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Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences pp 1–3Cite as

Free Association

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Definition

Free Association is the term given to the clinical manifestation of the Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis. The Fundamental Rule was stated by Freud (1913) in his paper “On Beginning the Treatment” (Further Recommendations on the Technique of Psychoanalysis). The rule states that the patient should as far as is possible report every thought, feeling, and impulse that occurs to him/her as it occurs and, most importantly, without censorship. Free Association is the term for the narrative produced by the patient when trying to obey this rule.

A Combination of Theory with Technique

Free Association is an excellent example of a technique which developed in psychoanalysis through the convergence of psychoanalytic theory and developments in technique. As such, there is no specific date on which it was formally adopted, but it is generally accepted that by 1898 this was the dominant method through which treatment occurred.

The theoretical origins for the technique of Free...

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References

  • Freud, S. (1895). Studies on Hysteria (1895) (Standard Edition Vol. 2, pp. 48–105). London.

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  • Freud, S. (1900). The interpretation of dreams (Standard Edition Vol. 4, pp. 96–610). London.

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  • Freud, S. (1913). On beginning the treatment (Further recommendations on the technique of psychoanalysis) (Standard Edition Vol. 12, pp. 121–144). London.

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  • Freud S. (1915). The unconscious (Standard Edition Vol. 15, pp. 166–215). London.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fellow, British Psychoanalytical Society, c/o Psychoanalysis Unit, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK

    Avi Shmueli

Authors
  1. Avi Shmueli
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Correspondence to Avi Shmueli .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland University, Rochester, USA

    Virgil Zeigler-Hill

  2. Oakland University, Rochester, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. Wichita State University, Wichita, KS, USA

    Brendan Clark

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© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

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Shmueli, A. (2017). Free Association. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_34-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_34-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-28099-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-28099-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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