What if the core concept of Analytical Psychology has been misunderstood all along? Christian Rösler offers a research-based reformulation of archetype theory, long considered central yet controversial within the field. He argues that Carl Jung’s original conception is not a single coherent theory, but a composite of four distinct approaches: biological, anthropological, transcendental, and psychological. Drawing on contemporary findings in biology, anthropology, and related disciplines, Rösler critically reassesses these components, challenging the empirical validity of the biological and anthropological claims and addressing their problematic historical assumptions. He proposes a streamlined model that retains only the most viable core: the idea of a universal process of psychological transformation, which serves as a foundation for psychotherapy, and outlines directions for future research aimed at refining and empirically grounding this model.