The Many Faces of the Unconscious: A New Unconscious for a Phenomenological Transactional Analysis

Abstract

This article reviews recent developments in the understanding of unconscious processes and considers the phenomenological perspective of transactional analysis as it is intertwined with these findings. The author's objective is to contribute to the enrichment of the transactional analysis model by suggesting a theory of the unconscious that is compatible with the theoretical underpinnings of TA. Some of the consequences of the “natural scientific” objectifying perspective that influenced Freud and, to some extent, Berne, are highlighted. The notion of the repressed unconscious is discussed and confronted with modern views of unconscious processes.

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Maria Teresa Tosi

Maria Teresa Tosi is a psychologist, psychotherapist, and a Teaching and Supervising Transactional Analyst (psychotherapy). She lives in Rome, Italy, where she works in private practice as a psychotherapist and supervisor. Maria Teresa is also a lecturer at Salesian University in the Upper School for Specialization in Clinical Psychology and as a trainer in the Institute of Training and Research for Educators and Psychotherapists (IRPIR). She can be reached at Via Anapo, 20, 00199 Roma, Italy; e-mail:[email protected].