Dynamic therapy in the decade of the brain

Data from diverse sources suggest that psychotherapy works by changing the functioning of the brain. This observation is part of a larger phenomenon involving neural plasticity. An extraordinary amount of research is demonstrating that neither gene expression nor the anatomy or physiology of the brain is static. Environment and genetics are in an ongoing interaction with one another, and this mutual influence informs our latest understanding of how psychotherapy appears to affect brain functioning. Research on disorders such as schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, cancer, and panic disorder provide convincing data in this regard. For a full understanding of the etiology and pathogenesis of mental illness, as well as its treatment, the psychodynamic dimension of meaning must be incorporated.