The Modern Psychoanalytic perspective on Maladaptive Family Ties*

In order to highlight the modern psychoanalytic perspective on maladaptive family ties, I shall begin by presenting a clinical vignette that illustrates some of the pitfalls of a more traditional approach.

An advanced candidate in one of the institutes in which I supervise, shortly after beginning supervision, came into the session very upset about something that had happened earlier in the day, during a session with one of his patients.

The patient, an attractive, appealing woman of 25 years, had begun treatment with him on a twice-a-week basis about two months before. She had had no previous experience with therapy. She said that she felt frustrated with her life situation. She was getting no place in her career and had been unable to develop a satisfactory, enduring relationship with a man.

Although she had no difficulty in attracting and meeting men, she found most men too weak for her taste, and those to whom she became attracted were either married, in some other way unavailable, or ultimately abusive.

She had droppedl out of college owing to insufficient interest in academics. She wanted a career in business but somehow was not able to progress beyond the position of office manager. She said she was very competent, had no difficulty obtaining higher-paying jobs with more responsibility, but with each move to better