"No End or Return": Thematics of Impasse. (2nd January 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Méndez, Teresa
• Is Part Of: Smith College studies in social work. Volume 86:Number 1(2016)
• Page Start: 58
• Page End: 73
• Publication Date: 2016-01-02
• Subjects: Enactment -- impasse -- psychoanalysis -- rupture and repair; Social service -- Periodicals; Social problems -- Periodicals; Dissertations, Academic -- United States -- Abstracts -- Periodicals; 361.3
• DOI: 10.1080/00377317.2016.1116273
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0037-7317

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This article explores therapeutic impasse through the dual lens of relational theory and infant research. Particular attention is paid to the role that enactment, rupture and repair, and nonverbal communication play in impasse dynamics. Defined broadly—as any time a therapist and patient feel stuck—impasse is conceptualized as an expectable, even inevitable, component of the treatment relationship. The implications for navigating impasses are considered through a clinical vignette developed as a case composite to ensure confidentiality.