Object relations units and the ego.

The author selectively reviews the literature on object relations units and suggests that a fourth element, ego functioning, should be added to self, object, and affect-sensation for a more clinically comprehensive theory. He suggests that ego functioning may always shift with self, object, and affect-perception in an organically integrated fashion. Such a conceptualization can apply to both healthier and less well-integrated individuals. This expanded concept may or may not be sufficiently comprehensive to replace the traditional structural theory of id, ego, and superego.