ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that Freud’s basic, signature methodology for supporting the validity of his etiological claims based on clinical evidence is what I call his “Suitability Argument,” after Freud’s phrase “suitability as a determinant.” Freud argues that a singular causal explanation that is compelling and unique in its evidential quality can be formulated linking characteristics of hypothesized unconscious mental states to detailed and otherwise inexplicable features of the patient’s symptoms, thus explaining how the features are determined. Although this methodology has many problems, in principle it is a form of explanation that we use successfully every day. I argue that, given the demanding requirements that Freud proposes, Freud is correct that in principle the Suitability Argument could be the foundation for justifiable conclusions about the etiology of the patient’s symptoms.
