Part III, Some Clinical Implications, Chapter 11, Implications for the Therapeutic Process of Reconstructing a Developmental Past Summary and Analysis

In the last chapter, Stern addresses how his Self Psychology should affect clinical practice, in particular how the client and patient should reconstruct an effective narrative about the past. First, Stern recommends foregoing analyzing concepts like orality, dependence, autonomy and true in terms of specific phases of origin in development. Traditional theories think these concepts are age-sensitive but most experienced clinicians keep development theory in the background during active practice, which is good. Instead, they look for narrative points of origin. Second, the period of emergence of each sense of self is probably a sensitive period and should be focused on. Focus might generate testable predictions.

Stern's notion of layering sense...