Frankl uses paradoxical intention to help reverse his patients’ anticipatory anxiety. By asking his patients to try to do that which they fear doing, Frankl demonstrates that their anxieties actually hurt them rather than help them. For example, Frankl might tell someone with a severe stutter to try his best to stutter the next time he spoke to someone. When that person tries to stutter, he discovers that he cannot do so.
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Paradoxical intention Term Timeline in Man’s Search for Meaning
The timeline below shows where the term Paradoxical intention appears in Man’s Search for Meaning. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Logotherapy in a Nutshell: Logotherapy as a Technique
Logotherapy uses “ paradoxical intention ” to counteract these two tendencies. By instructing patients to bring about that which they...
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...including a bookkeeper afflicted with bad handwriting and a man with a horrible stutter, through paradoxical intention . Frankl says that this form of treatment is particularly helpful for those with obsessive-compulsive...
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