“It’s kind of witchcraft. No, just kidding”: Conceptual Metaphors as a Way of Conceptualizing Therapeutic Experience from the Perspective of Psychodynamic Psychotherapists

Abstract

This article focuses on a conceptual metaphors that express ways in which psychodynamic psychotherapy is conceptualized from the perspective of therapists working within this orientation. The author analyzes selected statements according to the principles of cognitive linguistics, particularly the classical Conceptual Metaphor Theory (George Lakoff, Mark Johnson), complemented by the reflections of Teresa Dobrzyńska and Tomasz Krzeszowski. The collected source material is qualitative, as is the method of analysis. It consists of interviews published online as well as posts and articles from blogs and websites whose primary function is educational, aiming to spread knowledge about the psychodynamic approach. The analysis highlights features that can be described as distinctive of psychodynamic psychotherapy, as well as those that therapists themselves wish to emphasize. The identified conceptual metaphors (e.g., psychotherapy as art, relationship, gift exchange) clearly reveal the perspectives adopted by the authors of the statements and their need to provide a clearer explanation of certain processes. The article concludes by emphasizing the role of language in psychotherapy and the importance of further research in this area.