Melanie Klein's Projective Identification

Klein used projective identification as a defense mechanism to protect the ego from anxiety.
Imagine that as an individual, you have certain ideas about yourself that are intolerable to your ego and superego. You use the mechanism of assigning that intolerable feeling to another person, thus successfully portraying another as “bad” and protecting your own idea of yourself. This is essentially what projection is.
But projective identification is a bit different. According to Klein, we use projective identification for developing ideas about the world and how we in turn relate to it.
For example, the infant sees the mother’s breast as a good object and thus introjects it into his or her own personality.
Introjection means absorbing that of another person into oneself. Essentially, you could say this is the opposite of projection.
So the infant introjects parts of the mother which he or she perceives as good or bad into himself or herself, thus introjecting her properties into their own psyche.
This is how “splitting” happens according to Klein.
Splitting essentially meant for Klein; the “split” of a personality into either good or bad. There is no in-between or grey area.
Another advantage of introjecting the good object such as a mother’s breast was so that an infant could recoup into that part of themselves in times of need and use those mechanisms to self soothe.
#melanieklein #ort #projectiveidentification
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[@grimish_tunes]

Well explained, insightful and truly entertaining. I appreciate the insights.

[@paolos22]

Excellent explanation of basic object relations and the beginning mechanics of Project Identification. But I don't think you fully address P.I here.
Really good exploration of Introjection and projection though, thanks

[@Zero_Zero_Zero_Zero]

Thank you for this

[@jumanaasaad9054]

Loved this! Where can I find the source?

[@gdew9643]

there are holes in this argument, how do you explain societies in the West where they were breastfed, good breast but depression & mental health issues are So pervasive? People with good relationships with their mothers but can't not self soothe? Is there any info on that?

[@PEmomentimportant1]

imagine when Melanie Klein's studies were published in 1940s, so many things are different in society now. For example, more and more mothers choose to fed their babies by milk bottles instead of breasts. And the changes in society are huge. Not a single theory could explain everything but I would say her theory shed the light in studying psychosis and personality development. If you study more about mental health and psychology nowadays, there would be societal factors, family factors and biological factors, rather than just focus on the persecutory phase which Melanie Klein stated in her theory.

[@sereentarban4068]

Excellent

[@melindaquintal2577]

Thank you, very clearly explained

[@edgreen8140]

in my humble opinion you must also look at the drama triangle.

[@lubna2222]

Thanks a lot :)

[@lofotling7953]

Unfortunately the fast spoken dialect makes it difficult to understand

[@tehehe4all]

Klein’s thesis underscores her own psychological/emotional impairment. I suspect her theory was a criticism or diagnosis of German methods of child-rearing during her time. Wealthy German mothers held back breastfeeding and had nurse maids to take their places. Children learn to self-sooth by sucking on their thumbs. Unfortunate that contemporary therapists take studies seriously on such fragile examination

[@robertklein4931]

Sie haben nichts verstanden.

[@svst3767]

Horrible explanation