containment
The analyst's capacity to receive, process, and metabolize the patient's projected emotional states.
Full Definition
Containment is a crucial analytic function derived from Bion's concept of maternal reverie, describing the analyst's ability to tolerate, think about, and transform the patient's unbearable emotions. When patients project intolerable feelings, the analyst serves as a psychological container, allowing these emotions to be experienced without being overwhelmed or immediately discharged. Through containment, raw emotional experiences are processed and returned to the patient in a more manageable form through interpretation or understanding. This function is essential for patients who lack internal capacity to regulate intense emotions and helps develop their own containing abilities over time.
Usage
Usage note: Emphasize the active psychological processing aspect, not passive endurance.
In Context
- "The analyst's containment of the patient's murderous rage allowed exploration of underlying vulnerability." — process note
- "Poor containment led to the analyst's defensive responses rather than thoughtful processing." — supervision discussion