William Alanson White Institute

The William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis and Psychology ( WAWI ) was founded in 1943 as a charitable institution for postgraduate training of psychotherapists as the New York branch of the Washington School of Psychiatry in 1946 and received its present name. The seat is located in Clara Thompson building on the Upper West Side in New York City.

History and activities

The Institute's psychoanalytic theory and practice in the 20th century developed in the sense of Neopsychoanalyse and detached from the mainstream of American psychoanalysis, which was felt by the Institute founders as too restrictive.

Among the founders of the Institute include Clara Thompson, Erich Fromm, Harry Stack Sullivan, Frieda Fromm- Reichmann, David Rioch and Janet Rioch.

The curriculum includes the psychological, socio- cultural and biological factors in human behavior. It is based on the contributions of Harry Stack Sullivan and Erich Fromm and their deep psychological research that saw man as a social being and his behavior as interpersonal relationships ( interpersonal theory).

The WAWI offers training programs, training and clinical services including conferences, lecture series and Symposie and is editor of the international journal Contemporary Psychoanalysis.

Award

• 2001 the Institute received from the American Psychoanalytic Association, the first Psychoanalytic Clinic Community of the Year Award for the high quality of psychotherapy that has been done at a modest price to people with depression, personality disorder, eating disorders, other psychological problems.