Object relations theory has caused a fundamental reorientation of psychodynamic thought. In Object Relations Theory and Practice, Dr. David E. Scharff acclimates readers to the language and culture of this therapeutic perspective and provides carefully selected excerpts from seminal theorists as well as explanations of their thinking and clinical experience. He offers readers an unparalleled resource for understanding object relations psychotherapy and theory and applying it to the practic...

In this landmark book, David Scharff and Jill Savege Scharff, both psychoanalysts, develop a way of thinking about and working with the couple as a small group of two, held together as a tightly knit system by a commitment that is powerfully reinforced by the bond of mutual sexual pleasure.

Offers an indepth and thoughtful exploration of the relevance of psychoanalysis to family therapy.

Marriage and Family in Modern China is a groundbreaking psychoanalytic examination of how 70 years of widespread social change have transformed the intimacies of life in modern China.The book describes the evolution of marriage and family structure, from the ancient tradition of large families preferring sons, arranged marriages and devaluation of girls, to a contemporary dominance of free-choice marriages and families that now prefer to remain small even after the ending ...

Using Winnicott’s classic paper as its starting point, this fascinating collection explores a range of clinical and theoretical psychoanalytic perspectives around relating to "the object." Each author approaches the topic from a different angle, switching among the patient’s use of others in their internal and external lives, their use of their therapist, and the therapist’s own use of their patients.The use of objects is susceptible to wide interpretation and elaboration; it is bo...

In The Interpersonal Unconscious, the Scharffs explore the construction and expression of the unconscious in interpersonal interaction. The authors draw from individual analysis, conjoint psychotherapy with families and couples, and from the use of group process in teaching. They introduce chaos theory applied to dynamical systems and South American theories of the link and the analytic field, now available in English. Advances in development, neuroscience, ethology, and attachmen...

In this time of vulnerable marriages and partnerships, many couples seek help for their relationships. Psychoanalytic couple therapy is a growing application of psychoanalysis for which training is not usually offered in most psychoanalytic and analytic psychotherapy programs. This book is both an advanced text for therapists and a primer for new students of couple psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Its twenty-eight chapters cover the major ideas underlying the application of psychoanalysis to ...

This book widens the scope of clinical and theoretical contributions on Couple and Family Psychoanalysis by collecting case presentations and discussions by analysts from Europe, North America, Latin America, China and Australia. The rich cross-fertilization across countries and analytic orientations stimulates cross-cultural thinking and deepens clinical exploration. In English language psychoanalysis, focus on object relations theory emphasizes internalization of early family figures in ...

This book explores family interaction and family psychoanalysis from varying standpoints used around the world. It illustrates these with extensive clinical cases discussed from varying perspectives. The book is the first in a series of volumes from the International Psychoanalytical Association's Working Group on Family and Couple Psychoanalysis, drawn from its ongoing research into comparative theories and methods of working analytically with families and couples, and with varying types ...

In their groundbreaking A Primer of Object Relations, Jill Savege Scharff and David E. Scharff answered readers' questions about this burgeoning field in remarkably clear and readable prose. It is difficult to imagine any other team of authors who could provide such a comprehensive survey of the broad applications of object relations theory and in the second edition of this authoritative work, the Scharffs draw from their years of clinical experience to create an inclusive and up-...

Established psychoanalytic/psychodynamic researchers and theorists bring the exploration of prejudice to a new level by examining how psychoanalysis might elucidate strategies that will eliminate prejudice.

Ronald Fairbairn developed a thoroughgoing object relations theory that became a foundation for modern clinical thought. This volume is homage to the enduring power of his thinking, and of his importance now and for the future of relational thinking within the social and human sciences. The book gathers an international group of therapists, analysts, psychiatrists, social commentators, and historians, who contend that Fairbairn's work extends powerfully beyond the therapeutic. They suggest...