OBJECTS AND SPACES. FROM PHYSICAL TO MENTAL SPACE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/upj/2023-3-1Keywords:
containment, good object, mechanisms of defense, mental space, psychoanalysis, schizoid organizationAbstract
The purpose of this paper is to study the phenomenon of transference on spaces, which takes place in the presence of the object in the atmosphere of a psychoanalytic session. In the proposed study, the author first provides a theoretical overview of the psychoanalytic literature on transference, as well as texts related to the perception of the mental space of the therapeutic relationship. The review also includes a number of classical and contemporary works on the topic of relationships and space between them, in particular through the works of Freud, Rank, Klein, Bion, Winnicott, Mahler, Dolto, Britton, Hinshelwood, and many others. In the second part of the text, based on the material of clinical vignettes, the author shares his own observations on the phenomenon of transference to the space next to the object, which is most clearly manifested in patients with schizoid organization. According to the clinical material offered, the author shows that in such analytical work, it is important not only to offer the patient a good enough object in the person of the analyst but also to work on creating a safe space that will serve as a container space for the patient and a place to gradually create a sense of "good home." The author develops his own hypothesis about the existence of stages in the development of the perception of physical space alongside an important object also draws attention to the conditions under which the physical space of the therapy session gradually becomes a mental home-container for the unconscious patient, and, in general, discusses the ability of the psychoanalyst to interact with such a transference. In particular, it is emphasized that when dealing with this topic, the analyst should be careful about interpretations: when an interpretation does not contain the patient's experience and therefore does not become a mental container house, it will be perceived as a material of the analyst from which the patient will defend himself or herself in a familiar way.
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