Introduction

This is an introduction to the subjects of technique and interpretation as encountered in analytic therapies, for example Jungian analysis, psychoanalysis, and psychoanalytic psychotherapy. The historical, philosophical, and theoretical backgrounds of technique are also introduced. Technique deals the process of the analytic work rather than the content that emerges during the work. When combined with an analytic attitude, it is a set of tools that facilitates the engagement of the unconscious while minimizing factors that interfere with the emergence of unconscious material. Technique provides an underlying structure to the analytic process – the unseen but necessary support for the art of analysis. Analytic interpretation remains the most salient medium by which the analytic art form is communicated.