Abnormal Psychology Analysis

7/25/2019 Abnormal Psychology Analysis

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Brook Elaine (Matt5verse6)

Goodwill Hunting

Originally, I chose As Good As It Gets but then after I started reviewing Goodwill

Hunting I changed my mind. Although, for me, I feel the disorder for the Jack Nicholson

character is easier to identify than the one for the Matt Damon character.

Will Hunting is a young adult plagued by a dark past and a brilliant mind. He lives in a

rundown house in South Boston and works low paying jobs. He is only close to his three friends.

After solving a complex math equation at MIT, while he worked there as a janitor, he is sought

after by a well-known and accomplished professor. After Will is incarcerated for hitting a police

officer, the professor convinces the judge to release Will under his supervision. The terms are

Will is to spend a certain amount of time, each day, with the professor completing math

equations and he has to attend counseling sessions. Will is adamant he does not need therapy

and tries to chase off each therapist he sees. That is, until he meets Sean Maguire (Good Will

Hunting).

Sean does not pull any punches with Will. He challenges him. He gets him thinking and

asks him the tough questions. He also makes strong statements like Will does not initiate or

engage too deeply in things or with people because he always looks to the negative that he feels

will come down the road. A relationship that begins with animosity, hostility, and bitterness

turns into one of trust, dependence, and understanding (Good Will Hunting).

All of the main characters in this movie seem to have issues. Sean might struggle with

some depression following the death of his wife. Professor Gerald Lambeau looks to exhibit

some symptoms of narcissism. But this paper is mainly about the character Will Hunting. In the

movie, Sean expresses to Lambeau he should not put pressure on Will regarding his future

because Will is still trying to overcome his past and the issues, such as abandonment, that stem


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from it. Sean submits the reason why Will sticks with his four buddies is because they exhibit

loyalty and he trusts them, completely. Sean also expresses Wills defense mechanism is to

push people away and he has been all by himself, for many years, because of it. The dialog

mentions attachment disorder and fear of abandonment (Good Will Hunting).

Aggression. Although there are plenty of parts in the movie where Will is very calm,

there are also the ones where he is either fighting or ready to brawl. In one scene, he and his

buddies are cruising down the street in their car and stop to jump another group of guys. It is

Wills character who tells the driver, Chuckie, to slow down and it appears to be him who

initiates the beat down of the other group. Morgan, in the back seat, tries to talk Will down a

little bit. Chuckie tells Morgan he is going to go with them whether he wants to or not. Chuckie

pulls the car over and all four guys get out and attack the ones walking down the street. Will

walks up to one of guys saying, Hey, remember me? We were in Kindergarten together. He

then sucker punches the guy in the side of the head and starts the altercation. Will gets the guy

on the ground and is punching him relentlessly even though the other man looks to be

unconscious and his buddies are calling him off. His friends finally pull him off of the other guy.

The police show up and take Will into custody but Will strikes one of them. There is also a

scene later where Will is in a Harvard bar and tells another man there they can step outside to

settle a disagreement. The Harvard student backs down (Good Will Hunting).

Lack of empathy. Will looks to be stand offish with each person he meets throughout

the course of the movie. He does not feel bad about the fight mentioned above. Hes curt with

the Harvard guy in the bar. He is rude to Professor Gerald Lambeau when Lambeau comes to

the detention facility to get Will released. He is unfeeling toward Professor Lambeau near the

end of the movie when Will completes a proof Lambeau cannot finish and sets the papers on fire.


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His words toward Professor Lambeau are cutting, unkind, and unsympathetic. He is cold to

Skylar when she professes her love to him and asks him to go with her to California when she

has to leave for Stanford. And, he rips Seans life apart in one of the more memorable scenes of

the movie. After Will has been to and offended five other therapists, Prof. Lambeau takes Will

to meet with Sean for the first time. Right from the beginning of this moment Will is impolite,

insulting, and insensitive. He even goes so low as to attack the memory of Seans wife (Good

Will Hunting). He obviously has no regard for the feelings of others.

Survivor of child abuse. Wills character is an orphan and was placed in foster care. In

one scene, toward the end of the movie, Will and Sean are comparing abuse stories. Sean

describes how his father was a mean drunk. Will talks about his foster father making him

choose the weapon with which he was going to be beaten. There are also pictures in Wills file

of him with countless bruises and long deep cuts (Good Will Hunting). In one portion of the

film, a judge tells us Will has been in and out of many foster homes. From three he was removed

because of serious physical abuse (Good Will Hunting).

Pushes the buttons of others to provoke them. Regardless of the character opposite

Will, he always seems to know exactly what to say to provoke them or chase them off. We see

this many times throughout the flick. He does this with the guy in the Harvard bar, insulting his

intelligence to try and spark a fight. He is snide with the prison guard as if he has to have the last

word and to see if he can get a rise out of the guard. He reads the books of each potential

therapist before he meets with them and then messes with them. He toys with their sexual

orientation, their practices, etc. And, as mentioned before, he uses this same tactic against Sean

resulting in Sean grabbing Will by the throat and threating him. It seems Will takes great joy in


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distressing and tormenting others to the point they respond either by fighting him or walking

away. He does not consider anything off limits.

Struggles with relationships. Will uses or exhibits the characteristics mentioned above

as he drives people away. The aggression is used, as one example, near the end of the movie,

when Sean tells Will, Its not your fault. Will displays this aggression after Sean repeats

himself eight times. At first Will shakes it off and says, Yeah, I know. By the eighth time he

looks as though he is being backed into a corner and pushes Sean. By the ninth time, Will breaks

down crying. Another illustration of this is when Skylar tells Will he is afraid of their

relationship. An argument ensues and he goes to leave. Skylar blocks the door and Will starts

yelling. Skylar goes to hug him and he pushes her away. He pushes her against the door and

punches the wall right next to her. She cries and still tries to hug him but he continues to push

her away (Good Will Hunting). He uses aggression when he feels uncomfortable.

Will also uses a lack of empathy to keep people at a distance. When they get too close he

says or does something to get them to give up completely and retreat. One case of this is, again

as mentioned above, when Skylar asks him to come with her to California. She professes her

love for him but he tells her, I dont love you, and leaves her there, crying. He does not

display any feelings of remorse (Good Will Hunting).

It is said in the script a few times that Chuckie, Morgan, and Billy are Wills only friends

and close relationships.

Types of therapy represented in the movie. Professor Lambeaus character tells us

Will is presented to five therapists before Sean. Only two of those are shown and they depict

certain features of therapy in dramatic, as only Hollywood can, ways. The second, clearly tries

to use hypnotherapy to get to the bottom of Wills poor impulse control. Hypnotherapy falls


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under Psychotherapy (WebMD) and in this case was being used for analysis (WebMD)

purposes. Once the root of the problem surfaces, a therapist can use psychotherapy to deal with

it further (WebMD).

The first mental health professional strikes me as using more of the behavioral model.

His book that Will reads is entitled Help Yourself: An Everyday Guide to Personal Growth. He

also listens as Will talks about things he likes to do, go to clubs, which Will is only saying to

badger the therapist. Further, the counselor says to Will, The pressuresare destroying your

potential. No more shenanigans, no more tomfoolery, no more ballyhoo. (Good Will Hunting).

He focuses mainly on behavior.

Though the movie shows psychotherapy in a positive way, Psychiatry and the Cinema

states it is pure Hollywood fiction in this film (Pg. 144). Sean is portrayed as taking a Sandor

Ferenczi (Psychiatry, pg. 144) type method one step further in his approach with Will. In an

effort to earn the trust of this young adult with an attachment disorder, Sean shares as much

about himself as he asks Will to share with him. The two begin to enjoy each others company

and seemingly save each other.

Is Seans approach a wise idea in therapy? I have to think there are some risks

involved with Seans mental health practices. The first that comes to mind is manipulation.

Sure, he detects it and dodges it when Professor Lambeau tries it on him but he knows his friend

very well. In a real life situation, with a new client, how is he to know what he says will not be

used against him? What if Will was narcissistic instead of struggling with relationships? Seans

beyond Ferenczi tactics would not work. Further, there is something to be said about Sean

grabbing Will by the throat and threatening him. According to the Ethical Principles of

Psychologists and Code of Conduct manual, Human Relations section, 3.04 states a


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psychologist is to avoid harming his or her client, and anyone else with whom he or she is

working, and to do everything in his or her power to reduce any sort of harm that is expected and

inevitable. Also, a psychologist is not to have more than one type of relationship with his or her

client (3.05-A). Sean is there to maintain a professional, doctor - patient relationship. He is not

there to be Wills friend and close companion. Arguably, Sean acts as more of a mentor than a

licensed mental health professional. And, what about confidentiality? Sean discusses Wills

case openly with Professor Lambeau. Section 4.01 of the code specifically addresses

maintaining confidentiality. But, this storyline worked for Hollywood and the movie was a big

hit with audiences, despite Seans disregard of the code of conduct.

Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders in the DSM-5 . (pg. 265) When Will was a

child, he might have shown signs of Reactive Attachment Disorder (DSM-5, pgs. 265-268). It

is mentioned Will is an orphan and was physically abused in three of his foster homes. As a

child, he might not have sought comfort from adults around him. However, the film does not say

when Will was orphaned, for how long he remained in foster care, and for how long he sustained

physical abuse.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (DSM-5, pgs. 271-272). Will was physically abused by

his foster father. There is a flashback in the movie, toward the end, when Will is talking to Sean

about the abuse he endured. Will could have memories of this abuse which keep it fresh in his

mind. Again, the death of Wills parents is not discussed in detail so there is no way of knowing

if he saw their death, remembers their death, or at times reacts to stimuli that resemble or remind

him of their death. If Will remembers the love he felt for his parents, it would not be

unreasonable to make the jump that Will might avoid heartfelt relationships because he does not

want to experience the pain of losing someone, again. Will does not appreciate it when Sean


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keeps telling him, Its not your fault regarding the child abuse he survived. Further, Will

exhibits anger and a detachment from others, except for Chuckie, Morgan, and Billy. He

displays irritable, physically aggressive, outbursts and self-destructive behavior (DSM-5, pg.

272) as described by a judge, reading off Wills rap sheet, in the courtroom scene. Will is

obviously unable to function in a healthy manner. He has a hard time keeping a job and when he

does have one it is a low paying, manual labor position as opposed to one that matches his

intellect and potential.

Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders in the DSM-5 (pg. 461). The

only category of these disorders I feel Will could possibly fall into is Conduct Disorder. In the

part of the movie, as mentioned above, where Will is standing before a judge, he is defending

himself. The judge then lists a rap sheet of all the crimes Will has committed and each of them

he represented himself and got the charge overturned or thrown out. The charges include

assaults, grand theft auto, impersonating an officer, mayhem, theft, and resisting arrest. He

seems to have no regard for the law, the property of others, the rights of others, nor their

wellbeing.

Substance Related and Addictive Disorders in the DSM-5 (pg. 481). Throughout

the movie, Will smokes cigarettes and, despite the fact he is not yet 21, drinks beer. Both of

these are regular occurrences for Will and his small group of friends. They drink beer at the job

site, at a little league baseball game, in the car, they go to bars frequently and drink beer, they go

to Chuckies parents house and drink beer, etc. At no point in the movie does Will attempt to

stop consuming beer so it is impossible to say whether or not he really has a substance related

and addictive disorder. It is worth mentioning, however, in most scenes where Will has a drink

in his hand, it is generally a beer or coffee.


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Relational Problems in the DSM-5(pg. 715). V61.10 (Z63.0) Relationship Distress

with Spouse or Intimate Partner might apply to Will being he has a difficult time in

relationships with women. He makes a reference to getting laid while in counseling which

suggests he is sexually active, yet the only interest of his we get to see is Skylar and how he

behaves with her. They appear to have a nice time together, go out on a few dates, and end up at

her place a couple of times but his indifference and lack of depth in the relationship causes

issues. It is obvious he is unable to maintain a romantic relationship.

Past History of Child Physical Abuse in the DSM-5 (pg. 717). Wills character has

a past history of child physical abuse, psychological abuse, and possibly even neglect. We know

he is an orphan, was placed in several foster homes, and was removed from three of those

because of severe physical abuse. The script does not say, however I do not feel it is

unreasonable to assume, Will also suffers from psychological abuse. In the conclusion of the

movie, when Will has his breakthrough, we get the idea he blamed himself for the abuse he

had to withstand while growing up.

The accuracy of the disorder portrayed in the movie . The general public obviously

loves this movie. I do feel, however, the character of Will is not fully developed. I had to re-

watch the movie a few times to catch all of the items I listed above. Sure, his behavioral issues

are either shown, discussed, or implied in the movie and the viewer can tell they affect his life

but I think there is so much more we could get from Wills character and his struggles.

Possible treatments. I believe in a situation such as that of the character of Will, one

would have to work very hard at relearning how to behave differently and how to manage ones

anger and impulses. I think there would be a lot of counseling, far more than shown in the

movie. Will would possibly benefit from some group classes. And, as depicted in the movie, a


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mentor to assist him with healthy choices. He would have to learn how to respect himself,

others, the property of others, etc. He would have to be placed into situations and social circles

where he could practice his new conduct regularly. His move to California with Skylar might

assist with that. But, above all, Will would have to want to change. He would first have to see

how his current attitude and actions negatively affect his life and his future. Which, at the end of

the movie, he seems to want to take a chance and make a change.


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References

Good Will Hunting. 9 January 1998 (USA). Written by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.

Directed by Gus Van Sant. Produced by Be Gentlemen Limited Partnership, Lawrence

Bender Productions, Miramax.

Psychiatry and the Cinema. Gabbard, Glenn O., Gabbard, Krin, Gabbard, 1999. Washington,

D.C. https://books.google.com/books?id=D42m3IIrEDoC&pg=PA145&source=gbs_

selected_pages&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false

WebMD. Mental Health Center. 2015. WebMD, LLC. http://www.webmd.com/mental-

health/default.htm.

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5e: DSM-5. American Psychiatric

Association. 2013. Washington, DC. London, England.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwD-YtZFWfxMbWs2UC1WdWJzZTQ/edit?pli=1

Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. American Psychological

Association. 2015. Washington DC. http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/

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