Mixed anaclitic-introjective psychopathology in treatment-resistant inpatients undergoing psychoanalytic psychotherapy.

Abstract

Utilizing data from the Riggs-Yale Project, 45 male and 45 female 18-29-yearold treatment-resistant inpatients undergoing intensive psychoanalytically oriented treatment were studied. Twenty-seven mixed-type anaclitic-introjective inpatients were compared with 29 "pure" anaclitic and 34 "pure" introjective inpatients. At intake, mixed-type inpatients were more clinically impaired (i.e., were more symptomatic, cognitively impaired, and thought disordered) and more vulnerable (i.e., less accurate object representations and more frequently used maladaptive defense mechanisms) in comparison with clearly defined anaclitic and introjective patients. Mixed-type patients, however, improved significantly more in the course of psychoanalytically oriented treatment, in terms of clinical functioning (i.e., symptoms, cognitive functioning) and psychological vulnerability (i.e., utilization of more adaptive defense mechanisms).Interpersonal relatedness and self-definition are two fundamental themes in many psychoanalytic and nonanalytic personality theories. In "Civilization and Its Discontents," for example, Freud (1930/1961a) contrasted "the man who is predominantly erotic [and gives] first preference to his emotional relationships of other people" with "the narcissistic man,

Changes in anaclitic–introjective personality dimensions, outcomes and psychoanalytic technique: a multi-case study

“…Thus, on a descriptive level, psychoanalytic treatment technique seems to have fostered changes in latent mental structures in anaclitic rather than introjective cases, while symptomatic changes have been promoted in both groups. This conclusion is consistent with Blatt's (Blatt et al, 1988;Blatt & Ford, 1994;Blatt & Shahar, 2004;Shahar, Blatt, & Ford, 2003) studies of changes in these two types of patients in the Riggs and Menninger investigations, demonstrating that the anaclitic patients improved most in the area of relatedness, whereas therapeutic change in the introjective group was most evident in the area of clinical symptoms.…”

Quality of Depression among Suicidal Inpatient Youth

“…Mixed type individuals have been found to be more vulnerable and clinically impaired in comparison with clearly defined anaclitic and introjective patients (Shahar, Blatt, & Ford, 2003;Shahar, Gallagher, Blatt et al, 2004). In addition, most studies assessing these types of depression have examined communitybased or outpatient samples of depressed adolescents (Blatt, Hart, Quinlan et al, 1993;Fichman, Koestner, & Zuroff, 1994;Luthar & Blatt, 1993).…”

An interactive‐synergetic approach to the assessment of personality vulnerability to depression: Illustration using the adolescent version of the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire

“…This defensive emphasis is expressed by intense dependency (reflecting an overemphasis on interpersonal relatedness), by marked self-criticism (reflecting an overemphasis on self-definition), or by both personality tendencies (cf. Blatt et al, 1982;Shahar, Blatt, & Ford, 2003).…”