Self and Others: Object Relations Theory in Practice, N. Gregory Hamilton (1988)
Basic Definitions Object relations are interactions between the self and objects, external and internal objects. An external object is an actual person. An internal object is a mental representation of a person. The self consists of the conscious and unconscious mental representations the self. An object relations unit is a self-representation and an object-representation connected by an affect. Mahler’s Stages of Separation-Individuation Margaret Mahler wrote that there are four stages in what she called the psychological birth of the human infant. These stages can also be seen as the stages the infant takes as she separates and individuates from her mother. Stage #1: Autism (0-2 months). We’re born into an undifferentiated state, unable to differentiate the self from the environment. Stage #2: Symbiosis (2-6 months). We then enter into a state of symbiosis, having a vague awareness of mother but believing that we are both part of the same “omnipotent system,” “a dual unity wi