Melanie Klein: Object Relations for Relational Therapies

Catalog description

In this workshop, we will address object relations theory as an adjunct and valuable aid in relational therapies. We will focus on the work of Melanie Klein as well as elaborations on her theories by Winnicott, Bion, Fairbairn, and Guntrip in addition to modern relational psychoanalytic thought such as Aron and Mitchell, and Bromberg. On day 1, we will explore “mostly theory” including object relations’ positions (paranoid-schizoid and depressive); primitive defense mechanisms (splitting, projective and introjective identifications), role of envy, reparation and gratitude; love and hate; and the life and death instincts. On day 2, we will focus on “mostly practice,” applying these concepts to the clinical arena in terms of diagnosis, transferences, and the role of object relations in treating relationships whether internal or external.