Infant Observation at the Heart of Training

The study of infant observation is widely used as part of training to become a psychoanalytic psychotherapist and this book addresses reasons for this. It examines whether the study of infant observation can be shown to contribute to the development of the capacities and skills that are needed for b [...]
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The study of infant observation is widely used as part of training to become a psychoanalytic psychotherapist and this book addresses reasons for this. It examines whether the study of infant observation can be shown to contribute to the development of the capacities and skills that are needed for becoming a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. Considerable attention is given to examining what these might be and, from looking closely at techniques employed within a therapy session, the author creates a set of skills likely to be accepted by the community of practitioners. She also carefully delineates the views of writers and teachers of infant observation on what the study of infant observation is thought to engender in its practitioners. The author describes empirical research carried out for the book, which shows the considerable gains that the students made during their training, and it is suggested that, at least in part, this is a result of their experience of infant observation. The book concludes that infant observation greatly enhances many of the capacities and skills valued in psychotherapeutic work. This in turn raises questions about the way it is usually taught in psychotherapy training institutions.