Concept and percept formation in object relations theory.

A theoretical model is presented which differentiates between concept and percept formation in object relations theory. The model is composed of ten "units of experience" that are derived from the psychological variables of identity, space, and time. Its construct validity in relation to current psychoanalytic theory is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Quality of object relations and security of attachment as predictors of early therapeutic alliance.

Security of attachment and quality of object relations were measured as predictors of initial impressions of the therapeutic alliance as well as dropout. Fifty-five individual psychotherapy clients were administered the Revised Adult Attachment Scale and the Bell Object Relations and Reality Testing Inventory prior to their initial therapy session. Thirty of these participants completed the Working Alliance Inventory following their 1st, 2nd, and 3rd sessions. Security of attachment and quality of object relations were strongly related. Security of attachment and quality of object relations showed relations to early alliance that decreased over time. Attachment and object relations were not related to dropout. Limitations include small sample size and low research compliance rate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dimensions of internalized object relations in borderline and schizophrenic patients.

This paper explores two dimensions of internalized object relations in borderline and schizophrenic patients using Rorschach scales. A thematic and a structural Rorschach measure of object relations is applied to the Rorschachs of two borderline groups (an infantile personality group and an obsessive-paranoid group) and a schizophrenic group. The findings suggest the value of both a multidimensional definition of internalized object relations and the use of such an approach to clarifying the diagnostic concept of borderline personality disorder. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of transference work in the context of therapeutic alliance and quality of object relations.

Objective: Transference interpretation is considered as a core active ingredient in dynamic psychotherapy. In common clinical theory, it is maintained that more mature relationships, as well as a strong therapeutic alliance, may be prerequisites for successful transference work. In this study, the interaction between quality of object relations, transference interpretation, and alliance is estimated. Method: One hundred outpatients seeking psychotherapy for depression, anxiety, and personality disorders were randomly assigned to 1 year of weekly sessions of dynamic psychotherapy with transference interpretation or to the same type and duration of treatment, but without the use of transference interpretation. Quality of Object Relations (QOR)–lifelong pattern was evaluated before treatment (P. H?glend, 1994). The Working Alliance Inventory (A. O. Horvath & L. S. Greenberg, 1989; T. J. Tracey & A. M. Kokotovic, 1989) was rated in Session 7. The primary outcome variable was the Psychodynamic Functioning Scales (P. H?glend et al., 2000), measured at pretreatment, posttreatment, and 1 year after treatment termination. Results: A significant Treatment Group × Quality of Object Relations × Alliance interaction was present, indicating that alliance had a significantly different impact on effects of transference interpretation, depending on the level of QOR. The impact of transference interpretation on psychodynamic functioning was more positive within the context of a weak therapeutic alliance for patients with low quality of object relations. For patients with more mature object relations and high alliance, the authors observed a negative effect of transference work. Conclusion: The specific effects of transference work was influenced by the interaction of object relations and alliance, but in the direct opposite direction of what is generally maintained in mainstream clinical theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prospective reciprocal relations between physical activity and depression in female adolescents.

Objective: Although an inverse correlation between physical activity and depression among adolescents has been found in research, this relation has seldom been examined prospectively. Thus, we tested whether physical activity reduces risk for future escalations in depression and whether depression decreases likelihood of future change in physical activity. Method: Data from a longitudinal study involving annual assessments of 496 adolescent girls (mean age = 13 years, SD = 0.73) followed over a 6-year period were analyzed to address these questions. Results: Using analyses that controlled for several covariates, we found that physical activity significantly reduced risk for future increases in depressive symptoms and risk for onset of major–minor depression. Further, depressive symptoms and major–minor depression significantly reduced future physical activity. However, predictive effects were modest for both. Conclusions: Results support a bidirectional relation between exercise and depression and imply that interventions that increase physical activity may reduce risk for depression among this high-risk population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Self and others: Object relations theory in practice.

Reviews the book, Self and others: Object relations theory in practice by N. Gregory Hamilton (see record 1988-97224-000). Hamilton's book, Self and Others, is useful because it attempts to render much of the complexity of understanding object relational approaches more negotiable. Without question, the book is addressed to the beginner or relative beginner (i.e., the person who wishes to get an introduction to object relations). However, because of its elementary focus, the book can be especially valuable for clinicians, residents, and related mental health trainees who are in the process of learning about object relations theory. Too often it seems introductory books on object relations either assume a knowledge the reader does not possess or become so overly mired in discussing the intricacies of theoretical controversy (e.g., Kohut versus Kernberg) that they leave the beginning student of psychoanalysis in a state of bewilderment. Such is not the case with Self and Others. Hamilton's book, while not being without its limitations, does have some interesting features to offer for beginning instruction in object relations theory. The book attempts to show how object relations theory can be applied in practice. Some interesting and instructive definitions, case examples, and discussion are provided, and they all can prove of value to the interested student of object relations theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Psychoanalytic Rorschach Profile: An integration of drive, ego, and object relations perspectives.

Over the last 20 years a growing number of psychoanalytic researchers have explored theoretical constructs and psychopathology through empirical investigation of object representations elicited in projective tests, particularly the Rorschach. A newly designed scoring system, the Psychoanalytic Rorschach Profile (PRP), was created to overcome the limitations of previously published scoring systems. The PRP consists of 10 scales that assess the areas of impulse, ego structure, and object relations. A pilot study to determine reliability and validity of the new scoring system was undertaken by comparing the Rorschach protocols of five borderline and five schizophrenic subjects. Analysis of data results revealed high interrater reliability and significant discrimination of the clinical groups. The potential power of an integrated profile analysis of Rorschach imagery by the PRP is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Shorter term treatment of borderline personality disorder: A developmental, self-, and object relations approach.

After a brief summary of J. F Masterson's developmental, self-, and object relations approach to long-term, intensive psychotherapy of the borderline personality disorder, an adaptation of this approach to shorter term treatment is proposed. The time constraints of abbreviated treatment require the following limited goals for the patient: (a) increased control of maladaptive defenses, (b) learning about the fundamental dynamics related to the focal symptom or problematic behavior, and (c) improved adaptation. Requisite modifications of technique include (a) limited frequency of sessions, (b) focalized treatment, (c) an emphasis on adaptation, and (d) a reliance on confrontation as the primary therapeutic intervention. A brief case study is presented for illustrative purposes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perception of object–context relations: Eye-movement analyses in infants and adults.

Twenty-eight 4-month-olds' and twenty-two 20-year-olds' attention to object–context relations was investigated using a common eye-movement paradigm. Infants and adults scanned both objects and contexts. Infants showed equivalent preferences for animals and vehicles and for congruent and incongruent object–context relations overall, more fixations of objects in congruent object–context relations, more fixations of contexts in incongruent object–context relations, more fixations of objects than contexts in vehicle scenes, and more fixation shifts in incongruent than congruent vehicle scenes. Adults showed more fixations of congruent than incongruent scenes, vehicles than animals, and objects than contexts; equal fixations of animals and their contexts but more fixations of vehicles than their contexts; and more shifts of fixation when inspecting animals in context than vehicles in context. These findings for location, number, and order of eye movements indicate that object–context relations play a dynamic role in the development and allocation of attention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prospective relations between rejection and depression in young adolescents.

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to examine the relations between rejection and depression across 3 years in young adolescents who varied with regard to their risk for depression. The sample consisted of 240 adolescents who were assessed in grades 6, 7, and 8. The assessment of rejection was based on adolescent-, mother-, and teacher-report, and depression assessment was based on adolescent- and mother-report and clinician ratings. Structural equation modeling indicated that rejection prospectively predicted depression. The authors did not find that depression prospectively predicted rejection, but such a relation cannot be ruled out because of strong cross-sectional correlations between depression and rejection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Handbook of contemporary group psychotherapy: Contributions from object relations, self psychology, and social systems theories.

Reviews the book, Handbook of contemporary group psychotherapy: Contributions from object relations, self psychology, and social systems theories edited by Robert H. Klein, Harold S. Bernard, and David L. Singer (see record 1992-98341-000). Divided into three large sections, the book addresses recent theoretical developments, the clinical applications to patient care and the role of the therapist, each from the standpoint of object relations theory, self psychological theory and social systems theory. The chapters in this book are intended to clarify and integrate different theoretical perspectives with the business of daily practice and application to the group milieu. The reviewer points out several problems with the text including lack of consistency, minor inaccuracies, redundancy among chapters, occasional outdated references and, perhaps most cogent of these carps, the rather wide variation in quality among the different chapters. Nevertheless, the reviewer highly recommends this book for all practitioners and students of group therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An interpersonal relations scale for occupational groups.

In this study Roe's hypothesized ranking of occupational groups on an interpersonal relations dimension was compared with their ordering on an empirical scale. The normalized-rank method was used to construct a scale from the judgments of 100 Ss. The results indicated that 3 occupational groups (Outdoor, Science, and Technology) had almost identical scale values and that the relationship between Roe's theoretical scale and the empirical one was low (rho = .48). Consideration of the findings suggested that (a) the clustering of the 3 occupations was partly a function of the ranking instructions and scaling procedure but was mostly attributable to their intrinsic similarity and that (b) although the empirical scale was inconsistent with Roe's proposed continuum, it agreed with her theory of family factors in occupational choice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The contribution of mother-infant mutual influence to the origins of self- and object representations.

Early interaction structures provide an important basis for emerging self- and object representations. Interaction structures are characteristic patterns of mutual regulation which the infant comes to remember and expect. We use recent evidence for early representational capacity to suggest that early interaction structures are represented in a presymbolic form in the first year and provide the basis for emerging symbolic forms of self- and object representations. We specifically address the nature of the interrelatedness that is represented. Patterns of mutual regulation between mother and infant in the early months of life, illustrating matching and derailed exchanges, are described, based on microanalyses of film and videotape. These patterns provide an empirical basis for conceptualizing variations in the quality of the interrelatedness that may be represented. We suggest that the dynamic process of reciprocal adjustments is the substance of these earliest "interactive representations." What is represented is an emergent dyadic phenomenon, structures of the interaction, which cannot be described on the basis of either partner alone. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A theory of dynamic occluded and illusory object perception.

Humans see whole objects from input fragmented in space and time, yet spatiotemporal object perception is poorly understood. The authors propose the theory of spatiotemporal relatability (STR), which describes the visual information and processes that allow visible fragments revealed at different times and places, due to motion and occlusion, to be assembled into unitary perceived objects. They present a formalization of STR that specifies spatial and temporal relations for object formation. Predictions from the theory regarding conditions that lead to unit formation were tested and confirmed in experiments with dynamic and static, occluded and illusory objects. Moreover, the results support the identity hypothesis of a common process for amodal and modal contour interpolation and provide new evidence regarding the relative efficiency of static and dynamic object formation. STR postulates a mental representation, the dynamic visual icon, that briefly maintains shapes and updates positions of occluded fragments to connect them with visible regions. The theory offers a unified account of interpolation processes for static, dynamic, occluded, and illusory objects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An object relations approach to the treatment of child abuse.

Describes 2 clinical examples of abusive mothers that illustrate the way in which the world of object relations was enacted by the Ss in their relationships with others and how this was worked within the treatment. The goal of psychoanalytic treatment was to diminish the Ss' needs to reenact the process of rejecting objects with their children. In one case, the use of countertransference feelings by the therapist led to increased insight and therapeutic change. In the other case, external factors, which led to stress, were diminished through different therapeutic interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Expression of affect as a mediator of the relationship between quality of object relations and group therapy outcome for patients with complicated grief.

In a recent study, the patient characteristic quality of object relations (QOR) was directly related to favorable outcome (reduction of grief symptoms) among a sample of 53 outpatients with complicated grief who completed treatment in 1 of 8 time-limited, interpretive therapy groups. Recent research literature has suggested that patient affect variables may mediate the relationship between QOR and outcome. In the present study, affect variables were investigated as potential mediating variables using the procedure developed by R. M. Baron and K. A. Kenny (1986). The balance of positive and negative affect expressed in therapy as rated by both patients and therapists emerged as a significant mediating variable. Explanations for how this variable works as a mediating variable and why it facilitates favorable outcome were offered. Clinical implications are also considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Barriers to intimacy: An object relations prespective.

Intimacy has rarely been discussed in the psychoanalytic literature, although clinicians recognize that problems with intimacy are universal. In this article, intimacy is defined, and the sociocultural factors that serve as obstacles to intimate relatedness are discussed. Closely examined are the intrapsychic conflicts that inhibit the development of intimacy, such as a fear of fusion, a fear of object loss, paranoid-schizoid anxieties, and sexual anxieties. Because analysts help to create an environment where problems of intimacy can best be studied, understood, and treated, implications for psychoanalytic treatment are discussed. A clinical example from the author's psychoanalytic practice is offered to illustrate some of the concepts discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The supervisory experience: An object relations perspective.

Provides a theoretical framework based on D. W. Winnicott's (1965, 1971) theory of object relations for understanding aspects of the supervisory process. Focus is on the early caregiving relationship as a metaphor in delineating important aspects of the therapeutic experience. A case illustration (a male rape victim in his early 30s with a history of nonpsychotic depression), which demonstrates supervision of a student in psychotherapy training, is interpreted in light of parallel caregiving processes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teaching the psychological aspects of international relations: An SPSSI questionnaire.

In 1964, the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI) Committee on International Relations conducted a survey to establish the present extent of teaching in the psychology of international relations and the possibilities for its expansion. A questionnaire was mailed to the chairmen of the 194 psychology departments with graduate programs, and to a random sample of 41 departments with only undergraduate programs. Returns were received from 74% of the former and 54% of the latter departments. 75 of the 144 graduate departments and 8 of the 22 undergraduate departments sampled would appear interested in teaching material bearing on the psychological aspects of international relations. The SPSSI Committee on International Relations will, therefore, attempt to obtain support for a fellowship program designed to provide instruction in political science, a review of pertinent psychological material, and the opportunity to develop a course on the psychological aspects of international relations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)