Psychoanalysis in Europe

 

Since the function of the Bulletin, Psychoanalysis in Europe, is to offer insight into the activities of the EPF, it can only be treated as an intrinsic part of the Federation and its history and not as a separate entity. I would therefore like to begin with some information on the history of the Federation.

 

Long before the Federation’s foundation, several European psychoanalysts had considered forming a kind of Association of European Psychoanalytical Societies. One of the most enthusiastic promotors of such a project was the Swiss psychoanalyst, Raymond de Saussure. In the end, the idea of forming a European Federation was conceived at the European Conference on Training, a meeting that had already been taking place on a biennial basis since 1960, where the necessity to discuss „desirable rules“ for European psychoanalytic training was recognized. Initially, this unity of European psychoanalysts was to be organized in a similar way to the American Psychoanalytical Association (APA) with its unified training policy. The foundation of a European organisation was also the concern of the President of the International Psychoanalytical Association (IPA) at the time, Van der Leeuw (1965-1969), since Europe’s psychoanalysts, with their diverse cultures and, above all, languages, appeared to be isolated, requiring a unification of this sort to be able to stand up to the IPA. However, as the European Societies were concerned for their autonomy and particularly the independence of their training systems, they chose to form a federation. The main aim of the EPF, as agreed at the foundation of the European Federation, was, in short, to maintain and promote Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis. As this involved objectives of a decidedly non-political and non-legislative nature, by contrast with those of the IPA, it was decided that the EPF would serve as a forum for the mutual scientific exchange of Europe’s psychoanalysts.

 

Despite many difficulties, the EPF was finally established, although there is some controversy as to the exact date of its foundation. In 1967, the German psychoanalytical journal ‘Psyche’, informed its readers in issue 21 under ‘Announcements’, that the European Psychoanalytical Federation had been founded on 2 and 3 October, 1966, in Paris. Dr. Anna Freud was named Honorary President. Records show, however, that the official foundation of the EPF was formally ratified in 1969 at the Administrative Assembly of the IPA at the Rome Congress. The EPF has meanwhile celebrated its 30th anniversary.

 

As the EPF had great difficulty at first in finding an identity, Joseph Sandler, President of the EPF from 1975 to 1979, not only instigated a reform of the Constitution but also initiated a meeting of the Executive Committee and the Presidents of all Societies (Council) which has taken place twice a year since 1975. It was at these meetings that a new Constitution, defining the present work and structure of the EPF, was finally approved. Since then, the EPF has been directed by a Council, consisting of the Presidents of all Societies, which elects an Executive Committee incorporating one President, two Vice-Presidents, one Secretary, one Treasurer and, from a later date, the Editor of the EPF-Bulletin.

 

The Presidents of the EPF since its foundation were:

 

• Raymond de Saussure (1966-1971)
• Wilhelm Solms (1971-1975)
• Joseph Sandler (1975-1979)
• Daniel Widlöcher (1979-1983)
• Anne-Marie Sandler (1983-1987)
• Han Groen-Prakken (1987-1991)
• Terttu Eskelinen de Folch (1991-1995)
• Alain Gibeault (1995-1999)