ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the evolution of the relational approach in the larger psychoanalytic context. It highlights its centrality as a stepping stone that invites an interdisciplinary approach, first theoretically and then in everyday clinical work. The chapter explains the influences of early theories of the mind and those that followed in order to highlight the roots of contemporary relational thinking and practices. It explores the relevance of two-person versus one-person psychoanalysis and provides some background, with the emphasis on subjectivity, transference, and countertransference, all from a relational perspective. The chapter focuses on the importance of understanding multiplicity, both as a normal human phenomenon and as a response to extreme stress. It also describes how relational psychoanalysts approach shifts in self-states, a point particularly relevant to the integrative practice of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) and relational therapy. EMDR assesses and makes use of benign experiences committed to memory that contribute to resourcefulness and resiliency.
