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Parental reflective functioning: Theory, research, and clinical applications

Luyten, P; Nijssens, L; Fonagy, P; Mayes, LC; (2017) Parental reflective functioning: Theory, research, and clinical applications. The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child , 70 (1) pp. 174-199. 10.1080/00797308.2016.1277901. Green open access

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Abstract

This paper reviews recent theoretical, empirical, and clinical work related to parental reflective functioning (PRF) or parental mentalizing. PRF refers to the capacity of the parent to envision his/her child as being motivated by internal mental states such as feelings, wishes, and desires, and to be able to reflect upon his/her own internal mental experiences and how they are shaped and changed by interactions with the child. This paper first briefly discuss the historical and theoretical background of this concept and its purported role in child development, with a focus on the development of child attachment, affect regulation, and mentalizing. It then reviews recent thinking and research in four areas: (a) the neurobiology underlying PRF, (b) the multidimensionality of PRF, (c) the relationship between PRF and trauma, and (d) the broader relevance of attention to internal mental states for the development of epistemic trust as the basis of an evolutionary inbuilt capacity for learning from and within social communication. It closes with a brief review of the background of and empirical evidence supporting interventions rooted in theoretical considerations concerning the importance of PRF, as well as suggesting directions for future research and clinical practice.

Type: Article
Title: Parental reflective functioning: Theory, research, and clinical applications
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1080/00797308.2016.1277901
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00797308.2016.1277901
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: mentalizing, reflective functioning, social cognition, attachment, trauma
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences > Clinical, Edu and Hlth Psychology
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1498813
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