Is psychoanalysis better or worse than behavioural therapy?
They are both different ways of understanding people and how people change. Behavioural therapy (or Cognitive Behavior Therapy – CBT) tries to understand and change the thought processes that lead someone to act in an unhelpful manner. It doesn’t look at the WHY of that behaviour, or where it comes from. It can be very effective in the short term, but may not uncover deep rooted issues. For example, Behavioural therapy can be very effective at tackling phobias. However, someone with deep rooted problems may just exchange one phobia for another. Psychoanalysis is usually long term, at least 8 months to a year in duration (often longer). It can really help you understand your past, and why you act in certain ways. However some people just are not able or ready to ‘go there’. Often people feel worse before they feel better when they are in psychoanalysis. I favour an integrative approach, utilising certain aspects of psychoanalysis, behavioural therapies, and a third theory, humanistic th
