2013, Vol.20, No.

Journal of Counseling and Gospel 2023 KCI Impact Factor : 0.55

pISSN : 1739-0745 / eISSN : 2799-6530
https://journal.kci.go.kr/jocag

This article examines the relatedness and limitations of Heinz Kohut's Self Psychology, an influential psychoanalytical theory, and its understanding of human nature in relation to Christian Counseling. The way to understand human personality tends to decide theories and practices of counseling. Christian counseling ought to uses Christian concepts of person, but often borrows the concepts of psychological theories on human personality as well. Yet, there is inevitable tension between Christianity and Psychology in using both views for Christian counseling, and this study is an attempt to interpret and assess Kohut's understanding on person in the light of Christian counseling. Specifically, this study first points out that biblical understanding of person is based on the notion that person is created in the image of God, which implies that people are relational being and sinners as well. Then it claims that Kohut's theory confirms this implication and describes people's limitedness as sinners by noting Kohut's contributions to explain the meaning of self, development of self, and self centeredness of self in the light of relational dimensions. However, the study claims that Kohut's emphasis on self is not in accordance with Christian understanding. The study argues that Donald Capps' use of self psychology in interpreting the Bible could be harmful to Christianity. Finally, this article concludes by suggesting a qualitative case study that examines relationship between Christian counseling and self psychology in future.

The aim of this study is to measure the effect of a group educational counselling program(GECP) on narcissistic personality tendency of the Seminarians. This study confirmed the results as follows. First, as a result of homogeneity test between the experimental group and the control group, p=.792 did not show significant difference statistically in scores. Second, as a result of analysis of the pre-post differences of sublimity and exaggerated self-consciousness between the control group and the experimental group, the average scores pre(M=7.25)-post(M=6.33) of the experimental group are relatively showed a significant difference compared to the average scores pre(M=7.21)-post(M=7.29) of the control group. And self-capability and estimation susceptibility pre(8.52)-post(7.65) of the experimental group also showed relatively larger than the average scores pre(M=8.49)-post(M=8.46) of the control group. While a significant level of sublimity and exaggerated self-consciousness and self-capability and estimation susceptibility of the control group were meaningless, a significant level of sublimity and exaggerated self-consciousness p<.01 and self-capability and estimation susceptibility p<.001 showed statistically significant in the experimental group. In the above results, GECP has been proven to be effective for the control of the Seminarians' narcissistic personality tendency.

To help explain maladaptive reactions to rejection, Downey & Feldman proposed a specific cognitive-affective disposition called rejection sensitivity. At the core of this disposition is the anxious expectation of being rejected by people who are important to the self, an expectation developed through exposure to serve and prolonged rejection. Those who are high in rejection sensitivity show a heightened tendency to anxiously expect, readily perceive, and intensely react to rejection. John Bowlby's attachment theory helps to understand a cause of rejection sensitivity. John Bowlby devoted extensive research to the concept of attachment viewing that early experiences in childhood, specially strong emotional bonds to particular individual, have an important influence on development and behavior later in life. Nevertheless the psychological research helps to understand the rejection sensitivity, this paper emphasizes the fact that It is the Bible that really reveals the true cause of it. To find the genesis of rejection, we go back to the beginning, to Genesis, and see that the roots of rejection harken back to the root of humanity, the first man Adam's rebellious sin against God. However, God, through the cross of the Jesus Christ, granted our salvation and acceptance. The Gospel has the remedy against the fear and anxiety of rejection and, in order that happen, the positional sanctification needs to be emphasized. Knowing who we are in Christ, our positional sanctification, is the biblical key to getting over from the high rejection sensitivity.