[Psychotherapy with dyssocial patients].

Abstract

Psychotherapy of dissocial personalities is, even by psychotherapists, often judged sceptically. As obstacles are most of all mentioned the lack of motivation and the excessive acting out of these patients. Because of the development of the personality of dissocial people motivation in the ordinary sense can not be expected. But this does not mean that therapy is impossible. These patients are often rejected by therapists because they feel injured by the patients' rejection and by their devaluation of the therapeutic attention. We find the same dynamics concerning the excessive acting out or these patients. Problems in countertransference also arise because therapists must reduce their therapeutic ambitions and must be satisfied with improvements which-in their eyes-are negligible.