[Clinical study of the siblings of the handicapped child].

The consequences of the presence of a child with an encephalopathy on the siblings was studied through interviews and questionnaires. The preliminary findings are reported on. The siblings' outlook depends primarily on the parents' conscious, but also subconscious, attitude towards the handicapped child. The relationships between the siblings are always profoundly affected; they no longer serve, as they usually do, in the course of the oedipian process or in providing reciprocal support (a relationship based on competition but also on identification and mutual exchange between siblings). Aggressiveness is always strongly repressed; the author believes that the minor symptoms, such as inhibition and enuresis, which are common occurrences in the siblings, originate in this repression. In order to exemplify these points, a few clinical instances are given, with, in particular, the partial report of a psychotherapy.