ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author distinguishes among three types of deconstructive interventions, all aimed at expanding meaning and therapeutic growth. Transformative deconstructions refer to how individuals—singly or collectively—set out to dismantle one set of conventions to supplement or supplant with another to create new meaning. Therapeutic relationships foster ritualization, in which the people foist on themselves or accept a too-comfortable persona as the “expert,” “container,” or “one who knows.” Psychoanalytically oriented theory and practice may be conceived as a series of deconstructions of Freud’s work. Transformative deconstructions privilege one form of thought, feeling, or behavior over others, redefining or prioritizing what is real, true, or most meaningful. Reflective deconstructions highlight and unearth alternative perspectives and meanings behind words, conceptions, and interactions. Diversity deconstructions assist individuals in discovering and asserting their individuality and authenticity, while bringing to awareness their cultural and historical embeddedness and its intersubjective effects.
