MANY MALE PRISONERS COME FROM ONE-PARENT FEMALE-DOMINATED FAMILY BACKGROUNDS AND HAVE EXPERIENCED REJECTION AS CHILDREN AND AS ADULTS. IN A PRISON ENVIRONMENT, FANTASIES ABOUT WOMEN ARE HEIGHTENED AND AN ALREADY SUPERMASCULINE ROLE PERCEPTION BECOMES INCREASINGLY DISTORTED AND EXAGGERATED. A NUMBER OF BRIFF CASE SKETCHES ILLUSTRATE THESE UNRESOLVED PROBLEMS ABOUT WOMEN. REJECTION AND/OR DOMINATION BY A FEMALE FIGURE RESULTS IN A LOADING AND A STIFLING OF EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT WHICH OFTEN LEAD TO A VIEW OF WOMEN AS OBJECTS AGAINST WHICH TO TEST ONE'S MALENESS. THERE IS NO DETERRENT TO ANTISOCIAL ACTS BECAUSE DEVELOPMENT HAS REMAINED AT A NARCISISTIC LEVEL. FAULTY OBJECT RELATIONSHIPS AND INCOMPLETE EGO INTEGRATION COUPLED WITH REJECTION BY THE MOTHER OFTEN RESULT IN A CLASSIFICATION OF WOMEN INTO GOOD AND BAD OBJECTS. AN EXAMPLE OF THIS CLASSIFICATION CAN BE SEEN IN TWO DESCRIPTIONS OF THE THERAPIST BY ONE OF HER PATIENTS, ONE POSITIVE AND THE OTHER NEGATIVE. IN CONTRAST TO THE PRISONER'S PRIOR LIFE EXPERIENCE, THE FEMALE THERAPIST IS A CONSTANT AND ACCESSIBLE OBJECT WHO DOES NOT REJECT THE PRISONER AND TOWARDS WHOM THE PRISONER MAY DIRECT BOTH POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE FEELINGS. BY EXPERIENCING BOTH FEELINGS IN RELATION TO ONE INDIVIDUAL, A FUSION OF BOTH THE GOOD AND BAD OBJECTS MAY BY ATTAINED. THIS IN TURN ALLOWS THE CHARACTER-DISORDERED INDIVIDUAL TO INTERNALIZE A CONSTANT OBJECT, THUS RESULTING IN STRENGTHENING OF THE EGO AND IMPROVED IMPULSE CONTROL. IT IS CONCLUDED THAT SINCE OBSTACLES TO DEVELOPMENT INVOLVED THE FEMALE FIGURE, CORRECTIVE EXPERIENCE COULD BE OPTIMALLY ENHANCED BY THE FEMALE THERAPEUTIC PRESENCE. REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (JAP)