this chapter, the components of a psychodynamic assessment and case formulation are explored, each with specific examples and assessment suggestions: defenses, affect and affect regulation, attachment style and relational patterns, identifications, conflicts, pathogenic beliefs, self-esteem and identity, trauma, strengths, and the interaction between self and aspects of the environment (e.g., how internalized stigma and oppression affect beliefs, motivation, self-efficacy, and expectations about life). Also important in the psychodynamic perspective is the clinician’s use of self as an important source of knowledge.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Alford, F. (1989). Melanie Klein and critical social theory. New Haven: Yale University Press.
Altman, N. (2010). The analyst in the inner city: Race, class, and culture through a psychoanalytic lens (2nd ed.). Hillsdale: The Analytic Press.
Berzoff, J., Melano Flanagan, L., & Hertz, P. (Eds.). (2011). Inside out and outside in: Psychodynamic clinical theory and psychopathology in contemporary multicultural contexts (3rd ed.). Lanham: Jason Aronson.
Borden, W. (2009). Contemporary psychodynamic theory and practice. Chicago: Lyceum Books.
Brandell, J. (2004). Psychodynamic social work. New York: Columbia University Press.
Brandell, J., & Ringel, S. (2007). Attachment & dynamic practice: An integrative guide for social workers & other clinicians. New York: Columbia University Press.
Clarke, S. (2003). Social theory, psychoanalysis and racism. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Cozolino, L. (2014). The neuroscience of human relationships (2nd ed.). New York: W.W. Norton & Company.
Craib, I. (1989). Psychoanalysis and social theory. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press.
Drisko, J., & Grady, M. (2012). Evidence-based practice in clinical social work. New York: Springer.
Elliot, A. (2004). Social theory since freud: Traversing social imaginaries. London: Routledge.
Fonagy, P. (2001). Attachment theory and psychoanalysis. New York: Other Press.
Fonagy, P., Roth, A., & Higgitt, A. (2005). Psychodynamic psychotherapies: Evidence-based practice and clinical wisdom. Bulletin of the Menniger Clinic, 69(1), 1–58.
Goldstein, E. (1995). Ego psychology and social work practice. New York: Free Press.
Goldstein, E. (2001). Object relations theory and self psychology in social work practice. New York: The Free Press.
Goldstein, E., Miehls, D., & Ringel, S. (2009). Advanced clinical social work practice: Relational principles and techniques. New York: Columbia University Press.
Haynes, K. (1998). The one-hundred year debate: Social reform versus individual treatment. Social Work, 43(6), 501–509.
Hinshelwood, R. D. (1989). A dictionary of Kleinian thought. London: Free Association Books.
Kealy, D., & Rasmussen, B. (2012). Veiled and vulnerable: The other side of grandiose narcissism. Clinical Social Work Journal, 40(1), 356–365.
Kondrat, M. E. (2002). Actor-centered social work: Re-visioning person-in-environment through a critical theory lens. Social Work, 47(4), 435–448.
Layton, L., Hollander, N. C., & Gutwill, S. (Eds.). (2006). Psychoanalysis, class and politics: Encounters in the clinical setting. London: Routledge.
Luborsky, L. & Crits-Christoph. (1998). Understanding transference: The core-conflictual relationship theme method (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
McWilliams, N. (1999). Psychoanalytic case formulation. New York: Guilford Press.
McWilliams, N. (2004). Psychoanalytic psychotherapy: A practitioner’s guide. New York: Guilford Press.
Miehls, D., & Applegate, J. (2014). Introduction to neurobiology and clinical social work. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 84(2–3), 140–143.
Mishna, F., Van Wert, M., & Asakura, K. (2013). The best kept secret in social work: Empirical support for contemporary psychodynamic social work practice. Journal of Social Work Practice, 27(3), 289–303.
Moore, B., & Fine, B. (1990). Psychoanalytic terms and concepts. New Haven: The American Psychoanalytic Association and Yale University Press.
Northcut, T., & Heller, N. (1998). Assessment of cognitive schemes and attribution in psychodynamic treatment. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 68, 185–202.
Oliver, K. (2004). The colonization of psychic space: A psychoanalytic social theory of oppression. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Palombo, J., Bendicsen, H., & Koch, B. (2009). Guide to psychoanalytic developmental theories. New York: Springer.
Payne, M. (2005). Modern social work theory (3rd ed.). Chicago: Lyceum Books.
PDM Task Force. (2006). Psychodynamic diagnostic manual. Silver Spring, MD: Alliance of Psychoanalytic Organizations.
Rasmussen, B., & Salhani, D. (2008). Resurrecting fromm. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 78(2/3), 225–301.
Rasmussen, B., & Salhani, D. (2010a). Some social implications of psychoanalytic theory: A social work perspective. Journal of Social Work Practice, 24(2), 209–225.
Rasmussen, B., & Salhani, D. (2010b). A contemporary Kleinian contribution to understanding racism. Social Service Review, 84(3), 333–350.
Ringel, S. & Brandell, J. (Eds.). (2012). Trauma: Contemporary directions in theory, practice, and research. Los Angeles: Sage.
Rustin, M. (1991). The good society and the inner world: Psychoanalysis. Verso, London: Politics and Culture.
Schamess, G. (2011). Structural theory. In J. Berzoff, L. Melano Flanagan, & P. Hertz (Eds.), Inside out and outside in: Psychodynamic clinical theory and psychopathology in contemporary multicultural contexts (3rd ed.). Lanham: Jason Aronson.
Schamess, G., & Shilkret, R. (2011). Ego Psychology. In J. Berzoff, L. Melano Flanagan, & P. Hertz (Eds.), Inside out and outside in: Psychodynamic clinical theory and psychopathology in contemporary multicultural contexts (3rd ed.). Lanham: Jason Aronson.
Schore, J. (2012a). The science of the art of psychotherapy. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.
Schore, J. (2012b). Using concepts from interpersonal neurobiology in revisiting psychodynamic theory. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 82, 90–111.
Schore, J., & Schore, A. (2014). Regulation theory and affect regulation psychotherapy: A primer. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 84(2–3), 178–195.
Shedler, J. (2010). The efficacy of psychodynamic psychotherapy. American Psychologist, 65(2), 98–109.
Shilkret, R., & Shilkret, C. (2011). Attachment theory. In J. Berzoff, L. Melano Flanagan, & P. Hertz (Eds.), Inside out and outside in Psychodynamic clinical theory and psychopathology in contemporary multicultural contexts (3rd ed.). Lanham: Jason Aronson.
Silberschatz, G. (2005). An overview of research on control-mastery theory. In G. Silberschatz (Ed.), Transformative relationships: Control-mastery theory of psychotherapy (pp. 189–218). New York: Routledge.
Summers, R. F., & Barber, J. P. (2010). Psychodynamic psychotherapy: A guide to evidence base practice. New York: Guildford.
Van der Kolk, B. A. (2005). Developmental trauma disorder: Toward a rational diagnosis for children with complex trauma histories. Psychiatric Annals, 35(5), 401–408.
Wachtel, P. (2002). Psychoanalysis and the disenfranchised: From therapy to justice. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 19(1), 199–215.
Westen, D. (1998). The scientific legacy of Sigmund Freud. Psychological Bulletin, 125(3), 333–371.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Rasmussen, B. (2015). A Psychodynamic Perspective on Assessment and Formulation. In: Probst, B. (eds) Critical Thinking in Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis. Essential Clinical Social Work Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-17774-8_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-17774-8_8
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-17773-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-17774-8
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawSocial Sciences (R0)