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The author selects the two opposed component instincts of clinging to and going in search of, and their respective reactive tendencies of separating and retaining. Taken together, these four trends constitute what he calls the 'clinging syndrome' (Anklammerungssyndrom). This syndrome is not only present as a pathological element in neuroses and psychoses—as in Schreber's delusion of being tied to God by his nerves—but also forms part of the normal functions of the ego and super-ego.
As far as the ego is concerned, and in its instinctual aspect of clinging to, we see this syndrome operating, for instance, whenever there is any stress of anxiety, or in the act of going to sleep. In these situations the ego clings to its id, thus going back to an early stage of development at which ego and id were as yet undifferentiated and at which the infant still clung to its mother. Its instinctual opposite of going in search of is represented by the processes of perception. In its reactive aspects as a tendency to retain or to separate off, it finds expression in the various defensive mechanisms of the ego, and, on higher levels of thought, in relations of duality such as 'either—or' and 'if—then'.
As regards the super-ego, this four-sided syndrome shows itself mainly as a clinging to the super-ego by the ego; a going in search of ideals; a being able to tolerate separation from the penis; and a retention of the values the penis stands for. The aggressive nature of the original instinctual situation makes itself felt, moreover, in the severity of the super-ego towards the ego.