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Work with 'borderline' psychotic children has led to exploration of a wider range of interpretative (in a broad sense) and communicative modes than those employed by the psychoanalyst in his practice with neurotic patients. Ego regression has many forms: 'there is a direct connection between the aspect of the regression which the therapist regards as of primary importance and the theoretical rationale underlying the technique'. Though choice of mode is limited with some patients who wish to control their relationships by a rigid limitation on types of interaction, often a consideration of the various ego functions involved in the regression will suggest various interpretative possibilities. The authors illustrate some of the factors that influence interpretative choice along an 'action-symbolization continuum'. They give examples of the use of the symbolic act as an interpretation (such as catching a child whose falling was a kind of plea for help) and the maintenance of a particular 'symbolic action-stance' illustrated by the therapist's behavior in encouraging a symbiotic relation in a severely disturbed child.