ANZJFT Volume 20 Number 3
September 1999Contents
| Editorial - Conferences | Hugh and Maureen Crago |
| Therapy in/and/of/by the World | Andrew Samuels |
| Acts of Violence and their Reverberations | Olga Rochkovski |
| Individuals in Context and Contexts in Individuals | Bebe Speed |
| 'Similar but Different' Conversations: Working with Denial in Cases of Severe Child Abuse | Susie Essex and John Gumbleton |
| Comments Upon '"Similar But Different" Conversations' by Susie Essex and John Gumbleton | Anne Welfare |
| Reply to Anne Welfare | Susie Essex and John Gumbleton |
| How Birds Get Lost: III | Lyndon Walker |
| Interview with Andrew Samuels | Brian Stagoll |
| Front Line Research | Karen Weiss |
| State news, conference reports | |
| Reviews: Independant comment on audio-visual and print materials | |
| Annual Training Directory | Julia Hutchinson |
Abstracts & Sample Articles
Editorial - Conferences
by Hugh and Maureen CragoView article. [PDF format - 61KB]
Therapy in/and/of/by the World
by Andrew SamuelsView article. [PDF format - 155KB]
The author begins by owning the personal circumstances and history that inspired him to write. He moves on to discuss how certain changes in Western political processes and structures deserve the tag of 'transformative politics'. A third section explores in a critical spirit whether or not therapists can have a collective impact in relation to current pressing social and political problems. The next section entitled 'the inner politician' offers an experiential approach to the politics that irradiate people's inner worlds and personal stories. Finally, the author reflects on the links between therapy, politics and spirituality.
Acts of Violence and their Reverberations
by Olga RochkovskiView article. [PDF format - 120KB]
The author deals with a very challenging subject: the mental state of a couple compelled to confess under torture during the last Uruguayan dictatorship (1973-1985). This case is presented from the point of view of the therapist[m]a viewpoint which is informed by second order cybernetics. I describe the way I as therapist resonated with the problems of this couple, my way of intervening, and the way in which my intervention resonated in the patients, allowing a shift in perceptions. Finally, I identify some difficulties in repairing the social network destroyed by the dictatorship.
Individuals in Context and Contexts in Individuals
by Bebe SpeedView article. [PDF format - 165KB]
This presentation will explore some ideas about the impact of both external and internal contexts on what we, whether as clients or therapists, do. It will offer a way of thinking about the internal and external as sides of the same coin, and a justification for working directly with one or the other whilst holding both in mind. In reflecting on how the internal and external affect therapists, attention will be given to both the hidden influence of personal experience in our ideas and the influence of radical doubt.
'Similar but Different' Conversations: Working with Denial in Cases of Severe Child Abuse
by Susie Essex and John GumbletonView article. [PDF format - 195KB]
This article describes a particular aspect of a service called 'Resolutions'** that has been developed at the NSPCC Child and Family Centre in Bristol, England. The Resolutions service works with families where parents and/or carers are disputing responsibility for serious abuse of their children, but where child protection agencies deem at least one of them culpable on a balance of probabilities.
The service's general approach to developing partnerships with families is briefly considered, but the article concentrates on a particular approach. This is where parents and/or carers who are disputing abuse of their children roleplay a 'similar but different' family. This enables key issues in relation to child abuse to be discussed by the parents and/or carers. It also facilitates the gaining of greater understanding that helps them ensure the future safety of their own and other children.
Comments Upon '"Similar But Different" Conversations' by Susie Essex and John Gumbleton
by Anne WelfareView article. [PDF format - 65KB]
Reply to Anne Welfare
by Susie Essex and John GumbletonView article. [PDF format - 37KB]
How Birds Get Lost: III
by Lyndon WalkerView article. [PDF format - 27KB]
Interview with Andrew Samuels
by Brian StagollView article. [PDF format - 174KB]
Andrew Samuels is Professor of Analytical Psychology at the University of Essex, Visiting Professor of Psychoanalytic Studies at Goldsmith's College, University of London and a Jungian Analyst in London. We were lucky to have Andrew participate very generously in the Brisbane Family Therapy Conference in September, 1998. Andrew has written widely on psychological and psychotherapeutic themes, and has opened up new areas around the relations between therapy and politicss. In his book The Political Psyche (1993) he poses the questions: Is there a special psychology of and for politics and culture? If so, what does the clinical practice of analysis and therapy with individuals or small groups contribute to the forming of such a psychology? ... In what way is the personal political[m]and in what way is the political personal?<br />
<br />
We interviewed Andrew in Brisbane just one week before the 1998 Federal Election, with talk of Howard, Beazley and Hanson pervading conference conversations. It was a great time to have Andrew around. But first we had to clear up a few matters about Jung.
Front Line Research
by Karen WeissView article. [PDF format - 51KB]
Reviews: Independant comment on audio-visual and print materials
View article. [PDF format - 181KB]