Approach 2: The Psychodynamic Approach: Therapy – Dream Analysis
A Psychodynamic therapy: Dream Analysis (pg 34-35)
Note: In the textbook, there are two psychodynamic therapies covered. We will be studying in depth the therapy of Dream Analysis. The
other therapy is free association. In the exam you will be asked about both therapies, but you only need to write about one.
TASK

With the people around you discuss the two following questions. Why do we dream? Do dreams have a meaning?
What is psychoanalysis?
Psychodynamic theories have been quite successful in the treatment of mental illnesses.
Psychoanalysis is one therapy developed by Freud to treat mental disorders. Psychoanalytic
therapy is based on the assumption that individuals are often unaware of the influence of
unconscious conflicts on their current psychological state. The aim of psychodynamic
therapy is to help bring these conflicts into the conscious mind where they can be dealt
with.
All psychodynamic therapies work on two levels. Firstly, catharsis is the process of talking about negative
emotions and memories, getting things out of your unconscious which may otherwise cause you stress, and
in the process, feeling better about them. Insight again involves making unconscious thoughts and feelings
conscious, with the aim that by making them conscious, a person can then confront and deal with them.
TASK

How do these two processes link back to the assumptions of the psychodynamic approach?
Both dream analysis and free association are parts of psychoanalysis. However, we are only going to study
dream association.
Dreams are the royal road
to the unconscious
What are dreams?
TASK

(Freud, 1900)
Have you ever had a really memorable dream? Any interesting dreams recently?
Dreams as Primary Process thought (repression) and as wish fulfilment
The most important aspect of our personality when we look at dreams is our _________. This is
because it is the source of our wishes and fantasies. It is instinct driven, irrational and impulse led.
Freud called this primary process thought. In our conscious minds, a lot of these impulses are seen
as unacceptable, and so are repressed as a way to protect the conscious mind. However, when we
dream, the ________ has more freedom, and so dreams can be a source of wish fulfilment. Freud
argued that all dreams were the unconscious fulfilment of wishes that could not be satisfied in the
conscious mind.
TASK
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Approach 2: The Psychodynamic Approach: Therapy – Dream Analysis

How does this explanation link back to the assumptions of the psychodynamic approach?
The symbolic nature of dreams
Although dreams allow us to fulfil our unconscious wishes and desires, the actual content of a dream is often
expressed symbolically. This is because if we dreamed what we actually desired, it may cause anxiety and
stress to the conscious mind. Therefore, dreams are filtered through layers of symbolism, allowing us to
have our wish fulfilment, but still protecting our conscious from the harmful content of the unconscious.
TASK

Use the information on pg 34, and define the following terms
Manifest content is __________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Latent content is ____________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Can you think of any examples of manifest and latent content?
Dream analysis
TASK

Use the information in the book and on the slides to complete the missing information below.
AIM
The interpretation of the dream is not the final aim of dream analysis. This is just a tool used
by the therapist to access the unconscious (much like the Rorschach inkblot tests and the
word associations we did in an earlier lesson). The aim of dream analysis is to interpret
the meaning of dreams as a way of accessing unconscious thoughts and feelings. By
bringing these to conscious awareness, (by gaining insight) issues can be dealt with, and
unconscious conflicts can be resolved. Talking about the underlying issues can be
cathartic for the patient.
The purpose of dream analysis in therapy therefore is to uncover the _______________ content of a dream
by examining the ________________ content.
MAIN FEATURES
A patient will talk to the therapist about the _________________ content of their dream, and the therapist
will help guide the patient to uncovering the _________________ content. Freud argued that it is necessary
to consider all dreams in the context of someone’s life. For example, dreaming of a fish my symbolise a fear
of water in one person, and symbolise a friend who is a fisherman for someone else.
Importantly,
______________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________ _______________________
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Approach 2: The Psychodynamic Approach: Therapy – Dream Analysis
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________
Dreamwork
The latent content of the dream is transformed into the manifest content of the dream by
the process of dreamwork. These are methods used by the conscious to transform the
unacceptable wishes and desires of unconscious into symbols so that they can be
expressed in dreams without causing problems to the conscious mind. The therapist will
use these principles to help the patient decipher the meaning of their dream. In effect,
what the therapist is trying to do is reverse to process of dreamwork, and get to the
original latent content of the dream.
TASK
 Cut out and stick the information into the correct boxes below
Condensation
Displacement
Representation and symbolism
Secondary elaboration
TASK

Read the case study below. Have a go at interpreting Bob’s dream. Try to use the correct dreamwork terms
Bob was recently made redundant from his job at a rug factory, and is struggling to find work. He has
also been having relationship difficulties with his wife. Last night he had a dream that he was on a
flying carpet, but fell off. He was caught by his mother. She shouted at him for letting go of the flying
carpet, which then flew into a tree and caught fire. He started picking leaves off a nearby bush trying
to make a new carpet, but it kept falling apart in his hands. His mother frowned at him, and took his
favourite pencil from her pocket. She broke it in half, laughed and walked away.
My interpretation:
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Approach 2: The Psychodynamic Approach: Therapy – Dream Analysis
TASK

How could psychodynamic theory explain nightmares?
However, Freud himself acknowledged that not everything in dreams is
symbolic. As he famously once
Sometimes a cigar is just a
said...
cigar!
FINDINGS FROM RESEARCH
Freud based many of his theories on interactions with his patients. We can use some of his
case studies as evidence of the success rate of dream analysis.
TASK

Pick one of the case studies on page 50. Briefly summarise what Freud did, and how this dream uses the
principles of dreamwork.
Solms (2000) found some further evidence for Freud’s theories of dreaming. He used PET
scans (a type of brain scan) to monitor people’s brains when they were asleep. He found
that when people were dreaming, the forebrain (which is involved with memory and
motivation) was very active, while regions of the brain concerned with rational thought
were inactive. In Freud’s language, the rational conscious ego was dormant and the
primitive, unconscious id is given free reign.
Going further...



Many large bookshops stock dream dictionaries. According to Freud, how useful would these be?
Keep a dream diary and see if any themes emerge. Do these dreams correlate with things that are happening in your life?
Have a go at using the principles of dreamwork to analyse your own dreams (just for fun!)
Research what other theories there are for dreaming. What does the biological or cognitive approach say?
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