This work offers a reflective introduction to Esther Bick’s method of infant observation, a practice developed to sharpen attention to the earliest emotional and relational experiences of babies. Through close reading of observed encounters, the book explores how infants communicate through posture, movement, feeding, sleep, gaze, and responses to separation or distress. It also considers the observer’s role: how to listen without imposing premature interpretations, how to remain attentive to anxiety and containment, and how these observations can inform psychoanalytic understanding. Intended for clinicians, trainees, and readers interested in psychoanalytic approaches to infancy, the book presents observation as both a disciplined practice and a way of thinking about early development.

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