Body of the Group: Sexuality and Gender in Group Analysis

The Body in the Group has structured around the formation of a group analytic concept of sexuality using the archaeology of Michel Foucault to move away from psychoanalytic theory. It is a psychosocial theory that can contain failure in language and gaps in discourse and mobilize its creative potential in relation to the discourse of sexuality. Bi-logic removes the potentially unhelpful competitive splits in power associated with the politics of sexuality and gender, enables multiple and contradictory positions of sexuality and gender to be held simultaneously, and radically alters typical notions of ethics by being able to conceive of a psychosocial form of ethics. Analytic groups are 'figurations in action' when terms such as group polyphony, embodiment, discursive gaps, and norms are mobilized alongside spatio-temporality and bi-logic.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 234 pages
Publication date: 09 September 2021
Publisher: Phoenix Publishing House

The Body in the Group has been meticulously crafted to establish a group analytic concept of sexuality, departing from the confines of psychoanalytic theory, which has historically been associated with heteronormativity and pathology. The inability of group analysis to develop its own theory of sexuality holds its greatest potential. This psychosocial framework possesses the remarkable ability to accommodate linguistic shortcomings and discourse gaps, while also harnessing its creative energies to engage with the discourse of sexuality. By incorporating queer theory, the failure of the term 'homosexual' is disrupted, disassociating it from the heteronormativity and psychopathology that traditional psychoanalysis has emphasized. The group analytic matrix possesses the remarkable capacity to disrupt and transform discourse by conceiving of it through figurations and their associated political radicalism within language and discourse. This radical conception of space and time allows for a transformative understanding of the world. Bi-logic eliminates the potentially harmful power dynamics associated with the politics of sexuality and gender, enabling the simultaneous holding of multiple and contradictory positions regarding sexuality and gender. Moreover, group analysis undergoes a radical transformation of ethical norms by embracing a psychosocial form of ethics. Similarly, queer theory raises awareness within group analysis about the potential violence inherent in its textual representation. Finally, analytic groups come to life as dynamic configurations when terms such as group polyphony, embodiment, discursive gaps, and norms (or the absence of norms) are mobilized alongside spatio-temporality and bi-logic. The group analytic literature has, to date, limited sexuality and gender by placing excessive reliance on psychoa.

Weight: 404g
Dimension: 151 x 229 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781912691906