What is EXISTENTIAL ANALYSIS and LOGOTHERAPY?

Summary for download

The aim of Existential Analysis: to help man to find a way of living where he can give his inner consent to his own acting (“affirmation of life”).

Definition

Existential Analysis can be defined as a phenomenological and person-oriented psychotherapy, with the aim to lead the person to dare (mentally and emotionally) free experiences, to induce authentic decisions and to bring about a truly responsible way of dealing with life and the world. Thus, Existential Analysis can be applied in cases of psychosocial, psychosomatic and psychological caused disorder in experience and behaviour.

The psychotherapeutic process takes place via phenomenological analysis of the emotions as the centre of experiences. Biographical work and empathic listening by the therapist contribute to an improvement in emotional understanding and accessibility.

Logotherapy is a method of counselling or helping in the quest for meaning.

Short description

Existential analysis is an approach in psychotherapy. It combines a great respect for a person’s individual life choices with therapeutic effective means. Its phenomenological approach allows to take all possible aspects of an individual’s experience into consideration.

Grounded originally in the anthropological concepts of Viktor Frankl today its main theoretical conception consists in a more practically and methodologically applicable anthropology (Alfried Längle, Vienna).

This assumes that man is moved in his life by four fundamental motivations, the first of which is his need to be able to accept the basic conditions of his life, the second comprising his need to feel values and to have relationships, the third his quest to become his own person and the fourth to achieve something meaningful in the world. The theoretical concept of these fundamental motivations provide the necessary framework to situate and treat all kinds of psychic problems.

This concept is unique to the approach taught by the GLE.

A little more extensive description

Existential analysis was conceived by Viktor E. Frankl in the 1930s as an anthropological theory of an existential school of psychotherapy. At the same time Frankl developed “Logotherapy” as a meaning-oriented form of counselling and treatment.
Existential analysis means an analysis of the conditions necessary for a life in which values have their place and that is self-shaped and dignified.

The aim of existential analysis is to develop one’s perceptiveness and individual activity (capability for devotion) in one’s experiences, relations and actions. This means that existential analysis deals with the personal conditions prerequisite for a meaningful existence in cases where these are blocked by psychic illnesses or troubles.

Its theoretical and practical basis is the concept of the fundamental motivations (Längle) which are systematically referred to in counselling and therapy as the “building blocks of existence”. In addition, the method of “Personal Existential Analysis” is used in therapy. This represents an existential and phenomenological method of psychotherapy which makes it possible to treat psychogenetic (particularly neurotic) troubles with existential analysis in the way of depth psychology. This form of existential analysis was developed in the GLE and is exclusively taught there.

The concepts of the GLE constitute an elaboration of Frankl’s approach and, in particular, include work on emotions and biography. This is especially important since the existential analytical and logotherapeutical anthropology sees humans as beings who constantly shape their lives with conscious or unconscious decisions. But decisions can only be taken in a meaningful way, if the values in question are made conscious, are experienced and are weighed against each other. This act requires perceptivity as far as the world around is concerned instead of self-absorption. Furthermore, this is only possible if one has access to one’ s emotions which bring a person in touch with his or her values.

Existential analysis does not see a person as the mere result of innerpsychic processes or of the influences of his environment, but as someone who can shape himself in those things that count in life. Therefore notions like being (existence), relation (values), freedom of decision, responsibility (conscience) form the fundamental concepts of the existential analytical way of thinking and they all lead to the idea of “meaning” (=logos).

The practical application of logotherapy as a meaning-oriented form of counselling and treatment consists primarily in assisting people who are not (yet) ill, but who suffer from a sense of loss of existential orientation. Thus logotherapy is widely applicable in psychological, psychohygienic, social, preventive, caring, educational and pastoral fields. It contributes to the prophylaxis of neuroses and to the prevention and treatment of feelings of meaninglessness and emptiness (“existential vacuum”). Its aim is to enhance the individual experience of meaning by leading to a freely chosen responsibility (“individual responsibility”).

Existential analysis and logotherapy dispose of roughly a dozen specific methods and techniques to realise this conception.

Leading a meaningful life means doing what one has sensed and recognized as being valuable.