The Nucleation of a Core Psyche and Its Implications for Care.

The possibility that psychic development precedes the advent of the drives and object relations has received attention periodically in the psychoanalytic literature. In addition to examining its origins, several writers (e.g.

Developmental Considerations in the Origins of Object Relations: Implications for Normative Development and Clinical Practice.

While previous writers have considered the possibility of pre-object phases of psychic development, their offerings have tended to focus on its conceptualization and implications for psychopathology and psychoanalytic care. The purpose of this paper is to extend some of these ideas by proposing a developmental model that includes a pre-object phase of normal psychic development within an object relations framework and by discussing how this model might further inform our understanding of psychopathology associated with early development and its analytic treatment.

The dynamic interplay of mourning and forgiveness in the early development of the self and psychic structure.

Mourning has received considerable attention in the psychoanalytic literature. Beginning with Freud's 1917 investigation, the central role of mourning in psychical development via identification has been articulated and subsequently elaborated upon by various authors (e.g.

The Reliability of Psychiatric Diagnosis Revisited: The Clinician's Guide to Improve the Reliability of Psychiatric Diagnosis.

Background: The authors reviewed the topic of reliability of psychiatric diagnosis from the turn of the 20th century to present. The objectives of this paper are to explore the reasons of unreliability of psychiatric diagnosis and propose ways to improve the reliability of psychiatric diagnosis.

Method: The authors reviewed the literature on the concept of reliability of psychiatric diagnosis with emphasis on the impact of interviewing skills, use of diagnostic criteria, and structured interviews on the reliability of psychiatric diagnosis.

The use of olanzapine in the treatment of negative symptoms in Alzheimer's disease.

The authors report findings from an 8-week, open-label trial conducted to evaluate efficacy of olanzapine in treating negative symptoms in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Subjects were AD patients age 50 and older who exhibited untreated neuropsychiatric symptoms. Findings suggest that a therapeutic profile for olanzapine may be appropriate for AD patients experiencing neuropsychiatric problems.