Logotherapy Course

Lesson 1 • The Dimensional Ontology of the Human Person

Introduces Frankl's three-dimensional model: somatic, psychological, and noetic dimensions. Students learn to assess clients holistically across all three dimensions.

Lesson 2 • Viktor Frankl and His Legacy

Traces Frankl's biography, wartime experiences, and the emergence of logotherapy from existential suffering. Grounds the entire course in the human story behind the theory.

Lesson 3 • Core Philosophical Assumptions

Examines the three pillars: freedom of will, will to meaning, and meaning of life. These assumptions underpin every logotherapeutic technique introduced later.

Lesson 1 • Three Pathways to Meaning

Covers creative, experiential, and attitudinal values as the three routes through which meaning is discovered. Students practise identifying which pathway applies in given life situations.

Lesson 2 • Objective Versus Subjective Meaning

Addresses Frankl's claim that meaning is discovered, not invented, and the philosophical debate this generates. Students develop a defensible clinical position on meaning's ontological status.

Lesson 3 • Meaning in Suffering

Explores how unavoidable suffering can become a source of meaning rather than despair. This section prepares students to work with clients facing terminal illness, loss, and trauma.

Lesson 4 • Meaning Across the Lifespan

Examines how meaning sources shift from youth through old age and end of life. Students learn to tailor meaning-focused interventions to developmental stage.

Lesson 1 • Assessment Tools and Intake Procedures

Surveys validated instruments for measuring meaning, purpose, and existential frustration in clinical settings. Students practise selecting and administering appropriate tools.

Lesson 2 • Existential Frustration Defined

Defines existential frustration as the thwarting of the will to meaning and distinguishes it from ordinary dissatisfaction. Provides the diagnostic foundation for the chapter.

Lesson 3 • Noogenic Neurosis

Introduces neurosis originating in the noetic dimension rather than the psyche, requiring meaning-centred rather than symptom-focused treatment. Builds on the dimensional ontology from Chapter 1.

Lesson 1 • Dereflection: Redirecting Attention

Teaches the technique of shifting client focus away from self-preoccupation towards meaning and others. Directly addresses hyperreflection as a driver of anxiety and dysfunction.

Lesson 2 • Socratic Dialogue in Logotherapy

Applies Socratic questioning to help clients discover their own meaning rather than receiving it from the therapist. Reinforces the non-directive stance central to logotherapy.

Lesson 3 • Technique Selection and Sequencing

Develops clinical judgement for choosing and ordering techniques based on presenting problem and client readiness. Prepares students for the complexity of real-world case management.

Lesson 4 • Paradoxical Intention

Covers the technique of prescribing the feared symptom to break anticipatory anxiety cycles. Students practise formulating paradoxical instructions for phobia and obsessive-compulsive presentations.

Lesson 1 • Authenticity and Self-Disclosure

Examines when and how therapist authenticity and selective self-disclosure serve the logotherapeutic process. Balances transparency with professional boundaries.

Lesson 2 • Managing Countertransference

Addresses therapist reactions to existential themes such as death, suffering, and meaninglessness. Students develop self-monitoring strategies to maintain therapeutic effectiveness.

Lesson 3 • Empathy Within a Meaning Framework

Adapts classical empathy skills to the logotherapeutic context, emphasising resonance with the client's meaning world. Distinguishes logotherapeutic empathy from person-centred reflection.

Lesson 1 • Logotherapy and Addiction Recovery

Frames addiction as a response to existential vacuum and applies meaning-centred strategies alongside standard recovery models. Integrates logotherapy with evidence-based addiction treatment.

Lesson 2 • Logotherapy with Trauma Survivors

Adapts logotherapy for post-traumatic presentations, emphasising post-traumatic growth and meaning-making. Addresses trauma-informed modifications to standard techniques.

Lesson 3 • Logotherapy with Terminally Ill Clients

Applies attitudinal values and tragic optimism to end-of-life care settings. Equips students to support clients in finding meaning when cure is no longer possible.

Lesson 4 • Logotherapy Across Cultural Contexts

Examines how cultural values shape meaning sources and therapeutic expectations. Students develop culturally responsive adaptations of core logotherapeutic techniques.

Lesson 1 • Designing a Logotherapy Group Programme

Covers session structure, theme selection, and group composition for meaning-centred group programmes. Students draft a complete six-session group curriculum.

Lesson 2 • Facilitating Meaning-Centred Group Sessions

Develops facilitation skills specific to logotherapy groups, including managing existential disclosures and group resistance. Students practise facilitation in observed role-plays.

Lesson 3 • Theoretical Basis for Group Logotherapy

Explains why the group format amplifies meaning discovery through shared human experience and mutual witness. Connects group dynamics theory to logotherapeutic goals.

Lesson 1 • Professional Development and Continuing Growth

Guides students in building a sustainable logotherapy practice through supervision, peer consultation, and personal meaning work. Students produce a written professional development plan.

Lesson 2 • Comprehensive Case Conceptualisation

Integrates dimensional ontology, meaning assessment, and technique selection into a unified case formulation model. Students apply the model to complex, multi-problem cases.

Lesson 3 • Ethical Practice in Logotherapy

Addresses ethical issues unique to meaning-centred work, including meaning imposition, spiritual boundary violations, and informed consent. Students apply ethical decision-making frameworks to case vignettes.

Lesson 4 • Integrating Logotherapy with Other Modalities

Examines evidence-based combinations of logotherapy with cognitive-behavioural, acceptance-based, and narrative approaches. Students identify integration points without diluting logotherapeutic integrity.