208: Writing Descriptions of Psychoanalytic Process II
Instructors
Kathy Berkman, MD
Lynne Jacobs, MD
March 3 – March 24, 2025 – REVISED DATES
Mondays, 7:00 – 8:25 pm
Co-requisites
Candidates must have at least one case in supervised psychoanalysis to be eligible to take second year courses.
Course Description
In this course candidates will be asked to write descriptions of analytic process at work. The focus will be on discrete moments in an analysis, in written portrayals of the interaction between analyst and patient. While considering the transference and countertransference, vignettes can include the observation and interpretation of a resistance, the patient’s response; and the analyst’s thoughts about what transpired. The goal is to sharpen the skills needed to make the writing vibrant and clear, and thus to help the reader understand what the analyst is thinking. Guidelines for annual summaries will also be discussed. Second Year students only.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:
1. Identify the components of writing case reports.
2. Sharpen the skills needed to present written material in a cogent, narrative form.
3. Refine the writing technique to help the reader comprehend the case and understand how the analyst thinks about it.
Evaluation Method
Each student’s participation in class discussion and demonstration of understanding of the course objectives, readings and clinical material is assessed in a written evaluation by the instructor(s).
These articles are protected under relevant copyright regulations. They are available in the New York Psychoanalytic Society & Institute Electronic Reserve for your convenience, and for your personal use.
READINGS ARE NOT YET CONFIRMED.
I. Introduction
CLASS 1: March 3, 2025
REQUIRED READINGS
Bernstein, S.B. (2008). Writing about the Psychoanalytic Process. Psychoanal. Inq., 28(4):433-449.
Lister, E., Kravis, N., Sandberg, L., Halpern, J.K., Cabaniss, D.L. and Singer, M.B. (2008). “I Write to Know What I Think”: A Four-Year Writing Curriculum. J. Amer. Psychoanal. Assn., 56:1231-1247.
SUPPLEMENTAL READINGS
Altstein, R. (2016). Finding Words: How the Process and Products of Psychoanalytic Writing Can Channel the Therapeutic Action of the Very Treatment It Sets Out to Describe. Psychoanal. Persp., 13(1):51-70.
Aron, L. (2016). Ethical Considerations in Psychoanalytic Writing Revisited. Psychoanal. Persp., 13(3):267-290.
Gaitanidis, A. (2011). The importance of style in the writing of psychoanalytic case studies. Psychodynamic Practice, 17(2):175-185.
Levin, C.B. (2020). How Did It Happen? Writing—A Royal Road to Becoming/Being an Analyst (Through the Lens of Complexity Theory). Psychoanal. Inq., 40(2):147-154.