China has embarked on a new journey towards contemporary therapy. In the last couple of years, the Chinese Self Psychology and Intersubjectivity community has been booming as its activities and impact have accelerated and expanded. Numerous initiatives, including basic and advanced psychotherapy training programs, study groups, reading clubs, conferences and clinical seminars, have sprung up and are being offered to interested clinicians. One of its flagship projects is a pioneering training program called “Self Psychology Educational Project (SPEP)”. It consists of online and inhouse training courses delivered by a team of faculty members from the renowned IAPSP members and experts worldwide. It aims to enable our members and students to contribute to the increased therapeutic needs in Chinese communities. The endeavor of the SPEP project is to broaden the horizons of local communities and to serve as a bridge to global communities.

This column is intended to serve as a platform for Chinese members to present and share their ideas, thoughts, feelings, writings and experiences related to their clinical practice, theory, activities and achievements within the broad IAPSP community, thereby contributing to it.

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The 5th anniversary of Li Institute was celebrated on January 19th, 2019. Trainees from the 2015 to 2018 programs attended the celebration party and shared their learning experience and gratitude to Li Institute, where they experienced building a stronger self.

Photos taken on the 5th anniversary of Li Institute

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The graduation ceremony of the 2018 Full-Year Psychoanalysis Training Program led by Li Institute was celebrated in late January 2019. The full-year program consisted of fundamental concepts of classical and contemporary psychoanalytical theories. It also covered practical training to entry-level counselors.

Group photo of the 2018 Full-Year Psychoanalysis Training Program

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SPEP (Self Psychology Educational Program), initiated by the Li Institute, promoting the development of Self Psychology and Intersubjective System theory in China, kicked off its 2019-2020 Full Year Training Session on March 8th, 2019. Nearly 40 trainees from all over mainland China registered into the program and gathered together in Beijing for the first 2-day workshop of this session. SPEP was honored to invite Dr. Eldad Iddan to address a warmest welcome speech through a video clip on behalf of IAPSP and also shared a brief overview of IAPSP’s profile in history till today as well as an outlook for the future.

Dr. Eldad Iddan addressed a warm welcome speech through video to SPEP 2019-2020 trainees

Photos taken on the 1st workshop of SPEP 2019-2020

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SPEP was honored to invite Dr. Allen Siegel to give a public online workshop on the “the critical moment in supervision” to the Chinese psychological community on March 20th, 2019. Nearly 4,000 participants joined the workshop from all over China. Dr. Allen Siegel was one of the star instructor in SPEP program bridging up Chinese psychotherapists and learners with global theoretical trends and best practice.

Cheryl QI

Cheryl QI is very new in her career as a psychological counselor, but she has huge enthusiasm for this career. After her graduation from Peking university in Applied Psychology, she engaged in the profession of communication in the multinational IT companies in China. She started learning psychoanalysis in the Li Institute in 2015. After a series of intensive trainings and practice, she became a nationally certified psychological counselor in 2017.

Cheryl has been a member of IAPSP since 2016; She is also a trainee in the SPEP program in China held by Li Institute in collaboration with IAPSP. She has huge passion for Self Psychology and Intersubjective Systems Theory and she is promoting the development of these theories in China.