206 – Psychological Development Across the Lifecycle, Part 1 (Infancy to Latency)

Description: This course will start with an overview of the concept of development and a review of the major psychoanalytic developmental theories. Following this overview, the course will focus on psychoanalytic understandings of early childhood and the latency phase and link them to adult functioning and pathology.  Finally, the course will include discussion of special topics such as superego development and gender identity.

Part 2, in the spring of 2026, will be a 16-week course that will continue the study from pre-adolescence through adulthood, to the developmental concerns of the end of life. Part 2 is open to students who completed Part 1.

Target Audience: This course is intended for clinicians at the beginning to intermediate levels.

Prerequisite: This class is open to non-matriculated students and is required for matriculated students in the Adult, Adult/Child, or Child-Focused Psychoanalytic and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy programs. Non-matriculated students will need a basic exposure to and understanding of psychoanalytic theory and its application to the treatment of patients.
Applicants can meet this requirement through previous psychoanalytic coursework, training, or supervision (e.g., Thinking Psychoanalytically: The Basics; the Introductory Courses).
Applicants who do not meet these requirements can register for the course with the permission of the instructor.