Regression in the Service of the Ego: A Case Study

A study was made of a 41 year old woman who was given psychological tests at the beginning of a five-year period of psychoanalytically oriented psychotherapy. From extensive material gathered from her therapist it was clear that: (a) Her pathology did not extend beyond the neurotic range; (b) she was a highly creative individual. Thus, it was of interest to note that her Rorschach contained many responses involving blatant primary process thinking. While such responses would be taken ordinarily as indicating a thinking disorder and consequently severe pathology, in this case they were seen as reflecting “regression in the service of the ego.” This led to a discussion of how this adaptive regression can be differentiated from pathological regression in psycho-diagnostic testing and to a consideration of some theoretical issues relating to primary process thinking.