RIAPP 2024-2025 Events
Identities in Transit: Psychoanalysis With Marginalized Populations by Patricia Gherovici, Ph.D.
This Saturday conference is a hybrid event, and there is the option to attend in person or virtually. More information available through the registration process.
3 Continuing Education Credits available for Psychologists and Social Workers.
FALL 2024 CONFERENCE
This presentation explores identity formation and identity presentation in psychoanalytic practice with Latinx populations to shed light on the complexities of life in the barrio, a life often marked by poverty, migration, marginalization, and barriers of language, class, and race. I will explore identity and identification at the intersection of psyche and community, addressing modalities of individual suffering that are also allegories of social conditions, with populations that have been historically marginalized for their race, gender, class, or sexualities..
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Identify and describe basic issues of class, ethnicity, race, and language as they intersect among marginalized populations in the Barrio.
Accrue a better understanding of some of the basic misconceptions about the applicability of psychoanalysis.
Develop a deeper understanding of the role of identity and identification in psychoanalytic clinical practice with marginalized populations.
Patricia Gherovici, Ph.D. is Sigourney Award recipient for her work with Latinx and gender variant communities. Her books include The Puerto Rican Syndrome (Gradiva Award and Boyer Prize), Please Select Your Gender: From the Invention of Hysteria to the Democratizing of Transgenderism and Transgender Psychoanalysis: A Lacanian Perspective on Sexual Difference . She co-authored with Chris Christian Psychoanalysis in the Barrios: Race, Class, and the Unconscious (Gradiva Award and American Board and Academy of Psychoanalysis Book Prize), and with Manya Steinkoler Lacan On Madness: Madness Yes You Can't ; Lacan, Psychoanalysis and Comedy and, Psychoanalysis, Gender and Sexualities: From Feminism to Trans* (Gradiva Award).
1) Gherovici, P. (2023) “Why I Did Not Write a Book on Lacan and Tango” E-Flux Journal, https://www.e-flux.com/notes/530284/why-i-did-not-write-a-book-on-lacan-and-tango, March 2023.
2) Gherovici, P. (2022) "Hate Up to My Couch: Psychoanalysis, Community, Poverty and the Role of Hatred" Psychoanalysis and History, Volume 24 Issue 3, Page 269-290, ISSN 1460-8235 Available Online Dec 2022. Open access. (https://doi.org/10.3366/pah.20)
3) Gherovici, P.(2022) "Beyond fear and pity". Psychoanalytic Review, 109(3), 2022, 287–308.
4) Winograd, B. (2016). Psychoanalysis in El Barrio [Documentary film].Christian, C., Reichbart, R., Moskowitz, M., Morillo, R., Winograd, B., Ainslie, R., Almario, M., Christian, C., Delgado, J. M., Gaztambide, D. J., Gherovici, P., Javier, R. A., de Lourdes Mattei, M., Sánchez-Montañez, P., Mujica, E., Padrón, C., D. Nieves Pizarro, G. & Ramirez, D. (2016) Psychoanalysis in El Barrio.
5) Kernberg, O. F. (2016) Chapter 6. The Pressing Need to Increase Research in and on Psychoanalysis. Psychoanalytic Education at the Crossroads: Reformation, change and the future of psychoanalytic training 94:89-106.
6)Aafjes-van Doorn, K., & Prout, T. A. (2022). Changing attitudes toward evidence-based psychodynamic psychotherapy. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 39(3), 217–225. https://doi.org/10.1037/pap0000397
Decolonized Supervision Between White Supervisors and Black Clinicians: A Frantz Fanonian and Post Traumatic Slavery Syndrome Theory Perspective, by April Grigsby, D.S.W., L.C.S.W.
Most Black clinicians will have a White supervisor during their career. De centering White discomfort leaves opportunity to address the counter transference of same race clinical dyads, promote supervisee’s growth and most importantly, disrupt harmful treatment. Fanon illuminates the pre-migration context which can render hostile the psyche of African and Caribbean immigrants towards Black Americans spreading the epidermilization of inferiority and lactification. Joy De Gruy’s Post Traumatic Slavery Syndrome identifies self directed antipathy to Black culture, Black self-esteem, or Black beauty. While using classic clinical techniques, White supervisors can offer a trauma informed, social justice oriented supervision to Black clinicians.
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Assess their own supervision practice for anti-Black undercurrents.
Incorporate select Fanonian concepts of decolonization into their existing clinical supervision technique.
Discuss Post Traumatic Slavery Syndrome and its implications for counter transference within same race clinical dyads for Black clinician supervisees.
Select appropriate questions to encourage discussion on intragroup conflict and self reflection in supervision with Black clinician supervisees.
April's research focus is on Black mental health and the complexity of relationships between African-Americans, Caribbean and African immigrants, culturally informed interventions as well as training and curriculum development. For over 20 years, she served in both large NYC social service agencies and small, grass roots not-for-profit organizations. April is a LCSW, SIFI certified Practicum Instructor and currently works in private psychotherapy practice. April attained her BS from Yale University; MSW from Columbia University; and a doctorate of Clinical Social Work from NYU where she currently teaches in the BSW and MSW program at the Silver School of Social Work.
Bartholomew, T. T., Pérez-Rojas, A. E., Bledman, R., Joy, E. E., & Robbins, K. A. (2023). “How could I not bring it up?”: A multiple case study of therapists’ comfort when Black clients discuss anti-Black racism in sessions. Psychotherapy, 60(1), 63–75. https://doi.org/10.1037/pst0000404
Goode-Cross, D. T., & Grim, K. A. (2016). “An unspoken level of comfort”: Black therapists’ experiences working with Black clients. The Journal of Black Psychology, 42(1), 29–53. https://doi.org/10.1177/009579841 4552103
DeGruy, J. (2017). Post traumatic slave syndrome America’s legacy of enduring injury and healing. Joy DeGruy Publications Inc.
Ebubedike, N., Callanan, M., & Oldershaw, A. (2024). “The Relentless Nature of Whiteness”: Black Psychologists’ experiences of racial microaggressions in cross-cultural supervision. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 31(3), e3011. https://doi-org.proxy.library.nyu.edu/10.1002/cpp.3011
Holmes, D. E., Hart, A., Powell, D. R., Stoute, B. J. (2023). The Holmes Commission’s journey toward racial equality in American psychoanalysis: Reflection and hope. The American Psychoanalyst, 57(1), pp. 1-7. https://apsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/74728_TAP-Winter- 2023_web.pdf
Robcis, C. (2020). Frantz Fanon, Institutional Psychotherapy, and the Decolonization of Psychiatry. Journal of the History of Ideas, 81(2), 303–325. https://doi-org.proxy.library.nyu.edu/10.1353/jhi.2020.0009
Lecture by Kimberlyn Leary, Ph.D., M.P.A.
This lecture will be held virtually via Zoom.
This presentation provides a detailed analysis of the implementation of Executive Orders 13985 and 14091 under the Biden administration, focusing on the federal government's efforts to advance racial equity through systemic change. By documenting the lifecycle of these executive orders, Dr. Leary explores the interpersonal and other complexities of embedding equity into programs, policies, and data collection as well as lessons learned from large-scale change management initiatives, including implications for psychoanalysis.
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Understand the key components and strategic goals of Executive Orders 13985 and 14091 and analyze the change management frameworks applied in implementing these executive orders.
Identify the interpersonal (or psychodynamic) challenges and lessons learned from embedding equity into government operations (with a focus on long-term sustainability and cross-agency collaboration)
Discuss novel framework considerations for enhancing psychoanalytic formulations of experiencing race and equity.
Kimberlyn Leary, Ph.D., M.P.A. is the Executive Vice President of the Urban Institute, having previously held the position of Senior Vice President of Research Management and Program Development there. Dr. Leary also serves as an Associate Professor at both the Harvard Medical School/McLean Hospital and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Additionally, she is a Senior Fellow at the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University, where she co-directs leadership programs for new mayors, government officials, and senior executives. Additionally, Dr. Leary has served in multiple policy roles. Most recently, she was a Senior Policy Advisor to the Biden White House Domestic Policy Council and a Senior Equity Fellow at the Office of Management and Budget. Previously, she was an advisor to the Obama White House Council on Women and Girls. She also trained as a psychoanalyst at the Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute and is a member of the Board of Trustees at the Boston Psychoanalytic Institute.
Bresman, H., & Edmondson, A. C. (2020). Research: To excel, diverse teams need psychological safety. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2020/09/research-to-excel-diverse-teams-need-psychological-safety
de Jong, J., Edmondson, A., Moore, M., Bowles, H. R., Rivkin, J., Martinez-Orbegozo, E. F., & Pulido-Gomez, S. (2021). Building cities’ collaborative muscle. Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring 2021.
Hannah-Jones, N. (2024). The colorblindness trap: How a civil rights ideal got hijacked. Time Magazine, March 2024.
Leary, K. (2012). Race as an adaptive challenge: Working with diversity in the clinical consulting room. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 29(3), 279-291. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029953
Office of Management and Budget. (2021). Study to identify methods to assess equity: Report to the President. United States Office of Management and Budget. https://www.whitehouse.gov
Bound to Lose: Towards Antifascist Psychoanalysis, by Carter J. Carter Ph.D, M.S.W., L.I.C.S.W.
In recent years, fascist propagandists have worked to make psychoanalysis a beachhead from which to prosecute discriminatory campaigns against trans people, people of color, and advocates for the rights thereof. How did we get here, and what must we do now? I will offer a general review of research from my forthcoming book on this topic, with an eye towards orienting psychoanalysts to the characteristics of fascist propaganda in our profession, and to articulating the principles of an antifascist psychoanalysis.
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Define the concepts of authoritarianism, fascism and antifascism, propaganda, and the useful idiot.
Identify and critically analyze fascist propaganda in psychoanalysis
Describe the principles of an antifascist psychoanalysis.
Dr. Carter is, inter alia, the head labor organizer for the union of Massachusetts state college professors and librarians; a psychoanalytic theorist and researcher with recent papers in Studies in Psychoanalytic Dialogues, Studies in Gender and Sexuality, Psychoanalysis Culture & Society, and the International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies; a psychotherapist and clinical supervisor in private practice; Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts; Lecturer in the DSW Program, and Affiliated Faculty in the Program for Psychoanalytic Studies, at the University of Pennsylvania; breeder of registered Legacy Dexter cattle at Mayday Farm; small-town newspaper recipe columnist; avid antifascist pain in the neck.
Ashley, F. (2023). Interrogating Gender-Exploratory Therapy. Perspectives on Psychological Science 18 (2), 472-481.
Carter, C., Crath, R., Tronnier, T., Bhargava, H., Bredesen, T., Galeota, J., Garcia-Geary, Q., Espinosa-Setchko, A., Sencherey, D., Steindler, R. (In press). BIPOC’s Experiences of Discrimination in Psychoanalytic Professional Organizations: Results of a Thematic Analysis of Interview Data. The International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies.
Carter, C. (2024). Splitting as Segregation in the Psychoanalytic Institution. Psychoanalytic Dialogues 34 (2), 139-141.
Carter, C. (2024). American Psychoanalytic Institutes: Where Academic Freedom Goes to Die. Psychoanalysis, Culture & Society [invited].
Carter, C. (2023). Bullshit!: Response to Burston and Nelson. Free Associations 89, 83-111.
Sheehi, L. (in press). Intent to Harm: Settler Colonial Outposts in Psychoanalysis. Middle East Critique.
Woods, A. (2020). The Work Before Us: Whiteness and the Psychoanalytic Institute. Psychoanalysis, Culture & Society 25 (2), pp. 230-249.
Workshop by Anton Hart, Ph.D.
This will be a 2 hour virtual event, held on Tuesday 4/15/24.
Check back soon for more details.
The “Neurobiology of Object Relations”: Early Attachment Templates and Memory in the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics© by Stephen Bradley, L.I.C.S.W., L.M.H.C .
This event will be held virtually via Zoom.
This workshop will introduce participants to key concepts related to memory, the creation of associations and the development of “attachment templates” particularly during the earliest months / years in infant development. We will be looking at the role of core regulatory networks and the stress response in relation to early experiences with caregivers. There will be a particular focus on the “Triune Relationship” between Regulation, Reward and Relationship and the interweaving of key neural networks involved with each of these phenomena. The Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT©) - developed by Dr. Bruce Perry is a neurobiologically informed, developmentally sensitive approach to clinical problem solving that helps us to better understand the impact of trauma in the development of early infant and child relational templates. In addition to discussing the development of these templates we will discuss implications for treatment of “relationally sensitized” clients with specific strategies for engagement and intervention. Particular attention will be payed to “operationalizing the concepts” in practice and the relevance of early intervention. Descriptions of core concepts in practice will be grounded in case examples and pragmatic approaches to treatment.
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Identify and describe the key components of the “Triune Relationship” in neurodevelopment and attachment
Define and describe the role of the Intimacy Barrier in the treatment of relationally sensitized youth and adults
Practice application through discussion of concrete neurodevelopmentally informed treatment intervention strategies
Stephen Bradley received his M.Ed. in counseling from Umass Amherst in 1992 and his M.S.W. from Smith College in 2002. He worked for 20 years in nonprofit agencies including supervising and directing intensive home based and residential programs in MA and CT. He has been on the adjunct faculty at Smith College School for Social Work since 2010 where he currently teaches an Intro to NMT© course. He’s been in full time private practice since 2014 where he specializes in using NMT© with youth and families struggling with the effects of developmental trauma. He is certified as an NMT© Mentor through the Neurosequential Network and currently facilitates study groups for Phase I and II trainees in the model. He has a lifelong commitment to weaving social justice and anti-oppression frameworks into all areas of his work. He and his partner live with their blended family in Western MA.
Brandt, K. (2014). Core concepts in infant-family and early childhood mental health. In K. Brandt, B. D. Perry, S. Seligman, & E. Tronick (Eds.), Infant and early childhood mental health: Core concepts and clinical practice (pp. 1–20). American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc..
Hambrick, E. P., Brawner, T. W., Perry, B. D., Wang, E. Y., Griffin, G., DeMarco, T., Capparelli, C., Grove, T., Maikoetter, M., O'Malley, D., Paxton, D., Freedle, L., Friedman, J., Mackenzie, J., Perry, K. M., Cudney, P., Hartman, J., Kuh, E., Morris, J., . . . Strother, M. (2018). Restraint and critical incident reduction following introduction of the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT). Residential Treatment for Children & Youth, 35(1), 2–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/0886571X.2018.1425651
McCormick, A., Scheyd, K., & Terrazas, S. (2018). Trauma-informed care and LGBTQ youth: Considerations for advancing practice with youth with trauma experiences. Families in Society, 99(2), 160–169. https://doi.org/10.1177/1044389418768550
Perry, B. D. (2019). The Neurosequential Model: A developmentally-sensitive, neuroscience-informed approach to clinical problem solving. In J. Mitchell, J. Tucci, & E. Tronick (Eds.), The handbook of therapeutic child care: Evidence-informed approaches to working with traumatized children in foster, relative and adoptive care. Jessica Kingsley.
Perry, B. D., Hambrick, E., & Perry, R. D. (2016). A neurodevelopmental perspective and clinical challenges. In R. Fong & R. McRoy. (Eds.). Transracial and intercountry adoptions: Cultural guidance for professionals. Columbia University Press.
Working with Survivor Siblings in Psychoanalysis: Formulating the Lateral Horizon by Johanna Dobrich, M.A., LCSW-R
This virtual event will take place on 10/9/24.
The event was previously listed for 10/2 but has been rescheduled for 10/9.
This event will be held virtually via Zoom. 1.5 CEs available through APA and NASW
This talk examines the unique contribution Dobrich offers psychoanalysis through her qualitative study of “survivor siblings,” siblings who share a developmental landscape with severely disabled and medically complex compatriots. What happens to a person’s sense of self both personally and professionally when they grow up alongside a severely disabled sibling? The main findings of her research from her book will be shared, as well as a broader discussion about the importance of attending to lateral life experiences, in our understanding more generally of human development and identity, with regard to survivorship.
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Define the term survivor sibling and identify the impact of disabled siblings on the psychic development and interpersonal relations of their non-disabled siblings.
Apply a dissociative model of the mind to understand the impact of chronic medical disability on the family system.
Identify two ways survivor siblings attach to their disabled siblings psychically through examples.
Johanna Dobrich is a licensed clinical social worker and graduate of ICP’s four-year psychoanalytic training program. She is on the Faculty at the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy, the Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Study Center, and the National Institute for the Psychotherapies, where she teaches courses on trauma, dissociation, and contemporary psychoanalytic practice from a Relational perspective, as well as supervises candidates in training. She is the author of the book “Working with Survivor Siblings in Psychoanalysis” for which she received the 2023 Sandor Ferenczi Award from the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation, and has authored numerous articles on dissociation, loss and mourning. Johanna is in private practice in New York, NY.
Caplan, R. (2011) Someone Else Can Use This Time More Than Me: Working with College Students with Impaired Siblings, Journal of College Student Psychotherapy, 25:2, 120-131.
Dobrich, J. & Saidipour, P. (2023) Forthcoming: Did you drink milk with dinner growing up?: A Lateral Tale of Formulating our Socio-Cultural Identities in Psychoanalytic Supervision.
Dobrich, J. (2022) The Creative Use of Birth Stories in Psychoanalytic Treatments, Psychoanalytic Social Work, 29:2, 109-122.
Dobrich, J. (2021). Working with Survivor Siblings in Psychoanalysis: Disability and Ability in Clinical Process. New York: Routledge.
Dobrich, J. & Quinn,P. (2021). “Psychoanalytic Theory as Used in Art Therapy for Addiction and Trauma” in Art Therapy in the Treatment of Addiction & Trauma. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Dobrich, J. (2020). An Elegy for Motherless Daughters: Dissociation, Multiplicity, and Mourning, Psychoanalytic Perspectives, 17:3, 366-384.
RIAPP 2024 Social Gathering
The party will be at a private residence on the East Side of Providence, RI. Advance registration is required. The address will be emailed to registrants 24-48 hours before the event.
This event is free to members and the public! Please note that you must RSVP by registering here:
Lecture: Immigration and Its Discontents: The Invisible Hand of Whiteness in Latin America: A case study in Community Psychoanalysis by Rossanna Echegoyén, LCSW
This lecture will be held virtually on Zoom. It will be an abbreviated version of the February conference, with the goal being to expand the audience and make the program more accessible. It is open to all, including those who attended the February event.
to add this event to your own google calendar click here (this is not a registration link)
Looking for registration - find the page here: https://www.riapp.org/registerforanevent/p/echegoyen-lecture
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In the language of economics, ‘the invisible hand,’ refers to the unseen forces of the free market economy. The invisible hand of whiteness in Latin America centers white supremacy as the invisible force that subjugated an entire region. In recent years, in particular in the 1980s, U.S. foreign policy acted as an instrument of colonization that ultimately led to mass exoduses from Central and South America. A clinical case example will be discussed at length to illustrate the prison and immigration industrial complex as it relates to the migration crisis from the Northern Triangle (El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua) and highlight how the "invisible hand of whiteness" (via historical colonization, imperialism, foreign policy and colonization) impact the immigrants’ psyche and social functioning.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
1. Apply decolonial concepts to their clinical practice.
2. Analyze their countertransference in the context of coloniality in the treatment dyad.
3. Integrate non-analytic concepts (foreign policy) to clinical material (clinical work with immigrants).
Bio
Rossanna Echegoyén, LCSW is a Latina/Bilingual psychoanalyst whose interest lies at the intersection of psychoanalysis and socio-political concerns. She provides immigration evaluations to asylee seekers at ICE detention centers. She maintains a private practice in New York City where her leadership and collaborative work was instrumental for institutional change in the psychoanalytic community. At Manhattan Institute for Psychoanalysis, she served as the first Latina Co-Director of MIP and the One Year Program in Psychoanalysis and the Sociopolitical World. She is founder of CORE (Committee on Race and Ethnicity) at MIP, Co-Founder of The Psychoanalytic Coalition for Social Justice and Co-Editor of Div. 39-Sec. 9 The Psychoanalytic Activist.
References:
Bragin, Martha. (2019) Myth, Memory and Meaning: Understanding and Treating Adolescents in Forced Migration. J. Infant Child Adolescent Psychotherapy, (18)(4):319-329.
Hollander, Nancy. (2006). Negotiating Trauma and Loss in the Migration Experience. Studies in Gender and Sexuality, (7)(1):61-70.
Ryan, David. (1999). Colonialism and Hegemony in Latin America: An Introduction. The International Review, June 1999, Vol. 21, No. 2.
Volkan, Vamik D. (2014). Psychoanalysis, International Relations, and Diplomacy. New York: Karnac Books.
Volkan, Vamik D. (2017). Immigrants and Refugees: Trauma, Perennial Mourning, Prejudice, and Border Psychology. New York: Routledge.
Okazaki, Sumie, E.J.R. David & Nancy Abelman. (2007). Colonialism and Psychology of Culture. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, Vol.2, Issue 1: 90-106.
Conference: The Roles Intersectionality & Cultural Humility Play When Working with Diverse Client Populations by Gary Bailey, DHL, MSW, ACSW
Many individuals of color have not only experienced violence and discrimination at the interpersonal level, but also live in communities that are alive with symptoms of trauma, and as a result have an increased likelihood of developing health related problems because of this exposure. Physical violence, or threat of violence leads to trauma, which contributes to poorer health outcomes for those individuals who are impacted. The impact of primary and secondary trauma has been correlated with many medical conditions.
The stark reality of hate in America appears to disproportionately impact individuals who have been historically discriminated against and who have been generationally disenfranchised. Individuals who are a part of these communities deserve access to safe and affirming places to get much needed physical and emotional care. Dr. Bailey’s presentation will explore the intersection of trauma and racism that are experienced by individuals across the life span.
Unknowable, Unthinkable and Unimaginable: Fears and Anxieties When Working with Dissociative Identity Disorder by Sheldon Itzkowitz, Ph.D., ABPP
Therapists working with people suffering with DID are confronted with multiple challenges frequently causing anxiety, confusion and feeling deskilled. These challenges include, but are not limited to, dissociated self-states believing they are different ages, genders, and occasionally different racial identities, multiple transferences, frequent enactments, working with parts who are unaware of multiplicity, working through conflict and discord between parts who have coconsciousness and addressing parts that are self-destructive and or potentially harmful to others. This presentation will make use of case material to highlight and explore the dilemmas and anxieties that even a therapist seasoned in the treatment of DID faces.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
1). Identify and discuss symptoms of DID.
2). Explain the meaning of multiple transferences.
3). Describe what a perpetrating-caretaking dissociated self-state is.
References
Howell, E.F. & Itzkowitz, S. (2022). The unconscionable in the unconscious: The evolution of relationality in the treatment of trauma. In M.J. Dorahy, S.N. Gold, & J.A. O’Neil (Eds.), Dissociation and the dissociative disorders: Past, present, future (2nd Edition) (pp. 728-745). New York: Routledge.
Itzkowitz, S. (2022). Through the Lens of a DID Specialist. Psychoanalytic Perspectives, 19(1), 108-119.
Kluft (2022) A mutual appreciation of differences: My conversation with Philip M. Bromberg. Contemporary Psychoanalysis, 58(2-3), 438-460.
Howell, E. F., & Itzkowitz, S. (2016). The Dissociative Mind in Psychoanalysis. NY: Routledge.
Howell, E. F. & Itzkowitz, S., (2016). Is trauma-analysis psycho-analysis? In: E.F. Howell & S. Itzkowitz (Eds.). The Dissociative Mind in Psychoanalysis: Understanding and Working with Trauma. London: Routledge.
Dalenberg, C. J., Brand, B. L., Gleaves, D. H., Dorahy, M. J., Loewenstein, R. J., Cardeña, E., Frewen, P. A., Carlson, E. B., & Spiegel, D. (2012). Evaluation of the evidence for the trauma and fantasy models of dissociation. Psychological Bulletin, 138(3), 550–588.
Myrick, A.C., Webermann, A.R., Loewenstein, R.J., Lanius, R., Putnam, F.W. & Brand, B.L. (2017) Six-year follow-up of the treatment of patients with dissociative disorders study, European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 8(1), 1-7.
Conference: Immigration and Its Discontents: The Invisible Hand of Whiteness in Latin America: A case study in Community Psychoanalysis by Rossanna Echegoyén, L.C.S.W.
In the language of economics, ‘the invisible hand,’ refers to the unseen forces of the free market economy. The invisible hand of whiteness in Latin America centers white supremacy as the invisible force that subjugated an entire region. In recent years, in particular in the 1980s, U.S. foreign policy acted as an instrument of colonization that ultimately led to mass exoduses from Central and South America. We will follow clinical case examples to highlight how the invisible hand of whiteness, foreign policy, historical and current colonization impact the immigrants’ psyche and social functioning.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
1. Apply decolonial concepts to their clinical practice.
2. Analyze their countertransference in the context of coloniality in the treatment dyad.
3. Integrate non-analytic concepts (foreign policy) to clinical material (clinical work with immigrants).
Rossanna Echegoyén, LCSW is a Latina/Bilingual psychoanalyst whose interest lies at the intersection of psychoanalysis and socio-political concerns. She provides immigration evaluations to asylee seekers at ICE detention centers. She maintains a private practice in New York City where her leadership and collaborative work was instrumental for institutional change in the psychoanalytic community. At Manhattan Institute for Psychoanalysis, she served as the first Latina Co-Director of MIP and the One Year Program in Psychoanalysis and the Sociopolitical World. She is founder of CORE (Committee on Race and Ethnicity) at MIP, Co-Founder of The Psychoanalytic Coalition for Social Justice and Co-Editor of Div. 39-Sec. 9 The Psychoanalytic Activist.
References:
Bragin, Martha. (2019) Myth, Memory and Meaning: Understanding and Treating Adolescents in Forced Migration. J. Infant Child Adolescent Psychotherapy, (18)(4):319-329.
Hollander, Nancy. (2006). Negotiating Trauma and Loss in the Migration Experience. Studies in Gender and Sexuality, (7)(1):61-70.
Ryan, David. (1999). Colonialism and Hegemony in Latin America: An Introduction. The International Review, June 1999, Vol. 21, No. 2.
Volkan, Vamik D. (2014). Psychoanalysis, International Relations, and Diplomacy. New York: Karnac Books.
Volkan, Vamik D. (2017). Immigrants and Refugees: Trauma, Perennial Mourning, Prejudice, and Border Psychology. New York: Routledge.
Okazaki, Sumie, E.J.R. David & Nancy Abelman. (2007). Colonialism and Psychology of Culture. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, Vol.2, Issue 1: 90-106.
Crossing the River Styx: The Journey Through Psychic Death to Aliveness by Joseph Newirth, Ph.D.
This event will be held virtually on Zoom.
This paper takes a contemporary object relations view of the nature of psychoanalysis emphasizing the goal of facilitating patients’ growth, their capacity to feel, and be fully alive. This psychoanalytic perspective originated in Bion’s and Winnicott’s radical revision of psychoanalysis which focused on the = patient’s being rather than on either symptom relief or adaptation to the demands of external reality. A brief history of this transformation is presented describing its development from early concepts of projective identification, to communicative uses of countertransference, enactment, unconscious communication to current views of the psychoanalytic relationship as a field in which it is difficult toseparate the analyst’s unconscious participation from that of the patient. While simultaneously being affected by the unconscious ‘forces’ within the field the analyst attempts to symbolize, articulate and organize the forces and experiences mobilized in the analytic relationship. A brief clinical vignette involving a severely traumatized patient who presented and experienced overwhelming deadness which was also experienced by her analyst and the analyst’s supervisor is presented to illustrate the complex, concrete unconscious experiences that were encountered as the three participants worked to emerge from the world of the dead, returning across the River Styx.
Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Describe the development of the contemporary psychopathology of extreme dissociative disorders which results in the experience of deadness in the psychotherapeutic relationship.
Utilize treatment strategies which prioritize symbolization of unverbalized experiences of dissociation and deadness.
Compare psychotherapeutic approaches which incorporate Bionian Field Theory with more traditional approaches which emphasize the differentiation of historically past and present experiences
Bio
Joseph Newirth is a Professor Emeritus who had been a Professor at the Derner School of Psychology at Adelphi University for over 40 years. He was the Director of the Postdoctoral Program in Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy at Adelphi University. He is currently a supervisor at the N.Y.U. Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis New York University, and on the faculty and a supervisor at the National Training Program at the National Institute of the Psychotherapies, New York, NY. He received his BA from the City College of New York, his Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts and his psychoanalytic training at the William Alanson White Institute. He encourages dialogue, critical thinking, and opportunities for students and supervises to deepen their understanding of how psychoanalytic theories relate to the practice of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. He has published numerous articles in professional journals and frequently presented papers at national and international conferences. His first book, Between Emotion and Cognition: The generative unconscious (2003) received the Gradiva prize for critical analysis and interpretation in 2004. His second book, From Sign to Symbol: Transformational Process in Psychoanalysis, Psychotherapy and Psychology (2018) was published by Lexington Books which received the annual book award from the American Board and Academy of Psychoanalysis. He maintains a practice in Psychoanalysis, Psychotherapy and Supervision in New York and works largely remotely.
References
Levine, H. (2015) The Transformational Vision of Antonino Ferro. Psychoanalytic Inquiry, 35:451–464, 2015
Ferro, A. (2012) Creativity in the Consulting Room: Factors of Fertility and Infertility. Psychoanalytic Inquiry 32:257-274
Civitarese, G. (2016) Masochism and Its Rhythm. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association 64:885-916
Eshel, O. (2016) The “Voice” of Breakdown: On Facing the Unbearable Traumatic Experience in Psychoanalytic Work. Contemporary Psychoanalysis 52:76-110
Ogden, T.H. (1995). Aliveness and deadness of the transference-countertransference.., Int. J. Psychoanal., 76:695-710.
Blechner, M.J. (2015). Dreams: How Neuropsychoanalysis and Clinical Psychoanalysis Can Learn from Each Other. Ann. Psychoanal., 38:142-155.
Fellenor, J. (2011). The unpredictability of metaphor: Ignacio Matte-Blanco's bi-logic and the nature of metaphoric processes. Int. Forum Psychoanal., 20(3):138-147.
Flabbi, L. Pediconi, M.G. (2014). Unconscious and Game Theory. Int. J. Appl. Psychoanal. Stud., 11(4):339-359
Mancia, M. (2006) Implicit Memory and Early Unrepressed Unconscious: Their Role in the Therapeutic Process (How the Neurosciences Can Contribute to Psychoanalysis)1. International Journal of Psychoanalysis 87:83-103
Mancia, M. & Baggott, J. (2008) The Early Unrepressed Unconscious in Relation to Matte-Blanco's Thought. International Forum of Psychoanalysis 17:201-212
Fall Conference: Clinical Implications of Recent Developments in Neuro-Psychoanalysis by Mark Solms, Ph.D.
Mark Solms, Ph.D.
With discussant, Jose Saporta, M.D.
Recent neuroscientific findings in affective and cognitive neuroscience demand revisions to the psychoanalytic theory of the drives and of the unconscious respectively. This presentation will outline these revisions and discuss their clinical implications for the practice of psychoanalytic therapy.
Please note: The Zoom link will be emailed the day before the event. Register by Thursday 11/2 at 6pm.
Learning Objectives
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to:
1. Identify and describe the emotional drives of the human brain
2. Classify the different memory systems of the human brain and identify their behavioral manifestations
3. Adjust their clinical practice to make it commensurate with recent neuroscientific findings.
Bio
Professor Mark Solms is a member of the British Psychoanalytical Society and the American and South African Psychoanalytic Associations. He is Director of Neuropsychology at the Neuroscience Institute of the University of Cape Town. He is an Honorary Fellow of the American College of Psychiatrists. He has received numerous honours and awards, including the Sigourney Prize. He has published 350 scientific papers, and eight books, the latest being The Hidden Spring (Norton, 2021). He is the authorized editor and translator of the forthcoming Revised Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud (24 volumes) and Complete Neuroscientific Works of Sigmund Freud (4 volumes).
References
Lee, T. & Solms, M. (2023). Managing the clinical encounter with patients diagnosed with personality disorder in a general psychiatry setting: key contributions from neuropsychoanalysis. British Journal of Psychiatry Advances, doi: 10.1192/bja.2023.43
Solms, M. (2022). Revision of Freud’s theory of the biological origin of the Oedipus complex. Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 90: 555-581. doi.org/10.1080/00332828.2021.1984153
Solms, M. (2021). Revision of drive theory. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 69, 1033-1091. DOI: 10.1177/00030651211057041
Solms, M. (2018). The Neurobiological Underpinnings of Psychoanalytic Theory and Therapy. Frontiers of Behavioral Neuroscience, 12, 294. doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00294
Smith, R. & Solms, M. (2018). Examination of the hypothesis that repression is premature automatization: a psychoanalytic case report and discussion. Neuropsychoanalysis, 20: 47-61. https://doi.org/10.1080/15294145.2018.1473045
I-Thou and the Other: Intersubjectivity and Cross Racial Encounter by Samir Patel, M.D.
This event will be held IN PERSON at
Central Congregational Church, 296 Angell St, Providence, RI 02906
*Please join us from 7-7:30pm for a welcome party to kick off the 2023-2024 season!
———-
During this workshop, we will examine through a lecture, a video clip, and a facilitated discussion the ways in which the Other negotiates an I-Thou Intersubjectivity in a cross-racial dyad. Here the Other (capital O-Other) is a psychic construct―a repository of all that is dissociated from individuals in themselves and thought to exist in or represent others that are different, serving an important stabilizing function. The Other is also the Lacanian symbolic register, which among other things represents rules and regulations of what should and should not be mentalized in the dyad. This will be an interactive session with opportunity for self-reflection and dialogue with each other.
Objectives:
1: Describe the psychological concept of the capital-O Other and its role in self identity and psychic stability.
2: Identify at least two ways in which the Other impacts engagement with others, that is out patients, especially when the clients are racially different
3. Discuss methods to deepen the therapeutic relationship in face of this Other
Samir M Patel, MD, MPH, is a psychiatrist in private practice in Providence RI. He also supervises and teaches psychiatry residents as an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior of Alpert Medical School at Brown. After spending his formative years in India and completing medical school there as well, he moved to the US to pursue a Masters in Public Health at the University of Michigan, and obtain his psychiatric training at Duke University Medical Center and University of Pennsylvania Hospitals. He is a member of RIAPP and one of the founding chairs of the Committee on Anti-racism, Diversity and Equity of the American Academy of Psychotherapists, a multidisciplinary organization of psychotherapists. He enjoys cooking for his husband and friends, singing, reading and traveling.
References:
Thomas, K. Buberian Intersubjectivity and Racist Encounters. A Priori: The Brown Journal of Philosophy 6 (2021): 57–81.
George, S. Trauma and Race: A Lacanian Study of African American Racial Identity. Baylor University Press, 2016. Project MUSE muse.jhu.edu/book/44556.
Morrison, T and Coates, T. The Origin of Others. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2017. Web.
Wallis, J and Singh, R. “Constructions and Enactments of Whiteness: a Discursive Analysis.” Journal of Family Therapy, vol. 36, no. S1, 2014, pp. 39–64, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6427.2012.00602.x.
Cénat, J. M. Complex Racial Trauma: Evidence, Theory, Assessment, and Treatment.Perspectives on Psychological Science, 0 (2022):. https://doi.org/10.1177/17456916221120428
Terian, S.K. The Look and Intersubjectivity: Insights from Sartre and Schutz for Race Relations. Soc 60, 580–591 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12115-023-00842-z
RIAPP May Social Gathering
Please join us as we close the 2022-2023 RIAPP season with a social event. It will be an opportunity to connect with our larger community, and enjoy some food and drink. We hope to see everyone there!
The party will be at a private residence on the East Side of Providence, RI. Advance registration is required. The address will be emailed to registrants 24-48 hours before the event.
Conference: Decolonizing conceptualizations of development and personality in psychoanalysis by Usha Tummala-Narra, Ph.D.
Abstract:
In many parts of the world, conceptualizations of human development, such as those regarding the concept of dependency, have been shaped within the context of white, Euro-American colonization. Within psychoanalysis, there has been a tendency to separate the psyche and the social, contributing to a neglect of sociocultural context in theory and practice. This presentation examines the complicity of psychoanalysis in colonized narratives of development and personality, and the impact of this complicity on racial minorities. I also explore post-colonial perspectives that challenge theoretical assumptions of non-white people as dependent and inferior. Drawing on theory, research, and practice, I will present a culturally informed, decolonizing psychoanalytic approach, emphasizing the influence of the therapist’s and the patient’s sociocultural context on the therapeutic relationship.
Learning Objectives:
1. Identify how colonization and sociocultural trauma shape conceptualizations of human development and personality.
2. Identify how attention to sociocultural context is critical for moving toward decolonized approaches to psychoanalytic psychotherapy.
3. Develop an understanding of a culturally informed and decolonizing psychoanalytic approach to conceptualization and technique.
Bio:
Usha Tummala-Narra, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and the Director of Community-Based Education at the Albert and Jessie Danielsen Institute and Research Professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Boston University. Her research and scholarship focus on immigration, trauma, race, and culturally-informed psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Her publications include over 90 peer-reviewed articles and chapters in books. She is also in Independent Practice, and works primarily with survivors of trauma from diverse sociocultural backgrounds. Dr. Tummala-Narra is an Associate Editor of Psychoanalytic Dialogues and the Asian American Journal of Psychology. She is the author of Psychoanalytic Theory and Cultural Competence in Psychotherapy (2016) and the editor of Trauma and Racial Minority Immigrants: Turmoil, Uncertainty, and Resistance (2021), both published by the American Psychological Association Books.
References:
Bhatia, S. (2019). Searching for justice in an unequal world: Reframing Indigenous psychology as a cultural and political project. Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology, 39(2), 107-114.
Dajani, K.G. (2020). Cultural determinants in Winnicott’s developmental theories. International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies, 17, 6-21.
Tummala-Narra, P. (2020). The fear of immigrants. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 37(1), 50-61.
Tummala-Narra, P. (2016). Psychoanalytic theory and cultural competence in psychotherapy. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Rogers-Sirin, L., & Gupta, T. (2012). Cultural identity and mental health: Differing trajectories among Asian and Latino youth. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 59(4), 555-566.
Accreditation
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Accreditation Criteria and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint providership of Rhode Island Hospital and Rhode Island Association for Psychoanalytic Psychologies. Rhode Island Hospital is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Physicians: Rhode Island Hospital designates this live activity for a maximum of 3 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Psychologists: This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 3 continuing education credits. Division 39 is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education. Division 39 maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Social Workers: This program has been approved for 3 Social Work Continuing Education hours in Cross Cultural Practice for relicensure by National Association for Social Work RI Chapter, in accordance with 258 CMR.
Mikhail Bakhtin, Dialogue, and Psychotherapy by Jose Saporta, M.D.
Abstract
We will discuss the ideas of Mikhail Bakhtin, and subsequent dialogical theory, to inform an intersubjective understanding of change through psychoanalytic psychotherapy. We will consider meaning as a dynamic process that emerges from dialogue rather than internal content, and discuss how psychotherapy cultivates meaning making that is more complex, flexible and responsive to local conditions. Psychotherapy cultivates varied dialogical positions from which to relate and make sense of experience, allowing for new meaning in new circumstances. We will discuss other of Bakhtin’s ideas that inform interaction of personal and social dimensions of meaning and how we marginalize others through speech and gesture.
Objectives
Describe the notion from dialogical theory of meaning as a dynamic, interactive process, and how this informs three aspects of change in psychoanalytic psychotherapy.
Describe Bakhtin’s notions of, “position, addressivity, double voiced discourse, and the word with a side-ways glance”, and describe the phenomenon of “transference” according to these ideas.
Describe Bakhtin’s ideas of the word as “half mine and half someone else’s,” and multiple social spheres from which we, “take the word and make it mine”, and apply these ideas to explain interaction between personal and social meaning and explain how we marginalize other subjects through speech and gesture.
Bio
Dr. Saporta has taught and supervised psychotherapy through Harvard Medical School and through the Advanced Psychotherapy Training Program at the Boston Psychoanalytic Institute - teaching courses on psychoanalytic theory, intersubjectivity and change, and clinical seminars. He has published on a range of topics, including: trauma, neuropsychoanalysis, psychoanalysis and China, the space and place of psychotherapy, Bakhtin and psychoanalytic treatment, and psychoanalysis and our cultural crisis. His most recent paper, “Unifying Psychology -a View from the Trenches; and What's Wrong with Pluralism Anyway?”, appeared this year in the Journal of Clinical Psychology of Italy. He now lives and practices in Providence and joined the Board of RIAP. He continues to explore various aspects of psychotherapy and change.
References
Saporta, J. A. (2016). Changing the subject by addressing the other: Mikhail Bakhtin and psychoanalytic therapy. In D. M. Goodman & E. Severson (Eds.), The ethical turn: Otherness and subjectivity in contemporary psychoanalysis (pp. 209–231). New York, Routledge.
Leiman, M. (2011). Michael Bakhtin’s contribution to psychotherapy research. Culture & Psychology, 17, 441-461.
Leiman, M. (2011). Dialogical Sequence analysis in studying psychotherapeutic discourse. International Journal for Dialogical Science, Vol. 6, No. 1, 123-147
Salgado, J., Cunha, C., Bento, T. (2013). Positioning microanalysis: studying the self through the exploration of dialogical processes. Integr Psych Behav, 47:325–353 DOI 10.1007/s12124-013-9238-y
Shotter J & Billig M (1998). A Bakhtinian psychology: From out of the heads of individuals and into the dialogues between them. In, Bakhtin and the Human Sciences. Ed: Bell MM & Gardiner B. Sage Publications, London. Pg 13-29.
Accreditation
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Accreditation Criteria and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint providership of Rhode Island Hospital and Rhode Island Association for Psychoanalytic Psychologies. Rhode Island Hospital is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Physicians: Rhode Island Hospital designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.50 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Psychologists: This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 1.5 continuing education credits. Division 39 is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education. Division 39 maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Social Workers: This program has been approved for 1.5 Social Work Continuing Education hours for relicensure by National Association for Social Work RI Chapter, in accordance with 258 CMR.
Some autistic processes -- how they change during psychoanalytic psychotherapy by Robin Holloway, Ph.D.
This event will be held virtually, via zoom. Please preregister by 5pm on Tuesday 1/31 to receive a link. Links will be sent out the day of the event.
Abstract
This presentation considers evidence from 14 years of psychoanalytic psychotherapy with my patient “Sam.” I began seeing Sam when he was 11 years old. He is now 25.
This presentation is evidence-based, in that we examine the evidence Sam has produced. This evidence is a series of “graphic novels” which Sam began drawing during our first session of psychotherapy. I propose we examine this evidence together and discuss what it tells us about autism.
As background for our discussion are three papers dealing with Sam and the evidence supplied by his drawings.
Objectives
At the conclusion of this seminar, participants will be able to:
Discuss some of the defences used by those with autism and assess how autistic defences may shift in response to psychoanalytic psychotherapy.
Describe aspects of psychosexual development in those with autism and explain the possible impacts of autism on how psychosexual development unfolds.
Compare the defensive and the adaptive aspects of artistic rituals and adumbrate the anxieties which provoke these rituals.
Bio
Robin Holloway is a Registered Psychologist providing psychoanalytic psychotherapy to children, adolescents. He is a graduate of CICAPP (The Canadian Institute for Child and Adolescent Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy) where he is now a supervisor and a teacher. Robin is in private practice at The Willow Centre in Toronto, Canada. Here, Robin has the privilege of working with a small group of like-minded clinicians where together we can discuss cases. Previously, Robin worked for 20 years in the Child and Family Services department of a public hospital where he participated in weekly assessments of children referred for possible autism spectrum disorder. Inspired by this experience and by hearing Anne Alvarez speak about autism to a group of graduate psychoanalytic psychotherapists (members of the Canadian Association of Psychoanalytic Child Therapists), Robin went on to develop a special interest in children with autism and Asperger’s. This in turn has led to several publications. Robin has been honoured to participate in the ASD Committee of the American Psychoanalytic Association.
References
Bernier, R., Dawson, G., and Nigg, J. (2020). What science tells us about autism spectrum disorder: making the right choices for your child. The Guilford Press.
Holloway, R. (2021). High-functioning autism: changes over fourteen years of psychoanalytic psychotherapy: part 1. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, 47(1), 67-89.
Holloway, R. (2021). High-functioning autism: changes over fourteen years of psychoanalytic psychotherapy: part two. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, 47(2), 168-187.
Holloway, R. (2022). High-functioning autism: changes over fourteen years of psychoanalytic psychotherapy: part three. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, 48(1), 6-29.
Leichsenring, F., Leweke, F., Klein, S., and Steinert, C. (2015). The empirical status of psychodynamic psychotherapy – an update: Bambi’s alive and kicking. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 84(3), 129-148.
Accreditation
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Accreditation Criteria and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint providership of Rhode Island Hospital and Rhode Island Association for Psychoanalytic Psychologies. Rhode Island Hospital is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Physicians: Rhode Island Hospital designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.50 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Psychologists: This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 1.5 continuing education credits. Division 39 is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education. Division 39 maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Social Workers: This program has been approved for 1.5 Social Work Continuing Education hours in Cross Cultural Practice for relicensure by National Association for Social Work RI Chapter, in accordance with 258 CMR.
Repairing the irreparable, bearing the unbearable: Clinical work with formerly incarcerated people who have served life sentences by Beth Kita, Ph.D., LICSW
Abstract
In this paper, I’ll discuss my clinical work with people who, sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of murder, have now returned home to live life after serving life, and explore their efforts to reckon with what they have done (and, frequently, what was done to them) despite being confined in traumatogenic institutions that functioned to thwart such growth. Using case material, I’ll reflect on the ways in which a psychodynamic approach can help navigate the overwhelm of violent crimes and violent punishments, and the unresolved trauma that usually precedes both, and offer ideas about how we can and why we should develop our collective capacities to bear and to repair - in the hopes of transforming the trauma that incarceration reenacts.
Objectives
1. Describe the proliferation of life sentences in the United States and its disproportionate impact on Black people, poor people, and people of color.
2. Identify some of the reasons, from a psychoanalytic perspective, why people who commit murder and are sentenced to life in prison are driven to understand and transform the harm they’ve caused.
3. Explain why working with people who have endured and perpetrated violence can be challenging for clinicians.
Bio
Elizabeth (Beth) Kita is a clinical social worker in public/private practice in San Francisco, California. In her private practice, she works primarily with people contending with complex posttraumatic stress; her work in a public clinic is with people who are returning to the community following lengthy periods of incarceration. She obtained her MSW from UC Berkeley and her PhD from Smith College. Beth teaches in the MSW program at UC Berkeley, and is the Co-Chair of the Coalition for Clinical Social Work at the San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis.
References
Cartwright, D. (2010). Containing states of mind: Exploring Bion’s container model in psychoanalytic psychotherapy. New York, NY: Routledge.
Cullors, P. (2018). Abolition and reparations: Histories of resistance, transformative justice, and accountability. Harvard Law Review, 132, 1684 – 1694.
de Maat, S., De Jonghe, F., Schoevers, R., & Dekker, J. (2009). The effectiveness of long-term psychoanalytic therapy: A systematic review of empirical studies. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 17(1), 1-23.
Kita, E. (2019). “They hate me now but where was everyone when I needed them?”: Mass incarceration, projective identification, and social work praxis. Psychoanalytic Social Work, 26(1), 25-49.
Mauer, M., & Nellis, A. (2018). The meaning of life: The case for abolishing life sentences. The New Press.
McIvor, D. W. (2016). Mourning in America: Race and the politics of loss. New York: Cornell University Press.
Parker, R. N. (2019). Slavery in the white psyche. Psychoanalytic Social Work, 26(1), 84-103.
Purnell, D. (2021). Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protest, and the Pursuit of Freedom. Verso Books.
Sered, D. (2019). Until we reckon: Violence, mass incarceration, and a road to repair. The New Press.
Stevenson, B. (2019). Slavery gave America a fear of black people and a taste for violent 6. punishment. Both still define our criminal-justice system. The New York Times, 1619.
November Conference: Trans, Mirroring and Connecting to Self by S . J . Langer, LCSW
Abstract
What is the felt-sense of being transgender or nonbinary and how do we know this? This lecture will understand gender through the lens of neuropsychoanalysis and construct how it can be used to aid transgender people in understanding their own gender. In addition, we will explore the effects of gender-incongruent mirroring for transgender and gender nonconforming persons’ ability to know their own feelings and its role in the development of shame. Finally, we will employ how we can use this understanding to develop practical clinical interventions.
Objectives
At the conclusion of this presentation participants will be able to:
1. Identify multiple aspects of mirroring by parental figures and therapists.
2. Gain knowledge of advanced neuronal processing and how it relates to gender.
3. Explain how poor interoceptive sensitivity is connected to embodied parental mirroring.
Bio
S.J. Langer is a writer and psychotherapist in NYC. He is also a clinical supervisor and mentor as a WPATH GEI SOC7 Certified Mentor. He is on faculty at School of Visual Arts in both the Art Therapy and Humanities & Sciences departments. His research lab studies embodiment and trans phantoms. One of his articles, Trans Bodies and the Failure of Mirrors, was the co-winner of the Symonds Prize from Studies in Gender and Sexuality. His first book Theorizing Transgender Identity for Clinical Practice: A New Model for Understanding Gender was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award in 2020.
References
Grossman, A., D’Augelli, A., Howell, T., & Hubbard, S. (2005). Parents’ reactions to transgender youths’ gender nonconforming expression and identity. Journal of Gay and Lesbian Social Services, 18(1), 3–16.
Keo-Meier, C. L., Herman, L. I., Reisner, S. L., Pardo, S. T., Sharp, C., & Babcock, J. C. (2015). Testosterone treatment and MMPI–2 improvement in transgender men: A prospective controlled study. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 83(1), 143–156.
Pollatos, O., Gramann, K., & Schandry, R. (2007). Neural systems connecting interoceptive awareness and feelings. Human Brain Mapping, 28, 9–18.
Avgi Saketopoulou. (2020) Thinking psychoanalytically, thinking better: Reflections on transgender. The International Journal of Psychoanalysis 101:5, pages 1019-1030.
Winnicott, D. W. (1965). Ego distortion in terms of true and false self in maturational processes and the facilitating environment. In: The Maturational Processes and the Facilitating Environment: Studies in the Theory of Emotional Development, ed. M. Masud and R. Khan. London, UK: Hogarth Press and the Institute of Psycho-Analysis, pp. 140–152.
Creative Engagement: Mutual Vulnerability and Transformation by Leslie Lampe Long, M.A.,M.Ed., CPsyA
Abstract
Creativity is subjective. Creative engagement is intersubjective, co-created and mutually transformational. This premise is explored in the case of a patient suffering from lifelong relational trauma and emotional deprivation, resulting in profound insecurity, rage that grips her, and paranoia that entraps her. Creative engagement offers a new co-created language, that of the imagination, between “in here” and “out there,” outside the bounds of cognitive certainty. In the case of this patient, more than a dozen vivid paintings and several poignant poems offer a collaborative language to understand her inner world. A oneness, both fantasized and real, emerges early in the treatment, as the patient and analyst begin to trust their co-created world. But the analyst’s own vulnerability (with a cancer diagnosis at the outset of treatment) stimulates her own unconscious selfobject fantasies. Joined intersubjectively in the deep layers of fantasy, the engagement ultimately experiences an enactment that necessitates a re-finding of both selves. With the patient’s sense of agency catalyzing, the dyad begins to work through the leading and trailing edge aspects of mutual vulnerability. Creative engagement becomes central to preventing stagnation and developing a sustainable generative thirdness that holds both the present and the past.
Objectives
At the conclusion of this program, the participants will be able to:
Prepare to create a reflective space for the possibility of creative engagement for patients, whether working remotely or in person.
Describe aspects of their own vulnerability and selfobject needs and how, rather than getting in the way, awareness of vulnerability may open new pathways for creative engagement and mutual transformation.
Prepare to notice, whether on zoom or in person, the implicit visual, auditory, or embodied signs of a patient’s creativity and your own, perhaps also implicit, subjective, and unconscious experience of a patient’s creativity.
Bio:
In private practice as a psychoanalyst since 2008, Leslie began her quest to become a psychoanalyst after a life-changing experience, partnering with the FDNY after 911. With previous careers as a marketing executive and teacher, she specializes in helping people through work and life transitions to develop greater congruence between their inner and outer selves. Working both in-person and via zoom from her office in Providence, RI, Leslie helps patients transform traumatic memories, co-creating and attuning to innate creativity, embodied emotion, and implicit awareness.
References:
Kulka, Raanan (2018) The Ethics of Oneness. Psychoanalytic Review, 108-2: 141-153
Ornstein, Paul H., M.D. & Ornstein, Anna M.D. (2009) The Structure and Function of Unconscious Fantasy in the Psychoanalytic Treatment Process. Psychoanalytic Inquiry 28:2, 206-230
Slowiaczek, M. (2021) Holding on and Diving in: Reciprocity in a Therapeutic Relationship. Psychoanalysis, Self and Context, 16-3: 242-252
Stern, S. (2022) IAPSP Online Journal 4/22 (2021) Analytic Adoption of the Psychically Homeless, Psychoanalysis, Self and Context.16:24-42
Teicholz, Judy (2021) Relational Self Psychology: Could there be any other kind? A discussion of Magid, Fosshage & Shane’s paper, The emerging paradigm of relational self psychology, Psychoanalysis, Self and Context, 16-4: 319-326
Togashi, Koichi (2016) From Traumatized Individuality to Being Human With Others, 39th Annual IAPSP Conference.
Conference: Anti-Racist Clinical Care Work at the Intersection of Two Pandemics: Part 2 by Gary Bailey, DHL, M.S.W., ACSW
Many BIPOC individuals (clients/patients and staff) have experienced not only violence and discrimination, but also live with symptoms of trauma, and have an increased likelihood of developing health related problems because of this exposure. The physical violence or threat of violence leads to trauma, which leads to poor health outcomes. The impact of primary and secondary trauma has been correlated with medical conditions, such as diabetes, chronic pain, chronic fatigue syndrome, heart disease, liver disease, sexually transmitted infections, PTSD, and lower life expectancy.
The COVID pandemic contributed to a sense of disconnectedness for many individuals; and the issues needing to be dealt with continue to be challenging, and complex (e.g.Covid-19 racial health disparities, increasing overt racist and white supremacist activity at local & national and international levels; and economic national economic recession).
This workshop will have as a focus an analysis of racism from a structural, (social) psychological and applied perspectives. Utilizing critical race theory and intersectionality, participants will come to understand the role that practitioners and allies must have in promoting equity and fairness in a multicultural environment; as well as the role that practitioners must play in addressing racism and other forms of oppression. This approach frames the analysis of intersectional oppressions which will be examined in relationship to sociopolitical and economic factors, and historical themes evident in today’ society
Intersectionality, intersubjectivity and Social Justice, by Joan G. Lesser PhD, LICSW
This lecture will be held remotely via zoom. Register by Tuesday 5/3 to receive a link for the meeting.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits
The course describes Intersectionality and Intersubjectivity, two theoretical frameworks used to guide socially just clinical practice. These models guide the therapist in initiating “third space conversations,” the interactional, therapeutic field where the clinician’s and the client’s intersectional social identities and subjective attitudes are present and influential (Aron, 2006). The importance of a socio-historical perspective when working clinically will be demonstrated with the use of composite clinical vignettes that demonstrate the therapist engaging with clients around systemic injustices. Attention will also be given to how inequalities may be implicitly enacted in therapeutic practice.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this seminar, participants will be able to:
1. Demonstrate how Intersectionality Theory can inform clinical practice.
2. Use Intersubjective Systems Theory as a framework for third space conversation.
3. Discuss how injustice and inequalities may be implicitly enacted in clinical practice.
Biography:
Joan Granucci Lesser, PhD, LICSW is a social work clinician, researcher, educator and author. She is Adjunct Associate Professor at Smith College School for Social Work and has a private psychotherapy practice. Dr. Lesser is the co-author of two social work textbooks and numerous articles and book chapters, and has presented locally, nationally and internationally on a variety of clinical topics. She received the 2012 National Association of Social Worker MA Chapter award for “greatest contribution to social work practice” for founding Pioneer Valley Professionals, an interdisciplinary group practice in Holyoke, MA.
References:
Altman, N. (2020). Intersectionality: From politics to identity. In M. Belkin & C. White (Eds). Intersectionality and relational psychoanalysis: New perspectives on race, gender and sexuality (Pp. 218-226) New York: Routledge
Aron, l. (2006). Analytic impasse and the third; Clinical implications of intersubjectivity theory. The International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 87(3): 49-368.
Collins, P. H. (2019). Intersectionality as critical social theory. Durham: Duke University Press.
Layton, L. (2018). Relational theory in socio-historical context. In L. Aron, S. Grand, & J. Slochower (Eds). De-idealizing Relational theory: a critique from within. (Pp. 209-234). New York: Routledge.
Leichsenring, F. and Steinert. C. (2019). The efficacy of psychodynamic psychotherapy: An up-to-date review (pp 49-74) In D. Kelly and J.S. Ogrodniczul, J. S. (Eds) Contemporary psychodynamic psychotherapy: evoling clinical practice (pp 49-74) Oxford, UK; Elsevier Press.
SPRING CONFERENCE: Issues of Aging and Mortality: Clinical Reflections of a Psychoanalyst, by Nancy McWilliams, PhD, ABPP
SPRING CONFERENCE: Saturday April 9th, 2022 9:00AM-12:30PM
This conference will be virtual, using Zoom. You will receive the Zoom link via email day before the conference. Please register for more information on how to attend.
3.0 Continuing Education Credits. Attendance will be verified through Zoom.
Issues of mortality and limitation affect both therapists and patients. This workshop will focus first on issues of aging in the therapist, including practical and ethical concerns related to cognitive decline, hearing loss, diminished energy, and similar challenges, noting also some clinical advantages of elderly clinicians (e.g., breadth of knowledge, wisdom, humility, sense of proportion, increased compassion). It will then address aging in patients, with special reference to the “Later Life” section of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual, 2nd ed. (2017). Therapeutic benefits of acknowledging and mourning limitation will be emphasized.
Learning Objectives
After this workshop, participants will be able to:
1. Identify three professional challenges that confront aging therapists.
2. Articulate three common professional misperceptions about working with elderly patients.
3. Use the “Later Life” section of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (Guilford, 2017) to conceptualize central psychological issues in elderly patients.
Biography:
Nancy McWilliams teaches at Rutgers University’s Graduate School of Applied & Professional Psychology and practices in Lambertville, New Jersey. She is author of Psychoanalytic Diagnosis (1994, rev. ed. 2011), Psychoanalytic Case Formulation (1999), and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy (2004) and is associate editor of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual, 2nd ed. (2017). A former president of Division 39 (Psychoanalysis) of the American Psychological Association, she has been featured in three APA videos of master clinicians, the most recent being “Three Approaches to Psychotherapy.” Her books are available in 20 languages; she lectures widely both nationally and internationally.
References:
Baum-Baicker, C., & Sisti, D. W. (2012). Clinical wisdom in psychoanalysis and psychodynamic psychotherapy: A philosophical and qualitative analysis. Journal of Clinical Ethics, 23, 13-40.
Del Corno, F., & Plotkin, D. (Eds.) (2017). Later life. In V. Lingiardi, & N. McWilliams (Eds.) Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual, 2nd ed. (PDM-2) (pp. 751-888). New York: Guilford.
Kernberg, O. F. (2010). Some observations on the process of mourning. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 91(3), 601-619.
McWilliams, N. (2017). Psychoanalytic reflections on limitation: Aging, dying, generativity, and renewal. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 34(1), 50-57. Also in C. Masur, (Ed.) (2018), Flirting with death: Psychoanalysts consider mortality (pp. 25-40). New York: Routledge.
Parens, H. (2018). Mortality – the inevitable challenge: The development of acceptance of one’s mortality. In C. Masur (Ed.), Flirting with death: Psychoanalysts consider mortality (pp. 72-96). New York: Routledge.
Countertransference in the Treatment of Suicidal Patients, by Mark Joseph Goldblatt, MD
This lecture will be held remotely via zoom. Register by Tuesday 3/1 to receive a link for the meeting.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits
Countertransference has come to be viewed as an essential component of all psychotherapies and may be particularly intense during the treatment of suicidal patients. Problems that arise in the course of psychotherapy of suicidal patients may be understood in relation to the therapist’s countertransference reactions. Lack of awareness of countertransference reactions of malice and aversion may be suicide inviting. Countertransference reactions may also alert the therapist to dangers that the patient is unable to articulate. In this presentation we consider case examples of countertransference manifestations and their effects on the treatment of the suicidal patient.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
1) Identify common problems arising during the course of psychotherapy with suicidal patients.
2) Describe the influence of countertransference reactions on psychotherapy with suicidal patients.
3) Assess the role of communication in treating suicidal patients.
Biography:
Mark Goldblatt is a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is a Faculty Member of the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, and chair of the Discussion Group on ‘Treating the Suicidal Patient’ at the APsaA national meetings. He is an Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and teaches and supervises residents at McLean Hospital. He is a Founding Member of the Boston Suicide Study Group which focuses on the psychoanalytic understanding of self-destructive patients. He presents internationally and publishes widely on many aspects of suicidality and self-attack.
References:
Briggs, S., Netuveli, G., Gould, N., Gkaravella, A., Gluckman, N., Kangogyere, P., Farr, R., Goldblatt, M., Lindner, R., (2019). The effectiveness of psychoanalytic/psychodynamic psychotherapy for reducing suicide attempts and self-harm: Systematic review and meta-analysis. British Journal of Psychiatry 1-9. doi: 10.1192/bjp.2019.33.
Maltsberger JT, Buie DH. Countertransference hate in the treatment of suicidal patients. (1974). Arch Gen Psychiatry. 30(5):625-33.
Goldblatt MJ, Briggs S, Lindner R. Schechter, M and Ronningstam E. (2015). Psychodynamic Psychotherapy with Suicidal Adolescents. Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy 29:1, 20-37, DOI:10.1080/02668734.2015.1004188:
Schechter, M., Ronningstam, E., Herbstman, B., Goldblatt, M.J. (2019). Psychotherapy with Suicidal Patients: The Integrative Psychodynamic approach of the Boston Suicide Study Group. Medicina DOI 10.3390/medicina55060303
Gabbard, G.O. (2003). Miscarriages of Psychoanalytic treatment with suicidal patients. International Journal of Psychoanalysis 34:239-261
Intraracial Dyads in the Therapeutic Encounter: What to Consider and What to Do by Samuel R. Aymer, Ph.D.
This lecture will be virtual, using Zoom. Registration will open 30 days prior to the event.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits (Cross-Cultural)
Themes centering on the challenges and strengths associated with clinical work involving Intraracial/intercultural dyads are often omitted from the discourse concerning psychotherapy and psychoanalysis. Given this premise, I plan to illustrate via a case vignette how issues of ethnocultural transference and countertransference emerged as salient and functional features in psychotherapeutic work. Additionally, ideas from self-psychology, object relations theory, relational theory and intersectionality will ground the tone and tenor of my discussion.
Learning Objectives:
Upon completion of this program, participants should be able to:
1. Describe examples of ethnocultural transference and countertransference as per the case vignette presentation
2. Explain how self-object transference with intraracial/intracultural dyads can enhance therapeutic alliance
3. Explain how the curative aspects of ethnocultural transference via the case vignette contributed to the client’s psychological functioning
Biography:
Samuel R. Aymer is an Associate Professor at Silberman School of Social Work, Hunter College where he teaches the following courses: Clinical Practice and Violence Against Women. He is also the chairperson of the School’s Clinical Method. His research centers on: the intersection of trauma, partner violence and the application of psychodynamic theories in clinal work with diverse client populations. Prior to entering academia, Dr. Aymer worked for several health, mental health, and victim assistance organizations throughout New York City. Dr. Aymer maintains a clinical private practice—specializing in group and individual treatment with adolescents and adults.
References
Carter, R. (2007). Racism and psychological and emotional injury: Recognizing and assessing race-based traumatic stress. Counseling Psychologist, 35, 1-95.
Johnson, V.E., & Carter, T. T. (2020). Black cultural strengths and psychosocial well-being: An Empirical analysis with black American adults. The Journal of Black Psychology, 46, 55-87.
Kohut, H. (1977). The restoration the self. New York: International University Press.
Mayo, J. A. (2004). Psychotherapy with African American population: Modification of traditional approaches. Annals of the American Psychotherapy Association, Spring, 10–13.
Pine, F. (1990). Drive, ego, object and self: A synthesis for clinical work. New York: Basic Books, Inc.
Mutually Enfolding Glances: Creativity and Analytic Reverie, by Matthias Leutrum
This conference will be virtual, using Zoom. Registration will open 30 days prior to the event.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits
I will explore and differentiate the overlaps between analytic and creative process, asking how psychoanalytic terms such as “reverie,” “metaphor”, “gaze” and “evenly suspended, free-floating or hovering attention” apply to both the analytic container and the artist’s workspace. As they each endeavor to capture that which feels most “alive” and “real,” how are the analyst and the artist respectively engaged in “unconscious (dream) thinking” and working at “the frontier?” In tandem with Marina Abramovic’s performance piece “The Artist is Present,” I will investigate the embodied encounters between an artist and the “other” as documented in James Lord’s “A Giacometti Portrait.”
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this program participants will be able to:
1. Differentiate between automatic or implicit mentalizing and controlled or explicit mentalizing, as well as “unconscious (dream) thinking”
2. Discuss the implications of embodied copresence for an artistic or analytic process
3. Distinguish and compare the interpersonal and intra-psychic, conscious /unconscious vectors from C.G. Jung’s diagram from “The Psychology of the Transference
Biography:
Matthias Leutrum is an IAAP certified analyst, a member of the Jungian Psychoanalytic Association (JPA) in New York City and a visual artist. Born in Stuttgart, Germany, he received his MFA from the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux Arts, Paris, France. His work has been exhibited internationally and he has presented at the Art and Psyche in the City conference in New York City (2012), Art and Psyche, Layers and Liminality, Siracusa, Sicily (2015), and Art and Psyche, The Illuminated Imagination, Santa Barbara, CA (2019), as well as the Journal of Analytical Psychology’s Latin America Conference (2021). Email:matthias.leutrum@gmail.com
References:
Abramović, M. (2010). The Artist is Present, MoMA. New York, NY, https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/marina-abramovic-marina-abramovic-the-artist-is-present-2010/
Jung, C. G. (1929).” The Problems of Modern Psychotherapy”. CW 16 (1923).” The Type Problem in Modern Philosophy”. CW 6
Lord, J. (1980) “A Giacometti Portrait”
Luyten, P. & Fonagy, P. (2015). “The Neurobiology of Mentalizing”
McGilchrist, I. (2010). The Master and His Emissary, The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World”
Ogden, T. H. (2001). “Conversations at The Frontier of Dreaming”
NOVEMBER CONFERENCE: "More Than One Can Live”: Reconceiving Harm and Reparation in the Intersubjective World, by Jessica Benjamin, Ph.D.
NOVEMBER CONFERENCE: Saturday November, 6th, 9:00AM-12:30PM=
This conference will be virtual, using Zoom. Registration will open 30 days prior to event.
3.0 Continuing Education Credits. Attendance will be verified through Zoom.
The lecture will juxtapose the intrapsychic idea of reparation, based on understanding the unconscious anxieties of harming the love object, with the intersubjective ideas of repairing rupture and restoring recognition. That is, it aims to use and also reformulate the Kleinian idea of reparation of the internal object. Researchers have noted a process beginning in infancy of rupture and repair, generating the experience of a lawful world of secure attachment. I call this the moral Third. In the absence of intersubjective repair the child may interpret her need for acknowledgment and soothing as destructive (destabilizing) to the needed other. This formulation allows us to see how enactments in the analytic relationship become governed by mutual fear of harming. Fear of harming and being injured drives the doer-done to complementarity involving both partners. Acknowledgment of fears and injury arising in enactment are therapeutically essential and strengthen the moral Third. We also consider the social implications of modifying the doer-done to complementary relation via the experience of two minds recognizing each other.
Learning Objectives:
Upon completion of this program, participants should be able to:
1. Identify anxieties related to the belief that one's own needs are destructive
2. Describe how emotional safety is influenced by recognition of distress and the dynamic of rupture and repair including therapeutic acknowledgment
3. Recognize how therapists and patients can extricate themselves from enactments based in dissociation
Biography:
Jessica Benjamin is best known as the author of The Bonds of Love (1988), which is translated into many languages, and of “Beyond Doer and Done To: An Intersubjective View of Thirdness” (2004), the basis for her recent book Beyond Doer and done To: Recognition Theory, Intersubjectivity and the Third (2018).. In addition she is the author of Like Subjects, Love Objects (1995); and Shadow of the Other (1998). Her article “Beyond Doer and Done To: An Intersubjective View of Thirdness” has been one of the most frequently cited articles on PEP web for many years. She has been one of the leaders in the relational movement in psychoanalysis since its inception. She teaches and supervises at the New York University Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis as well as at the Stephen Mitchell Relational Studies Center of which she is a co-founder. She also initiated and participated in a series of workshops for mental health and community professionals in Israel/Palestine called The Acknowledgment Project.
References
Tronick, E. 1989. Emotions and Emotional Communication in Infants. American Psychology 44: 112=119.
Benjamin, J.2004 Doer and Done To: An Intersubjective View of Thirdness. Psychoanalytic Quarterly 73: 5-46
Benjamin, J. (2018). “Our Appointment in Thebes,” in Beyond Doer and Done To: Recognition Theory, Intersubjectivity and the Third. New York & London: Routledge
Bromberg, P. 2011. “Mentalize This” in The Shadow of the Tsunami. New York & Lond: Routledge
Winnicott, D. W. 1971 The Use of an Object and Relating through Identification. In Playing and Reality. New York Penguin.
Mentalizing and the Therapeutic Relationship: An Introduction to Mentalization-Based Treatment, by Paul J. Baker, M.D.
This lecture will take place virtually, via zoom. You must preregister to attend this event
1.5 Continuing Education Credits
Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) is an evidence-based approach to psychotherapy which draws from attachment theory and the psychodynamic relational synthesis in order to bolster a patient's resiliency, reflective capacity, and curiosity about their own mind and the minds of others. Initially developed for the treatment of borderline personality disorder, MBT is being investigated in the treatment of diverse conditions including trauma, eating disorders, narcissism, and antisocial personality disorder. A core component of MBT is the therapist's ability to communicate an understanding of the patient's subjective experience in a way that allows the patient to feel understood and valued. This feeling of understanding and connection is thought to enhance the patient's ability to learn from therapy and apply these lessons to life outside the therapeutic encounter.
Learning objectives:
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
1. Recognize the characteristics of good or poor mentalizing within a therapeutic encounter.
2. Apply the principles of MBT to enhance a patient's mentalizing capacity.
3. Explain the relevance of epistemic trust to a therapeutic relationship.
4. Distinguish MBT's from other psychodynamically-informed treatments in its approach to interventions in therapy.
Biography:
Paul Baker, MD is a psychiatrist at Butler Hospital working primarily with young adults in a Partial Hospital Program and outpatient setting. Dr. Baker is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Clinician Educator at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University, where he completed residency in general psychiatry. He also serves as a psychotherapy supervisor for the psychiatry residency and teaches Brown medical students as a Clinical Neurosciences Clerkship preceptor.
References:
Bateman, A., & Fonagy, P. (1999). Effectiveness of Partial Hospitalization in the Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder: A Randomized Controlled Trial. American Journal of Psychiatry, 156(10), 1563–1569. https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.156.10.1563
Bateman, A., & Fonagy, P. (2009). Randomized Controlled Trial of Outpatient Mentalization-Based Treatment Versus Structured Clinical Management for Borderline Personality Disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry, 166(12), 1355–1364. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2009.09040539
Egyed, K., Király, I., & Gergely, G. (2013). Communicating Shared Knowledge in Infancy. Psychological Science, 24(7), 1348–1353. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797612471952
Fonagy, P., & Allison, E. (2014). The role of mentalizing and epistemic trust in the therapeutic relationship. Psychotherapy (Chicago, Ill.), 51(3), 372–80. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036505
Markin, R. D. (2013). Mentalization-based psychotherapy interventions with mothers-to-be. Psychotherapy (Chicago, Ill.), 50(3), 360–5. https://doi.org/10.1037/a003199
September Conference: Anti-Racist Clinical Care Work at the Intersection of Two Pandemics, by Gary Bailey, DHL, MSW, ACSW
SEPTEMBER CONFERENCE: Saturday September 18th, 2021 9:00AM-12:30PM
**Pre-Registration is required. Registration closes on Thursday 9/16 at 5pm**
This conference will be virtual, using Zoom. Please register for more information on how to attend.
3.0 Continuing Education Credits (Cross-Cultural). Attendance will be verified through Zoom.
“Sometimes people hold a core belief that is very strong. When they are presented with evidence that works against that belief, the new evidence cannot be accepted. It would create a feeling that is extremely uncomfortable, called cognitive dissonance. And because it is so important to protect the core belief, they will rationalize, ignore and even deny anything that doesn’t fit in with the core belief.”
Frantz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks
The relevance of Fanon’s concept of cognitive dissonance considering the trial of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd makes clear that as a society we are experiencing the deeply embedded structural effects of racism and white supremacy. This is further evidenced by a rise in anti-Asian violence and the side effects of the insurrectionary damage that threatens to unravel democracy and undermine a fragile consensus to protect America’s experiment in racial and gender justice. We are living in times that have contributed to a sense of disconnectedness for many individuals; and the issues needing to be dealt with are challenging and complex (e.g.. Covid-19 racial health disparities; overt racist and white supremacist activity at local & national levels; national economic recession). Many BIPOC individuals (clients/patients and staff) have experienced not only violence and discrimination, but also live with symptoms of trauma and have an increased likelihood of developing health related problems because of this exposure. Physical violence or the threat of violence leads to trauma, which leads to poor health outcomes.
This workshop will focus on an analysis of racism from structural, (social) psychological, and applied perspectives. Utilizing critical race theory and intersectionality, participants will come to understand the reasoning for this emphasis. An analysis of intersectional oppressions will be examined in relationship to sociopolitical and economic factors, and historical themes evident in today’s society.
Objectives:
1. Describe one’s own attitudes and beliefs regarding stereotyping, bias, and power-imbalances on the client system.
2. List the impact of inequities, diversity, difference, and systems of oppression upon life experiences and the provision of services.
3. Apply the skills associated with cultural humility and knowledge of social inequities at all systems levels.
4. Identify and apply anti-racist clinical interventions
5. Demonstrate an understanding of the ways that systems of oppression impact the service delivery system and the provision of services to clients/patients.
References:
Isabel Wilkerson, Caste: The Origin of Our Discontents (Virtual Talk) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvYzyqUdUfY
Robin DiAngelo and Resmaa Menakem: In Conversation On Being with Krista Tippett https://www.breaker.audio/on-being-studios/e/67342362
AUDRE LORDE, “THE USES OF ANGER: WOMEN RESPONDING TO RACISM (1981,2012)
https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/speeches-african-american-history/1981-audre-lorde-uses-anger-women-responding-racism/
Brené Brown with Ibram X. Kendi on How to Be an Antiracist https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unlocking-us-with-bren%C3%A9-brown/id1494350511?i=1000476611079
American Psychiatric Association Turns Inward, Recognizes Nearly 2 Centuries of Racism In Profession https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2021/05/05/apa-racism-report
Adichie, C.N. (2009 July). The danger of a single story. TED Global 2009. Oxford, England. Retrieved from: https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story
Tippett, K. (Host). (2015). How trauma and resilience cross generations with Rachel Yehuda. K. Tippett. (Executive Producer), On Being. Retrieved from: https://onbeing.org/programs/rachel-yehuda-how-trauma-and-resilience-cross-generations/
Tourse, R., Hamilton-Mason, J., & Wewiorski, N., (2018). Institutional Legalization of Racism: Exploitation of the Core Groups. In R. Tourse., J. Hamilton-Mason, & N. Wewiorski, Systemic Racism in America - Its Perpetuation through Scaffolding, (pp. 39-60).
Jacob Bor, SD † Atheendar S Venkataramani, MD † Prof David R Williams, PhD Alexander C Tsai, MD. The Lancet Published:June 21, 2018. Police killings and their spillover effects on the mental health of black Americans: a population-based, quasi-experimental study. retrieved https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)31130-9/fulltext
Jungian Clinical Dream Analysis Updated Based on Complex Adaptive Systems Models: Resonant Patterns, by Linda Carter MSN, CS, IAAP
This conference will be virtual, using Zoom. Please register for more information on how to attend.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits. Attendance will be verified through Zoom.
Dreams are as much a part of the natural world as the rain that falls and the sun that shines and varying approaches of dream interpretation have persisted from the beginning of time. Through his method of analogy or “amplification,” Jung had the ability to “match” analysands’ current life circumstances or dreams with resonant patterns found in myths, stories, and images, at a “macrocosmic” level, by connecting resonant collective motifs with personal experiences. Contemporary infant researcher/psychoanalysts, have looked at the “microcosmic” level of non-verbal pattern matching and discovered that communication styles are generalizable, persisting throughout the lifespan. Portals of understanding can be reached via the macrocosm or microcosm, to locate resonant pattern matching, central for life. Complex Adaptive Systems theories will ground this presentation and offer wholistic perspectives of clinical dream work.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this program, participants should be able to:
1) Define and give examples of the method of amplification
2) Articulate a basic definition of Complex Systems theory
3) Compare and contrast Jung’ s macro-cosmic pattern matching with the micro-cosmic pattern matching methods of infant researchers who apply their findings across the life-span
4) Apply Jung’s method of amplification and intersubjective models from infant research to work with dreams in psychotherapy.
5) Demonstrate pattern matching and resonance through myth, story, image and through intersubjective resonance in the clinical setting
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Beebe, B. and Lachmann, F. (2013). The Origins of Attachment: Infant Research and Adult Treatment (Relational Perspectives Book Series. New York: Routledge.
Carter, L. 2011. “A Jungian Contribution to a Dynamic System Understanding of Disorganized Attachment.” Journal of Analytical Psychology, 56 (3), 334-340
Carter, L. (2019). “Jung as Craftsman.” In Jung’s Red Book for Our Time: Searching for Soul Under Postmodern Conditions, Vol. 3. Eds. M. Stein and T. Arzt. Chiron Publications. Asheville, NC
Sander, L. (2014). Living Systems, Evolving Consciousness, and the Emerging Person: A Selection of Papers from the Life Work of Louis Sander (Psychoanalytic Inquiry Series). New York: Routledge
Schore, A.N. (2012). The Science of the Art of Psychotherapy (Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology). New York: W.Norton and Company
Siegel, D.J. (2015). The Developing Mind, Second Edition. New York: The Guilford Press.
Tronick, Ed and Gold, C. M. (2019). The Power of Discord: Why the Ups and Downs of Relationships are the Secret to Building Intimacy, Resilience, and Trust. New York: Little, Brown, Spark.
Linda Carter MSN, CS, IAAP is a nurse and a Jungian analyst practicing in Carpinteria, CA, Providence, RI, nationally and internationally via internet ; teaches at Pacifica Graduate Institute; psychotherapist for 40 years. A graduate of Georgetown, Yale and the C. G. Jung Institute-Boston, Linda was the Journal of Analytical Psychology Book Review Editor, US Editor-in-Chief and now Arts and Culture Editor. Founder and chair of the Art and Psyche Working Group, she initiated and edits the outreach project Art in a Time of World Crisis: Interconnection and Companionship. Linda has published widely, taught internationally, especially in China.
SPRING CONFERENCE: Embodied Countertransference and the Erotic Field, by Andrea Celenza, Ph.D.
SPRING CONFERENCE: April 10, 2021, 9:00AM-12:30PM
This conference will be virtual, using Zoom. Please register for more information on how to attend.
3.0 Continuing Education Credits. Attendance will be verified through Zoom.
It is remarkable to note the pervasive desexualization of psychoanalysis, the once sex-infused theory of human development. Through the exploration of erotics in clinical process, this paper will address the many manifestations of erotic longing in psychoanalysis. Our theories have become desexualized to an extent that fails to prepare clinicians with the necessary armamentarium to cope with the level of desire and erotic material likely to emerge. This paper aims to address the deficiency in our literature and theories of technique and to encourage more open discussion about erotic transferences in all of their manifestations. Two cases will be presented that illustrate these concepts.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this program, participants should be able to:
1. Identify and explore aspects of erotic transferences and countertransferences, especially as these relate to the multiple meanings underlying erotic transferences.
2. To explore the ways in which the analyst’s countertransference can aid in elaborating the meanings of erotic transferences through unconscious communications.
3. Acquire greater comfort in the identification and exploration of their own countertransference, especially as it includes erotic aspects.
Andrea Celenza, Ph.D. is Training and Supervising Analyst at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute and Assistant Clinical Professor at Harvard Medical School. Co-Director (with Martha Stark, MD) of a blended, online program in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy. She has two online courses and is the recipient of several awards. She has authored two books, including Erotic Revelations: Clinical Applications and Perverse Scenarios. She is in private practice in Lexington, Massachusetts.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bolognini, S. (1994). Transference: Erotised, erotic, loving, affectionate. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 75, 73-86.
Celenza, A. (2014). Erotic Revelations: Clinical Applications and Perverse Scenarios. NY: Routledge.
Fonagy, P. (2008). A genuinely developmental theory of sexual enjoyment and its implications for psychoanalytic technique. Journal American Psychoanalytic Association, 56, 11-36.
Stein, R. (1998). The poignant, the excessive and the enigmatic in sexuality. International Journal Psychoanalysis, 79, 253-268.
Celenza, A. (1998). Precursors to therapist sexual misconduct. Psychoanalytic
Psychology, 15:3, 378-395.
Race and Myth: From the Ratman to Lacan, by Sheldon George, Ph.D.
March 3, 2021, Wednesday Evening Lecture Series
This Wednesday Evening Lecture will be virtual, using Zoom. Please register for more information on how to attend.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits. Attendance will be verified through Zoom.
The tripartite structure of the oedipal complex has been central to Freudian understandings of the psychoanalytic subject. In the early 1950’s, however, Jacques Lacan introduced a revised reading of the structural relation between father, mother and child by presenting death as a fourth term that determines the subject’s mythic relation to the self and others. By working through a rereading of the case of the Rat Man in his lecture “The Neurotic’s Individual Myth,” Lacan shows how obsessional neurosis reveals deeper layers of myth that may shape subjectivity even across generations. This workshop will focus on understanding the mythical psychic structures expressed in American race relations. It will investigate how myths about race position racialized individuals within oedipal relations of Eros and aggression that are fundamentally determined by deep psychic relations to the fourth term applied by Lacan to the oedipal dynamic, the factor of death that defines a fundamental relation to subjectivity and alterity. We will work through this reading of the mythic structure of race in America by first returning to Lacan’s lecture and then advancing toward an investigation of race in fiction by the African American author Ralph Ellison.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this program, participants should be able to:
1. Describe how Lacan rethinks the oedipal complex through neurosis and death.
2. Analyze how death becomes overlapped with myth to shape psychic fears and obsessions.
3. Describe how the static four-part oedipal structure acts as a frame into which racial others are actively inserted.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. George, Sheldon. Trauma and Race: A Lacanian Analysis of African-American Identity. Texas: Baylor UP, 2016.
2. Lacan, Jacques. The Four Fundamental Concepts of Psycho-Analysis. 1964. Trans. Alan Sheridan. New York: Norton, 1981.
3. Laurent, Eric. “Racism 2.0.” Lacan Quotidien 371: 1–6 (2014).
4. Žižek, Slavoj. “Love Thy Neighbor? No thanks.” The Plague of Fantasies. New York: Verso, 1997.
5. Muller, John. “Cognitive psychology and the ego: Lacanian theory and empirical research.” Psychoanalysis Contemporary Thought, 5(2): 257–291 (1982).
Sheldon George is Professor of English and Chair of the English department at Simmons University in Boston, Massachusetts. His scholarship centers most directly on Lacanian psychoanalytic theory and applies cultural and literary theory to analyses of American and African-American literature and culture. His most recent publications include two coedited special issues of the journal Psychoanalysis, Culture and Society: one titled “Lacanian Psychoanalysis: Interventions into Culture and Politics” and the other called “African Americans and Inequality.” His book Trauma and Race: A Lacanian Study of African American Racial Identity was published in 2016 by Baylor University Press. He is coeditor of Reading Contemporary Black British and African American Women Writers: Race, Ethics, Narrative Form and is currently completing a collection on Lacan and Race.
From Anger to Violence, and Back Again: Understanding and Defeating the Destructive Impulse, by Eugene Goldwater, M.D.
This Wednesday Evening Lecture will be virtual, using Zoom. Please register for more information on how to attend.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits
Helping professionals often fail to appreciate the appeal of violence, which makes it difficult for them to understand and treat people whose violent behaviors have disrupted their lives. In this presentation I will explain how our personal values and experiences often blind us to how violence “works” in the short term. Examples from public life, personal experience, and clinical practice will clarify the roots of such phenomena as revenge, domination, and destruction, and suggest practical approaches to dealing with the problem of violence. Differences between sporadic, habitual, and addictive patterns of violence will also be discussed.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES. Participants will learn:
1. To analyze why violence is so appealing and so resistant to change.
2. To list the commonalities and differences between patterns of violence.
3. To describe how to form a helping relationship with a violent person.
Dr. Goldwater is a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst on the faculty of the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis, where he is the director of the addictions program. He has written and lectured on a great variety of subjects including men and women; childhood and maturation; fantasy and creativity; and the treatment of impulsivity and addiction. He is also a musician and has been the leader of Panharmonium, an International Folkdance band, since 1992.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Gilligan, J. (1996), Violence: Our Deadly Epidemic and its Causes. New York: Grosset/Putnam.
Goldwater, E. (2004), Getting Mad and Getting Even. Modern Psychoanalysis, 29:23-36.
Goldwater, E. (2007), The Joy of Violence. Modern Psychoanalysis, 32:20-42.
Hedges, Chris (2002). War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning. New York: PublicAffairs.
Short, Dan. (2016). The Evolving Science of Anger Management, Journal of Psychotherapy Integration. 26. 10.1037/int0000059.
Tavris, Carol (1983). Anger: the Misunderstood Emotion. New York: Simon and Schuster.
Resolution or Regulation? Psychophysiologic Contributions to Psychoanalytic Understanding of Marital And Couple Therapy, by Peter G. Erickson, Ph.D.
This Wednesday Evening Lecture will be virtual, using Zoom. Please register for more information on how to attend.
1.5 Continuing Education Credits
Distressed couples typically enter our offices experiencing a great deal of pain and confusion. They are beset by a complex amalgam of dynamics that they often don’t understand: underlying personal conflicts, projections and projective identification, divergent subjective experiences, and an extraordinary need for acceptance and love. While analytic therapists already have rich therapeutic resources that can help couples better understand and improve their relationship, recent human laboratory advances by researchers have proven helpful in further enriching our understanding and treatment of the surprising biological and psychophysiologic dynamics that underlie marital discord, friendship, and love.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Identify how gender affects autonomic arousal in marital/couple conflict.
2. List the components of the “core triad of balance” and how they affect partners’ intrapsychic experience.
3. Discuss the nature and function of repair behaviors in soothing and regulating marital/couple upset and distress.
Peter G. Erickson, Ph.D. is a psychologist in private practice in Providence, Rhode Island and former president of the Rhode Island Psychological Association. He has served on the Board of the Coalition of Mental Health Professionals in Rhode Island and as a representative on the R.I. Blue Cross/Blue Shield Mental Health/Substance Abuse and Patient Centered Medical Home Advisory Committees. He supervises psychology and psychiatry residents at the Warren Alpert School of Medicine and has completed training for the Gottman method of Marital Therapy.
REFERENCES
Gottman, JM & Krokoff, LJ (1989). Marital Interaction and Satisfaction: A Longitudinal View. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 57(1), 47-52.
Gottman, Coan, Carrerre, & Swanson (1998). Predicting Marital Happiness and Stability From Newlywed Interactions; Journal of Marriage and Family; Vol 60, No. 1; Feb, pp.5-22.
Gottman, J & Levenson, R (1992). Marital Processes Predictive of Later Dissolution: Behavior, Physiology, and Health; Journal of Personality and Social Psychology; Vol 63 (2); August, pp. 221.233.
Garanzini, S, Yee, A, Gottman, John, Gottman, Julie, Cole, C, Preciado, M, Jasculca, C (2017). Results of Gottman Method Couples Therapy with Gay and Lesbian Couples.
Gottman, John & Gottman, Julie (2017). The Natural Principles of Love; Journal of Family Theory and Review.