Deconstructing Davanloo

Deborah Pollack and Maury Joseph
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  • Salud mental

Habib Davanloo was the developer of Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP), a type of short-term psychodynamic psychotherapy that has gained popularity in recent decades. Davanloo's work is bold, original, and compelling, yet often presented with a certainty that leaves little room for reflection or alternative viewpoints. Deconstructing Davanloo offers another path: reading his cases with space open for context, critique, and dialogue about multiple levels of meaning. By engaging his ideas thoughtfully, we aim to support the evolving, creative development of the ISTDP tradition.

  1. 5 jul

    Episode 23: The Case of the Machine Gun Woman, part 1

    In this episode Deb and Maury start reading the 2nd case in Davanloo's Unlocking the Unconscious (1990) - the case of the machine gun woman. They read the opening paragraphs and wax philosophical about what Davanloo meant by a "direct view" of the "core neurotic structure," and what these terms suggest about how we conceptualize the psyche in ISTDP. They also consider the function of time pressure, and Deb brings in some historical information about the practice of psychotherapy by American shrinks on the front lines of WWII. References Davanloo, H. (1990). Unlocking the Unconscious. Wiley. Moskowitz, E. S. (2001). In therapy we trust: America's obsession with self-fulfillment. JHU Press.

  2. 28 jun

    Episode 21 with special guest Peter Lilliengren

    Note: We accidentally skipped a number when numbering the eps, so ep 22 was published before ep 21. In this episode we welcome clinician, teacher, and researcher Peter Lilliengren to share his perspective on our reading of Davanloo. Peter shares some thoughtful critiques, and our dialogue extends to group dynamics of the ISTDP community— can we bear conflict and strain? Can we disagree and still remain cohesive? We are grateful for his participation and his modeling of collegial dialogue. References: Johansson, R., & Lilliengren, P. (2026). Effectiveness and mechanisms of Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy for treatment-resistant depression: a reanalysis of a randomized controlled trial. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 17, 1815946. Join us all at the ⁠⁠IEDTA conference⁠⁠ in Dubrovnik in October, 2026!

  3. 18 jun

    Episode 22 with special guest Jon Frederickson

    In this episode, Deb and Maury welcome special guest, Jon Frederickson, MSW, of the New Washington School of Psychiatry. A beloved teacher of ISTDP, Jon shares his insights about training with Davanloo, and subsequent impacts on training culture.

  4. 8 jun

    Episode 20 - The Case of the German Architect, part 11

    The end of the German architect case stirs a number of important questions and mixed emotions. What are the goals of istdp at this stage in Davanloo’s development? What exactly is istdp? And how do we, as modern readers cope with Davanloo’s grand claims about it? How do we square this with our personal sense that istdp is, in some ways, quite grand? We will continue to try to answer these and many other questions as we proceed to the case of the woman with the machine gun.

  5. 4 jun

    Episode 19 - The case of the German Architect, part 10

    In this episode, Maury and Deb return to the end of the German architect case, and begin their reflections on all that has come before. They discuss the anxieties that come at the end of an initial session. Connected with this, they also discuss the sales, commodification, and capitalistic aspects of therapy, and how these may, at times, be visible in Davanloo. They then explore Davanloo’s summary of the case and share their reactions to it, noting especially the absence of reflection about his own unconscious contribution to the therapeutic relationship.

  6. 14 may

    Episode 18 - The Case of the German Architect, part 9

    In this episode Deb and Maury continue with an analysis of the German Architect case. They consider the ways that Davanloo's approach can be seen as an attempt to convince the patient to do the work. They also discuss the potential implicit or explicit assumptions of what constitutes a "cure" in ISTDP and in psychotherapy more generally. References Davanloo, H. (1990). Unlocking the Unconscious. Wiley. Kovel, J. (1980). The American mental health industry. In Ingleby, D. (Ed.), Critical Psychiatry: The Politics of Mental Health. New York: Pantheon. pp. 72-101. James, B. (Host). (2026, May 14). Catherine Liu | The Problem With Trauma Culture | HITW 165 [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENktQEsdwds&t=4500s

  7. 25 abr

    Episode 17 - The Case of the German Architect, part 8

    On this episode, Deb and Maury continue to wrestle with the meaning of the German Architect’s slip of the intellect, react to the post breakthrough exploration, and become especially interested in the dynamic meaning of certain literary choices in the construction of the case write up— why are transcripts sometimes used, and at other times narratives? What are the differences in experience for the reader, when transcript is included vs summarized? They are also struck by a radical shift in the case, and begin to wonder how that came about. References: Abbass, A. (2015). Reaching through resistance: Advanced psychotherapy techniques. Seven Leaves Press. Davanloo, H. (1990). Unlocking the Unconscious. Wiley. Langs, R. (1978). The listening process. Jason Aronson. Ogden, T. H. (1997). On psychoanalytic writing. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 78(2), 267–285.

  8. 9 abr

    Episode 16 - The Case of the German Architect, part 7

    In this episode, Maury and deb explore part 2 of the German architect case, and continue to explore Davanloo’s interpretation of events, and offer new, alternate conceptualizations of their own. They discuss issues of diagnosis and technique with passive transference resistance, think about the thorny issue of interrupting patients in ISTDP, and struggle with the limitations of transcript and the ambiguities it creates. Beyond all that, they seem to be having a pretty damn good time. Stay tuned for more soon. References Davanloo, H. (1990). Unlocking the Unconscious. Wiley. Deutsch, H. (1992). The therapeutic process, the self, and female psychology: Collected psychoanalytic papers. Transaction Publishers. Freud, S. (1957). Mourning and melancholia (J. Strachey, Ed. & Trans.). In The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud (Vol. 14, pp. 243–258). Hogarth Press. (Original work published 1917) Jung, C. G. (1969). Answer to Job. Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1952) Langs, R. (1978). The listening process. Jason Aronson. Weiss, J., Sampson, H., & the Mount Zion Psychotherapy Research Group. (1986). The psychoanalytic process: Theory, clinical observations, and empirical research. Guilford Press.

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Información

Habib Davanloo was the developer of Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP), a type of short-term psychodynamic psychotherapy that has gained popularity in recent decades. Davanloo's work is bold, original, and compelling, yet often presented with a certainty that leaves little room for reflection or alternative viewpoints. Deconstructing Davanloo offers another path: reading his cases with space open for context, critique, and dialogue about multiple levels of meaning. By engaging his ideas thoughtfully, we aim to support the evolving, creative development of the ISTDP tradition.

Ficha técnica

  • Creado por
    Deborah Pollack and Maury Joseph
  • Años en activo
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodios
    23
  • Clasificación
    Explícito
  • Derechos de autor
    © Deborah Pollack and Maury Joseph
  • Sitio web del podcast
    Deconstructing Davanloo

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