Freud’s study, Analysis of a phobia in a five-year old boy, is the account of the treatment of little Hans; a five year old boy who had been suffering form anxiety that led to a number of phobias. Freud uses this case study as strong support for his psychoanalytic ideas concerning; the unconscious determinism, psychosexual development, the Oedipus complex, the cause of phobias and psychoanalytic therapy itself. Little Hans was analyzed and treated though his father (a strong believer of Freud’s ideas) .who based his reports of little Hans’s behavior and statements. His treatment was achieved by inferring the unconscious causes of Hans’ behavior through the interpretation and decoding of psychoanalytic symbols and by confronting Hans with the unconscious causes of his phobia by revealing to him his hidden motivations and unconsciously discussing them with him.
Freud used a case study method to investigate little Hans’s phobia. However the case study was actually carried out by the boy’s father who was a friend and supporter of Freud. Freud himself probably only met the boy once or twice. The father reported to Freud via correspondence and Freud gave directions as how to deal with the situation based on his interpretations of the fathers reports.
Direct links can be seen between Freud’s theory of socialization, personality development and abnormality (which where all largely influenced by the study of little Hans) and the methodology of thigpen and cleckley’s study of multiple personality disorder.
The aim of thigpen and cleckley’s study was to provide an account of the psychotherapeutic treatment of a 25-year-old woman (eve white) who was referred to thigpen and cleckley because of ‘ severe and blinding headaches’. It later became apparent that they were dealing with a case of multiple personality disorder (MPD)
The two psychiatrists also used a