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This book is a collection of papers delivered by Winnicott, mostly to social workers, over the last ten years. It is divided into two parts: the first addressed mainly to child development and family life; the second, to a variety of topics such as school, the meaning of democracy, and The Contribution of Psychoanalysis to Midwifery.
As you would expect from Dr. Winnicott, you will find in this book excellent descriptions of developmental phases, sharp insights into certain factors of family life, and clearly defined distinctions between casework and psychotherapy. There is richness in his formulations, always originality, and his comments stimulate thinking. The topics covered are so large and so complex that one cannot expect to find more than a point of view, and often his formulations are so condensed that only those who are aware of their implications can fully appreciate them.
Since the book is addressed to social workers in England, many of the practical problems touched upon are not wholly relevant in the United States, where social work has a long experience in developing differentiated programs of treatment. But today, when there is such a shift from the individual approach to social issues, when so many concerned with mental health emphasize social modification, Dr. Winnicott's correlation between the internal milieu and the social environment is most significant.
The chapters maintain to a great extent the atmosphere of a free lecture whose main purpose is to stimulate the audience rather than to present well-integrated formulations. Furthermore, such statements as that 'the inner world of the individual has become a definite organization by the end of the first year', or 'the infant at one year is firmly living in the body', can only be understood if