A New York Times Bestseller Acclaimed psychologists Randy Frost and Gail Sketetee's groundbreaking study on the compulsion of hoarding, "Stuff invites readers to reevaluate their desire for things" (Boston Globe). What possesses someone to save every scrap of paper that's ever come into his home? What compulsions drive a woman like Irene, whose hoarding cost her her marriage? Or Ralph, whose imagined uses for castoff items like leaky old buckets almost lost him his house? Or Jerry and Alvin, wealthy twin bachelors who filled up matching luxury apartments with countless pieces of fine art, not even leaving themselves room to sleep? When Frost and Steketee became the first scientists to study hoarding, they expected to find a few sufferers. Instead, they uncovered an epidemic, treating hundreds of patients and fielding thousands of calls from the families of others, exploring the compulsion through a series of compelling case studies in the vein of Oliver Sacks. With vivid portraits that show us the traits by which you can identify a hoarder--piles on sofas and beds that make the furniture useless, houses that can be navigated only by following small paths called goat trails, vast piles of paper that the hoarders "churn" but never discard, even collections of animals and garbage--Frost and Steketee explain the causes and outline the often ineffective treatments for the disorder.They also illuminate the pull that possessions exert on all of us. Whether we're savers, collectors, or compulsive cleaners, none of us is free of the impulses that drive hoarders to the extremes in which they live. For the six million sufferers, their relatives and friends, and all the rest of us with complicated relationships to our things, Stuff answers the question of what happens when our stuff starts to own us.

A new model of therapeutic action, one that heals trauma and dissociation, is overtaking the mental- health field. It is not just trauma, but the dissociation of the self, that causes emotional pain and difficulties in functioning. This book discusses how people are universally subject to trauma, what trauma is and how to understand and work with normative as well as extreme dissociation. In this new model, the client and the practitioner are both traumatised and flawed human beings who affect each other in the mutual process that promotes the healing of the client-psychotherapy. Elizabeth Howell explains the dissociative, relational and attachment reasons that people blame and punish themselves. She covers the difference between repression and dissociation, and how Freud's exclusive focus on repression and the one-person fantasy Oedipal model impeded recognition of the serious consequences of external trauma, including child abuse. The book synthesises trauma/dissociation perspectives and addresses new structural models.

New discoveries about the genetic underpinnings of many kinds of human experience are now continually being made. This book explores the impact of these discoveries on the ways in which the common mental disorders are best conceptualized and treated. Most people think of research in genetics as the search for genes. This is only one focus of effort, and even with the reliable identification of susceptibility genes, the clinical applications of their discovery, such as gene therapies and new drug development, are a long way off. For the present, the impact of genetic research on our understanding of mental illness is tied to our ability to estimate the effect of all genes by means of family, twin, and adoption studies. The results of these studies challenge some deeply cherished ideas and theories, and support others. Of course, the effect of genes is only half the equation. The role of experience, environment, and living conditions accounts for as much, often considerably more, of the variability in psychopathology. In this book, Kerry Jang attempts not to answer questions about what is "genetic" and what is not, but about what a knowledge of the relative influence of genes versus environment means at a psychological level of analysis--to show how it changes common assumptions about classification, etiology, diagnosis, and intervention. He first offers an overview of contemporary behavioral genetics, dispels common misconceptions, responds to the criticisms that have been leveled at this new field, and describes in basic terms how genetic and environmental effects are estimated and how susceptibility genes are pinpointed. He then points to new directions in which standard nosological systems are likely to evolve as new information about vulnerabilities and covariances emerges. Finally, he synthesizes and evaluates the consistency of the last decade's findings for the most common categories of psychopathology that have been studied by behavior geneticists: mood, personality, and anxiety disorders, substance abuse; and schizophrenia and the psychotic disorders. Clinicians and researchers alike need to understand the genetic influences on the feelings and behaviors they are seeking to change or study if they are to be effective in their work. The Behavioral Genetics of Psychopathology: A Clinical Guide empowers them with this understanding.

This groundbreaking volume concentrates on solution-oriented treatment of some of the most difficult pathologies - anorexia, bulimia and vomiting (as a separate category introduced by Nardone et al). The logic and apparent simplicity of the way these complex conditions are treated is truly outstanding. As opposed to a long-drawn psychotherapy, Nardone and his colleagues offer a relatively short period of treatment, consisting of dialogue between the patient and the therapist, and sometimes the patient's family. The patient is also given some "homework" to do in-between the sessions. Rather than looking at the "why" of the situation, this approach looks at "how" the problem manifests itself and what can be done about it.The book starts by outlining the pathologies and the logic behind this type of brief therapy. It then moves on to examine particular case studies and the reader gets immersed in the fascinating dialogue between the therapist and the client. The approach recognises the different needs of each individual but offers some more general and useful practical advice to think about, and to be adapted to each case. There are clarifying comments and subheadings in-between the lines to point out to the reader what the therapist is trying to achieve at that point."In order to solve a problem, we need to understand how the system of perception and reaction towards reality functions in the person s here and now. In other words, we must try to understand how the problem functions, not why it exists. In that sense, we leave behind the search for knowledge based on 'why' for a search of knowledge based on 'how' - going from a search for the causes of a problem to a search for its modes of persistence. This allows the resolving process to evolve from slow, gradual solutions to rapid and effective interventions." -- From the Introduction"

Thomas Jefferson may have had it. The pianist Glenn Gould almost certainly had it. There are even those who insist (probably incorrectly) that Albert Einstein had it. Whether it is called "geek syndrome," "high-functioning autism," or simply "Asperger's," it is not just one of the most poorly understood of all neurological disorders, but amazingly one of the fastest-growing of all psychiatric diagnoses in America today. Some support organizations even claim that as many as one in five hundred people in the general population suffers from some aspect of the disease. Basing his report on memoirs, clinical histories, poems and stories, and visits with dozens of individuals afflicted with the disorder, journalist and essayist Lawrence Osborne shows us what life with Asperger's is really like. Often brilliant at math and able to perform savant-like feats of memory, those who are afflicted with the syndrome -- some 80 percent are boys or men -- are also wracked with bizarre obsessions. And strangely and characteristically, most of them are unable to understand even the most simple expressions of the human face. They may know everything there is to know about vacuum cleaners, the New York City subway system, or industrial deep-fat fryers (or, for that matter, J. S. Bach), but they are unable to hold a normal conversation about even the most basic of their own feelings, or anyone else's. They are, in their own words, the Mind Blind -- strange solitaires, anti-social loners -- in a world dominated by the ordinary people they call "neurotypicals." In this front-line report and very personal investigative journey, Osborne also asks hard questions. Just how different from the so-called normal are those with Asperger's, and is it possible that virtually all of us have a little of the syndrome in ourselves? Setting aside the usual pieties of medicine and rehabilitation, he embarks on a quest that casts a skeptical eye on American psychiatric culture, with its tendency to over-diagnose, then over-medicate. And even more, he ventures into the elusive but essential realm where one has to ask what is the difference between eccentricity (with all its potential for creativity, for enriching our society and ourselves) and normality, with its undertones of blandness, averageness, and uniformity?

New discoveries about the genetic underpinnings of many kinds of human experience are now continually being made. This book explores the impact of these discoveries on the ways in which the common mental disorders are best conceptualized and treated. Most people think of research in genetics as the search for genes. This is only one focus of effort, and even with the reliable identification of susceptibility genes, the clinical applications of their discovery, such as gene therapies and new drug development, are a long way off. For the present, the impact of genetic research on our understanding of mental illness is tied to our ability to estimate the effect of all genes by means of family, twin, and adoption studies. The results of these studies challenge some deeply cherished ideas and theories, and support others. Of course, the effect of genes is only half the equation. The role of experience, environment, and living conditions accounts for as much, often considerably more, of the variability in psychopathology. In this book, Kerry Jang attempts not to answer questions about what is "genetic" and what is not, but about what a knowledge of the relative influence of genes versus environment means at a psychological level of analysis--to show how it changes common assumptions about classification, etiology, diagnosis, and intervention. He first offers an overview of contemporary behavioral genetics, dispels common misconceptions, responds to the criticisms that have been leveled at this new field, and describes in basic terms how genetic and environmental effects are estimated and how susceptibility genes are pinpointed. He then points to new directions in which standard nosological systems are likely to evolve as new information about vulnerabilities and covariances emerges. Finally, he synthesizes and evaluates the consistency of the last decade's findings for the most common categories of psychopathology that have been studied by behavior geneticists: mood, personality, and anxiety disorders, substance abuse; and schizophrenia and the psychotic disorders. Clinicians and researchers alike need to understand the genetic influences on the feelings and behaviors they are seeking to change or study if they are to be effective in their work. The Behavioral Genetics of Psychopathology: A Clinical Guide empowers them with this understanding.

Offers a holistic, comprehensive approach to addiction treatment that combines standard EMDR therapy with specialty protocols This innovative and brand new EMDR therapy guide for healing addiction is the first book to underscore the efficacy of EMDR therapy as a primary modality for treating trauma and addiction. Targeting the trauma lurking beneath the addiction, the resource presents a comprehensive collection of best practices and strategies for using EMDR therapy to treat addictive disorders, and guides practitioners in incorporating their protocols of choice into EMDR treatment. While illuminating underlying theory, the book focuses on practice knowledge and how therapists can translate this knowledge into clinical settings in order to provide clinicians with a fully-integrated approach to the diagnosis, treatment, and management of addiction across populations Written in user-friendly language by two prominent practitioners and trainers of EMDR therapy, the book helps therapists to address the complexity of addictive disorders by providing a comprehensive guide to the standard eight-phase protocol and adaptive information processing model as groundwork for case conceptualization and treatment. Chapters contain case studies with commentary on relevant decision-making points along with discussion questions to enhance critical thinking. Abundant "Tips and Tricks" learned in the trenches make the text come alive with clinical relevance, and references to many of the best specialty protocols and strategies for treating clients suffering from addiction due to trauma, guide readers to choose the best protocol for each situation. Purchase includes digital access for use on most mobile devices or computers. Key Features: Authors' lived experience brings a wealth or real-world application Introduces the standard EMDR therapy protocol as a modality of choice for treating trauma and addiction disorders Rates popular specialty protocols for addiction and provides guidance on how to integrate them into treatment Delivers a wealth of best practices and strategies for working with clients with addiction issues Addresses effectively working with dissociation in EMDR therapy Focuses on best practice informed by a thorough review of up-to-date scholarly literature Uses abundant case studies, "Tips and Tricks from the Field" and practical exercises to reinforce knowledge

Writing for both EMDR therapists and substance abuse counsellors, Laurel Parnell provides user-friendly tools to help support clients in recovery with EMDR-based techniques that can be easily integrated into all levels of addiction treatment. Emphasising the practical clinical application of principles and techniques helpful for addictions and addictive disorders, this book interweaves case material throughout the text, with some chapters presenting in-depth cases to illustrate the techniques. Topics include treating trauma and supporting resilience, tools for affect regulation, and rewiring the motivation-reward circuits.

This multi-disciplinary text lies in the general areas of forensic psychiatry, sociology, jurisprudence, criminal law and criminology. It questions traditional assumptions about illness and particularly mental disorder and deals with the controversial notion that they are not at least in part the fault of the sufferer. It examines how the law can take into account such culpable notions of mental disorder in determining criminal responsibility (if a person culpably causes a condition e.g. intoxication s/he cannot rely on that condition as the basis of a defence at trial; hence the law affords different levels of justification/excuse/mitigation to the crimes of those who have got themselves drunk and those who are drunk due to being slipped a mickey). This culpability for the defence-causing condition (or responsibility for level of criminal responsibility) is called meta-responsibility. illness models relate to meta-responsibility; the insanity defence and other mental condition defences; the relationship of clinical issues such as medication non-compliance and insight to meta-responsibility (with reference to critical psychiatric and social constructivist models of mental disorder which cast it not as an affliction but as a sometimes positive experience which may be under control of the sufferer); and the counterfactual notion that considers how the possible voluntary origins of mental disorder would benefit the criminal and non-criminal mentally disordered. jurors, examining the effect of a meta-responsibility insanity test (one which allows jurors to reflect their consideration of the defendant's culpability for their disorder in the jurors' verdict). The test made no difference to the number of insanity verdicts rendered (in comparison to a normal insanity test); however, the recommended length of detention in hospital for insanity acquittees significantly diminished using the new test. This suggests that the post-trial disposal to hospital, which has long been pointed as pseudo-therapeutic punishment by commentators (insanity acquittees are likely to spend twice as long in hospital than if they had simply pled guilty and gone to jail) is in part revenge by society and the criminal justice system for beating the rap using a condition which they deem to be at least partly the defendant's fault.

As the controversial field of sex addiction treatment reaches for legitimacy across the disciplines of medicine, psychiatry and psychotherapy, Getting Real About Sex Addiction: A Psychodynamic Approach to Treatment applies psychoanalytic framework to concepts of addiction and sex, as well as related concepts of personality and attachment development. Authors Graeme Daniels and Joe Farley explore the intersection of sex and culture and address social undercurrent relating to gender, such as objectification and sexual aggression and how those influence conceptualization goals and procedures in treatment. Through number case illustrations and vignettes, this text demonstrates psychodynamic method across treatment contexts, in formats of individual, couples, and group therapy. The result is a work that critiques theoretical, intervention, and gender biases that have infiltrated this important yet embattled field, and provides a fresh, alternative approach from a source with the oldest pedigree in modern psychology.

Schizophrenia continues to be the most debilitating of the psychotic disorders with less than one third returning to a `normal' level of functioning. Our understanding of this disorder has advanced considerably over the last 10 years with major contributions from neurobiology but particularly from an understanding of the way in which psychosocial and psychological factors interact with underlying vulnerabilities to influence both the content and timing of psychotic symptoms and the personal and social difficulty they create. This book brings together this disparate and complex literature in a highly accessible and up-to-date way. It is written by two leading academic-clinical psychologists in the area who uniquely bring together an understanding of key scientific concepts with clinical reality. The section on treatment brings to the reader a clear account of psychological, social and drug treatments interspersed with clinical accounts. The text is aimed primarily at undergraduates attempting to gain some understanding of this exciting and rapidly developing field but with sufficient depth to engage the trainee clinical psychologist, community psychiatric nurse, and psychiatrist.

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Contents:
J. De Houwer, D. Hermans, Editorial. R.H. Fazio, On the Automatic Activation of Associated Evaluations: An Overview. D. Hermans, J. De Houwer, P. Eelen, A Time Course Analysis of the Affective Priming Effect. J. Musch, K.C. Klauer, Locational Uncertainty Moderates Affective Congruency Effects in The Evaluative Decision Task. J. De Houwer, G. Crombez, F. Baeyens, D. Hermans, On the Generality of the Affective Simon Effect. J.E. Swanson, L. A. Rudman, A.G. Greenwald, Using the Implicit Association Test to Investigate Attitude-behavior Consistency for Stigmatized Behavior. K. Rothermund, D. Wentura, P.M. Bak, Automatic Attention to Stimuli Signalling Chances and Dangers: Moderating Effects to Positive and Negative Goal and Action Contexts. M.G. Calvo, M.W. Eysenck, Early Vigilance and Late Avoidance of Threat Processing: Repressive Coping vs. Low/High Anxiety.

The articles in this special issue seek to re-examine the relationship between creativity and the schizophrenia spectrum of disorders in the wake of recent research and theorizing. They revisit both empirical and conceptual findings and issues regarding connections between the schizophrenia spectrum of disorders: schizotypy, psychotic-like traits, and creativity.