University of Málaga, Spain

Iconic therapy and emotional stabilisation in adolescents

In this seminar on Iconic Therapy, a procedure to be followed will be contemplated in order for the person to improve their emotional recovery and coping skills when confronted with any kind of frustration. This therapy is particularly suitable for people that want to increase their self-esteem, a positive outlook on their surroundings, and their personal self-management when faced with difficulties. To this effect, already existing techniques and ones of my own have been gathered, representing them with images (icons) that symbolise coping strategies when facing difficulties. Representing them with icons facilitates their understanding as well as their evocation in moments of crisis. Strategies to understand the user´s problems are also provided to the professional who applies this therapy, in order to avoid them feeling lost when faced with the user´s requests, which can frequently be changeable or contradictory. 

Soledad Santiago is Professor of the Psychology Faculty in Málaga and head of psychology in the Care Center San Juan de Dios. Iconic Therapy is a new kind of psychological treatment that uses symbol images (icons) to represent those therapeutic concepts that should be remembered in situations of emotional conflict and/or impulsivity. The icons benefit evocation and the memory´s rapidity facilitates the therapy´s use in daily life preventing impulsive behavior.