The Psychoanalysis of Narcissism and the Inevitability of “Postmodern” Psychoanalysis

In my exploration of postmodern psychoanalysis, I take as my starting point the complex issue of narcissism as developed by Freud. After pointing out some of the theoretical and clinical difficulties and complexities that arise in the analysis of narcissism, I discuss the diversity of the models and interpretations that then become possible; plurality in psychoanalysis is an inevitable consequence of this. The analysis of narcissism thus opens up many questions that lead me to explore some of the answers that both our forebears and present-day psychoanalysts have suggested.     

The Frame,Within and Without: Discussion of “The Therapeutics of the Fee in Psychoanalysis”

The author picks up and expands on themes of fusion and separation brought up in Pauley’s discussion of the therapeutic uses of the fee in the psychoanalytic encounter. She asserts that the elemental nature of the exchange of goods speaks to us in the language of corporeal experience, making it a powerful disruptive force that can reshuffle defenses at the level of our most primary experiencing selves. This affords the fee the potential to reach us in the registers of sensation and enactment that bypass conscious, verbal communication making our authentic and ongoing attempts to grapple with it vital to the analytic project.     

The Power of the Spoken Word in Life,Psychiatry, and Psychoanalysis—A Contribution to Interpersonal Psychoanalysis

Starting with a 1890 essay by Freud, the author goes in search of an interpersonal psychology native to Freud's psychoanalytic method and to in psychoanalysis and the interpersonal method in psychiatry. This derives from the basic interpersonal nature of the human situation in the lives of individuals and social groups. Psychiatry, the healing of the soul, and psychotherapy, therapy of the soul, are examined from the perspective of the communication model, based on the essential interpersonal function of language and the spoken word: persons addressing speeches to themselves and to others in relations, between family members, others in society, and the professionals who serve them. The communicational model is also applied in examining psychiatric disorders and psychiatric diagnoses, as well as psychodynamic formulas, which leads to a reformulation of the psychoanalytic therapy as a process. A plea is entered to define psychoanalysis as an interpersonal discipline, in analogy to Sullivan's interpersonal psychiatry.     

The mind of society: Investigating and using the “language of the gods”

The “language of the gods” is conceived as a kind of language more complex than what we associate with human tongues in the strict sense of the term. Certain arbitrary regularities throughout the rational disciplines appear to indicate the existence of this language. The present article explores this new concept and applies it in an attempt to provide a logical clarification of the notions of individual consciousness and physical reality.     

Discussion of “The Therapeutics of the Fee in Psychoanalysis”

This discussion of Dr. Pauley’s paper (this issue) on the therapeutics of the fee first highlights the various valuable contributions Pauley makes. It applauds his unusual openness in sharing his internal vulnerability with patients around fees, his raising the question about why fee setting is so complicated for analysts and patients alike, his focusing on omnipotent fantasies in the transference and countertransference, and his uncovering of the multiple meanings money has for therapists beyond just their income. Berger picks up on Pauley’s invitation to therapists to be more curious about their own discomforts with money. Drawing on her own teaching, writing and clinical experience, she adds to Pauley’s more global ideas, stressing instead the more specific meaning of money in each treatment dyad. Among these specifics, Berger highlights the chronic avoidance of teaching about money in analytic institutes. She clarifies some Freudian ideas about how money can become tied up with anal witholding, and offers examples of how she got stuck with three patients around setting and raising their fees. Berger describes how these patients’ believed that their fees could mean safety, value or exploitation and how these attribuitions generated countertransference blind spots for her. The discussion urges clinicians to keep digging hard into themselves for the many meanings of money, to pay attention to the devil in their own details, and thereby maximize the richness of their work with patients around a topic so loaded for all of us.     

Transference and “The Rebbe” Idiographic and Nomothetic Factors in the Psychoanalysis of Lubavitch Chassidim

The Lubavitch Chassidim are one of several ultra-orthodox groups within Judaism. Their central focus is on their leader or Rebbe, who is seen as not only the possessor of all wisdom but also having supernatural powers. In working therapeutically with Lubavitch, one needs to distinguish if the beliefs of the individual are unique to them or reflect the belief system of the community. If the former, then it obviously needs to be analyzed. If the latter, then it is seen as an identification with the group and reflective of the need for group cohesion and often a regulator of self-esteem. The following article demonstrates these factors.     

The “death of freud”; and the rebirth of free psychoanalytic inquiry

The relevance of Grunbaum's recent critique of psychoanalytic theory is explored as it relates to relational/interpersonal theories. Griinbaum finds no scientific evidence for repression, the cornerstone of psychoanalysis. I argue that studies demonstrating the effects of motivated, unconscious processes are beginning to emerge in psychological research. This research, as well as interpersonal theory, refers to these processes as dissociated, not “repressed.”; I agree with Griinbaum that scientific validation of psychoanalytic theories of the mind, personality, and change cannot be gleaned from case studies alone. In relational theories the analytic situation is admittedly “contaminated”; with the analyst's participation by its very nature. There is beginning to be support for some relational hypotheses, but measures to validate these hypotheses are only now being developed. Grunbaum's criticisms have come at a time when the convergence between relational theories and theories in social/clinical psychology makes it more likely that relational hypotheses will be articulated in a more precise manner by researchers, if not by analysts.

The issues of the difficulty of measuring unconscious processes and the quest for knowledge seemingly beyond human limitations are addressed. Psychoanalysis is not only less than scientific, but more encompassing, in that it is also a creative activity that cannot be understood through science alone.

Science is not enough, nor art: In this work patience plays a part [Goethe].

The most beautiful and deepest experience a man can have is the sense of the mysterious.... To me it suffices to wonder at these secrets and to attempt humbly to grasp with my mind a mere image of the lofty structure of all that there is [Albert Einstein, quoted in Pagels, 1985].     

Perceptual study of the speech of “successfully therapeutized” stutterers

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if the fluent speech of “successfully therapeutized” stutterers and a group of partially treated stutterers was perceptually different from the fluent speech of normal speaking subjects. Tape recorded speech samples of treated stutterers were obtained from leading exponents of (1) Van Riperian, (2) metronome-conditioned speech retraining, (3) delayed auditory feedback, (4) operant conditioning, (5) precision fluency shaping, and (6) “holistic” therapy programs. All forms of disfluency were edited out of these tapes. The remaining samples were then paired with matched fluent samples of normal talkers and presented to a group of 20 sophisticated judges. The judges were instructed to select from each paired speech sample presented to them the one produced by the stuttering subject. The results of the analyses of variance for correct identification of the stutterers showed that the partially treated stutterers, as well as each group of therapeutized stutterers, were identified at levels significantly above chance. This meant that the fluent speech of the partially and successfully treated stutterers was perceptibly different from the utterances of the normal speakers sampled. In addition, the analyses of variance also revealed that all stuttering groups had a significant severity factor. This finding indicated there was a significant difference between the severity subgroup in all the samples investigated. These results were discussed in terms of their clinical implications.     

Meta—Realization in Horney and the Teaching of Psychoanalysis

Horney was the first psychoanalyst to develop a comprehensive framework for understanding character structure and character pathology, and the first to do so in experience-near terms. She uncovered the often hidden metapsychological assumptions of classical analysis and created a deeper meta-level thinking about psychological splits, including how splits can develop between assumed opposites. In the clinical moment, insight into meta-level process rests on an epistemological change in the relation between subjective and objective. Horney was an early pioneer in examining the dialectical unity of these presumed opposites. A specific proposal for training and teaching candidates in the science of subjectivity will be advanced. Systemic clinical insights in the assessment and treatment of patients are offered, as well as systemic uncovering of cultural assumptions of Western society which can impede analytic exploration of psychic conflict.     

Life partners’ perceptions of the emotional,speech disruptive,and attitudinal correlates of stuttering

PurposeThe purpose of the current investigation was to explore the extent to which the life partners (LPs) of people who stutter (PWS) perceive their loved ones’ speech-situation specific emotional reaction, expectancy of speech disruption, and speech-related communication attitude.MethodsThree subtests of the Behavior Assessment Battery (BAB): the Speech Situation Checklist - Emotional Reaction (SSC-ER), the Speech Situation Checklist - Speech Disruption (SSC-SD) and the Communication Attitude Test for Adults Who Stutter (BigCAT) were administered to 33 PWS and modified versions were administered to their LPs via Qualtrics Survey Software. Effect of relationship duration on subtest scores was considered. Perceived stuttering severity by the participant and their LP was also queried as part of a demographic questionnaire.ResultsPWS and their LPs rated BigCAT items in a similar way, while they rated certain SSC-ER and SSC-SD items differently. Importantly, between-group agreement was not affected by relationship duration. Among the PWS and LP, perceived stuttering severity influenced all BAB subtest scores.ConclusionLPs of PWS appear to be in tune with the cognitive aspects of their partner’s experience of stuttering. This has important clinical implications as it relates to active involvement of the family in speech intervention targeting fluency.     

A Review of “Mind to Mind: Infant Research,Neuroscience, and Psychoanalysis”

Abstract

This article examines current research pertaining to the relationship between a mother and her children, and how this relationship may affect sibling interactions. Issues such as temperament, gender, and the age gap between children are also explored to ascertain their impact on the sibling relationship.

The displacement of the first-born child and the ensuing sense of loss and anger he may experience as a result of this is explored. The mother's second pregnancy is also discussed in regard to the impact of unresolved issues relating to her own sibling relations. The mother's interactions with each child, her role as a model for identification, and marital relations are discussed in light of their impact on sibling relations.

The evolution of a positive attachment between siblings is explored. Rivalrous behavior between siblings is also discussed, particularly in association to the mother's treatment of her own children and the manner in which the mother deals with her own aggression.     

Done wrong or said wrong? Young children understand the normative directions of fit of different speech acts

Young children use and comprehend different kinds of speech acts from the beginning of their communicative development. But it is not clear how they understand the conventional and normative structure of such speech acts. In particular, imperative speech acts have a world-to-word direction of fit, such that their fulfillment means that the world must change to fit the word. In contrast, assertive speech acts have a word-to-world direction of fit, such that their fulfillment means that the word must fit the world truly. In the current study, 3-year-olds understood this difference explicitly, as they directed their criticisms selectively to actors when they did not follow the imperatives of the speaker, but to speakers when they did not describe an actor’s actions correctly. Two-year-olds criticized appropriately in the case of imperatives, but showed a more ambiguous pattern in the case of assertions. These findings identify another domain in which children’s normative understanding of human activity emerges around the third year of life.     

The “Activist Client”: Social Responsibility,the Political Self,and Clinical Practice in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis

The idea of the “activist client” is intended to be taken both literally and metaphorically—applying to some extent to a wider range of clients than actual activists. The paper develops a set of ideas about a “political turn” in psychotherapy and psychoanalysis, using the tag “the inner politician.” There is a focus on working directly with political material in the session, and the pros and cos of this practice are reviewed. Wider issues such as social responsibility and social spirituality are discussed, as well as an exploration of the limits of individual responsibility. Some specific topics covered in the paper include the political roots of depression, difficulties with the concept of the therapeutic alliance from the point of view of democratic perspectives on clinical work, and a challenge to the unquestioned valuing of empathy (based on a reading of therapy though a Brechtian lens). There are numerous clinical examples.     

The “concept of time” and the “being of the clock”: Bergson, Einstein, Heidegger, and the interrogation of the temporality of modernism

The topic to be addressed in this paper, that is, the distinction between the “concept” of time and the being of the clock, divides into two parts: first, in the debate between Albert Einstein and Henri Bergson, one discovers the ground for the diverging concepts of time characterized by physics in its opposing itself to philosophy. Bergson’s durée or “duration” in opposition to Einstein’s ‘physicist’s time’ as ‘public time,’ one can argue, sets the terms for Martin Heidegger’s extending, his ontological analysis of Da-sein, as human being-in-the-world. Second, in this the ‘concept of time’ gives way to the analysis of the ‘being of the clock.’ What is this being of the clock that makes evident the fundamental temporality of Da-sein? This question is rehearsed in Division Two of Being and Time. My claim is that the fundamental insight into the nature of time revealed by the encounter between Bergson and Einstein is that time extemporizes itself. Temporality “is” not a being but a process that temporalizes itself, precisely because it “is not.”     

Coding strategies,perceptual grouping,and the “variability effect” in free recall

Three experiments examined the effects of constant vs. varied input of letter strings on recall, and then examined the effects of such training in the learning of new lists of letter strings. Letter strings were constructed from pairs of trigrams spatially grouped, and were presented either consistently or with different spatial groupings on successive presentations. In Experiments I and II, varied input produced substantially greater recall than constant input. When transferred to a new list of letter strings, containing either the same general structure or a new scrambled structure, recall of the second list was determined primarily by conditions of first-list input, and unaffected by second-list structure. Although the "variability effect" did not appear in the training phase of Experiment III, Varied input led subjects to regroup or integrate the letter sequences more frequently and produced similar transfer effects as in Experiments I and II.     

Speaking of grief and the grief of speaking: martyrs’ speech and the perils of translation

In Derrida’s Monolinguism of the Other, a theory about the universal and constitutive alienation of the speaking subject from language finds its exemplary grounding in Derrida’s own experience as an Algerian Jew, one whose relationship to the French language is both totalizing and exiled (‘I have only one language, it is not mine.’). He equates speaking not only with contingent citizenship and a divestment of what one never really had in the first place, but also with the extreme experiences of torture, threat and physical violence. He indeed uses the words ‘passion’ and ‘martyr’ to describe his experience. In this paper, I will read Derrida ‘backwards,’ and against the universalizing move Derrida and those following him make in order to suggest a way of reading some scenes of violent death as scenes about diasporic cultural divestment. I’ll specifically attend to martyrs’ speech, and do so reading them as archives of the perils and inescapable expenses of entering dominant cultural ‘languages.’     

Rats respond for food in the presence of free food: How free is the “free” food?

An experiment conducted by A.J. Neuringer (Science, 1969,166, 399–401) in which he reported that rats maintained appreciable levels of bar pressing for earned food in the presence of freely available food was critically examined and replicated. Rats were trained to bar press, then housed in operant chambers and administered a 15-day preference test between free and earned food, followed successively by 10 days of free food only, a second 6-day preference test, and 7 days of earned food only. Throughout the experiment half of the animals were provided with tall free-food containers similar to those used by Neuringer; the other half were provided with short containers similar to those more commonly employed by other researchers. The former animals showed a consistent propensity to bar press for earned food across both preference tests, while the latter animals showed only an initial propensity to bar press which subsequently declined to very low levels. These results indicate that the maintenance of significant amounts of bar pressing by the rats in Neuringer's report was due to the relatively more effortful free-food source he employed. The utility of a neophobia-optimality model in explaining the present data is discussed.