Take our Do I Need Therapy?

Find a therapist near me

Problematic behaviors may persist because they protect self-esteem and manage painful feelings and conflicts.

Understanding dynamic contributors to problematic behaviors can help patients develop more adaptive responses.

Transference and countertransference can create obstacles to behavioral change that need to be addressed.

Trying new behaviors can reveal unrecognized expectations and conflicts, facilitating insight and change.

People often recognize that certain behaviors, or avoidance of certain actions, are causing difficulties, yet still find themselves repeating the behaviors. They may be aware that they drink too much, repeatedly lose their temper, take on more responsibility than they can manage, or avoid confronting an unfair boss. Understanding the sources of these behaviors is useful, but insight by itself does not necessarily lead to change.

Psychoanalytic approaches have traditionally eschewed targeting behavioral changes, believing that such efforts do not address the core issues that contribute to problems. Problem-focused psychodynamic psychotherapy (PrFPP) (Busch, 2022) works to identify specific problems, explore the psychological factors that contribute to them, and help patients develop more adaptive ways of responding to their relationships and environment. Such efforts include identifying the context and emotions, early experiences, representations of self and others, and intrapsychic conflicts to address and change problematic inhibitions and behaviors (Busch, 2018; Busch, 2025).

Identifying Problematic Inhibitions or Behaviors

PrFPP identifies behaviors as problematic when they cause recurrent difficulties for the patient and the patient seems unable to shift or change them. Patients may describe certain behaviors as problematic, but they may not recognize others (such as drinking or overwork), sometimes due to painful feelings or internal conflicts these behaviors manage. PrFPP can be useful in helping patients acknowledge and address these problems.

Identifying and Addressing Factors That Make Behavior Difficult to Change

Several factors can contribute to persistent problematic behaviors. These inhibitions or actions may, for example, temporarily reduce anxiety, protect self-esteem, diminish intrapsychic and interpersonal conflict, express anger indirectly, or avoid painful feelings. An individual who chronically agrees to........

© Psychology Today