INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PSYCHOANALYSIS, THE

The International Journal of Psychoanalysis began to be published in 1920 "as an English Journal or Edition of the Zeitschrift (Die Internationale Zeitschrift für ärtzliche Psychoanalyse ), not identical of course, owned by the Vereinigung [Internationaler Psychoanalytischer Vereinigung]," to use the words of Ernest Jones who proposed the new journal to Freud in a letter dated London the 7th of December 1918.

During Jones's rather controlling editorship, which lasted till 1939, the International Journal of Psychoanalysis translated and published some of the most important papers of Sigmund Freud, Anna Freud, Karl Abraham, Sándor Ferenczi, Melanie Klein and others, as well as papers by British and American psychoanalysts and by psychoanalysts from other countries. From the start, The International Journal contained a specific section dedicated to the review of books concerned with psychoanalysis.

Originally the aim of Ernest Jones was to create a journal which could make the British Psychoanalytic Society the leading and controlling authority in this field in the English-speaking world, eliminating the competition of the Americans, whose scientific standards Jones deeply distrusted as far as the translation of Freud's papers and the diffusion of psychoanalysis were concerned.

From 1940 to 1945, the International Journal of Psychoanalysis was edited by James Strachey. In 1946, it was edited by Adrian Leslie Stephen and from 1947 to 1948 by Willie Hoffer, John Rickman, and W. Clifford M. Scott. It was during this period that, due to the emigration of the Viennese and other analysts from Central Europe to England and America because of Nazi persecution, the International Journal of Psychoanalysis became the acknowledged official organ of the International Psychoanalytical Association (IPA), publishing the Bulletins and the business meetings of the IPA Congresses, taking the place of Die Internationale Zeitschrift für(ärtzliche) Psychoanalyse, which had ceased publication. In 1947, it was agreed by Anna Freud and her co-workers and by the British Psychoanalytic Society that the IPA would continue to own the heading of the International Journal of Psychoanalysis but that the British Psychoanalytic Society would become the custodian of the journal, which would be edited by a British editor at least for a while. This compromise remains in force.

Willi Hoffer edited the International Journal of Psychoanalysis from 1949 till 1959; John D. Sutherland from 1960 till 1968; Joseph Sandler from 1969 till 1978; Thomas Haley from 1978 till 1988. From 1988 till 1993 Thomas Haley edited the International Journal of Psychoanalysis together with David Tuckett. David Tuckett then became the editor of the International Journal of Psychoanalysis followed by Glen O. Gabbard and Paul Williams.

During the decades after Jones retired from the editorship, the International Journal of Psychoanalysis has continued its policy of translating into English the best papers of psychoanalysts belonging to the various schools, although it has had to face the increasing competition of several other periodicals of psychoanalysis, not only in English, and the complexity of the increasing multiculturalism and multilingualism of the international psychoanalytic community. To try to maintain its leadership, in 1984 Thomas Haley tried to increase the democratic participation in the editor-ship, which until that time had been controlled only by the British editor with the help of a North American sub editor. Haley created regional boards of sub editors, including psychoanalysts from Latin America, Europe and other parts of the world. This policy is being followed by the current editor. Since 1995, the International Journal of Psychoanalysis has been available on CD, and since 1997 it has been accessible on its World Wide Web site.

Riccardo Steiner

See also: Hartmann, Heinz; Internationale Zeitchrift für (ärtzliche) Psychoanalyse ; Jones, Ernest.

Bibliography

Pauskaukas R.A. (Ed.). (1993). The complete correspondence of Sigmund Freud and Ernest Jones 1908-1939. Cambridge, MA and London: Harvard University Press.

Steiner W. (1994). The Tower of Babel or after Babel in contemporary psychoanalysis. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 75, (5/6), 883-901