Influence and Autonomy in Psychoanalysis (Relational Perspectives Book Series) by Stephen A. Mitchell

by Stephen A. Mitchell

Stephen A. Mitchell has been at the forefront of the broad paradigmatic shift in contemporary psychoanalysis from the traditional one-person model to a two-person, interactive, relational perspective. In Influence and Autonomy in Psychoanalysis, Mitchell provides a critical, comparative framework for exploring the broad array of concepts newly developed for understanding interactive processes between analysand and analyst. Drawing on the broad traditions of Kleinian theory and interpersonal psychoanalysis, as well as object relations and progressive Freudian thought, he considers in depth the therapeutic action of psychoanalysis, anachronistic ideals like anonymity and neutrality, the nature of analytic knowledge and authority, and the problems of gender and sexual orientation in the age of postmodernism. The problem of influence guides his discussion of these and other topics. How, Mitchell asks, can analytic clinicians best protect the patient?s autonomy and integrity in the context of our growing appreciation of the enormous personal impact of the analyst on the process?

Genres: Psychology, Psychoanalysis

Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the very best books on psychoanalysis I've read.