Molnos, A. (1998): A psychotherapist's harvest

PARATAXIC DISTORTIONS

The expression "parataxic distortions" was introduced by Harry Stack Sullivan (1892-1949) to describe our tendency to distort the perceptions we have of others. These distortions amount to cognitive errors which occur whenever we relate to another person not on the basis of the real attributes of the other, but wholly or chiefly on the basis of the person we see in our fantasy. The personification in our head is partly transferred from the past and partly unconsciously manufactured by us under the pressure of our needs. (Sullivan, 1953). Therefore, parataxic distortion is similar to the concept of transference but broader. For most practical purposes of therapy the two concepts, transference and parataxic distortions, may be considered the same.

See also index: TRANSFERENCE, TRANSFERENCE NEUROSIS