ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the possibilities of a psychotherapeutic approach in which the search for an explanation is not dominant and confidence in a unified theory is wanting. The simplification involved in a psychotherapeutic convention ensures that too much energy is not wasted on inessentials and, in addition, it brings the sense of security which accompanies ritual. To the extent that formalization occurs the psychotherapist has a function comparable to that of a priest taking part in a religious ceremony. The importance to a child of a measure of clarity and consistency in its parents has been well brought out in the writings of Lidz, Bateson, Wynne, and others who have studied the families of 'schizophrenic' offspring. Green writes: Modern 'scientific child care' enforces a constant supervision and diffused worrying over the child's health, eating spinach, and ego-development.
