Group mentality and ‘having a mind’
Abstract
As a general proposition having a mind entails being able to recognise another mind. Indeed Bion’s theory of alpha-function implies that the very development of a mind at all depends in the first place on another mind. Such an ‘other mind’ acts as a container. Thus a mind evolves from interpersonal and group dynamics. This paper attempts to explore some consequences of these propositions for group therapy and for understanding mentalization.