Besides Family: Extending the Orbit of Psychic Development

With contributions from Salman Akhtar, Patricia Boguski, Ann Eichen, April Fallon, Theodore Fallon, Jr., Rama Rao Gogineni, Mark Moore, Sonja Ware.

Collectively authored by psychoanalytic colleagues of multiple nationalities, ages, genders, religious origins, and meta-theoretical persuasions, Besides Family goes far beyond the usual orbit of parents and siblings. Casting a wide net, the contributors look at a number of key figures who may affect an individual’s psychic development and functioning. Each character receives a full chapter which highlights both the beneficial and adverse possibilities within these relationships.

The book opens with a chapter on nannies, tracing the centuries-old history in the West and focusing on four renowned psychoanalysts: Sigmund Freud, Sándor Ferenczi, John Bowlby, and Wilfred Bion. Next comes a discussion of neighbours, using material from religious texts, fiction, and poetry. This is followed by a chapter on childhood playmates and friends, which examines the nature of friendship and how it develops across the lifespan. School teachers come next, using literature on teacher–student relationships synthesised with psychoanalytic developmental theory. Clergy is the next subject of discussion, blending Judeo-Christian religious customs with psychoanalytic developmental theory. The developmental significance of adolescent peers is examined next using a blend of neurophysiology, endocrine studies, behavioral observations, social–cultural vectors, and psychoanalytic insights. A discussion of lovers and the myriad ways in which romantic relationships mirror early development is the penultimate chapter. The book ends on the role of mentors and the evolution of the mentor–mentee relationship, taking into account the impact of age, race, and gender.

The authors integrate material from history, anthropology, sociology, religion, literature, and film studies alongside vignettes from clinical practice and day-to-day life to bring theory to life. This fascinating exploration is essential reading for practising clinicians and trainees to broaden their understanding of the impact of the wide network that surrounds us all.

Salman Akhtar, MD, is Professor of Psychiatry at Jefferson Medical College and a Training and Supervising Analyst at the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia.  He has served on the editorial boards of the International Journal of Psychoanalysis, the Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, and the Psychoanalytic Quarterly. His more than 400 publications include 105 books, of which the following 22 are solo-authored: Broken Structures (1992), Quest for Answers (1995), Inner Torment (1999), Immigration and Identity (1999), New Clinical Realms (2003), Objects of Our Desire (2005), Regarding Others (2007), Turning Points in Dynamic Psychotherapy (2009), The Damaged Core (2009), Comprehensive Dictionary of Psychoanalysis (2009), Immigration and Acculturation (2011), Matters of Life and Death (2011), The Book of Emotions (2012), Psychoanalytic Listening (2013), Good Stuff (2013), Sources of Suffering (2014), No Holds Barred (2016), A Web of Sorrow (2017), Mind, Culture, and Global Unrest (2018), Silent Virtues (2019), Tales of Transformation (2021), and In Leaps and Bounds (2022). 

Dr Akhtar has delivered many prestigious invited lectures including a Plenary Address at the 2nd International Congress of the International Society for the Study of Personality Disorders in Oslo, Norway (1991), an Invited Plenary Paper at the 2nd International Margaret S. Mahler Symposium in Cologne, Germany (1993), an Invited Plenary Paper at the Rencontre Franco-Americaine de Psychanalyse meeting in Paris, France (1994), a Keynote Address at the 43^rd IPA Congress in Rio de Janiero, Brazil (2005), the Plenary Address at the 150^th Freud Birthday Celebration sponsored by the Dutch Psychoanalytic Society and the Embassy of Austria in Leiden, Holland (2006), the Inaugural Address at the first IPA-Asia Congress in Beijing, China (2010), and the Plenary Address at the Fall Meetings of the American Psychoanalytic Association in 2017. 

Dr Akhtar is the recipient of numerous awards including the American Psychoanalytic Association’s Edith Sabshin Award (2000), Columbia University’s Robert Liebert Award for Distinguished Contributions to Applied Psychoanalysis (2004), the American Psychiatric Association’s Kun Po Soo Award (2004) and Irma Bland Award for being the Outstanding Teacher of Psychiatric Residents in the country (2005). He received the highly prestigious Sigourney Award (2012) for distinguished contributions to psychoanalysis. In 2103, he gave the Commencement Address at graduation ceremonies of the Smith College School of Social Work in Northampton, MA. 

Dr Akhtar’s books have been translated in many languages, including German, Italian, Korean, Romanian, Serbian, Spanish, and Turkish.  A true Renaissance man, Dr Akhtar has served as the Film Review Editor for the International Journal of Psychoanalysis, and is currently serving as the Book Review Editor for the International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies. He has published 11 collections of poetry and serves as a Scholar-in-Residence at the Inter-Act Theatre Company in Philadelphia.  

April Fallon, Ph.D. is the Faculty Chair and Professor of Clinical Psychology at Fielding Graduate University and Clinical Professor in psychiatry at Drexel College of Medicine. She received her baccalaureate degree from Allegheny College (1975) and a Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania (1981). She has received numerous awards for her teaching of psychiatric medical residents including the Psychiatric Educator 2012 from Philadelphia Psychiatric Society. She has co-authored six books with Virginia Brabender: Models of Inpatient Group Psychotherapy (1993), Awaiting the Therapist’s Baby: A Guide for Expectant Parent-Practitioners (2003), Essentials of Group Psychotherapy (2004), Group Development in Practice: Guidance for Clinicians and Researchers on Stages and Dynamics of Change (2009), The Impact of Parenthood on the Therapeutic Relationship: Awaiting the Therapist’s Baby (2018, 2nd Ed.), and Group Psychotherapy in Inpatient, Partial Hospital, and Residential Care settings (2019). She also has co-edited an additional volume, Working with Adoptive Parents: research, Theory and Therapeutic Interventions (2013). In addition, she has researched and written on the development of disgust in children and adults, body image and eating disorders, the effects of childhood maltreatment, attachment and adoption.

Rama Rao Gogineni, M.D. is Division Head of Child Psychiatry at Cooper University Hospital and Professor in Psychiatry at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University.  He received his M.D. degree from Osmania University in India (1972).  He completed his General Psychiatry Residency from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (1979) and his Child and Adolescent fellowship from Medical College of Pennsylvania (1982).  He obtained a Master’s degree in Family Therapy from the Family Institute of Philadelphia.  He completed his psychoanalytic training from the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia.  Dr. Gogineni served as President of Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, Regional Counsel of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry of Eastern Pennsylvania, South Asian American Forum, and American Association for Social Psychiatry. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, The Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and a member of the American College of Psychiatrists.  He has written and presented on various aspect s of fatherhood, attachment, revenge, adoption, immigration, depression, neurobiology, and gratitude.