FROM PRIMARY MATERNAL PREOCCUPATION TO DEAD MOTHER*

2018 ◽  
Vol 78 (4) ◽  
pp. 384-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronica Csillag
Keyword(s):  
Primary Maternal Preoccupation

Primary maternal preoccupation

2018 ◽  
pp. 258-262
Author(s):  
Jan Abram ◽  
Knud Hjulmand
Keyword(s):  
Primary Maternal Preoccupation

The Neonate and His Mother

2016 ◽  
pp. 41-50
Author(s):  
Donald W. Winnicott
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Serious Mental Illness ◽  
Primary Maternal Preoccupation ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Clinical Cases

In this paper, Winnicott describes some elements of the psychology of the newborn. He distinguishes the difference between a mother’s psychology and that of her infant's, and also ascribes to the mother the capacity for primary maternal preoccupation (his term) for identifying with her infant. He gives importance both to the concept of the proper ‘holding’ physically and emotionally of the newborn and to the environmental provision that the infant needs. The beginnings of the personality, and the difficulties inherent in failures of early provision leading to serious mental illness are also discussed. Detailed examples from his clinical cases are given.

Introduction to Volume 5

2016 ◽  
pp. 3-16
Author(s):  
Jennifer Johns ◽  
Marcus Johns
Keyword(s):  
Medical Education ◽  
Political Change ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Professional Life ◽  
Melanie Klein ◽  
Wide Scope ◽  
Transitional Phenomena ◽  
John Bowlby ◽  
Primary Maternal Preoccupation ◽  
Book Publication

Volume 5 concerns Winnicott’s writing at the height of his career, between 1955-1959, in which his thinking and his personal and professional life are put into a broad historical context, from Winnicott’s medical education and discovery of Freud to his double career in paediatrics and psychoanalysis. The introduction to this volume covers this period of great social and political change, including discussion of papers and letters relating to the conflicts within the British psychoanalytic world, in particular with Melanie Klein (whose monograph Envy and Gratitude was published in this period), as well as John Bowlby and Anna Freud. A range of papers, reflecting the wide scope of his audiences during this period, are discussed, including ‘The Anti-Social Tendency’, ‘Primary Maternal Preoccupation’, ‘The Capacity to be Alone’, and the book publication of ‘Transitional Objects and Transitional Phenomena’.

‘Hopelessly devoted to you’: An examination of Winnicott’s concept of primary maternal preoccupation in the identity and practice of male group analysts

2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 144-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen McBride
Keyword(s):  
Group Analysis ◽  
Individual Case ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Male Group ◽  
Primary Maternal Preoccupation ◽  
Interview Format ◽  
Paternal Function ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

The rationale for this study is to explore whether or not the Winnicottian concept of primary maternal preoccupation fits into the identities and features in what male group analysts reflect on and resonate with upon ‘giving birth to’ and conducting a group. A qualitative, individual case-study approach was employed to attempt to discover and understand how male group analysts make sense of Winnicott’s fundamental concept. Wondering and thinking about how a male group analyst ‘holds’ both the maternal and paternal function in a group is also being thought about to ascertain the impact of these features on clinical practice. Exploring the concept of primary maternal preoccupation lends towards a strong focus on the relationship between mother and baby, mirrored in and seen as a metaphor for the relationship between the group analyst and the group members. Doron argues that in disclosing her depth of feeling towards the changing group membership in the group she was conducting, she identified strongly with the state of primary maternal preoccupation. This study will explore the range of feelings associated with the primary maternal preoccupation male group analysts associate with. Three qualified group analysts with five years’ minimum post-qualification experience, with whom there were no boundary issues, were interviewed in a semi-structured interview format to ascertain and develop this understanding. A phenomenological research method was chosen to analyse the collated data from the three individual interviews. Following completion of the three interviews, the participants’ texts were analysed resulting in five overall themes being developed. Potential wider scopes and application of the question, potential clinical implications of the topic under discussion and the potential for developing a theoretical discussion in group analysis on what might be coined ‘paternal preoccupation’ were illuminated and discussed.

Letter to Augusta Bonnard

2016 ◽  
pp. 255-256
Author(s):  
Donald W. Winnicott
Keyword(s):  
Primary Maternal Preoccupation ◽  
The Subject

In this letter, Winnicott commends August Bonnard on the work she sent him to read, and recognizes her own genuine contribution to the area that both he and Rene Spitz, in their different ways, have advanced on the subject of primary maternal preoccupation.

Attachment-informed interventions with the perinatal population

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 214-227
Author(s):  
Hannah Knafo
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Anxiety Disorders ◽  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Clinical Material ◽  
Attachment Representations ◽  
Psychological States ◽  
Physical Body ◽  
Primary Maternal Preoccupation ◽  
Mental Health Settings ◽  
Therapy Sessions

With growing attention being paid to perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) in both medical and mental health settings, there is a need for further elaboration on meaningful and impactful treatments with this population. This article outlines some of the unique stressors and psychological states that come with pregnancy and parenting a newborn and infant. The concepts and experiences discussed include: primary maternal preoccupation (Winnicott, 1956), parental ambivalence, major changes to the physical body, and reorganisation of attachment representations and current family dynamics. Clinical material from therapy sessions with patients at a specialised perinatal centre is included in the discussion of using an approach informed by attachment theory (Bowlby, 1988).

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