The author proposes a reassessment of the function of phobia at adolescence. Between the fear of the object and the anxiety of the subject, phobia creates the necessary gap so that a space for working through may be liable to be built up. Phobia is thus supposed to be a primary structure of the psychical functioning liable to restore, through projection, an internal homeostasia. Such is a way of handling anxiety which is most frequently used at adolescence since it is so difficult at puberty to have access to the sexed representations of internal conflicts.

Adolescence, 2026, 44, 2, 323-334.