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 Occupational health psychology.

Reviews the book, Occupational health psychology edited by Stavroula Leka and Jonathon Houdmont (see record 2010-10988-000). Leka and Houdmont describe their book as the first textbook devoted to occupational health psychology intended for undergraduate instruction in the field. Leka and Houdmont have chosen an interesting strategy in creating an edited textbook with individual chapters written by established experts in the field. In doing so, they have in many cases gotten “the best” people in a particular area to write chapters in their area of expertise. Despite their reliance on multiple authors, the editors have maintained a consistent style throughout the volume—each chapter begins with a chapter outline and ends with a chapter summary. Textboxes throughout are used to highlight individuals prominent in the field (e.g., Tom Cox) or to highlight applications and research issues and to provide definitions of key terms. I would expect that students will appreciate such pedagogical features in addition to the depth of expertise that underlies each chapter. Although not divided into sections, one can intuit a structure to the book that begins with a broad perspective on occupational health psychology and then progressively adopts a narrower focus. When I first heard of this book, I was pleased at the prospect of being able to assign a single textbook that would offer a survey of occupational health psychology. Although the authors met their explicit goal of covering the core education curriculum defined by the European Academy of Occupational Health Psychology, I am not convinced that they have produced a “stand-alone” text that provides an adequate coverage of the field. In particular, issues of workplace safety are strikingly absent from the text. Personally, I would feel the need to supplement this text with specific readings on issues of occupational safety and occupational disease in order to cover the major topics that comprise the field of occupational health psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 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 Adapting cognitive therapy for depression.

Reviews the book, Adapting cognitive therapy for depression by Mark A. Whisman (see record 2008-03297-000). The goal of this volume is to provide detailed, empirically supported instructions for adapting CT for complex, comorbid presentations in depression. All of the chapters follow a similar format, which makes them very easy to read and absorb. They are all written by experts in the field using clear, jargon-free language. Each chapter provides instructions for adapting the assessment, case conceptualization, and cognitive treatment of clients presenting with a number of types of complexity. For the most part, these instructions are supported by the research literature. As such, this is a work that is readily accessible to professionals at all levels of training and expertise, and represents an invaluable resource for clinicians working with depressed clients. Furthermore, this text is an excellent scholarly resource of the most up-to-date research literature on the applicability of CT to complex populations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Art therapy with families in crisis: Overcoming resistance through nonverbal expression.

Reviews the book, Art therapy with families in crisis: Overcoming resistance through nonverbal expression, edited by Debra Linesch (see record 1993-97453-000). The aim of this book is to demonstrate the effectiveness of utilizing art therapy within a family therapy context. The editor's explicit intent is "to focus on the nature of the relationship between the art experience and the curative process as it becomes part of treatment intervention." The book contains seven chapters. The first and last chapters are written by the editor. In the first chapter she conceptualizes the "potentially profound connections between the process of making art and the experiences of family therapy" and in the last chapter she summarizes the theoretical framework for the use of family art therapy. Chapters 2 through 6, each written by a different author, provide clinical material and graphic illustrations demonstrating how various forms of art media can become effective tools for enhancing the therapeutic experience. Non-verbal techniques can be productively utilized to tap processes sealed over by defenses such as intellectualization. It remains to be seen whether these techniques can be adapted by the psychotherapist who conducts family therapy but has no previous training in using art therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Combating destructive thought processes: Voice therapy and separation theory.

Reviews the book, Combating destructive thought processes: Voice therapy and separation theory by Robert W. Firestone (see record 1997-97377-000). This book presents a persuasive and highly integrative approach, not only to the practice of psychotherapy, but also to the human dilemma. The author combines psychodynamic and cognitive models, and makes an innovative advancement by adding an existential framework. the book comprises 18 chapters, divided into five sections covering topics such as the roots of psychopathology; voice therapy in comparison to psychoanalysis and cognitive therapy; the application of voice therapy; the nature of guilt and addiction; death anxiety; and broader social concerns. The reviewer found the organization of this book somewhat problematic, both in terms of the sequence of chapters and the topics covered. He also found that many generalizations were stated as fact and many issues deserved further elaboration. However, he contends that readers may find that the information presented in this book will clarify complex psychotherapeutic issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The psychology of personnel selection.

Reviews the book, The psychology of personnel selection by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic and Adrian Furnham (see record 2010-05140-000). The authors have written an interesting and engaging book that focuses on personnel selection. This book would be a valuable resource for student training in industrial/organizational psychology. The overall organization of the book was appropriate. The methods of selection and constructs of selection provided a useful organizing framework. The information in each chapter was well organized and was presented clearly and succinctly. Introductory and concluding chapters would be helpful for the reader to identify the themes that are addressed in the book and to provide integration and future directions respectively. The authors’ enthusiasm for employee selection is evident throughout the book. It is my opinion that adding chapters on job analysis and the psychology of human behavior (i.e., individual differences) would help effectively establish the context for the selection tools to follow. It would also be helpful to review the criteria that organizations use to assess their selection tools and the organizational performance criteria that these tools have been designed to predict. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Treating sexual desire disorders.

Reviews the book, Treating sexual desire disorders edited by Sandra R. Leiblum (see record 2010-13144-000). Sandra Leiblum’s Treating sexual desire disorders reviews a broad range of philosophical positions and treatment approaches to sexual desire disorders. This book also contains thoughtful reflections by the chapter authors regarding their personal approaches to treatment and effectiveness. One of the main strengths of this book is the use of case studies to illustrate the diverse approaches to treating sexual desire concerns. One of main weaknesses of the book is the lack of a concluding chapter by Leiblum to distill some of the common and overlapping themes that were present in numerous chapters. Another element that would have strengthened this book would have been more emphasis on outcome studies demonstrating the success of particular approaches. Even with these (minor) weaknesses, the reviewer highly recommends this book for its breadth of treatment approaches. One of the reviewer's take home messages was that sex therapists, relationship therapists, and the medical community need to be working in closer synchrony with each other to address the myriad of issues that underlie sexual desire issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Applications of personal construct theory.

Reviews the book, Applications of personal construct theory edited by J. Adams-Webber and J. C. Mancuso (1983). The 24 chapters of this volume are a selection from papers presented at the Fourth International Congress on Personal Construct Psychology (PCP) held in 1981. The title of the volume is perhaps misleading, as there are three discernible motifs in this varied assortment of offerings. These can be identified as those papers dealing primarily with theoretical issues, those concerned with the history of the theory and the man who developed it (George Kelly), and those that focus on applications of the theory. It is clear that ten chapters are theoretical, including the first nine and Bannister's concluding chapter on the self. If I were to assume that these efforts are representative of the development of PCP, my judgment would be that little important change in Kelly's ideas has occurred over the years. It is not easy to say why this is so, although the fact that Kelly died before he might have revised aspects of his theory has to be considered. Overall, however, the conceptual advances have a pallid quality and the occasional adulatory echoing of the master is disconcerting. Of the 11 or so empirical and applied chapters, a number point in useful and interesting directions. Several papers deal with PCP in relation to schizophrenic thought disorder, depression, chronic illness, anorexia nervosa, and obsessive neurosis. Neimeyer's chapter on sociohistorical influences in the development of PCP affords an opportunity to reflect upon the past, present, and future of Kelly's ideas--including the trend toward integration with other schools of thought despite Kelly's well-known resistance to direct comparison with other kindred theories. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive science: Making the whole different from the sum of its parts.

Reviews the book, From models to modules: Studies in cognitive science from the McGill workshops edited by I. Gopnik and M. Gopnik (1986). This book is only moderately successful in conveying the exciting advances that are beginning to appear as a result of the interdisciplinary efforts in cognitive science. The book's emphasis on language processes and linguistics will seriously limit its potential readership, although there are some contributions from outside that domain. Moreover, many of the chapters were not prepared with a general audience in mind, and to appreciate a number of the chapters fully the reader must have a strong linguistic background. A more severe problem is that the chapters are based on a series of workshops held at McGill University in 1982 and 1983. The sad consequences are that (a) the book is badly out of date (few references are more recent than 1983), (b) most of the contributions were not original but were based on ideas and results that were or were about to be in print at the time the workshops were held, and (c) many of the chapters are so short that they do not provide adequate depth of coverage. At this late date, the value of the book may be as a summary of a few of the early issues and methodologies that have captured the attention of cognitive scientists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Cognitive development in atypical children: Progress in cognitive development research.

Reviews the book, Cognitive development in atypical children: Progress in cognitive development research edited by Linda S. Siegel and Frederick J. Morrison (1985). A great deal of psychological research in the past decade has focused on the topic of cognitive development. Accordingly, there are now whole volumes devoted to this subject, such as the Springer Series in Cognitive Development, of which this book, edited by Siegel and Morrison, is one. The term "Progress" in the titles of some of the volumes in the Springer Series denotes that these volumes are "strongly thematic, in that [they are] limited to some well-defined domain of cognitive development research." The theme for this particular book is that of atypical cognitive development, with the term encompassing disorders such as reading disability, autism, and hyperactivity. The book contains seven chapters: three on reading disability, two on autism, one on temperament and attention, and one on atypical infant development. Although the individual chapters in this book are interesting and informative, as is often the case with an edited volume, this book is less cohesive than one might hope. The book is part of a series that is intended to be "strongly thematic." In my view, it does not quite succeed in this regard. Presumably the unifying theme of this book is one of cognitive development in special populations; however, the populations chosen are quite diverse so that the reader often loses sight of the theme. Although this volume could presumably serve as a text for a course in atypical cognitive development, my general feeling is that the material presented varies awkwardly from an introductory to an advanced level, a range that makes it not quite appropriate for either an introductory or an advanced course in the field. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Neuropsychological assessment and the school-aged child: Issues and procedures.

Reviews the book, Neuropsychological assessment and the school-aged child: Issues and procedures edited by G. W. Hynd and J. E. Obrzut (1981). The editors of this book have attempted to examine the issues related to the assessment of children with possible neuropyschological disorders. Each chapter is presented with the assumption that a neuropsychological perspective is germane to our understanding of children's cognitive functions. The compilation of knowledge and skills are presented in a clear and comprehensible language for individuals with very little familiarity with the subject. Each of the four major sections of the book addresses a particular topic. Section I presents a neuropsychological perspective of children's learning problems. Section II contains three chapters that examine general issues in child neuropsychology. Section III of the book focuses on neuropsychological assessment approaches useful in developing remediational strategies for children's learning disorders. The final section of this book addresses the neuropsychological implications within the educational setting. The editors have done a commendable job in integrating the diverse nature of human cognitive functioning and in focusing in on the neuropsychological aspects of school age children's learning. Their choice of contributors and the topics covered will certainly make this book a valued asset in the school psychologist's library. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Stress inoculation training.

Reviews the book, Stress inoculation training by Donald Meichenbaum (1985). The present volume is an update and extension of the claim that mild forms of stress, elicited in a therapeutic context, can serve to defuse maladaptive responses to major life stresses. The cognitive/behavioural method described in this book consists of three phases. In the conceptualization phase, the client is given a theoretical explanation of the presenting problem. This is followed by a skills-acquisition and rehearsal phase, in which mainly cognitive coping skills are taught to counter dysfunctional stress perceptions. The final phase of application and follow-through is ushered in by imagery and behaviour rehearsal, role playing and modelling. The author devotes a chapter to each training phase. This core content is preceded by two chapters, dealing respectively with some theoretical and applied issues raised by Stress Inoculation Training (SIT). The last chapter describes some specific applications of the method. This book will be read to advantage by anyone embarking on the practice of cognitive/behaviour therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Anticipating Trends: Comments on Piagetian Research: A Handbook of Recent Studies by Sohan Modgil.

Reviews the book, Anticipating Trends: Comments on Piagetian Research: A Handbook of Recent Studies by Sohan Modgil (1974). Modgil's book "Piagetian Research" reflects the enormous extent to which American psychology has progressively been influenced by Piagetian theory, as recently as the last ten years. Piagetian concepts have manifested themselves in education (curriculum planning), psychopathology, child rearing practices, philosophy and test construction. Modgil aimed his book at the Piagetian researcher who already has a thorough knowledge of Piaget's theories and of Piaget's importance. It is intended to act as a sort of psychological abstracts of Piagetian research, covering original research between 1965 and December 1972 (there are also some references to research appearing as late as August 1973). As such it is an invaluable reference book. The 12 chapters of the book cover work either in the area of cognitive development or work directly related to Piaget's theory (e.g. chapter 11: Personality, socialization and emotionality related to Piaget's theory). Modgil gives a skimpy review of the range of recent studies at the beginning of each chapter. The bibliography alone (over 1500 references) makes the book a valuable source of information (65% of the references date from 1965 on). The book would appear to be highly useful to the Piagetian researcher who wants to get a quick idea of the relevant literature in his particular area or of related areas. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Applied Social Psychology: Understanding and Addressing Social and Practical Problems.

Reviews the book, Applied Social Psychology: Understanding and Addressing Social and Practical Problems edited by Frank W. Schneider, Jamie A. Gruman, and Larry M. Coutts (see record 2005-02098-000). Though I think the appeal of this text ought to extend well beyond the intended audience, Schneider et al. are marketing their book as an undergraduate level introductory text. It thus contains much of the pedagogy that instructors have come to expect in textbooks. Of course, the typical undergraduate text is written by a single author or group of authors. Schneider et al. opted for a different approach; Theirs is an edited volume, a collection of chapters written by specialists in a wide range of topic areas. Whereas it might have been natural in this case to expect problems with lack of consistency in style, organization, and content across the chapters, I was impressed by the effectiveness with which the editors maintained consistency throughout. One of the main strategies by which they achieved this level of success seems to have been by encouraging authors to use several classic theories and studies, where appropriate, in discussing the content relevant to their own areas of expertise. In total, there are 16 chapters. The first four chapters, which include an introductory chapter and chapters on theory, research methods, and intervention and evaluation, serve largely to set the context for the more focused, topic-driven material that comes later. Because this book is intended as a broad introduction to applied social psychology and because the chapters are rather short in length (20 to 25 pages on average), the coverage within any given chapter is selective rather than comprehensive in nature. I think Applied Social Psychology will make a substantial contribution as an undergraduate text--useful both as an introductory text in courses on applied social psychology and, where time will permit, as a secondary text to complement the main text in introductory or junior graduate-level survey courses on social psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Cognitive therapy for depressed adolescents.

Reviews the book, Cognitive therapy for depressed adolescents by T. C. R. Wilkes, Gayle Belsher, A. John Rush, and Ellen Frank (see record 1994-98433-000). This book offers chapters on adaption of cognitive therapy for depressed adolescents, ten key principles of adolescent cognitive therapy, diagnosis and assessment, developmental considerations, the therapeutic relationship, family involvement, the initial phase, the middle phase, the final phase, three comorbidity chapters (substance abuse, sexual victimization, suicidal adolescents), hospitalized adolescents, psychopharmacological treatment, and treatment failures. The sequence of chapters makes perfect sense, and despite four senior authors and five co-authors, it is as if one master hand prevails. The writing never wavers—crisp, flowing, and superbly readable. Whenever possible, adolescent and adult therapy of depression are contrasted, and at times, techniques effective or ineffective for early and late adolescents are cited. One might say the current work is a downward extension of the 1979 Beck book, with developmental considerations and family therapy included. This manual motivates me to reread Beck, Burns, Piaget, Bowlby, and the Socratic method series of papers in this Journal (Overholser). Manuals such as this should result in improved supervision. Finally, Drs. Wilkes, Belsher, Rush, Frank, and their associates (Drs. David A. Brent, Graham J. Emslie, Miriam S. Lerner, Anthony Nowels, Warren A. Weinberg) provide this reviewer with one more humility and awe inducing experience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)