The Child Analyst at Work

A developmental point of view has been central to psychoanalysis from the time Freud embarked on his own self-analysis. Almost as old as this developmental perspective are debate and skepticism about the merits and liabilities of using the findings of developmental observational research or child analysis to inform or modify psychoanalytic theory. There is even skepticism about whether the very practice of child analysis is properly psychoanalytic. Nevertheless, both child analysis and the developmental perspective have remained at the psychoanalytic table. Now, in recognition of its place and importance in psychoanalysis, a regular section on child analysis and development will be featured at least once a year in JAPA. We invite your suggestions, submissions, commentaries, and questions.

The papers in this section attest the continuing survival and value of child analysis. They also speak to a continuing contribution that child analysts can make to the broader field of mental health. By sharing our experiences, findings, and insights we might challenge some of the current assumptions being made that influence treatment guidelines. The papers are clinical, and address various aspects of the child analyst at work. Interestingly, although each deals with clinical problems and the child analyst's approach to these problems, each paper, in one way or another, touches on the special clinical challenges that arise in the face of a child's intense affect, angry feelings in particular. These challenges are technical on one hand, related to the way the analyst manages the child's feelings and the behavior used to express them in the session. On the other hand, they are emotional. How does the analyst deal with the intense countertransference feelings that these children can elicit? Each paper demonstrates the enormous therapeutic benefit that can be gained when a child has the opportunity to express, verbalize, and understand intense feelings within the safety of an analytic