From Individual To Group: A Study Of Bion's Objective Relation Theory

Bion is a famous psychoanalysist in British. He is one of the thinkers and practicers of objective relation with the strongest influence in the late 20th century. He has great effect on the areas of individual psychoanalysis and group psychology with unique sights on both ones. In the area of individual psychoanalysis, Bion not only inherited Klein's idea of projective identification, but also extended and deepened it, and developed it into a kind of unique containment model, which made it the necessary theory to understand the normal and morbid development According to Bion, these concepts of objective relation could be used in greater systems than an individual, such as families, groups and institutions. Using Klein's concept of projective identification to investigate groups, Bion discovered the phenomena of psychosis hidden in the group life. Therefore, he took a firm step in the area of group psychology, and went beyond the work of McDougall and Freud in it. In the area of psychopathology, Bion caused a revolution of how analysists understand the patients in the consulting rooms in a mild way. In Bion's opinion, there are elements of psychosis and non-psychosis in personality. The tasks of analysists were to make connections with the elements of non-psychosis in sufferers' personalities in order to get in touch with the elements of psychosis. Bion's theory of object-relationships psychoanalysis has widespread influence on the theory and therapeutic practice of objective relation schools nowadays. His work is viewed as not only the extension of the research of Freud and Klein, but also a radical revolution in the theory and practice of psychoanalysis.