Harriet Mossop

Harriet Mossop's primary academic home is as a PhD student and Assistant Lecturer in the Department of Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies at the University of Essex. Her PhD, supervised by Professor Raluca Soreanu, proposes a trans*psychosocial theory of erotic trans*ference as an embodied, politically oriented phenomenon in which there is potential for re-mixing the mythosymbolic structures of both the patient and the psychotherapist, but also the potential for violence and harm to the patient.

Harriet's queer phenomenological reframing of Anna Freud and Dorothy Burlinghams long and liminally queer relationship has resulted in a tour and symposium at the Freud Museum London, two single authored and two co-authored papers, and the co-editorship of a special issue of Psychoanalysis and History.  She teaches Freudian theory to undergraduates, queer theory at Masters level, and facilitates queer / trans community reading groups on psychoanalytic theory, reading and writing groups for postgraduate anthropology students, continuing professional development / workshops for psychotherapists, and a group of queer and trans psychosocial researchers. She also writes about psychotherapy pedagogy.

As Research Assistant for the UKRI-funded FREEPSY research project, Harriet is part of a vibrant research team that is drawing attention to the novel psychoanalytic theory emerging from politically-oriented free psychoanalytic clinics, especially in the Global South.  As Research and Development Officer for the Centre for Anthropological Mental Health Research in Action at SOAS, Harriet works with the Centre directors to develop its research strategy and culture, identify sustainable sources of funding to support the Centres programme of research, and generate inter- and intra-institutional collaboration. She especially enjoys mentoring Early Career Researchers.

Harriet is a long-term volunteer befriender in the LGBT+ community and at a refuge for people with suicidal thoughts.  She is happy to develop her thinking about the political uses of queer psychoanalysis alongside staff and students of the Department of Gender Studies as a guest lecturer.

• Queer theory
• Erotic transference
• Patients' perspectives in psychoanalysis
• Zine making as a research methodology
• Queering the history of psychoanalysis
• Harm in psychotherapy
   

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