maternal reverie

a mother’s capacity to understand what her infant is feeling and to ameliorate the infant’s anxiety and distress. See also attunement; primary maternal preoccupation. [first described in 1962 by British psychoanalyst Wilfred Bion (1897–1979)]

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Psychology term of the day

November 21st 2024

character disorder

formerly, in psychoanalysis, an alternative name for personality disorder.