PPAA Introduction

The Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Association of Australasia is a national federation of psychotherapy organisations whose members are trained and qualified psychoanalytic psychotherapists. These psychotherapists come from a variety of relevant professions (including Psychiatry, Psychology, Social Work and others) and have undergone further specialised training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy.

The objective of the PPAA is to maintain high standards of practice, training and ethics in psychoanalytic psychotherapy throughout Australia and New Zealand, and to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and information about psychotherapy.

Our members treat people suffering from a wide range of emotional and mental disorders including depression, anxiety states, psychotic states, phobias, psychosomatic disorders, disorders of the self and self esteem.

Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy is a distinct discipline with a long history, and a tradition and body of knowledge and practice, which is constantly evolving as new information is absorbed. In trying to define our theoretical approach to the treatment of emotional problems we would include a premise that many emotional and cognitive functions and experiences take place in the unconscious and can be modified by insight or self understanding. A further premise is that the therapy takes place in the evolving relationship between the therapist and patient where transference and counter-transference issues in that relationship can be explored to shed light on the patient's characteristic ways of functioning and lead to healthier and more effective solutions.