Structural Dream Analysis: a narrative research method for investigating the meaning of dream series in analytical psychotherapies

  • Christian Roesler (Author)
    Catholic University Freiburg Germany

    Christian Roesler

    Prof. Dr. Dipl.-Psych.

    Psychologischer Psychotherapeut

    Psychoanalytiker (C.G.Jung-Institut Zürich)

     

    Professor of Clinical Psychology

    Catholic University of Applied Sciences Freiburg

    Karlsstr. 63, 79104 Freiburg, Germany

    Tel. +49 761 200 1513

    Email: christian.roesler@kh-freiburg.de

    www.kh-freiburg.de

     

     

    Professor of Analytical Psychology

    University of Basel

    Department of Psychology

    Missionsstr. 60/62

    4001 Basel

    Switzerland

     

     

    Visiting Professor

    Graduate School of Education

    Kyoto University

    Kyoto,Japan


     

Identifiers (Article)

Abstract

Patient dreams in psychotherapy can be seen as narratives pointing to underlying conflicts as well as to potential solutions for overcoming mental health problems. Conceptualizations of the dream and its potential in the psychoanalytic tradition meanwhile are well supported by empirical dream research, which has moved dream interpretation from a Freudian perspective towards CG Jung’s theory of dreaming. Nevertheless there is a strong need for more research connecting the meaning conveyed by the dream with the psychopathology of the patient and with process in psychotherapy.  Structural Dream Analysis (SDA) as a method to investigate the meaning conveyed in dream series from analytical psychotherapies is introduced. It combines earlier methods of narrative analysis with psychoanalytic ways of interpreting symbols into a coherent and manualised interpretive method;  the application of the method is demonstrated with a case example.

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Published
2018-05-15
Language
en
Contributor or sponsoring agency
Kyoto University, Graduate School of Education, Kyoto, Japan
Keywords
Dream interpretation, Freudian and Jungian Psychoanalysis, Psychotherapy Process, Narrative Analysis, Empirical Dream Research
How to Cite
Roesler, C. (2018). Structural Dream Analysis: a narrative research method for investigating the meaning of dream series in analytical psychotherapies. International Journal of Dream Research, 11(1), 21–29. https://doi.org/10.11588/ijodr.2018.1.41330