Shame and fragmentation in the marital dyad

The paper outlines an expansion of object relations theory to account for fragmentation and shame. This expansion promotes a better psychodynamic perspective on the type of marital conflict escalation that occurs when each spouse turns to the other for empathic receptiveness while that other is also in a disorganized and vulnerable state of mind. Escalation occurs when spouses have different needs for safety and optimum distance and when the shame generated by continued exposure of these needs is not acknowledged. Clinical precepts promoting a focus on fragmentation and acknowledgement of shame are elaborated.     

Depressive symptoms in Swedish adolescents

This study examined the prevalence of self-reported depressive symptoms in a Swedish urban school sample (n=547) aged 13 to 18 years using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). The data obtained were examined with respect to sex and age differences and compared with a clinical sample of adolescents hospitalized because of psychiatric disturbances. The results indicated a strong preponderance of depressive symptoms among girls in the school sample, in particular for the severe symptom level. Eight percent of subjects reported depressive symptoms sufficiently high to be classified as a moderate, and 2% as a severe, level of depression. Factor analysis yielded four factors representing dysphoric mood, social activity, relationship, and food-related dimensions. The BDI showed a high internal consistency, and test-retest reliability calculated for a 2-week and a 2-month interval revealed strong correlations. The means of total scores on the BDI for the clinical sample were significantly higher than for those in the school sample.     

The unforgivable humiliation: A Dilemma in couples' treatment

Therapists sometimes encounter cases of intense marital discord in which the disaffected spouse seems unable to specify the reason for his or her discontent except in the vaguest, most general terms. Such cases may be extraordinarily difficult to treat, as the disaffected partner may seem impervious to any attempt at negotiation, to the point of dissolution of the marriage. The reason for the disaffected spouse's intransigence may seem unclear to the other spouse, to the therapist, and even to herself/himself. We hypothesize an explanation for this phenomenon in terms of the disaffected partner's experience of having suffered humiliation at the hands of the other spouse and offer a plan for treatment, citing case materials.     

Illegality 1988

The author presents how the Holocaust appears symbolically in an obsessive-compulsive neurosis in 1988 in Budapest, through the therapy of a 16-year-old boy and his family. The behavior therapy that was first applied made the symptoms even more serious, supposedly because the index patient interpreted it as pursuit. The hypothesis supposed the appearance of the Holocaust in the third generation—as a family myth—and intervention based on this hypothesis brought an end to the neurotic symptoms. The knowledge of historical processes is very important in psychotherapeutic treatment.I would like to acknowledge my debt and my appreciation to Valeria Kiss, occupational therapist, Central National Institute, Budapest, who has had a major role in creating therapy, as co-therapist. I would like to thank Beata Susansky and Gareth Dewar for helping in translation and Andras Posman for helping with the figures of the genogram.     

The case of Peter and Susan: The psychotherapeutic treatment of an acute psychotic episode at the Arbours Crisis Centre

The case of Peter and Susan is an example of multiple crisis intervention at the Arbours Crisis Centre in London. Both were treated by psychoanalytic psychotherapy together with intensive interpersonal support in a live-in therapeutic milieu, with successful results.An extended discussion about the work of the Arbours Association in London will be published by Human Sciences Press as a chapter entitled, An Alternative Sanctuary: The Arbours Crisis Centre, in the forthcoming book,Healing Human Systems, edited by U. Reuveni and R. & J. Speck. For further information about the Centre write to: The Arbours Association, 41a Western Park, London N.8.     

A STUDY OF FOUR METHODS FOR SCALING PAIRED COMPARISONS DATA

An experiment of paired comparisons of nine lotteries is reported. Ratings were also made of apparent magnitude of difference in each pair. Conventional techniques as well as the author's correlational scaling method were applied on paired comparisons data. Ratings were analyzed according to successive intervals scaling. Non-linear relations between scales were found. Dispersion terms from correlational scaling covary with those from the analysis of ratings.     

A COMPARISON BETWEEN CHILDREN AND ADULTS IN A PRISONERS' DILEMMA GAME

S jöberg , L., B okander , I., D encik , L. & L indbom , K. A comparison between children and adults in a prisoner's dilemma game. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1969, 10 , 158–166.— A comparative study using three different stooge strategies. The game was played for a total of 67 trials. Children (4–6 years old) exhibited more cooperation than adults, and a stronger tendency to make a cooperative move after own defection, regardless of outcome. Both the frequency of cooperative moves and the state-conditioned propensities showed some stability over time and similar intercorrelations for adults and children.     

Toward a psychology of courage: Implications for the change (healing) process

Courage is a virtue which has been held in highest regard by all societies. In an age in which courage and its companions, human dignity and commitment, seem sadly lacking, it is imperative that we reacquaint ourselves with the implications of these attributes. In this paper we demonstrate the integral relationship between courage and intimacy and the importance of the concept of therapeutic caring to their development. We also introduce the theory of the double in which the self, in the act of intimacy, seeks to come together with its contradictory and disavowed attributes. These concepts are related to a psychotherapeutic paradigm in which we examine the requirements courage, intimacy, and caring impose upon practitioner and client.Paper presented at the 25th winter meeting of The American Academy of Psychoanalysis, New York City, December, 1981.