{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,15]],"date-time":"2026-09-15T04:19:01Z","timestamp":1789445941020,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":32,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2019,12,5]],"date-time":"2019-12-05T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1575504000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Behavioral Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Dynamic Psychotherapy (DP) was developed to overcome the limitations of traditional psychoanalysis, responding to a broader demand of patients who seek help to cope with specific problems in the short term, such as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). OCD is a chronic disabling mental disorder that leads to substantial distress, functional disability and severe occupational and social impairments. Recognizing the literature gap in this field, and the improvements reported by dynamic therapists who have dealt with patients suffering from OCD, a study on the treatment of these patients was conducted in order to discuss the effects of this technique. The method involved a narrative literature review and the analysis of two clinical cases to discuss therapeutic processes, which include the specificities of OCD patients and the mechanisms adopted in the treatment through DP. The therapist\u2019s active stance seemed to be essential to encourage the patient to face feared situations and identify the core conflict. Both patients who were treated through DP presented similarities, such as high anxiety, feelings of guilt and inhibition of aggressive and sexual impulses. Through emotional exploration, confrontation of defensive functioning and interpretative interventions of inner conflicts, patients had reached awareness of their hidden feelings and experiences, and their symptoms and feelings of guilt decreased. They also showed significant improvements in their interpersonal relationships. Although both treatments do not fit into short-term therapies, this technique has led to long-term results, providing evidence that DP may produce favorable outcomes in the treatment of OCD.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/bs9120141","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2019,12,6]],"date-time":"2019-12-06T06:50:16Z","timestamp":1575615016000},"page":"141","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":6,"title":["Dynamic Psychotherapy: The Therapeutic Process in the Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"9","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6184-7211","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Joana Proen\u00e7a","family":"Becker","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences of the University of Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rui","family":"Paix\u00e3o","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences of the University of Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Simone","family":"Silva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Psychology Institute of the University of S\u00e3o Paulo, S\u00e3o Paulo 05508-030, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Manuel Jo\u00e3o","family":"Quartilho","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, Portugal"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Eda M.","family":"Cust\u00f3dio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Psychology Institute of the University of S\u00e3o Paulo, S\u00e3o Paulo 05508-030, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2019,12,5]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"1","article-title":"Short-term psychodynamic therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder: A manual-guided approach to treating the \u201cinhibited rebel\u201d","volume":"81","author":"Leichsenring","year":"2017","journal-title":"Bull. 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