Taking the Group Seriously: Towards a Post-Foulkesian Group Analytic Theory (International Library of Group Analysis (Paperback))

In this critique and extension of Foulkes' work, Farhad Dalal presents a thorough contemporary appraisal of the theory of group psychoanalysis and its relevance to psychoanalysis as a whole. Although Foulkes is considered to be the founder of group analysis, Dalal argues that he was ultimately unable to take the group seriously because he did not develop a specific set of group concepts. The book describes how Foulkes was torn between the traditional individualistic framework of Freud and the less orthodox ideas of the sociologist Elias. The author demonstrates how this dichotomy compromised Foulkes' thesis, and offers his own post-Foulkesian interpretation of group analytic theory.