By Karen Carnabucci, MSS, LCSW, TEP
It’s happened again. A reporter for a major news organization has referred to a current chaotic political situation as a “psychodrama.”
Umm, no.
Although it is true that the highly charged political situation was an incident with highly sensitive information and complex details, it is not psychodrama.
And that recent movie, the one that told a psychologically intense story about a serial killer, stirring the viewer into ups and downs of wild roller coaster emotions? That’s not psychodrama either.
Psychodrama actually refers to an innovative method developed by J.L. Moreno, a European-born physician, starting in the 1920s. He originated the method to counter Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis, which was growing in popularity in that era as a way to address people’s psychological troubles.
“A reporter for a major news organization has referred to a current chaotic political situation as a 'psychodrama'. . . Umm, no."
Through the years, Dr. Moreno developed and refined the method with his wife Zerka T. Moreno, and it was expanded later by subsequent trainers. It does not refer to current events, movies, and television or theater productions – as it is often used in the popular press – nor does it refer to dramatic incidents in the world or musical groups, although at least one musical group has taken the name.
Psychodrama — meaning “psyche in action” — uses improvisation and specific drama-related techniques to help us explore our inner and outer worlds with action. This versatile method uses role play and is based in a complex theory of roles, relationships and creativity. It is easily adaptable to psychotherapy, education, business, law, organizational training, consulting, community, and theater and worship settings.
Sociometry, its associated field also developed by Dr. Moreno, is helpful for enhancing relationships of all kinds and especially valuable for effective team-building in work places and groups.
Psychodrama is not drama therapy – which is a separate creative arts discipline. It is the true forerunner of the creative arts therapies as we know them today. It is also an effective way to build community, which is an amazingly powerful healing force, and an important avenue to develop creativity and spontaneity at work and in our daily lives.
Through enactment, participants explore conflicts, wishes and concerns in a safe environment with the help of a group. The goal of psychodrama helps people discover their inner truth, express emotions freely and experiment with and establish authentic interactions with others.
As I discuss in my book Show and Tell Psychodrama: Skills for Therapists, Coaches, Teachers, Leaders, psychodramatists have employed this method to train Secret Service agents to respond to emergency situations, help attorneys win difficult cases, develop innovative lesson plans in all levels of the educational system, and heal people suffering depression, trauma, anxiety and addiction. Taking into account the needs of the field, it can be successfully employed by trainers of teachers and managers, professionals in various fields, people who do consultation, religious educators, and many other non-clinical settings.
Group leaders who use role play as part of their group activities are not necessarily using psychodrama although modern role play is rooted in psychodrama theory, and groups can become more appealing when psychodramatic and sociometric options are employed.
Psychodrama has been adapted for uses not related to psychotherapy. For instance, Peter Pitzele has employed psychodramatic theory and techniques in developing Bibliodrama to bring stories of scripture to life, which he details in his books, Our Fathers’ Wells and Scripture Windows: Toward a Practice of Bibliodrama.
If you are a professional or student interested in learning the method of psychodrama, begin with the experiencing of psychodrama session. If you are seeking significant education – or want to become certified – professional trainings are available in many venues. You can pursue it for your personal growth, for professional growth — or both. If you are undecided, you can learn more by reading books about psychodrama and finding information online. Find certified trainers here.
If you enter a training program, you will learn the theoretical foundation and a multitude of proven techniques, such as doubling, role reversal, mirroring and others. Enrolling in training workshops will provide a framework to use psychodrama in your work. Psychodrama is not a bag of random techniques, but a specific method with its own theory and practice; training and supervision is crucial to employ the method skillfully and sensitively.
About the Author:
Karen Carnabucci, MSS, LCSW, TEP, is a psychotherapist, trainer and consultant in private practice in Lancaster, Pa. She employs traditional, contemporary and alternative models to work with people and groups to learn, grow and heal. Particular interests include personal, social and inter-generational trauma; addiction; family relationships; energy healing; and social change. She has presented at local, state and national conferences and conducts an ongoing training program on experiential methods as part of her private practice.
