Depth Psychology

In the section on deep psychology I deal with the following methods:

Analytical psychology according to CG Jung
Psychodrama according to Moreno
Transaction analysis according to Eric Berne

Analytical therapy according to CG Jung

Psychodrama

Psychodrama according to Jacob Levy Moreno:

Psychodrama is based on a dramatic and action-oriented method in which participants explore their personal experiences and inner conflicts through role play, improvisation and dramatic performances.

The most important characteristics of psychodrama according to Moreno are:

Spontaneity and creativity: Psychodrama encourages the spontaneity and creativity of participants by encouraging them to express their feelings and thoughts and take on different roles in a safe environment.
Role reversal: A key feature of psychodrama is role reversal. Participants can slip into the role of other people or even parts of themselves in order to gain a new perspective and better understand their inner conflicts.
Stage and set design: Psychodrama uses a stage or a special room to present the actions and scenes. The participants can use props and stage sets to make the situations more vivid.
Direct expression of feelings: Psychodrama encourages participants to express their deep feelings and emotions directly rather than limiting themselves to verbal communication.
Community and interaction: Psychodrama is usually conducted in groups to explore and improve social interactions and relationships. The group members can support each other and learn from each other.
Creative learning: By acting and identifying with different roles, participants can recognise their own behavioural patterns and relationship dynamics and discover new ways of dealing with them.
Focus on the here and now: Psychodrama concentrates on participants' current problems and experiences in order to find practical solutions and promote personal growth.
Experiential approach: Psychodrama emphasises the direct experience of emotions and situations rather than just talking about them.
Doubling and mirroring: Trainers or another group participant can serve as a "double" to mirror a participant's feelings and thoughts and offer them a different perspective on their situation.
Integration of body, mind and spirit: Psychodrama recognises the close connection between body, mind and spirit and uses physical movements and expressions to support emotional and psychological processes.

Use of the methods for my work as a coach and management trainer:

Self-awareness and reflection: Psychodrama enables participants to explore their inner thoughts, feelings and behavioural patterns. This promotes self-awareness and enables managers to identify their strengths and weaknesses and reflect on their behaviour.
Communication and interaction: By acting in scenes and interacting with other participants, managers can improve their interpersonal skills. They learn to communicate effectively, resolve conflicts and build relationships.
Leadership skills: Psychodrama offers the opportunity to experience and explore different leadership roles. This enables managers to strengthen their leadership skills and adapt their leadership styles.
Decision-making and problem-solving: Psychodrama can help to promote creativity and flexibility in decision-making and problem-solving. Managers learn to develop innovative solutions and deal with uncertainty and complexity.
Conflict management: Psychodrama offers a safe environment in which to analyse and deal with conflicts. Managers can act out conflicts on stage and thus develop new approaches to conflict management.
Emotional intelligence: Through the direct expression of emotions and empathy for others, managers can improve their emotional intelligence. This is particularly important in order to create a supportive and compassionate working environment.
Stress management and resilience: In psychodrama, stressful situations can be re-enacted in order to develop strategies for coping with stress. Managers learn to become more resilient and cope better with challenges.
Teamwork and collaboration: Psychodrama in the group promotes an understanding of the dynamics of teams and the importance of collaboration. Managers can learn to form and lead effective teams.
Authenticity and self-expression: Psychodrama encourages participants to be authentic and express themselves. Managers can learn to communicate honestly and clearly and remain true to themselves.
Personal growth and development: Psychodrama enables leaders to tackle personal challenges and develop themselves. It offers an opportunity to develop new skills and unfold oneself in a supportive environment.

Transactional Analysis according to Eric Berne

Transactional analysis is a psychological theory and therapy method developed by Canadian psychiatrist Eric Berne in the 1950s.

It is based on the idea that people relate to each other through their patterns of communication and interaction.

The most important features are

- Ego states: Transactional analysis describes three ego states - parent, adult and child. These ego states represent different aspects of the personality and influence a person's behaviour and communication.
  - Parent ego state: This state corresponds to the internalised voices and behaviours that a person has adopted from their parents or other authority figures. These can be supportive, caring behaviours or critical and punitive behaviours.
  - Adult ego state: The adult ego state is reason-orientated and based on objective information and rational decisions. It is the state in which a person acts free of emotional overreactions.
  - Child ego state: The child ego state represents the emotions, spontaneous reactions and behaviours that a person experienced and internalised in childhood. There is the free child mode and the adapted child who reacts to rules and expectations.
- Transactions: Transactions are the exchange of messages and interactions between the ego states of two or more people. There are different types of transactions, such as complementary transactions (when the ego states complement each other) or crossed transactions (when the ego states do not match). The type of transaction influences the dynamics and outcome of interpersonal encounters.
- Life script: The life script is a concept in transactional analysis that refers to the unconscious life plans and beliefs that a person develops based on their early experiences and the messages they have received from significant others. The life script influences a person's behaviour and can have positive or negative effects.
- Drivers: Drivers are inner beliefs or messages that a person has developed over the course of their life. These drivers influence a person's behaviour and thought patterns and can lead to certain behaviours. There are five common drivers:
  - Be perfect: People with this driver strive to do everything perfectly and suffer from self-criticism when they don't reach their own high standards.
  - Be strong: People with this driver often show no weakness and believe that they should always be strong and independent.
  - Hurry: People with this driver always feel pressed for time and have difficulty relaxing or living in the moment.
  - Do right by others: People with this driver feel obliged to help others and neglect their own needs.
  - Work hard: People with this driver believe that they have to work hard to earn recognition and love.
Drivers can cause a person to be trapped in unhealthy behaviour patterns and lead to stress, frustration and emotional difficulties.

- OK positions: The OC positions (also known as basic positions or life positions) are the fundamental attitudes that a person adopts towards themselves and other people. Eric Berne identified four OK positions:
  - I am OK, you are OK: This is the healthiest OK position. A person who adopts this position feels valuable and respects other people as equal and valuable.
  - I'm okay, you're not okay: In this position, a person feels valuable and superior to other people. It can lead to arrogant or dominant behaviour.
  - I'm not okay, you're okay: This is where a person feels inferior or inadequate compared to others. It can lead to passive or submissive behaviour.
  - I'm not okay, you're not okay. This position is sometimes also referred to as "hopelessness" or "disillusionment". In this OK position, a person feels inferior or inadequate to both themselves and others. There is a feeling of hopelessness and a lack of confidence in themselves and other people. This OC position can arise from traumatic experiences or prolonged negative life circumstances where a person feels that they have no control over their life and there is no possibility of change or improvement.
OC positions can strongly influence a person's behaviour and interpersonal relationships. A positive OC position, in which both one's own esteem and the esteem of other people is present, is desirable in order to promote healthy self-esteem and positive interpersonal relationships.
- Play analysis: Transactional analysis also examines the concept of "psychological play". A game is a patterned sequence of transactions with hidden intentions that often have negative effects on the people involved. The aim of game analysis is to recognise and change unhealthy patterns.
Use of the methods for my work as a coach and management trainer:
1. Self-reflection and self-awareness: The transactional analysis models, in particular the ego states and script analysis, help managers to understand their own behaviour and thought patterns. Through this self-reflection, they can become aware of their strengths and weaknesses and work specifically on their personal development.
2. Communication and relationship skills: Transactional analysis analyses interactions and transactions between people. Coaching and leadership development benefit from this approach by enabling leaders to improve their communication patterns and build more effective relationships with their team members and colleagues.
3. Conflict resolution and team dynamics: By understanding the transactions and games, leaders and coachees can learn to recognise conflicts early and resolve them productively. This promotes healthy team dynamics and contributes to a positive working atmosphere.
4. Emotional intelligence: Transactional analysis emphasises the importance of emotions and their impact on behaviour. Coaching and leadership development can promote emotional intelligence by strengthening emotional competence and supporting the appropriate regulation of emotions and empathising with others.
5. Authentic leadership: By understanding their own ego states, managers can learn to develop an authentic leadership personality. They can learn to react consciously and appropriately to situations instead of unconsciously falling back on old patterns.
6. Change management: Transactional analysis can help to understand and promote motivation and readiness for change. Coaching can help managers to organise change processes in their teams more effectively.
7. Personal responsibility: Transactional analysis promotes the concept of personal responsibility. Coaching and leadership development can help people to take responsibility for their behaviour, their decisions and their lives.