Gillian Straker
Biographic Data
| ID | 3940914 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Gillian Straker |
| GIVEN NAMES | Gillian |
| FAMILY NAME | Straker |
| SIGNATURE | STRAKER G |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of the Witwatersrand |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 16 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 32 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 16 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1979 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2022 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
The (Un) Examined Life Is Not Worth Living
Under what conditions might shame lead to an expansion of self-states rather than remain toxic. If shame is to be used as a pilot light to recalibrate the relationship with self and other how can the precondition of fluidity between objective and subjective awareness be promoted. Following an exploration of Anen’s excellent paper that explores white fragility and includes a touching illustrative case study I suggest that using shame productively …
Covering and Uncovering Race
The paper discusses clinical issues raised by three Black patient/trainee/therapists (this issue) concerning working with three White therapists at moments of race inflected ruptures followed by repair. It asks questions pertaining to race relations in the consulting room and beyond given that in South Africa unlike in North America Black people are in political power and are a numerical majority albeit that like Black Americans they have inherit…
Continuous traumatic stress
The Racialization of the Mind in Intimate Spaces
Jessica Benjamin's (1988 Benjamin , J. ( 1988 ). The Bonds of Love . New York , NY : Pantheon . [Google Scholar]) notion that relations of dominance and submission reflect an original difficulty between child and caretaker is reviewed. The need for caretakers to be affected by the child's robust attempts to control them while at the same time neither retaliating nor capitulating is affirmed as is the idea that gender relations can compromise this…
The Dangers of the Universal
Despite the cultural specificity of aspects of attachment theory (Layton, 2006 Layton , L. ( 2006 ). Racial identities, racial enactments, and normative unconscious processes . Psychoanalytic Quarterly , 75 , 237 – 269 .[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) it remains influential. Disorganized attachment and the alien self are linked to borderline phenomena and attacks upon the body (Fonagy et al., 2002 Fonagy , P. , G…
Unsettling whiteness
Reading Desire
All 3 papers on body modification share a particular approach to their topic as they are substantially located in discourse analysis and a deconstructive approach to their material, and all are concerned with binaries. All 3 papers also grapple with the matter of interiority. Having explored how these issues play themselves out in the particularity of the practices of tattooing and cosmetic surgery and in the work of Orlan, the author invites fur…
Intimacy, Fusion and Frequency of Sexual Contact in Lesbian Couples
It is generally accepted in the literature that, of all couple types, lesbian couples tend to have the lowest frequencies of sexual contact. It has been hypothesized that a reason for this is that lesbian couples are more subject than others to fusion. This study examines the relationship between frequency of sexual contact and fusion in lesbian relationships of duration longer than one year. The concept of fusion has, however, not been clearly d…
Social and Political Complexity and Moral Development
In this study the authors aim to investigate empirically the relationship between Kohlberg's stages of moral development and exposure to political and social complexity.The sample consisted of 68 Social Work I students of the University of the Witwatersrand, 35 white and 33 black subjects, ranging in age from 18-24 years.Data were obtained by the use of a biographical questionnaire and Taylor's Reason for Action Questionnaire.Each instrument, res…
Experiences of Violence in the Lives of Township Youths in ‘Unrest’ and ‘Normal’ Conditions
Political violence has attracted the attention of psychological researchers in South Africa. In comparison, the more habitual forms of violence occurring in townships have been neglected. In this study the authors investigate the experiences of violence of two cohorts of township youths; one which had recently experienced the violence of ‘unrest’ and one which had not. A comparison of the two cohorts revealed some differences, which are related t…
From Victim to Villain
This paper concerns predictions, reported in the press, which have been made by professional bodies and human rights organizations concerning the long-term effects on black youth of exposure to township conditions. It is contended that these predictions lend themselves to secondary victimization of black youth and it is postulated that they are not based on empirical evidence. Furthermore, they reflect several unquestioned assumptions concerning …
Conflicts of Theory and Views of Human Nature
Kernberg's and Kohut's ideas concerning the idealizing transference are explored. It is postulated that their disparate ideas are explicable in terms of their different beliefs concerning human nature. The ontological status of these beliefs cannot be verified but they lead Kernberg and Kohut to adopt different observational stances. These stances influence their interpretations of the data perceived and the theories they construct. It is argued …
Brief-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
Brief-term psychotherapy and the idea of doing psychodynamic psychotherapy are usually seen as contradictory. This article explores the principles which underpin psychodynamic psychotherapy. Special attention is paid to the concepts of transference and interpretation. The potential for and limits of applying psychodynamic principles in a time-limited way are explored. It is concluded that it is possible to apply psychodynamic principles in a time…
Abused children
This article is a brief overview of the data on the characteristics of abused children and the psychological sequelae of abuse. The relationship between abuse and the sex of the child, age of the child, the child's ordinal position in the family, bonding failure, congenital handicap and temperament are explored within the context of conflicting views. The available data concerning the sequelae of abuse for the child e.g. intelligence and personal…
Aggression, emotional maladjustment, and empathy in the abused child
Psychological Factors Differentiating Unwed Mothers Keeping Their Babies from Those Placing Them for Adoption
The study focused on possible psychological variables which could differentiate unwed mothers keeping their babies from those placing them for adoption when certain pragmatic, sociological variables were kept constant. These psychological variables were derived from a model constructed on the basis of psychoanalytic writing on the genesis of unwed pregnancy. Three hypotheses generated from this model were tested, viz. that unwed mothers who kept …
Aggression, emotional maladjustment, and empathy in the abused child
Continuous traumatic stress
Unsettling whiteness
Experiences of Violence in the Lives of Township Youths in ‘Unrest’ and ‘Normal’ Conditions
Political violence has attracted the attention of psychological researchers in South Africa. In comparison, the more habitual forms of violence occurring in townships have been neglected. In this study the authors investigate the experiences of violence of two cohorts of township youths; one which had recently experienced the violence of ‘unrest’ and one which had not. A comparison of the two cohorts revealed some differences, which are related t…
From Victim to Villain
This paper concerns predictions, reported in the press, which have been made by professional bodies and human rights organizations concerning the long-term effects on black youth of exposure to township conditions. It is contended that these predictions lend themselves to secondary victimization of black youth and it is postulated that they are not based on empirical evidence. Furthermore, they reflect several unquestioned assumptions concerning …
The Racialization of the Mind in Intimate Spaces
Jessica Benjamin's (1988 Benjamin , J. ( 1988 ). The Bonds of Love . New York , NY : Pantheon . [Google Scholar]) notion that relations of dominance and submission reflect an original difficulty between child and caretaker is reviewed. The need for caretakers to be affected by the child's robust attempts to control them while at the same time neither retaliating nor capitulating is affirmed as is the idea that gender relations can compromise this…
Social and Political Complexity and Moral Development
In this study the authors aim to investigate empirically the relationship between Kohlberg's stages of moral development and exposure to political and social complexity.The sample consisted of 68 Social Work I students of the University of the Witwatersrand, 35 white and 33 black subjects, ranging in age from 18-24 years.Data were obtained by the use of a biographical questionnaire and Taylor's Reason for Action Questionnaire.Each instrument, res…
Psychological Factors Differentiating Unwed Mothers Keeping Their Babies from Those Placing Them for Adoption
The study focused on possible psychological variables which could differentiate unwed mothers keeping their babies from those placing them for adoption when certain pragmatic, sociological variables were kept constant. These psychological variables were derived from a model constructed on the basis of psychoanalytic writing on the genesis of unwed pregnancy. Three hypotheses generated from this model were tested, viz. that unwed mothers who kept …
Abused children
This article is a brief overview of the data on the characteristics of abused children and the psychological sequelae of abuse. The relationship between abuse and the sex of the child, age of the child, the child's ordinal position in the family, bonding failure, congenital handicap and temperament are explored within the context of conflicting views. The available data concerning the sequelae of abuse for the child e.g. intelligence and personal…
Aggression, emotional maladjustment, and empathy in the abused child
Brief-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
Brief-term psychotherapy and the idea of doing psychodynamic psychotherapy are usually seen as contradictory. This article explores the principles which underpin psychodynamic psychotherapy. Special attention is paid to the concepts of transference and interpretation. The potential for and limits of applying psychodynamic principles in a time-limited way are explored. It is concluded that it is possible to apply psychodynamic principles in a time…
Conflicts of Theory and Views of Human Nature
Kernberg's and Kohut's ideas concerning the idealizing transference are explored. It is postulated that their disparate ideas are explicable in terms of their different beliefs concerning human nature. The ontological status of these beliefs cannot be verified but they lead Kernberg and Kohut to adopt different observational stances. These stances influence their interpretations of the data perceived and the theories they construct. It is argued …
From Victim to Villain
This paper concerns predictions, reported in the press, which have been made by professional bodies and human rights organizations concerning the long-term effects on black youth of exposure to township conditions. It is contended that these predictions lend themselves to secondary victimization of black youth and it is postulated that they are not based on empirical evidence. Furthermore, they reflect several unquestioned assumptions concerning …
Experiences of Violence in the Lives of Township Youths in ‘Unrest’ and ‘Normal’ Conditions
Political violence has attracted the attention of psychological researchers in South Africa. In comparison, the more habitual forms of violence occurring in townships have been neglected. In this study the authors investigate the experiences of violence of two cohorts of township youths; one which had recently experienced the violence of ‘unrest’ and one which had not. A comparison of the two cohorts revealed some differences, which are related t…
Social and Political Complexity and Moral Development
In this study the authors aim to investigate empirically the relationship between Kohlberg's stages of moral development and exposure to political and social complexity.The sample consisted of 68 Social Work I students of the University of the Witwatersrand, 35 white and 33 black subjects, ranging in age from 18-24 years.Data were obtained by the use of a biographical questionnaire and Taylor's Reason for Action Questionnaire.Each instrument, res…
Intimacy, Fusion and Frequency of Sexual Contact in Lesbian Couples
It is generally accepted in the literature that, of all couple types, lesbian couples tend to have the lowest frequencies of sexual contact. It has been hypothesized that a reason for this is that lesbian couples are more subject than others to fusion. This study examines the relationship between frequency of sexual contact and fusion in lesbian relationships of duration longer than one year. The concept of fusion has, however, not been clearly d…
Reading Desire
All 3 papers on body modification share a particular approach to their topic as they are substantially located in discourse analysis and a deconstructive approach to their material, and all are concerned with binaries. All 3 papers also grapple with the matter of interiority. Having explored how these issues play themselves out in the particularity of the practices of tattooing and cosmetic surgery and in the work of Orlan, the author invites fur…
The Dangers of the Universal
Despite the cultural specificity of aspects of attachment theory (Layton, 2006 Layton , L. ( 2006 ). Racial identities, racial enactments, and normative unconscious processes . Psychoanalytic Quarterly , 75 , 237 – 269 .[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) it remains influential. Disorganized attachment and the alien self are linked to borderline phenomena and attacks upon the body (Fonagy et al., 2002 Fonagy , P. , G…
Unsettling whiteness
The Racialization of the Mind in Intimate Spaces
Jessica Benjamin's (1988 Benjamin , J. ( 1988 ). The Bonds of Love . New York , NY : Pantheon . [Google Scholar]) notion that relations of dominance and submission reflect an original difficulty between child and caretaker is reviewed. The need for caretakers to be affected by the child's robust attempts to control them while at the same time neither retaliating nor capitulating is affirmed as is the idea that gender relations can compromise this…
Continuous traumatic stress
Covering and Uncovering Race
The paper discusses clinical issues raised by three Black patient/trainee/therapists (this issue) concerning working with three White therapists at moments of race inflected ruptures followed by repair. It asks questions pertaining to race relations in the consulting room and beyond given that in South Africa unlike in North America Black people are in political power and are a numerical majority albeit that like Black Americans they have inherit…
The (Un) Examined Life Is Not Worth Living
Under what conditions might shame lead to an expansion of self-states rather than remain toxic. If shame is to be used as a pilot light to recalibrate the relationship with self and other how can the precondition of fluidity between objective and subjective awareness be promoted. Following an exploration of Anen’s excellent paper that explores white fragility and includes a touching illustrative case study I suggest that using shame productively …
Psychology (16 works) · Social Psychology (10 works) · Psychoanalysis (7 works) · Law (6 works) · Political science (6 works) · Sociology (6 works) · Child Abuse and Trauma (4 works) · Developmental psychology (4 works) · Gender Studies (4 works) · Philosophy (4 works)