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It is normal practice for the analyst to attempt to identify the personal (conscious and unconscious) motivations behind a given situation, which is presented by the patient as being unpremeditated or due to reasons beyond his control or wishes. In some cases it proves useful to change point of view temporarily, and ask oneself whether the patient is dealing with ‘something that does not belong to him’.
Since not everything in the patient's character is part of his life plan, analysis does not need to be all-embracing. In fact, during analysis, it is important that the patient manage to preserve and develop his essential character traits on the one hand, and, on the other, dispose of some of the phantasies communicated by his parents, or, more generally speaking, by his family environment. These phantasies often make excessive demands on his resources and developmental capacities (Bonaminio et al., 1992). If the analyst does not allow for this possibility, he will run the risk of interpreting this type of phantasy to the patient, insisting that he take responsibility for it, when it really originates in the family context.