The function of language in parent-infant psychotherapy

Area of Science:

• Psychoanalysis
• Developmental Psychology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Parent-infant psychotherapy is an emerging field requiring new conceptual frameworks.
• Existing research uses semiotics for non-verbal communication and explores infant countertransference.
• The paper introduces verbal interventions as a key therapeutic tool for infants.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the role and impact of verbal interventions directed at infants in psychotherapy.
• To conceptualize the unique symbolic order introduced by therapists.
• To explore the infant's capacity to engage with and benefit from therapeutic language.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative analysis of therapeutic discourse, focusing on the concept of 'parler vrai' (speaking truth).
• Integration of psychoanalytic theories (Dolto, Lacan, Winnicott) with neuroscientific findings.
• Review of research on infant brain development and language perception.

Main Results:

• Therapeutic verbal interventions offer infants a distinct symbolic system compared to parental interactions.
• The effectiveness lies in the message that words can expose and transform conflicts, not just lexical content.
• Infant attention to therapeutic language is linked to innate predispositions for processing words.

Conclusions:

• Verbal interventions in parent-infant psychotherapy facilitate the transformation of repressed desires into negotiable demands.
• The infant's brain is predisposed to perceive words as a specialized communicative mode, enabling therapeutic engagement.
• This approach enriches parent-infant psychotherapy by leveraging symbolic language for conflict resolution.