Tracking Transformations in a Psychoanalytic Process: Unconscious and Explicit13

“Tracking transformations in a psychoanalytic process: unconscious and explicit” was a Panel in two parts. The morning panel introduced the Three-Level Model for the ‘Clinical Observation of Patient Transformations’ (3-LM). Michael Sebek presented a psychoanalytic psychotherapy patient's history and verbatim sessions at three different times in the therapy. This was followed by a brief discussion. Part 2 of the Panel, in the afternoon, consisted of four presentations demonstrating the way the 3-LM facilitates the observation of whether change is taking place in the patient and in the psychoanalytic process. (Dr. Sebek's clinical material was also made available to IPA Work Groups in follow-up clinical discussions.) The Panel presentations demonstrated how the 3-LM could be used to track transformations in relation to the Congress topics, psychic pain, depression, symbolization and affective regulation, focusing on Sebek's clinical material.

Marina Altmann, Chair of the Project Committee on Clinical Observation, introduced the panel and presented the panelists. She explained, concisely, the importance of clinical observations and ways of listening, which are at the center of clinical research in psychoanalysis, indicating that the quality of clinical observations is often not good enough. For instance, the clinical material is not described in sufficient detail, the observations are selected randomly and without enough information about the context of the clinical material (i.e. phase of treatment or diagnostic considerations). In addition, possible distortions of the clinical material caused by the blind spots of the analyst due to projections or countertransference reactions are not taken into account. Dr. Altmann pointed out that our mutual aim as psychoanalysts is to help our patients/analysands undergo a process of transformation. Changes that occur during analysis - in the context of the relationship with the analyst - have multiple aspects and raise a wide rang