Dream Work: A Psychoanalytic Perspective ______________________________________________________
Secondary revision occurs as a result of the natural tendency to organize disconnected elements into a coherent whole. It is the application of conscious thought processes to the dream material. It polishes the disparate, poorly organized contents of a dream so that it approximates conscious thought (e.g., a coherent daydream). Secondary revision attempts to produce sense and order—a comprehensible narrative [1; 13; 18]. Freud demonstrated that psychologic understanding can make a substantial difference in the lives of troubled individuals and an important contribution to the whole of civilization. His pioneering work established the foundation of contemporary dream research [1; 2; 19].
can develop if early objects are inadequate; they also describe corrective (e.g., therapeutic) experiences that create change. An object relations approach gives special attention to dream references that describe clients’ reactions to their analyst. Eminent psychoanalyst Heinz Kohut identified the self as the all-important structure of personality. Self develops from one’s experiences both in subjective and interrelated situations. It is a concept more directly related to individual experience than are the concepts of drive, ego, or object. Self psychologists emphasize the importance of achieving a cohesive sense of identity and autonomy; threats to this secure sense of self bring fear of personal disintegration. The experience of empathy, both in the course of early development and later in thera- peutic relationships, is central to healthy self-development. Like Freud, Kohut felt that most dreams hold wishes, but he added the concept of self-state dreams. Self-state dreams are generally believed to be an effort to master or integrate threat- ening psychologic material, much in the way that traumatic dreams are processed. Dream work is a departure from classical dream interpreta- tion, which explores the images and emotions evoked without focusing on a single meaning of the dream. Through dream work, one learns about oneself, often with the help of others. Sharing dreams in small, empathic groups has been shown to increase dreamers’ associations and insights and promote healing [22; 23]. Dreamers and listeners are equally capable of accurate understanding. Dream workers use ideas from many sources, including Freud and Jung; they do not necessarily feel that therapists are required. Dream workers’ contributions include group techniques, methods for recalling and record- ing dreams, and validation of dreamers’ interpretive expertise. Many also include spiritual discussion in their approach [24]. Differences within psychoanalysis need not challenge its valid- ity. Rather, bringing diverse approaches to dream analysis supports the validity of psychoanalysis while adding value to the practice of dream analysis. In one study, analysts with four different orientations each interpreted a patient’s dream. Although their interpretations differed, all were found to be correct and all indicated the existence of a major psychody- namic issue that emerged over the course of the patient’s seven-year analysis [25]. MODERN DREAM RESEARCH Researchers remain challenged by the psychologic issues identi- fied in Freud’s time and before. Determining the meaning and origin of dreams, addressing the problem of recall, unraveling the mystery of content, and accounting for dream function are all issues that continue to be researched and discussed. Research examples come from psychology, neuropsychology, psychoanalysis, and neuroscience.
SHARED CONCEPTS WITHIN PSYCHOANALYSIS
Freud’s study of dreams founded over a century of psychoana- lytic research and practice. It marked the beginning of his drive theory, which began with the premise that human behavior is determined by biologic drives that operate outside conscious- ness. Freud concluded that the greater part of psychologic life is unconscious. Sexual and aggressive strivings, he found, are central motives throughout life; illnesses can begin with their repression. He described the sexual life of children, includ- ing the Oedipus complex, and noted that childhood sexual fantasies and experiences have a determining effect on adult character and personality. Each of these tenets is rooted in clinical observation and in the analysis of dreams. In addition to Freud’s formulations, at least four additional, distinctive psychologies exist within psychoanalysis, each emphasizing specific aspects of human development and func- tion. Ego psychology, closest to Freud’s drive theory, describes adaptations developed in response to conflicts between internal drives and external realities. Freud’s daughter, Anna, a gifted analyst in her own right, named these adaptations “defense mechanisms” and created the terminology so familiar today (e.g., denial, repression, projection, identification). Ego psychologists emphasize the importance of studying normal ego functioning, defined as efforts “to achieve the maximum degree of drive satisfaction consistent with the limitations imposed by the environment” [20]. These theorists point to the ego’s functions in the outside world (e.g., thinking, learning, impulse control) and note that sexual and aggressive drives can be redirected. Like Freud, ego psychologists value dreams for their revelations of thoughts hidden in waking life. Object relations theorists believe that individuals develop prototypes of interpersonal relationships that are repeated throughout life. Objects achieve internal psychic representation as well as external influence. The theorist might argue, “There is no such thing as a baby…There is only a baby with a mother” [21]. Total dependency characterizes the early years of human development, and the resulting attachments have an endur- ing influence. Object relations theorists describe deficits that
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