| Professor Helm Stierlin is a renowned German psychiatrist,a second-generation American psychoanalyst,the father of systematic family therapy in Germany,and a leading light in family therapy in China.He has a diverse academic background in philosophy,psychiatry,psychoanalysis,and family therapy,as well as a practical background working clinically in both German and American cultures.Throughout his colorful and varied life,from a young man concerned with his country’s responsibilities as a student to a psychiatrist with a concern for humanity to a practitioner of social change and political critique,he was both German in his rational and philosophical tradition and American in his innovative and pragmatic spirit;he kept pace with the pulse of the times and was always independent in his critical and reflective thinking.He encourages a pluralistic and open-minded approach to new things but is wary of losing his tradition by being too radical.As a witness to the development of the psychotherapeutic paradigm from modernism to postmodernism,and as a participant in the emergence of family therapy in the United States and Germany for nearly a century,he made the integration of psychoanalysis and family therapy one of the academic ideals to which he worked tirelessly.On the one hand,Stierlin’s rich life experience,combined with his academic practice,has set an example for us to follow;on the other hand,although family therapy has become quite influential in China after more than 30 years of development,there is rarely systematic introduction to the psychotherapeutic theories of the father of family therapy in Germany and China.Moreover,his contribution and value in promoting the integration of psychoanalysis and family therapy have not been fully explored.Given this,this study takes the psychotherapeutic philosophy of Helm Stierlin,who was both a psychoanalyst and a family therapist,as the subject of the study.In terms of research value,the study of Stierlin’s philosophy of psychotherapy provides us with many inspirations and insights,both in terms of his path of integration and his outstanding contribution to the path of academic integration,and also lays a solid research foundation for the deepening of psychotherapeutic integration in China.In terms of research significance,this study hopes to build a bridge between psychoanalysis and family therapy,promote dialogue between different schools of psychotherapy,and interdisciplinary communication between psychotherapy and philosophy,using a philosophical perspective as a base,to provide new inspiration and ideas for the study of psychotherapy integration and localization in China.The study of Stierlin’s philosophy of psychotherapy reveals that,regardless of his professional status as a psychiatrist,psychoanalyst,or family therapist,the driving force behind Stierlin’s academic turn has always been his thinking about the relationship between "theory" and "practice",specifically his thinking about the relationship between "theory" and "practice".In his theoretical and clinical practice of psychotherapy,as well as in his socio-political concerns,Stierlin strove to maintain a close relationship between theoretical concepts,scientific methods,and practical applications.Initially favoring psychoanalysis and then moving from psychoanalysis to family therapy,Stierlin’s two academic shifts reflect a paradigm shift in psychotherapy.In summary,Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic paradigm underwent a shift from modernism to postmodernism,particularly from a psychological paradigm(psychoanalysis),through a systemic-relational paradigm(psychodynamic family therapy),to a social constructionist paradigm(systemic family therapy).Each of these academic and paradigm shifts is not fragmented or blind,but rather interrogative and reflective,and characterized by both critical reflection and openness to integration.In the development of his psychotherapeutic outlook,philosophy provided him with the epistemological tools and psychiatry provided him with the practical conditions for clinical practice.In addition,thanks to his profound grasp of the spirit of phenomenology,Stierlin’s view of psychotherapy is characterized by three major features: integration,philosophical reflection,and compatibility with Chinese "Family" culture.First,the integrative nature of Stierlin’s view of psychotherapy is all-encompassing,reflecting its active intention to integrate,its epistemological basis for integration,and the integration of theoretical concepts and therapeutic approaches.The integrative character of Stierlin’s view of psychotherapy is inextricably linked to the philosophical character of his thought.Philosophicality is a prerequisite for integration to be possible,and at the same time,integration is a concrete manifestation of philosophicality.With a phenomenological attitude that suspends metaphysical preconceptions,he engages in the spirit of openness and generation of practice,takes the validity of clinical practice as a guiding principle,breaks down the dogma of disciples between schools and the conceptual barriers between disciplines,reflexively absorbs the merits of old and new theories,and creatively constructs theories based on clinical observation,thus achieving integration across theories,schools,and disciplines.Secondly,based on his profound grasp of the spirit of phenomenology,Stierlin’s view of psychotherapy is philosophically reflexive,as reflected in his philosophical reflection on the practice of psychotherapy,including the reflection on the change of psychotherapy and the reflection on radical postmodernism.Moreover,to avoid the dichotomy between subjective and objective reality,Stierlin proposes the distinction between "soft reality and hard reality" and "systematic optimism and systematic pessimism",responding to the critique of radical social constructivism and the rethinking of psychotherapeutic change respectively.By focusing on the flexible interaction between soft reality and hard realities,the balance between theoretical principles and the specificity of the individual and family system is emphasized,highlighting the two-way influence between the therapist and family system and the boundaries of the therapist’s power,and being particularly wary of the temptation of therapeutic change at the expense of the possible negative effects of change.The philosophical nature of Stierlin’s view of psychotherapy is,of course,not presented as a philosophical theory,but is carried through to the end of his clinical practice.Finally,the ’relational’ nature of Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic theory fits in well with the Chinese ’Family’ culture.Unlike the mainstream Western theory of "separate individuation",which overemphasizes autonomy and independence,Stierlin,while affirming the "related-individuation",particularly highlights the dialectical relationship between "individuation and connection".In terms of specific theoretical content,Heidelberg’s five major therapeutic concepts,namely,1)related individuation;2)the transactional modes of binding and expelling;3)delegation;4)multigenerational legacy and merit;and 5)the state of mutuality,highlight the relational,dialectical and transmissive nature of the family system from both horizontal and vertical perspectives,which is particularly relevant to the Chinese culture of "family".The emphasis on "dialectic" and "connection" in his theory not only serves as a corrective to the "individual orientation" of mainstream Western society but also provides practical inspiration for the localization of Western psychotherapy theory in China.This study consists of six chapters:Chapter 1,’Introduction’,introduces the background of the study and provides a framework for the discussion of the research questions by reviewing the current state of research on psychotherapeutic integration at home and abroad.Chapter 2,"Stierlin’s Academic Life and Sources of Thought",provides an overview of the background and development of Helm Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic thinking.Chapter 3,"Stierlin’s Philosophy of Psychotherapy",presents the development of Stierlin’s core concepts of psychotherapy and the application of Stierlin’s philosophy of psychotherapy,and clarifies the evolution of his psychotherapeutic outlook from psychoanalysis to systematic family therapy in a vertical dimension.Chapter 4,’A comparison of Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic theories’,compares Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic theories with the main theoretical perspectives of the schools of relational psychoanalysis and intergenerational family therapy,presenting the similarities and differences between Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic theories,relational psychoanalysis and the intergenerational family therapy model from a horizontal perspective.Chapter 5,"A general assessment of Stierlin’s view of psychotherapy",looks at the shift in Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic paradigm,the integrative nature of Stierlin’s psychotherapy theory,the philosophical nature of Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic practice,and the compatibility of Stierlin’s psychotherapeutic theory with the Chinese "family" culture.Chapter 6,"Conclusion and Prospects: Searching for Meaning in Change",attempts to respond to Stierlin’s ultimate question: "How to find meaning in change" by selecting three philosophical ideas that are internally consistent with Stierlin’s philosophy of psychotherapy: phenomenological hermeneutics,complex systems theory and multicultural contextualism. |
PDF Full Text Request