JANET AND FREUD - REVEALING THE ROOTS OF DYNAMIC PSYCHIATRY

Objectives: Interest in the work of Pierre Janet is presently undergoi ng a scholarly revival and, in the process, his contribution to dynami c psychiatry is increasingly being recognised, This article compares a nd contrasts Pierre Janet's early studies on hysteria and the neuroses with those of Freud. Method: The study surveys original works by Jane t and Freud and contemporary scholarly exegeses, It particularly focus es on ideation and memory, consciousness and dissociation, psychologic al trauma, the self, therapeutic influence, and treatment by integrati on versus abreaction. Results: Grounds are presented for either prefer ring Janet's notions to Freud's, or for integrating them. Conclusion: It is concluded that a number of Janet's contributions to psychopathol ogy and psychotherapy, particularly in the field of dissociative disor ders, deserve further exploration and application.