Introduction
The branch of psychology that deals with problems related to psychiatry and behaviors that are not normal and the curing of illness of minds is called clinical psychology. The expression was first brought in public use in the year 1907 by an American psychologist named Lightner Witmer. This branch of study is concerned with the curing of problems of human beings that are complex in nature and is combined with the science of psychology (Cherry, 2010).
Main body
In the beginning of the 20th century, psychodynamic theory stood out as the main ideas of teaching in clinical psychology and as a whole, within psychiatry studies. Dr. Sigmund Freud who invented psychoanalysis and theory related to psychodynamic is a famous key figure in this field. His theories asserted among others that a mind that is unconscious could be divided into many parts and that a personality is shaped and inter-related with the interactions of forces of motivations in the mind of an individual (Cherry, 2010).
The other branch of clinical psychology called Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy came into public light in the mid-1950’s and was the brain child of Albert Ellis. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a common categorization of psychotherapy. The following are some forms of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: Therapy of behaviors related to dialectics, therapy of schema, therapy related to rational living, therapy related to rational behaviors, therapy related to emotive behaviors and cognitive therapy. Among these therapies, Rational Emotive Therapy (RET), was the first to be developed and was characterized by an approach to Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy that was intentionally therapeutic. Individual Psychology was developed by Adler Alfred, who is a key figure of recognition in the field of modern psychotherapy. Adler Alfred contributed enormously to Rational Emotive Therapy (RET) and its development. The above mentioned categories of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy have history of development that is unique to each of the approach (Cherry, 2010).
Humanistic Psychology was founded in the middle of the last century. Freedom, aloneness, self-identity, death and meaning are some of the problems of humans and problems of life that are basic. These are uniquely addressed by Humanistic psychology. “Abraham Maslow who was an American psychologist, Fritz Perls who was a German-American psychiatrist and Carl Rogers, another American psychologist were the theorists who founded Humanistic Psychology,” (Psychology, 2009, p. 1). Fritz Perls contributed enormously to Humanistic Psychology and developed a therapy called Gestalt. Gestalt therapy became so effective that its impact in psychoanalysis and behaviorism was credited as the “third force” in the field of psychology. Carl Rogers founded an intervention focused wholly on the patient. Abraham Maslow analyzed and listed formulae related to various needs of humans (Psychology, 2009).
Conclusion
When World War II was over, the other branch of clinical psychology, the family systems approach was developed. This was a coincidental development. Doctors were diagnosing schizophrenic patients when they discovered that families of the patients were mentally disturbed in the course of their discussions. Also, the doctors discovered that the intensity variation of tension between the parents of those schizophrenic patients contributed the rise and fall of the symptoms of those patients. A conclusion was made after the observations that the family is a unit or a system with unique internal rules and functioning that are peculiar to the family and characterized by the members of the family. Thus, family systems theory was developed and a therapy called “Family Therapy” is currently a very interesting field of clinical psychology. A family member’s problems are solved by reorganizing the way the family system works (Frey, 2010).
Reference List
- Cherry, K. (2010). What Is Clinical Psychology? Web.
- Frey, J. R. (2010). Family Therapy. Medical Encyclopedia.
- Psychology. (2009). Humanistic psychology.