Books / Psychodynamic & attachment
The Psycho-Analysis of Children
Melanie Klein’s 1932 book presents her psychoanalytic approach to working with children, including the interpretation of play.
Book details
Author of listed edition: Melanie Klein
Edition: 1932 English translation by Alix Strachey
Publisher: The Hogarth Press and the Institute of Psycho-Analysis
Edition year: 1932
Original title: Die Psychoanalyse des Kindes
Language and origin: English (United Kingdom)
Form and genre: Clinical & Theoretical Monograph
Level: Advanced
Historical era: 1920–1939 · Ego Psychology & Early Child Analysis
Covers: The technique of child analysis; Klein’s account of early anxiety and development
APA 7th reference: Klein, M. (1932). The psycho-analysis of children (A. Strachey, Trans.). The Hogarth Press and the Institute of Psycho-Analysis.
What it is & historical context
The Psycho-Analysis of Children is a 1932 book by Melanie Klein. The English edition listed here was translated by Alix Strachey and published by the Hogarth Press and the Institute of Psycho-Analysis. The German edition, Die Psychoanalyse des Kindes, was also published in 1932.
Core clinical themes & arguments
The Wellcome catalogue identifies two parts: the technique of child analysis, and early anxiety situations and their relationship to development. The Melanie Klein Trust describes Klein’s interpretation of play and of the child’s relationship with the analyst.
Questions for critical reading
Klein’s interpretations are part of her psychoanalytic framework. The source from the Melanie Klein Trust describes her technique from within that tradition; it does not establish the effect of an interpretation for any individual child.
Who it may suit
Readers interested in the history of child psychoanalysis and object-relations theory.
Scope & clinical limits
The book reflects an early twentieth-century psychoanalytic perspective. The catalogue and an account from the Melanie Klein Trust were consulted; the complete book and the paired work were not reviewed. This record is not a guide to child development or evidence of treatment effectiveness.
Paired academic and clinical scholarship
Paired work: Introduction to the Work of Melanie Klein (Hanna Segal, 1973)
Reference: Segal, H. (1973). Introduction to the work of Melanie Klein (2nd ed.). Hogarth Press / Karnac Books.
A later introduction to Klein’s ideas by Hanna Segal. The full text was not consulted for this record.
Source-mapped claims and evidence notes
Claim 1: The English translation by Alix Strachey was published in London in 1932. (The catalogue was consulted; the complete 1932 book was not reviewed.) [Source 1: Wellcome Collection. The psycho-analysis of children, catalogue record.]
Sources and inspection notes
Wellcome Collection. The psycho-analysis of children, catalogue record.
Supports: Catalogue identifies the 1932 London publication, English translation by Alix Strachey and the two main parts. The complete book was not reviewed.
CiNii Books. Die Psychoanalyse des Kindes, catalogue record.
Supports: Catalogue identifies the 1932 German edition by Internationaler Psychoanalytischer Verlag.
Melanie Klein Trust. Klein’s clinical technique.
Supports: An account within the Kleinian tradition of the interpretation of play and transference; it is not an independent outcome study.