CALL for PARTICIPATION!

36th Annual Interdisciplinary Conference 

Subversion

October 1 - 3, 2026

HOTEL CHICAGO downtown, AUTOGRAPH COLLECTION®
333 N. Dearborn Street, Chicago, IL 60654

Awardees:

Nancy McWilliams, Ph.D.
Hans W. Loewald Memorial Award

Isaac D. Balbus, Ph.D.
Distinguished Psychoanalytic Educator

Peter Shabad, Ph.D.
Distinguished Psychoanalytic Educator

Call for Participation

"Art is inherently subversive. It’s destabilizing. It undermines what you already know and what you already think. It is the opposite of propaganda."

Deborah Eisenberg, The Art of Fiction no. 218

Subversion can be seen as a destructive force that undermines stability, security and social order, or as a necessary catalyst for positive change – or both.  The paranoid fear of Communist subversives was an oppressive force in the 1950s.  On the other hand, the subversive activism of the 1960’s that led to the passage of the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts, and more recently, LGBTQ+ Pride marches in support of queer Americans and against homophobia, have challenged longstanding oppressive norms deeply ingrained in our culture. 

But subversion isn’t limited to political activities. Nancy McWilliams, IFPE’s 2026 Hans W. Loewald Memorial Award recipient, has written that “in telling the truth about ... human nature … Freud … set the tone ... to get beyond individual and cultural illusions … challenging the more facile and potentially destructive assumptions of the larger society.” In short, psychoanalysis is an inherently subversive activity.

 We invite you to submit a proposal that explores forms of subversion that you would like to present at IFPE’s Annual Conference this year in Chicago. For over three decades IFPE conferences have always emphasized the personal dimension of our themes. Continuing with this tradition, our 2026 conference will feature presentations and panels that explore social/societal issues as well as personal stories about subversion of various types, looking at the myriad ways that subversion has/can be a constructive humanizing force, a destructive dehumanizing force, or both.

Some ideas to stimulate your thinking:

• Is psychoanalysis inherently subversive?

• When does “we” subvert “me?”

• Is the restoration of personal agency socially subversive?

• Can subversion be good?

• When is interpretation subversive?

• The subversion of reality in intimate relationships

• Is subversion an Oedipal phenomenon?

• Mechanisms of personal subversion: gaslighting, domination, socialization

• Shame as a mechanism of developmental subversion

• When patients become “good patients”

• Countertransference as treatment subversion

• The internalization of the subverting object

• Is the analyst’s unconscious a subversive force?

• Can subversion of the culture be pro-human?
  

Proposals are due by April 15, 2026. Please download our proposal forms below.

Individual Proposal Form

Panel/Other Proposal Form

Print Version of the Call

We hope to see you in Chicago this Fall!
M. Chet Mirman
Conference Chair

Questions? Please email us @ IFPEcontact@gmail.com

Scholarship Opportunity:

The International Forum for Psychoanalytic Education (IFPE) is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive psychoanalytic community but recognizes that financial constraints often prevent new and essential voices from being heard. The IFPE Board of Directors is pleased to once again invite members of marginalized and underrepresented voices within our professional community to apply for one of our scholarships, which we hope can help to remove barriers to participation by providing financial assistance to those who might otherwise be unable to attend the conference. We invite individuals who are interested in the exploration of psychoanalysis across disciplines, including:

·         Students and early career clinicians and scholars from historically marginalized communities

·         Individuals representing underrepresented perspectives in psychoanalytic discourse

Please click here to download information regarding Scholarship Eligibility and the Application Process.

Please click here to download the 2026 Scholarship Form.

Applications are due by April 15th, 2026.

If you are unable to download the Information document or the application form, please email IFPEcontact@gmail.com