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(2011). Psychoanalytic Inquiry, 31:462-474

Procedural Interpretation: A Method of Working Between the Lines in the Nonverbal Realm

Bruce Herzog, M.D.

INTRODUCTION

Throughout the last century, verbal interpretation has been an inseparable companion to the process of psychoanalysis, and the ability to interpret effectively continues to be highly valued by psychoanalysts. Today many of us can convincingly argue that a thoughtful, well-timed interpretation still constitutes the most significant therapeutic event that can occur in an analysis.

Our acknowledgment of the importance of spoken interpretation can have its disadvantages, though. Efforts to fine-tune our ability to convey understanding by verbal means may run the risk of disavowing another essential aspect of our clinical work: namely that of nonverbal activities, which themselves can have a very powerful therapeutic impact. That we sometimes have difficulty finding the language to describe these activities and may occasionally neglect them shouldn't surprise us—nonverbal issues seem to be the stuff of intuition, not objective discourse. In most relationships, much of

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