A systematic review of psychodynamic theories in community psychology: Discovering the unconscious in community work

Abstract

The aim of this systematic review is to provide a narrative synthesis of the peer‐reviewed literature regarding the role of psychodynamics in community psychology. The authors screened 301 records on the topic, found in major citation databases (Scopus and Web of Science) without time or language restrictions. Ten articles addressing the review question were identified, showing the contributions of interpersonal psychoanalysis, Adlerian psychology, the Tavistock psychodynamic model, and Lacanian psychoanalysis. Several points of synergy between community psychology and psychodynamics were outlined mainly concerning empowerment theory, preventative and ecological perspective, power, and social order. Besides, the view on the community life, the role of emotion, and the conceptualization of the unconscious domain are discussed. Implications for community interventions are highlighted, regarding clients' demands, the role of community practitioners, and the use of transference/countertransference in consultative work. Limitations and future directions are also considered.

Cyber Strain: Exploring Adverse Mental Health Effects of the Problematic Internet Usage Among University Students

“…The psychodynamic theory (Caputo & Tomai, 2020) that delves into unconscious motivations and conflicts that drive behavior; and reward deficiency syndrome (Gondré-Lewis, Bassey, & Blum, 2020), which sees addiction, including internet addiction, as a complex interplay of the genetic, neurobiological, and environmental factors. Based on the above-mentioned theoretical background, and other findings, the research framework of the current study has been made, as seen in the Figure 1.…”

The Perception of Water Contamination and Risky Consumption in El Salvador from a Community Clinical Psychology Perspective

“…Clinical community psychology focuses on the intersubjective emotional space cocreated by community members to ensure cohesiveness and belonging in facing anxiety feelings that arise from the uncertainty of the existence of community life [37,38]. In this regard, the enactment of mostly unconscious self-protective mechanisms is hypothesized as security operations that the community uses to defend against its painful realities or hide its real concerns about negative events such as environmental threats [39,40]. Therefore, the novelty of this qualitative study is the salience given to the community's emotional life, which may help to construct rather than prove hypotheses regarding the perception of water-related issues.…”

Considering poststructuralist discursive community psychology

“…Others may argue that PDT is not the only means by which to introduce a poststructuralist approach to discourse into CCP. Certainly, Lacanian psychoanalysis (a central theoretical tenet of PDT) as well as critical discourse analysis offer similar insights to PDT and have in fact been embraced by some community psychologists (see e.g., Caputo & Tomai, 2020; Malherbe et al., 2021a). However, we wish to emphasize once again that these approaches are typically limited to analysis within CCP and are rarely used to transform how CCP itself is theorized and practiced.…”