Editing Object relations theory (section)

== Theory ==
While its groundwork derives from theories of development of the ego in [[Sigmund Freud|Freudian]] [[psychodynamics]], object relations theory does not place emphasis on the role of biological [[Drive theory|drives]] in the formation of personality in adulthood.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Sociology: Understanding a Diverse Society, Updated |last1=Andersen |first1=Margaret |last2=Taylor |first2=Howard |publisher=Thomson Wadsworth |year=2008 |isbn=9780495007425 |location=Belmont, CA |pages=93}}</ref> This school of thought instead suggests that a person's pattern of relations to others as an adult is shaped by experiences of caregivers during infancy. Caregivers and other figures in the infant's life are termed "objects." An adult who experienced neglect or abuse in infancy expects similar behavior from others who, through [[transference]], remind them of the neglectful or abusive parent from their past.

The first "object" in an individual's psyche is usually an internalized image of the mother. Internal objects are formed by the patterns in one's experience of being taken care of as an infant, which may or may not be accurate representations of the actual, external caretakers. Objects are usually internalized images of one's [[mother]], [[father]], or other primary caregiver. However, they can also consist of parts of a person, such as an infant relating to the [[breast]] rather than to their mother as a whole person.<ref>{{cite book 
 |last      = St. Clair
 |first     = Michael
 |title     = Object Relations and Self Psychology: An Introduction
 |year      = 2000
 |publisher = Brooks/Cole Counseling, an imprint of Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning
 |isbn      = 978-0-534-36280-5
 |edition   = 3rd
 |page      = [https://archive.org/details/objectrelationss00stcl/page/6 6]
 |quote     = An object is that to which a subject relates.
 |url       = https://archive.org/details/objectrelationss00stcl/page/6
}}</ref>

Later experiences can reshape these early patterns, but objects often continue to exert a strong influence throughout life. Objects are initially comprehended in the [[infant]] mind by their functions and are termed ''part objects''.<ref name="Greenberg1983">Greenberg, J. & Mitchell, S. (1983). ''Object Relations in Psychoanalytic Theory''. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London, England.</ref> The breast that feeds the hungry infant is the "good breast," while a hungry infant that finds no breast understands the breast to be the "bad breast." With a "good enough" facilitating environment, part object functions eventually transform into a comprehension of whole objects. This corresponds with the ability to tolerate ambiguity, to see that both the "good" and the "bad" breast are a part of the same mother figure.<ref name="Greenberg1983" />