Two women and their mothers: on the internalization and development of mother-daughter relationships.

: This is a report from a 30-year followup study conducted by a member of Margaret Mahler's original separation-individuation research team. Based on a series of unstructured, clinical interviews with the original subjects and psychological testing of the subjects and their mothers, two mother-daughter pairs are compared from the perspective of the meaning of each daughter to her mother, how that meaning influenced the separation-individuation process, and how it influenced the unfolding of each daughter's life as a woman. Because the mother-child pairs were observed several times a week by both participant and nonparticipant observers beginning during the preverbal period, this study offers a unique opportunity to examine the influence of the earliest interactions on adult life.