Understanding of Self: Buddhism and Psychoanalysis.

The healing of the self-or the psychological health of the self-has been an intensely studied issue in the traditions of both Buddhism and psychoanalysis. It is easy to suppose that the understanding of self in Buddhism cannot coexist with the understanding of self in psychoanalysis because the self in Buddhist tradition is mainly regarded as an illusion and needs to be deconstructed, whereas in psychoanalysis, it should be re-constructed for mental health through analysis. Because of this difference in the understanding of self, one may also suppose that these two respective paths to a balanced mind would inevitably be different.

Pedagogies of Possibilities: Liberating Moral Imagination by Practicing Pastoral Aesthetics.

The author integrates her clinical ethics training, pastoral theology teaching, and postcolonialism research with concepts of experience-distant and experience-near found in self psychology to illumine pedagogies of possibilities. The article affirms Nathan Carlin's call in Pastoral Aesthetics for pastoral theology to inform bioethics in paying more attention to living human experiences in order to liberate more expansive practices of moral imagination. Seeing human experiences of suffering and healing as a common text in both pastoral theology and bioethics, the author considers how students, caregivers, and all people might look back at learning encounters (including clinical encounters) and know that learning happened and that it supported well-being.

Heinz Kohut's Ideas of Self.

The authors explore Heinz Kohut's ideas of self, including its nuclear and virtual forms, in the critical period from the late 1960s to about 1975. Kohut's creative process, it is argued, has not been fully appreciated. The authors establish the baseline of Kohut's ideas about the self in his first book, The Analysis of the Self in 1971. His ideas then evolved significantly in the next few years, as he came to define the self as the center of psychological experience and then to consider what he came to call the nuclear self and the virtual self as extensions of his core ideas about the self-selfobject system. The authors trace the specific sequence of conceptual steps that Kohut took in his reexamination of what he meant by self. Kohut's thinking in this area proceeded unevenly and not always chronologically. His pathbreaking work in the early 1970s on fragmentation, on the cohesion and continuity of the self, and on the mutable nature of the nuclear self and the virtual self represents a seminal development in the understanding of these psychoanalytic concepts.

The Philosophical Significance of Kohut's Theory of the Self.

The author seeks to articulate the philosophical significance of Heinz Kohut's original theory of the self by showing (a) how it explains the basis of our ability to create and be motivated by personal ideals; (b) how it transforms our understanding of ethical life by showing why it is in one's self-interest to become an empathic, respectful person who embodies the moral virtues as articulated by Aristotle; and (c) how it reverberates with profound insights into what it means to be human by some of the most esteemed philosophers in the Western philosophic tradition, especially Plato, Aristotle, Hegel, and Nietzsche. The author concludes by critically responding to the intersubjectivist critique of Stolorow and Atwood that Kohut's notion of "self" is a reified, metaphysical concept.

The Origins of the Leading Edge in Kohut's Work.

This article traces the evolution of the concept of the leading edge in Kohut's work. The leading edge is defined as the growth-promoting dimension of the transference. The authors argue that although Kohut did not ever use the term explicitly in his writings-Marian Tolpin (2002), one of Kohut's gifted pupils, introduced the concept into the psychoanalytic literature in the form of the forward edge-the idea of the leading edge was already present in nascent form in Kohut's earliest papers and became ever more central as his psychology of the self evolved and the concept of the selfobject transference took center stage. Kohut, it is argued, could not fully develop the idea of working with the leading edge for fear of being accused of advocating for a corrective emotional experience in psychoanalytic treatment. However, in his posthumous empathy paper (1982) Kohut came as close as he could to endorsing the leading edge as pivotal in all psychoanalytic work.

Relações precarizadas, mundo traumatizado: uma retomada de Heinz Kohut e sua importância para a atualidade / Precarious relationships, traumatized world: a resumption of Heinz Kohut and its importance for today

RESUMO: Neste trabalho, alguns elementos centrais da teorização do psicanalista Heinz Kohut serão tomados como norteadores para a circunscrição desse autor dentro de um campo de reflexão de certas questões da atualidade. Para isso, será realizado um mapeamento de algumas coordenadas do ponto de vista sociológico sobre o mundo ocidental desde a década de 1970, em uma aposta de que o autor da psicologia do self pode oferecer ferramentas importantes para uma leitura psicanalítica acerca do cenário atual.

Abstract: In this work, some central elements about the psychoanalyst Heinz Kohut theorization will be taken as guiding for the circumscription of this author within a field of reflection of certain nowadays issues. For this, a mapping of some coordinates from the sociological point of view on the Western world will be carried out since the 1970s, in a bet that the author of the psychology of the self can offer important tools for a psychoanalytical reading about the current scenario.

O conceito de self em Heinz Kohut / Kohut's concept of the self / El concepto de self en Heinz Kohut / Le concept de self chez Heinz Kohut

Este artigo tem por objetivo expor e analisar a ideia de self na psicologia psicanalítica do self, de Heinz Kohut. Para isso, vamos apresentar as duas fases da concepção de self existentes na obra do autor - a saber, self no sentido restrito, anterior a 1975, e self no sentido amplo, posterior a essa data -, levantando questionamentos e discutindo os textos do autor. Afirmamos que existe, na teoria kohu-tiana, uma definição fenoménica e outra metapsicológica para o self. Enquanto a primeira permanece relativamente constante em toda a obra do autor, a definição metapsicológica sofre alterações. Quando o self é concebido num sentido restrito, ele é considerado um conteúdo das instâncias psíquicas; já depois de 1975 passa a ser visto como uma estrutura supraordenada, independente dessas instâncias. Nesse último momento, o modelo metapsicológico proposto por Freud torna-se menos importante para Kohut, que rompe com a teoria que chama de clássica.

The purpose of this article is to expose and analyze the idea of self in Heinz Kohut's psychoanalytic psychology of the self. To this end, we shall explain the two phases of the conception of self that exist in his work - that is, self in the narrow sense, before 1975, and, after this time, self in the broad sense. We raise some issues and discuss Kohut's writings. In his theory, we conclude, there are two definitions of self: one is phenomenic, and the other is metapsychological. While the first remains relatively constant throughout Kohut's work, the metapsychological definition changes. When the self is conceived in a narrow sense, it is considered a content of mental levels or stages. After 1975, however, he sees the self as a superordinate structure, which does not depend on these levels or stages. Finally, Freud's metapsychological model becomes less important to Kohut, who breaks with the theory he calls classical.

Este artículo tiene como objetivo exponer y analizar la idea de self en la psicología psicoanalítica del self, de Heinz Kohut. Con este fin, vamos a presentar las dos etapas de la concepción de self existentes en la obra del autor - a saber, self en el sentido estricto, antes de 1975, y self en un sentido amplio, después de esta fecha -, planteando preguntas y discutiendo textos del autor. Afirmamos que existe, en la teoría de Kohut, una definición fenoménica y otra metapsicológica para el self. Mientras la primera se mantiene relativamente constante durante todo el trabajo de Kohut, la definición metapsicológica sufre alteraciones. Cuando el self se concibe en un sentido estricto, se considera un contenido de las instancias psíquicas; a partir de 1975, por otro lado, se ve como una estructura supraordenada, independiente de estas instancias. En este último momento, el modelo metapsicológico propuesto por Freud se vuelve menos importante para Kohut, que rompe con la teoría que él llama clásica.

Le présent article a pour but d'exposer et analyser l'idée de self chez la psychologie psychanalytique du self, de Heinz Kohut. Pour ce faire, on exposera les deux phases de la conception de self existantes dans son oeuvre - à savoir, self dans le sens strict, avant 1975, et self dans le sens large, après cette date -, toute en posant des questionnements et en discutant les textes de l'auteur. Nous affirmons qu'il existe dans la théorie kohutienne une définition phénoménique et l'autre métapsychologique pour le self. Pendant que la première reste relativement constante au cours de toute l'oeuvre de l'auteur, la définition métapsychologique soufre des altérations. Lorsque le self est conçu dans un sens strict, il est considéré un contenu des instances psychiques; d'autre côté, après 1975 il commence à être vu comme une structure superordonnée, indépendante de ces instances. A ce moment-là, le modèle métapsychologique proposé par Freud devient moins important pour Kohut, qui rompt avec la théorie qu'il appelle classique.

The two Bernard Berenson cousins: The interplay among immigration, culture, and narcissism.

The lives of two 19th century cousins, both of whom changed their names to Bernard Berenson, are considered from historical and psychodynamic perspectives, using a psychobiographical method. The Jewish cousins immigrated separately to Boston from Lithuania in 1875 and 1882. One cousin, later calling himself simply B.B., became a world-renowned art historian. The other Bernard became a misanthrope after feeling deeply humiliated by his cousin's family in Boston. Many biographies were written about the famous B.B. The only histories of his cousin Bernard were family stories, as he was the author's great-grandfather. The intersecting lives of these cousins are discussed. Both men faced the challenges of immigration as well as intense anti-Semitism and prejudice in each country in which they lived. These cultural and historical conditions interacted with the cousins' narcissistic vulnerabilities. Their lives demonstrate different manifestations of narcissistic suffering, with B.B's being more consistent with the construct of a "grandiose narcissist" and Bernard's being more consistent with that of a "closet narcissist." The life stories of these two cousins with the same name offers an intriguing instance of a complicated relationship among immigration, prejudice, and narcissism and case examples of the manifestation of how narcissistic suffering can influence lives.

Conceptualizing splitting: On the different meanings of splitting and their implications for the understanding of the person and the analytic process.

While "splitting" is a familiar concept, its meaning is not as self-evident as is commonly assumed. In different contexts, it refers to different phenomena and is supported by different understandings of psychic dynamics. In this paper, the author presents four different conceptualizations of splitting, which capture the essential aspects of contemporary psychoanalytic discourse on the concept. There is a dissociative kind of splitting, which involves splitting off, in the face of trauma, whole personalities, which to some extent remain accessible to consciousness; there is a disavowal kind of splitting that splits off our awareness of disturbing realities or their meanings in our efforts to avoid the inner restraints imposed by repression; and there are two forms of splitting of the object into good and bad-one focusing on the splitting of representations of the object due to ego weakness and environmental determinants, and the other on the splitting of the mind itself in a primarily destructive act aimed at sparing the good from the destructiveness of our death instinct. All four conceptualizations have their origins in Freud's writing and then are further developed in the work of later analysts. The author argues that understanding the nature of these various conceptualizations of splitting can contribute to analytic theory and practice. It also sheds light on the essential nature of analytic approaches and how they offer different perspectives on the unity and disunity of man's basic nature.

Self psychology as a shift away from the paranoid strain in classical analytic theory.

Classical psychoanalytic theory has a paranoid strain. There is, in effect, an "evil other"--the id--within each individual that must be tamed in development and confronted and worked through as resistance in treatment. This last has historically endgendered an adversarial relationship between patient and analyst. This paranoid strain came from a paranoid element in Freud's personality that affected his worldview, his relationships, and his theory. Self psychology offers a different view of development and conflict. It stresses the child's need for responsiveness from and admiration of caretakers in order to develop a well-functioning self. Though severe behavioral and character problems may result from faults in the process of self-construction, the essential need is not instinctual discharge but connection. Hence the long-assumed opposition between individual needs and social institutions or between patient and analyst is no longer inevitable or universal. Rather, an understanding of the primary need for connection creates both a different interpretive stance and a more cooperative ambience. These changes in theory and technique are traced to Kohut's personal struggles to emancipate himself from his paranoid mother.

Se você insiste em classificar meu comportamento de antimusical: comentário à entrevista de Almeida Prado / Si tu insistes en clasifi car mi comportamiento de antimusical: comentario a la entrevista de Almeida Prado / If you insist my music goes against the rules : comment to Almeida Prado’s interview

O autor comenta trechos da entrevista de Almeida Prado em que são abordadas questões desenvolvidas por Heinz Kohut em trabalhos pioneiros sobre música no campo da chamada "psicanálise aplicada", aberto por Freud na esfera da literatura e artes plásticas, mas não no terreno musical nem no cinema. Sintetiza algumas idéias de Kohut sobre a relação da música com o psiquismo que explicam a dificuldade dos ouvintes com a música atonal, um aspecto destacado na entrevista.(AU)

In the present article the author discusses various themes obtained from an interview with composer Almeida Prado. The author points out that even though Freud had worked with applied psychoanalysis he restricted his contribution to the field of literature and plastic arts. Items related to "applied psychoanalysis", developed by Heinz Kohut in his pioneer work about music, are here summarized, together with Kohut’s ideas about the relationship between music and psychic phenomena, especially in relation to the difficulties with atonal music, extensively dealt in this interview.(AU)

El autor comenta trechos de la entrevista de Almeida Prado en que son abordadas cuestiones que desarrolladas por Heinz Kohut en trabajos pioneros sobre música en el campo de la llamada "psicoanalisis aplicada", iniciada por Freud en la esfera de la literatura y artes plásticas, pero no en el terreno musical ni en el del cine. Sintetiza algunas ideas de Kohut sobre la relación de la música con el psiquismo que explican la dificultad de los oyentes con la música atonal, un aspecto destacado en la entrevista.(AU)

Se você insiste em classificar meu comportamento de antimusical: comentário à entrevista de Almeida Prado / If you insist my music goes against the rules : comment to Almeida Prado’s interview / Si tu insistes en clasifi car mi comportamiento de antimusical: comentario a la entrevista de Almeida Prado

O autor comenta trechos da entrevista de Almeida Prado em que são abordadas questões desenvolvidas por Heinz Kohut em trabalhos pioneiros sobre música no campo da chamada "psicanálise aplicada", aberto por Freud na esfera da literatura e artes plásticas, mas não no terreno musical nem no cinema. Sintetiza algumas idéias de Kohut sobre a relação da música com o psiquismo que explicam a dificuldade dos ouvintes com a música atonal, um aspecto destacado na entrevista.

In the present article the author discusses various themes obtained from an interview with composer Almeida Prado. The author points out that even though Freud had worked with applied psychoanalysis he restricted his contribution to the field of literature and plastic arts. Items related to "applied psychoanalysis", developed by Heinz Kohut in his pioneer work about music, are here summarized, together with Kohut’s ideas about the relationship between music and psychic phenomena, especially in relation to the difficulties with atonal music, extensively dealt in this interview.

El autor comenta trechos de la entrevista de Almeida Prado en que son abordadas cuestiones que desarrolladas por Heinz Kohut en trabajos pioneros sobre música en el campo de la llamada "psicoanalisis aplicada", iniciada por Freud en la esfera de la literatura y artes plásticas, pero no en el terreno musical ni en el del cine. Sintetiza algunas ideas de Kohut sobre la relación de la música con el psiquismo que explican la dificultad de los oyentes con la música atonal, un aspecto destacado en la entrevista.

Psychotherapy with a Narcissistic Patient Using Kohut's Self Psychology Model.

According to Kohut's self psychology model, narcissistic psychopathology is a result of parental lack of empathy during development. Consequently, the individual does not develop full capacity to regulate self esteem. The narcissistic adult, according to Kohut's concepts, vacillates between an irrational overestimation of the self and irrational feelings of inferiority, and relies on others to regulate his self esteem and give him a sense of value. In treatment, Kohut recommends helping the patient develop these missing functions. Kohut proposes that the therapist should empathically experience the world from the patient's point of view (temporary indwelling) so that the patient feels understood. Interpretations are used when they can help the patient understand his sometimes intense feelings about any empathic failure on the part of the therapist, and understand why he (the patient) needs to restore solidity and comfort after being injured by any failed empathic (self object) ties. As insight develops, the patient begins to understand why he might experience these apparently small empathic failures so deeply.In this article, therapy with a narcissistic patient is approached from the point of view of Kohut's self psychology theory, and the successes and problems that were encountered with this approach are described and discussed.