Le rôle de l’attention dans la prise en charge des bébés en institution : approches théorique et clinique

Abstract

The Role of Attention in Caring Babies in Institutions : Theorical and Clinical Approaches. The author advances the hypothesis of the intersubjective work of attention concerning infancy. After the conception of S. Freud, he locates how W.R. Bion became centered on attention little by little. Attention participates first in the alpha function and the capacity for reverie ; it then becomes a discipline in order to face transformations by hallucinosis. The work of Esther Bick lies within the scope of this model, the method of analytic training, infant observation, that she instituted and her conception of the containing functions of the baby. Two types of examples illustrate this hypothesis : the setting for the observations of babies in institutions is testimony to the possibility of making attention work. The study of resistances of a child care team confronted with accepting an «agressive» child illustrates the institutional dimension of this work.