The psychology of self: an update

The psychology of self is gaining increasing influence, particularly in the treatment of personality disorder. Kohut's work has revived interest in an intellectual tradition that was made peripheral during the positivist-behaviourist era. Kohut's concepts, the most important of which is the selfobject, are the core of an evolving body of theory that is open to findings in such fields as child development and neurophysiology. Kohut saw severe personality disorder as the manifestation of a disruption in the development of self. Recent contributions to the theory include: (i) attempts to make an adequate definition of self, which Kohut was unable to do, using the work of William James; (ii) an approach to the development of self which follows this definition; and (iii) the use of current memory research in understanding the traumata which have impeded this development and which leave their imprint on the psychic system.