Will Hunting Psychology

1648 Words4 Pages

Mental health professionals try to determine the source of negative characteristic and the aspects of an individual leading to mental conditions. The obligation to such people is to assess, diagnose, and treat a person whose perspective of a disease has been identified (Affleck, 1997). Looking at the life of Will Hunting is clear that he is suffering from oppositional defiant disorder. The features of this condition are characterized by the recurrence of patterns of anger, rebellious behavior and vindictiveness. About Will, it seems that he has a severe problem relating to this illness; it has significantly reduced his ability to function in a way that is the socially acceptable way and is currently in multiple setting. This is so because he …show more content…

As a result, the parents realize some of the techniques that they can use to parent the children. The parent-child relationship significantly improves the problem behavior that a defiant and oppositional person shows (Cannon, 2013). Since Will has been abused by the parent leading to his current status of socialization, it would be imperative to reconstruct the relationship between him and the mother with the help of a therapist. Individual and family therapy is necessary for individuals with Will’s disorder because it aid the in the management of anger and be able to express the feeling in a way that is healthier. One of the most important techniques in individual therapy is his behavior modification technique, for example, the use of consequences depending on the needs of the person. Family counseling, on the other hand, helps individuals improve their communication and relations they have with relatives and another member of the family. Family therapy is particularly crucial as it is useful in controlling the behavior of defiant, oppositional individuals (Cannon, 2013). The case of Will appears extreme and, therefore, the parents must be willing to develop more effective parenting approaches accompanies with …show more content…

Will Hunting have shown attributes of lack of love and anti-social behaviors owing to lack of attachment relationship. His behaviral practice is not limited to violence he also shows dislike to people and does not trust many. Also, he is unable to control his basic emotions like anger and has a lot of problems developing relationships with adults and women. Will's anger is one of many defenses that mask his inner feelings and guard his inner self (Affleck, 1997). Will's subconscious is determined, no one will be able to penetrate these defenses and hurt him again. This is as a result of the abuse he went through in his childhood. As an outcome, he does not show empathy to any person. Hunting was betrayed as a child and now exhibits behaviors to protect him from people. The family relationship has a high chance of working on him because from the film the audience can see that the few relationships he has been working. For example, he accepts the friendship offers by Sean Maguire. Moreover, Success of the treatment with Sean occurs when Hunting takes the love offered by Skylar (Cannon, 2013). He develops self-confidence that masks the negative self-esteem he initially had about himself. He takes advantage of the relationship by moving out of Boston and goes to live with Skylar in California. The effect of the gap filled can further be enhanced if the parents are trained

Open Document