Trauma in child psychotherapy: some thoughts around a concept

ABSTRACT This paper offers an exploration of the notion of trauma, viewing it as an ‘elastic’ concept that has changed over time within psychoanalytic theory, including in child psychotherapy. There is an argument for a multi-faceted, developmental, individual way of viewing trauma, taking into account contemporary knowledge about psychic trauma while at the same time not losing sight of some psychoanalytic ideas that were central in the formation of the term. This paper argues for the importance of reclaiming and holding onto certain Freudian elements of what trauma means, including the idea that structural/ontological trauma in the course of human life is necessary and developmentally important, and is differentiated from historical trauma, which is linked to a particular event. These different ways of thinking about trauma are explored through presenting the work of French child psychoanalyst Françoise Dolto.