Carving dialogue: Bakhtin-driven conduits for one-on-one psychotherapy

ABSTRACT

This study delves into the conceptual integration of Mikhail Bakhtin’s dialogic principles into the realm of one-on-one dialogue-oriented psychotherapy. Grounded in Bakhtin’s philosophy, which accentuates the inherent dialogic nature of the self, we put forth a comprehensive framework that merges experiential strategies from Schema Therapy, Emotion-Focused Therapy, psychodrama, Cognitive-Analytic Therapy, Self-Confrontation Method, and person-centered approaches. Focal Bakhtinian notions are explored and subsequently incorporated into existing dialogue-oriented psychotherapeutic techniques. Distinct from traditional approaches that compartmentalize dialogue, the Bakhtin-driven framework focuses on the rich tapestry of intertwined positions of each client and is oriented toward promoting conduits for these self-positions to converse. Our framework stems from the idea that facilitating dialogue at the intra- and inter-personal levels is an imperative goal of psychotherapy. The proposed dialogic stance is juxtaposed with existing psychotherapeutic models by endorsing a more dialogue-oriented scheme rather than an adaptive or integrative one. This study aims to elicit debate on the applicative value of implementing dialogic processes in one-on-one psychotherapy, building upon a theoretical premise that celebrates the inner diversity of voices and the constructive role of open communication – whether when joining or dealing with conflicts.

KEYWORDS:

• Bakhtin
• dialogism
• psychotherapy
• emotion-focused therapy (EFT)
• schema therapy (ST)

Acknowledgments

We thank Prof. Eshkol Rafaeli and Dr. Adar Paz for reviewing the manuscript and providing us concise and wise insights.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the Bar-Ilan University [Dean’s Fellowship].