A reading of the first volume of Sigmund Freud's Introductory Lectures on Psychoanalysis (1916-17 [1915-17]), concentrating on the account of the technique for the interpretation of dreams. In these lectures Freud attempts to elaborate an empirical model for the investigation and explanation of the dream. Closer examination of this argument, however, quickly brings to light certain diffIculties that allow us to question whether the validity of psychoanalytic procedures could ever be sustained in these terms. It is suggested that this account requires the introduction of conditions and assumptions of another order. This argument amounts to a critique of the attempt to provide empirical foundations for certain key psychoanalytic concepts, in favour of a deduction of the validity of those concepts at the level of formal conditions of the technique of interpretation itself. It suggests that the legitimacy of that technique of interpretation depends upon a particular mode of deduction that can be considered characteristic of psychoanalytic procedure in general. The validity of the central concepts of psychoanalysis is then to be considered in terms of the procedure of argument from which their status is derived. Two models of psychoanalytic investigation are considered - an empirical model for the explanation of the dream and a more formal account of the fundamental principles of interpretation. The thesis concludes that these two models are not in fact exclusive but are rather complementary, and that a comprehensive statement of the conditions of validity of the technique of psychoanalytic interpretation can only be achieved through their interaction and articulation. At the same time it attempts to demonstrate that these issues have a fundamental influence upon our conception of the orientation and goals of that technique of interpretation.

Inledning: Forskning om sorg handlar idag om att erövra en annan relation till den döde och kunna hantera separationen. Forskning om drömmar visar på drömmens funktion som stressreducering, lösandet av konflikter och minneskonsolidering. Men också som ett fönster för representativa processer och inre modeller av relationer, för att skapa ett sammanhang. Kan psykoterapeuten få ytterligare verktyg i förståelsen av klientens sorgeprocess om drömmen lyfts in i sorgeterapin? Frågeställningar: Hur använder psykoterapeuter drömmar i förståelsen av klientens sorgeprocess? Vad upplever psykoterapeuten är verksamt när de använder sig av klienternas drömmar vid sorgeterapi? Metod: En kvalitativ studie gjordes då fyra legitimerade psykodynamiska psykoterapeuter och en legitimerad sjuksköterska intervjuades. Resultat: Det framkommer att när psykoterapeuten identifierar olika teman i drömmarna, fångar de hur drömmen gestaltar sorgeprocessen. Det som blir verksamt i terapierna, är att klienten får hjälp att sätta ord på sorgen, får tillgång till omedvetet material och kan identifiera inre konflikter. Det hjälper även klienten att integrera och normalisera sin sorg och att känna tryggheten då drömmaterialet bekräftar att sorgeprocessen går framåt. Diskussion: Studien visar att tidigare forskning om sorg och drömmar bekräftas av de intervjuades kliniska erfarenheter. / Summary: Contemporary research about grief focuses on achieving a different relationship to the deceased and managing the separation. The purposes of dreams are to reduce stress, solve conflicts, and consolidate memories. But it’s also a window into representative processes and inner models of relationships, to create a context. Can psychotherapists enhance their understanding of the clients mourning, by using dreams in grief therapy? Questions: How do psychotherapists use dreams in their understanding of the clients mourning? What do the psychotherapist feel is working when using the clients dreams in therapy? Method: A qualitative studie by interviewing four licensed psychodynamic psychotherapists and one licensed nurse. Result: When psychotherapists identify different themes in the dreams, they capture how the dreams frame the clients mourning. What works well when using the dreams in the therapy, is when is it aiding the client in putting words to their grief, getting access to subconscious material and identifying internal conflict. It also helps the client to integrate and normalise the grief, and feeling the comfort of progress, because the dreams confirm it. Discussion: The study shows that existing research about grief and dreams is confirmed by the clinical experiences of the interviewees.