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Since its inception as the product of Freud's creativity, psychoanalytic theory has been subject to modification, first by Freud himself, who added to and altered his theory in light of additional clinical experience, and by his followers, some of whom have stayed close to his apparent intentions, while others, firmly believing they were continuing his work, focused on areas beyond the purview of his classical ego psychological approach. In Europe and South America, Klein, Bion, Winnicott, and their followers shifted their focus to the early mental life of the infant to explain the development of an inner life of the mind. In contrast, in the United States, where classical ego psychology achieved dominance, the direction of change has been toward the relational-intersubjective and self psychological schools, which emphasize the centrality of the relationship between analyst and patient in achieving therapeutic effectiveness.
Recently, North American psychoanalysts have been increasingly drawn to Klein and Bion in their conduct of clinical analyses. David and Jill Scharff, the authors of The Interpersonal Unconscious, have been pioneers in importing the ideas and theories of the British object relations school for several decades, beginning long before interest in these thinkers became fashionable here. In numerous books and articles they have been steadfast in their belief that members of that school have provided a superior theoretical basis for their work in couples and family therapy, as well as in their psychoanalytic work with individuals. In this new book they clarify where their thinking began and how it has developed over many years of clinical work. They introduce the concept of the “interpersonal unconscious” as an entity that allows them to greatly expand the scope and content of the unconscious, to the extent that they are able to use it in describing almost all aspects of human development and interactions, including family, couples, and societal areas w