Editorial

This paper is a response to William Meredith-Owen’s paper presented at the inaugural joint conference on ‘Alchemy, a bridge to Jung’s objective psyche’, for The Society of Analytical Psychology and the West Midlands Institute of Psychotherapy in autumn 2020. The paper presents a way of understanding the collective unconscious through the functioning of the core self, and thus offers a bridge which addresses the indivisibility of the personal and collective psyche/unconscious, referencing Mary Williams’ (1963) classic paper. Specifically, this is applied to Winnicott’s dream of destruction that he had after reviewing Memories, Dreams, Reflections, as well as to parts of the psyche that were dissociated due to significant early deprivation – the primary narcissistic wounds. Alchemical metaphors are shown to relate to the analytic process, which allows the primitive core self (with its identificatory, participatory, connecting nature), when integrated through relationship, to sink back into the unconscious and function as the Self.     

Post-discharge outcomes for mothers and the mother–infant relationship following admission to a psychiatric Mother–Baby Unit

Mother–Baby Unit research has focussed on maternal psychopathology over the course of an admission. Less is known about the baby's well-being, the shared relationship, or the mother's recovery. In an initial sample of 45 women, we describe discharge and post-discharge outcomes for maternal psychopathology (using maternal report and the Global Assessment of Function, GAF) and the mother–infant relationship (using the Child and Adult Relational Experimental Index, CARE Index). Three months post-discharge, one third of women described themselves as “completely recovered,” one third were experiencing significant deterioration and 17% were readmitted to inpatient care. Poorer GAF scores were associated with a clinical diagnosis of comorbid personality disorder, antenatal presence of the index illness, partner illicit substance use, maternal perception of her bond, infant social withdrawal, and child protection concern. Post-discharge, the mother–infant relationship results were concerning. Only 17% were regarded as adequate. Improvement was observed across this period in 56% but relational deterioration occurred for 35%. Maternal and relational outcomes were weakly correlated at discharge (r² = 0.29, p = 0.07) but this was lost post-discharge (r² = 0.03, p = 0.89). The shared relationship and infant mental health should both be targets for intervention; both during MBU admission, and post-discharge.     

Response to ‘Transgender medicalization and the attempt to evade psychological distress’ (Withers 2020) and to Herdzik’s (2021) response to Withers

Psyche is non-binary and multiple and clinical work in the analytic container must be held in the fluidity of multiplicity. Analysts are called to bring Queer energy to analytical attitude. Queer energy is intrinsically non-conforming and desires to confront a priori concepts in service to the unfolding of the Self. A Queer analytic attitude seeks to blur narrative, deconstruct language and listen deeply for what is emergent in the field. Queer energy is also deeply activating and often results in polarizations of attitude and a failure to hold what is emergent. This response to Withers (2020) and to (Herdzik 2021) is an invitation for all of us to engage our activated complexes around work with transgender issues and the fluidity of the Queer experience. The multiplicity of the Self seeks to be known through analytic process. Consciously held authentic experience of what is emergent and thus unknown is at the core of this process. An analysis capable of holding Queer energy offers a theatre for the exploration of gender identity and its expression.     

INTRODUCTION to Special Edition of JAP on the ‘Who is My Jung?’ conference held at the British Library in October 2017 to mark the 40th Anniversary of the foundation of the Association of Jungian Analysts (AJA)

The paper reviews the processes which went into the creation of an exceptionally comprehensive conference on Jungian analysis and psychology. The conference brought together all five of the constituent societies based in London of the International Association for Analytical Psychology (IAAP). The personal nature of the conference contributions is highlighted together with observations about the passage from spoken to written modes. The idea of ‘conference space’ is reviewed and this leads to a discussion of the often overlooked benign role of conferences in professional life.     

Misattribution of arousal and the effects of self-threatening information

Two experiments are reported on the effects of misattributing arousal. In both experiments, subjects took an intelligence test and received fictitious negative results about their performance. In the first experiment, subjects before receiving feedback were given a pill labeled as arousing; however, the ostensible effectiveness of the pill was varied. The greater the alleged strength of the pill, the less the test was derogated following feedback about performance on it and the more effort subjects reported expending on the test. In the second experiment, subjects were told that the pill was either arousing or relaxing and that its effect lasted for either a short or a long period of time. Initial test evaluations were more positive and estimates of effort expended were greater when the pill was described as arousing than when it was described as relaxing. However, whereas these differences were maintained over time when the pill's effects were described as of long duration, they disappeared over time when the pill's effects were described as of short duration.     

Ethical attentiveness

Kantian virtue can be construed as a condition of an agent which secures adherence to the requirements of morality in the face of the ever-present possibility of inner conflict with counter-ethical considerations. This paper claims that this conception of virtue does not fit in well with one essential characteristic of the virtuous agent; that he or she is attentive to the well-being of others. After some preliminary remarks about virtue-related evaluations, the paper criticises the Kantian conception of virtue in the light of certain characteristics of ethical attentiveness. The paper concludes by developing a notion of ethical habituation which includes the training of attention.     

EXPANDING INFANT MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT SERVICES TO AT‐RISK PRESCHOOLERS AND THEIR FAMILIES THROUGH THE INTEGRATION OF RELATIONAL PLAY THERAPY

The expansion of infant mental health (IMH) to at‐risk preschoolers and their families has contributed to the integration of relational play therapy (RPT) into IMH treatment services for this population. Integrating RPT allows access to specialized play and expressive techniques specific to preschool and family development, which improves the clinical ability to meet the multiple and complex needs of at‐risk parent–child dyads and their families. This article will examine the RPT literature and explore the similarities and differences between IMH and RPT. In addition, two case studies will highlight a five‐phase, integrative clinical‐treatment process and provide insight into how IMH clinicians are integrating RPT models and maintaining adherence to the IMH treatment approach.     

工作倦怠的结构研究

工作倦怠是指“在以人为服务对象的职业领域中,个体的一种情感耗竭、人格解体和个人成就降低感的症状”。参考国外知名的工作倦怠问卷,在访谈和开放式调查的基础上,编制了适用于中国文化背景的工作倦怠问卷。探索性因素分析结果表明,工作倦怠问卷由耗竭、人格解体和成就感降低三个因素构成。问卷的信度和效度都达到了心理测量学的要求。