The Place of Interpretation in Child Analysis: Meaning-Making for Child and Analyst.

Summary

This paper explores the role of interpretation in child psychotherapy and considers how interpretations can help children and therapists make sense of emotional experiences. Rustin emphasizes that interpretation is not simply about explaining the hidden meaning of a child’s behavior or play. Instead, it is a way of helping the child gradually develop a more understandable representation of feelings, relationships, fantasies, and conflicts.

Rustin highlights the importance of the therapist’s timing, sensitivity, and capacity to observe before offering an interpretation. An interpretation is most useful when it is closely connected to the child’s emotional experience and can be understood within the context of the therapeutic relationship. The therapist also needs to remain open to uncertainty rather than assuming that they already know what the child’s behavior means.

Overall, the paper presents interpretation as a process of meaning-making for both child and therapist. Through careful observation, emotional attunement, and thoughtful interpretation, experiences that were previously confusing or difficult to think about can gradually become more understandable and available for reflection