ABSTRACT
The chapter begins with an acknowledgement of the difficulties that arise when different clinical approaches are compared and suggests various reasons why the discussion can quickly become over-heated. A critique is then offered of some clinical work stemming from a relational analytic viewpoint. It is argued that the material demonstrates a scotomisation on the part of the analyst of her own hostility. Self psychology is then considered, and a critical reading of its founder’s seminal case material is undertaken. Finally some clinical material representative of approaches which stress the need for the clinician to regress to a state in which he can “hallucinate” or “dream” the patient’s unrepresented dilemmas is critically examined.
