History and the psychoanalytic foundations of the Kestenberg Movement Profile

Abstract

This theoretical study is part of my doctoral research on the history and development of the psychodynamic theory movement, the Kestenberg Movement Profile (KMP). This paper attempts to introduce the KMP within the historical context of its origins, the psychoanalytic circles of 1940-1980 New York outlining the main lines of influence on Kestenbreg's work. The KMP forms a complex integrative approach of movement assessment and analysis that examines the interplay between movement development and the process of self-formation. The paper explores the theoretical foundations of the Kestenberg Movement Profile in general, concerning infl uences from Freudian drive theory and ego-psychology in particular. The paper aims to illuminate the field of scientific thought that the KMP emerged from as a psychodynamic assessment tool of movement behaviour.