ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the subtleties of projective identification in the workplace. Sometimes, people in distress find it impossible to put their experience into words. As a therapist, or consultant, there is more than one way to listen. For example, when listening to the story of a traumatic childhood event three times, the author felt each time that she was hearing a different story because of how it made her feel. This helped her to unpick the conflicting emotions and identifications felt by the teller. This recreation of emotions is known as projective identification. Learning to listen on different levels is fundamental to psychotherapeutic training but is also vital when working with institutions. For example, in a drug addiction clinic, the staff may end up mirroring the chaotic and defensive internal worlds of their clients, which in turn may be mirrored by the consultant. Through understanding and awareness of how the individual or group can be ‘infected’ by these difficulties, feelings can be used to tackle the problems head on, and room can be made for more informed and creative approaches.
