Interpretation as an intersubjective event

PSYCHOANALYTIC STUDIES

Abstract

The article describes the transformation of ideas about interpretation – from the analyst's unidirectional influence on the analysand to a joint intersubjective process that affects both participants in the analytic situation. The article presents generalizations of ideas about the analyst's position from the point of view of object relations theorists, representatives of attachment theory, interpersonal and relational traditions. The practical value of the work is that it describes the "requirements" for an analyst who takes an intersubjective position in relations with the analysand, and also highlights the conditional "stages" of constructing an interpretation that meets the above requirement.