Guilt

Origins, Manifestations, and Management

Contributions by Salman Akhtar, William M. Singletary, Elaine Zickler, Desy Safán-Gerard, Robert Kravis, Stanley J. Coen, Elio Frattaroli, Jeanne Bailey Edited by Salman Akhtar

Publication date:

19 December 2012

Length of book:

144 pages

Publisher

Jason Aronson, Inc.

ISBN-13: 9780765708991

In this elegantly written book, eight distinguished psychoanalysts address the ubiquitous phenomenon of guilt. They describe the childhood experiences that form the bedrock of this emotion and delineate various types of guilt, including pre-oedipal guilt, oedipal guilt, survivor guilt, separation guilt, induced guilt, and so on. Noting that guilt, by itself, is neither ‘good’ nor ‘bad,’ these master clinicians highlight the adverse (e.g. self-punishment, masochism, irritability) and potentially positive (e.g. reparation, helpfulness towards others) outcomes of guilt. They critically assess previously published findings, review diverse theories, and offer illustrative material from treatment of children and adults. As a result, Guilt: Origins, Manifestations, and Management is replete with clinical pearls and highly useful tips for the management of patients driven by feelings of guilt and remorse.

Acknowledgments
Chapter 1: Guilt: An Introductory Overview
Salman Akhtar, MD
Chapter 2: Pinocchio's Journey to a ‘Good Heart’: Guilt, Reparation, and Transformation
William Singletary, MD
Chapter 3: Conscience and ‘The Uncanny’ in Psychoanalysis and in Pinocchio
Elaine Zickler, PhD
Chapter 4: Bearable and Unbearable Guilt: A Kleinian Perspective
Desy Safán-Gerard, PhD
Chapter 5: Guilt: Some Theoretical and Technical Considerations
Robert Kravis, PsyD
Chapter 6: Guilt in the Therapist and its Impact upon Treatment
Stanley Coen, MD
Chapter 7: Reflections on the Absence of Morality in Psychoanalytic Theory and Practice
Elio Frattaroli, MD
Chapter 8: Guilt and Its Vicissitudes: a Concluding Commentary
Jeanne Bailey, PhD
References
Index
Editors and Contributors

This volume is a unique and comprehensive collection of writings on guilt, giving the reader important and clinically relevant insights into guilt not simply as an affect accompanying actual or wished – for transgressions, but as a moral regulator and compass. It will be of great use to psychotherapists at all levels of training and experience.