Books for Therapists on Psycho-Analysis & Object Relations Therapy
Despite Freud being the father of Psychoanalysis, this revolutionary theory, today, goes way beyond him. This approach, which has drawn so many psychologists and psychiatrists and provided the basis for a large number of theories that came after it, is as diverse as it is profound. That’s why this section is composed of a variety of volumes of different branches of Psychoanalysis, so that you can deepen your knowledge about this respected theory and, most importantly, sophisticate your practice.
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“Freud and Beyond” by Mitchell and Black
Freud’s groundbreaking theories are deeply relevant to this day, but it’s undeniable that some of his concepts and ideas needed to be revised and developed, a job performed by a number of psychoanalysts that came after him, such as Jacques Lacan, Melanie Klein and Winnicott. In this clear and approachable book, we get the opportunity to learn the modern theories of psychoanalysis through clear explanations and detailed study cases, ending up with extensive and updated knowledge of psychoanalytic concepts.
“Psychoanalytic Case Formulation” by McWilliams
For new therapists, it may be complicated at first to face new clients and be able to understand each individual psyche. Psychoanalytic Case Formulation aims to help practitioners to do so in a natural and intuitive way by explaining concepts such as identification, relational patterns, affects and much more. The book will teach you that the activity of analysis surpasses textbooks, relying on some key constructs such as intuition and subjectivity.
“Object Relations in Psychoanalytic Theory” by Greenberg and Mitchell
All psychoanalysts agree that object relations play a major role in people’s psychology and, most importantly, in relation to other people – including the therapists. With that in mind, renowned psychoanalysts and authors Greenberg and Mitchell bring dive into the concept in this clarifying book, discussing its history, its main precursors, its divergences in theory and the part it takes in the psychoanalytic process.
“The Little Psychotherapy Book: Object Relations in Practice” by Frankland
This book’s objective is to be a beginner’s guide when it comes to object relations theory, especially when applied to the analytic process. Written in a way similar to clinical supervision, author Frankland covers the definition of object relations as well as its applicability to clinical settings, explaining how to perform successful interventions in which object relations take center stage in the psychoanalytic journey.
“An Introduction to Object Relations” by Gomez
In this accessible and educational book, Gomez shares the extensive history of object relations, from the first theories to its developments and divergences. She gives a look into the lives of Klein, Bowlby and other relevant object relations theorists to better explain their ideas. In the second part of the book, we’re taught how to work with object relations in the clinical setting, as Gomez argues that to be human is to crave connections.
“Object Relations Therapy” by Casdan
Professor, psychoanalytic and author Sheldon Casadan makes use of his extensive knowledge to bring us this book about all aspects concerning object relations in therapy, describing the four stages of therapy, and how the object relations theory applies to the psychotherapeutic process as a whole, as well as its good and bad implications.
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“Hope and Dread in Psychoanalysis” by Mitchell
Some of Freud’s theories and concepts, as ingenious as they were, don’t hold up today as well as they used. Noticing that, author Mitchell defends the modernization of psychoanalysis, and explains in this book how the theory should embrace the era we live in and change in agreement to it. Hope and Dread in Psychoanalysis is sure to make you reflect on some of the most important constructs of our psyche, and how it relates to the modern world.
“Two Essays on Analytical Psychology” by Jung
This book contains the two now-famous essays of Carl Jung, “The Relations between the Ego and the Unconscious” and “On the Psychology of the Unconscious”, and is considered an essential read for those interested in psychoanalysis. In these essays, we’re introduced to Jung’s indispensable beliefs and understand better the end of his partnership with Freud.
“Psychoanalytic Diagnosis: Understanding Personality Structure in the Clinical Process” by McWilliams
Nancy McWilliams elucidates the definition and implications of psychoanalytic personality theory in a comprehensible way in this indispensable book. Recommended to practitioners from all professional backgrounds, the book dives into different character types and teaches how to understand a patient’s personality and use this information to provide an insightful psychoanalytic process.
“On Learning From The Patient” by Casement
This innovative book aims to view the psychoanalytic process from the lenses of the patient, specifically teaching analysts how to gain a greater comprehension of what are the patient’s subconscious desires and needs. Through helpful case studies, Casement explains how to leave behind preconceptions when in relation to a patient and how to create opportunities to help the individual from possible past intervention mistakes.
“The Intimate Edge: Extending the Reach of Psychoanalytic Interaction” by Ehrenberg
This stimulating book, author Darlene Ehrenberg discusses in detail the concept of healing in psychotherapy, investigating its origins and causes. She also delves on the topic of the intimate edge, drawing from theories of classical and modern psychoanalytical theories, as well as offering complete case studies to exemplify this important matter, useful to any analyst that aims to sharpen its practice.
“Das Selbst und die inneren Objektbeziehungen” von Fairbairn
In this manual Fairbairn challenged the dominance of Freud’s drive theory with a psychoanalytic theory based on the internalization of human relationships. Fairbairn assumed that the unconscious develops in childhood and contains dissociated memories of parental neglect, insensitivity, and outright abuse that are impossible the children to tolerate consciously. This book reviews Fairbairn’s five foundational papers and outlines their application in the clinical setting. The author discusses the four unconscious structures and offers the clinician concrete suggestions on how to recognize and respond to them effectively in the heat of the clinical interview.
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