[Reflections on transference, countertransference, session frequency and the analytic process].

It is suggested that there is a special correlation between the frequency of sessions in psychoanalytical treatment and the nature of the transferences which evolve and, at the same time, of the countertransference responses elicited in the therapist. This in turn has a crucial bearing on the characteristics of the psychoanalytical process which develops in the course of treatment. These interrelationships are explored with special reference to the treatment of children and adolescents. The author draws upon his experiences with high and low frequency treatments to make comparative assessments. On the basis of clinical examples from both analyses and psychotherapies, the effects of these various settings on the development and intensification of the transference are explored. Similarly, the repercussions on the countertransference are discussed. It is suggested that the density, i.e. the temporal proximity of sessions, provides the optimal conditions for the unfolding of the analytical material, the proliferation of fantasies and the emergence of transference derivatives. As for the therapist this setting provides the space that is necessary to gain the most thorough understanding of the patient's inner world, in particular his or her unconscious. Finally, the nature of the psychoanalytical process is discussed as well as the effects which different settings have on the development and quality of this process. It is suggested that different processes evolve in high frequency as against low frequency settings.