Relational Perspectives
About the Book Series
Series Editor: Steven Kuchuck
Founding Editor:
Stephen Mitchell
Editor Emeritus:
Lewis Aron
Former Editors:
Adrienne Harris
Eyal Rozmarin
The Relational Perspectives Book Series (RPBS) publishes books that grow out of or contribute to the relational tradition in contemporary psychoanalysis. Jay Greenberg and Stephen Mitchell first coined the term relational psychoanalysis as a way of identifying a common theme among an otherwise diverse group of theories that had never before been considered connected in any way. Each of these schools—primarily; interpersonal psychoanalysis, British object relations theory, and self-psychology, emphasized a person’s embeddedness in the social context rather than the isolated individual with drives pressing for discharge as the main unit of study (Greenberg & Mitchell, 1983).
Following his work with Greenberg, Mitchell (1988) began using the term relational psychoanalysis to also refer to a newly developing perspective that arose from a melding of British Object Relations theory with Interpersonal psychoanalysis, feminist, queer, gender and other social, philosophical, political, cross-cultural and attachment theories as well as empirical infancy research and elements of contemporary Freudian and Kleinian thought. In more recent years, aspects of Field theory and Intersubjective Systems theory, as well as understanding of oppression, economics, race and other systemic issues have also become integrated into this tradition, which understands relational configurations between self and others, both real and fantasied, as the primary subject of psychoanalytic investigation. This new and expanded perspective is sometimes referred to as "big R" Relational psychoanalysis in order to distinguish it from Mitchell’s original use of the term relational as an umbrella term for already existing theories (Kuchuck, 2021).
Originally, we referred to the Relational tradition, turn, or perspective rather than to a Relational school, to highlight that we were identifying a general trend or tendency within contemporary psychoanalysis, not a more formally organized or coherent system of beliefs. And given the centrality of the concept of analyst as subject and eschewing of positivism in Relational thinking, we recognize that no two Relationalists think or practice in exactly the same way. Still, while debated, Relational psychoanalysis (as differentiated from Greenberg and Mitchell’s initial use of the term), has arrived at a moment in time when some believe we can now rightly think of it as a proper theoretical orientation.
Now under the editorial supervision of Steven Kuchuck, the Relational Perspectives Book Series originated in 1990 through the efforts of the late Stephen A. Mitchell. Mitchell was not only the first, but also the most prolific and influential of the originators of the Relational tradition. Committed to dialogue among psychoanalysts, he abhorred the authoritarianism that dictated adherence to a rigid set of beliefs or technical restrictions. He championed open discussion, comparative and integrative approaches, and promoted new voices across the generations. Mitchell was later joined by the late Lewis Aron, also a visionary and influential writer, teacher and major thinker in Relational psychoanalysis. Leading Relational scholars Adrienne Harris, Steven Kuchuck and Eyal Rozmarin eventually partnered with Aron as series editors.
Included in the Relational Perspectives Book Series are authors that come from within the relational/Relational traditions, those that extend and develop that scholarship, and works that critique these approaches or compare and contrast them with alternative points of view. The series includes our most distinguished senior psychoanalysts, along with younger contributors who bring fresh vision. Our aim is to enable a deepening of thinking about theory and technique while reaching across disciplinary and social boundaries in order to foster an inclusive and international literature.
Works Cited
Greenberg, J.R. and Mitchell, S.A. (1983). Object Relations in Psychoanalytic Theory. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Kuchuck, S. (2021). The Relational Revolution in Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy. London: Karnac Books.
Mitchell, S.A. (1988). Relational Concepts in Psychoanalysis: An Integration. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
The Dissociative Mind in Psychoanalysis: Understanding and Working With Trauma
1st Edition
Edited
By Elizabeth Howell, Sheldon Itzkowitz
February 17, 2016
The Dissociative Mind in Psychoanalysis: Understanding and Working With Trauma is an invaluable and cutting edge resource providing the current theory, practice, and research on trauma and dissociation within psychoanalysis. Elizabeth Howell and Sheldon Itzkowitz bring together experts in the field...
Immigration in Psychoanalysis: Locating Ourselves
1st Edition
Edited
By Julia Beltsiou
December 22, 2015
Immigration in Psychoanalysis: Locating Ourselves presents a unique approach to understanding the varied and multi-layered experience of immigration, exploring how social, cultural, political, and historical contexts shape the psychological experience of immigration, and with it the encounter ...
Conservative and Radical Perspectives on Psychoanalytic Knowledge: The Fascinated and the Disenchanted
1st Edition
By Aner Govrin
November 18, 2015
Psychoanalysis really should not exist today. Until a few years ago, most of the evidence suggested that its time was drawing to a close, and yet psychoanalysis demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of criticism, alongside significant resurgence over the course of the last years. In "...
The Enigma of Desire: Sex, Longing, and Belonging in Psychoanalysis
1st Edition
By Galit Atlas
October 15, 2015
The Enigma of Desire: Sex, Longing and Belonging in Psychoanalysis, introduces new perspectives on desire and longing, in and outside of the analytic relationship. This exciting volume explores the known and unknown, ghosts and demons, sexuality and lust. Galit Atlas discusses the subjects of sex ...
Freud's Legacy in the Global Era
1st Edition
By Carlo Strenger
August 21, 2015
Freud’s Legacy in the Global Era presents a radically new perspective on Freud’s relevance today as a forerunner of the contemporary evolutionary neurosciences also steeped in the tradition of humanistic thought. Carlo Strenger shows how globalisation has produced new theoretical, practical and ...
Relational Treatment of Trauma: Stories of loss and hope
1st Edition
By Toni Heineman
July 27, 2015
Relational Treatment of Trauma: Stories of loss and hope is the culmination of over 35 years of psychotherapy with children and adults, many of whom have suffered the effects of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse. It addresses a gap in the literature on the treatment of trauma and chronic loss ...
The Legacy of Sandor Ferenczi: From ghost to ancestor
1st Edition
Edited
By Adrienne Harris, Steven Kuchuck
May 01, 2015
Winner of the 2016 Gradiva Award for Edited Book The Legacy of Sándor Ferenczi, first published in 1993 & edited by Lewis Aron & Adrienne Harris, was one of the first books to examine Ferenczi’s invaluable contributions to psychoanalysis and his continuing influence on contemporary ...
Somatic Experience in Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy: In the expressive language of the living
1st Edition
By William F. Cornell
April 14, 2015
The body, of both the patient and the analyst, is increasingly a focus of attention in contemporary psychoanalytic theory and practice, especially from a relational perspective. There is a renewed regard for the understanding of embodied experience and sexuality as essential to human vitality. ...
Relational Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy Integration: An evolving synergy
1st Edition
Edited
By Jill Bresler, Karen E. Starr
April 01, 2015
Relational Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy Integration traces the history of efforts to integrate psychoanalysis with other psychotherapeutic modalities, beginning with the early analysts, including Ferenczi and Rank, and continuing on to the present day. It explores the potential for integration ...
The Healer's Bent: Solitude and Dialogue in the Clinical Encounter
1st Edition
By James McLaughlin
December 22, 2014
Over the course of a 50-year career, James T. McLaughlin has sought to open the playing field of psychoanalytic exploration by treating unconscious processes as the very material from which we fashion meaningful lives. His unique, iconoclastic perspective, which challenged the conventions of his ...
Who Is the Dreamer, Who Dreams the Dream?: A Study of Psychic Presences
1st Edition
By James S. Grotstein
December 22, 2014
In Who Is the Dreamer Who Dreams the Dream? A Study of Psychic Presences, James Grotstein integrates some of his most important work of recent years in addressing fundamental questions of human psychology and spirituality. He explores two quintessential and interrelated psychoanalytic problems: the...
Minding Spirituality
1st Edition
By Randall Lehmann Sorenson
December 01, 2014
In Minding Spirituality, Randall Sorenson, a clinical psychoanalyst, "invites us to take an interest in our patients' spirituality that is respectful but not diffident, curious but not reductionistic, welcoming but not indoctrinating." Out of this invitation emerges a fascinating and broadening ...