Play in the psychotherapy of selfobject relating

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Psychoanalytic Theory

Background:

• Narcissistic character disorder literature distinguishes mature relating from primitive selfobject relations.
• Primitive relating involves valuing objects for buttressing a fragile self, often persisting into adulthood as a restitutive attempt.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the concept of selfobjects in narcissistic character disorder.
• To explore how early deficits in object relations influence adult relationship patterns and self-healing attempts.

Main Methods:

• Literature review and theoretical analysis of psychoanalytic concepts.
• Exploration of Winnicott's theories on transitional experience and objects.

Main Results:

• Primitive selfobject relations serve as a mechanism to repair perceived deficits from early object failures.
• Adults may form relationships with corrective figures or create selfobjects to fulfill longed-for validation.
• Transitional objects and selfobjects share commonalities, highlighting the psychic apparatus's self-healing capacities.

Conclusions:

• The persistence of primitive selfobject relating represents a healing attempt by the psychic apparatus.
• Understanding transitional experience clarifies the function of selfobjects in self-healing.
• Both physical and mental apparatuses possess inherent self-healing capacities following injury or disease.