In early August, I attended the American Psychological Association Convention in Washington, DC. It was a very good experience. I primarily attended talks and presentations on the treatment of trauma and addictions. One thing that struck me was that there were virtually no mentions of the Inner Critic as a central force in both of these conditions. This gave me hope that the article we had been working on might be both timely and useful.
An exploration of the literature on the psychotherapeutic treatment of Inner Critic issues reveals a significant divide in our understanding of its nature and origins. One perspective holds that the Inner Critic develops through the internalization of negative experiences with people from the patient's early life—or from society at large. This is what we call the “Internalized Abuser.” The other perspective holds that the Critic develops around age six—often in response to difficult or stressful circumstances—as a way of keeping the patient safe. This is what we call the “Protector Critic.”
These two Critics are fundamentally different in both their origins and their roles in the patient's life. Consequently, each requires a different therapeutic approach.
In this article, “I Feel Like There Is a Part of Me That Hates Me”: Chairwork Psychotherapy and the Treatment of the Inner Critic, we explore how to use Chairwork Psychotherapy to (a) differentiate between these two forms of the Inner Critic and (b) work therapeutically with both Critics that seek to protect and with Critics that seek to harm.
I hope you find this article compelling and useful.
Scott Kellogg, PhD
Image: iStock/Queek