The Freudian concept of regression is well known today, although it is in clear decline because of the theoretical and practical progress that has taken place in clinical psychology and psychoanalysis.

In this article we will analyse the concept of regression according to psychoanalysis and review the different nuances of this term. Finally, we will review some of the most representative criticisms that have been made about regression.

Defining regression

According to Sigmund Freud, considered the founder of psychoanalysis, regression is a defense mechanism that consists of the regression of the self to an earlier stage of development. This process would occur in response to unacceptable thoughts or impulses that the person cannot cope with in an adaptive way, and could be transitory or chronic.

Freud said that throughout psychosexual development, young people are at risk of becoming psychologically anchored in one of the stages, without being able to fully progress through the subsequent ones. This is known as “fixation,” and the more intense it is, the greater the risk of reacting to psychosocial stress with regression.

In the original psychoanalytical approaches, regression in adulthood is presented as being intimately associated with neurosis. Later on, it has been proposed that this change is not always pathological or negative, but that sometimes transitory regressions could be beneficial for overcoming the discomfort or fostering creativity.

Michael Balint, a Hungarian psychoanalyst who is considered a relevant member of the school of object relations, proposed the existence of two types of regression. One of them would be benign (like those of childhood or artistic type), while the malignant or pathological variant would be related to neurosis and specifically to the Oedipus complex.

Typical regression behaviors

A very remarkable characteristic of this phenomenon is the appearance of typically childish behaviours and attitudes . However, depending on the psychosexual stages in which a fixation occurred, some regressive behaviours or others will appear; for example, Freud considered nail-biting and smoking as signs of fixation in the oral phase.

Oral regression would also manifest itself in intake and speech-related behaviors. In contrast, fixation on the anal stage could lead to a compulsive tendency towards order or disorder, accumulation and extreme stinginess, while conversion hysteria would be characteristic of regression to the phallic period.

Although it can occur in adulthood, regression is most common in childhood. Examples of regression would be a child starting to wet the bed after the birth of a baby brother or a pre-teen crying every time his classmates tease him.

It should be noted that, theoretically, fixation can occur simultaneously in several stages of psychosexual development . In these cases, regressive behaviors characteristic of each of the phases in question would appear, although not always at the same time.

Regression as a therapeutic method

Various followers of Freud’s proposals explored the potential of his concept of regression as a therapeutic tool in various disorders associated with neurosis. Sometimes hypnosis was used as a means to try to achieve regression , while in other cases the process had a more tangible character.

Sándor Ferenczi said that regression could be a good method for enhancing the effectiveness of psychotherapy. In this regard, Ferenczi advocated the practice of pseudo-parental behaviors by the therapist, such as giving verbal comfort and even hugging patients to help them overcome trauma or stress.

In addition to Ferenczi, other authors such as Balint, Bowlby, Bettelheim, Winnicott, or Laing also proposed the use of regression as an instrument that allowed a new “parental reeducation” more satisfactory than the original one. These theorists believed that regression could be sufficient for the maturation of individuals, even in cases of autism.

From this point of view, regression is associated with the famous cathartic method, which consists of helping patients to process past traumatic events by re-experimentation through imagination or suggestion, including hypnosis. Similar techniques are now being applied in cases of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Criticisms of this Freudian concept

According to Inderbitzin and Levy (2000), the popularization of the term “regression” has extended its use to a large number of signifiers, which has decimated the clarity of the concept. These authors stress that regression is part of an obsolete developmental model (Freud’s theory of stages) and that the concept itself can be harmful.

Rizzolo (2016) states that the concept of regression should be abandoned and replaced by the study of the person as a whole, rather than focusing on impulses or abstract needs, and that this is not possible if the relationship between a given behavior and the circumstances that determine it in the present is not understood.

In his analysis of the therapeutic use of regression, Spurling (2008) concludes that this method has now been surpassed even in the field of psychoanalysis. However, the concept of regression as a defence mechanism is still used today from an explanatory point of view by many people who are close to this orientation.

Bibliographic references:

  • Inderbitzin, L. B. & Levy, S.T. (2000). Regression and psychoanalytic technique: The concretization of a concept. Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 69: 195-223.
  • Rizzolo, G. S. (2016). The critique of regression: the person, the field, the lifespan. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 64(6): 1097-1131.
  • Spurling, L.S. (2008). Is there still a place for the concept of therapeutic regression in psychoanalysis? The International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 89(3): 523-540.