A SELF-PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACH TO THE ANALYSIS OF RESISTANCE - A CASE-REPORT

This paper attempts to explore the understanding of resistance from a self-psychological perspective through presenting a case report. This view is contrasted to the traditional psychoanalytic model which assum es that whatever impedes the analysis is a resistance, and construes s uch resistance in terms of the drive-defence model. The motivation for this blockade of the analysis is the protection of the ego from anxie ty. By contrast, a self-psychological model suggests that 'so called d efence-resistances' (Kohut, 1984, p. 141) are required for the protect ion of the weakened self. There is no blockade of the analytic process ; rather, the 'resistance' safeguards the self so that the analysis ma y continue. The motivation for resistance' is to protect the self so t hat it will be ready to resume development when a safe, attuned selfob ject environment is available. In the case presented the patient besee ched the analyst to refrain from speaking. The analyst's dilemma is di scussed and the resolution of the resistance is described.