Psychologists / Psychotherapists for Future

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Psychologists / Psychotherapists for Future
(Psy4F)
Logo Psychologist 4 Future
Logo Psychotherapists 4 Future
founding April 2019 in Germany
founder Lea Dohm & Mareike Schulze
motto Climate change is a psychological crisis, whatever else it is. (Poulsen, 2018)
Website https://www.psychologistsforfuture.org

Psychologists / Psychotherapists for Future (short Psy4F ) is an initiative of psychologists , psychotherapists and students of psychology to support the Fridays for Future movement.

history

In April 2019, the Psy4F founded at the initiative of psychoanalytically oriented Psychological psychotherapists Mareike Schulze and Lea Dohm.

In May 2019, the Psy4F published a statement on the protests for more climate protection, which, according to Psy4F, had been signed by more than 4,400 people from 28 countries by April 2020.

opinion

In their statement, the Psy4F emphatically underline the demands of the Fridays for Future movement for quick and consistent action, a fundamental climate policy and social paradigm shift and compliance with the goals of the Paris Agreement .

In their statement, the Psy4F postulated the following:

  • Climate change and the ecological crisis would be intuitively underestimated. Associated feelings that are experienced as unpleasant are kept unconscious by means of psychological defense processes (individually and collectively) . As a result, many people, including politicians, would greatly misunderstand the extent of the threat. This collective denial stands in the way of both individual and collective action.
  • It is a psychological problem to get people to change their behavior in the direction of increasing environmental and climate awareness. Getting active would often get in the way of habit and the feeling of not having any control or being able to achieve anything.
  • Becoming aware of the explosive nature of the climate and ecological crisis could cause symptoms and even psychological disorders . It can lead to intense feelings that are experienced as overwhelming, which can result in inability to act and psychological disorders.
  • The state of the environment has complex effects on human experience, behavior and health.

Publications by Renee Lertzmann that refer to psychodynamic / psychoanalytic theories and individual studies on the consequences of global warming for mental health are cited.

The statement was preceded by a quote from Bruce Poulsen, a psychodynamically oriented psychotherapist: "Climate change is a psychological crisis, whatever else it is".

Forms of action and goals

Since June 2019, Psy4F has been offering a low-threshold, free advisory service for climate-activists, as well as workshops, lectures and roundtables. Passing on the existing psychological knowledge to climate activists and other multipliers, becoming active oneself and showing the possibilities of this social movement are the declared goals of Psy4F.

The Psy4F are organized in regional groups (Berlin, Bonn, Lake Constance, Braunschweig, Bremen, Dresden, Görlitz, Frankfurt, Freiburg, Groningen, Halle / Leipzig, Hamburg, Hanover, Heidelberg, Kassel, Kiel, Cologne, Lübeck, Magdeburg, Mainz, Central Baden , Munich, Münster, Nuremberg, Osnabrück, Austria, Ruhr area, Stuttgart, Trier, Würzburg, Central Switzerland - as of April 2020). An international exchange with thematically related specialist initiatives is maintained. Nationwide working groups exist u. a. on press and public relations, social media, mental health for activists, psychoanalysis, climate communication.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Lea Dohm: We are role models . In: Psychotherapist Journal . 2016, No. 3, 2016, p. 37.
  2. ↑ Practices for psychotherapy. Chamber of Psychotherapists RLP, accessed on July 12, 2020 .
  3. ↑ a b Our opinion. Psychologists for Future, April 26, 2020, accessed July 12, 2020 .
  4. ↑ One Year Psychologists / Psychotherapists for Future: A Review and a Outlook. Retrieved July 12, 2020 .
  5. ↑ Renee Lertzman: Environmental Melancholia: Psychoanalytic Dimensions of Engagement . Routledge, 2017, ISBN 978-1-317-91693-2 .
  6. ↑ Bruce Poulsen: On Mourning Climate Change. In: Psychology Today Blog. December 16, 2018, accessed July 12, 2020 .