Understanding Psychotherapy : The Science Behind the Art

Basch, Carol G.

ISBN 10: 0465088635 / ISBN 13: 9780465088638

Published by Basic Books, 1988

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Synopsis:

Pages are clean and binding is tight. Solid Book.

Reviews: In attempting to put psychoanalysis on a scientific basis, Basch makes a direct leap from orthodox Freudianism to information science, with hardly a nod to neo-Freudians, humanistic psychologists or others who have updated the master's theories. For Freud's "instinct gratification," this University of Chicago psychiatry professor substitutes "striving for order" and "competence"; instead of ego and id, he speaks of the decision-making process of a self-system interpreted in terms of cybernetics, cognitive psychology and systems theory. The result is a bland framework that may be of value to clinicians but will dismay the general reader. That is unfortunate, because Basch's insistence that the vast majority of patients are not neuroticbut instead, suffer from lack of self-esteem or arrested developmentis worth heeding. His self-serving narrative and tedious case histories, however, make this treatise one to skim.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Psychoanalytic psychiatrist Basch argues that Freud's theories of human development have been supplanted by current research from a variety of disciplines. Addressing both colleagues and laypersons, he discusses newer concepts that include striving for competence and self-esteem, affect, feedback, pattern matching, and the self system. Science interfaces with art in his discussion of patient care, but because the case studies are composites, constructed to make points, the interactions between patient and doctor often lack spontaneity and hence credibility. Stilted prose and textbook charts further preclude popular appeal. For large psychology/psychiatry collections and academic libraries. Janice Arenofsky, formerly with Arizona State Lib., Phoenix
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Understanding Psychotherapy : The Science ...
Publisher: Basic Books
Publication Date: 1988
Binding: hardcover
Condition: Very Good