Contempt acts as one of a range of group defences against unbearable feelings. It can disable the group’s potential to communicate meaning to each other. If experiences of contempt can be understood and worked within the group, they can serve a developmental function, enabling the group to mature, develop greater trust and intimacy, and explore shared meanings with each other. Three interconnected clinical episodes of contempt are offered as illustration, structured as prequel, central episode and sequel.
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