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The major traditions and concepts of psychoanalysis
This comprehensive introductory programme offers a rigorous exploration of the psychoanalytic tradition, providing the essential theoretical grounding required for advanced clinical practice. Designed for counsellors, psychologists, and trainees, this six-hour CPD course demystifies the intellectual lineage that underpins much of contemporary psychodynamic therapy. We move beyond superficial overviews to examine the historical evolution of the discipline, ensuring learners grasp the foundational shifts that have shaped modern therapeutic thought. By establishing a strong historical context, the course enables professionals to critically evaluate different theoretical approaches and understand the evolution of the therapeutic relationship.
The curriculum meticulously traces the trajectory from Sigmund Freud’s initial formulations to the diverse schools of thought that emerged in the twentieth century. Learners will engage with the distinct contributions of Ego Psychology, Object Relations Theory, the Kleinian tradition, Self Psychology, and the Relational Turn. By comparing these frameworks, participants will develop a nuanced understanding of how differing theoretical lenses interpret the structure of the mind and the dynamics of early development. This comparative analysis is crucial for clinicians who wish to navigate complex clinical material with a flexible and informed theoretical toolkit.
Beyond historical context, the course delves into the core clinical concepts that differentiate psychoanalysis from other modalities. We explore the significance of phantasy, the role of the unconscious, and the mechanisms of defence. Crucially, the module on method focuses on the art of psychoanalytic listening—how the therapist attends to transference, interprets resistance, and maintains a frame that facilitates the emergence of unconscious material. This training is designed to equip professionals with the critical tools necessary to distinguish between different levels of interpretation and to foster a deeper, more empathetic understanding of the patient’s internal world.
▶ See inside the digital classroom1 minute 36 seconds · how a course is laid out, how each lesson is taught, and how the tutor helps
Before you start
This is a Foundation course in the psychoanalytic pathway. It assumes nothing: it is written for someone meeting the approach for the first time. What it adds is the working model, its vocabulary and its evidence base, so that the Practitioner course can assume them; it revisits the foundations only as far as it needs to before building on them, so it does not repeat the course below.
The psychoanalytic pathway. Psychoanalysis proper rather than its psychodynamic descendants: the schools, their concepts and their method at Foundation, then applied psychoanalytic thinking beyond the consulting room at Advanced. It runs alongside the psychodynamic pathway and covers different ground.
6 study hours6 CPD hours certified6 months of accessAI tutor in every lessonCertificate on completion (pass mark 70%)
What you will be able to do
✓Explain the structural model: id, ego and superego, and its clinical descendants
✓Describe Klein's positions, projective identification and their clinical use
✓Explain Winnicott's contributions: holding, transitional phenomena and the true and false self
✓Describe Bion's container-contained and thinking under fire
✓Compare ego psychology, object relations, self psychology and relational schools
✓Read classic case material with a working grasp of technique debates
What you will study
Module 1: Origins and the schools
From Freud to the major contemporary traditions.
Freud and the founding ideasThe unconscious and the founding ideas
The major schoolsEgo psychology
Transference and Countertransference: Core Dynamics of the Psychodynamic Therapeutic RelationshipTransference is the patient’s unconscious projection of early relational patterns onto the therapist.
Defence Mechanisms: Theory, Classification, and Therapeutic UseDefence mechanisms are unconscious strategies that protect the ego from anxiety and conflict.
Early Developmental Foundations in Psychodynamic Theory: From Psychosexual Stages to Attachment and MentalisationEarly developmental experiences create internal working models that guide later relational patterns.
Module 2: Concepts and method
Development, phantasy, and psychoanalytic listening.
Core concepts across the traditionsInternal objects
Psychoanalytic listeningFree association
Understanding Phantasy: The Unconscious Narrative of ExperiencePhantasy is an unconscious mental activity that organises experience, distinct from conscious imagination.
The Therapeutic Frame: Structure and ContainmentThe therapeutic frame is the invisible architecture that underpins every psychodynamic encounter, providing the boundary within which the unconscious can be exa…
The Role of Transference and Countertransference in Psychoanalytic ListeningTransference is the patient’s unconscious repetition of early relational patterns in the therapeutic relationship, serving as both resistance and the royal road to the unconscious.
What's included
2 modules and 10 lessons
An 8-question final assessment, with a 70% pass mark
A certificate for 6 CPD hours when you pass it
An extended clinical case study with discussion questions
A glossary of key terms
Private notes, a reflection for each module, and a CPD log you can print or save as a PDF
📖 Written lessons with key points and practice tasks◆ Visual teaching diagrams🎥 Video where it helps🎧 Listen-to-this-lesson narration👩⚕️ A full clinical case study🧠 AI tutor in every lesson📄 Full course workbook (PDF) on completion📕 The course book (PDF) while you study, with your name in it
Speak the language: by the end you will use The unconscious · Defence mechanism · Transference · Countertransference · Object relations · Internal working model · Projective identification · Containment · The frame · Resistance and more, precisely.
The evidence base this course draws on
Malan, D. H. (1995) Individual Psychotherapy and the Science of Psychodynamics. 2nd edn. London: Butterworth-Heinemann. view source ↗
Lemma, A. (2016) Introduction to the Practice of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy. 2nd edn. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. view source ↗
Winnicott, D. W. (1965) The Maturational Processes and the Facilitating Environment. London: Hogarth Press. view source ↗
