Infant Observation

This paper investigates the phenomenon of rhythm in the case of early mother-infant interactions. To accomplish this task, I will first draw on phenomenological and psychoanalytical sources that address the issue of rhythmicity. Therefore, Henri Maldiney's comprehensive interpretation of rhythm will represent a building block for my thesis, alongside theories from certain psychoanalytical authors, such as Donald Winnicott, Frances Tustin, and Daniel Stern. Marc Richir's theory of the exchange of gazes between mother and infant will be also presented, because in Richir's thematization, one could link the issue of rhythm with that of the sublime and the phenomenological awakening of the infant to the world. In his phenomenology, Marc Richir connects the issue of the sublime with that of the abyss. In contrast, Henri Maldiney states explicitly that rhythm is the structure that renders possible the encounter with chaos without falling forever. This will lead me to Frances Tustin's theory of the "rhythm of safety", under which I will be trying to demonstrate that rhythm is the essential feature of the infant's feeling of basic security. Nevertheless, Daniel Stern's theory of affect attunement and the dynamic forms of vitality will prove to be crucial for our argumentation, because these core concepts, which he proposed throughout his work reveal once again that rhythm is a pervasive feature of virtually every authentic intersubjective encounter.

Informed by the psychoanalytic approach of infant observation, this paper discusses the effect of classroom observation conducted by a school counsellor as an assessment and therapeutic intervention for classroom breakdown at a school for Japanese-Koreans. It is argued that the observation provided evidence that the classroom breakdown was caused not only by the pupils but also by institutional problems of conflicting priorities within the faculty. These issues seemed to indicate that the school for Japanese-Koreans was facing collapse. However, this intervention also enabled pupils to recognise a strong maternal aspect of the school; and consequently they fluctuated between the depressive position and manic defence. Lastly, the difficulties for the school counsellor in trying to address the root causes of the classroom breakdown are discussed.

Informed by the psychoanalytic approach of infant observation, this paper discusses the effect of classroom observation conducted by a school counsellor as an assessment and therapeutic intervention for classroom breakdown at a school for Japanese-Koreans. It is argued that the observation provided evidence that the classroom breakdown was caused not only by the pupils but also by institutional problems of conflicting priorities within the faculty. These issues seemed to indicate that the school for Japanese-Koreans was facing collapse. However, this intervention also enabled pupils to recognise a strong maternal aspect of the school; and consequently they fluctuated between the depressive position and manic defence. Lastly, the difficulties for the school counsellor in trying to address the root causes of the classroom breakdown are discussed.

Observations of a mother and her newborn infant form part of the curriculum on many psychoanalytic trainings and post-graduate courses, yet there has been little systematic research into observed mothers' perspectives. This study aims to explore mothers' motivations and experiences of being observed, in order to help inform ethical considerations, both around the practice of observation and the possible needs of mothers being observed. Twelve mothers were interviewed, all of whom had been observed as part of the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families postgraduate courses. A qualitative Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of the interviews revealed the complexity of mothers' interests and of their feelings towards the observers, as well as the mixed and emotionally intense experience of being observed during early motherhood. For some mothers, this experience led to an increased capacity to reflect, helping them to observe themselves, their babies and their relationship with them. However, some mothers described a different experience, in which they felt constantly scrutinized, and found themselves performing for the observer in a way that felt unnatural. The findings are discussed in relation to psychoanalytic theories of early motherhood. This paper concludes by considering their implications for the practice of parent-infant observations.

This document is the published version of 'Struggling with cultural prejudice while observing babies: Socio-centric and egocentric positions'. It is reproduced here with the kind permission of Karnac Books. You are encouraged to consult the remainder of this publication if you wish to cite from it.

Work Discussion, developed at the Tavistock Clinic in London, is a specific psychoanalytical method which is used in order to stimulate, encourage and support the development of a wide range of psychoanalytic skills and attitudes of relevance for psychotherapy and related fields of psychosocial work. For this aim Work Discussion is an element of several psychoanalytically based Master's degree programmes. In the paper, it is discussed how the use of Work Discussion can be evaluated and the impact of Work Discussion on the development of psychoanalytic skills and attitudes can be investigated. With special respect to two Master's degree programmes offered in Vienna, it is shown that teachers ranked Work Discussion as the most important element of a psychagogic Master's programme and how Work Discussion seminar papers have been analysed in order to evaluate the professional developments of psychotherapeutic candidates of two psychoanalytic training institutes.

Work Discussion, developed at the Tavistock Clinic in London, is a specific psychoanalytical method which is used in order to stimulate, encourage and support the development of a wide range of psychoanalytic skills and attitudes of relevance for psychotherapy and related fields of psychosocial work. For this aim Work Discussion is an element of several psychoanalytically based Master's degree programmes. In the paper, it is discussed how the use of Work Discussion can be evaluated and the impact of Work Discussion on the development of psychoanalytic skills and attitudes can be investigated. With special respect to two Master's degree programmes offered in Vienna, it is shown that teachers ranked Work Discussion as the most important element of a psychagogic Master's programme and how Work Discussion seminar papers have been analysed in order to evaluate the professional developments of psychotherapeutic candidates of two psychoanalytic training institutes.

In mother-infant therapies, sole reference to the psychoanalytic model can lead to a therapeutic impasse or theoretical inconsistencies. Treatment is greatly enhanced by the dialectic created when one applies Esther Bick's method of infant observation as a framework for thinking and practice. Based on a detailed analysis of the same clinical example, the article examines the different types of therapeutic intervention (ranging from those that draw on infant observation to psychoanalytic interpretation) that can be used over the course of the treatment, but also in the moment-to-moment shifts that occur in a session. This dual theoretical and clinical combination provides a specific framework for thinking and intervening that proves to be clinically coherent and theoretically pertinent in these types of treatment.

(my own, those of my patients-each of whom might have competing interests for my attention-those of my employers and broader societal concerns). Psychiatry's Contract with Society seeks to interrogate the 'contract' between two abstract entities, 'society' and 'psychiatry', neither of which is clearly defined. An intriguing chapter by Robin Downie interrogates the concept of a profession from a philosophical viewpoint-quoting Bernard Shaw's nice put-down that 'All professions are conspiracies against the laity'. Richard Cruess and Sylvia Cruess provide strong chapters on the teaching of professionalism and the (metaphorical) social contract between psychiatry and society. Others address, with varying degrees of success, very important issues relating to the economics of mental healthcare, evolving regulatory frameworks and the psychiatrist as leader and manager. Refreshingly, these books provide food for thought rather than definitive answers to highly complex issues. The questions raised sent me on a search through the internet and my bookshelves. I would really like to think that the ability for moral reflection and intellectual curiosity are the twin hallmarks of the professional.

This paper presents an observation of a neonate (seven hours old) with his young mother who is uncertain and slow to respond to her baby. Despite his mother's lack of interest, the baby musters every form of behaviour that could draw in and contact his mother. The perseverance, the specificity and the discrimination of this baby's behaviour are very notable. An instinctual phenomenon between mother and baby (interactional synchrony), which the baby 'attempts' to set in motion, is put forward as the earliest protomental relation; one that brings mother and baby into juxtaposition for further identification processes to develop. The nature of this protomental synchrony is explored. 'The ego is first arid foremost a bodily ego; it is not mmly n surfacr Pntity, hut is i&srlf 1hP pjection of a surface; i.e. is ultimately dm'ved from bodily sensnlions, chigly from thosr springing,from the surface of the body. ' (Freud, 1923)

This paper presents an observation of a neonate (seven hours old) with his young mother who is uncertain and slow to respond to her baby. Despite his mother's lack of interest, the baby musters every form of behaviour that could draw in and contact his mother. The perseverance, the specificity and the discrimination of this baby's behaviour are very notable. An instinctual phenomenon between mother and baby (interactional synchrony), which the baby 'attempts' to set in motion, is put forward as the earliest protomental relation; one that brings mother and baby into juxtaposition for further identification processes to develop. The nature of this protomental synchrony is explored. 'The ego is first arid foremost a bodily ego; it is not mmly n surfacr Pntity, hut is i&srlf 1hP pjection of a surface; i.e. is ultimately dm'ved from bodily sensnlions, chigly from thosr springing,from the surface of the body. ' (Freud, 1923)

This article demonstrates that baby observation according to Esther Bick's method is a valuable tool to identify and contain the crisis of the post-partum period and offers a solid reinforcement for inter-agency practice. This method is used during the routine weighing of the baby and also during brief work in therapeutic groups in the Maternal-Infant Protection Service (PMI). It is fruitfully combined with more objective approaches such as the measures used for screening maternal depression and the state of withdrawal of the baby (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale [EPDS] and L'Alarme Détresse Bébé [ADBB]). Strategies such as these between perinatal psychiatry and primary health care practitioners may face the public health system with a challenge and help parents and babies to successfully negotiate a critical period.

The authors hypothesize that the child’s psychic withdrawal
is a potential precursor to the social withdrawal called
‘hikikomori’, a phenomenon frequently observed among
adolescents and young adults. They also hypothesize a
continuum between psychic withdrawal, social withdrawal
and the ‘psychic retreats’ by John Steiner. The authors
investigate very early psychic withdrawal and its potential
link to the development of social withdrawal. Two
observations collected using the Infant Observation and
Young Child Observation method provided essential
support. Children with premonitory signs of psychic
withdrawal observed when they were very young were
contacted years later for new observations. The aim was to
test the hypothesis that the mental and social functioning
mechanisms observed were maintained over time,
hindering the children’s lines of development. In both
cases, it is shown that over the years, precursor signs of
mental withdrawal can be traced in the non-spontaneous
modes of interaction with peers, with an adaptation to the
environment that, especially in a child, seems to rely on the
family context and home to avoid contact with others. The
article provides clues as to how psychic withdrawal fuels
social withdrawal and can contribute to the construction of
internal personality organizations that lead to self-reclusion
called hikikomori.

Gli autori ipotizzano che il ritiro psichico del bambino sia un potenziale precursore del ritiro sociale chiamato "hikikomori", un fenomeno frequentemente osservato tra gli adolescenti e i giovani adulti. Essi ipotizzano inoltre un continuum tra il ritiro psichico, il ritiro sociale e i "rifugi della mente” di John Steiner. Gli autori hanno indagato il ritiro psichico molto precoce e il suo potenziale legame con lo sviluppo del ritiro sociale. Due osservazioni raccolte con il metodo dell'Infant Observation e della Young Child Observation hanno fornito un supporto essenziale all'indagine. I bambini con segni premonitori di ritiro psichico osservati quando erano molto piccoli sono stati contattati anni dopo per nuove osservazioni. L'obiettivo era verificare l'ipotesi che i meccanismi di funzionamento mentale e sociale osservati si fossero mantenuti nel tempo, ostacolando le linee di sviluppo dei bambini. In entrambi i casi viene mostrato come negli anni i segnali precursori di ritiro psichico possano essere rintracciabili nelle modalità di interazione non spontanee con i coetanei, con un adattamento all’ambiente che soprattutto in un bambino sembra affidarsi al contesto familiare e alla casa per evitare il contatto con gli altri. L'articolo fornisce indizi su come il ritiro psichico alimenti il ritiro sociale, e può contribuire alla costruzione di organizzazioni interne di personalità che portano all’autoreclusione chiamata hikikomori.

Per una pedagogia del corpo in movimento SOMMARIO Il saggio sviluppa in senso pedagogico una riflessione intorno alla danza come luogo di pensiero e modalità esistentiva che, a partire da alcuni aspetti del pensiero filosofico di María Zambrano e Jean-Luc Nancy, per ricongiungersi al pensiero deweyano dell'arte nell'educazione, rivela una dimensione del fare e del sentire del corpo danzante che si estende a tutti gli ambiti dell'agire educativo. La danza cui si fa riferimento è il "muovere" in senso originario, come possibilità-capacità-necessità umana di emozionare, toccare ed essere toccati da tutto ciò che ci circonda. In analogia con il corpo tattile e cinestetico del danzatore, si vuole delineare una nuova figura di educatore che mettendo in atto un pensiero danzante sviluppi, nella relazione educativa, una presenza vitale, sensibile e recettiva, nella consapevolezza di un corpo pensante e vigile, capace di sospensione, movimento e stasi. La dimensione estetico sensoriale è quindi posta al centro dell'agire educativo, e la danza, come fare materico-corporeo, diviene elemento imprescindibile e fondante dell'educazione, insieme a tutti i linguaggi dell'arte.

Translated by Crispina Sanders The Mother-Baby Kangaroo method used in Colombia is described with extracts from 'participant observations' of the author. It is suggested that this method of constant skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby, where the baby is sufficiently healthy to be able to breathe independently and to feed from the breast, and where mother has support, allows the baby to complete the gestation period and to continue to develop in an external extension of life in the womb. The author links her work in the programme with Bion's concept of container-contained, extending it to the idea of the risk to emotional survival becoming a risk to the container-contained function.

Participant observation can vary considerably depending on the theoretical inspiration, nature/design of the research and relationship researcher-subjects. In the ethnographic study developed in Brazil (July 2009-August 2010), among other techniques used, Bick's observation (rooted in psychoanalysis) was introduced and adapted. The aim was to understand processes involved in the communication between professionals at a Family Health Strategy and mothers/dyads (mother-baby) about breast feeding. Based on this study, a sandwich project was designed: to develop a deeper understanding of Bick's theoretical and practical approach, its relevance for research and broader applications; to promote a transdisciplinary dialogue between anthropological and psychoanalytic observation. As a student at Tavistock (UK) I attended seminars and developed observations in another variation of the setting. Aware of the ethics of the method, Tavistock has been widening its' scope, not seeing it as a unique model, but a comprehensive way of thinking human uniqueness, facilitating the researcher's capacity for self-analysis and a diversity of applications. Although my reflections are preliminary, the potential of Bick's to innovate research methods cannot be ignored. In the contemporary field of mother-child health we do not face a single concept of science, but new/renewed paradigms of thought and diversity of methods.

In this paper I bear witness not only to my own childhood trauma, but also to that of an infant, Lucy, whom I observed as part of my psychoanalytical training, and a toddler, John, whose traumatic experience of separation from his mother was filmed in the 1950s by the researchers, James and Joyce Robertson.  The Robertsons eventually succeeded in alerting authorities to the trauma of child separations in residential day care nurseries as routinely occurred during this time.  I then link my experience of infant observation with my participation as a psychoanalytic candidate within the Melbourne Branch of the Australian Psychoanalytical Society and explore aspects of my family history that have run parallel to my traumatic dismissal/separation from the psychoanalytic training.  In this way I use the autobiographical to explore theoretical aspects of the experience of individual trauma, and its links to history and memory.

The patient in the treatment of troubled mother-infant relationships is understood to be the lived relationship between mother and infant with the infant being an active participant in the relationship. As the infant is communicating in a non-verbal mode, a treatment medium is used that allows for both the active non-verbal contribution of the infant and the contribution of the mother, thus enabling both to work as their own therapists. Two different types of treatment modalities were combined: a psychoanalytically informed individual psychotherapy of mother and baby and a non-verbal approach of mother-infant dance therapy groups. An introductory overview of dance therapy specific to mother and infant is included as well as one case vignette and one case study. That it was the mother-infant dyad's physically meaningful experiences in the dance therapy group which acted as a catalyst for change became evident. The verbal treatment modality, on the other hand, was the essential understanding, metabolizing and containing space that sustained and consolidated these changes.

Royal Children's and Royal Women's Hospitals Melbourne In reply to the commentaries by Susan C. Vaughan, Teresa Russo, and Dimitra Bekos on "Understanding the Sexuality of Infants" we concur with Vaughan's noting, in her playfully creative response, a relative absence from the psychoanalytic literature of sexuality, even now, of the bodily realities of infants and parents in the 1st year of life. Teresa Russo and Dimitra Bekos in exploring the relevance of our paper for the work of an infant therapist challenge us to think further why the bodily sexuality of infants is also relatively absent in accounts of infant observation, and in clinical work, both in a transference/countertransference dimension and in descriptions of technique.

Royal Children's and Royal Women's Hospitals Melbourne Infants' innate joyful sexuality in the 1st year, as well as parental sexuality, are relatively neglected in models of clinical work with infants. We offer a developmental perspective that pays close attention to the body of the infant, in contrast to some psychoanalytic theories that view infantile sexuality as phantasy. With greater awareness of the infant's body as sexual, therapists could develop a more resonant countertransference and become more aware of the experiences of the infant as subject. Some symptomatic difficulties are described, and the relevance for psychotherapeutic intervention with adults is indicated. The sexuality of the ordinary infant in the "good-enough" infant-parent relationship has not been given significant recognition, either in the traditional psychoanalytic models, with the overemphasis on phantasy, or in models of clinical work with infants. Acknowledging the baby as a person with his or her own body, sensuality and sexuality, is vitally important in order to better understand ordinary development and deepen clinical work, and captures something, we hope, of the joyful erotism, of Maurice Sendak's (1970) naked baby tumbling through the night. Arising out of clinical work with infants and their families, influenced by the work of Winnicott, who regarded the baby as a subject of intervention, there is a need to highlight further critical dimensions of the infant and infant-parent relationship, namely, the essential sexuality of the infant. The topics of sexuality, sex, and gender in the 1st year are explored from a confluence of perspectives from psychoanalytic work with adult patients, infant clinical work, infant research, and psychoanalytic infant observation, and whether what has seemed important in the classical instinct theories applies in light of our own infant mental work. What we describe emerges in most caregiver relationships, most often with mother and father. Eroticism and the biology of sexuality, neurophysiological stimulation, and psycho-physiological response underpin the normal erotism necessary for adult sexuality and reproduction; for the infant, the pleasure of feeding and the sensuality of skin and genitals underpin enjoyable sexuality and the sense of self and self-esteem, provided that bodily excitement in the erotogenic zones is not too overwhelming Correspondence should be addressed to Frances Thomson

Observations of a mother and her newborn infant form part of the curriculum on many psychoanalytic trainings and postgraduate courses, yet there has been little systematic research into observed mothers' perspectives. This study aims to explore mothers' motivations and experiences of being observed, in order to help inform ethical considerations, both around the practice of observation and the possible needs of mothers being observed. Twelve mothers were interviewed, all of whom had been observed as part of the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families postgraduate courses. A qualitative Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of the interviews revealed the complexity of mothers' interests and of their feelings towards the observers, as well as the mixed and emotionally intense experience of being observed during early motherhood. For some mothers, this experience led to an increased capacity to reflect, helping them to observe themselves, their babies and their relationship with them. However, some mothers described a different experience, in which they felt constantly scrutinized, and found themselves performing for the observer in a way that felt unnatural. The findings are discussed in relation to psychoanalytic theories of early motherhood. This paper concludes by considering their implications for the practice of parent-infant observations.

The late Francis Tustin, a prominent child psychoanalyst, distinguished herself in her field with her theoretical framework for pathological mental states in autism. Initially, she proposed a hypothesis of 'normal primary autism', referring to a normal stage in early infant development which corresponded with the pathological form of primary autism (Tustin 1972). However, as theoretical perspectives progressed in medicine and psychology, Tustin recognized that this view could obscure our understanding of processes associated with clinically defined autism. Therefore, with admirable intellectual integrity, she later revised this view (Tustin 1991). Nevertheless, Tustin's theoretical, psychoanalytic perspectives on autism have not only remained influential in the analytic treatment of people with autism, but also of those who present aspects of autism from the background of different pathologies. Encounters with Autistic States consists of a series of contributions by 20 of Tustin's peers. As is to be expected from a psychoanalytic work, it neither is, nor tries to be, a prescriptive book. Each contribution discusses a particular theme from Tustin's observations, using excerpts from case studies to illustrate how these ideas influenced the analyses. Throughout the book, the discussion is woven loosely rather than structured. Some chapters relate directly to children and adults who have been formally diagnosed with autism, and these provide some particularly interesting insights into psychoanalytic interpretations of autism. Other chapters apply analytic interpretations of autistic features or 'states' to individuals with other pathologies. Those holding a distinct clinical view of autism may be at odds with this approach and could feel that the clinical definition of autism is rendered meaningless by this perspective. However, the first chapter (Maiello, pp. 1-22) traces how Tustin's thinking on autism evolved from her belief in 'normal primary autism' in early infancy to her later view of autism as a distinct clinical condition reflecting aberrant development. It is evident from this that, although Tustin's thinking was rooted in the psychoanalytic tradition, drawing on the ideas of prominent analysts such as Klein, Bion and Winnicott, she also took into account ideas and research on autism from other disciplines, including experimental developmental psychology and neurobiology. Therefore, acknowledging the distinctiveness of autism does not appear to be an issue here. Neither does the application of interpretations of 'autistic states' to features from other pathologies seem out of place considering the current recognition that many features of autism overlap with those present in other conditions. The psychoanalytic descriptions of autistic states provide some interesting insights into this therapeutic approach to people with autism. A frequently occurring theme concerns Tustin's ideas on 'autistic objects'. In essence, she proposed that, for the 'encapsulated' autistic child, autistic objects provide a tangible sense of distinction from

In this article, we draw on LORENZER's method in our analysis of a single case data extract derived from a research project generating data through the Tavistock Infant Observation tradition. The partial case analysis demonstrates our methodological approach and explores conceptual territory at the meeting point of German and British psychoanalytically-informed traditions. Our scenic composition synthesised key elements of one observation visit to the home of a young black first-time mother in London. LORENZER's advice to the cultural analyst to explore what irritates or provokes in the scene has something in common with the way that observers in the infant observation tradition use their emotional responses and process their experience. The aim is to provide access to what WINNICOTT described as an intermediate area of experience and LORENZER considered "inbetween". We explore this area through two provocations in our scenic composition. Using these data examples we ask: is it possible to conceptualise collective, societal-cultural unconscious processes (LORENZER's gesellschaftlich-kollektives Unbewußtes, 1986) within this intermediate area? Specifically, how is racial and class difference present in the scene? How can it be located through scenic understanding of research data? And why does it matter?

This article reports on a study that uses the method of infant observation to investigate emotional processes among young children and their professional carers in a nursery for 0- to three-year-olds. The article focuses on the effects of political regulations and reforms in the area of public daycare, which have a deep impact on the emotional lives of both children and their carers. First, a dominant political and regulatory language, in which learning is the dominant concept, plays the role of making the basic emotional needs of both children and carers invisible. In this way, some of the most obvious questions and concerns about young children and their care needs are rendered collectively unconscious. Second, decades of spending reductions (‘effectivisation’) in the field of public daycare have put an increased pressure on both carers and children, who are forced to try to have their fundamental needs met in a situation of an historically high rate of children per staff member. ...

O artigo apresenta o método Bick de observação da relação mãe-bebê como uma ferramenta clínica a partir do relato de uma experiência de aplicação à investigação psicanalítica da relação mãe-bebê com síndrome de Down. Discutimos o potencial terapêutico do método, baseado na função continente do observador. O caso apresentado evidencia a postura empática da observadora que, por meio de uma atitude silenciosa e sutil, oferece um holding para a condição de desamparo vivida pela mãe.

In most books and papers about the separation process of infants and young children, the focus is on the relationship between parents and children. In this Viennese research about toddlers' transitions from home care to day care, the impact of relational experiences became increasingly evident in the way young children experience, and work through, separation. Against that background observational material is used to describe interactions between observed children and caregivers as well as interactions between the children and their peers. The paper also discusses ways in which peer relationships were helpful or not for toddlers struggling with primitive anxieties and other strong feelings. The paper goes on to consider young child observation used as a single-case research tool in order to develop a more general theory. It takes into account endeavours to develop a theory already undertaken by Esther Bick and in many subsequent publications where observational material is discussed. Methodological investigations of this issue, however, are rare. The authors argue that the acceptability of using the Tavistock Observation Model as a research tool is supported by discussing its methodology.

To cite this Article Datler, Wilfried, Trunkenpolz, Kathrin and Lazar, Ross A.(2009) 'An exploration of the quality of life in nursing homes: the use of single case and organisational observation in a research project', Infant Observation, 12: 1, 63-82 To link to this Article:

The babies can also demonstrate their maturing capacities to gain mastery of small tasks. All those interactive lift-the-flap books like Pat The Bunny invite us to 'put your finger in mommy's ring' and 'play peekaboo with Paul'. Toddlers joyously imitate the sounds and antics of barnyard animals. Taken together, all activities with books including mouthing, dropping, stacking, piling and playing with them contribute to a baby's experiential knowledge of books. Research shows how hearing a variety of words daily from its parents significantly enhances the brain development of infants. Babies who are not read to as infants and preschoolers, enter school with a major deficit. The 'reading' babies are so far ahead and will continue to grow that the 'nonreading' babies really struggle to keep up. Perhaps, then, this is the key to making school successful for all of our children: get parents to read with their babies. For more than 20 years I have taken Ferdinand and myriad other books into Read To Me programmes to open up new and marvelous stories and art for readers learning to share books with their babies. I observe the closeness of mothers with their babies, and see the pleasure each of them takes in this richly rewarding experience. There is nothing to replace it. Second only to feeding, reading is a major resource to help raise their babies. The visceral surprise of being contacted by my baby observation family has passed. Not only am I reconnected to the mother and daughters, but also to one of the richest parts of my training experiences. Their Facebook friendships also prompted me to consider the deep impact baby observation has had on my personal and professional life. What a generous gift.

range of emotions and feelings, and to be mindful of our own, and what may be stirred up in the process of becoming a parent, or in the care of young babies and children. Although something of her style may be thought of as old fashioned, her thesis and her ideas remain totally up to date, and are only given more validity by the recent advances in neuroscience. Whilst there may have been social changes in the last 40 years in the ways that children are brought up, and to the structure of the family, what remains a given, and what Harris is successful in articulating is the complexity of emotional relating. Thus the great value of this book lies in bringing to conscious awareness the notion of an inner world, and the richness, subtlety and complexity of the interplay of the inner worlds of infant and carer which shape the minds and personalities of all babies and young children.

In this paper I have suggested that the mother-child dyad is the foundation for integrity between the psychic self and the physical self, and the capacity of these to relate to the external environment. I have also argued that the development of language and symbol are creative agents in the development of consciousness in the young infant, and that the emergence of language and symbol are an expression of the opening of a potential space which allows differentiation from the mother and facilitates the infant's ability to distinguish fantasy from fact and self from other.

Royal Children's and Royal Women's Hospitals Melbourne In reply to the commentaries by Susan C. Vaughan, Teresa Russo, and Dimitra Bekos on "Understanding the Sexuality of Infants" we concur with Vaughan's noting, in her playfully creative response, a relative absence from the psychoanalytic literature of sexuality, even now, of the bodily realities of infants and parents in the 1st year of life. Teresa Russo and Dimitra Bekos in exploring the relevance of our paper for the work of an infant therapist challenge us to think further why the bodily sexuality of infants is also relatively absent in accounts of infant observation, and in clinical work, both in a transference/countertransference dimension and in descriptions of technique.

This paper discusses the importance of infant observation in the teaching of work discussion on an MA course for teachers. The paper gives an account of the structure of the work discussion module over the two years of the course, and describes the way in which the discipline of infant observation is a vital tool for seminar leaders. The paper emphasises the importance of creating a frame within which interactions in the workplace can be described, and links this with the structure of infant observation, where experience is similarly framed and then reflected on. The paper also suggests that the developmental flow of the course itself makes use of seminar leaders' experience of observation, where development is a central feature.

The subjective experience of infants is seldom considered in research directly concerning them. Commonly, infants are not believed to possess self-agency or innate communicative abilities, obscuring space for researchers to consider the infant's subjectivity. Rather, measuring and coding behaviour or seeking the parent's perspective is privileged. Making meaning is not limited to the capacity to verbalise; as meaning encompasses feelings, behaviours, and contexts. In this paper, a novel "infantled" qualitative research methodology is presented utilising infant observation techniques, drawing on theories of "intersubjectivity" and using a constructivist grounded theory method. Distinct to this methodology is how data collection begins with the infant before any other, as does the process of data analysis; providing the basis upon which all other data are interpreted. The application of such an approach is nonintrusive and has much to offer social workers working with infants in high risk situations in community, health, and mental health settings. IMPLICATIONS. The experience of infants is entitled to be included in research that directly impacts them.. Adopting an infant-led approach brings alive the experiences of infants and challenges assumptions that minimise the competencies and contributions infants make.

The authors address why issues of difference in identity may be difficult to explore in the context of Work Discussion Seminars. Consideration is given to the importance of finding ways of reflecting on the phenomena of difference which makes use of a psychoanalytic frame of reference. Attention is also paid to the heightened levels of anxiety that are generated when thinking about diverse identities and an illustrative vignette is given by way of example. It is proposed that a specific form of anxiety, named here as epistemic anxiety, may be evoked by learning that threatens existential security and a stable sense of identity. The authors suggest that epistemic anxiety is especially relevant for understanding why issues of ethnicity and difference may not always be adequately examined in Work Discussion Seminars.