3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item The fatherhood constellation: exploring the representational world of new fathers of pre-oedipal infants(2022-07) Berman, Sarah LouiseThis thesis represents a turn to the father himself, as a figure in his own right. It highlights the lack of research on fathers, as well as the tendency of the psychological and psychoanalytic literature to focus on the mother, and on the roles that fathers perform for their infants. In an attempt to cast light on fathers’ experiences of emergent fatherhood, this research study explored the representational world of new fathers of preoedipal infants. Semi-structured research interviews were conducted with seven white, middle-class, South African fathers of small children, and they were analysed through a psychoanalytic research technique. The research method undertaken in this study led to the collection of rich data about new fathers’ experiences of fatherhood; it also revealed how an analysis of the research method itself can offer insight into both fathers’ experiences of fatherhood and fatherhood research. These findings are presented in the form of a paper in the methodology section, together with the more general aspects of the research design. The thesis then proceeds with a paper that discusses how the father has been ‘forgotten’, not only in the literature, but also in his own mind. ‘Remembering’ the father or, more aptly, the ‘conception’ of the father takes place when the father sees himself in the eyes of his infant, and experiences his infant as being actively responsive to him. The process of reorganisation of the father’s representational world during his emergent fatherhood is then explored in two papers, which examine the possible nature of the fatherhood constellation and the fatherhood trilogy, drawing on Stern’s work on the motherhood constellation. Together, all three papers highlight that becoming a father is not a smooth process. It is characterised by feelings of exclusion, anxiety, self-doubt and uncertainty about one’s position in relation to the mother-infant dyad. Self-representation as a father is informed by conscious and unconscious intergenerational, intragenerational, matrilineal, patrilineal, Oedipal, social, cultural and historical facets of emergent fatherhood. The papers, therefore, suggest that fatherhood may be overdetermined and that the representation of absence may be a key step towards the father finding presence in his own mind. The project concludes with a discussion of the theoretical and clinical implications of an understanding of fatherhood which situates the father on the outside of the mother-infant dyad, and as having to struggle to find representation of himself as a father in his own mind.Item HIV as an internal object : the subjective experience of HIV infection in women on ARVs.(2012-03-13) Gordon, Tiffany AmandaHIV/AIDS research has proven crucial in an effort to prevent and manage this epidemic. However, there is little research being done in an attempt to understand the internal worlds of those living with HIV/AIDS. The purpose of this research was to begin to explore the relationship that exists between the person living with HIV/AIDS and the virus, as an internal object, inside them. This study focused on 6 women who were on Anti-Retroviral Medication (ARVs), and who have been diagnosed for at least one year. The participants’ mental representations of the virus as an object inside them was explored, as well as how they experienced and viewed the triangular relationship that exists between themselves, the HI Virus, and the ARVs. This exploratory research utilised a qualitative framework in order to understand and explore these relationships and perceptions, with psychoanalytic theory being used a lens through which to view the data that emerged. In depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants, and the corpus of data was analyzed using a thematic content analysis. In addition, the participants were asked to draw the virus inside their bodies. These were analyzed using a technique devised by Paola Luzzatto (1987) in a study exploring the internal world of drug-abusers. For the purpose of this study, a variation of the same art therapy technique was used in that the participants were asked the ‘draw the virus in their bodies’. Whilst the drawings allowed for insight into the internal worlds of the participants, the drawings were also used as a point of departure. For most of the women, HIV was drawn using a red crayon, whilst the ARVs were drawn in either yellow or green. As depicted in the drawings, post diagnosis the HIV/red seemed to cover most of the body, but later when the ARVs/green was added, more of a balance was achieved. Results show that for these women, HIV was often perceived as dangerous and criminal, whilst the ARVs were often associated with security. From the perspective of Kleinian theory, the perception of the HIV and the ARVs seemed to be dependent upon the position from where they were functioning: either a paranoid-schizoid or a depressive position.