Relational Metapsychology in a Three Dimensional Field Theory of Change: Reply to Gabbard, Gadot, and Fosshage

Abstract

My reply to the discussants begins with discussion of a Relational Metapsychology in relation to its theory of change. Following this it proposes “architectural” information-processing elements of the 3D field, involving “modularity,” “temporality,” and “nothingness.” This leads to the critical asymmetry of the information-processing functions of the right and left hemispheres of the brain, including their role in establishing the “fit” between our experience of the 3D field and the meaning we make of it. Finally, it discusses the aesthetics inherent in a dramaturgical approach in psychoanalysis. This embodies an emphasis on how dramatic repetition underscores 1st Order change, which keeps the field the same, in relationship to improvisation, which produces transformative, 2nd Order versions of change.