Oppositional behaviours in the child are a very frequent reason for consultations. With these children, the ordinary phase of opposition in the second year seems to continue and the parent/child interactions are caught up in a vicious circle that is difficult to break, in which the oppositional attitude of the child thwarts the authority of the parents. These difficulties are described by the dsm5 as oppositional defiant disorders but, beyond describing a manifest form of behaviour, it is important to try to understand the meaning of the opposition for the child and his/her family. After recalling Spitz’s studies on the “no” gesture as a first abstraction, a form of self-affirmation and the third developmental organiser, the authors present two clinical cases illustrating this issue. Apart from affirming the intersubjective dimension of opposition which serves as an ego-defence, a number of characteristics are highlighted such as the difficulty for the child to emerge from the developmental phase of opposition through an introjective identification with the aggressor and recourse to a projective identification with the aggressor. Environmental failures such as the object’s lack of reliability lead to a weakening of narcissistic foundations and to attachment disorders. The weakness of the paternal imago impedes entry into triangulation and defensive recourse to a relationship of mastery seeks to control the object. A number of therapeutic approaches are discussed in conclusion.

Opposition is a common form of behaviour in adolescence, a sign of the process of self-affirmation and the quest for independence. The narcissistic foundations formed during early childhood are particularly tested at this age. They constitute a narcissistic filter protecting against invasion by the object or its deficiencies. When they are weak or deficient, opposition may take a pathological and restrictive turn, penalizing family and social inscription. This frequently occurs with adopted adolescents. The authors emphasize the reasons why the situation of adoption is liable to undermine both primary and secondary narcissistic foundations. Opposition has the effect of making imperious demands on the object while at the same time keeping it at a distance, and has more to do with taking pleasure in mastering or controlling the object than in sharing with the object. The analysis of two clinical case histories of adopted adolescents will help to highlight certain aspects of this problem. One case concerns a narcissistic confrontation owing to the mother’s alcoholism and depression in the absence of paternal regulation; the other concerns a refusal to attend school and the development of a negative identity in response to a traumatic family situation undermining the status of the adolescent’s identity. In both these situations, the “work of the negative” in Green’s sense is highlighted.

Les conduites d’opposition chez l’enfant apparaissent de plus en plus fréquentes sur la scène scolaire au fil des ans. Les enseignants observent différents degrés d’opposition, allant de refus plus ou moins actifs face au travail à des rejets complets du cadre scolaire, associés à des troubles des conduites importants. L’opposition se manifeste chez des enfants présentant des pathologies ou troubles spécifiques (troubles des apprentissages, hyperactivité, autisme, précocité intellectuelle, etc.) mais aussi chez des enfants sans handicap, invalidité ou trouble psychiatrique repéré. Le cadre scolaire lui-même, par les contraintes qu’il soustend et par le système d’évaluation, peut générer des conduites d’opposition. L’enseignant se retrouve parfois seul et démuni face à l’enfant et sa famille. Cette interview a pour objectif de recueillir les propos d’une enseignante expérimentée afin de comprendre davantage les enjeux de l’opposition à l’école, de mieux saisir les attitudes salutaires ou au contraire propices à amplifier les conduites d’opposition et enfin d’envisager les ressources internes ou extérieures à l’école dont les enseignants disposent lorsqu’ils sont confrontés à ce type de difficultés.

Troubles at school often turn into violence. This paper specifies what violence is and describes the forms it may take in schools (passages to the act, types of relations, behavioral disorders, violent games, or harassment). The sources of violence are found in the child’s first relationships. It evolves during the child’s psycho-emotional development until adolescence. This paper also discusses the family aspects of violence. It concludes by stressing the importance of addressing violence starting in nursery school. It also emphasizes the role of the RASED, school doctors, and medical and psychological care structures.

Children’s speech is constructed gradually on the basis of affectivity and social relationships and strongly related to the construction and affirmation of the subject. Its specificity is that it is first carried by others before the child is able to speak. Therapists deal with this and help the child to find his own subjective speech through links with his surroundings. Recent works of psychoanalysts on narrativity shed light on the relationships between narrative and speech.

Among the various peer relations, the clique is a specificity of adolescence. In addition to the social realities, it is determined by affective and psychic impulses. Referring to Sandor Marai’s novel The Rebels, this paper analyzes the central characteristics of a clique: its function, the nature of its ties, its own dynamic, its connection with the internal and external world, and the transition from childhood loyalties to adolescent ones. In the best of cases, these aspects lead to a respect for the law.

The home is a fundamental space for the child. Historically and socially speaking, it is a place for gaining sense experiences and playing. It is also a place that fosters the imagination. It is the shelter that serves as the boundary around a shared private space. It is the place of the family. Philosophy sheds light on the dimension of the “dwelling” and depicts it as an envelope. As an extension of the psychic envelope of the parents, the home plays a role in the construction of the child, who has to appropriate it and then detach from it in order to build his/her own space and his/her own way of dwelling in it.