Regression and stagnation

In this paper regression is discussed as a process that can occur both in neurosis and in personality disorder. Regression is contrasted with the phenomenon of stagnation, which is a state characteristic of personality disorder. The aetiology of both regression and stagnation is based on Fordham's theory of deintegration. His concept of the defences of the primal self explains the phenomenon of stagnation. Clinical material is presented. Emphasis is laid on the difference between the treatment of neurotic and stagnated patients. The significance of specific archetypal images that arise in the analysis of stagnated patients is stressed.