Besides presenting a concise history of psychoanalysis, its conflicts and developments, the authors set out a theory about its aims which raises important points for the clinician interested in researching his or her practice.

Joseph Sandler is Emeritus Professor of Psychoanalysis, University College, London,
Anna Ursula Dreher is a University Lecturer and a psychoanalyst in private practice, Frankfurt.

Introduction; Chapter 1 Freud's views on aims; Chapter 2 The early Freudians in the 1920s; Chapter 3 Consolidation in the pre-war decade; Chapter 4 The emigration of analysts and a period of transition; Chapter 5 The 1950s and the widening-scope discussions; Chapter 6 Heightening tensions; Chapter 7 The 1970s and the flowering of pluralism; Chapter 8 Pragmatism and integration in contemporary psychoanalysis; Chapter 9 A framework for thinking about aims;