A Psychoanalytic View of Reactions to the Coronavirus Pandemic in China

The coronavirus pandemic, which apparently began in Wuhan in December 2019, and has persisted to the present day, has had several psychological effects in China. The real danger has produced prolonged stress. Large-group phenomena have been stimulated. Overwhelming affects generated by the real dang...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inThe American journal of psychoanalysis Vol. 80; no. 2; pp. 119 - 132
Main Author Blackman, Jerome, S.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London Human Sciences Press 01.06.2020
Palgrave Macmillan UK
Palgrave Macmillan
Subjects
Behavioral Science and Psychology
Behavioral Symptoms - psychology
Behavioral Symptoms - therapy
Burnout, Professional - psychology
Burnout, Professional - therapy
China
Clinical Psychology
Coronavirus Infections - psychology
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Family Conflict - psychology
Health Personnel - psychology
Humans
Pandemics
Pneumonia, Viral - psychology
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalytic Therapy
Psychology
Psychotherapy
Quarantine - psychology
Stress Disorders, Traumatic - psychology
Stress Disorders, Traumatic - therapy
China
PTSD
stress
coronavirus
psychoanalytic responses to pandemic
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:The coronavirus pandemic, which apparently began in Wuhan in December 2019, and has persisted to the present day, has had several psychological effects in China. The real danger has produced prolonged stress. Large-group phenomena have been stimulated. Overwhelming affects generated by the real danger have led to regression in the stimulus barrier (or “filter”). The COVID-19 has also triggered unconscious defensive reactions, including obsessional cleaning, counterphobic behavior, humor, and denial. The nationally imposed home quarantine of millions of families has caused in-home conflicts and neurotic repetitions of unresolved childhood issues. Prior psychiatric illnesses have been exacerbated. Health workers, including psychiatrists, psychologists, and psychoanalysts, have experienced emotional depletion. Finally, in families where there has been infection or death, delayed mourning and post-traumatic phenomena have been observed. In each of these situations, different interventions based on psychoanalytic principles have been useful.
ISSN:0002-9548
1573-6741
DOI:10.1057/s11231-020-09248-w