Review of Affect in psychoanalysis: A clinical synthesis.

Reviews the book, Affect in psychoanalysis: A clinical synthesis by Charles Spezzano (see record 1993-97622-000). Charles Spezzano's Affect in psychoanalysis: A clinical synthesis is difficult to treat adequately in a short review. It's not that the book's main themes cannot be stated: Affects are at the heart of the human experience, reflecting the information that basically motivates us. Language affords us ways of approximating truth, but the closest we come to truth is through communication of affects. Freud's functional theory of affects is central to the practice of psychoanalysis even today. Interest excitement (as Spezzano calls it) is the organizing affect that underlies behavior. Charles Spezzano read a paper to Division 39 in 1991 that was entitled "The Enlightenment: One More Time, With Feeling." As Tabin listened, it seemed that Spezzano was leading to a new way of appreciating the shape of an analysis, by tracking what happens in terms of the patient's affects. The announcement of Affect in psychoanalysis was therefore most welcome. However, this book proves to be yet a preamble to where Spezzano's thinking might lead. In the meantime and above all, although practically everyone knows that psychoanalysis is about affects, once having read Affect in psychoanalysis, this knowledge becomes a keen awareness. Spezzano should feel very pleased with that. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Who is overlooking whose reality? Commentary on Tabin's "Freud's shift from the seduction theory: Some overlooked reality factors".

Contends that J. K. Tabin (see record 1994-05584-001) continues the long tradition of casting aspersions on S. Ferenczi's sanity at the end of his life. She wrote that his personal problems blighted the value of his contributions. She credited Freud with the idea that the child splits the ego in response to sexual abuse. The authors question Tabin's attribution of this idea to Freud and instead argue that this was one of Ferenczi's central contributions toward the end of his life. Tabin's judgment of Ferenczi's personal problems is challenged and the Freud–Ferenczi relationship, particularly the handling of Ferenczi's final paper, is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rejoinder to Clément's review of Language and Disadvantage.

In his recent review of the book "Language and Disadvantage" by John Edwards (1979), Clement (see record 2007-04092-001) begins and ends on a favourable note, and for this the author is grateful. Within the body of the review, however, he has misrepresented things somewhat; consequently, Edwards comments on the following points. First, Clement claimed that the basis for Edwards' rejection of the "deficit" viewpoint on disadvantage is "nebulous". Second, Clement sees the fifth chapter (dealing with nonstandard speech at school) as weak, containing little more than recommendations to teachers. Third, Clement states that Edwards suggests in the book "that NSS (nonstandard speech) speakers be taught SS (standard style) as it pertains to certain specific situations". Edwards states in the preface of his book that disadvantaged speech is considered essentially as a sociolinguistic issue deriving more from social attitudes than from any inherent linguistic deficiency. To the extent to which Clement's review muddies this basic theme, it misleads the reader. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Language and the body: The talking cure in the new century.

This panel was the second plenary meeting entitled "History and Psychoanalysis." The 3 invited speakers were Robert Wallerstein, Charles Spezzano, and Hanna Decker. Dr. Wallerstein discussed his current views of psychoanalysis, pointing out that there are areas of common ground within contemporary psychoanalytic theories. Dr. Spezzano suggested that there are 3 sites in the analytic situation: free association, reveries, and enactments in which the analyst gathers information that structures his or her understanding of technique. Professor Decker spoke about hysteria from a historical perspective and discussed its manifestation in somatic patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A bit more light on Ferenczi and Freud.

Further explores issues stressed by L. Aron and J. Frankel (see record 1994-41100-001) in commenting on J. K. Tabin's (see record 1994-05584-001) article on Freud's motivation for rethinking his seduction theory. The author presents material that confirms Freud's priority in citing the relationship between splitting of the ego and childhood sexual trauma; that describes signs of Ferenczi's considerable emotional difficulty during the last period of his life; and that shows that Freud's referring to Ferenczi as paranoid was a reaction to Ferenczi's hostility to him, significantly predating their public theoretical differences. An important aspect of the last matter is Ferenczi's explanation of his hostility: Freud never helped him with the negative transference that underlay his idealization of Freud. Freud defended himself by saying that negative transference was not understood when he treated Ferenczi. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Review of Brain injury casebook: Methods for reintegration to home, school and community": Comment.

Comments on the review of the current author's book, Brain Injury Casebook: Methods for Reintegration to Home, School and Community (see record 2009-09834-001). In his review of the book, M. J. Diorio remarked, "…the only criticism is that it does not delve into vocational issues which, by far, comprise a large portion of reintegration problems…". In this comment, D. Rapp explains that the omission of this topic in her book was quite intentional and purposeful. As the title indicates, the emphasis was on reintegration to home, school and community, as she felt prior literature had relatively omitted these areas of reintegration. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Soul on the couch: Spirituality, religion, and morality in contemporary psychoanalysis.

Review of book: Charles Spezzano and Gerald J. Gargiulo (Eds.) Soul on the Couch: Spirituality, Religion, and Morality in Contemporary Psychoanalysis. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1997, 272 pp. Reviewed by Joanne Marie G. Greer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reply to Barbara Fajardo (2003).

Barbara Fajardo's negative response (see record 2003-02056-012) to the author's review (see record 2002-08457-006) of Arnold Goldberg's book Being of Two Minds (see record 1999-02973-000) includes the accusation that he has misread the book. Her proof for this apparently is based on her view of Goldberg's ideas derived from a participation in the group that produced this volume. In his response, the author maintains that his independent and critical reading cannot be dismissed as a misreading; rather, it is a reading that reveals fundamental differences in his approach to clinical work with the types of patients described in this text. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The Development of Modern Behavioural Psychology.

Reviews the book, The Development of Modern Behavioural Psychology by John McLeish (1981). The title of McLeish's book contains two terms that may be somewhat misleading. Describing his efforts as encompassing the "Development" of ideas suggests that the approach is historical, while the term "Modern Behavioural Psychology" might be taken to mean almost anything depending upon one's restrictive use of the term. McLeish, as it turns out, attaches a very restrictive meaning to "Behavioural Psychology". There will probably always be argument about what constitutes a proper historical approach but the reviewer doubts that the tact McLeish takes will ever satisfy. In his review of the history of radical behaviourism, McLeish highlights the work of some writers who have not been given a prominent place by other historians, and discusses, or notes only in passing, authors who have ordinarily been considered prominent. As a history, then, McLeish's book is a disappointment and often annoying. Perhaps the best that can be said about this book is that McLeish hints at a form of behavioural theory which would expand the present boundaries of our thinking. In his enthusiastic advocacy of an account that would recognize the historical, social and cultural origins of human behaviour as well as its complexity (including language, thinking and consciousness), McLeish points to the biological rather than the physical (or mathematical) sciences as the source of appropriate models to develop a science of behaviour. In this he is to be congratulated. It is too bad he did not devote the book to a full development of these notions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Learning process in psychoanalytic supervision: Complexities and challenges.

Reviews the book, Learning process in psychoanalytic supervision: Complexities and challenges by Paul A. DeWald (see record 1987-97784-000). This book is a wonderful contribution to the field of supervision. It is the only book available that presents the actual supervision sessions of one ongoing supervisee with one long-term psychoanalytic patient as they were transcribed. DeWald also offers a review of the supervisory literature, his view of the supervisory process, his supervisory reports, and a chapter from the supervisee discussing her experience. The book is refreshing in that the supervisor does not present himself as perfect, and he does acknowledge mistakes he made in the comments after each set of process notes. There are some criticisms of the book to be made. First, the reviewer was not able to determine the frequency of the patient's sessions or the supervisory sessions. Second, the author's framework is classically Freudian. While this is not a problem, it is important that the reader be aware of the point of view. Third, the author seems ambivalent about the role of the patient's ethnicity and culture in her neurotic stance. These comments aside, Learning process in psychoanalytic supervision is an excellent book, and certainly one any supervisor would want to read. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reply to "Commentary on the special section".

Replies to comments by K. Marshall, S. A. Mitchell, and C. Spezzano (see records 83-14401, 83-14402, and 83-14404, respectively) on the Special Section of Psychoanalytic Psychology, Vol 12(1), on "Contemporary structural psychoanalysis and relational psychoanalysis" and on the article by F. Busch (see record 1995-34118-001). The author expresses concern that most of the commentary failed to see his attempt to open a dialog between the respective adherents of structural and relational psychoanalysis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The factor-analytic approach to intelligence is alive and well: A review of Carroll, J. B. (1993). Human cognitive abilities: A survey of factor-analytic studies.

Reviews the book, Human cognitive abilities: A survey of factor-analytic studies by J. B. Carroll (see record 1993-97611-000). Carroll divides his book into three parts. The first is a historical and conceptual review of psychometric theory. Carroll begins by clearly defining and differentiating key concepts such as ability, aptitude, achievement, latent trait, and intervening variable, although recognizing that in practice it is often difficult to make absolute distinctions. The second part, and the bulk of the book, is a detailed analysis and synthesis of a myriad of findings in the area of cognitive abilities. In the third part of his book, Carroll summarizes his undertaking and addresses traditional concerns and controversies. He compares and contrasts his model of cognitive abilities with that of others. Although Carroll's book does not and indeed cannot resolve the issues and controversies concerning the nature of human cognitive abilities, it does represent a notable contribution to our ongoing endeavours. It undoubtedly is a book that anyone interested in cognitive abilities would wish to explore because of its encyclopedic, in-depth coverage of the topic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The compleat therapist.

Reviews the book, The compleat therapist by Jeffrey A. Kottler (see record 1990-98953-000) . The Compleat Therapist begins with an assessment of the state of the art of psychotherapy, concluding with the observation first articulated by Goldfried in his landmark 1982 book, Converging Themes in Psychotherapy: The number of therapies has expanded exponentially over recent years, and paradigm strain mandates attempt to find commonalities and integrations. The book then proceeds to summarize research findings and the writer's personal observations regarding variables common to most therapies and to most effective therapists. The Compleat Therapist homogonizes therapy, and in so-doing points out the risks of the integrative psychotherapy movement. By putting all therapies into one blender and whirling them into one concoction, the unique techniques and insights of each tend to get lost. The result can be, and in this case is, a loss of data. The significant contributions of each type of therapy are submerged in the hunt for common elements. This book's conclusion seems to be that anything works, and why is a mystery. As a professional discipline we need to set our sights higher than that. An approach to integration that looks only at common factors is like looking at antibiotics, aspirin, and cortisone, all of which make people feel better, to find their commonality. Yes, they are all medicines, but that data does not facilitate treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of A disturbance in the field: Essays in transference-countertransference engagement.

Reviews the book, A disturbance in the field: Essays in transference-countertransference engagement by Steven Cooper (see record 2010-09125-000). At the beginning of this book, Cooper states that he is interested in finding the common ground, clinically, between the relational approach and other schools such as the Kleinian, Freudian, Kohutian, and others. In the introduction, Cooper states he will be examining the moments of transition, change, and newness that occur in psychoanalytic treatment. He alerts us that although he is very interested in countertransference as a clinical tool and the analyst’s imagination as helpful in the therapeutic work, he warns us to not see these elements in any heroic or idealistic manner. Cooper promises to explore the areas of unconscious conflict, fantasy, and the interpersonal process and believes both patient and analyst try to hold these dimensions in mind and communicate with each other throughout the clinical process. Overall, the reviewer enjoyed reading the book but was disappointed in that Cooper’s outline of what the reader can expect does not unfold. What is offered in this book is interesting, and at times illuminating, but overall runs somewhat flat. There were numerous places where Cooper could have taken his discussion points and tried to build a new fusion of relational, Freudian, Kleinian, and Kohutian approaches but he did not. The reviewer found it interesting that his case material seems to be a standard yet very skilled and natural combination of such views, but he does not elaborate on any theoretical matters or examine his case material as being predominantly a combination of such views. Therefore, the reviewer thinks there are many helpful and insightful points made in this book, but he was never really moved in any particular manner by the text. When reading his case material closely, the reviewer was struck by it being solid analytic work that seemed mostly of a Freudian and object relational mode, but again not anything unique or anything showing a new method of consolidating different theoretical approaches, which is what we were promised early on. The reviewer's overall reaction to this new book is that he is very appreciative of many individual chapters, and many sections of certain chapters, but they never all came together as a whole or jelled as a unifying theme that felt new and transformative. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Neuroeconomics: A Guide to the New Science of Making Choices.

Reviews the book, Neuroeconomics: A Guide to the New Science of Making Choices by Peter Politser (see record 2008-02138-000). Beyond merely trying to explain neuroeconomics and providing a review of recent studies, Politser’s book aims to establish a neuroepidemiological framework, which identifies neurobiological levels of analysis for the decision-making process. The motivation for the book stems from Politser’s concern that neuroeconomic research was developing without a unifying framework to allow for a cohesive understanding of the key concepts, constructs, models and methods. Politser argues succinctly and forcefully for a framework that integrates both economic and behavioral models to create a comprehensive view of neuroeconomic decision-making. This book is not necessarily for those seeking an introduction to neuroeconomics or looking for a comprehensive review of the literature. Politser offers his fellow researchers a treatise that strives to bridge the theoretical gap between neoclassical economic theory, decision theory, and neuroscience. As a result, Neuroeconomics is written in a style that is not only dense but also terse. The ideas contained in the book are thought-provoking and compelling, especially for those who are currently working in the field and understand the need for a more rigorous theoretical framework upon which future neuroeconomic research can be organized. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Minding the body: Clinical uses of somatic awareness.

Reviews the book, Minding the body: Clinical uses of somatic awareness by Donald A. Bakal (see record 1999-02384-000). Bakal explains his book as one that "provides a unique framework to help individuals understand what they can do within themselves to maintain health and to maximize their chances of recovery should they become ill". By the reviewers reading of the book, this might be expressed more accurately by saying that the book "provides a framework to help the psychologist, physician, or other health care practitioner to understand an underappreciated dimension of health and well-being that lies within the clients' sphere of control." This book is not for the lay person. It points the professional person in the direction of somatic therapies by providing a wealth of references, case examples, and specific target populations for application of techniques related to somatic awareness. For a clinician wishing to expand and integrate somatic therapies into his or her practice, the book is wanting in practical application, but hopefully will stimulate the interested clinician to further explore the wealth of books written on the somatic therapies. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Supervising the reflective practitioner: An essential guide to theory and practice.

Reviews the book, Supervising the reflective practitioner: An essential guide to theory and practice by Joyce Scaife (see record 2010-09732-000). This review begins with an elaboration on the two key terms in the title. First, the book is about supervising rather than being or becoming a reflective practitioner. As Scaife notes, much of supervision involves modeling, and therefore, a supervisor must be reflective in order to encourage the student to become more reflective. However, a psychodynamic practitioner would think of this as parallel process, so that the reflection in supervision might ultimately be translated into reflection in psychotherapy. The more important term in the title is reflective practitioner. This immediately draws to mind the concept of reflective practitioner introduced by Donald Sch?n (1983), and there are some very important parallels that the reviewer points out. In conclusion, the reader will be rewarded by multiple exercises that will be useful in supervising and in classroom teaching. Scaife very helpfully points out that assessment often is contrary to the spirit of reflection, because the student attempting to satisfy the instructor is not attending to his or her own needs, as is necessary for successful reflection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The cultural psychology of the self.

Reviews the book, The cultural psychology of the self by Ciaran Benson (see record 2001-00374-000). This is a book rich in insight, deep in significance and, inevitably, marked by assumptions and interpretations subject to gentle disagreement. It is precisely because of its manifest assets that points of disagreement need to be highlighted. In this review I will address criticism only to the first half of the book, the criticism being more by way of an introduction to the issue than the suggestion of a settled position on it. I confine criticism to the first half not because of limited space. Rather, the foundational chapters on which the balance of the book's arguments depend are given in Part I. Part II then stands as an elevated and elevating "applied psychology of the self" resting on these very substantive and theoretical foundations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Transforming narcissism: Reflections on empathy, humor, and expectations. Vol. 28: Psychoanalytic inquiry book series.

Reviews the book, Transforming narcissism: Reflections on empathy, humor, and expectations. Vol. 28: Psychoanalytic inquiry book series by Frank M. Lachmann (see record 2008-01083-000). This book is a welcome addition to the conversation on working with self-pathology. Lachmann brings a personal, conversational voice to the dialogue; there is much here to benefit students and seasoned clinicians alike. It is not a treatment manual for narcissism, but rather Lachmann’s own transformational dialogue with Heinz Kohut. Using Kohut’s (1966) article “Forms and Transformations of Narcissism” as a starting point, Lachmann elaborates Kohut’s contention that archaic narcissism is transformed through psychotherapy into empathy, humor, creativity, wisdom, and acceptance of our transience. He focuses on the first three elements as a means as much as a product of transformation in therapy, and the latter two elements are discussed as hopeful outcomes of the transformational process therapy engenders. Although there are limitations in terms of this book’s utility as a treatment guide for interventions with patients with narcissistic disorders, as a series of reflections on transformational processes it is often quite compelling. Lachmann the therapist advocates using empathy, humor, and creativity, not to try to impress or demonstrate his cleverness, but rather as bridge to transformational intimacy with his patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)