Karnac Books

From the beginning of psychoanalysis, there have been those considered suited to psychoanalytic therapy and those not. Those ‘suited’ could dream and associate as well as understand and accept the analyst’s symbolic interpretations. Those ‘unsuited’ were either unreceptive to treatment or were psychotic and it was feared that analysis could worsen an already fragile situation. Throughout his decades of clinical experience, Franco De Masi expanded his work to treat patients considered difficult to analyse. By doing so, he went beyond the territory of the dynamic unconscious into territory where psychic processes outside awareness reside. This inspiring book outlines his journey in two parts. Part I looks at certain aspects of traditional therapeutic work for ‘analysable’ patients. De Masi discusses the relationship between psychoanalytic theories and models; how the analytic perspective of childhood life has changed over the past few decades; the concept of psychic truth; the duration of therapy; analytic therapy in old age; and the concept of the superego. Part II looks beyond the dynamic unconscious and highlights the existence of mental states inaccessible to traditional psychoanalytic methods. Here, De Masi investigates the psychotic mind and unknown spaces. Building on the revolutionary roots of psychoanalysis, De Masi broadens psychoanalytic practice to include psychic suffering hitherto considered unreachable. Case studies throughout the book illustrate the psychoanalytic theory, making it the ideal read for practising clinicians looking to expand their practice and academics interested in the efficacy of psychoanalysis.

Socioanalysis is the study of groups, organisations, and society using a systems psychoanalytic framework: looking beneath the surface (and the obvious) to see the underlying dynamics and how these dynamics are interconnected.This book examines several of the methodologies used in socioanalytic work. Even though the beginnings of socioanalytic investigation lay in the mid-twentieth century, a broad look across several methodologies has not been done before despite separate publications dealing with particular methods. In addition, several new methods have been developed in recent years, which the present work incorporates.Connecting all these methods is their aim of 'tapping into' the dynamic operation of what the author calls 'the associative unconscious' within and between social systems. The associative unconscious is the unconscious at a systemic level. Each of the methods discussed in this book accesses the associative unconscious in different ways. They help bring hidden dynamics to the surface for people to see how they influence, aid, or inhibit their activities. Excitingly, they can show what we know at some level but have not yet been able to use. And, because the methods explore social systems, they can contribute to new collaborative endeavours for thinking the future.