Concept
Differentiation subphase
The first subphase of separation-individuation in Mahler's scheme, from about the fourth or fifth month to the tenth. The infant 'hatches' from the symbiotic orbit: more alert and outward-turned while awake, it begins to explore the mother's face and body, to pull back from her to look at her, and to compare her with others, so that strangers start to be noticed as strange. A first, bodily sense of being distinct from the mother takes shape.
- Broader concept
- Separation-individuation
- Introduced by
- Margaret Mahler
- Key works
- 1
introduced by
- Margaret Mahler The first subphase of separation-individuation, from about five months, which Mahler described as the infant's hatching from the symbiotic orbit.