April 2021 – A Refreshed Look at Character Analysis

character analysis

Chapter 3 of my book Whole Therapist, Whole Patient Integrating Reich, Masterson, and Jung in Modern Psychotherapy (2018) introduces character analytic interventions for professionals and interested others in the art of present-centered contact and acute tracking that permits observation of the dominant character style as it appears before the clinician. This type of character analysis allows for a clear perception of the character types, allowing you to correctly assess the diagnosis. One must be alert to the client’s defensive styles which are signature markers and are readily observable.

Why is this important? The character style is the map of treatment; without it, you are in the dark; you don’t really see who is in front of you and are ad-libbing rather than being prepared. Often when I supervise professionals, I find that they don’t sufficiently grasp who is in front of them. Correct character diagnoses are quite challenging for the best of us. Supervision is a process of grappling with provisional diagnoses until we come up with a correct one. Then we have an accurate map of how to proceed and stay the course.

My ongoing book club will study and explore Chapter 3 on Character Analysis with in-depth coverage of these principles. As is the style of our book club, we go two pages at a time in order to study the nuances of the material. The series begins 10/21/21 and will meet every 3 weeks for 10 sessions.

Please view the Book Club page on the website for more details: https://orgonomictherapy.com/whole-therapist-whole-patient/interactive-book-discussion/
You will be able to sign-up soon. Anyone can join, so if this topic interests you let us know!

How the Layman Analyzes Character

Returning to our topic of character analysis, often friends and family will describe someone they know in an abbreviated form which describes the qualities a person may exhibit. One might say. “He dominates the conversation and always has to be right”; or “She tends to move from relationship to relationship, tossing them out without a backward glance”; or “He is withdrawn usually, keeps to himself and is isolated”, or “He struggles with depression but is extremely intelligent and competent”. These are some examples of how people might be described initially.

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The Art of Character Analysis

Character analysis, as defined by Wilhelm Reich, is an essential component of my method. I often quote Reich as his explanations make vividly clear the nuances of his clinical approach. I picked a selection for you that describes an aspect of character analysis and how it works in practice.

We stated that character analysis begins with the singling out and consistent analysis of the character resistance. This does not mean that the patient is enjoined not to be aggressive, not to be deceptive, not to speak in an incoherent manner, to follow the basic rule, etc. Such demands would not only be contrary to analytic procedure, they would be fruitless… In character analysis we ask ourselves why is the patient deceptive, speaks in an incoherent manner, is emotionally blocked, etc.; we endeavor to arouse his interest in the peculiarities of his character in order to elucidate, with his help, their meaning and origin through analysis.  In other words, we merely single out from the orbit of the personality the character trait from which the cardinal resistance proceeds, and, if possible, we show the patient the surface relation between the character and the symptoms….we isolate the character trait and put it before the patient again and again until he has succeeded in breaking clear of it and viewing it as he would a vexatious compulsive symptom” (Reich, Selected Writings, 1973, 56)

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