Winner Mark Solms in The News
We’ll soon introduce our Sigourney Award-2024 recipients, and are always pleased to see previous recipients spotlighted, such as Mark Solms (2011) who recently sat down with The Collector to discuss his revised translation of Sigmund Freud’s complete psychological works (The Revised Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud) and more.
Find a video and full article here: https://www.thecollector.com/mark-solms-freud-surrealism-interview/
A Loss For Our Community
We are saddened to learn that Psychoanalyst Roosevelt Cassorla has passed away at the age of 79 on September 23, 2024. Dr. Cassorla’s groundbreaking work was recognized with The Sigourney Award-2017, for delving deep into the technical components of the analytical process with patients who are difficult to reach and have deficits in their symbolization capacity.
His contributions to the practice of psychoanalysis will long be remembered and we share our condolences with his family, friends and colleagues.
Erikson Institute Hosts Guest Lecturer Daniel Pick
The Erikson Institute for Research, Education, and Advocacy of the Austen Riggs Center, a Sigourney Award-2021 recipient, hosts the Friday Night Guest Lecture series (6:30-8:00 p.m. EDT via Zoom).
On Oct. 18th, the group invites Sigourney Award-2023 recipient Daniel Pick, PhD to lead "Conspiracies? The 'Paranoid Style' revisited, in Psychoanalytic Thought, History, and Political Life."
Lectures are free and provide 1.5 continuing ed credits (see details available). Designed for mental health professionals, pre-registration is required at education.AustenRiggs.org.
Q&A with Winner Rosine Perelberg
This Psychiatric Times Q&A with Rosine Perelberg, PhD (Sigourney Award-2023) discusses the intersection between psychoanalytic thought and social anthropology and the future of psychoanalysis.
In this feature, Perelberg also shares that how, when president of the British Psychoanalytical Society during the pandemic, she helped guide protocols for virtual teaching and practice of psychoanalytic work.
Winners In The News
On June 12th, you have an opportunity to hear The Sigourney Award-2023 recipient, Professor Daniel Pick, discuss The Fear of Hidden Influence: Psychoanalysis, Culture and Political Life through an event with The British Psychoanalytical Society (BPS). Pick draws from material in his book, Brainwashed: A New History of Thought Control. Click below for registration information.
Register for The British Psychoanalytical Society event for free. Event held at 8 p.m. (UK). Attend in person (register here) or via ZOOM (register here).
Recipients' Work Continues
Alessandra Lemma, recipient of The Sigourney Award-2022, has published an Open Access paper which "looks at the effects of online pornography." She has been involved with the UK government’s Independent Pornography Review and you can review this important work now.
The Online Safety Act is now law in the UK and the government is currently undertaking an important review of the effects of online pornography. Read Lemma's reasoning regarding why clinicians should routinely ask patients about their consumption of online pornography.
Winner Jack Drescher in the News
On June 14th, 2022 Sigourney Award recipient Jack Drescher, MD, will moderate the IPS Journal Club, a project of the IPA Communications Committee.
Meeting 5-6 times in the academic year for 75 minutes, each meeting/webinar will be in English and feature a guest author. Register for free and participate!
https://www.ipa.world/ipa/en/IPA_Journal_Club/IPA_Journal_Club.aspx
Patricia Gherovici On Panel Discusssing "New Directions in Fashion Research"
Patricia Gherovici, PhD and recipient of The Sigourney Award-2020 for her for her clinical and scholarly work with Latinx and gender variant communities, joins a panel discussion during the 31st Symposium at The Museum at FIT in New York City.
Patricia Gherovici, PhD and recipient of The Sigourney Award-2020 for her for her clinical and scholarly work with Latinx and gender variant communities, joins a panel discussion during the 31st Symposium at The Museum at FIT in New York City.
The free event, “New Directions in Fashion Research,” will focus on new avenues of study in the interdisciplinary field of fashion.
First come, first-served so register early for the April 5th event: https://tinyurl.com/upz8w2vx
Winner Daniel Pick in the News
We're happy to share the news Professor Daniel Pick, a Sigourney Award-2023 recipient, has received recently surrounding his well-received book: Brainwashed: A New History of Thought Control. You can hear his engaging discussion on a UK-based podcast, or read a review.
Brainwashed: A New History of Thought Control by Daniel Pick is the thought-provoking book and featured in two recent news items.
First, The Bunker podcast, a daily, independent politics podcast based in the UK, hosts an engaging discussion with Professor Pick focused on the history of brainwashing and its contemporary manifestations. TUNE IN for this 30-minute discussion here: https://listen.podmasters.uk/BNKR_230111_Brainwashing?at=1001l39LM
Secondly, in History Today based in the UK, explores “the seductions and delusions of mass media, consumerism, ‘group think’, advertising, opinion research and conspiracy theories” in this book review: Read:https://www.historytoday.com/archive/review/think-about-it
Entry Period Opens for Applications or Nominations for The Sigourney Award-2024
Applications and nominations for The Sigourney Award-2024 are open March 1 – July 31, and work from any geographic location accomplished between 2014-2023 is eligible for consideration.
For more than three decades, The Sigourney Award has honored exceptional contributions to the field of psychoanalysis on a global scale. Mary Sigourney’s independent trust established an Award to acknowledge and foster the integration of psychoanalytic concepts across various disciplines.
Read Full Press Release Below
The Sigourney Award Trust Seeks Applicants and Nominations for The Sigourney Award-2024 to Recognize Outstanding Psychoanalytic Achievement Worldwide
____________________
Eligible Work Submitted By Individuals, Teams or Organizations Can Earn International Recognition and a Substantial Cash Prize with The Sigourney Award-2024
San Francisco, CA — February 29, 2024 – The Sigourney Award Trust, founded by Mary Sigourney, annually honors individuals, teams and organizations with The Sigourney Award. This wholly independent prize recognizes outstanding work from around the world that has advanced psychoanalytic thought and principles. Applications and nominations for The Sigourney Award-2024 are open March 1 – July 31, and work from any geographic location accomplished between 2014-2023 is eligible for consideration.
“Every year, we are impressed with the diversity and impact of work that applies and integrates the best of psychoanalytic principles to positively impact our world,” says Robin A. Deutsch, PhD, the Trust’s Analyst Trustee. “We are honored to have recognized stellar achievements that meet Mary Sigourney’s founding tenets, and we look forward to receiving this year’s applications from varied disciplines and across the globe.”
Since 1989, The Sigourney Award has presented 145 recipients from 22 countries with coveted professional recognition, international distinction, and a substantial cash prize. The independent award celebrates exceptional achievements by individuals, teams, or organizations whose work is innovative and promotes the understanding or evolution of psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic principles. An anonymous panel of distinguished judges complete an unbiased and thorough evaluation of each completed submission before determining The Sigourney Award-2024 recipients.
Whether nominated or self-nominated, applicants must submit a comprehensive online application. To support and encourage international submissions, the application can be translated into more than 100 languages. Instructions and eligibility requirements for The Sigourney Award-2024 are available online. Applications will be accepted through July 31, 2024. The Sigourney Award-2024 recipients will be announced in November.
“We welcome entries for work based in both traditional and non-traditional psychoanalytic applications that positively impact the human experience. We look forward to honoring the recipients’ achievements from any place in the world,” says Michael J. Harrington, JD, Attorney Trustee.
Visit www.sigourneyaward.org for more information. Applicants who do not win are invited to enter again. Find updates via social platforms on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn @SigourneyAward, and Twitter @sigourney_the.
About The Sigourney Award
The Sigourney Award Trust, a wholly independent nonprofit organization established by Mary Sigourney in 1989, annually bestows The Sigourney Award as international recognition and reward for outstanding work that has advanced psychoanalytic principles. Ms. Sigourney was a psychotherapist, publisher, and community activist who had a passionate interest in psychoanalysis and understood its ability to benefit and extend human conversation across various disciplines. Since 1990, The Sigourney Award has rewarded and promoted outstanding work. To date, 145 Award recipients from 22 countries represent her global vision. Judges remain anonymous to ensure an unbiased and thorough evaluation practice. Work honored by The Sigourney Award has significantly contributed to human affairs on topics ranging from clinical psychoanalysis, neuroscience, feminism, and political oppression.
# # #
Media Contact:
Kelly Wisecarver, Wisecarver Public Relations
kelly@wisecarverpr.com
Michael J. Harrington Appointed To Attorney Co-Trustee Role
Mary Sigourney established The Sigourney Award Trust in 1989 to recognize and reward outstanding psychoanalytic achievements that benefit humankind around the world. Today Analyst Co-trustee Robin A. Deutsch, PhD, introduces Michael J. Harrington, JD, as the Trust’s new Attorney Co-trustee for The Sigourney Award Trust. The accomplished legal and financial specialist and San Francisco resident succeeds Barbara C. Sherland, JD, the Trust’s Attorney Co-trustee for the past 14 years.
Most recently chairman and president of the First Republic Trust Company, Harrington has held executive and senior counsel roles leading trust teams at Bank of America and Wells Fargo Bank. He has had an impressive career applying his legal expertise in estate planning and trust management to represent corporate and individual trustees in litigation and court proceedings. His legal and financial proficiency, complemented by his extensive connection with the mental health and psychoanalytic community, make him a fitting choice for the Trust.
Dr. Virginia Ungar’s Work Featured in the News
The Sigourney Award-2023 recipient, Dr. Virginia Ungar, shared her winning work with children and adolescents on Arash’s World Podscast.
She shares their unique difficulties and challenges, especially having to deal with some of the drawbacks of technology and the current state of the world in this podcast and video.
Winners In The News
Dr. Jack Drescher’s work and four fellow 2022 recipients featured in Tap Magazine.
A profile of Dr. Drescher’s professional journey is shared along with summaries of all 2022 recipients’ work noted in a recent Tap Magazine article.
Click Here to Read the Article
Daniel Pick’s Work Featured on International Podcast
History and psychoanalysis meld together in the work of The Sigourney Award-2023 recipient, Daniel Pick.
Tune into Arash’s World Podcast as Professor Pick discussed these topics as well as his book, Brainwashed: A New History of Thought Control.
The Sigourney Award-2023 Recipients Are Announced!
Distinguished judges evaluated submissions from an exceptional pool of global applicants and four recipients’ work merited the prestigious award. Please join us in congratulating (in alphabetical order) The Sigourney Award-2023 recipients: Vittorio Lingiardi, MD (Rome, Italy); Rosine Perelberg, PhD (London, England); Daniel Pick, PhD (London, England); and Virginia Ungar, MD (Buenos Aires, Argentina).
Robin Deutsch, PhD, Analyst Co-Trustee, The Sigourney Award Trust and Barbara Sherland, JD, Attorney Co-Trustee applaud the groundbreaking work achieved by the recipients and offer thanks to all who shared their own incredible work for consideration.
The Sigourney Award-2023 Honors Four Recipients for Outstanding Work Advancing Psychoanalytic Principles Globally
Distinguished Panel of Judges Select Extraordinary Psychoanalytic Work By Individuals From Argentina, Italy, and the United Kingdom
SEATTLE, WA – Nov. 2, 2023 -- The Sigourney Award Trust annually rewards achievements that advance psychoanalytic thought and principles worldwide with international recognition and a substantial cash prize. This year, distinguished judges evaluated exceptional submissions and selected four whose work, during the past ten years, merits winning The Sigourney Award-2023. Robin A. Deutsch, PhD and Analyst Co-Trustee of The Sigourney Award Trust, announces the recipients, including: Vittorio Lingiardi, MD (Rome, Italy); Rosine Perelberg, PhD (London, England); Daniel Pick, PhD (London, England); and Virginia Ungar, MD (Buenos Aires, Argentina).
Mary Sigourney founded The Sigourney Award Trust in 1989 to recognize and promote exceptional work that advances psychoanalytic principles and their ability to better humankind. The 2023 recipients’ achievements are infused with uncommon interdisciplinary approaches and distinct psychoanalytic perspectives seeking to mitigate human suffering based on sexual and gender identity, race, or religion, and oppression by authoritarian regimes.
"Each of the recipients’ work has helped elevate the awareness and beneficial impact of psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic thinking globally, supporting Mary Sigourney's intended vision,” says Dr. Deutsch. "Our international assembly of judges, each respected for their professional contributions, identified the work that most closely fulfills Ms. Sigourney's directives and offers new pathways to positively impact humanity through psychoanalysis.”
Work Meriting The Sigourney Award-2023 (In alphabetical order)
Vittorio Lingiardi, MD (Rome, Italy)
Professor Vittorio Lingiardi’s pioneering work in psychodynamic diagnosis and LGBTQ+ issues demonstrates an ability to bridge the gap between the richness and complexity of psychoanalytical clinical practice and the need for empirical soundness; all the while finding novel ways to extend psychoanalysis’ reach and effect. On these topics he has been able to reach key audiences through books, articles, editorials, TV programs, and social networks. A psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and full professor at Sapienza University of Rome, Lingiardi splits his clinical practice focus on working with patients from marginalized groups and serving people with personality and interpersonal problems. His research in the LGBTQ+ field has helped change a "classical" and often pathologizing psychoanalytic viewpoint. He helped formulate and publish the Italian guidelines, endorsed by the National Board of Italian Psychologists, for psychotherapy and counseling with LGBTQ+ patients and has often spoken publicly in defense of minoritized groups and families’ civil rights to increase social acceptance.
Additionally, Lingiardi’s work focused on “resuscitating” the word diagnosis in psychoanalytic culture and clinical practice. He and Nancy Williams co-edited the second edition of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM-2). Their revisions embedded an empirically based psychoanalytic approach to diagnosis and placed personality and its traits in a broader psychoanalytic diagnostic framework. Closely interconnected with the patient's mental functioning and symptomatology, grounded in research, and systematized in the PDM-2, the Manual now reaches an international audience in multiple languages.
Rosine Perelberg, PhD (London, England)
Professor Rosine Perelberg’s open-minded work coalesces psychoanalytic thought and social anthropology expertise to offer a forward-looking framework for the understanding of temporality, sexuality, and antisemitism. Offering an innovative interpretation of paternal and maternal functions, in both clinical practice and social phenomena, as well as a psychoanalytic understanding of the Shoah (Holocaust) her work emphasizes the relevance of psychoanalytic insights in navigating contemporary societal challenges. Perelberg’s integration of British clinical traditions with French, American and Latin American conceptual psychoanalysis has profoundly influenced international psychoanalysis’ ability to acknowledge and learn from the varying application.
A practicing psychoanalyst and visiting professor at the University College London, Perelberg’s clinical work is innovative, poetic and rigorous. An acclaimed author, Perelberg’s work is informed by her anthropological training with topics focused on phantasies of origin, exploring the infantile‘s unconscious drives related to the symbolic functions of the maternal and paternal. The distinction between the murdered father and the dead father plays a crucial role in enhancing understanding of pressing social and political issues. In Sexuality, Excess and Representation she offers a ground-breaking psychoanalytic framework for the understanding of bisexuality and sexual difference. Under her leadership as president of the British Psychoanalytical Society (2019-2022), her international influence helped guide protocols for virtual teaching and practice of psychoanalytic work virtually through the pandemic. Her seven-minute film, The Empty Couch, created at the onset of the pandemic had great social impact as it amassed nearly 5,000 views.
Daniel Pick, PhD (London, England)
Professor Daniel Pick’s engaging and interdisciplinary work has investigated how psychoanalytic thought has been mobilized to face some of the most dire political challenges of modern times. Drawing on clinical experience and humanities studies expertise, his projects have mapped the extent and impact of clinical involvement in wartime intelligence, debates on denazification and the Cold War, and the consolidation of post-war liberal democracy. Over the last decade, his work as an historian and a psychoanalyst generated new information and discussion about unconscious processes inside the mind, and at work between people. Moreover, it has illuminated how demagogues and other mind manipulators harness the passions of crowds (on the street and online).
In an era of political catastrophes, his research has helped underscore how psychoanalysis is shaped by history and can deepen interpretations of historical processes. Ranging across debates on fascism, brainwashing, totalitarianism, populism, groupthink, conspiracy theory, online radicalization, and advertising, Pick’s findings are communicated through non-traditional pathways integrating film, books, radio documentaries, podcasts, and more. His work delves into unfamiliar sources and considers afresh the historical consequences of Freud’s “revolution in mind.” Through his books Brainwashed: A New History of Thought Control (2022) and The Pursuit of the Nazi Mind: Hitler, Hess, and the Analysts (2012), he shows how psychoanalysis and the serious study of history can engage with each other. Pick’s work is part of a wider endeavor by historians exploring, explaining, applying, and/or historically contextualizing psychoanalysis.
Virginia Ungar, MD (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
Dr. Virginia Ungar’s leading-edge work in “the feminine,” and in child, adolescent, and adult analysis, coupled with her leadership achievements in transforming current and future psychoanalytic training have significantly impacted the future of psychoanalysis. Her psychoanalytic approach established a radical new model of incorporating child and adolescent psychoanalytic training as part of an analysts' clinical curriculum. The additional training has contributed to primary prevention in childhood. Ungar has also carved out a contemporary interdisciplinary approach to “the feminine,” not limited to a female body but found in women, men, children, adults, and works of art. Her work unites gender theories born in anthropology and sociology and provides cultural context for where psychoanalytic processes take place. Ungar’s professional path led to her becoming the first woman president of the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA).
To broaden psychoanalysis’ scope and fully develop its potential around the world, in 2018 Ungar crafted the program, IPA in the Community. Partnering with psychoanalytic societies, international organizations, and humanitarian groups, the program supported broad demand and participation in the community. The initiative increased the visibility of psychoanalysis and engaged young professionals by working directly with teachers, professors, lawyers, social workers, doctors, and nurses to connect to the most vulnerable populations around the globe (women, children, migrants and refugees). Faced with the unprecedented challenges posed by a global pandemic, Ungar’s work helped hold the psychoanalytic and mental health communities together through online activities, including the acceptance of remote training during that period.
"The Sigourney Award’s tenets have not changed. With Mary Sigourney’s direction and a wholly independent perspective, we annually reward exemplary work completed in the recent 10 years by a group, organization or individual. We hope future applicants and nominees are inspired by our recipients’ accomplishments and continue to pursue their own original approaches to positively impact the value and reach of psychoanalytic principles," says Barbara Sherland, JD, Attorney Co-Trustee of The Sigourney Award Trust.
Vittorio Lingiardi’s Work Wins The Sigourney Award - 2023
Dr. Vittorio Lingiardi’s pioneering work in psychodynamic diagnosis and LGBTQ+ issues demonstrates an ability to bridge the gap between the richness and complexity of psychoanalytical clinical practice and the need for empirical soundness; all the while finding novel ways to extend psychoanalysis’ reach.
Dr. Vittorio Lingiardi’s Work Supporting Complex Psychodynamic Diagnoses
With Empirical Soundness Earns The Sigourney Award-2023
Seattle, WA — Nov. 2, 2023 – The Sigourney Award-2023 bestows international recognition and a substantial cash prize for outstanding work that advances psychoanalytic thought worldwide. Annually, a prestigious panel of judges carefully reviews applicants from across the globe and today, Robin A. Deutsch, PhD and Analyst Co-Trustee of The Sigourney Award Trust, announces Vittorio Lingiardi, MD, Rome, Italy, as one of four international recipients presented this year’s prestigious prize.
“Professor Lingiardi’s extensive scholarly work and public engagement elevates the standing of psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic thinking in his home country as well as abroad, embodying Mary Sigourney’s defined commitment to disseminating psychoanalysis’ benefits in and outside of the confines of the consulting room,” said Deutsch.
Professor Vittorio Lingiardi’s pioneering work in both psychodynamic diagnosis and LGBTQ+ issues demonstrates an ability to bridge the gap between the richness and complexity of psychoanalytical clinical practice and the need for empirical soundness; all the while finding novel ways to extend psychoanalysis’ reach and effect. On these topics he has been able to reach key audiences through books, articles, editorials, TV programs, and social networks. A psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and full professor at Sapienza University of Rome, Lingiardi splits his clinical practice focus on working with patients from marginalized groups and serving people with personality and interpersonal problems. His research in the LGBTQ+ field has helped change a "classical" and often pathologizing psychoanalytic viewpoint. He helped formulate and publish the Italian guidelines, endorsed by the National Board of Italian Psychologists, for psychotherapy and counseling with LGBTQ+ patients and has often spoken publicly in defense of minoritized groups and families’ civil rights to increase social acceptance.
Additionally, Lingiardi’s work focused on “resuscitating” the word diagnosis in psychoanalytic culture and clinical practice. He and Nancy Williams co-edited the second edition of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM-2). Their revisions embedded an empirically based psychoanalytic approach to diagnosis and placed personality and its traits in a broader psychoanalytic diagnostic framework. Closely interconnected with the patient's mental functioning and symptomatology, grounded in research, and systematized in the PDM-2, the Manual now reaches an international audience in multiple languages.
During the past decade, Lingiardi’s research concentrated on three key elements: 1) enhancement of psychodynamic diagnosis, therapeutic alliance, and case formulation emphasizing the importance of patients for “who they are” not “what they have;” 2) depathologization of non-heterosexual and non-cis-normative conditions; and 3) dissemination of psychoanalytic constructs and culture to a wide audience including non-specialists, with a focus on public interventions concerning psychoanalysis and social culture, mental health, public health strategies, and the rights of sexual minorities. His work tries to free the diagnostic formulation from a simple labeling process in order to develop the concept of case formulation, as each patient is at once unique but also referable to a clinical category.
His work has reached key audiences through articles, editorials, TV programs, widely published books, and social networks. Lingiardi’s weekly column, “Psycho” for the magazine il Venerdì di Repubblica, features reviews of film’s impact as it pertains to the psychological subjectivity of the viewer. His essays – for example, “Diagnosis and Destiny” (2018) and “Archipelago N. Variations on Narcissisms” (2021) – have a poetic style. Lingiardi is also a poet, with two published books of poetry, titled My Confusion is Precise in Love (2012) and Alterations of Rhythm (2015). His psychological literary essay Mindscapes (2017) won the Viareggio-Giuria Award, a major Italian literary prize.
“They say psychoanalysis is dying but one of the most exciting things about this discipline is that she can psychoanalyze herself and learn from her own errors. She is always evolving so it's impossible to switch off the energy of psychoanalysis,” Lingiardi says, adding, “Winning The Sigourney Award is one of the happiest moments in my career, and I want to acknowledge the commitment and support of my colleagues and collaborators.”
Lingiardi’s award-winning work is added to a long list of innovative contributions advancing psychoanalytic thought that, since 1990, have been honored with The Sigourney Award. This year, he shares this honor with Rosine Perelberg, PhD (London, England); Daniel Pick, PhD (London, England); and Virginia Ungar, MD (Buenos Aires, Argentina), whose work also met the demanding Award criteria.
Rosine Perelberg’s Work Wins The Sigourney Award - 2023
Professor Rosine Perelberg’s open-minded work coalesces psychoanalytic thought and social anthropology expertise to offer a forward-looking framework for the understanding of temporality, sexuality, and antisemitism.
Professor Rosine Perelberg Wins The Sigourney Award-2023 For Work Establishing a Creative Dialogue Between Psychoanalysis And Social Anthropology To Address Temporality, Sexuality and Antisemitism
Seattle, WA — Nov. 2, 2023 – Annually, The Sigourney Award bestows international recognition and a substantial cash prize for outstanding work completed within the past 10 years that advances psychoanalytic thought worldwide. A prestigious panel of judges carefully reviewed applicants from across the globe and today, Robin A. Deutsch, PhD and Analyst Co-Trustee of The Sigourney Award Trust, announces Rosine Perelberg, PhD, from London, England, as one of four international recipients presented the prestigious prize.
“Professor Perelberg’s interdisciplinary work incorporating social anthropology and principles of psychoanalytic thinking to positively influence the lives of countless people around the world reflects Mary Sigourney’s commitment to raising the visibility of psychoanalysis and its benefits for society,” said Deutsch.
Professor Rosine Perelberg’s open-minded work coalesces psychoanalytic and social anthropology expertise to create a forward-looking framework for the understanding of temporality, sexuality, and antisemitism. Offering an innovative interpretation of paternal and maternal functions, in both clinical practice and social phenomena, as well as a psychoanalytic understanding of the Shoah (Holocaust), her work emphasizes the relevance of psychoanalytic insights in navigating contemporary societal challenges. A practicing psychoanalyst and visiting professor at the University College London, Perelberg’s clinical work is rigorous, innovative, and poetic. Perelberg’s integration of British clinical traditions with French, American and Latin American conceptual psychoanalysis has profoundly influenced international psychoanalysis’ ability to acknowledge and learn from the various applications.
An acclaimed author, Perelberg’s work integrates her anthropological training with topics focused on phantasies of origin, exploring the infantile unconscious drives related to the symbolic functions of the maternal and paternal. The distinction between the murdered father and the dead father plays a crucial role in enhancing understanding of pressing social and political issues. In Sexuality, Excess and Representation she offers a ground-breaking psychoanalytic framework for the understanding of bisexuality and sexual difference. Under her leadership as president of the British Psychoanalytical Society (2019-2022), her international influence helped guide through the pandemic the protocols to continue the teaching and practice of psychoanalytic work virtually. Her seven-minute film, The Empty Couch, created at the onset of the pandemic had great social impact as it amassed nearly 5,000 views.
In the last 10 years, Perelberg has published five books which have been translated into seven languages, among them, Psychic Bisexuality: A British-French Dialogue, which brought a fresh and nuanced notion of bisexuality to mainstream psychoanalysis and to universities. The book earned the Best Edited Book Prize for 2019 by the American Board and Academy of Psychoanalysis.
Perelberg completed her master's degree in social anthropology at the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, before receiving her PhD in Social Anthropology from the London School of Economics, University of London.
“I was astonished to learn I’d won The Sigourney Award. It feels like an award one aspires to win; it is the most important professional achievement I’ve earned to date – a huge honor,” says Perelberg.
Her award-winning work is added to a long list of innovative contributions advancing psychoanalytic thought that, since 1990, have been honored with The Sigourney Award. This year, she shares this honor with Vittorio Lingiardi, MD (Rome, Italy); Daniel Pick, PhD (London, England); and Virginia Ungar, MD (Buenos Aires, Argentina), whose work also met the demanding Award criteria.
Daniel Pick’s Work Wins The Sigourney Award - 2023
Professor Daniel Pick’s engaging and interdisciplinary work has investigated how psychoanalytic thought has been mobilized to face some of the most dire political challenges of modern times.
Professor Daniel Pick Earns The Sigourney Award-2023 For Work Exploring How Psychoanalytical Thought Can Be Mobilized To Face Modern Political Challenges
Seattle, WA — Nov. 2, 2023 – The Sigourney Award is bestowed annually for outstanding work that advances psychoanalytic thought worldwide, honoring recipients with international recognition and a substantial cash prize. A prestigious panel of judges carefully reviewed applicants from across the globe and today, Robin A. Deutsch, PhD and Analyst Co-Trustee of The Sigourney Award Trust, announces that Daniel Pick, PhD, London, England is among the four recipients whose work earns The Sigourney Award-2023.
“Professor Pick’s interdisciplinary work skillfully intertwines history, humanities, and clinical psychoanalytic practice to shape new conversations that can benefit greater society. This fully supports Mary Sigourney’s mission to reward work that promotes the advantages of psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic thinking to improve the world around us,” said Deutsch.
Professor Daniel Pick’s engaging and interdisciplinary work has investigated how psychoanalytic thought has been mobilized to face some of the most dire political challenges of modern times. Drawing on clinical experience and humanities studies expertise, his projects have mapped the extent and impact of clinical involvement in wartime intelligence, debates on denazification and the Cold War, and the consolidation of post-war liberal democracy. Over the last decade, his work as an historian and a psychoanalyst generated new information and discussion about unconscious processes inside the mind, and at work between people. Moreover, it has illuminated how demagogues and other mind manipulators harness the passions of crowds (on the street and online).
In an era of political catastrophes, his research has helped underscore how psychoanalysis is shaped by history and can deepen interpretations of historical processes. Ranging across debates on fascism, brainwashing, totalitarianism, populism, groupthink, conspiracy theory, online radicalization, and advertising, Pick’s findings are communicated through non-traditional pathways encompassing film, books, radio documentaries, podcasts, and more. His work delves into unfamiliar sources and considers afresh the historical consequences of Freud’s “revolution in mind.”
His books explore ways that patients may at times feel themselves to be faced by a draconian superego authority or seek to exert powerful control over the mind of the analyst; and yet, his writings also show how profound psychic change can come about in the process. In Brainwashed: A New History of Thought Control (2022) and The Pursuit of the Nazi Mind: Hitler, Hess, and the Analysts (2012), he shows how a serious study of history can engage with psychoanalysis. Pick’s work is part of a wider endeavor by historians exploring, explaining, applying, and/or historically contextualizing psychoanalysis.
Recognized as a leader integrating history and psychoanalysis, Pick has received a senior investigator award from the Wellcome Trust for a team-based project between 2014 and 2021 on the history of brainwashing. In collaboration with others, he was also granted a public engagement award under the auspices of Birkbeck College, University of London. These grants totaling over one million pounds enabled Pick to conduct sustained research, collaborate with others, and facilitate doctoral students, post-docs, associated scholars, clinicians, documentary filmmakers, and others to inquire into and debate “hidden influence” in culture, commerce, and politics.
His projects help illuminate the value of Freudian thought for understanding group psychology in conditions of tyranny as well as liberty, and the risks of “wild analysis,” political misapplications, and commercial exploitations.
“I’ve always been interested in the applications of Freudian thought and historizing psychoanalysis. I have contemplated how ‘the talking cure’ was grounded in a particular history and have suggested how it can speak to contemporary dark times. Psychoanalysis is a resource not only for therapy and theorizing the mind but can also consider the passions unleashed in mass conflict, war, and other forms of human destructiveness. When looking at conflicts, in minds, or in societies psychoanalysis does not hold all the answers. However, it invites us to ask crucial questions about the role of unconscious processes, defenses, and phantasy and remains as relevant today as in Freud’s time,” says Pick.
Pick’s award-winning work is added to a long list of innovative contributions advancing psychoanalytic thought that, since 1990, have been honored with The Sigourney Award. This year, he shares this honor with Vittorio Lingiardi, MD (Rome, Italy); Rosine Perelberg, PhD (London, England); and Virginia Ungar, MD (Buenos Aires, Argentina), whose work also met the demanding Award criteria.
Virginia Ungar’s Work Wins The Sigourney Award - 2023
Dr. Virginia Ungar’s leading-edge work in “the feminine,” and in child, adolescent, and adult analysis, coupled with her leadership achievements in transforming current and future psychoanalytic training have significantly impacted the future of psychoanalysis.
Dr. Virginia Ungar Receives The Sigourney Award-2023 For Work Establishing New Psychoanalytic Training Models Incorporating Child and Adolescent Analysis
Seattle, WA — Nov. 2, 2023 – The Sigourney Award is bestowed annually as an independent prize recognizing outstanding work that advances psychoanalytic thought worldwide. An esteemed panel of anonymous judges evaluated applications from across the globe and today, Robin A. Deutsch, PhD and Analyst Co-Trustee of The Sigourney Award Trust, announces work by Virginia Ungar, MD, Buenos Aires, Argentina, has earned The Sigourney Award-2023 and the international recognition and substantial cash prize that complements the honor.
“Dr. Ungar’s work established new approaches that eased clinical training in child and adolescent psychoanalysis with lasting significance for future psychoanalysts, while her leadership in creating a psychoanalytic communication network to reach those most in need meets Mary Sigourney’s vision for the continued growth and positive impact psychoanalytic thought and principles can offer humanity,” says Deutsch.
Dr. Ungar’s leading-edge work in “the feminine,” and in child, adolescent, and adult analysis, coupled with her leadership achievements in transforming current and future psychoanalytic training have significantly impacted the future of psychoanalysis. Her psychoanalytic approach established a radical new model of incorporating child and adolescent psychoanalytic training as part of an analysts' clinical curriculum. The additional training has contributed to primary prevention in childhood. Ungar has also carved out a contemporary interdisciplinary approach to “the feminine,” not limited to a female body but found in women, men, children, adults, and works of art. Her work unites gender theories born in anthropology and sociology and provides cultural context for where psychoanalytic processes take place. Ungar’s professional path led to her becoming the first woman president of the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA).
To broaden psychoanalysis’ scope and fully develop its potential around the world, in 2018 Ungar crafted the program IPA in the Community. Partnering with psychoanalytic societies, international organizations, and humanitarian groups, the program supported broad demand and participation in the community. The initiative increased the visibility of psychoanalysis and engaged young professionals by working directly with teachers, professors, lawyers, social workers, doctors, and nurses to connect to the most vulnerable populations around the globe (women, children, migrants and refugees). Within these programs, Ungar emphasized how beyond the traditional practice of psychoanalysis, healthcare and other professional disciplines can leverage psychoanalytic principles to impact the challenges communities face.
To reach a wide audience IPA in the Community shared information through new media such as webinars, online resources, blogs, and a series of podcasts organized by Dr. Harvey Schwartz, counting 137 episodes and over 10,000 listens a month. Faced with the unprecedented challenges posed by a global pandemic, Ungar’s work helped hold the psychoanalytic and mental health communities together through online activities, including the acceptance of remote training during that period. Ultimately the achievements of impactful work done by analysts around the world within IPA in the Community was recognized through awards for over 20 projects.
Currently on the faculty at The University Institute of Mental Health of the Buenos Aires Psychoanalytic Association, Argentina, Ungar published chapters of books that showcase her method of conceiving new ideas for clinical practice of psychoanalysis, therapy for children and adolescents, women and the feminine and the need for psychoanalysts to evolve by applying lessons learned from other disciplines.
“I feel honored to earn The Sigourney Award because I believe it’s the most important prize in psychoanalysis. In an unquiet world as the one we live in, the presence of psychoanalysis in the community is necessary. This brings about a process of mutual enrichment which is crucial for the growth and expansion of psychoanalysis,” says Ungar.
Ungar’s award-winning work is added to a long list of innovative contributions advancing psychoanalytic thought that, since 1990, have been honored with The Sigourney Award. This year, she shares this honor with Vittorio Lingiardi, MD (Rome, Italy); Rosine Perelberg, PhD (London, England); and Daniel Pick, PhD (London, England), whose work also met the demanding Award criteria.
Mark Solms’ Work Featured in Podcast
Sigourney Award recipient (2011) and renowned South African psychoanalyst Mark Solms recently spoke with RobinsonErhardt as a guest on “Robison’s Podcast.”
Tune in to this YouTube show focusing largely on neuropsychoanalysis: youtube.com/watch?v=xw1s27…