What is Jungian Psychology?

Jungian psychotherapy, also referred to as Jungian analysis, is an in-depth form of talk therapy that explores the relationship between the conscious and unconscious mind.

Developed by Carl Jung in the early 20th century, this approach (often called analytical psychology) is based on the idea that the unconscious can be a source of insight and guidance for psychological growth.

While the terms Jungian therapy and Jungian analysis are sometimes used interchangeably, Jung originally referred to his work as analytical psychology. Today, Jungian analysis is practiced by trained specialists accredited by organisations such as the International Association for Analytical Psychology.

Jungian psychology is a complex area of depth psychology, but at its core is a simple idea: when the authentic self is blocked, mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, and addiction can emerge, often leading to destructive patterns in relationships and behaviour.

Rather than focusing only on symptoms, Jungian therapy takes a holistic approach. It encourages individuals to explore deeper patterns such as past experiences, emotions, and unconscious influences to better understand themselves and move toward a more integrated sense of self.

At its core, Jungian psychology:

Core concepts of Jungian psychology

Carl Jung was a prolific writer with an expansive collection of theories that made up his Analytical Psychology. However, below are some fundamental concepts that are central to the study of Jungian psychology.

1. The collective unconscious

Jung proposed that beyond the personal unconscious lies a deeper layer shared by all humans, known as the collective unconscious. This contains universal patterns and symbols inherited across generations, shaping how people experience the world.

2. Jung’s model of the psyche.

Jung posited that there are three components that make up the human psyche:

These shared patterns, known as archetypes, go beyond simple instincts (such as fear of the dark). Instead, they form deeper structures within the personality, shaped by inherited images and experiences across generations.

3. Individuation

According to the American Psychological Association, individuation is:

“the gradual development of a unified, integrated personality that incorporates greater and greater amounts of the unconscious, both personal and collective, and resolves any conflicts that exist, such as those between introverted and extraverted tendencies.”

In essence, the therapeutic goal of individuation within analytical psychology is the process through which a person becomes a whole psychological individual. The person recognizes their own self-worth and uniqueness and embraces both the consciousness and the unconscious.

4. Archetypes

Jungian archetypes are universal images and themes derived from the collective unconscious. These archetypes may appear in dreams, literature, religion or art.

There are numerous archetypes that Jung explored within Analytical Psychology, but below we will explore the main four that are discussed most often:

Discover more about the complex world of Analytical Psychology from one of Jung’s most important and famous books, Psychological Types.

How is Jungian psychology different from Freud’s psychoanalysis?

Freud and Jung were contemporaries who often wrote and researched together during their lives. In fact, Jung initially saw Sigmund Freud as a mentor in the study of human experience. However, there came a certain point where their disparate views and approaches to psychology caused them to end their professional relationship and friendship.

Specifically, Freud chose to end their working relationship due to Jung’s disagreement with many of the key concepts of Freudian psychoanalysis. Although there were complex differences between Freud and Jung’s contributions to the understanding of human psychology, below is a brief breakdown of five key concepts they disagreed upon.

1. The Unconscious Mind

Freud saw the unconscious mind as the core center of all repressed thoughts, memories and the driver of sex and aggression. He broke the human mind into three main structures: the id, the ego and the superego. The id is the unconscious, which drives sex and aggression, and its only goal is to seek pleasure. The ego is our conscious, which includes our memories and thoughts. Lastly, our superego is the part of our mind that attempts to mediate the id to conform to socially acceptable standards.

Jung also broke the human mind into three parts, but it revolved around the human psyche. As noted earlier, to Jung, the unconscious is divided into the ego, the personal unconscious and the collective unconscious. The ego is the conscious part of the human mind. The personal unconscious encompasses all recalled and suppressed memories. Meanwhile, the collective unconscious refers to the shared knowledge and experiences that humans are born with.

2. Religion

Freud believed that religion was an “escape” for the masses that shouldn’t be propagated. Conversely, Jung believed that religion played a necessary role in individuation. Jung didn’t practice a specific religion, but he did explore many in his studies, particularly Eastern philosophies and religions.

3. Sex and Sexuality

This was probably Freud and Jung’s greatest point of conflict. Anyone familiar with Freud’s work will recognize that the ideas of repressed and expressed sexuality are the fundamental motivating forces behind his theories and methods. He felt that sex and sexuality were the main drivers behind all human behavior.

In contrast, Jung felt that it’s psychic energy or life force that drives and influences human behavior, not sex and sexuality. In his understanding of the human psyche, sexuality was just one manifestation of greater psychic energy. He also felt that the Oedipal impulses explored by Freud were incorrect and that the mother and child relationship was actually built upon love and protection, instead of sexuality.

4. Dreams

Both Freud and Jung believed that dream interpretations were an essential window into the unconscious mind. Freud explained that dreams were indications of our deepest desires, unconstrained by societal standards and that they were often symbolically sexual in nature.

Jung disagreed that most dreams were sexual in nature or had hidden or fixed meanings. He didn’t believe there was a universal dream dictionary that could interpret everyone’s dreams. Instead, he believed that dreams could hold a variety of meanings based on the dreamer’s unique associations. In his approach, dreams held their own distinct meanings created by both the external (day-to-day life) and internal (feelings and emotions) world.

Jung’s Modern Man in Search of a Soul is a great resource for the practical application of dream interpretation. 

5. Parapsychology

Freud completely disagreed with Jung regarding the paranormal as a complete skeptic. Meanwhile, Jung wholeheartedly believed in the field of parapsychology. Many of his theories were built upon psychic phenomena, such as his controversial theory of synchronicity. He felt that many coincidences weren’t actually coincidences, but instead examples of psycho-psychic phenomena.

At a theoretical level, Jungian psychology wasv developed in dialogue with Freud’s psychoanalysis—but ultimately diverged in important ways. While Freud focused primarily on the personal unconscious and early childhood experiences, Jung expanded his theory to include the collective unconscious and universal symbolic patterns—placing greater emphasis on personal growth, meaning, and the integration of the self.

Benefits of Jungian Psychology

In traditional treatments, a Jungian therapist will work mostly in individual therapy sessions to improve the health and wellbeing of the client. However, some Jungian therapy has extended sessions to include couples and families instead of just individuals.

Although you don’t need a diagnosable mental health issue to pursue Jungian therapy, there are many mental health problems that can be helped by treatment, including:

Jungian therapy works with patients to help them recognize the potential in themselves and work toward personal growth. This holistic approach, which contains many spiritual elements, can help people see what obstacles have been preventing them from living fulfilled lives—and overcome them.

It is important to note that Jungian therapy is a long-term therapy with intensive sessions, so it can be more expensive than other types of therapy.

For a more extensive exploration into Carl Jung, his history and the creation of Analytical Psychology, check out Ruth Williams’s C.G. Jung: The Basics.

Additional Resources on Jungian Psychology

If you’re interested in reading more about Jungian psychology, start exploring these further resources: