Robin Skynner (16 August 1922 in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

–24 September 2000 in

Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

) was a psychiatric pioneer and innovator in treating mental illness. As a young man during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Skynner was a

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

(RAF) pilot who flew the

Mosquito Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning " gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "li ...

twin-engined fighter bomber, and the destruction he had to take part in drew him to psychiatry. Trained in group analysis and working as

child psychiatrist Child and adolescent psychiatry (or pediatric psychiatry) is a branch of psychiatry that focuses on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental disorders in children, adolescents, and their families. It investigates the biopsychosocial fact ...

and

family therapist Family therapy (also referred to as family counseling, family systems therapy, marriage and family therapy, couple and family therapy) is a branch of psychology and clinical social work that works with families and couples in intimate relationsh ...

, he employed group-analytic principles in that therapeutic modality. He was a gifted teacher and practitioner of psychotherapy with individuals, groups, families, couples, and institutions. He was also a prolific writer.

Early life

Born on 16 August 1922 at Charlestown,

St Austell St Austell (; kw, Sans Austel) is a town in Cornwall, England, south of Bodmin and west of the border with Devon. St Austell is one of the largest towns in Cornwall; at the 2011 census it had a population of 19,958. History St Austell ...

, Skynner was the eldest of five boys. He was educated at

County School and at Blundell's School, after which, at 18, he volunteered for the

, and was selected as a prospective bomber pilot. The destruction and slaughter he had to participate in adversely affected him, an experience that, for a variety of complex reasons, drew him to psychiatry as an eventual vocation.

Career

After demobilisation from RAF service, Skynner enrolled as a student at

University College Hospital University College Hospital (UCH) is a teaching hospital in the Fitzrovia area of the London Borough of Camden, England. The hospital, which was founded as the North London Hospital in 1834, is closely associated with University College Lon ...

and qualified MB, BS (Lond) in 1952. He then began his psychiatric training. In 1957, he passed the Diploma of Psychological Medicine. In 1971, he was elected MRCPsych, proceeding FRCPsych in 1976. He was successively the Director of the Woodberry Down Child Guidance Unit, Physician-in Charge of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for Children, Senior Tutor in Psychotherapy at the Institute of Psychiatry and Honorary Associate Consultant at the

Maudsley Hospital The Maudsley Hospital is a British psychiatric hospital in south London. The Maudsley is the largest mental health training institution in the UK. It is part of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and works in partnership with the ...

. Dr. Foulkes, a

psychoanalyst PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: + . is a set of theories and therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a body of knowledge. In what might ...

and psychiatrist, was one of the founders of group analysis in Britain, a group approach developed out of Foulkes's treatment of war victims in

Northfield Hospital Hollymoor Hospital was a psychiatric hospital located at Tessall Lane, Northfield in Birmingham, England, and is famous primarily for the work on group psychotherapy that took place there in the years of the Second World War. It closed in 1994. ...

, Birmingham. Foulkes was a pioneer and quickly attracted the attention of others keen to change the way mental health patients were dealt with. Skynner was intrigued by Foulkes and by the early stages of the therapeutic community movement, which was gathering strength. He became Foulkes's pupil and later his patient in a group. Robin Skynner would readily admit he needed treatment himself. In 1959, together with fellow disciples of Dr. Foulkes, Skynner founded the Group Analytic Practice, which specialises in group, family and marital therapy. A logical development was the emergence of the Institute of Group Analysis for the specific purpose of giving training in group therapy. However, it was Skynner himself who, in 1977, founded the Institute of Family Therapy and chaired it for the next two years. Skynner subsequently worked with adults and children of an unusually wide range of socio-economic status, from the poorest districts of the East End of London to private practice. His chief interest was the practice and teaching of psychotherapy, with individuals, groups, families, couples and institutions. The important posts he successfully filled were senior tutor (psychotherapy) at the Institute of Psychiatry, honorary assistant consultant psychiatrist at Bethlem Royal and Maudsley Hospital and physician in charge of the Department of Psychiatry at Queen Elizabeth Hospital for Children, London.

Family life

Skynner married twice: from 1948 to 1959 to Geraldine Foley; then, in 1959, he married Prudence Fawcett, who died in 1987.

Death

He is buried alongside Prudence in Highgate Cemetery London. He is survived by a son, a daughter and four grandchildren. Skynner, August 2000

Therapeutic techniques

Skynner emphasised three main principles in family therapy: # The importance of facilitating communication within the family. # The need for a clear authority structure or familial hierarchy. # The centrality of individual developmental life-stages in the family problems. Using

transference Transference (german: Übertragung) is a phenomenon within psychotherapy in which the "feelings, attitudes, or desires" a person had about one thing are subconsciously projected onto the here-and-now Other. It usually concerns feelings from a ...

and countertransference as therapeutic tools, he worked to change family power structures so as to increase order and clarity, and encouraged the taking back of

psychological projection Psychological projection is the process of misinterpreting what is "inside" as coming from "outside". It forms the basis of empathy by the projection of personal experiences to understand someone else's subjective world. In its malignant forms, i ...

s to avoid the scapegoating and delinquency of the projections' carrier.S. Stewart, ''Mastering Resistance'' (1983) p. 15-17

Works

Books

* ''One Flesh: Separate Persons, Principles of Family and Marital Psychotherapy'' (1976) * ''Explorations with Families: Group-Analysis and Family Therapy'' (1987) * ''Institutes and How to Survive Them: Mental Health Training and Consultation'' (1989) * ''Family Matters'' (1995) * '' Families and How to Survive Them'' (1983) * ''

Life and How to Survive It ''Life and How To Survive It'' is a self-help psychology book written by the therapist Robin Skynner and the comedian John Cleese. The book is written in a question and answer form, with Cleese asking questions about relationships, and his ther ...

''.

Articles

* Skynner, A. C. (1984). Group analysis and family therapy. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy; 34: 215-224.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skynner, Robin 1922 births 2000 deaths Burials at Highgate Cemetery People from St Austell British child psychiatrists Group psychotherapists Family therapists English psychiatrists People educated at Blundell's School Fellows of the Royal College of Psychiatrists People educated at St Austell Grammar School