63rd Annual Conference

Saturday, February 25

Afternoon Workshops

2:15-5:30 P.M.

Workshop 92

Groups for Prevention of Insecure Disorganized Attachment with High Risk Traumatized Mothers

Chair:    

Irene Harwood, M.S.W., Ph.D., Psy.D., Director of Prevention of Insecure Disorganized Attachment Project (PIDA), University of California (UCLA), Los Angeles, California

Participants will learn how to observe mother-infants' groups and understand intersubjective affect attunement/misattunement, ongoing regulation/disregulation, rupture and repair/no repair, and heightened affective moments.  How to intervene to promote attachment when mother is depressed or dissociated and to use metaphors to help impinging/traumatizing mothers develop empathy/sympathy toward their infants to facilitate brain development and creativity.

Experiential-didactic-sharing of work experiences-demonstration

Learning Objectives:

The attendee will be able to:

1. Evaluate someone's early attachment configuration in order to optimally predict their ability to engage with other group members.

2. Create a bond with each member of the group to provide a safe place to process and work.

3. Conduct a group by listening and intervening from an empathic and other-centered mode perspective.

Course References:

1. Harwood, I. & Pines, M. (Eds.) (1998). Self Experiences in Group: Intersubjective and self psychological pathways to human understanding. London, UK: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.  Philadelphia, PA:  Taylor & Francis.

2. Lachmann, F. & Beebe, B. (1996). The Contribution of Self and Mutual Regulation to Therapeutic Action: A case illustration. In M. Moskowitz, C. Monk, C. Kaye & El Ellman (Eds.). The Neurobiological and Developmental Basis for Psychotherapeutic Intervention. Northvale NJ: Jason Aronson.

3. Main, M. (2000). Epilogue. Attachment Theory: Eighteen points with suggestions for future studies. In J. Cassidy & P. Shaver (Eds.). Handbook of Attachment:  Theory, Research, and clinical Applications. New York, NY: Guilford Press.