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LACAN TODAY LACANIAN PSYCHOANALYSIS BEYOND THE COUCH ON APPLIED PSYCHOANALYSIS

by | Vol 43 (1/2) 2025

Abstract: This article explores the contemporary relevance of Lacanian psychoanalysis within institutional settings. It argues that the distinction between applied and pure psychoanalysis has become less strict. When we think about analytical work in institutions, this kind of applied psychoanalysis can shed light on what psychoanalysis is really about. The author argues that this has nothing to do, in no setting, with technique or golden standard, but with the operation of the analytical discourse. Through clinical vignettes, particularly in the context of psychosis, the text illustrates how Lacanian psychoanalysis creates space for singular inventions. Rather than aiming for cure or coherence, psychoanalysis engages with the hors-sens and the limits of knowledge. This helps to explain why psychoanalysts often work with those people who are excluded from mental health care. A detailed case study demonstrates how handling transference within institutional contexts can produce transformative shifts for the subject.

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