On the Relationship Between Self-Object Differentiation, Symbiotic Experiences and Pathology Reduction in Schizophrenia

Some psychoanalytic considerations of non-psychoanalytic therapies: On the possibility of integration treatment approaches and related issues.

“…In our own research program, we are testing the hypothesis that a personality change that both accompanies and mediates therapeutic improvement in certain kinds of non-analytic therapies is the activation of unconscious "merging" fantasies. We have presented some data that support this hypothesis and plan further ways of testing it out (Silverman, Petit and Dunne, 1971;Silverman, Frank and Dachinger, 1974). However, regardless of how valid the hypothesis turns out to be, in judging whether such a change should be viewed as "negative" one would have to further determine: (a) whether these fantasies are transient or become more or less "fixed''; (b) whether and to what degree they are maladaptive; (c) whether their consequences, even if fixed and maladaptive, are in an overall sense less or greater than the consequences of the person's symptoms having dissipated.…”

Anxiety, arousal, and schizophrenia: A theoretical integration.

“…In terms of specific response systems and previously researched schizophrenic subgroups, a number of testable hypotheses seem feasible to us. The highly anxious, acute schizophrenics who were classified by Claridge (1967) and Des Lauriers and Carlson (1969) as activated psychotics appear to be consistent with acute paranoids who: should be highly differentiated in cognitive control (Witkin, 1965); show pathology reduction after tachistoscopic subliminal merging stimulation (Silverman & Spiro, 1967;Silverman et al, 1971); have relatively good premorbid history and prognosis on the Phillips (1953) scale such that they would be classified as reactive schizophrenics; show "overinclusive" thinking and distractibility on Tucker, Harrow, Detre, and Hoffman (1969) measures; and display fragmented thinking as denned by Wynne and Singer (1963). The neurophysiological functions for this activated group should be consistent with an increase in the generalized tonic arousal (I) group showing high sedation threshold with low spiral aftereffect (Claridge, 1967), hyperelectrodermal responsivity on GSR (Jordan, 1974), accelerated heart rate (Claridge, 1967), and possibly high systolic and diastolic blood pressure changes in response to stimulation (Claridge, 1967).…”

“…They are similar to Rapaport (1951) and Hartmann (1953Hartmann ( , 1964 in describing the psychotic process as a condition under high anxiety in which there is a flooding of the ego with deneutralized drives from destructive forces which results in a regressive instability of psychological defenses. Experimental investigations of differentiation and destructive drives in schizophrenics which appear promising to us are found in the tachistoscopic studies of L. H. Silverman and his colleagues (L. H. Silverman & Spiro, 1967;L. H. Silverman, Pettit, & Dunne, 1971), who found increased pathology after exposure of subliminal, hence unconscious, aggressive stimuli and reduced pathology in highly differentiated (in cognitive style extremes) schizophrenics following tachistoscopic presentations of maternal merging (operationally defined by Silverman et al, 1971, as symbiotic) stimuli.…”

Caveat medicus--let the subliminal healer beware: Two experiments suggesting conditions when the effects of Silverman's Mommy and I Are One phrase are negative.

“…A Conflict Between Theory and Empirical Results Hardaway's (1990) third observation implies that a symbiotic fantasy has a universally positive effect, a hypothesis that not only appears at variance with the psychoanalytic notion of the necessity of paying close attention to the individual meaning of events, but is also contrary to results from our research (Sohlberg, Arvidsson, & Birgegard, 1997;Sohlberg, Billinghurst, & Nylen, in press). Even Silverman et al (1982) offered case studies illustrating that MIO stimulation can have adverse effects, and believed that studies on schizophrenics showed that some level of self-object differentiation must be attained if positive effects are to be expected (Silverman & Candell, 1970;Silverman, Pettit, & Dunne, 1971). Bornstein and Masling (1984) held an even broader view of the problem and put it well:…”