Class 4: Self Psychology and Relational and Interpersonal Theories Flashcards
1
Q
Heinz Kohut
A
- Primacy (importance) of the self (structure of inner experience, not you as a person)
- Caregiving others (“self-objects”)meet the needs of the emerging self
- Self objects…interpersonal relationships
- not limited to an actual relationship…can be internalization of it
- Self objects…interpersonal relationships
- Rage and aggression are NOT innate drives, but are reactions to unmet needs
- Unconscious NOT about repressing impulses of the Id, but about unfulfilled narcissistic demands related to caregiver’s rejection
- healthy narcissistic love for self….positive sense of self…good self esteem
2
Q
Self Psychology
(Developmental Task)
A
- Developmental Task
- To become a cohesive self (subjective experience)
- Associated with self-actualization
- want to become better versions of self
- Self has a natural capacity to grow
- Psychological health follows from needs being met
3
Q
Self Psychology
(Self-object (person or thing) provides?)
A
- Self-object (person or thing) provides:
- Affect attunement
- is intune with the way you are feeling
- ex. father notices you cry and ask what the matter
- can
- Consensual validation
- validates who you are and what you bring
- Tension regulation and soothing
- idea is that pathology will follow if have small empathic failures…allowed to have bad days…but if you have provided enough empathic atunement and validation child can realize not abotu them….but maybe mom is having a bad day
- Recognition of one’s autonomous potential
- validate your talents and abilities and internalize some of those messages
- Restoration of the self (previously fragmented)
- building posiitve relationship with self object can help to restore parts of self that may have been fragmented or lost in past
- this is where therapist comes in to hopefully become self object to help restore
- Affect attunement
4
Q
Self Psychology: Tripolar self
(name the three components)
A
- Grandiose Self
- Idealized Parental Imago
- Twinship
5
Q
Self Psychology: Tripolar self
(Grandiose Self)
A
- Grandiose Self
- Wants to feel special
- Healthy exhibitionism
- Push toward development
- Pursuit of ambitions
- Anxiety arises from loss of contact with self-object
- Mirroring Transference: when the needs of the grandiose self have not been met; the patient needs mirroring
6
Q
Self Psychology: Tripolar self
(Idealized Parental Imago)
A
- Idealized Parental Imago
- The need to have someone strong, calm and all good to idealize and merge with (look up to) in order to feel safe and good
- as you get older dont need this person to be around you physically…hopefully can internalize their messages
- Anxiety arises from potential loss of self
- Risk of self feeling devalued
- Idealizing Transference: share in the power of the therapist
- The need to have someone strong, calm and all good to idealize and merge with (look up to) in order to feel safe and good
7
Q
Self Psychology: Tripolar self
(Twinship)
A
- connect to people more or less like you
- Mutual recognition of “sameness”
- Provides security, a sense of belonging
- ex…im like this…your like this….
- Anxiety develops around the feeling alone
- if you dont find someone like yourself…must be something wrong with you
- Twinship or Alter Ego Transference: wants to have a sameness with the therapist
- they want to connect…so are not authentically connected with sense of self but want to merge with someone elses sense of self
- so this is a way of being…with most of self objects…not just one relationship…so if you had a strong sense of self wouldnt need to merge with other sense of self…still have pieces within you
8
Q
Self Psychology
(Transmuting Internalization)
A
- Process by which the self takes in functions of the self-object
- take what you idealized (functions) of self object and making it your own
- Self is transformed
- Empathic attunement serves as the catalyst for growth..when you connect you are bound to grow
- ex. Dr. j doesnt need her mentor in the room to remind her that issues in MC are not about her but the topic…so when conflict comes…she emulates what she idealizes in mentor….not that anxiety is not there…but everytime she deals with it…she is validated by her ability to tolerate the tension …which strengthens her sense of self
9
Q
Self Psychology
(Empathy)
A
- The primary clinical tool-a way of knowing
- “To understand from within” (vicarious introspection)
- Empathic gratification needs to be balanced with empathic failure in life and in therapy
10
Q
Self Psychology: Psychopathology
(basics and self states….still face experiment )
A
- People are vulnerable to needs not being met
- Primary and Secondary Disorders
- cannot treat psychosis with self psych
- Self States: Still Face Experiment
-
Under-stimulated self:
- no mirroring: feel empty, bored, flat
-
Overstimulated self:
- excessive mirroring: feel overwhelmed
- not genuine and enempathic
- showed with too much praise (think of entilted)
-
Fragmenting self:
- received inconsistent attention, unpredictable attention
- sense of self is broken
- not sure who they are
-
Overburdened self:
- neglected, must disavow feelings of need
- pretends dont have needs but wants connection
- never internalized how to self sooth
-
Under-stimulated self:
11
Q
Self Psychology: Psychopathology
(name the Character or Personality Types-(5))
A
- Mirror hungry
- Ideal hungry
- Alter-ego hungry
- Merger hungry
- Contact shunning
12
Q
Self Psychology: Psychopathology
(Character or Personality Types)
(Mirror hungry)
A
- individuals who crave self-objects whose confirming and admiring response will increase their feeling of self worth
- when you empathically engage with the courage they took facing a fear like (water…pool ex)…now you have linked their self worth to being courages…you tune in to what it means to them and validate those responses
13
Q
Self Psychology: Psychopathology
(Character or Personality Types)
(Ideal hungry)
A
- individuals who experience themselves as worthwhile as long as they can relate to people they can admire
- through empathic attunement should find a way they can intenalize
- will have difficult time if you are a therapist they admire..and there is a rupture in alliance…they will have a hard time bc they will worry you will abandon them too…create chaos within them
14
Q
Self Psychology: Psychopathology
(Character or Personality Types)
(Alter-ego hungry)
A
- individuals who feel worthwhile only if they have a relationship with a self-object who looks and dresses like them and has similar opinions and values.
- think mean girls
- have to loose a piece of yourself
- no sense of self..empty relationships.
15
Q
Self Psychology: Psychopathology
(Character or Personality Types)
(Merger hungry)
A
- individuals who experience others as their own self.
- you have no identity
- your sense of self is so weak…you experience others as yourself
- dont have a mind of their own
- want to merge with someone cause dont have mind of own
- no sense of identity
