Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book presents that intersubjectivity theory is a field theory or systems theory in that it seeks to comprehend psychological phenomena not as products of isolated intrapsychic mechanisms, but as forming at the interface of reciprocally interacting subjectivities. It suggests that the concept of an individual mind or psyche is itself a psychological product crystalizing from within a nexus of intersubjective relatedness and serving specific psychological functions. The perspective of intersubjectivity is, in its essence, a sweeping methodological and epistemological stance calling for a radical revision of all aspects of psychoanalytic thought. An intersubjective field is a system of reciprocal mutual influence. Not only does the patient turn to the analyst for self object experiences, but the analyst also turns to the patient for such experiences, and a parallel statement can be made about the child-caregiver system as well.