Chapter 12 Psychodynamic Approach Overview Psychodynamic Approach Perspective

Chapter 12: Psychodynamic Approach

Overview • • Psychodynamic Approach Perspective The Clinical Paradigm History of the Psychodynamic Approach Key Concepts and Dynamics within the Psychodynamic Approach • How Does the Psychodynamic Approach Work? Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Description • Leadership involves harnessing the complex forces and dynamics at play in organizations. • Constantly shifting and irrational forces underlie seemingly rational behaviors and choices. • Approach acknowledges that people are complex, unique and paradoxical beings with rich and myriad motivational drivers. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

The Clinical Paradigm • Four basic premises: 1) There is a rationale behind every human act 2) A great deal of mental life lies outside of conscious awareness 3) Most central part of a person is the way he or she regulates and expresses emotions 4) We are all products of our past experiences Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

History Freud - Neurotic symptoms manifest a person’s inner drivers - Acting-out behaviors help us understand the unconscious - Repetition of certain dysfunctional patterns suggests motivational undercurrents that affect decision making - Didn’t apply his ideas to the working world Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

History London Tavistock Institute - Among the first to apply psychoanalytic concepts to organizational life - Studied the unconscious functioning of the group as a whole rather than as aggregate of individuals - Hidden dynamics within organizations influence leadership through socio-technical systems, industrial democracy, defense systems against anxiety, social dreaming, and organizational roles 17 year study of Glacier Metal in Scotland Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

History Menninger Clinic (Menninger and Levinson) - Mid-1950 s conducted extensive national survey of mental health problems in industries and recommended how to solve them - Offered weeklong seminars for executives to help them understand why people act as they do - Levinson linked failure of managers to contain anxieties of workers to employee depression and low productivity - Levinson developed concept of the “psychological contract” Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

History Zaleznik - Influenced group of scholars interested in combining organizational studies with psychoanalysis (e. g. , Kets de Vries, Kakar, Laurin, and others) - Argued that business focused too much on process and structure and not enough on ideas and emotion - Leaders should relate to followers in more empathetic and intuitive ways. - Seminal study – The Neurotic Organization (Kets de Vries & Miller) proposed that neuroses of a top leader can be recreated throughout the organization Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

History Hirschhorn - Used the term “applied clinical practice” to describe organizational consulting interventions that included diagnostic methods and actions based on clinical psychology - The Workplace Within: Psychodynamics of organizational Life (1988) – understanding the irrational and emotional character of organizations - Proposed working with real clients on practical outcomes by addressing the hidden and unconscious mechanisms underlying patterns of organizational behavior Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

History Mitscherlich - Applied psychoanalytic principles to post–WWII society - Society without the Father, The Inability to Mourn – shaped Germany’s analyses of the causes of their war - Opened field of social psychology to a broader audience - How fantasies, projections, identifications, suppression, repression, and idealization play out in groups Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

History Summary - Field has come a long way since Freud to apply concepts to functioning of leaders in organizations - Psychoanalytic techniques and theory have become increasingly sophisticated - Interfacing with other domains such as anthropology, neuroscience, cognitive theory, family systems theory, and so on - Many components of theory have been empirically tested and verified Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concepts 1) Focus on the inner theater - Inner theatre is stage filled with people who have influenced our lives for better or worse - Early experiences with key individuals contribute to creation of response patterns that tend to repeat themselves - “Core conflictual relationship themes” (CCRT) develop over time and carry over into adulthood - We act out these themes in the workplace - Understanding a person’s CCRT helps us understand the motivation behind his or her behavior and key relationship conflicts and works to align his or her deep wishes with more productive interpersonal relationships Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concepts 2) Focus on leader-follower relationships - Wilfrid Bion (1959), three basic assumptions in groups: dependency, fight-flight, pairing - These behaviors may result in regressive processes, deflecting people from tasks to be performed - Unconscious assumption 1: People may unconsciously expect organizations or leaders to offer parental protection and guidance, and so give up their autonomy, thus hindering their critical thinking and initiative. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concept: Leader-Follower Relationships - Unconscious assumption 2: The organizational world is dangerous and participants must use fight-or-flight as a defense mechanism. - Creates a bipolar view of the world: friend or foe, ingroup/out-group. Results in a sense of unity but makes the group more dependent on the leader. - Unconscious assumption 3: Pairing up with a powerful person or subgroup will help a person cope with anxiety, alienation, and loneliness. Pairing may result in splitting and intra- and inter-group conflict, or ganging up against a leader perceived as aggressor. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concepts Social Defense Mechanisms - Organizational life is filled with fear and unpredictability - When organizational anxiety is not properly managed, people may act out (splitting, projection, displacement, denial) - Typically, executives rely on existing structures and processes to contain anxiety - These bureaucratic routines end up creating obstacles and create employee detachment Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concepts Mirroring and Idealizing - Mirroring: Taking our cues about being and behaving from those around us. - Can become collusive: Followers are eager to use their leaders to reflect what they would like to see. Leaders find affirmation of followers hard to resist. Result— leaders may act to shore up image rather than serve organizational needs. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concepts Identification with the Aggressor - Faced with a superior force, people sometimes feel the need to become like that force, to protect themselves. - In the extreme, those who have been threatened become those making threats. - Leader sees people either for or against him/her. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concepts Folie a Deux - Shared madness - Collusion where a dominant person’s delusions are adopted by other members of the organization. - Leader whose capacity for reality testing is impaired may transfer delusions to followers who, in order to minimize conflict, sacrifice truth and honest criticism to maintain a connection with the leader. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Key Concepts 3) Focus on the Shadow Side of Leadership - Narcissism: Behaviors that range from normal selfinterest to pathological self-absorption. - Constructive narcissists are well-balanced, have healthy self-esteem, capacity for introspection and empathy. Inspire others to be better and even change what they do. - Reactive narcissists are fixated on issues of power, status, and superiority. Don’t tolerate disagreement and criticism; rarely consult with others. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

How Does the Psychodynamic Approach Work? • An effective organization needs to understand the complexity of why leaders act the way they do • People differ in their motivational patterns • Leaders and followers are not one-dimensional but complex and paradoxical • The essence of leadership is the ability to use motivational patterns to influence others • Leadership also has a dark side, and success can come from unexpected places; it is not entirely rational Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

How Does the Psychodynamic Approach Work? • Challenge is to relate psychodynamic theory to other organizational theories • Focusing solely on unconscious motivations of individuals and groups limits application to larger systems • Focusing solely on large systems may overlook sources of motivation and energy of individuals who make up the system Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Strengths • Addresses undercurrents of organizational life • Develops personal insight on the part of the leader • Involves an in-depth and systemic investigation of a single person, group, event, or community • Focuses on the underlying drivers of leaders and followers Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Criticisms • Much of early work based on clinical observation of people with mental illness. • Does not lend itself to training in the conventional sense. No standard solution for every individual. • Situates the intervention at the individual level; more structural and systemic organizational issues remain in the background. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Application • Peer group coaching: Participants work together to uncover blind spots, challenge one another, identify behavior for change, and experiment with new behavior in their workplace. • Tipping points for change: When participants make a connection between their current choices in life, see discrepancies in their lives, and work to realign those. • Consultant and client work together to address social defenses with the aim of healing organizational neurosis. Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Application • Group Coaching • External group facilitator • Pre-intervention interviews with participants to identify major issues and complete 360 -degree feedback surveys • Day of intervention: Self-portrait exercise; 360 -degree feedback discussion; two-way dialogue for person in the “hot seat”; voicing one’s commitment to change • Follow-up: Group becomes mutually invested in encouraging new behaviors; encourages courageous conversations; people learn how to give and receive feedback Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Application Processes to bring about tipping points for change 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Cathartic experiences Mutual identification Psychodynamic lens Willingness to experiment Vicarious learning Real community Collective learning Altruistic motive Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. © 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc.