The concept of representation in psychoanalysis and the cognitive therapy

Abstract

The concept of representation is part of psychoanalytic theory and the cognitive therapy even though this term is not used in the latter one. Instead, cognitive therapy uses the term ‘thought’. The opposition in the use that these two approaches make of this concept comes from two different ways of understanding science and applying it. In psychoanalysis, representation takes different modalities inasmuch as it gets structured, from mnemic –made up of sensations– trace to linguistic representation. The act of representing implies necessarily the libidinal investment; without it representing could not be possible. The libidinal investment supports the representation and determines the strength with which it gets fixed in the subject’s representational universe. The representation of experiences with love and identification figures receives a greater investment and, therefore, is more difficult to be changed.  In contrast, the cognitive therapy takes for granted that thoughts are changeable provided that the subject agrees to do so. Psychological disturbances, such as depression, are the result of thoughts that distort reality, and if they are corrected, the disturbance disappear. The opposition between these two approaches is clear and has implications that transcend the clinical context, since they speak about subject different in essence.