PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M S Willick

Publications and source records attributed to M S Willick.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Psychoanalysis and schizophrenia: a cautionary tale.

The history of psychoanalysis and schizophrenia is used as an example of psychoanalytic theories of etiology that have not stood the test of time. Those theories pointed to three main factors: very serious inadequacies in the caretaking person; the presence of these inadequacies so early, during the preverbal period, that they led to the impairment of early object relations, the development of psychic structure, and basic ego functions; and the absence of underlying biological abnormalities. Today, many analysts are still reluctant to acknowledge biological etiological factors for other psychiatric conditions. For illnesses such as borderline conditions and various severe character disorders for which biological factors are still much in doubt, analysts are today proposing etiological formulations similar to those once advanced for schizophrenia. These formulations may indeed prove correct for these disturbances, but analysts are urged to heed the cautionary tale of psychoanalysis and schizophrenia.

Ego↗
PubMed1993

The deficit syndrome in schizophrenia: psychoanalytic and neurobiological perspectives.

The author summarizes recent advances in neurobiological research which appear to offer compelling evidence that the most pathognomonic feature of schizophrenia, the deficit or negative syndrome, is associated with functional abnormalities in the frontal lobe of the brain. These brain abnormalities are correlated with those conceptualized by psychoanalytic theories of withdrawal of libido and loss of mental representation. In the light of this data, the author expresses serious reservations about three psychoanalytic formulations concerning the causes of the deficit syndrome: (1) the syndrome represents, in a primary rather than a secondary way, a psychological defense; (2) it is caused by severe conflicts or neglect during early childhood which lead to impairments in the building up of psychic structure and mental representation; (3) difficulties with the aggressive drive play a primary etiological role.

Aggression↗
PubMed1990

Psychoanalytic concepts of the etiology of severe mental illness.

In this paper I challenge some prevalent psychoanalytic concepts of the etiology and pathogenesis of severe mental illness which I believe to be in need of revision. There is insufficient evidence to conclude that the etiology of the two major adult psychoses, schizophrenia and manic-depressive illness, can be attributed to failures in development or fixations during the earliest years of life. Furthermore, I believe it incorrect to ascribe these failures of development to deficiencies in the early maternal environment. I base my disagreements on three main considerations: the misinterpretation of the etiological significance of regression, the relevance of new biological data, and erroneous conclusions drawn from lack of diagnostic distinctions. I also challenge the generally held concept of etiologic phase specificity which proposes that failures during various early phases of development can be correlated with different kinds of adult psychopathology. In calling this concept into question, I argue that current psychoanalytic concepts of the etiology of the borderline group of disorders also need to be reevaluated.

Bipolar Disorder↗