- Is it a treatment method where the patient is lying on a couch, talking freely while the analyst is listening and commenting now and then? If so, is the analyst’s aim to assist the patient in understanding more of herself and leading a more satisfactory life?
- Or a theory of the human psyche – both about its upper-most layers and the ones beneath the surface, the conscious and the unconscious. Are analysts only interested in the unconscious, or…?
- Or a way of researching what humans feel, which inner powers rule us, which notions we form about ourselves and other people? If so, is it the same kind of research as the one that goes on in labs and clinics, or…?
My reply: Yes to all three suggestions – but each of them certainly raises new questions!
Under this main caption Psychoanalysis you can read more about how I look at psychoanalytic work and research. Read further on about work with adults.