Four questions. A discussion of "Introjection and the Idealizing Transference"

Abstract

A discussion of "introjection and the Idealizing Transference" by Theodore L. Dorpat, M.D. The analysis of a patient with a narcissistic disorder is the basis for Dr. Dorpat's thesis that introjections (i.e., object representations) of the analyst as a real person are the basis for subsequent identifications resulting in changes in the self. I disagree with his characterization of the material as representing an idealizing transference. I believe it is better understood as an example of an alter ego or twinship transference. His material demonstrates the crucial role of the analyst as a self-object in the transference, rather than as a real person. The hypothesis that a patient changes as a result of identification with the analyst suggests possible countertransference pitfalls: a rationalized expression of the analyst's unconscious archaic fantasies or the enhancement of the analyst's self-esteem. The perception of such identifications could reflect the personal experience of the analysand who seeks to acquire the characteristics of the training analyst, or they could be apparent rather than real, the result of other therapeutic factors. Dr. Dorpat's paper provides an excellent opportunity for consideration of these issues, but, at present, such introjection-internalization sequences cannot be accepted as scientific formulations.