ABSTRACT
Psychoanalytic autonomy, for good and for ill, is the essential characteristic of the first Independent practitioner, Masud Khan. Masud Khan's work embodies the characteristically Independent features of an emphasis on the therapeutic environment as the agent of change, and an optimistic view of human potential. In describing Khan's life and career, this chapter examines the part played by Winnicott and the British Psychoanalytical Society (BPAS) in allowing his damaging behaviour to go unchecked for so long. Khan sought psychoanalysis as soon as he arrived in London in 1946 at the age of twenty-two. He contributed much to the development of psychoanalysis. Khan's aim in his new career was to qualify as soon as possible — he did not have to earn his living as did the other students, but associate membership in the BPAS meant he would be able charge fees. Important differences can be seen between Khan's and Winnicott's style of offering management, or therapeutic care.
