This book presents an in-depth, wide-ranging and rigorous investigation of Winnicott's central theory of maturational processes and its interrelation with psychic disorders. It provides the framework from which different aspects of the study of human nature can be developed.

Donald Winnicott, psychoanalyst and pediatrician, is viewed by many in the psychodynamic field as the “other genius” in the history of psychodynamic theory and practice, along with Freud. This book selects and explores twelve of his most infl uential clinical papers. Winnicott’s works have been highly valued in the decades since they were first published, and are still relevant today. Winnicott’s writings on the goals and techniques of psychodynamic psychotherapy have been foundational, in that he recast Freudian- and Kleinian-infl uenced thinking in the direction of the more relational schools of psychotherapy that define current 21st-century psychodynamic practice. Winnicott’s writings help us to understand the maturational processes of children, certainly. But more than that, they help us to understand how best to intervene when the enterprise of childhood leads to compromises of psychological health in later years. Yet, despite Winnicott’s influence and continuing relevance, his writings, while at some level simple, are elusive to modern readers. For one thing, he writes in the psychoanalytic genre of the 1930s-1960s, whose underlying theoretical assumptions and vocabulary are obscure in the present day and, for another, his writing often reflects primary process thinking, which is suggestive, but not declarative. In this work, Teri Quatman provides explanations and insight, in an interlocution with Winnicott’s most significant papers, exploring both his language and concepts, and enabling the clinician to emerge with a deep and reflective understanding of his thoughts, perspectives, and techniques. Engaging and accessible, Accessing the Clinical Genius of Winnicott will be of great use to anyone encountering Winnicott for the first time, particularly in psychodynamic psychotherapeutic training, and in the teaching of relational psychotherapies.

One of the most gifted and creative psychoanalysts of his generation, D. W. Winnicott made lasting contributions to our understanding of the minds of children.

This volume contains ninety-two works by this renowned writer, theoretician, and clinician. Includes critiques of Melanie Klein's ideas and insights into the works of other leading psychoanalysts, and thoughts on such concepts as play in the analytic situation, the fate of the transitional object, regression in psychoanalysis, and the use of silence in psychotherapy.

The Family and Individual Development represents a decade of writing from a thinker who was at the peak of his powers as perhaps the leading post-war figure in developmental psychiatry. In these pages, Winnicott chronicles the complex inner lives of human beings, from the first encounter between mother and newborn, through the 'doldrums' of adolescence, to maturity. As Winnicott explains in his final chapter, the health of a properly functioning democratic society 'derives from the working of the ordinary good home.'