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When We Deal with Children
Book Reviews \\'lIE:'/
'VE
DEAL WITH CIIILDREN .
755
By Fritz Redl. New York: The
Free Press, 1966,5111'1'" $8.95.
R eviewed by Richard L. Coh en, lvL D. For the most part, thi s volume represents a collec tion of Redl 's prior work in severa l important areas. Although seven of the chap ters are completely original, the rema ini ng twen ty-on e arc based on previ ous publications in th e profession al literature. The vol ume is divided into five sections, each focused on a specific subject: ( I) critica l issues in the development of childre n 's services at the presen t tim e ; (2) a re-examinati on of some hasic treatment concep ts; (3) principles rela ted specifica lly to group dynamics and group ma nageme nt : (4) suggestions for guidance and consultation wit h resid ential staffs; and (5) ideas concerning child growth an d human development wh ich are useful in work wi th parents and in community plann ing. However, there is no sim ple, d irect descr iption of th e skeleton whi ch can clea r ly portray to t he read er th e manner in wh ich Redl fleshes out the figure and th en be dec ks it in id iomati c finery. Most r eaders of this J ou rna l will be fami liar wi th Redl 's evocative style. It lacks the terseness and the clea nness of scien tific wr iting and th e articu late literacy of really good pro se, but it is eminently r eadable. In fact, much of it reads like a warm and interested letter from a Iorrner teacher who " u nderstan ds" what ki nd of problems you are havin g now th at you are a n t in the worl d. Mu ch of thi s work may not be appreciated h y the beginner, becau se it ofte n docs not seem scientific enoug h . H owever, to anyo ne who has struggled with th e problems in volved in the ma nagement of groups of d isturbed children whether in day care settings, resi de ntia l sett ings or in schools, it is dea r that Redl has been a dil igent observer anti a creative thinker and is no w ready to share the fruits of an eminent career with his colleagues. •Admittedl y, ther e are times when Redl becomes a littl e too ne ologistic even for the initiat ed. For in stan ce, in the chapter on the relationship between psychoanalysis and group therapy, he designates three successive section headings as follows: "The Power of D r. Cohe n, for m erl )' A ssociat e P ro fessor o f Psychiat ry. University 0/ Nebraska Co llege 01 M edicine, and Cllie f of Ch ildren's Service, Neb raska Ps)'chi atric l nstit ut e, Omaha, X e braska, is now A ssocia te Professor of Chi ld Psychia try , Univers it), of Pitt s burgh and Director, Pittsbu rgh Child Gui dance Cen te r.
756
Book R eviews
Group-Psycho logical Role Suc tion"; "The Tax-Im posit ion an d TaxExempt ion Powers of Group Struc ture and Gro u p Code": "The Action-Threshold Impact of Spatial Designs and T hings." This is not a major probl em, however. Almost all of th e ti me one understands very clearly wha t Redl has to say. A few examples of Redl 's perceptive gras p are qu oted her e. In relati on to fad s and bandwagon s in the ch ildre n's mental health field, Redl writes: "Som etimes some old bone whi ch doesn 't amount to too much lies lonely in the street; no dog even bothers to sn iff at it. All of a sudden one do g, ou t of boredom or for reasons known onl y to his an al yst, starts idly worryin g it. In no time at all, all th e other dogs in the neighborhood come aroun d an d want it too . A fight ensues, in wh ich th e possession of this bone seems to have become a matter of life and death. Som ehow the fight peters out-s-or ma ybe somebody bothered by th e noise breaks it up. Gone are the dogs. The bon e is left lyin g th ere, untou ched an d alon e, forgo tte n once aga in" (I' . 16). In relation to staff reaction LO cli nical improvement in severely di sturbed children, h e observ es: "In short, it became qu ite clea r to me th at th e su dde n impro vement in th e child re n had mad e life miserable for us. The stre ngth we had all develop ed to deal with th e onslaug ht of th e ch ildren 's pathologies was not th e same typ e of strength it would take to nouri sh their improved traits. Living wit h traces of mental health seemed to require differ ent types of skill an d 'atmo sphere' than had catering to th e dem ands of pathol ogy well entrenched" (I" 100). In relation to classroom teacher reaction to mental health conc.epts, Redl writes: "Yes, it is true that many teachers reject the improvements we hav e made in terms of individual child study as 'sissy st uff' and 'fads and frills.' But do you know why th ey do? No t be ca use they don't see th e value of it all, but because th ey ge t di scouraged if you op en up vistas for them and don 't give th em a chance to appl y wha t they see. For at the sam e time that th e teacher is invited to become psychol ogical , he is still loaded with classes too large for the ir 011'11 goo d and with work too pred efin ed for him to insert wha t he wou ld li ke in terms of individ ual work, and it is th e fr ustra tion of th ese act ual lim itati ons, rather tha n a lack of lorwardm inded ness, that ca uses most of th is di ssens ion ." The book is repl et e with observa tions an d com me nts of t he type ill ustra ted by th e a bove q uo ta tions. Any pro fession al or semi professional worker in th e children's field will find it well worth readin g. T h is reviewer lound m ilch that was helpful, Amost all of it was highly acce p ta ble whe n it was approached wit h th e understanding th at it represe nts th e singular exper ience of one gifted wor ke r in th e field who is sha ring hi s life's wor k in th e grou p care of di sturbed ch ildre n.
Book Reviews
757
The almost total absence of footnotes or other ref erences (wit h the u sual effort to incorporate and int egrate the th inking of other workers in the field in a book of this type) and the total a bsence of reference to work wit h parents and fam ilies (which is another important gro u p to wh ich most children belon g) beco mes understandable under the se circumstances.
By Gregory Rochlin. Boston: L ittle, Brown an d Com pa n y, 1965, 403 pp., _9.00.
GRIEFS ANn D ISCONTENTS.
R evi ewed by Iren e M . Josselyn , M.D. Rochl in has, in Griefs and Disconten ts, ma de an extremely important contrib u tion to the literature. H e has attempted to tie together certa in threads that have been left somew hat da ngling as the con cepts of personality dev elopment are being woven into a multicolored cloth. In this book he tr aces the impact of the " loss complex" u pon perso nality devel op ment an d maturation . Th e " loss complex," as R och lin develop s hi s thesis, has its root s in th e early fear of abandon men t. Due to t he infa nt's dependence upon others, abandonment wou ld r esult in a failure of th e inherent impulse to survive. From thi s n eed for ot hers evolves a capacity for objec t rel ationships as well as con flicts over aggressive dri ves. Rochlin points out th at the fear of aban don ment, based up on a threat to survival, does n ot di sappear after early in fancy but rather remains a signi ficant fact or in psych ological growth as it is re inforced by awareness of reali ty. Its signficance is illu strated , as an examp le, by Ulan's r eaction to hi s awareness of dea th . Rochlin states, "The realization that dea th may occur at some unpredictabl e moment gives ma n a zeal for li ving rather than despa ir at dying." Th is fundamental human psychological characteristic, he indicates, is a sign ificant part of religious con cep ts (the basic n eed not to be abandoned by a God) and the extension of the drive to live (thro ngh concepts of immortality). 'Vith th is preli minary groun dwork R och li n th en formul ates what he sees as the broader impl ications of the fear of a loss, a loss not onl y of a n eeded person or a loved object, but also of a dream, a desire, or a Dr. Josselyn is th e form er edi tor 01 the Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry.
'VE
DEAL WITH CIIILDREN .
755
By Fritz Redl. New York: The
Free Press, 1966,5111'1'" $8.95.
R eviewed by Richard L. Coh en, lvL D. For the most part, thi s volume represents a collec tion of Redl 's prior work in severa l important areas. Although seven of the chap ters are completely original, the rema ini ng twen ty-on e arc based on previ ous publications in th e profession al literature. The vol ume is divided into five sections, each focused on a specific subject: ( I) critica l issues in the development of childre n 's services at the presen t tim e ; (2) a re-examinati on of some hasic treatment concep ts; (3) principles rela ted specifica lly to group dynamics and group ma nageme nt : (4) suggestions for guidance and consultation wit h resid ential staffs; and (5) ideas concerning child growth an d human development wh ich are useful in work wi th parents and in community plann ing. However, there is no sim ple, d irect descr iption of th e skeleton whi ch can clea r ly portray to t he read er th e manner in wh ich Redl fleshes out the figure and th en be dec ks it in id iomati c finery. Most r eaders of this J ou rna l will be fami liar wi th Redl 's evocative style. It lacks the terseness and the clea nness of scien tific wr iting and th e articu late literacy of really good pro se, but it is eminently r eadable. In fact, much of it reads like a warm and interested letter from a Iorrner teacher who " u nderstan ds" what ki nd of problems you are havin g now th at you are a n t in the worl d. Mu ch of thi s work may not be appreciated h y the beginner, becau se it ofte n docs not seem scientific enoug h . H owever, to anyo ne who has struggled with th e problems in volved in the ma nagement of groups of d isturbed children whether in day care settings, resi de ntia l sett ings or in schools, it is dea r that Redl has been a dil igent observer anti a creative thinker and is no w ready to share the fruits of an eminent career with his colleagues. •Admittedl y, ther e are times when Redl becomes a littl e too ne ologistic even for the initiat ed. For in stan ce, in the chapter on the relationship between psychoanalysis and group therapy, he designates three successive section headings as follows: "The Power of D r. Cohe n, for m erl )' A ssociat e P ro fessor o f Psychiat ry. University 0/ Nebraska Co llege 01 M edicine, and Cllie f of Ch ildren's Service, Neb raska Ps)'chi atric l nstit ut e, Omaha, X e braska, is now A ssocia te Professor of Chi ld Psychia try , Univers it), of Pitt s burgh and Director, Pittsbu rgh Child Gui dance Cen te r.
756
Book R eviews
Group-Psycho logical Role Suc tion"; "The Tax-Im posit ion an d TaxExempt ion Powers of Group Struc ture and Gro u p Code": "The Action-Threshold Impact of Spatial Designs and T hings." This is not a major probl em, however. Almost all of th e ti me one understands very clearly wha t Redl has to say. A few examples of Redl 's perceptive gras p are qu oted her e. In relati on to fad s and bandwagon s in the ch ildre n's mental health field, Redl writes: "Som etimes some old bone whi ch doesn 't amount to too much lies lonely in the street; no dog even bothers to sn iff at it. All of a sudden one do g, ou t of boredom or for reasons known onl y to his an al yst, starts idly worryin g it. In no time at all, all th e other dogs in the neighborhood come aroun d an d want it too . A fight ensues, in wh ich th e possession of this bone seems to have become a matter of life and death. Som ehow the fight peters out-s-or ma ybe somebody bothered by th e noise breaks it up. Gone are the dogs. The bon e is left lyin g th ere, untou ched an d alon e, forgo tte n once aga in" (I' . 16). In relation to staff reaction LO cli nical improvement in severely di sturbed children, h e observ es: "In short, it became qu ite clea r to me th at th e su dde n impro vement in th e child re n had mad e life miserable for us. The stre ngth we had all develop ed to deal with th e onslaug ht of th e ch ildren 's pathologies was not th e same typ e of strength it would take to nouri sh their improved traits. Living wit h traces of mental health seemed to require differ ent types of skill an d 'atmo sphere' than had catering to th e dem ands of pathol ogy well entrenched" (I" 100). In relation to classroom teacher reaction to mental health conc.epts, Redl writes: "Yes, it is true that many teachers reject the improvements we hav e made in terms of individual child study as 'sissy st uff' and 'fads and frills.' But do you know why th ey do? No t be ca use they don't see th e value of it all, but because th ey ge t di scouraged if you op en up vistas for them and don 't give th em a chance to appl y wha t they see. For at the sam e time that th e teacher is invited to become psychol ogical , he is still loaded with classes too large for the ir 011'11 goo d and with work too pred efin ed for him to insert wha t he wou ld li ke in terms of individ ual work, and it is th e fr ustra tion of th ese act ual lim itati ons, rather tha n a lack of lorwardm inded ness, that ca uses most of th is di ssens ion ." The book is repl et e with observa tions an d com me nts of t he type ill ustra ted by th e a bove q uo ta tions. Any pro fession al or semi professional worker in th e children's field will find it well worth readin g. T h is reviewer lound m ilch that was helpful, Amost all of it was highly acce p ta ble whe n it was approached wit h th e understanding th at it represe nts th e singular exper ience of one gifted wor ke r in th e field who is sha ring hi s life's wor k in th e grou p care of di sturbed ch ildre n.
Book Reviews
757
The almost total absence of footnotes or other ref erences (wit h the u sual effort to incorporate and int egrate the th inking of other workers in the field in a book of this type) and the total a bsence of reference to work wit h parents and fam ilies (which is another important gro u p to wh ich most children belon g) beco mes understandable under the se circumstances.
By Gregory Rochlin. Boston: L ittle, Brown an d Com pa n y, 1965, 403 pp., _9.00.
GRIEFS ANn D ISCONTENTS.
R evi ewed by Iren e M . Josselyn , M.D. Rochl in has, in Griefs and Disconten ts, ma de an extremely important contrib u tion to the literature. H e has attempted to tie together certa in threads that have been left somew hat da ngling as the con cepts of personality dev elopment are being woven into a multicolored cloth. In this book he tr aces the impact of the " loss complex" u pon perso nality devel op ment an d maturation . Th e " loss complex," as R och lin develop s hi s thesis, has its root s in th e early fear of abandon men t. Due to t he infa nt's dependence upon others, abandonment wou ld r esult in a failure of th e inherent impulse to survive. From thi s n eed for ot hers evolves a capacity for objec t rel ationships as well as con flicts over aggressive dri ves. Rochlin points out th at the fear of aban don ment, based up on a threat to survival, does n ot di sappear after early in fancy but rather remains a signi ficant fact or in psych ological growth as it is re inforced by awareness of reali ty. Its signficance is illu strated , as an examp le, by Ulan's r eaction to hi s awareness of dea th . Rochlin states, "The realization that dea th may occur at some unpredictabl e moment gives ma n a zeal for li ving rather than despa ir at dying." Th is fundamental human psychological characteristic, he indicates, is a sign ificant part of religious con cep ts (the basic n eed not to be abandoned by a God) and the extension of the drive to live (thro ngh concepts of immortality). 'Vith th is preli minary groun dwork R och li n th en formul ates what he sees as the broader impl ications of the fear of a loss, a loss not onl y of a n eeded person or a loved object, but also of a dream, a desire, or a Dr. Josselyn is th e form er edi tor 01 the Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry.