101: Writing Descriptions of Psychoanalytic Process I
Instructors
Jennifer Stuart, Ph.D.
January 26 – March 9, 2026
Mondays, 8:35 – 10:00 pm
No class: 2/16
If you are attending the course remotely, please click here
Course Description
In this course, candidates will be asked to write brief vignettes of analytically informed process. The focus will be on being able to identify and then write about discrete moments in sessions in which the interaction between analyst and patient is illuminated, so that aspects of transference and countertransference are elucidated and communicated to a reader. The goal is to sharpen the skills needed to make the writing vibrant and clear, and to bring the reader into the analyst’s thoughts and process in an experience-near way. Guidelines for annual summaries will also be discussed.
Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
Evaluation Method
Each student’s participation in class discussion and his or her demonstration of understanding of the course objectives and reading material is assessed in a written evaluation by the instructor(s).
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.
If you are attending class remotely, please click here
READINGS FOR 2026 ARE CONFIRMED.
CLASS 1: January 26, 2026
Prepare in advance for presentation in class:
First writing exercise – describe a person (see Writing Exercises, separate document). Please send your written piece – about one double-spaced page –to your instructors and classmates by 10 pm on Sunday, January 25; and be prepared to read aloud in class (see Logistics, separate document).
REQUIRED READINGS
Bernstein, S. (2024). The process of case writing: A fourth pillar of analytic training. J. Amer. Psychoanal. Assn., 72 (2): 267-294.
CLASS 2: February 2, 2026
Prepare in advance for presentation in class:
Second writing exercise – brief clinical vignette. As with first exercise, please consult Writing Exercises and Logistics. Please send your written piece – two to four double-spaced pages, to start – to instructors and classmates by 10 pm on Friday, January 30.
REQUIRED READINGS
McLaughlin, J.T. (1991). Clinical and theoretical aspects of enactment. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 39:595-614.
CLASS 3: February 9, 2026 and CLASS 4: February 23, 2026
Prepare in advance for presentation in class:
Second writing exercise – brief clinical vignette. Revise, extend, resubmit.
CLASS 5: March 2, 2026 and CLASS 6: March 9, 2026
Prepare in advance for presentation in class:
Third writing exercise – longer narrative. Again, please consult Writing Exercises and Logistics. Please send your written piece to me and classmates by 10 pm on the Friday before each class meeting. Revise, extend, resubmit.
SUPPLEMENTARY READINGS
Ackerman, S. (2018). (How) Can We Write about Our Patients?. J. Amer. Psychoanal. Assn., 66(1):59-81.
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. Perspect., 13(1):51-70.
Aron, L. (2016). Ethical Considerations in Psychoanalytic Writing Revisited. Psychoanal. Perspect., 13(3):267-290.
Bernstein, S. (2008). Writing about the Psychoanalytic Process. Psychoanalytic Inquiry, 28:433-449.
Grier, F. (2023). Editorial. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 104: 981-985.
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.
Stuart, J. (2024) “No Mortal Can Keep a Secret”: Reading Freud’s Cases as Preparation for Candidates’ First Efforts to Write About Their Patients. Psychoanalytic Inquiry, 44:194-209.