psycterpsvienna3

[psycterpsvienna3]

One day, in retrospect, the years of struggle will strike you as the most beautiful.

Sigmund Freud

[psycterpsvienna3]

That’s a wrap! We’ve reached the end of our program. Students and faculty culminated our course content recently by having our last lecture in the courtyard by the recently unveiled statue at the Medical University in Vienna where Freud attended medical school. Our main topics for the end of the course considered the future of mental health treatment and the opportunities of the field of neuroscience, neuropsychology and the emerging field of neuropsychotherapy to the future advancements of mental health knowledge and treatment. We also considered Freud’s impact on the trajectory of psychotherapy and debated major concepts and divisive issues in the field, discussing key research studies and seminal meta-analyses. Today students took their final exam and tonight we had our farewell garden-style outdoor dinner with takes on traditional Austrian dishes, and students offered this fitting and very thoughtful gift (it’s quite comfortable, too!). After dinner, students made plans for gelato and headed to the Prater amusement park to revel in their last night in Vienna.

I want to thank our amazing students who participated in this program, and also to extend a huge thank you to all who helped us with the planning and execution of it...especially to IES who customized this abroad program for the purposes of our course and supported us throughout our time here, in many ways. Danke shön! We’ll be forever grateful.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“As the end of our trip is approaching, we can really reflect on how Vienna has shaped us as students, similar to how Freud shaped psychology. The culture we were immersed in everyday had a lasting impact on our daily habits and altered our cognitions to be even more open minded. Similarly, while rejected for some time, the now accepted and practiced theory of psychoanalysis has forever changed the field of psychology. Stemming from this, neuropsychoanalysis- a hybrid between neurobiology and Freud’s psychoanalysis, has been an emerging field used to understand not just the brain, but the mind as well. Where one field lacks in knowledge, the other has answers which is the epitome of a harmonious relationship. Topics such as the function and biological processes of emotions, dreams, and motivation had roots with Freud but have presently been better understood due to neuropsychoanalysis.

Speaking of roots with Freud, we recently had the opportunity to visit the Freud museum and see a collection of his work. Seeing these objects in person made us understand how impactful his concepts were and why they are still investigated to this day. Pictured here are his famous work The Interpretation of Dreams in the museum, his waiting room furniture, and the Alps in Salzburg where Freud hosted a famous conference about psychoanalysis. These pictures all represent the altered trajectory of psychology to become as broadminded as it is today which is evident in the creation of neuropsychoanalysis.”

-S.B.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“What I think of now...

"...are the lyrics, ‘so long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night,’ from the Sound of Music. It is a bittersweet feeling knowing that our time in such a beautiful country is coming to an end, but exciting to apply what we have learned to further our studies. However, all things have to come to an end for new things to be birthed. As I have the pleasure of living in the first district, I see evidence of the old and new colliding and making Austria interesting and complex. On opposite sides of the main road, there are old historic buildings like the St. Stephen’s Cathedral and the Opera house. They bring their unique aspects to the first district, while in the middle there is an amplitude of new, modern buildings which also gives their unique charm. The article “Rebooting Psychotherapy Research and Practice to Reduce the Burden of Mental Illness” calls for a merging of old and new techniques to reach more people with mental illness. One of the possible solutions is integrating the internet, smartphones and cell phones as new modes to reach people in need. Through these modern ways they suggest to still use the principles of the older psychotherapy practice. This solution could have a great impact on the people it reaches but I worry that with psychotherapy it might be harder for the new and old to merge as nicely as it does in the first district of Vienna.”

-J.O.

[psycterpsvienna3]

More pics from our visit to Café Landtmann!

[psycterpsvienna3]

“Yesterday, we took a trip to Freud’s favorite cafe, Cafe Landtman. With indoor and outdoor seating, beautiful decorations, and a wide range of coffee and cakes, this was a perfect afternoon “kaffeehaus” to relax at in the afternoon. While the food alone is a strong reason to go to the cafe, it holds much more significance.

Back in Freud’s time, cafes often served as so called “salons,” where people from all different interests and professions would gather to discuss their differing views on important topics. This interdisciplinary group would share their opinions on a wide range of subjects and learn about other people’s perspectives. In our visit today, we took on this role and discussed why evil exists and how important success and wealth are to happiness.

This experience was a great reminder of the importance of creating dialogues about current issues and sharing opinions and ideas in a safe environment. Psychology shows us that culture, background, experiences, genes and more all influence who we are and how we view the world. It is important to remember and respect these differences as we share and learn from others (possibly over a nice cup of coffee and a slice of cake).”

-L.W.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“Vienna is a city that is so innovative and modern, yet historical and charming. There is a high emphasis on environmental conservative, their public transit infrastructure is amazing, work and family life are balanced, even leaning towards the latter, and finally, there is an integration of art and science visible almost everywhere. Everything that America talks about being is standard in Austria, it seems. Their culture, history, art, science, and technology are seamlessly intertwined.

In class recently, we have been discussing the evolving treatments in modern psychotherapy settings. More and more evidence has come out that empirically supported treatments, or treatments that are backed by scientific research and studies, are effective in therapy settings. However, they are not being implemented in the community at a high rate, because people are hesitant to integrate “science” with “practice”. In relation to cities, it seems like Vienna has implemented its own empirically supported treatments for its people by making their city very green in response to climate change. There is no political debate that it exists, and the city is actively doing things to help combat it. I feel as though Americans are more hesitant for large changes that will affect their daily lives, which is why it may be more of a conflict. Americans may be hesitant to close that gap between “science” and “practice”, too. Vienna is a beautiful place to be learning and exploring all of these connected issues, and I’m really having the time of my life here.” 

-L.Z.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“What I found most interesting...

...from the reading was to see how psychotherapy shifted more towards being empirically-supported. Through this effort, psychotherapy has become more credible and efficient. It is especially interesting to see that although there were two influences, one has taken more power because of the support of Managed Health Care, the progression of biological psychiatry, and APA protocols, amongst other supporters. On top of this, what was most striking was the NIMH decision to implement the methodology of research that is used in hard sciences like pharmacology to evaluate psychotherapy by developing randomized control trials (RCTs). This idea of holding higher standards for something that is “not quite there yet” to eventually have it reach that standard transcends the field of psychology and science. I was fortunate enough to have been able to come to the beautiful city of Vienna, experience new perspectives and make plentiful memories. I can relate this theme of the reading to my experience in trying to succeed in experiencing the most out of this program while also performing well in the class. During this program thus far, I have come to several realizations, among them being my ability to think critically.

From this realization, I have begun to believe maturing one’s critical thinking is one of the main purposes of this program. It asks more from you and it tells you, unspokenly, to expand what you think you are capable of. This study abroad class is helping me do just that.”

-RS

[psycterpsvienna3]

This week we took a trip to the Moving Freud Museum in Vienna, on the street where Freud lived. Our tour guide walked us through Freud’s life history and showed us his personal artifacts, photo collection, private letters, waiting room furniture, and home movies of Freud’s family life (narrated by his famous daughter, Anna). More pics from students to come! We also walked past his house where he lived and practiced psychoanalysis for many years, and visited a powerful key memorial that honors each and every Jewish business owner by name who was living in this neighborhood and sent away to concentration camps by the Nazis.

[psycterpsvienna3]

Today We Had a Visit...

...from Dr. Hedwig Wölfl, who taught us all about the Austrian healthcare system, including mental health care treatment. We learned a significant amount about differences between America and Austria in regards to the healthcare benefits provided to citizens, the ways that certain diagnoses are treated (e.g., postpartum depression), the therapy education and training system here in Austria, and much more.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“We’ve been in Vienna for two weeks now and I’m happy to say I’ve established a routine to my day that helps me feel as if I have gained some sort of normalcy in a different country. I have a specific coffee machine that I use, I walk a specific route to get to the grocery store and the metro, and I’ve found the cart that sells the least expensive gelato, to which I am a frequent customer. Leaving my district, however, and heading to the Freud Museum yesterday showed me that I am missing out on so much of this beautiful city. I realized that I have become very entrenched in my routine without exploring the various aspects each district of Vienna has to offer; while each area may have differences, each adds value to the city as a whole and makes Vienna that much more fun to explore.

Similarly, as we explore current therapeutic methods in class, I realized that I have focused on one side of therapy, the objectively measurable side, because it is what I know and what I understand. Studying the efficacy of psychodynamic therapy and psychotherapy in general has given me better insight into the benefits of this treatment. The integration of these methods into my understanding of the treatment of psychological disorders as a whole has provided insight into the strengths of each method for different people and different problems.”

-E.T.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“In the American Psychologist article, “The Efficacy of Psychodynamic Theory” (Shedler, 2010), the author argues that psychodynamic therapy is an effective treatment for clients. Psychodynamic therapy explores the past of the client and relates it to the present by explaining current thoughts and behaviors through past experiences. In the past, I had never really been outside of the country, so I had no idea what to expect. This made me nervous about studying abroad due to my lack of experience, and it was more difficult to adjust to the new environment than I had expected. However, my classmates were a really great support system, and I was able to learn so much about Vienna. Recently, we were able to go a Viennese ball, which was an experience of a lifetime and a major aspect of Vienna’s culture. It was amazing to see how significant the customs of ballroom dancing was, and it was so much fun dancing with friends.

The article also explains how psychodynamic therapy is more effective compared to other types of therapy because it benefits clients in the long run more than just by reducing symptoms. Just as psychodynamic therapy is effective in the long-run, I believe that this study abroad experience will help in my self-growth because I am learning more about myself in various circumstances, including how I adapt to changes in environments and social settings. This experience will be something I will remember forever in my life.”

-A.C.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“In the integrationist approach, ideas of psychodynamic, humanistic, behavioral, and family systems therapies interact to create an eclectic blend designed to heal clients with maximum effectiveness.

Learning about the holistic nature of integrationism reminded me of the similar multimodality of Viennese culture. As we learned in The Age of Insight, culture and philosophy of 19th century Vienna were influenced by a variety of factors, such as science, psychoanalysis, art, music, and religion. The flourish of culture during this period was due to the integration of these various different fields of knowledge. It’s fascinating to me to see the interactions of these different areas of knowledge in Vienna.

At the Belvedere, the Surrealism section incorporated Freudian ideas of the unconscious and dream work along with the Surrealist art movement popular of the time. In a painting by Emil Nolde, Joseph is seen declaring his dreams to the public. Nolde himself felt he had prophetic dreams, and used his art to express his interpretation of his experiences. This is a perfect example of the interaction of art, psychoanalysis, and religion in 1920s Vienna. Like integrationist therapy, the integration of different fields contributed to Vienna’s diverse and extensive culture in the 1800s and 1900s.

As an art lover, visiting different art museums in Vienna is amazing. It’s incredible to be surrounded by such powerful artwork by renowned artists. I love seeing how different artists express themselves and how critical art is to societal growth. Viennese art perfectly integrates the links between different fields.”

-A.M.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“Something that struck me from my reading today was just how impactful Sigmund Freud and his theories on psychoanalysis were on past and modern theories of psychology. They not only broadened the field of psychology, but also acted as catalysts of change, as people learned from psychoanalysis and then broke off from it to create their own paths. Two influential people, Alfred Adler and Carl Jung, started their careers working closely with Freud and discussing psychoanalysis. However, they eventually disagreed and broke off from Freud, Adler to create individual psychology and Jung to develop ideas of the collective unconscious and interpretations of dreams as projections rather than wishes. These two people then went on to inspire more modern theories that we use today. Sometime further down the road, when breaking off from psychoanalysis and creating person-centered therapy, some of Carl Rogers’ ideas were influenced by Otto Rank, a psychoanalyst and Freud’s colleague. Around the same time, the inability to test hypotheses with psychoanalysis inspired the creation of more scientifically-testable methods of therapy, like cognitive-behavioral therapy. These are used and studied by many psychologists today.

Being able to study in Austria, where Freud developed his theories and worked with patients and other very important people in the history of psychology, has been incredible. I get to experience first-hand what it is like to live in a country that has such rich history in promoting non-traditional Modernist ideas, like those of Freud, and has had so much influence on the field of psychology.”

-G.M.

[psycterpsvienna3]

“We have been in Vienna for roughly two weeks now. While it has been an amazing experience so far, the journey to get here was extensive, with a long plane ride and a tough case of jet lag for me. Ultimately it took several days to fully adjust to this brand new culture. Being immersed in a country with a completely different language and a vastly different time zone, I feel very far and disconnected from the United States. It makes me think about how a hundred years ago, the distance between the countries must have felt even further; the lack of technology must have made transportation, communication, and acculturation much slower/more difficult.

For this reason, it strikes me that Freud’s ideas were able to so greatly and influentially impact the field of psychology in America. The transportation of people and ideas was not so easy or speedy as it is today and yet in the early 1900’s, Freud’s psychoanalytic work done in Vienna posed an enormous threat to American psychologists who lived in a country nearly 4,000 miles away. Within thirty years, psychoanalytic theory had completely infiltrated the field of psychology in America. This exemplifies just how groundbreaking and impactful his contributions were. While walking around Vienna, I keep reminding myself that it was these very buildings, streets, and cafes that Freud worked on ideas/theories that left a monumental impact on the field of psychology in our home country.”

-B.W.

[psycterpsvienna3]

Schönbrunn Palace, on a Friday afternoon!

Yesterday we visited the summer residence of the Habsburgs in Hietzing, a location for important cultural history which also provides psychology background for students’ case study of Empress Sisi of Austria.

[psycterpsvienna3]

Some of the students and faculty went on an optional trip to the Vienna Pride Parade near Rathausplatz this Saturday. It was an excellent reminder of how far Vienna has come from the days when Freud pathologized homosexuality here in this city. In class, students learned how Freud changed his views on sexual orientation over the course of his career.