Comments on the Ikonen & Rechardt paper on the origin of shame

Psychoanalysis is concerned with the unconscious; it weaves fleeting connections with it, and studies its effect on the conscious mind. This is the only method which allows us to reach the unconscious, making use of the technique of dream interpretation and free association. The various effects of unconscious impulses take the form of psychic and somatic symptoms and of impulsive behavior. The psychoanalytic method should enable the analysand to make contact with the veiled meanings of the repressed self, above all with its strivings. Simultaneously, the origins of poorly-functioning psychic structures are also revealed. Psychoanalysis also needs to examine the varying potential of the patient to benefit from analytical work and arrive at a better understanding of his or her unconscious mind. We have seen, as Freud did in his time, that the benefit derived from analytical understanding, i.e., interpretation, is by no means self-evident. In the mental structures of patients, we encounter aspects which reject the integrating effect of the analytical understanding. This finding, the so-called negative therapeutic reaction, and the more detailed psychoanalytical study of its contents and the psychic functions and structures involved, has made psychoanalysis every year more and more challenging and interesting.     

Countertransference—Transference seen from the Point of View of Child Psychoanalysis

This paper explores the ‘point of interaction’, that interface where the psyches of the patient and analyst meet. The author examines what is activated in the analytic pair at the point of interaction, with a particular focus on the mental activity of the patient and analyst. This exploration of the mental activity of the patient and analyst is from a theoretical position that combines contemporary Freudian and Kleinian perspectives on the therapeutic process. The author concludes that the capacity for mutuality in both the patient and analyst rests upon a part of the mind that is connected to a certain aspect of the Oedipus complex. Finally, the point of interaction is also discussed as a place where there is a potential meeting of minds around divergent methods and applications of psychoanalytic treatment. Clinical material is presented to illustrate these points.     

La dynamique identitaire de stagiaires immigrants : Stratégies d’acculturation et insertion dans un collectif de travail

The aim of this research was to explore reciprocal relations between acculturative strategies of immigrant trainees and their “strategies” of integration into a workgroup. The investigation of each participant’s identity dynamics served as a basis to this qualitative and exploratory study, using the IMIS (multistage social identity investigator), created by Zavalloni and Louis-Guérin (1984, 2007). In both the cases presented here, work environments echoed back to some of the main obstacles opposing to the social integration of immigrants. Therefore, part of the results revealed spontaneous emergence of adaptative strategies simultaneously linking to cultures and the profession.     

Über die Bindung an die inneren Objekte

Sandler sees the possibility of constructing a bridge between attachment theory and psychoanalysis by extending the concept of motivation to involve now a primary need for attachment. Attachment to the object is the basis for the existential feelings of safety and well-being. Connections to the development of internal object relationships and to unconscious phantasy are discussed. Consequences for psychoanalytic countertransference are shown.     

Transactional approach to prediction of child maltreatment

The transactional-developmental approach was applied to a prospective longitudinal study of child maltreatment. Maternal background, infant constitutional, mother-infant interactional and maternal perception of infant temperament measures were entered into a multiple linear regression equation to predict child maltreatment. The results provide support for the transactional perspective in understanding the multiple determinants of early child maltreatment.     

Do young children rehearse? An individual-differences analysis

The issue of whether young children rehearse in auditory memory tasks was investigated across a series of three studies comparing individual differences in articulation rates and memory spans. Applying the principles of the working-memory model, children with faster rates of speaking should have superior memory spans if they engage in rehearsal. Two of the experiments, with 4-year-old children, failed to establish any significant association between articulation rate and memory span, although both the memory span and articulation rate procedures were found to be highly reliable in this age group A third experiment confirmed that, as expected, articulation rates and memory spans were significantly associated with one another in adult subjects. The results indicate that, contrary to recent theories of children’s short-term-memory development, 4-year-old children do not engage in subvocal rehearsal during auditory memory span tasks.     

Toward a multimethod approach to assessing the effects of social support

Two studies were done to assess the direct and stress-buffering effects of social support on psychological symptoms of college students. Three conceptually distinct measures were used to assess different aspects of social support: receipt of supportive transactions, satisfaction with support received, and social support network characteristics. The results indicated a significant direct and stress-buffering effect for support satisfaction in reducing psychological symptomatology. Two measures of support network size were used: number of people who were both a source of supportive and of upsetting interactions (conflicted support network), and number of people who were only mentioned as a source of support (unconflicted support network). Conflicted network size was positively related to symptomatology and increased the relationship between stress and symptomatology. No direct or interaction effects were obtained for unconflicted network size in predicting symptomatology.     

War-related stress. Addressing the stress of war and other traumatic events

A task force on war-related stress was convened to develop strategies for prevention and treatment of psychological, psychosocial, and psychosomatic disorders associated with the Persian Gulf War and other extreme stressors facing communities in general. The task force focused on the return home, reunion, and reintegration of service personnel with their families and work. Although the Persian Gulf War was won with relative ease, negative psychological sequelae may develop in some individuals because of the stress of war, family disruption, financial difficulty, and changes in family routines. Typical stress reactions and modes of coping that are usually unsuccessful or destructive were outlined, and suggestions were made for monitoring these. In addition, guidelines for successful coping were developed. Special attention was given to children's reactions and needs. Recommendations were made for outreach and intervention on the policy, systems (e.g., schools, businesses, governmental agencies), family, and individual levels.