Psychoanalytic Observation Research Articles

Adolescence, migration, music and psychoanalytic tools into play

AbstractIn this article, the authors aim to exemplify how psychoanalysis can apply to the community partially modifying its external setting, such as opening to group settings and including arts and music, while remaining firm in some structural tools, such as psychoanalytical observation and listening, play and attention to the intrapsychic dynamics of participants, including the psychoanalysts and their countertransference. They illustrate the experience of some projects, in particular one carried out for 3 years and ongoing, where young migrants, hosted in Refugee Shelters, meet Italian students in Secondary Schools. This article also describes the value of Music as an element of ‘psychoanalytic play’, establishing intrapsychic and interpersonal links.

ОНЕЙРИЧЕСКИЙ СИМВОЛИЗМ И МУЛЬТИПОЛЯРНАЯ СУБЪЕКТИВНОСТЬ В ФЕНОМЕНОЛОГИЧЕСКОЙ ОНТОЛОГИИ М. МЕРЛО-ПОНТИ

In the lecture course of 1954–1955, dealing with the issue of “passivity” in phenomenological philosophy, M. Merleau-Ponty pays much attention to the “unconscious” as “Freud’s discovery”. The philosopher finds approaches to the unconscious by analysing the phenomena of dreaming, memory, etc. on the basis of Freud’s descriptions and offering his own terminology and interpretations of psychoanalytic observations. Merleau-Ponty sets out to overcome the limitations of the original readings of psychoanalytic discovery due, among other things, to the reliance of Freud’s theoretical models on the classical Cartesian concept of subjectivity. In this article, we will consider the theory of “oneiric symbolism”: an area of “mythical” sense-formation, which very phenomenal existence – at the boundary between unconscious and consciousness, activity and passivity, subject and world – pushes Merleau-Ponty to revise classical ontological models. We will show for what fundamental issues of phenomenological ontology Merleau-Ponty uses the concept of “oneiric symbolism” and what conclusions he manages to reach with its help, and briefly characterise the mutual relation between the models of subjectivity offered by phenomenological ontology and Freudian psychoanalysis.

Traumatizing Narcissists, Followers, and Therapists: Discussion of “The Role of Shame in Cults, from Recruitment to Recovery”

ABSTRACT This discussion focuses on the presence of traumatizing narcissists across eras and cultures, and some dilemmas encountered by survivors of cults and their therapists. It highlights the clinician’s temptation to “other” survivors by pathologizing cult membership. Erich Fromm’s cultural and psychoanalytic observations can be helpful in our understanding of these dynamics. The discussion comments on Shaw’s conception of the role of shame at various points in the cult member’s experience. It also outlines how the emotion of shame can vary in its impact, depending on the other feelings that are simultaneously present. Finally, the discussion suggests some clinical applications of our understanding of the role of shame as we participate in the cult survivor’s recovery.

Mimetic desire, competition between father and son and traumatic experience in Ivan Turgenev’s novella “First Love”

Ivan Turgenev’s novella “First Love” in the light of the Oedipus conflict is studied. But it’s done not according to S. Freud’s conception, in which erotic desire is the starting point and crucial aspect of the conflict between father and son. Rather, it interprets the way it is understood by Freud’s heirs S. Ferenczi and J.M. Masson, and even more in the light of R. Girard’s culturology. Thus, what is crucial for the author is the competitive conflict in itself, which only in a second step leads to father and son desiring the same woman. Nevertheless, some symbols that might play a role in Freud’s psychoanalytic observations are impor- tant for as well. Among these symbols are the jacket fit for children which his mother forces Vladimir to wear in Zinaida’s presence, Vladimir’s hair torn out by Zinaida, the knife with which Vladimir wanted to kill his rival but which he drops, the fact that Vladimir’s father rides on horseback better than Vladimir, and the whip with which the father beats Zinaida. To our point of view, the starting point of the plot is that Vladimir’s parents do not care for him. This is a trauma for the young man and the origin of an erotic rivalry for his father. When Vladimir discovers that Zinaida is his father’s lover and, even more, that they are unhappy in their relationship, this becomes a profound trauma for the young man, one could even say, it symbolically castrates him. Later on, he is not able to love or to overcome circumstances in order to reach his aims. He rather somehow goes on instead of living. For example, he does not marry.

Commentary on the presentation by Veronique Le Guédès and Christelle Durif

ABSTRACT The work presented here is the fruit of the creativity of two professionals, who work with children, a Psychomotrician1 and a Psychologist, who have combined, each using their specific experience in the field of work with children and families. One of them has an additional training in psychoanalytic observation, and the other has an awareness of psychoanalytic observation and group work. Together they developed and implemented the presentation of a five-session group work model to which young children and parents, who have been referred to the service, have been invited. The young children are struggling to make their first steps in social relationships outside the family.

Psychoanalysis, the Sufi, and the Story

Psychoanalysis, the Sufi, and the Story

Intersubjectivity in the nursery: A case-study from Denmark

This paper reports from a study of intersubjectivity in a Danish nursery (“vuggestue”) for the 0-3 year olds. The study uses psychoanalytic infant observation. The concept of intersubjectivity is introduced from developmental psychology. Intersubjective moments depend on the adults’ mental participation in children’s interests and reactions. We know from developmental psychology that for children intersubjectivity is developmentally important and often joyful. The study shows how moments of play, sharing new experiences, participation in creative work, as well as mundane situations are potentially rich intersubjective moments. The study also shows how competence in verbal language expands the possibilities of intersubjective sharing.

Reflections on using infant observation in a multi-method research project looking at infants’ defences against disturbed and disturbing mothering

ABSTRACT The author reflects on her experience of combining quantitative and qualitative research methods to explore the power of psychoanalytic infant observation as a clinical and research tool. One difficulty was holding the tension between the different approaches and their theoretical assumptions. The author’s primary aim was to capture the process by which psychoanalytic psychotherapists using the observational technique, the countertransference and their understanding of psychoanalytic theories about the internal world phenomena in mother and infant, to make clinical deductions, which, in turn, inform treatment approaches.

How is the trainee affected by psychoanalytic observation (other than infant observation) during psychotherapy training? A systematic literature review

Infant observation is an integral part of training in child and adult psychotherapy. Psychotherapy trainees and qualified health professionals may benefit from using psychoanalytic observations in other settings. This study aimed to explore the effect on these professionals of observational experiences during their training. The study comprised of a systematic literature review with pre-specified eligibility criteria. It used a systematic search strategy and provided a summary of the literature on the topic. The effects on the trainee and professional were related to the role undertaken by them as observers during the observation and the use of the observer’s countertransference in furthering understanding of the observation. Overall trainees found observation experiences useful and effective for training.

Mother-Infant Observations: A View into the Wordless Social Instincts that Form the Foundation of Human Psychodynamics.

Mother-infant observations attune the psychotherapist to the nonverbal interactions that shape the child's experience of the world. The origins of our interest in psychoanalytic mother-infant observations can be traced back to clinical work with adults, child analyses, ethology (the study of animal behavior), and theoretical questions about the development of the symbolic function in infancy. More recently, seminars and direct experience in mother-infant observation have been gaining popularity as components of psychoanalytic training. Indeed, mother-infant observations are a kind of human ethological investigation that offer a rare peek into the wordless social instincts that find their origins in the ancient evolution of our species.

Reflections on brief, play-based work, similar to ‘Special Time’, undertaken by a student volunteer in a children’s residential institution

ABSTRACT The author, then a psychology student, describes a piece of work she undertook as a volunteer in a former Communist European country, in an institution designated as a residential hospital. The writer had initially intended to use psychoanalytic observation to observe deprived and institutionalised children as research for her thesis. The children who were admitted were all diagnosed as organically learning disabled or as autistic. Some of them were clearly traumatised, deprived and neglected before and after admission, and the writer believes many would have benefitted from a long-term, play-based intervention such as ‘Special Time’ (Cavalli & Williams, 2019). She was drawn to an eight-year-old girl, who seemed flat and withdrawn, but nonetheless seemed to draw in the volunteer and to come to life a little, during the single week when the two were together. There were signs of awakening and a response to the lively company offered as well as to the pain of daily separation and of permanent parting at the end of it. The paper is the culmination of many years of supervision, reflective writing and on the pain of such an intense encounter for both worker and child.

‘Settling In’: Exploring the complexities of observing and responding to young children’s communications of distress as they start day care

ABSTRACT This paper uses material from two psychoanalytic observations of children in day care to illustrate ways in which young children communicate their feelings on separating from their parents. It discusses how early years practitioners respond to children's distress as they form a Key Person relationship. Points are raised about how difficult it can be for practitioners to respond to children in the early days of them getting used to the new environment, especially in the absence of a robust, reflective work culture. The child's Key Person may avoid understanding children's distress and even misinterpret the child's communication. The paper presents detailed observations of a young girl, who in the absence of an available and receptive adult, finds ways to distance herself from or to cut off from missing her mother and longing to go home. Her defensive, or self protective response, arguably leads to more difficulty for her Key Person, to notice, understand and respond sensitively to her expressions of distress. The paper argues for better, supportive, reflective systems for early years practitioners working in day care, in order to improve the emotional experience for them and for the children.

Bosnia Must be a Civil State

In this paper, the author explains historical facts as well as legal and political concepts and terminology in defining Bosnian nation and Bosnian state, with the aim of helping to find a solution for the establishment and normal functioning of the state of Bosnia as a UN member and subject of international law. Today's so-called Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina is a product of the imposed will of major international powers and unprincipled attitudes of the international community, and as such it represents a sui generis state, established in violation of democratic practices and applicable international norms. In the paper we apply a comparison between Freud's psychoanalytic observation of the development of the individual, on the one hand, and the socio-historical development of the collectivity - of the people / ethnos and nation, on the other. The paper cites the opinions of relevant authors, citing the case of the former Yugoslavia and USA, and points to certain dilemmas in the application of two possible principles in establishing modern states - national and civil. In applying either of these two principles, it is important to (re)define the Bosniak national name and eliminate the dilemma: „Bosniaks“ or „Bosnians“ to look at the two names in the context of the three existing Bosnian-Hercegovinian peoples – Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats.

Politically incorrect, Scenarii pentru o Românie posibilă, Vasile Sebastian Dâncu, Ediția a III-a, Editura Şcoala Ardeleană, Cluj-Napoca, 2017, 378 p.

The author Vasile Sebastian Dâncu captures in his book the archetype of the 21st century Romanian, a lonely individual, alienated and unmotivated to participate in the making of a destiny. The author notes the stage of disjunction in which we find ourselves as Romanians on the road to social anomie, with a starting point with the alienation of the ties between the individual and the community. Main cause of destruction effects of the autochthonous self comes from the identity falsifying in the virtual environment, a global phenomenon that has reached Romania, especially the young generations, spiritually unprepared to face it. The psychoanalytic observations made in the book help the reader become aware of his own reality, of his own world in which he slips into an unconsciously. The exhortation of the author is the neverdying hope and that is in the hands and hearts of all, starting with the readers who are invited to browse and become aware through the pages that even under the darkest painting, Romania will survive. His message is optimistic, showing that it all starts with us and those who believe in the project of a nation tried by suffering, a people whose happiness must return home.

‘Crying out for help’: containing primitive anxieties. From infant observation to under-5’s brief therapeutic intervention

ABSTRACT This paper describes a brief under 5’s intervention with a family who referred themselves to a hospital early intervention service. Material from the full piece of clinical work with the family is presented and discussed. The second session is presented in detail to give a sense of the distinctive features of the brief intervention for under-5’s. The whole family was invited to attend, and the work was shared by two psychotherapists trained in the under 5s model of brief work. The significance of psychoanalytic infant observation in this type of intervention is highlighted. Infant observation enables the therapists to gather detailed impressions and thoughts to make meaning and to connect verbal and non-verbal communication between children, parents and therapists. The end-result is the creation of a transitional space, in which differentiation, creative thinking and change can take place.

The plight of the well sibling: A psychoanalytic reflection on a counselling relationship with the ‘healthy child’ in crisis, in a family living with chronic disease

This paper is a case study that is the result of a research project that involved using psychoanalytic observation to reflect on a series of counselling sessions. It provides a description of the work and shares some of the psychoanalytically-informed themes that emerged from the experience. The subject of the case is David, a boy who had lost one brother to cystic fibrosis and who had another brother with the disease. David was free from the condition but in crisis. The themes that emerge from reflecting on the sessions helped to illuminate the use of defences to manage the anxiety inherent in the situation for David and the experience of living with the constant, unrelenting theme of death in a young life.

Separating from mother and saying goodbye to the infant observer

ABSTRACTThis paper explores ending an infant observation and considers how we should end two-year infant observations? The authors use extracts from a two-year observation and trace the baby's experiences of separations from birth until the final observation, situating them in the context of the internal and external resources available to help the baby manage the pain associated with loss. Observation material shows how the baby's capacity to play enabled her symbolically to communicate her feelings about the observer's departure and how an otherwise supportive and containing environment seemed to struggle to assist the baby in ‘saying goodbye' during the final observations. Studies on mothers' experiences of ending infant observations are considered in the context of the practice of psychoanalytic infant observation and the idea that the observer is often a positive and reliable figure for the baby and as part of the weekly routine. The paper suggests that planning how to end a two-year infant observation should relate to the child’s internal world and external containment, and that separation and ending the observation can be traumatic in some circumstances.

Finding meaning, making links, creating space: an early intervention with children on the autistic spectrum and their families

ABSTRACTA novel psychoanalytic intervention with young children on the autistic spectrum is presented, addressing the family as a whole and focusing on the relationships between the family members. The intervention is based on the philosophy of the Tavistock Clinic’s ‘Under Fives Counselling Service’, taking into account the principles of psychoanalytic observation as introduced by Esther Bick, and the tenets which Didier Houzel put forward regarding the work with parents of autistic children. In the paper, the therapeutic journey of young Jason and his family is depicted. The therapists’ primary objective was to establish a cohesive narrative of the story of the family as a whole, and of each member separately. This effort implied, first of all, that their story would become an object of thought. Based on the clinical material presented, it is argued that this type of psychoanalytic intervention offered the family the necessary psychic space to process their fragmented story, to contain life-threatening anxieties and to gradually change their way of functioning and relating to one another.

Through the lens of infant observation: some reflections on teaching infant observation and its applications to professionals working with infants

ABSTRACTThis paper discusses the teaching of infant observation to social workers. A brief literature review of publications about the relevance and application of infant observations to social work tasks is given. The relevance and application of infant observation to two specific social work tasks is considered: supervision of contact between Looked After infants and their birth parents; and assessment of parenting capacity where infants have been removed at birth and a decision has to be made about whether to return the infant to the birth parents or seek permanence (usually in the form of adoption). The innovation of running two short life infant observation groups for social workers undertaking each of these two professional tasks respectively is described. Anonymised infant observation extracts from a local authority social work Parenting Capacity Assessment Team are used to illustrate the learning process of the team in the course of undertaking infant observation training. The use and relevance of infant observation is explored with respect to four inter-related core professional tasks: observation; recording; analysis and comment; reporting. Finally, the specificity and uniqueness of psychoanalytic infant observation is discussed in relation to the added value it brings to professional practice.

The role of observation within a project aiming at facilitating the transition of young patients with juvenile diabetes from paediatric to adults’ services

ABSTRACTIn recent years, the spread of juvenile diabetes has increased exponentially causing major psychological, economic and social costs and raising concern among health professionals and policy makers in relation to supporting these children and adolescent patients. The patients’ transition from Paediatric to Adult services is a critical moment with a high percentage of treatment drop-outs. This has been the focus of research carried out by a team of paediatricians, adult diabetologists, and child and adolescent psychotherapists in the Medical School of a large Italian city. This paper focuses on the role of psychoanalytical observation applied in work discussion seminars with the staff of Paediatric and Adult services in the hospital. The observations were conducted in the joint outpatient clinic, a new Service introduced experimentally to facilitate the transfer from Paediatric to Adult Dibetology Clinics. The seminars included the diabetologist for the last paediatric medical appointment and a paediatrician for the first young adult appointment. The paper discusses the methodology and the data gathered, focussing on the dynamics between the two doctors in the joint outpatient clinic, and on the impact of the social defences, which initially interfered with the joint work.