You do not currently have permission to view the full text for this document. Please sign in to an account with an active subscription or contact support.
March 25, 1969. CLINICAL STUDIES OF THE SEPARATION-INDIVIDUATION PHASE. Elisabeth Geleerd, M.D.
Dr. Geleerd stressed that the study of child development must be based on the collaboration between trained observers and clinical psychoanalysts. As clinical findings increase awareness of the influence of early phases of life on psychic development, the need for direct observation becomes more apparent. She reviewed the studies of Mahler and her associates on the interaction of the child and mother during the separation-individuation phase, and compared the findings from psychoanalytic treatment of children and adults with these observations. Several clinical examples were presented which supported Mahler's findings that the last phase of the separation-individuation process frequently coincides with the anal phase.