THE SIXTH ANNUAL
CONFERENCE
OF THE
ASSOCIATION FOR AUTONOMOUS PSYCHOANALYTIC INSTITUTES
(AAPI)
RESISTANCE TO CHANGE IN
PSYCHOANALYSIS:
INTEGRATING TOOLS FROM RESEARCH INTO PSYCHOANALYSIS
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2006
THE NEW YORK BLOOD CENTER AUDITORIUM
310 EAST 67TH STREET
(BETWEEN 1st AND 2nd AVENUES)
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
CO-SPONSORED BY
Institute for the Psychoanalytic Study of Subjectivity
National Institute for the Psychotherapies
Postgraduate Center for Mental Health
Welcome
For the sixth annual AAPI conference we will focus on the processes of
change and meaning making, through the use of videotape microanalysis, as Dr.
Alexandra Harrison presents her clinical work. Influenced by her involvement
as part of the Boston Change Process Study Group and later with Ed Tronick,
she has developed a model of developmental change derived from psychoanalytic
ideas, systems theory, and infant research.
One and one half years into psychoanalytic treatment, “Sean”, a 6-year old
boy, throws “the girl” behind the couch and declares that she “can't be in our
play ever again!” “The girl”- a small girl doll - played a central role in
each analytic session since the first. Part self-representation, part
transference object, she helped Sean and his analyst negotiate their intense
relationship and make meaning of their experience together. How would they
manage without her?
Presenting videotaped clinical material from Sean's analysis, Dr. Harrison
examines a specific type of resistance in psychotherapy and psychoanalysis,
which she distinguishes from resistance to analysis of internal - or even
interpersonal - conflict. This resistance - which Harrison designates as
“resistance to change related to disorganization”, or more simply, “resistance
to change” -took shape in the analyst's mind in the aftermath of “the girl's”
dismissal. Identification of this particular resistance to change offers an
opportunity to make use of tools from infant research, to supplement
psychoanalytic theory and the data gathered by practicing psychoanalysts.
These conceptual and observational tools can contribute to the clinician's
understanding of the implicit and explicit processes of change as they occur
in the moment-to-moment level of detailed clinical work in the treatment of
child and adult patients.
Dr. Estelle Shane and Dr. Malcolm Slavin will discuss Dr. Harrison's
clinical work and the implications of her developmental model. The panel and
the audience will have ample opportunity to exchange questions and comments.
We look forward to your participating in this stimulating conference,
addressing a cutting edge issue in contemporary psychoanalysis.
AAPI's Conference Committee:
Sandra G. Hershberg, M.D., Conference Chair
Michael Clifford, Ph.D. President
Estelle Shane, Ph.D., Past President
Gary Perrin, Ph.D., Secretary
Marilyn Metzl, Ph.D. Treasurer
