NUMBER 35 • 31 MAY 2002 • SATISFACTION OF NEEDS
INDEX OF QUOTES

In helping to bring order into the child’s personality we rely mainly on his desire to get along in a world that provides him with ample satisfaction of all, or almost all, of his needs and not only the ones that are commonly accepted by adults as legitimate. We feel that before anything else a child has to be utterly convinced that—contrary to past experiences—this world can be a pleasant one, before he can feel any impulse to get along in it.

Once such a desire has sprung up and has really become a part of his personality then, and only then, can we expect him to accept and to come to terms with the less pleasant aspects of life.

 


BRUNO BETTELHEIM
Bettelheim, B. (1950). Love is not enough. New York: Free Press