[What makes a consultation therapeutic? On the cultural characteristics of psychotherapeutic methods]

Transcultural comparisons relativize the universal validity of the modern methods of psychotherapy and highlight their close relationship to "world view" and style of living. Although traditional healing rites do have a lot in common with our methods oriented towards "insight", "empathy" and "understanding" (such as motivation, creation of an emotionally significant relationship, interpretation of the disease and its treatment according to a plausible concept), certain aspects are specific for our way of proceeding (such as individuation and reason), whereas other characteristics on which we focus less attention occupy a central position in traditional healing rites (e.g. social integration, involvement of the body, actions). Such "gaps" suggest that it should be of advantage to "transfer" some of the therapeutic techniques from one cultural environment to another (e.g. from an alien culture to our way of life or vice versal). That, however, is possible to a very limited extent only and demands critical and modifying integration, since therapeutic methods are very closely connected with the central values of the relevant culture in respect of their particular form of relationship to that culture and the aims of that culture.