Introduction to the Practice of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy / Edition 2

by Alessandra Lemma

Overview

The 2nd Edition of Introduction to the Practice of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, the highly successful practice-oriented handbook designed to demystify psychoanalytic psychotherapy, is updated and revised to reflect the latest developments in the field.

• Updated edition of an extremely successful textbook in its field, featuring numerous updates to reflect the latest research and evidence base
• Demystifies the processes underpinning psychoanalytic psychotherapy, particularly the development of the analytic attitude guided by principles of clinical technique
• Provides step-by-step guidance in key areas such as how to conduct assessments, how to formulate cases in psychodynamic terms and how to approach endings
• The author is a leader in the field – she is General Editor of the New Library of Psychoanalysis book series and a former editor of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118788837
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	11/09/2015
Edition description:	2nd Revised ed.
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	714,285
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

ALESSANDRA LEMMA is Director of the Psychological Therapies Development Unit at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, and a Consultant Adult Psychotherapist at the Portman Clinic. She is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society, Visiting Professor and Clinical Director of the Psychological Interventions Research Centre at University College London, Visiting Professor at Sapienza University of Rome and Honorary Professor of Psychological Therapies at the University of Essex. She is the Editor of the New Library of Psychoanalysis book series, and one of the regional Editors for the International Journal of Psychoanalysis. She has published extensively on psychoanalysis, the body and trauma.

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Table of Contents

About the Author vii

Preface ix

Introduction: Is Freud Dead? 1

1 Brave New Worlds: A Psychoanalysis Fit for the Twenty-First Century 12

2 An Overview of the Schools of Psychoanalysis: Theory and Practice 28

3 The Process of Psychic Change 75

4 The Analytic Setting and the Analytic Attitude 94

5 Assessment and Formulation 128

6 Unconscious Communication 169

7 Defences and Resistance 194

8 Transference and Countertransference 219

9 Working with Endings 269

Conclusion: The Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist at Work 292

References 302

Index 327 

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Very few psychoanalysts are capable of what Alesandra Lemma achieves with this book: a deep understanding of the life of the mind coupled with a comfortable familiarity with the science of the mind."
Mark Solms, Ph.D. 

"A third edition of this classic text is testimony to how well the original edition was written. Yet it also demonstrates that psychoanalytic therapy and the contexts in which it is practiced are in continual flux. To explain these changes and offer new updates there is no better guide than Alessandra Lemma. She has been at the forefront of many developments and has endeavoured to make psychoanalytic ideas and techniques relevant for the decade that lies ahead. This is a highly readable, enjoyable, and insightful book that deserves to be read again and again. There is always something fresh to discover."
Dr. Alistair Ross, Associate Professor in Psychotherapy, Kellogg College, Author of Introducing Contemporary Psychodynamic Counselling and Psychotherapy

"There are many things to cherish about Alessandra Lemma’s Introduction to the Practice of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy.  Now appearing in its third edition, Lemma exemplifies a mentality that psychoanalysis is alive and kicking— and evolving.  The book is especially candid in acknowledging how psychoanalysis, which began ahead of the social curve, but then began to lag behind, is now making up for lost time.  It is a pleasure to encounter readings of Freud that are neither adulating nor deprecating, and it is even more of a pleasure to consider this version of contemporary psychoanalysis.  Lemma’s work on integrating the body in psychoanalytic theory is well-known and is now incorporated into this book.   In addition, Lemma addresses profound ethical issues that we have faced during the pandemic and in its aftermath.  Clinicians at every stage of their careers will benefit from reading and reflecting on this terrific book."
Elliot L. Jurist, Ph.D., Ph.D., Professor, Psychology and Philosophy, The City College of New York and Doctoral Faculty in Psychology and in Philosophy, The Graduate Center, The City University of NY

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Gary B Kaniuk, PsyD (Cermak Health Services)
Description: This book on the clinical application of psychoanalytic therapy provides a step-by-step approach including assessment, formulation, understanding defenses, interpreting transference/counter-transference, and the termination process. This is an update of the 2003 first edition.
Purpose: The aim is to provide a practice-oriented book "to demystify psychoanalytic psychotherapy." Teaching and learning psychoanalytic therapy is a less clear-cut process than for other therapies, and it is easy for students to feel overwhelmed. This accessible guide is based on the author's experience of teaching trainee practitioners, and is built on the core premise that psychoanalysis is not so much skill-based as dependent upon development of the analytic attitude, guided by principles of technique that are used in clinical situations.
Audience: The intended audience is "workers in the mental health field who are relative newcomers to the practice of psychoanalytic therapy." The author is the director of psychological therapies development at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.
Features: After an introduction that discusses the impact of Freud on this generation of therapists, the author goes to great lengths to show how psychoanalysis is applicable to this current era. There is evidence to show that psychoanalytic interventions are effective and new research reveals links between neuroscience and psychoanalysis. The analytic setting is important in terms of time limitations of each session, ethical issues, fees, use of the couch for free association, and the analytic attitude. In the initial phase of treatment, the assessment process considers suitability for treatment, setting boundaries, obtaining a psychosocial history, and setting the contract. Therapists must listen to both the manifest content and latent content, and interpretations are made to help clients learn about themselves. Clients will present defenses to protect against anxiety, and therapists interpret resistance, which can occur early on in the therapeutic relationship. The author notes that termination also must be carefully handled because ending results in mourning. The book ends with a brief case illustration.
Assessment: The author is an expert in the field with over 25 years of experience, and her book successfully combines theory with practice. The second edition is justified because of the updated information, especially in the field of neuroscience, as well as the new evidence-based research findings. Students and professionals alike will find this material enlightening.

Doody's Review Service

"This text is a thorough, thoughtful and academically rigorous approach to Freudian and Kleinian thinking today." (Therapy Today, May 2016)

From the Publisher