Boris Dmitrievich Karvasarsky (russian: Борис Дмитриевич Карвасарский, links=no; 3 February 1931 – 24 September 2013) was a Russian
psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...
, a disciple of
V. N. Myasishchev.
Biography
Education
Karvasarsky was born in
Derazhnia
Derazhnia ( uk, Деражня; pl, Dzierażnia; also ''Derazhnya'') is a city and railway station in Khmelnytskyi Raion, Khmelnytskyi Oblast (province) of western Ukraine. Derazhnia is situated along the banks of the Vovk River (meaning ''wolf' ...
,
Ukraine, on 3 February 1931. In 1954 he graduated from
S.M. Kirov Military Medical Academy
The S. M. Kirov Military Medical Academy (russian: Военно-медицинская академия имени С. М. Кирова) is a higher education institution of military medicine in Saint Petersburg and the Russian Federation. Senio ...
. Then he completed postgraduate courses in the
Bekhterev Psychoneurological Institute
The St. Petersburg Bekhterev Psychoneurological Research Institute (russian: Санкт-Петербургский научно-исследовательский психоневрологический институт им. В. М. Бехтер ...
and was awarded the Degree of Candidate of Science in 1961. He attained his M. D. degree at the age of 37 (in 1968).
Scientific work
Karvasarsky headed the Department of Neuroses and Psychotherapy in the Bekhterev Research Institute from 1961 until his death. During the period of 1982 until 1993 he also held the chair of Child-Adolescent Psychotherapy in Leningrad Institute for Postgraduate Medical Education. In 1986, he became Head of the Republican Center for Scientific and Methodic Coordination in Psychotherapy.
The objectives of the center include annual analysis of the state of psychotherapeutic services in Russia and ongoing education of the specialists rendering psychotherapeutic treatment to the population.
He worked as
editorial board member of several journals including ''
The Bekhterev Review of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' and the ''Bulletin of Psychotherapy''. He was president of the
Russian Psychotherapeutic Association until his death. He has also been chief
psychotherapist
Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...
of the
for about 20 years.
Proceeding from V. Myasishchev's ideas and his conception of pathogenetic psychotherapy, Karvasarsky elaborated personality-oriented (reconstructive) psychotherapy. After making a special study of this psychotherapeutic approach, some research workers concluded it to be nothing but "Soviet
psychoanalysis." Its proponents, however, challenge such a characterisation.
When treating
neuroses
Neurosis is a class of functional mental disorders involving chronic distress, but neither delusions nor hallucinations. The term is no longer used by the professional psychiatric community in the United States, having been eliminated from th ...
, associates of the Bekhterev Psychoneurological Institute mainly make use of personality-oriented (reconstructive) psychotherapy. The method has not been extensively used in other regions of today's Russia, but has been shown capable of yielding satisfactory results in patients with different mental disorders related to borderline psychiatry.
Awards
Karvasarsky has been the recipient of numerous awards including the
Order of the Badge of Honour and the title of .
Publications
He has published over 200 scientific works, among them books ''Psychotherapy'' (Leningrad, 1985) and ''Neuroses: Textbook for Doctors'' (
Moscow, 1980, 2nd ed., 1990).
Papers in English
* Karvasarski B. D. Psychotherapy. – Soviet neurology a. psychiatry. 1988–1989 / Vol. XXI, N. 4. – New York: M. E. Sharpe, 1989, pp. 6–85.
* Karvasarski B. D. Personality-oriented psychotherapy. American psychiatric association 142nd Annual Meeting May 6–11, 1989, San Francisco, California, p. 280.
References
External links
*
Boris Karvasarsky's profileat the Bekhterev Institute website
*
– a website dedicated to Boris Karvasarsky's school in psychotherapy
*
Boris Karvasarsky's obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karvasarsky, Boris
1931 births
2013 deaths
Russian psychiatrists
Honoured Scientists of the Russian Federation
Academic journal editors
S.M. Kirov Military Medical Academy alumni