6 | INTERNALIZED OBJECT RELATIONS
An internalized object relation is an affective-cognitive phenomenon
that corresponds to a mental representation of an interpersonal
relationship that is stored as a memory —the interpersonal
relationship is in the physical world, the internalized object relation
is in the mental world—. Internalized object relations are composed of
a self representation interacting with an object representation and the
affect associated with this kind of interaction15;
internalized object relations are mainly unconscious. Internalized
object relations are established during early development of individuals
when we interact with our primary caregivers. Each one of the specific
internalized object relations that have been stored in memory is called
an object relation dyad.16 A person contains a limited
number of stored dyads and based on these dyads builds the knowledge of
him or herself, of others, and later, of the world around him or her
—remember that at the beginning of life, the world of the newborn
includes only him or herself and his or her primary caregiver, as time
goes by and hatching occurs, his or her world expands to include other
things, such as secondary caregivers and inanimate
objects.17 Thus, a person´s knowledge of the physical
world, not matter how elaborate, also has its origin within an
interpersonal scenario.
At all times, a person has a specific activated object relation dyad to
relate with others or the world that surrounds them, even at this
moment, for example, the reader has one active: Is it that of the
demanding reader —self representation— who is frustrated
—affect—by the poor expressive quality of the author —object
representation—, or is it that of the avid reader, satisfied with the
text, who considers the author conspicuous?
This phenomenon will be essential for understanding transference and
countertransference.