PSP Required Courses and Electives- Revised 2021
SUMMARY OF REQUIRED CREDIT HOURS:
Psychoanalytic Theory and Historical Developments 144 Clock Hours
Human Maturation and Development 72 Clock Hours
Modern Analytic Theory and Techniques 144 Clock Hours
Clinical Studies 73 Clock Hours
Electives 18 Clock Hours
TOTAL REQUIRED CLOCK HOURS: 451 Clock Hours
PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY AND HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS (144 Clock Hours)
TH1- Basic Writings of Freud (18 Hours)
Freud summarized his thinking about the human mind and the new discipline of psychoanalysis in two sets of “Introductory Lectures” written 15 years apart. In this course, we will make use of these lectures and other seminal papers to explore Freud’s basic theories and how they evolved with time and clinical experience.
TH2- Freud’s Cases and Technical Papers (18 Hours)
This course will focus on Freud’s major case studies and papers on psychoanalytic technique. These works were seminal for generations of practitioners and still provide much for psychotherapists of all orientations to learn from. Particular attention will be given to comparing Freud’s practices with Modern Psychoanalytic approaches.
TH3- Essential Papers on Transference (18 Hours)
This course will provide a survey of writings on transference many psychoanalytic educators consider ‘essential” for serious students and practitioners of psychoanalysis. These papers will represent a range of theoretical and clinical perspectives and our aim will be to consider their practical applications for our work with clients.
TH4- Essential Papers on Countertransference (18 Hours)
This course will provide a survey of writings on countertransference many psychoanalytic educators consider essential for serious students and practitioners of psychoanalysis. These papers represent a range of theoretical and clinical perspectives and our aim will be to consider their practical applications for our work with clients.
TH5- Essential Papers on Dreams (18 Hours)
This course will survey seminal writings on the role of dreams and primary process thinking in the emotional lives of human beings and its implications for modern psychoanalytic treatment.
TH6- Ego Psychology and Object Relations Theory (18 Hours)
As Freud’s thought matured, he placed increasing emphasis on the roles of the ego and its relations with internal and external objects in the emotional life of human beings. It was up to the next generation of analysts, however, to develop these themes in ways that profoundly altered and expanded the psychoanalytic landscape. Thus, this course will focus on the pioneering contributions of Anna Freud, Melanie Klein, Ronald Fairbairn, Donald Winnicott and Harry Guntrip to modern psychoanalytic theory and technique.
TH7- Evolution of Psychoanalytic Technique Part I (18 Hours)
Although Freud was a prolific writer his specific writings on technique were limited to a few “technical papers” that opened the way for creative elaboration, debate and expansion. This course will focus on the evolution of psychoanalytic technique from early days to the beginnings of Modern Analysis.
TH8- Evolution of Psychoanalytic Technique Part II (18 Hours)
This course will focus on the on-going evolution of modern psychoanalytic technique in America from World-War II to the present.
HUMAN MATURATION AND DEVELOPMENT (72 Clock Hours)
MD1- Human Maturation and Development Conception to 2 years
(prerequisite for MD 2) (18 Hours)
This course explains the constitutional and environmental factors in the first stages of life that contribute to or inhibit maturation. This class provides the student with the opportunity to learn, both intellectually and experientially, about the unfolding lives of human beings. Readings include those derived from the analyses of adults as well as those developed from the direct observation of infants with their mothers. The course emphasizes theories of attachment as they relate to and parallel the development of the therapist-patient relationship and therapeutic interventions. This perspective provides a framework to begin to assess and investigate questions about where a patient might present on an emotional—developmental continuum.
MD2- Human Maturation and Development Conception to 2 years (18 Hours)
The course continues the investigation of the first stages of life and the maturational process. It will explore infant and childhood development and early stages of relationships.
MD3- Human Sexuality and Gender Identity (18 Hours)
This course explores contemporary theories and understanding of sexuality and gender identity since Freud. It will focus on the significance of these aspects of an individual’s life and how it informs therapeutic approaches.
MD4- Human Maturation- Oedipal Stage through Latency Stage (18 Hours)
This class will study the literature, ourselves and others in order to understand the predictable progress of maturation; those things that facilitate it and those things that stand in the way.
Readings will focus on the process of maturation that occurs for each of us in our own time and
way, and the wide range of normalcy and normality.
MODERN ANALYTIC THEORY AND TECHNIQUES (144 Clock Hours)
TX1- Introduction to Theory and Techniques Part I (18 Hours)
This course provides an overview of modern psychoanalytic theory and practice. Emphasis is placed on helping therapists recognize, verbalize and tolerate the patient’s anxieties, fears and characterological defenses in order to create and maintain a therapeutic relationship. Particular attention is paid to resolving treatment destructive resistances, establishing a treatment contract, developing the transference and utilizing joining techniques in specific patient-therapist interactions.
TX2- Advanced Theory and Techniques (18 Hours)
Students who are entering their third year as a matriculated student may take this course.
This course builds on the therapeutic object relationship along with a review of the importance of the analytic triad of neutrality, abstinence and anonymity. We will discuss contrary views within the modern psychoanalytic frame. We will also explore treatment options when treating the “difficult”
patient. We will continue to build upon the concepts of transference and resistance, resistance to transference, narcissistic transference, countertransference.
TX3- Assessment and Diagnosis Advanced Course -Part 1 (18 Hours)
The psychoanalytic practitioner is faced with communicating with the non-psychoanalytic community using the language of medicine and psychiatry while practicing from a psychoanalytic point of view. This course provides a review of assessment techniques and content along with discussions of the common DSM-5 diagnostic criteria which identifies psychopathology. Psychoanalytic theory and perspectives are incorporated as we compare and contrast mainstream psychiatry with psychoanalytic thought. Emphasis is placed on the tools of listening, observing and exploring the patient’s story.
TX4- Training and Preparation of the Modern Analyst-Beginning Practice (18 Hours)
This course exams the beginning process of beginning to work with a client. Some of
the areas that will be studied are: the initial contact the first session, money issues, the therapy contract, the therapeutic frame, what the therapist discloses.
TX5- Identifying and Resolving Resistances (18 Hours)
This course begins with an overview of key concepts and techniques of Modern Psychoanalysis. It focuses on the identification of resistances and their resolution through the use of joins, mirroring, object-oriented questions, commands and other non-interpretive procedures.
TX6- Interpretation in Modern Psychoanalytic Treatment (18 Hours)
This course will compare the use of interpretation as used in the classical mode of psychoanalysis and that used by the modern psychoanalyst. This course focuses on the multi-layered approach to interpretation and the timing of these interventions, that is helpful when working with pre-oedipal clients.
TX7- Ethics of Modern Psychoanalytic Practice-Principles and Challenges (18 Hours)
This course will address the complicated ethical challenges of psychoanalytic practice today. In
addition to central ethical principles and standards, this course will focus on difficult countertransference and other ethical dilemmas that create moral hazards and stress for therapists.
TX8- Culture and Diversity in Psychoanalysis (18 Hours)
This course studies the social and cultural effects on the growth and emotional
maturation of individuals. A study of how culture impacts an individual’s experiences
of their identity, gender, and relationships will be examined. The course will also focus
on the importance of understanding culture diversity in treatment settings.
CLINICAL STUDIES (73 Clock Hours)
CS1- Case Presentation Workshop I (18 Hours)
This course offers a unique opportunity for students to incorporate didactic and experiential learning into practical application in the psychoanalytic treatment of patients. Concomitant with coursework, and as students’ psychoanalytic caseload grows, they will develop skills in gathering patient history, assessing and diagnosing, exploring resistances, identifying defense structures, developmental undercurrents, and understanding the patient-therapist dynamics. Students will be asked to write about some of the aspects of their case and engage in class discussion.
CS2- Case Presentation Workshop II (18 Hours)
This course is an extension of case presentation workshop I, and is focused on enhancing the skills developed previously.
CS3- Psychopathology (18 Hours)
This course will introduce basic psychopathologies and explore the etiology of these emotional illnesses through the perspective of psychoanalytic and other theoretic orientations.
CS4- Psychopharmacology (18 Hours)
This course will help the mental health professional to become more familiar with basic concepts in psychopharmacology. The therapist will become familiar with how different medications work and more aware of their helpful and undesirable effects for their clients.
CS5- Final Case Development Seminar Tutorial (1 Hour)
Students in the Certificate program will work individually with an advisor in writing and completing their final case presentation and research, once the Chairperson of their Certification Committee has accepted their proposal.
ELECTIVES (18 Clock Hours)
E1- Clinical Perspectives on Freud’s Social Thought and Activism (18 Hours)
The early psychoanalytic movement was deeply humanitarian and progressive in spirit. Freud and his early followers viewed psychoanalysis as a method of treatment and a meta-psychological theory with broad implications for the alleviation of human suffering and the improvement/welfare of society. This course will review and consider the contemporary relevance of this history especially for Modern Psychoanalysts.
E2- Maturational Processes Throughout the Lifespan (18 Hours)
This is a survey course that encompasses the maturational process from birth to death. The effects of cultural, familial, environmental and biological factors will be studied, and their influence on the physical and emotional development of an individual.
E3- Maturation-Modern Psychoanalysis and Families with Exceptional Children (18 Hours)
This class studies how parents with offspring who differ from them-in ability, disability, sexual orientation or other radical ways-approach parenting. How those various approaches are experienced by the children, and parents, and the implications are for the Modern Analyst are studied. Andrew Solomon’s book, Far from the Tree, will be used for the course. It explores the parent and child challenges presented by having children who are “different.”
E4- Modern Psychoanalytic Supervision (18 Hours)
This class is held for certified individuals or licensed professionals who like to utilize the orientation of Modern Psychoanalysis as an approach to supervision.
E5- Psychoanalytic Approaches to Organizations, Leadership, and Organizational Consultancy (18 Hours)
Building on an overview of the psychodynamics of organizations and leadership, this course will focus on helping organizations, leaders, and consultants face some of the big challenges of our times like: dealing with momentous change, agile strategic planning, conflict management and creating adaptive collaborative leadership culture.
E6- Modern Analytic Approaches to Group Treatment (18 Hours)
This course studies the unique setting of group work, developing the group contract, group resistances and acting out, management of group interactions, and the overall stages of an ongoing group. The learning of working group process is applicable to the modern psychoanalytic treatment of families, and couples.
E7- Neuroscience and Psychoanalysis (18 Hours)
This class will present the overall structures of the brain, recent research in understanding those areas of the brain, and how they are effected by genetic, and environmental circumstances and the consequential effect on human behavior. This investigation is helpful to the therapists’ understanding and approach to working with their clients.
E8- Clinical Research (18 Hours)
In this course the process of scientific investigation will be examined. Methodology and design of the research inquiry will be discussed. Special focus will be directed towards ethical research practices. Student will learn about the variety of avenues available for finding research material, and how to critically assess this information.
E9- Depression (18 Hours)
This course will review the theories and research on depression from Freud to the present. Environmental and genetic factors that trigger depression will be discussed. The many ways in which depression finds expression, and the modern analytic approach to helping to resolve this condition will be presented.
E10- Borderline and Narcissistic Disorders (18 Hours)
The research and theories will be reviewed in the causes and treatment for borderline and narcissistic individual. Therapeutic approaches and the countertransferences of the therapist working with these individuals will be discussed.