Critical theory and schizoid patients

A look at Winnicott

Bibliographic Data

ID6110603
AuthorsGal Gerson (0000-0002-5016-7007, University of Haifa, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume30
Issue4
Pages696-712
Publication date2025-06-06
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePsychoanalysis Culture & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1088-0763 • E-ISSN: 1543-3390
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1057/s41282-025-00550-z
OpenAlexW4411093723
LanguageEN
References cited27

Winnicott is often endorsed by critical theory, primarily because he offers a less rigid approach than orthodox psychoanalysis. He also displays a dialectical feature that matches the Hegelian bent that critical theory retains from its Marxist origins. However, Winnicott also entails some serious exclusions that subvert efforts to enlist him for critical theory. This can be prevalently seen in his attitude to the schizoid condition. He views that condition as both particularly ill and as socially disruptive. At the basis of the schizoid condition, as he understands it, is a sense of detachment from, and hostility towards, the social order—any social order. The schizoid flaw, in other words, resides in being antithetical. If antithesis is cast as the core illness, the Winnicott alliance with critical theory is undermined, rendering aspects of Winnicott’s theory collusive with a normalized status quo

Psychoanalysis · Psychoanalytic theory · Psychotherapist · Sociology · Academic and Historical Perspectives in Psychology · Mental Health and Psychiatry · Psychology · Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications

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