Abstract
The purpose of this article is to explore aspects of contemporary object relations theory in relation to sociocultural variations in family constellation, childrearing practices, and race and ethnicity. The theoretical framework for this exploration derives from Winnicott's concept of the “potential space” between person and environment as the location of cultural experience. The author argues that Winnicott's ideas provide a clinically useful way to think about transactions between the internal world of object relations and the external world of cultural diversity. The article concludes with some implications for social work practice.
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Applegate, J.S. Theory, culture, and behavior: Object relations in context. Child Adolesc Soc Work J 7, 85–100 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00757647
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00757647