psychodynamic

American  

[sahy-koh-dahy-nam-ik] / ˌsaɪ koʊ daɪˈnæm ɪk /

adjective

1. Psychology. of or relating to any clinical approach to personality, as Freud’s, that sees personality and behavior as the result of the ongoing, shifting interplay of conscious and unconscious emotional and motivational forces.

   By identifying the unconscious drives and forgotten experiences that influence decisions, psychodynamic therapy can be helpful in choosing new positive behaviors and leaving self-destructive ones behind.

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Other Word Forms

• psychodynamically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of psychodynamic

psycho- ( def. ) + dynamic ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

psychodynamic

But he soon became disillusioned with the psychodynamic account of mental illness advanced by Freudians and looked instead to the brain’s chemistry for answers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

The center embraces psychodynamic and systems theories and uses a strengths-based model.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2022

As stuck as ever, I gradually transform my pep talk into a kind of psychodynamic session with the self through which I discern the shape of my blockage.

From New York Times ● Jul. 12, 2022

Gemma Collins, a licensed clinical social worker and psychodynamic psychotherapist in Seattle, sees the merits of having an exception for mental health conditions but pointed out how it could backfire.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 4, 2022

This identity disturbance, which is at the psychodynamic root of both pathological narcissism and rapacious psychopathy, is all-pervasive.

From Moral Deliberations in Modern Cinema by Vaknin, Samuel