Repetition: From compulsion to structure
Item
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Title
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Repetition: From compulsion to structure
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Identifier
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d_2009_2013:7a7c72ecdb19:11439
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identifier
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11877
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Creator
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Halfon, Sibel,
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Contributor
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Lissa Weinstein
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Date
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2012
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Clinical psychology | psychoanalytic process research | repetition | representation | symbolization
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Abstract
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This work studied the different functions of repetition in the course of a long-term psychoanalysis. In empirical psychoanalytic research, repetition has been viewed as a maladaptive behavioral structure or speech disfluency. However, it was argued that repetition is a unique function of the mind that has various uses. Repetition can manifest as dominance of inertia; it can also be associated with traumatic anxiety and help develop a structure to alleviate the impact of trauma. In addition, some repetitions are in the service of difference where they modify and enrich the psyche.;In an effort to study the linguistic expressions of these different kinds of repetitive phenomena, this study identified the patient's use of fixed repetitions, where the same words were used over and over again to narrate an experience. It was proposed that an increase in the use of such fixed repetitions would point to an inability to create new meaning. In contrast, when the patient is able to reach an evocative, vivid and specific representation, the use of fixed repetitions was expected to decrease. A further goal of the study was to explore the relationship between repetition and defensive processes. It was expected that an increase in the use of fixed repetitions bespeaks of a failure in defensive strategies.;With these multiple objectives in mind, the transcripts of ten audio-taped psychoanalytic sessions were coded for the exact repetition of verbs. The language of verbs was expected to capture repetitions used with intention. Computerized linguistic measures of referential activity, which is a measure of imagistic language, as well as computerized linguistic measures of intellectualization and negation were used in order to capture patient's representational language and defensive processes.;As expected, the results showed a general negative correlation between fixed repetitions and representational speech. No consistent pattern was found between repetition and the measured defensive processes. The results were discussed through a clinical qualitative analysis. The study marked repetition as a significant measure that is able differentiate between sessions in terms of their affective and symbolic qualities.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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2009_2013.csv
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degree
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Ph.D.
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Program
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Psychology
