The construct “object” has been used to explain relationships toward or with people throughout various psychoanalytic theories. Particularly, the theories Object Relations theory and Classical Drive theory. Object Relations theory addresses an object as a part of a relationship or attunement with other people, particularly parental relationships. According to Melanie Klein, an object is a person or a role of a person in a particular person’s life. This person generally serves as a template in adulthood for relationships from childhood. The object according to Winnicott, serves as the maternal/child interaction, which impacts the child’s process of mental health. The object seems to be the starting point for relationships we long for and seek throughout our lives. If we did not have an impactful or functioning object, we may be come stuck in certain phases of overindulgence or miss-attunement.
In Classical drive theory, the construct “object” is viewed as an object or place of discharge. Freud viewed the term object to be somewhat animalistic and not in need of relationships. A person engages with an object according to classical …show more content…
The therapist is to allow the patient to view them as the initial object (the patient’s mother or father). As the therapist is being projected onto this is what object relations theory considers the beginning step to treatment and moving forward for the patient. The therapist is to identify with the object they are being projected as, in order to promote a change in the therapeutic process. The patient has to recreate the previous template in order to be able to mourn the loss of that relationship or object. Once the patient is able to mourn the object loss they are able to create a new object with their therapist, that they can generalize to their relationships shared outside of
In Classical drive theory, the construct “object” is viewed as an object or place of discharge. Freud viewed the term object to be somewhat animalistic and not in need of relationships. A person engages with an object according to classical …show more content…
The therapist is to allow the patient to view them as the initial object (the patient’s mother or father). As the therapist is being projected onto this is what object relations theory considers the beginning step to treatment and moving forward for the patient. The therapist is to identify with the object they are being projected as, in order to promote a change in the therapeutic process. The patient has to recreate the previous template in order to be able to mourn the loss of that relationship or object. Once the patient is able to mourn the object loss they are able to create a new object with their therapist, that they can generalize to their relationships shared outside of