Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Relating to a strong emotional dependence on another person: The term describes relationships or psychological states where one individual exhibits a profound reliance on another for emotional support, care, or a sense of security. This dependence is often a central, defining feature of the relationship.

Usage and Examples

• Adjective:
  • The therapist noted the patient's anaclitic depression, stemming from the early loss of a caregiver.
  • In psychoanalytic theory, an anaclitic object choice is one based on the model of a person who provided care and nourishment.

Advanced Usage

• Anaclitic Depression: A specific psychological condition characterized by withdrawal, fear, and despair resulting from the perceived loss of a nurturing figure.

  • The infant displayed signs of anaclitic depression after prolonged separation from the primary caregiver.

• Anaclitic Object Choice: In Freudian psychoanalysis, this refers to selecting a love object based on the pattern of someone who provided early care and protection.

  • His anaclitic object choice was analyzed as a repetition of his dependent relationship with his mother.

Variants and Related Words

• Anaclisis (n): The state of leaning upon or being dependent on another; the foundation for anaclitic relationships.
  • The concept of anaclisis is central to understanding certain attachment disorders.

Synonyms

• Dependent: Relying on someone or something else for support.
• Reliant: Having or showing dependence on.
• Attachment-based: Pertaining to emotional bonds that involve dependence (context-specific synonym).

Antonyms

• Autonomous: Self-governing; independent.
• Self-reliant: Relying on one's own powers and resources rather than those of others.

Adjective

1. of or related to relationships that are characterized by the strong dependence of one person on another