ON THE DYNAMICS OF TRANSFERENCE

Abstract

In the third issue of the "Ukrainian Psychoanalytic Journal," we publish the Ukrainian translation of Sigmund Freud's paper "The Dynamics of the Transference" (1912). This text marks the beginning of Freud's series of investigations into technical aspects of psychoanalytic treatment, focusing primarily on the phenomenon of transference – a central diagnostic tool in psychoanalytic work. In the article The Dynamics of the Transference," Freud distinguishes between states of libido (conscious (bewußtseinsfahige) and unconscious) and describes the mechanism of anticipatory investment to explain the operation of the transference mechanism. Importantly, this explanation does not negate the fundamental psychoanalytic idea that all mental processes should be explained through associations of representations and investments of effects. Freud also dedicates significant attention to the associative mechanisms of resistance formation, which manifest as transference during analytical work, introversion of libido, and regressive processes leading to the resurgence of infantile “imagines.” The article delves into the reasons for distinguishing between "negative" and "positive" transference, as well as the distinguishing between "negative" transference of tender feelings and conscious hostile attitudes. Finally, Freud justifies the existence of neurotic resistance to transference, drawing on Bleuler's concept of the ambivalence of feelings. Freud considers the presence of positive and negative transference phenomena as a general manifestation of transference resistance. These phenomena contribute to the "falling away" of the analysand from real relationships with the analyst, hindering analytical work. In the context of negative transference, they allow for disregarding psychoanalytic agreement and the principle of not withholding any material during analysis (the principle of free association). The publication of this paper is a continuation of a series of translations of Freud's texts on psychoanalytic technique into Ukrainian.