Review of Oedipus and beyond: A clinical theory.

Reviews the book, Oedipus and beyond: A clinical theory by Jay Greenberg (see record 1991-98917-000). The book Object relations theory in psychoanalysis, co-authored by Jay Greenberg and Stephen Mitchell, has become a much admired standard text in psychoanalysis since its publication in 1983. Now each author has come out with a further exposition of his individual clinical and theoretical point of view. Mitchell's opus is Relational concepts in psychoanalysis. Oedipus and beyond is Jay Greenberg's personal statement. In this volume he critiques extant theory and proposes a restructuring of the drive concept, creating a unique version of metapsychology. The result is fascinating, challenging, and perplexing. The fascination comes from Greenberg's remarkable ability to grasp and integrate theory, both Freudian and post-Freudian. Greenberg's book is challenging because it requires the reader to flex his or her own mental muscles quite a bit to keep up with the metapsychological reasoning. Finally, the work is perplexing because there seems to be a number of weaknesses and loose ends in Greenberg's approach. Despite the reviewer's preference for her own system, some will find that Greenberg's fits well with their own point of view, filling some holes here and there. The book is well worth a read. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The psychology of successful selling.

Reviews the book, "The psychology of successful selling," by Richard W. Husband (see record 1954-03433-000). The reviewer notes that this book is directed to all salesmen to aid them in their daily work. Its emphasis is on sales tactics, from finding your prospects through approaching him and overcoming his resistance to closing the sale. There is also a short section concerning the selection of salesmen, helping him to compare his traits with those of successful salesmen. This book is not intended to be a professional book for psychologists; rather it is deliberately designed to be easy, informal reading without technical language or reference to experiments or statistics. In general, there is little in the book to recommend it even to sales managers or salesmen over the many other volumes written in this field. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distinguished Scientific Awards for an Early Career Contribution to Psychology: Steven Pinker.

The Early Career Awards recognize the large number of excellent young psychologists. Recipients of this award may not have held a PhD for more than eight years. For 1984, Steven Pinker is recognized for distinguished work from both cerebral hemispheres. Using imaginative methods, he has studied the representation of three-dimensional space in visual imagery and the distribution of attention over that space. In language acquisition he has formulated explicit theories motivated by language universals and by the best established facts of language development. His book, Language learnability and language development, is a landmark in a challenging branch of psychological science. In addition to the citation, a biography and bibliography of Pinker's works are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Language, cognition and deafness.

Reviews the book, Language, cognition and deafness by Michael Rodda and Carl Grove (see record 1987-97707-000). In this book, Rodda and Grove clearly subscribe to the view that along with speech and hearing, deaf persons should be allowed to use their "natural" language, Sign Language, American Sign Language (ASL), or in Canada, Canadian Sign Language (CSL). What makes this book unusual and important is that the authors have taken great pains to document their position through reference to hard experimental evidence, much of which has been done by psychologists. It is hard to imagine that anyone reading this book would not be definitively persuaded by their arguments, which are based on recent developments in psychology, psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, as well as many other allied fields. Rodda and Grove clearly want to see Sign Language (ASL) accepted as part of the educational, psychological and cultural world of deaf adults, without demeaning the importance of speech and hearing in the communication process. This highly readable and informative book will undoubtedly help move the field in that direction, and I highly recommend it to the specialist and non-specialist alike. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A response to Greenberg's review of Therapeutic experiencing: The process of change.

Responds to Greenberg's review of the current author's book, Therapeutic experiencing: The process of change (see record 2007-09053-001). How do we make sense of what clients say and do? This is a fundamental issue in psychotherapy, the nettling theme in Professor Greenberg's review, and the focus of this response. Quite apart from the present volume, I have struggled with this issue in framing a comprehensive theory of human beings, in outlining the theory and basic methods of an experiential psychotherapy, and in a separate series of articles. It is time for the field of psychotherapy to come to grips with the key questions underlying the issue of how we make sense of what clients say and do. Not only would this be good for the field of psychotherapy, it might also clarify why Professor Greenberg is entitled to be puzzled by the theory and methods of this experiential way of making sense of what clients say and do. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Language, the sexes and society.

Reviews the book, Language, the sexes and society by Philip M. Smith (1985). The book under review is topical, as it deals with gender issues and language approached from a social psychological perspective, two areas that have seen a flurry of activity in recent years. The reader is taken to the forefront of research in these areas and encounters a substantial amount of information. The book contains an extensive critical review, as well as a report of Philip Smith's own studies dealing with the recognition of masculinity-femininity of speakers by listeners. In the review section, speech forms associated with speaker sex, as studied by anthropological linguists, sociolinguists, and social psychologists are reviewed. We learn further about how women and men are represented in language (e.g., in the media, in advertisement, reference material). I would use this book as suggested reading to advanced undergraduates and graduate students. But the primary market for the book is among scholars and researchers engaged in the study of language and gender issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Access to justice for deaf Inuit in Nunavut: The role of "Inuit sign language."

Presents a personal perspective on the issue of access to justice (in the context of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms) for the deaf Inuit population of Canada's newest Territory—Nunavut. The author's experience in assessing a deaf Inuit in Baker Lake R v. Suwarak (1999) who apparently had no known language, followed an earlier Nova Scotia case R v. Roy (1994) which involved a deaf man who could not hear, speak or use sign language. In the case of Suwarak, the possibility was raised that an indigenous form of sign language, tentatively termed "Inuit Sign Language" was being used. The results of a preliminary study of the status of signed languages in Nunavut based on field visits and interactions with deaf people and their families in 3 communities is described. The possibility that "Inuit Sign Language" exists is discussed within the framework of various theories of language development and also within the context of earlier literature which indicates that many Aboriginal communities had (and possibly still have) flourishing signed languages. Finally, the need for increased research by psychologists on the complex linguistic environment of deaf persons in Nunavut is emphasized. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Family Stories and the Life Course: Across Time and Generations.

In this review of "Family Stories and the Life Course: Across Time and Generations" (see record 2004-13618-000), the reviewer states that many psychologists will want to read this book from cover to cover because it is excellent. It will create excitement for developmental psychologists who are open to extending their perspectives on individual functioning to include more of a focus on whole family systems. It will also challenge family psychologists to deepen their understanding of how the functioning of each family member at different stages of the life span is related to interactions and meaning-making in the group. Clinical psychologists will glean new ideas about the accounts of family life they hear from their clients and the transformative power of having family members jointly engage in reconstructing problematic family stories. The range of topics and the overall quality of the research and theorizing are truly impressive. This book draws together in one volume conceptual development and recent research findings about family narratives. The reader will gain an understanding of how family stories and story telling are related to acquisition of language, regulation of affect, attachment processes and socialization of children, development of identity in adolescents, cognitive functioning in older persons, and interactions between children, parents, and grandparents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prescriptive authority in the face of research revelations.

Fox and his colleagues (May–June 2009) listed three occurrences beginning in the 1980s that have dampened psychologists’ desires to procure the right to prescribe psychotropic medications. That research review highlighted the fact that antidepressants produce a very modest effect at best when compared with placebos. I briefly summarize here some of the important findings that emerged from our original survey and two more recent reviews (Greenberg & Davis Goldman, 2009; Greenberg & Fisher, 1997). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The herring gull's world.

Reviews the book "The herring gull's world," by Niko Tinbergen (see record 1955-00376-000). This book summarizes in nontechnical language a large number of observations and experiments by the author and his students on the behavior of herring gulls. Primary emphasis is placed upon social behavior including formation of breeding pairs, establishment and maintenance of a territory, courtship and mating, and rearing of young. The book achieves several objectives very effectively. First, it presents a clearly drawn picture of the behavior of gulls in their natural environment. Second, it illustrates authoritatively a method of analyzing behavior which differs in several important ways from techniques used by American psychologists. Third, the book exemplifies an attitude or philosophy of behavior study quite unlike that of experimental psychologists. The author's enthusiasm for behavior study combines with his long-standing affection for sea gulls to produce an eminently readable, entertaining, and informative volume, the attractiveness of which is enhanced by numerous excellent photographs of gull behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Retraining memory: Techniques and applications.

Reviews the book, Retraining memory: Techniques and applications by Rick Parenté and Janet K. Anderson-Parenté (1991). This book, by rehabilitation neuropsychologist Rick Parenté and his wife, psychologist Janet Anderson-Parenté, was written as a practical manual of memory improvement strategies and approaches that anyone with difficulty remembering can use. The book was meant to serve a widely divergent audience: It was written to provide practical tips on improving memory and allied processes for cognitive rehabilitation therapists, psychologists, persons with head injury, or family members "anyone who feels that his or her memory is not what it used to be" (p. vii). While the book may not be the complete practical resource for "everyone" that was desired, it represents a valuable contribution to the cognitive rehabilitation literature by blending clinical and research aspects of memory retraining into a practical manual for psychologists and other professionals providing this form of training. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Thinking about logic.

Reviews the book, A border dispute: The place of logic in psychology by J. Macnamara (1986). In this book, Macnamara argues that logical competence is part of the endowment of rational creatures just as linguistic competence is part of the endowment of verbal ones. And then he sets out to explicate that competence. In developing his own views, Macnamara does justice to a complex body of knowledge and at the same time engages the reader in a complex but important debate. Just as language and thought came to be seen in a new light when psychologists finally began to pay some attention to linguistic structure, so thinking and reasoning may come to be seen in a new light when psychologists begin to pay attention to the issues Macnamara sets out. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The many faces of literacy.

Reviews the book, Literacy, language, and learning by D. R. Olson, N. Torrance, and A. Hildyard (1985). Literacy, Language, and Learning has something to offer all students of language. Its breadth is achieved through an interdisciplinary analysis of both written and spoken forms of language. The focus is on the differences between these two language modalities and on the impact, on both society and the individual, of acquiring reading and writing skills. In a very real sense the book highlights the embarrassingly narrow appreciation of language shown by much work in cognitive psychology, particularly the work using an information processing orientation. This book has no lack of breadth, yet offers considerable depth of analysis in many chapters. Arguments are well supported with research and historical findings. The book is not particularly easy to read, but it is worth the effort, in this reader's view. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Democracy’s discontent.

Reviews the book, Democracy’s discontent: America in search of a public philosophy by Michael Sandel (1996). This book has been widely read by academics, politicians and others in public life, and interested citizens, giving him the stature of a leading public intellectual in contemporary America. Even though it is a work of political philosophy, I believe that Sandel’s writings have a special relevance for theoretical and philosophical psychology. At the outset of this book Sandel delivers his often-quoted observation that the “anxiety of the age” is the “fear that, individually and collectively, we are losing control of the forces that govern our lives” and that “from family to neighborhood to nation...the moral fabric of community is unraveling around us” (p. 3). He then describes how this loss of a sense of personal efficacy and meaningful human ties might derive from the dominance in our society of the “public philosophy of contemporary liberalism.” (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Code duelling.

Reviews the book, Mental representations: A dual coding approach by Allan Paivio (1986). Is there a common code that underlies all thought? The claim that there exists such an abstract language of thought, distinct from natural languages and imagery, has a long and impressive history. In this book, the author continues his longstanding argument against the existence of such a common abstract language of the mind. The chapters on episodic memory, bilingualism, and image manipulation give excellent accounts of experimental results and provide the foundation for a defense of dual coding theory that should intimidate all but the most dedicated adherents to the common code. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Synthesizing Piaget with Simon.

Reviews the book, Intellectual development, birth to adulthood by Robbie Case (1985). Even as Piaget's theory of cognitive development was beginning to have its impact on North American research, Herbert Simon (1962) was challenging developmental psychologists to formulate theories that could explain Piagetian phenomena within an information processing framework. To my mind, a trademark of Case's early work was his attempt to engage in research that advanced the field by integrating the old (Piaget's notion of general stages) with the new (e.g., the emergence of stages explained in terms of the mental effort an individual could allocate to activating schemes). The present volume continues this synthetic approach. This thrust can be seen in the diverse audience of developmental and educational psychologists, psychologists studying adult language and cognition, as well as clinicians and educators to which the work is addressed. Case's monograph is timely, broad in scope, and bold in the integrative approach taken to the problems facing those who would understand and explain the phenomenon of cognitive growth. The health and well-being of research on cognitive development depends on the lively dialogue that will be generated by individuals, like Case, who are willing to pose synthetic solutions to the problems generated by previous theorists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Illuminating language: A review of Pinker, S. (1994) The Language Instinct.

In The Language Instinct, Steven Pinker has undertaken the daunting task of informing lay audiences about forty years of progress in the study of the psychology of language. Toward this goal, he offers a striking array of incisive, revealing examples and insights about the distinct character of human language. These examples serve more than to inform and amuse us about language: They are interwoven to create Pinker's thesis about one of the oldest themes of modern psycholinguistics: namely, that human beings are uniquely equipped, by virtue of their genetic endowment, to use language. This capacity is Pinker's "language instinct." Further, the reader will be able to grasp these analyses because they are preceded with effective overviews of modern grammatical theories of syntax (chapters 4 and 7), morphology (chapter 5), and phonology (chapter 6). The principles and examples of these chapters provide the infrastructure on which Pinker builds his arguments concerning linguistic universals, language acquisition, neural mechanisms, and evolution. Overall, The Language Instinct will provide experimental psychologists with worthwhile updates of those domains of language research that they do not closely follow, with myriad examples with which to embellish undergraduate lectures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Psychology of language.

Reviews the book, Psychology of Language by Allan Paivio and Ian Begg (1981). The present volume constitutes a well-organized and sometimes provocative contribution that merits careful consideration. From the start, the authors set to work toward achieving their stated goals of emphasizing "historical and interdisciplinary concerns". They present a careful analysis of the three positions which they contrast throughout the book: the linguistic, the behavioural, and the cognitive. The particular version of the cognitive view that receives the most detailed consideration is Paivio's dual-coding theory. After the basic principles of these orientations are presented, they are brought to bear upon the central problems of language, including meaning, comprehension, memory and acquisition. Who will benefit from this book? The authors state that they hope it will be useful to upper year undergraduate and graduate students. It is the reviewer's feeling that most undergraduates would find this to be a difficult text. It is the serious and even sophisticated student of language for whom it will be of greatest value. Omissions notwithstanding, Psychology of Language presents many thoughtful and scholarly ideas. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Psychologists Caught: A Psychologic of Psychology.

Reviews the book, Psychologists Caught: A Psychologic of Psychology by Lewis Wolfgang Brandt (1982). This book is about metapsychology, the psychology or psycho-logic, of psychologies. Its basic question is: What determines the particular psychology, theory and method, that a psychologist advocates and practices? Consistent with his emphasis on individual psychohistory, Brandt begins his book with an autobiographical chapter explaining how he personally came to reject American behaviourism and to embrace a phenomenological-Gestalt form of psychoanalysis. This work will be found most interesting and liked best by those, who, like Brandt, have a relativistic bent of mind, who are persuaded that Hume and Kant discovered the natural limits of philosophical thought, who read Hayek and Feyerabend with approbation, or who just enjoy vigorous intellectual discussion for its own sake. Behaviourists and other "technical" psychologists will probably not like it. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Infantile Autism: a clinical and phenomenological-anthropological investigation taking language as a a guide and Children without Childhood: a study of childhood schizophrenia.

Reviews the books, Infantile Autism: a clinical and phenomenological-anthropological investigation taking language as a a guide by Gerhard Bosch (see record 1971-10363-000); and Children without Childhood: a study of childhood schizophrenia by Benjamin B. Wolman (see record 1970-21272-000). The continuing saga of debate on the etiology of so-called early infantile autism continues, the major workers having gradually polarized around dynamic-sociological-interpersonal causation, neurological-metabolic and genetic etiology and of course learning theory based explanations of origins. These two books stress inter-personal and communication variables. The Bosch book concentrates on the language of the autistic child in order to infer thought process and clues to causations. It is a scholarly and balanced work with a unique and potentially useful viewpoint. Benjamin B. Wolman in his "Children without Childhood" offers still another "personality" view of childhood schizophrenia. The subject matter of the book is broad however, with "childhood schizophrenia" including what Wolman calls pseudo-amentive schizophrenia, autistic schizophrenia, symbiotic schizophrenia and others (including apparently early infantile autism). The unique feature of the book is Wolman's introduction of a fresh classification system for childhood psychosis based on his clinical experience over 30 years. The book would make a useful secondary reference for undergraduates. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)