About KPS
Our
History
Following Cho Doo-young's proposal, some psychiatrists began to gather every Wednesday evening to study psychoanalytic literature, modeled after Freud's Wednesday meetings since 1980. It gradually expanded and was renamed the Korean Psychoanalytic Society in 1989. As of December 2022, it has 260 full members, representing Korean psychoanalysis domestically and internationally and contributing significantly to improving national mental health.
Since its inception, the society has continuously invited internationally renowned psychoanalysts to provide theory seminars and case discussions to its members. Then, we recognized the need to establish a psychoanalytic psychotherapy training program. After careful preparation, led by President Jeong Do-Un and a member, Yoo Bum hee, who had trained in the San Diego Psychoanalytic Research Institute program, recognized that their program would be a model for our training program. As a result, the "Advanced Training program of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy (ATP)" began in 2000, providing education on the theory and practice of psychoanalytic psychotherapy to many psychiatrists to this day. Those who complete the program can join the Korean Psychoanalytic Society as full members. Thus far, over 400 psychiatrists have graduated or completed the program, and each year, 30 to 50 new trainees with qualifications in psychiatry are accepted through selection.
Since 1990, the society has published the academic journal "Psychoanalysis," which is now published four times a year, and actively supports various activities such as monthly member seminars, invited seminars by overseas psychoanalysts, book discussions, socio-cultural research, adult case discussions, child case discussions, study for neuro-psychoanalysis, and readers group of contemporary psychoanalysis to enable members to acquire and develop a high level of understanding of psychoanalytic theory and practice.
Since the founding of the Korean Psychoanalytic Society in 1980, many renowned psychoanalysts have visited and held seminars, including Robert Wallerstein, Edward Joseph, Arnold Cooper, Robert Michels, Otto Kernberg, Robert Tyson, Sander Abend, David Sachs, Robert Nemiroff, Calvin Colarusso, Normund Wong, Harold Blum, Elizabeth Auchincloss, Allan Compton (all from the United States), Joseph Sandler, Anne-Marie Sandler, and Dinora Pines (all from the United Kingdom), Jorge Canestri and Giuseppe Civitarese (both from Italy), Elizabeth de Bianchetti and Marcel Bianchetti (both from Argentina), and many others.
(Myung-Hee Kim (New York), Edward Joseph (New York), Dinora Pines (London), Collette Chilland (Paris), Donald Cohen (New Haven), Ronald Baker (London), Theodore Cohen (Pittsburg), Raymond Gehl (New Jersey), Sanford Gifford (Boston), Peter Kutter (Frankfurt), James Strain (New York), Teresa Yuan (Buenos Aires), Adeline van Waning (Amsterdam), Nancy Goodman (New York), Jung-Kwi Seo (Toronto), Nishizono Masahisa (Japan), Doi Takeo, Okonogi Keigo (Japan), and Kitayama Osamu (Japan), Owen Renik (San Francisco), Jay Harris(New York), Marcia Kaplan(Cincinnati), James Dimon(San Francisco), Abigail Golomb(Israel), and Nadine Levinson(San Diego)).
After the Covid-19 pandemic, we activated remote seminars and hosted high-level academic seminars and case discussions with distinguished overseas analysts. The foreign analysts who have participated so far include Jan Abram (London), Catalina Bronstein (London), Penelope Garvey (London), Bob Hinshelwood (London), Sharone Ornstein (New York), Irma Brenman Pick (London), Barbara Stimmel (New York), Thomas Wolman (New York), Frank Yeomans (New York), and others.
Korean Psychoanalytic Society's contribution to the psychoanalysis field was internationally recognized in 2002 when its founder, Cho Doo-young, was awarded the Mary S. Sigourney Award, also known as the "Nobel Prize of psychoanalysis." Joo donated the entire award money to the Korean Psychoanalytic Society, which has since used it to establish the "Korean Psychoanalytic Society Academic Award."
Korean Psychoanalytic Society is also active in external academic activities, hosting spring and fall conferences, specialized training programs, and workshops for non-members, and even opening up its well-regarded seminars with foreign psychoanalysts to non-members since 2022.
Since its founding in 1980, Korean Psychoanalytic Society has continuously promoted its activities internationally. It has made significant efforts to develop a positive relationship with the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA). In 1991, at the 37th IPA congress, it became the first "guest study group" to obtain official recognition.
In 2004, the IPA certified Jung Do-Un and Hong Tak Yoo as the first direct members of the IPA in Korea, and subsequently, Lee Moo-suk, Yoo Jae-hak, and Kim Mee-kyung were added by 2008. Following an on-site inspection by the IPA in 2008, Korean Psychoanalytic Society was certified to operate a psychoanalyst training program under the responsibility of Korean Study Group.
Throughout this process, Korean Psychoanalytic Society has provided significant support, both financially and spatially, to the Korean Study Group, and it will continue to provide such support until 2021. From 2008 to 2021, the Korean Psychoanalytic Society worked under an "umbrella" organization called Korean Association of Psychoanalysis (KAPA), which encompasses the Korean Allied Center and Korean Study Group. Through this organization, Korean Psychoanalytic Society has supported the success of psychoanalyst training programs in Korea.
Korea Sponsoring Committee, which was appointed by the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA) to oversee psychoanalyst training programs in Korea twice a year, was abruptly and unauthorizedly replaced by a second committee under the influence of a new executive committee. This change prompted pressure from the IPA, which did not understand the local situation or laws (especially medical laws) in Korea. Specifically, the IPA demanded support for non-medical psychoanalyst training programs.
In response to the IPA's request, Korean Psychoanalytic Society conducted a legal review at its own expense. It concluded that "it is a violation of Korean medical law and may result in civil and criminal liabilities if medical personnel provide clinical education and training to non-medical personnel." However, the IPA did not accept this conclusion.
In 2018, during the tenure of President Jeong Sunju, Korean Psychoanalytic Society resolved at a general meeting to continue as an academic group exclusively for psychiatrists. However, under pressure from the International Psychoanalytic Association, Korean Study Group ultimately accommodated non-medical psychoanalyst trainees. As a result of this decision, Korean Study Group separated from Korean Psychoanalytic Society.
Subsequently, on October 27th, 2022, the International Psychoanalytic Association unilaterally notified Korean Psychoanalytic Society by letter that its status as an allied center would be terminated. Korean Psychoanalytic Society pointed out that there were already growing concerns about its relationship with the IPA within the society and that their efforts to pursue the value of psychoanalysis, which no one can monopolize, would continue uniquely, despite the termination of its allied center status.
The history of Korean psychoanalysis now calls for a new leap forward in a different direction. It is necessary to respond to the practical demands of psychiatrists and specialists and expand the population of psychoanalytically working people. At the same time, there is a need to move beyond the era of simply importing and adhering to psychoanalysis as it emerged and developed in the West and instead discover and reflect on unique characteristics and issues found within our culture and emotions, as well as the needs of mental health professionals working in the field, and develop and establish psychoanalytic educational programs that consider and address them.
At a time when the boundary between psychotherapy and psychoanalysis is becoming increasingly unclear, the society has an important mission to provide members who possess a Korean yet modern understanding of psychoanalysis and treatment abilities with opportunities to study and develop together within an organic relationship.