ABSTRACT
The study of relational disturbances is not on the same level as the study of individuals: it takes in to account the quality of the relations as well as their content. The modeling of interactions includes its sequence: the way in which interactions follow one another ("patterning"). Regulation in the physical and psychological well-being of the two partners involves the reciprocity and mutuality in the attention directed to others. Attachment is a widely known concept applied in the understanding of the nature and origin of the first bonds. These bonds are interpersonal from the outset, the sexual instincts or the role of food being seen as secondary. This chapter discusses the dynamics of splitting between the Freudian approach to infantile sexuality on the one hand and attachment theories on the other.
