Psychotherapie in Ostdeutschland

This is the first book to systematically study the development of psychotherapy methods in East Germany in the years 1945 to 1995 based on archival materials and eyewitness reports. The six chapters treat the various periods in this era. They are structured to allow insight into the events that shaped East German life. An overview of the respective period with the most important social and scientific occurrences is followed by a chronicle of the psychotherapeutic background of that period. Then the author describes the development of individual methods such as individual and dynamic group psychotherapy, client-oriented psychotherapy, behavioural therapy, guided affective imagery, communicative movement therapy, concentrated relaxation techniques and music therapy. The integration of psychotherapy into medicine (for example, the Balint method) is also mentioned. Each chapter concludes with stories from the everyday life of psychotherapists as well as interviews and reports from eyewitnesses. The Appendix reproduces important documents, educational and training guidelines, and provides complete indices. The question how most psychotherapists under the East Germany regime managed to retain their integrity in the midst of Stasi and political indoctination of all sorts and also keep abreast of international developments is another motif that pervades this volume.