ABSTRACT
The role of assessment for the child therapist includes trying to understand the psychodynamics of a child, and applying this understanding in consultation with parents and other professionals. One of the more specific questions asked is whether this child should be offered analytic therapy. Decades of analytic child work have resulted in a greater sophistication of thought. Parents need to understand that therapy is about the child's feelings. It is not about controlling behaviour, but rather coming to understand and manage the feelings that produce the behaviour. Apart from making sure that the child attends regularly and punctually, parents need to be able to support attendance even when the child is resistant to coming. A more objective indicator of whether the therapy would be supported is the reliability and punctuality of attendance in the assessment period. The focus of analytic child therapy is the child's inner world. Open-ended psychotherapy is a major undertaking.
