The Unconscious and the Family

The Psychoanalysis of Links and Transpersonal Pathologies
1. Auflage 2026
ISBN: 978-1-041-20945-4
Verlag: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Buch, Englisch, 274 Seiten, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm

Reihe: The EFPP Monograph Series

The Unconscious and the Family is an exploration of the complex unconscious dynamics that shape family and couple links. Drawing on extensive clinical experience, Anna Maria Nicolò offers profound insights into the psychopathology present in these contexts, illustrating the theoretical framework with compelling case studies of couple conflicts, trauma, and psychotic disorders. Nicolò presents an innovative reinterpretation of psychoanalytic concepts as they apply to family and couple therapy, establishing a theoretical foundation in the first part of the book and detailing practical interventions in the second. The hypothesis of the existence of transpersonal disorders is gaining ground, particularly among couples dealing with violence and psychotic disorders. Special attention is given to diagnostic approaches, interpretation methods, transference dynamics, and the therapeutic use of the metaphor. Essential reading for psychoanalysts, psychotherapists, and mental health professionals working with families and couples, this volume fills a significant gap in the English-language literature on psychoanalytic approaches to family and couple therapy.

Zielgruppe

Postgraduate, Professional Practice & Development, and Professional Reference

Autoren/Hrsg.

Nicolò, Anna Maria

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Psychologie Psychologie / Allgemeines & Theorie Psychologische Theorie, Psychoanalyse Psychoanalyse (S. Freud)
• Sozialwissenschaften Psychologie Psychotherapie / Klinische Psychologie Familientherapie, Paartherapie, Gruppentherapie
• Sozialwissenschaften Pädagogik Pädagogik Pädagogik: Sachbuch, Ratgeber

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Part 1: Understanding the Family  1. The Unconscious and the Family 2. Subjectual Links, Pathologies and Transpersonal Defences 3. The Family and Its Functioning 4. The Primal Scene in the Family 5. The Fraternal Complex and the Disturbing Stranger 6. The Couple from a Psychoanalytic Perspective 7. The Desire for a Child and Parenthood 8. Becoming a Father Today 9. The Transmission of Trauma in the Family 10. The Paranoid Elaboration of Mourning in the Family 11. Violent Couple Links 12. The Family with the Psychotic Patient as an Organisation of Traumatic Links 13. Denial, Negation and Interpersonal Links 14. Dreams and the Unconscious in the Couple and the Family  Part 2: Psychoanalytic Technique With Couples And Families  15. Diagnostic Assessment with the Family 16. Intrusions in the Setting 17. Transference with the Couple and the Family 18. Countertransference and Dreams in the Family 19. Interpretation in the Psychoanalysis of Couples and Families 20. Metaphors and the Process of Metaphorisation 21. Narration: Individual and Family Biographies as Therapeutic Tools

Über Autor(innen)

Anna Maria Nicolò, MD, child neuropsychiatrist, Training Analyst and Full Member of the Società Psicoanalitica Italiana (SPI) and International Psychoanalytical Association (IPA), expert in child and adolescent psychoanalysis. Past President of the SPI. President of the International Association of Couple and Family Psychoanalysis (IACFP). Chair of the IPA Publications Committee. She is a member of the Forum for Adolescence of the European Psychoanalytical Federation (FEP) Committee, of which she was Chair. Director of the journal Interazioni.