Review of Multiculturalism in Canada: Social and educational perspectives.

Reviews the book, Multiculturalism in Canada: Social and educational perspectives edited by Ronald J. Samuda, John W. Berry, and Michel Laferriere (1984). The editors have managed to put together an impressive collection of contributors and contributions. Their stated aim is "to cover the entire spectrum of potential factors related to multiculturalism" and they "feel sure that this volume will meet the needs of teacher educators...inservice training...and teacher training in the foundations of multicultural education" (p. vii). The volume is divided into five parts. Part one contains chapters under the rubric of Policies of Multiculturalism. Part two contains five chapters under the rubric of Attitudes toward Multiculturalism. Part three contains six chapters under the rubric of Language in a Multicultural Society. Part four contains eight chapters under the rubric of Adaptation to a Multicultural Society. Part five contains six chapters under the rubric of Assessment and Counselling in Multicultural Society. In sum, this volume contains many fine individual chapters. Students and professors can pick through them and find the ones best suited for their unique purposes. When taken as a whole, however, the volume represents an ethos which is probably irreconcilable with a genuine multiculturalism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Current topics in rehabilitation psychology.

Reviews the book, Current topics in rehabilitation psychology edited by Charles J. Golden (1984). Every few years an edited volume of chapters on rehabilitation psychology is published. The latest contribution, Current Topics in Rehabilitation Psychology, edited by Charles Golden, is written for students, professionals, and educated lay people who want to learn about some of the recent advances in the field. Golden makes clear, and quite correctly so, that the volume is not a comprehensive coverage of all the areas of research, training, and service that are in the domain of rehabilitation psychology. Instead, after two chapters giving an overview of the field, several specific areas are addressed. They include management of chronic pain, cognitive retraining in brain damaged patients, rehabilitation and aging, adjustment of people with spinal cord injury, vocational training of people with severe developmental disabilities, biofeedback, and the role of personality in attitudes toward those with physical disabilities. The book would have profited greatly from more careful editing. Although the quality of writing varies from author to author, the grammatical errors, misspellings, and garbled sentences are uniformly so numerous that they sometimes distract the reader from the valuable content of the chapters. Nevertheless, the book is worthwhile as one that gives an overview of several specific topics and supplies rich bibliographies to those wishing to learn more. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Treatment and prevention of alcohol problems: A resource manual.

Reviews the book, Treatment and prevention of alcohol problems: A resource manual edited by W. Miles Cox (see record 1987-97300-000). A resource manual on alcohol problems that captures the state of the art in therapeutic and preventive techniques and in their underlying theoretical bases and empirical foundations is an extremely ambitious but much needed effort. This is precisely what Miles Cox has set out to do in the present volume. The volume consists of four sections: initiating treatment with chapters on beginning treatment, assessment, and medical aspects; specific treatment techniques, with chapters on behavioral treatment, building self-control, imagery and logotherapy, self-help groups, and craving for alcohol; associated problems and special populations with chapters on marital and family therapy, sexual problems, and culture-specific treatment; and early intervention and prevention including chapters on cognitive approaches to secondary prevention and prevention of alcohol problems. On the whole, the book lives up to its intentions. Although there are some gaps which prevent this book from being truly comprehensive, this volume will serve as a useful text in graduate courses for social workers, counselors, and psychologists. What is commendable about this book is that Cox has made a largely successful attempt, by pulling together many diverse literatures, to bridge the gulf that exists between service providers and research communities on the proper ways of helping people who are troubled by, or threaten to be troubled by, alcohol. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Competitive employment issues and strategies.

Reviews the book, Competitive employment issues and strategies, edited by Frank R. Rusch (1986). Consistent with its title, the book makes clear that its thrust is competitive employment and that supported work is a means to that end. Several chapters were written by the editor himself; in addition, 38 contributors (many of whom are nationally known in their fields) wrote 24 up-to-date chapters. The result is a comprehensive review, in three sections, of competitive employment programs, competitive employment methods and strategies, and a variety of policy and conceptual issues. This text should prove useful to those for whom it was written: "...advanced undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, service providers, and others interested in...enhancing quality of life for persons with handicaps." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Promoting a Tinbergian Approach to Animal Behaviour.

Reviews The Behavior of Animals: Mechanisms, Functions, and Evolution edited by Bolhuis and Giraldeau (see record 2005-00777-000). This edited volume is meant as "a comprehensive textbook on animal behavior." It seeks to incorporate all the contemporary subdisciplines of behavioral biology, such as animal welfare, conservation biology, evolutionary psychology, animal cognition, and behavioral neuroscience to present perspectives on all four of Niko Tinbergen's classic whys of animal behaviour. As with most collected volumes, the tone, style, density of content, and quality of the chapters vary. I found a lot of interesting information in the book. But on the whole, the level is too difficult and, I would imagine, unappealing for undergraduates new to the field. The book is on the dense side, with too much material and not enough background and supportive illustrative materials, creating what is likely to be a frustrating and bewildering experience for students with little background in evolutionary theory, mathematics, or neuroscience. This edited volume does make a comprehensive textbook. It covers a broad array of areas, including topics that concern human society. It does incorporate many subdisciplines that comprise the study of animal behaviour. The package has reputable authors and some fine chapters, but is on the whole too difficult for an introductory textbook on animal behaviour. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Understanding terrorism: Psychosocial roots, consequences and interventions.

Reviews the book, Understanding terrorism: Psychosocial roots, consequences and interventions edited by Fathali M. Moghaddam and Anthony J. Marsella (see record 2003-06477-000). This edited volume effectively meets its goal of assessing the psychosocial origins and effects of international terrorism. Three sections, each containing multiple chapters, address in turn, broad conceptual issues regarding definitions and context of international terrorism, specific psychosocial processes involved in the development and functioning of terrorist groups, and consequences of and responses to, terrorist acts. Two general limitations of the book exist that are probably a reflection of challenges associated with the edited volume format. First, some issues are discussed repeatedly across chapters. Second, some readers may identify limited cases of faulty logic, unnecessarily detailed lists of empirical studies, and an overemphasis on issues uniquely relevant to the United States. Importantly, these concerns are relevant to a small minority of chapters or portions of chapters, and so the book is in large part compelling, intellectual, focused, and decidedly non-ethnocentric. As such, it is recommended reading for anyone concerned with terrorism and war, group relations, politics, aggression, trauma, prejudice, and cross-cultural understanding. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Women's Mental Health: A Comprehensive Textbook.

Reviews the book, Women's Mental Health: A Comprehensive Textbook edited by Susan G. Kornstein and Anita H. Clayton (2004). The reviewer notes that this book was so helpful that I could not put it down to write a review. In my opinion, many readers, including clinicians in psychology and psychiatry, researchers, graduate students, and sophisticated undergraduates would all benefit from perusing this text and examining chapters related to specific disorders and aspects of the reproductive stages of women's lives. This book is definitely a gold mine for busy academics preparing comprehensive lectures on women's mental health issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Handbook of cognitive–behavioral therapies, third edition.

Reviews the book, Handbook of cognitive–behavioral therapies, third edition edited by Keith S. Dobson (see record 2010-10108-000). Dobson’s revision of this classic volume provides a solid resource for psychologists and students of psychology. Many of us find that we become highly focused on our specific clinical work, teaching, and research, and it is easy to feel out of touch with the broader developments in the field. It is very helpful to pick up a resource such as this one to remind ourselves of the bigger picture in this important and influential treatment approach. Dobson has chosen authors for each topic who are key figures in the development of the approaches covered in their chapters. This choice of authors shows in the quality of the presentations and the familiarity with the key issues in each area. The book is divided into four parts: foundations, assessment, the therapies, and application to specific populations. This edited volume will be very useful in graduate courses on cognitive–behavioral therapies (CBTs) and in settings where clinical students are supervised. Practitioners and students with an interest in CBT will find it very helpful as a guide to the broad range of approaches and issues in CBT. In each area, the book provides up-to-date overviews of the research that guides our practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Cognitive therapy of anxiety disorders: Science and practice.

Reviews the book, Cognitive therapy of anxiety disorders: Science and practice edited by David A. Clark and Aaron T. Beck (2009). Drs. Clark and Beck’s book Cognitive therapy of anxiety disorders: Science and practise is a comprehensive review of cognitive therapy for anxiety from its empirical theoretical foundation to its clinical application to disorders. Although the focus of the text is ultimately on the cognitive treatment of anxiety, the rich theoretical background that is interwoven throughout makes this book of interest to academics and graduate students as well as clinicians. The book is divided into three parts, each with several chapters: 1) cognitive theory and research on anxiety; 2) assessment and intervention techniques used in cognitive therapy for anxiety; and 3) the application of cognitive therapy to specific anxiety disorders (e.g., panic disorder, obsessive– compulsive disorder [OCD]). Overall, this book is an excellent resource for researchers and clinicians working in the field of anxiety disorders. The reference section alone makes it a valuable addition to one’s bookshelf, and the authors have done an excellent job of organising a vast, and at time disparate, body of research into a cohesive review of cognitive theory as it applies to anxiety. Although the treatment chapters may be a bit overly ambitious in attempting to review both the research and the application of the cognitive model to the treatment of specific disorders, the book in its entirety is clearly an essential text for those interested in obtaining a comprehensive understanding of cognitive therapy and anxiety. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Research with the locus of control construct, vol. 3: Extensions and limitations.

Reviews the book, Research with the locus of control construct, vol. 3: Extensions and limitations edited by Herbert M. Lefcourt (1984). Herbert Lefcourt's third edited volume on the topic of research with the locus of control construct is directed to discussions of extensions and limitations of the construct. It is a very timely book, and therefore of interest to researchers on the locus of control (LOC). In Part I, comprehensive reviews are presented in three areas: work and retirement, psychophysiology, and cross-cultural researches. In Part II, two chapters describe the limitations and suggest alternatives. The five chapters are extensive and critical, as well as constructive in presenting ideas and models for future research. The editor and the authors have done an excellent job. As a reference source the book eminently meets the needs of researchers in the area. The editor has provided a succinct introduction and epilogue, which are very helpful in orienting the reader and maintaining a balanced view of the appropriate uses of the concept. The editor and authors of the book are to be congratulated for a thorough, provocative, and balanced outlook presented in this volume. I recommend the book highly. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The Cambridge handbook of personality psychology.

Reviews the book, The Cambridge handbook of personality psychology edited by Philip J. Corr and Gerald Matthews (see record 2010-05179-000). A comprehensive review of personality psychology, this book covers a range of topics, including those that are standard in personality texts (conceptualisation, biological and cultural perspectives) as well as more unique additions (social pain and hurt feelings, animal models, and politics). Although the introductions are lengthy (approximately 33 pages), these chapters do provide a useful guide to the book and key issues addressed in remaining chapters. The chapters are generally written in a manner appropriate for graduate students, professionals, or academics. Given the broad scope and careful attention to the defining of key constructs and methods, this book will appeal to an audience with varying familiarity with personality psychology. Overall, I would highly recommend this book as a comprehensive source on the broad field of personality psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Disgust and its disorders: Theory, assessment, and treatment implications.

Reviews the book, Disgust and its disorders: Theory, assessment, and treatment implications by edited Bunmi O. Olantunji and Dean McKay (see record 2008-14016-000). The fairly recent shift toward a focus on disgust is nicely reflected in the title of this book. The goal of Disgust and its disorders is to assess the current state of disgust-based research and to highlight future suggested research directions to enhance our understanding, and thereby treatment of problems associated with the emotion disgust. Accordingly, this book contains 14 chapters and is divided into three separate but related sections: 1) Theory and Assessment; 2) Response Patterns; and 3) Disorders of Disgust. For the most part there is good flow and continuity across chapters relative to other edited volumes in which disjointedness may be an unwelcomed feature. A consistent theme in the chapters of this book is the call for more and more rigorous research involving the emotion disgust in a context of psychological disorders. Given recent increases in researchers’ interest and understanding of disgust, it seems likely that disgust-based research will continue to grow and foster the proliferation of This volume will certainly have a positive impact in this regard, and future volumes will ideally continue to explore issues raised here within as well as further examine different disgust domains (e.g., moral disgust). In sum, Disgust and its disorders is a delightful read—despite its “disgusting” content. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Handbook of Moral Development.

Reviews the book, Handbook of Moral Development edited by Melanie Killen and Judith G. Smetana (see record 2005-11748-000). This is a big book on a big topic. Editors Melanie Killen and Judith Smetana have solicited 26 chapters on the topic of moral development, including many of the key authors and researchers currently working in the field. While the editors themselves share the perspective of "social domain" theory, the breadth of the current volume is much wider. Indeed it provides a representative overview of work ranging across the entire landscape of moral development research today. The 26 chapters are organized into six sections: structuralism and moral stages, social domain theory, conscience development and internalization, social interactional and comparative approaches, emotions and empathy, and moral education. In general, each chapter reviews recent work on a particular topic within these six areas, provides a theoretical context and overview of the research and typically discusses the author(s)' own research program in detail. Many of the chapters also consider, if only briefly, ideas and prospects for future research as well. The chapters are thus up-to-date, generally well-written, and approachable for advanced students and scholars within the field. This is as good an overview as we are likely to get from our current vantage point. It can be highly recommended for advanced-level students and scholars in the field alike. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Learning About Learning Disabilities, Third Edition.

This article reviews the book, "Learning about Learning Disabilities, Third Edition" (see record 2004-21912-000), edited by Bernice Wong. This book is comprised of a selection of chapters authored by well-known authors in the field of learning disabilities. The book was developed for use with advanced undergraduate and graduate students with the intent to provide current information soundly based in research in the field. The chapters in the book are organized into three thematic sections. The first section deals with conceptual, historical, and research aspects of learning disabilities. The second section comprises chapters on reading comprehension, writing, math, social competence, strategy instruction, working with adolescents, issues in service delivery, and developing communities of practice. The third section focuses on a life span approach to learning disabilities. This book does what it purports to do. This is a well put together selection of readings. It may not be appropriate for advanced undergraduate students with no previous background knowledge or experience with learning disabilities due to the level of the book. The information provided in each chapter is current and soundly based in research. In addition to the research presented, the majority of the chapters also include practical implications of the research to teaching settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Handbook of emotion regulation.

Reviews the book, Handbook of emotion regulation edited by James J. Gross (see record 2007-01392-000). The purpose of this edited volume is to bring the reader and the scientific community up-to-date on the burgeoning field of emotion and particularly how it is regulated. The book comprises 30 chapters divided amongst seven traditional sections within psychology: foundations, biological bases, cognitive foundations, developmental approaches, personality process and individual differences, social approaches, and clinical outcomes. Gross very nicely captures the range of topics and issues surrounding the topic of emotion and emotion regulation in this edited volume. Gross is to be congratulated for taking on the task of editing such a timely and important volume for the field. Given the scope of the volume, it should have wide appeal to researchers as well as graduate and advanced undergraduate students in the areas of personality and social psychology, human development, child clinical psychology, psychiatry, and cognitive and affective neuroscience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Cognitive aging: A primer.

Reviews the book, Cognitive aging: A primer edited by Denise C. Park and Norbert Schwarz (see record 2000-07430-000). The objective of this edited book is to present a comprehensive overview of what is known about normal cognitive functioning in older adults. The book's 14 short chapters, all written by well-known experts in cognitive aging, are divided into four sections on basic mechanisms, attention and memory, language and speech, and applications. This book was intended as a textbook for teaching advanced undergraduate and beginning undergraduate students. Overall, this objective is reached by most contributions. While creatively updating knowledge in cognitive aging, it does a great job of identifying limitations and theoretical challenges and of pinpointing many exciting research questions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Rehabilitation psychology: A comprehensive textbook.

Reviews the book, Rehabilitation psychology: A comprehensive textbook by David W. Krueger (1983). In this volume, David W. Krueger has developed a new blueprint for constructing an edited volume in rehabilitation. Unique in the present design is the attempt, within a single volume of reasonable size, to cover the rehabilitation field from both a type-of-disability approach and an issue-oriented approach. To achieve this objective, the editor has recruited well-known and highly respected authors to write short chapters in their areas of expertise. In all, there are 42 chapters, which range in length between 4 and 14 pages. Each chapter is written by a different author, with the exception of two chapters written by the editor. No uniformity of style or standard outline for presentation has been followed. Instead, each chapter stands on its own. As a result, the effect is more that of a carefully selected book of readings than that of an integrated textbook. This book stands as an impressive attempt to provide the reader with a broad overview of the field of rehabilitation. As such, it serves as a fine introduction to the field of rehabilitation by providing a good sampling of the diversity of issues that surround rehabilitation and having these issues discussed by recognized experts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Divergence, convergence, openness, and specificity in training and supervision.

Reviews the books, Supervision and training: Models, dilemmas and challenges edited by F. W. Kaslow (1986); Handbook of family therapy training and supervision edited by H. A. Liddle, D. C. Breunlin, and R. C. Schwartz (see record 1988-98390-000); and Family therapy education and supervision edited by F. P. Piercy (1986). Kaslow's book uniformly addresses the subject of supervision with some comment on training formats as well. The volume succeeds admirably in realizing the editor's intention of presenting a multiplicity of viable models, and her summary chapter draws common threads together into a patchwork of issues and themes. Liddle, Breunlin, and Schwartz's book is thoughtful and concise, with a nice blend of conceptual and practical material. The book offers the most current overview and bibliography available, useful specific recommendations, and thoughtful organization of its articles. It is praiseworthy in its attention to research, theory, and context and stage-of-training factors in relation to supervision and training. Piercy's book contains chapters which are well presented and offer valuable concrete guidelines; however, overall the material is unfocused, scattered across too many areas, and works best in journal form. All three of the volumes considered in this review serve as compendiums, and in some cases updates, of models for the delivery of training and supervision. There is very little overlap of content among the three, and taken together, they offer intra- and interdisciplinary contrasts of training and supervision that may serve as the starting place for program planning, or for hypothesizing data collection, and theorizing about these two important endeavors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Children's peer relations: Issues in assessment and intervention.

Reviews the book, Children's peer relations: Issues in assessment and intervention edited by B. H. Schneider, K. H. Rubin, and J. E. Ledingham (1985). In 1984, a conference was held in Ottawa on the topic "Research Strategies in Children's Social Skills Training." It was international in scope and brought together many of the field's leading researchers. The papers presented at that conference form the nucleus for this volume of chapters, which has been carefully edited by three of the conference organizers. Substantial additions to the conference material are apparent, and the purpose of the book has been redirected somewhat to examine currently emerging research on children's social relations with regard to its implications for assessment and treatment of childhood social dysfunction. The resulting volume is one that is highly rewarding to the reader. The editors and authors have achieved the difficult task of integrating many discrete programmes of research around a few common themes. All of the chapters are well written, and together they present a representative selection of current research that is methodologically sound and of scholarly significance. As such, this volume is a timely and thought-provoking collection of chapters that will be of considerable interest to students and researchers in the fields of children's social relations and social skills training. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)