ABSTRACT
This chapter demonstrates that structural change, as a sort of shibboleth of psychoanalysis, has been highly cathected narcissistically, with all the disadvantages that ensue from such an overcathexis. The scales, selected by the stepwise discriminant analysis to differentiate the diagnostic groups, are as predicted by psychoanalytic theory. The sample was recruited as a sub-sample of the Munich Psychotherapy Study. A very concise description of the Scales of Psychological Capacities (SPC) is followed by a more detailed overview of studies on the principal components of their psychometric qualities: interrater reliability, test-retest stability, convergent and discriminant construct validity, and sensitivity to change. The chapter evaluates discriminant validity by comparing the SPC with construct-distant instruments measuring symptoms and compared the SPC with construct-near instruments that measure interpersonal functioning, defence mechanisms, life satisfaction, and personality structure in order to evaluate convergent validity. It describes the significant differences between the empirically found profiles of borderline patients, depressive patients, and controls.
