The incest taboo is universal in human culture. Though it varies from one culture to another, it is generally considered by anthropologists to be the foundation of all kinship structures. Levi-Strauss describes it as the basic social contract; Mead says its purpose is the preservation of the human social order.1 All cultures, including our own, regard violations of the taboo with horror and dread. Death has not been considered too extreme a punishment in many societies. In our laws, some states punish incest by up to 20 years’ imprisonment.2

Father-Daughter Incest

This article presents a contextualized treatment of the current configuration of self, some of the pathologies that plague it, and the technologies that attempt to heal it. Of particular interest is the historical shift from the Victorian, sexually restricted self to the post-World War II empty self. The empty self is soothed and made cohesive by becoming "filled up" with food, consumer products, and celebrities. Its historical antecedents, economic constituents, and political consequences are the focus of this article. The two professions most responsible for healing the empty self, advertising and psychotherapy, find themselves in a bind: They must treat a psychological symptom without being able to address its historical causes. Both circumvent the bind by employing the life-style solution, a strategy that attempts to heal by covertly filling the empty self with the accoutrements, values, and mannerisms of idealized figures. This strategy solves an old problem but creates new ones, including an opportunity for abuse by exploitive therapists, cult leaders, and politicians. Psychology's role in constructing the empty self, and thus reproducing the current hierarchy of power and privilege, is examined.

Why the self is empty: Toward a historically situated psychology.

http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/pro/12/1/76.pdf

Father–daughter incest.

Ethics of practice. The beliefs and behaviors of psychologists as therapists.

Clinical Supervision is a comprehensive, up-to-date scholarly resource for training and supervising mental health practitioners. It guides readers through a science-informed process of supervision that clearly delineates the competencies required for good practice. The authors have geared this integrative approach to mental health professionals who currently provide supervision in academic, training, and treatment settings as well as to students and practitioners who are studying the supervision research and theory for the first time.

Clinical Supervision: A Competency-Based Approach

Psychologists' Attitudes and Practices Regarding Erotic and Nonerotic Physical Contact with Patients.

Does touching patients lead to sexual intercourse

Written for professionals and consumers in the mental health field, Sex in the Therapy Hour bridges the gap between professional understanding and public awareness on the issue of sex between therapists and their patients.

Annette M. Brodsky

Papers

Psychologists' Attitudes and Practices Regarding Erotic and Nonerotic Physical Contact with Patients.

Does touching patients lead to sexual intercourse

Sex in the Therapy Hour: A Case of Professional Incest

Status of women in the psychological community in the Southeast: Women as graduate students.