Catharsis is a Greek word that refers to purification and is used in psychology to explain the process of releasing negative emotions. The term became popular in the psychotherapeutic field thanks to Freud’s psychoanalysis.

Catharsis and Psychoanalytic Theory

Catharsis is the emotional release that occurs with the free association method . In psychoanalytic theory, this emotional release refers to the “purgation” of unconscious conflicts. The method of free association or cathartic method was originally created by Breuer, a friend of Freud, but Freud developed it as part of his psychoanalytic theory.

Trauma and repressed urges

Firstly, the method of free association was part of the hypnotic therapy, in which the patient was submitted to the memory of the traumatic experiences of his past, in order to release those emotions or repressed drives . The evolution of psychoanalysis dissociated this method from hypnosis to make it part of psychoanalytic therapy.

In the early days of Psychoanalysis, Anna O, a hysterical patient of Breuer’s, coined the cathartic method as “chimney sweeping” or “word healing”.

Origin of the word catharsis

The word catharsis comes from the Greek term κάθαρσις (kátharsis) which means, “purification” or “purge”. Aristotle used the word in his work Poetics . According to him, catharsis occurred in Greek tragedy because of the effect it had on the spectators, since the spectacle (tragedy) caused feelings of compassion and fear , and the spectators left the theatre feeling clean, with a greater knowledge of the ways of men and gods.

Thus, the term alludes to a process of purification of our feelings and values . At the moment in which we must reflect on life and human reflections beyond the here and now, we are able to value things in a different, renewed way. It is important, then, to understand that emotional catharsis is an ideal that can be reached from self-reflection and from direct contact with our condition as thinking beings.

Theory of catharsis: media and violence

In psychology, the use of the word catharsis is known for the concept used by psychoanalytic theory and its role in psychotherapy. But from social psychology the term has also been used in the “theory of catharsis”.

The assimilation of certain ethical values

For several decades there has been a debate about the influence of the media on viewers and its relationship to the development of violence in children.Nobody denies the role of the media in the socialization of people, since they participate in the internalization of values and norms , and in the way individuals relate to the world around them.

But the media, often distort reality and create an invented world, fictitious stories that try to influence our tastes, our interests and our opinions, something that is known as media reality. This constructed reality has a very powerful effect on the creation of the mental world of modern society.

Many theorists, like Albert Bandura, believe that most media consumers absorb the social representations of the mass media without discrimination. This view, shared by other authors, is known as the mimetic theory. Given this panorama, catharsis becomes a complicated process, since there are many inputs that we automatically internalize. If we drag backpacks of media content , the process of catharsis may be compromised.

Another point of view: passive catharsis in front of the television

On the other hand, and against this vision, there is a current that defends (or at least excuses) violence in the media. For the defenders of this point of view, the diffusion of violence in the media functions as a form of catharsis, something that is known as the “theory of catharsis”. For example, according to the cathartic theory, violent scenes on television would constitute a way of liberating the aggressiveness that nests in the viewers .

Despite the fact that the debate has lasted several decades, and despite the interest of many theorists in demonstrating that the theory of catharsis is true, research has not shown results that defend this position.