About this course

Alongside the in-depth study of the origin and development of psychoanalytic concepts you will learn through observation and explore the application of psychoanalysis to aspects of contemporary culture and society, including to the culture of psychoanalysis itself.

The course consists of three strands:

• observation
• psychoanalytic theory
• psychoanalytic theory as a mode of enquiry into culture and society

Observation

You will observe an infant or a young child at home or in a nursery setting and attend a small weekly seminar led by an experienced child psychotherapist. Infant observation allows for the detailed study of the unconscious processes that shape a baby or young child’s personality as they develop within the varied context of family or nursery relationships, and in the context of the different communities around each family.

It is an important aspect of an initial psychoanalytic education and provides a context in which psychoanalytic ideas become connected to human experience, engaging students’ emotions as well as minds.

Please note that it is your responsibility, and an important aspect of the module learning aims and objectives, to arrange this observation. You will be given guidance and support with this task during seminars and tutorials as needed.

Psychoanalytic theory

You will study the origin and development of fundamental concepts in psychoanalysis through Freud and Klein, as well as Bion, Winnicott, theoretical papers about sexuality and the post-Kleinians.

Senior psychotherapists and analysts will use their clinical experience to bring psychoanalytic ideas and methods to life. The approach to learning is through the close study of the primary psychoanalytic texts and this will provide you with a substantial first-hand foundation for further psychoanalytic study and its broader applications.

Psychoanalytic theory as a mode of enquiry into culture and society

You will explore the application of psychoanalytic ideas to art, film, narratives of self, music and the social and political applications of psychoanalysis, as well as to your specific interests in these fields.

Alongside examination of how a psychoanalytic perspective can enrich our understanding of the cultural wealth in diversity and difference, the module will also encourage the application of contemporary and historical psychoanalytic concepts to better understand and engage with the challenges to inclusive, anti-discriminatory learning about human development, including those associated with the culture of psychoanalysis itself.

Young child observation

You will observe a pre-school child in their family or nursery setting to learn about the emotional meaning of a child’s behaviour as they start to relate to others outside the family.

Please note that it is your responsibility, and again, part of your learning task, to arrange this observation, but you will be given guidance and support as needed during seminars and in tutorials.

Dissertation

The aim of the dissertation (12,000-14,000 words) is to develop an application of psychoanalytic ideas and approaches to a subject of interest. Some students’ dissertations have been revised to become published articles and several former students have gone on to publish books.

Here are some titles of successfully completed dissertations:

• The Maison Verte: a Transitional Space. An introduction to the work of Françoise Dolto
• The Psychodynamics of an Émigré Family Business: Intergenerational Creativity and Survival
• A Psychoanalytical Investigation into the Sense of Home in the Poetry of John Clare
• Beguiling the Hours: Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Boredom
• (Dis)integration in a Foreign Land: Psychoanalytic Explorations of Migration
• O My Days! A Psychoanalytic Approach to the Language of British Young Offenders in the 21st Century
• Peace and Terror: Psychoanalytic concepts of psychosis and George Mitchell’s management of the Northern Ireland peace process
• The beginning of the end of an affair? An exploration of psychoanalytic and psychiatric models of the mind in two cases of psychosis
• The Death Instinct in the work of Ibsen (based on ‘Hedda Gabler’ and ‘The Master Builder’)
• David Hockney: the Recovery of the Lost Loved Object

If you pass an additional interview, you may also attend clinical workshops and seminars. You can choose the workshops and seminars according to your interest and experience, but this additional programme may not be suitable for everyone. Please note that this is a bespoke part of the programme and fees are available on request.