Comments on Termination in Child, Adolescent, and Adult Analysis

Abstract

Termination phenomena in the psychoanalytic treatment of children and adolescents demonstrate the obstacles and resistances to a mutually agreed ending, the importance of reality considerations as part of the decision to terminate, and “restoration to the path of progressive development” as the overarching criterion for the start of a termination phase. The assumption of continuity among developmental phases allows us to apply what we learn from child analysis to termination of adult cases, and this new perspective reinforces the idea that child analysis is an untapped source of insights into the analytic process.