THE SOUL OR SUBSTANTIVE SELF AS EXPERIENCER, ACTUALIZER, AND REPRESENTATIVE IN PSYCHOANALYTIC-THEORY

Numerous prominent psychoanalytic theories of the self are reviewed an d several problems with these conceptualizations are discussed. The es sential problem highlighted is that various psychoanalytic theorists h ave identified self with three different conceptual categories: (a) se lf-representations, (b) subjective experiences, and (c) capacities. Th ese categories have not yet been integrated in any meaningful way leav ing psychoanalytic theorists devoid of a coherent theory of the self a nd any notion of agency. In light of these problems, an attempt is mad e to synthesize a broad range of psychoanalytic theories of the self. It is proposed that the term self should be reserved for the embodied nonphysical aspect of a person to prevent terminological confusion wit h the idea of self as an intrapsychic agency. Furthermore, it is propo sed that the notion of the self as a substance accounts for all three conceptual categories in that the three things of which a substance is a unity (parts, properties, and capacities) correspond precisely with the three conceptual categories with which psychoanalytic theorists h ave tended to identify self. The substantive self is viewed as the thi ng that possesses and unites its subjective experiences, self-represen tations, and capacities. In other words, the self is the experiencer, actualizer, and representative. The view of self as substance has impl ications for therapy in that it places a focus on continuity and agenc y.