The Politics of Psychotherapy

This unique collection by leading authors explores the links between therapy and the political world, and their contribution to each other. The topics covered include: psychotherapy in the political sphere, including the roots of conflict, social trauma, and ecopsychology; political dimensions of psychotherapy practice, such as discrimination, power, sexuality, and postcolonial issues; psychotherapy, the state and institutions, including the law and ethics, and psychotherapy in healthcare; and, working at the interface, examples of therapy in political action from Croatia, the USA, the UK and Israel/Palestine.How to 'place' political issues in therapy is highly controversial - for example, whether political themes should be interpreted psychologically in the consulting room, or respected as valid in their own right: similar issues arise for the role of therapeutic insights in political reality. This book provides a map through these complex and demanding areas for therapists and counsellors in training, as well as for experienced practitioners or other interested readers. The contributors include: Lane Arye, Arlene Audergon, Emanuel Berman, Sandra Bloom, Jocelyn Chaplin, Petruska Clarkson, Chess Denman, Dawn Freshwater, Kate Gentile, John Lees, Renos Papadopoulos, Hilary Prentice, Mary-Jayne Rust, Judy Ryde, Andrew Samuels, and Nick Totton.