IPA’s 26th Joseph Sandler Psychoanalytic Research Conference
Theaters of the Mind: Dreams, Transference, Dissociation and Trauma

Friday 16th - Sunday, 18th October 2026
Toronto, Canada

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN!

Hosted by the Toronto Institute of Psychoanalysis
Victoria College, University of Toronto
73 Queen’s Park Cres E, Toronto, ON M5S 1K7

Join researchers, clinicians, and psychoanalytic scholars from around the world for the 26th Joseph Sandler Research Conference, exploring the intricate landscapes of dreaming, transference, dissociation, and trauma.

The conference will include:

A public lecture
Mark Solms on Freudian Dream Theory in Light of Modern Neuroscience

Plenaries
Stephan Hau: On Nightmares;
Siri Erika Gullestad: «I don’t want to end». Relational scenarios and the dynamics of transferencecountertransference.
Steven Ellman: Dreams, REM Sleep and a Theory of Endogenous Stimulation
Clara Schejtman: The Impact of a hyperconnected world on parenting and transference. Initial research results on maternal and paternal Reflective Function and emotional interactive engagement.
Marianne Leuzinger-Bohleber, Bradley Peterson, Tamara Fischmann, Gilles Ambresin: "...I could count myself king of infinite space, were it not that I have bad dreams…” (Hamlet). Dreams in the MODE Study
Alexandra Harrison: “Billy and the Thirteen Blackbirds: Co-creativity in the Transference Field”.
Charles Fisher: "Dream Interpretation in the Amazon Rainforest: Implications for Psychoanalytic Practice Within a Philosophy of Science Approach."
Dominique Scarfone and Steven Ellman: Open Dialogue on Repression, the Unconscious, Dissociation and Transference
Joseph Fernando: Trauma, dissociation and authoritarianism
Margaret Ann Fitzpatrick Hanly: Sibling Trauma in Jane Austen
Stephan Doering: Thinking under fire and the treatment frame. Lessons learned from Transference-focused psychotherapy of borderline patients.

Parallel Panels
Eva Papiasvili: "The Psychoanalytic Concept of Transference across time and cultures: IPA Inter-regional Dictionary: Working Methodologies".
Katrin Läzer: "Psychoanalytical concepts and single case studies translated into a systematic review".
Rogerio Lerner: "How evidence depends on context, and why this matters for psychoanalysis".
Erik Stänicke, Line Stänicke and Siri Erika Gullestad: "The challenge of psychoanalysis confronting modern Zeitgeist: Emancipation and power in the digital age".

Download full details of programme, fees and accommodation here

Register here

We look forward to welcoming you to Toronto in October 2026!

Siri Erika Gullestad, Margaret Ann Fitzpatrick Hanly, Stephen Leibow, Rogerio Lerner, Stephan Hau.

 

The 28th Annual Research Training Program (RTP) by the IPA will take place in Toronto, too, just before the Sandler Conference. More information about this event can be found here