AN ATTEMPT TO COMPREHEND THE FORMATION OF THE AUTISTIC PERSONALITY STRUCTURE THROUGH THE WORKS OF J. LACAN
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/upj/2024-1-11Keywords:
autism, autism spectrum disorder, psychoanalysis, Jacques Lacan, psychogenesisAbstract
This article proposes a psychoanalytic hypothesis on the formation of the mental structure of an autistic person based on the work of J. Lacan on the topic of mental structures. In the first section of the article, the author provides general clinical information about autism and cites some psychoanalytic classical concepts that have contributed to the understanding of childhood psychopathology in general and autism in particular. The author begins the presentation of the main content with a discussion of the clinical case of Little Dick, which M. Klein presents in his 1930 work “The Importance of Symbol Formation in the Development of the Ego” and Lacan comments on in his seminar “Freud’s Work on the Technique of Psychoanalysis”. The author of the article sees clear signs of autism in the boy in the case study. In the next part of the paper, the author proposes a concept that explains the development of autism by social factors, namely the peculiarities of the interaction between the child and his immediate environment – mother and father in the early stages of his development. The main reason for the development of autism, according to the proposed theory, is total maternal care, which forms a complete analog of the womb after birth. Therefore, the author concludes that influencing the early relationships of a child with autism with his or her parents as early as possible may have the potential to correct his or her psychological structure and improve the socialization of such a person in the future. The author suggests that the genesis of autistic and psychotic structures is quite similar, as both are formed due to the lack of neurotic formative elements. The need to distinguish the autistic structure as an extreme degree of such insufficiency, in the author’s opinion, can be justified by both clinical differences in both conditions and, probably, by different therapeutic approaches that can help achieve a better quality of life for such individuals.
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