PSYCHOANALYTIC ECUMENISM AND VARIETIES OF PSYCHOANALYTIC EXPERIENCE HOhlER
c. CURTIS,M.D.
Using the metaphor of ecumenism, the current status of psyhoanalysis and the American Psjchoanabtic Association is examined. The dialectical tendencies to oppose and to unifv are noted in psjchoanahtic theory, technique, and practice, as well (IS in the administrative and political life of our organization. Fostering tolerance f o r new hypotheses without sacrificing empirical discrimination, and promoting broad participation without lowering standards confront us as major tasks demanding continuing vigilance and effort.
immediate past president of the American deliver a plenary address carries with it great honor and a great challenge. Coming as it does after a term of two years as President, preceded by two years as PresidentElect, it is to be expected that my topic should deal mainly with the state of the American Psychoanalytic Association rather than the state of the art and science of psychoanalysis. And yet, in part due to other variables, such as the state of the profession of psychoanalysis, I have found myself turning to certain common elements linking organization, administration, and practice to theory and technique. In so doing I became aware that that process of separating and bringing together was foreshadowing the main thesis of my comments. It will not have escaped your attention that my title has a certain religious ring to it:Ecumenism, of course, is most closely related to those efforts, often between periods of religious
T
HE TRADITION OF HAVING THE
Training and Supervising Analyst, Institute of
c. CURTIS,M.D.
Using the metaphor of ecumenism, the current status of psyhoanalysis and the American Psjchoanabtic Association is examined. The dialectical tendencies to oppose and to unifv are noted in psjchoanahtic theory, technique, and practice, as well (IS in the administrative and political life of our organization. Fostering tolerance f o r new hypotheses without sacrificing empirical discrimination, and promoting broad participation without lowering standards confront us as major tasks demanding continuing vigilance and effort.
immediate past president of the American deliver a plenary address carries with it great honor and a great challenge. Coming as it does after a term of two years as President, preceded by two years as PresidentElect, it is to be expected that my topic should deal mainly with the state of the American Psychoanalytic Association rather than the state of the art and science of psychoanalysis. And yet, in part due to other variables, such as the state of the profession of psychoanalysis, I have found myself turning to certain common elements linking organization, administration, and practice to theory and technique. In so doing I became aware that that process of separating and bringing together was foreshadowing the main thesis of my comments. It will not have escaped your attention that my title has a certain religious ring to it:Ecumenism, of course, is most closely related to those efforts, often between periods of religious
T
HE TRADITION OF HAVING THE
Training and Supervising Analyst, Institute of
