Object Representation and Containment: An Empirical Investigation

The study explored the relationship between internal representations of object relations and Bion's notion of containment in a sample of 33 adolescents and their mothers. Using performance-based measures, the study examined the association between levels of object representations as rated by the Differentiation-Relatedness (D-R) and Conceptual Level (CL) Object Relations Inventory (ORI) scales, and Rorschach measures of the capacity to contain and process emotional experiences. In addition, the study explored the intergenerational transmission of these constructs by examining the relational matrices between mothers and their adolescent children. The results indicated a positive correlation between the two ORI scales and between the D-R and Rorschach measure of imagination, empathy, and reflection, which was also negatively related to a measure of emotional dysregulation. No significant relationship was found between the adolescents and their mothers. These findings highlight the association between levels of internal representations and the capacity for containment and emotional processing. 本研究在33名青少年及其母亲的样本中探索了客体关系的内部表征与Bion的容纳概念之间的关系。该研究使用基于绩效的测量方法，检查了由D-R和CL ORI量表评定的客体表征水平与罗夏测试的容纳及处理情感体验的能力之间的关联。此外，该研究通过审视母亲与其青春期子女之间的关系矩阵来探索这些结构的代际传递。结果表明，两个ORI量表之间以及DR和罗夏测试之间，想象力、同理心和反思呈正相关，也与情绪失调的测量呈负相关。青少年及其母亲之间没有发现显著关系。这些发现突出了内部表征水平与容纳和处理情绪能力之间的联系.