The grandmaternal transference in parent–infant/child psychotherapy

Abstract

The psychic significance of the figure of the grandmother in psychodynamic psychotherapy has received scant attention. This paper develops the concept of the ‘grandmaternal transference’ in parent–infant psychotherapy and explores its identification, its possible functions and its therapeutic significance. The grandmaternal transference has special relevance to parent–infant psychotherapy since the grandmother often represents both the mother’s mother and the child’s grandmother and offers a unique third position between mother and child. Three clinical vignettes illustrate how the grandmaternal transference may operate in this third position. In the first vignette, the therapist becomes in the transference a containing grandmother thereby facilitating maternal containment. In the second case, the therapist may be experienced as a differentiating grandmother able to help mother and infant with separation and individuation. In the third one, the therapist is transferentially experienced as a paternal grandmother who acts as a pseudo-father able to embody the paternal function. In each of these positions, the transference and countertransference – whether positive or negative – require that the therapist responds to rather than enacts the grandmaternal role. The three configurations of the grandmaternal transference have different clinical manifestations and offer different therapeutic ports of entry.

Keywords:

• Parent–child psychotherapy
• parent–infant psychotherapy
• maternal grandmother
• motherhood constellation
• grandmaternal transference

Acknowledgements

I wish to thank Professor Juliet Mitchell for her generous review of an earlier draft of this paper. My academic supervisor, Professor Carol Long, University of the Witwatersrand, is gratefully acknowledged for her on-going encouragement and support and for her valuable academic input.

Notes

1. While the father’s presence is strongly encouraged (Barrows, 1999, 2004) in parent–infant child work, it is widely acknowledged that the mother–infant/child dyad presents more frequently for treatment than any other configuration of family members.

2. Including ‘grandparent(s)’, ‘grandparental’ and ‘grandmaternal’.

3. Imber wonders whether Freud himself, in his treatment of Little Hans, might have fancied himself a ‘kind of good grandfather’(2010: 491).

4. ‘The environment-mother is human, and the object-mother is a thing, although it is also the mother or part of her’ (Winnicott, 1963: 182). The similarities between the object- and environment-mother and what could be termed the object- and environment-grandmother require further elucidation

5. Abraham (1913) posited that children understand the prefix ‘grand’ at a literal level, that is, ‘grander’.

6. In this case, the grandmother referred to was a paternal grandmother, but as a substitute for the poor relationship with her own mother, Mrs Z. called her mother-in-law “mom” and related to her as such.

7. It needs to be stressed here that it is not simply the flesh-and-blood presence of the maternal grandmother but rather her psychic manifestation that is key. In the external world, a grandmother substitute may take up the grandmaternal role. Such proxy figures may hold and contain mother-with-child, may represent an alternative maternal role model or be considered a source of advice and wisdom. In terms of this paper, such proxy figures may also, in their psychic manifestation, anticipate the transference of grandmother onto the figure of the psychotherapist.