Helplessness

The state of helplessness is linked to the infant's initial powerlessness in the face of its needs. This causes distress, as the protective shield is overwhelmed; only the intervention of another person can relieve this suffering.

The neurophysiological model of Sigmund Freud's "Project for a Scientific Psychology" (1950c [1895]) posits the baby's original helplessness as the prototype of all traumatic situations. Helplessness and satisfaction structure the two modes of mental functioning. In the primary mode, the desired object and...