Synopses & Reviews
Review
"After reading this book, therapists...will likely find their diagnostic skills enhanced, their conceptualization efforts more sophisticated, experience a heightened sense of empathy for their patients' difficulties in living, and find their treatment efforts more efficacious."--Contemporary Psychology
Review
"For those of us who practice psychotherapy and especially who work with the personality disorders, this book will be an invaluable tool."--American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis
Review
"Building on Harry Stack Sullivan's thesis that interpersonal behavior rather than symptoms should provide the framework for a fruitful psychiatric diagnosis, Dr. Lorna Benjamin has developed a sophisticated system, the Structural Analysis of Social Behavior (SASB). The Interpersonal Circle on which the system is based has a longer history but Dr. Benjamin's impressive achievement is unequaled in terms of its scientific rigor, clinical penetration, and comprehensiveness. SASB has given rise to a growing body of research aimed at an improved description and classification of the personality disorders. Thus, Dr. Benjamin's system provides a powerful alternative to the DSM-III-R and the forthcoming DSM-IV. An added and singularly important virtue is its clear relevance for psychotherapy. The book will predictably have a powerful impact on psychiatric diagnosis and treatment in the coming years. It is a superb accomplishment, a true labor of love.--Hans H. Strupp, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University
"Benjamin has written the right book at the right time. Whether one talks about Axis II driving Axis I, intrapersonal and interpersonal dynamics, or causal determinants, there is a consensus that a focus on patients' interpersonal behavior patterns is central to the therapeutic change process. As a result, there is a real need for clear guidelines that can be used by the practicing clinician, and that can provide the psychotherapy researcher with meaningful, testable hypotheses. Lorna Benjamin's incisive book fulfills such a need.
Using extensive clinical experience and research backing, Benjamin has masterfully translated DSM categories of personality disorders into observable, conceptually meaningful dimensions. It is indeed refreshing to read a book such as hers that is both empirically sound and clinically sophisticated. What is also particularly impressive is that the treatment implications described by Benjamin have relevance for therapists of varying orientations. Although her contribution has its roots in interpersonal theory, it has the potential to enhance the clinical work of cognitive-behavioral and experiential therapists.
This book will undoubtedly be widely read. Indeed, because of its clarity, insightfulness, and widespread relevance, this groundbreaking volume is destined to be a classic in the field."--Marvin R. Goldfried, Ph.D., State University of New York, Stony Brook
"Lorna Benjamin's originality, depth, and clinical awareness shine. With folksy anecdotes and high scholarship, she leads readers through the rich intellectual history and psychodynamic observations from which her system for assessing social behavior has been developed. Even while her conclusions have already informed the DSM-IV personality disorders, this book clearly spells out the scientific mandate and the psychotherapeutic significance for them to become even more interpersonally anchored."--John G. Gunderson, M.D., McLean Hospital
Synopsis
This groundbreaking volume presents a unifying theory of personality pathology together with vital insights on diagnosing and treating each of the DSM-IV personality disorders.
Synopsis
This influential work helps clinicians resolve questions of overlap among diagnostic categories, offers specific and sensible suggestions for treatment interventions, and describes common transference problems in therapy.
Synopsis
This influential work helps clinicians resolve questions of overlap among diagnostic categories, offers specific and sensible suggestions for treatment interventions, and describes common transference problems in therapy.
About the Author
After many years of clinical work in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin, Lorna Smith Benjamin moved to the Department of Psychology at the University of Utah to collaborate with graduate students in the research study of psychosocial factors in mental disorder. A past president of the International Society for Psychotherapy Research and an advisor to the DSM-IV work group on personality disorders, she is author of over 50 professional publications. Her SASB model of interpersonal relations has been translated into ten different languages. The associated coding system, questionnaires, and software are widely used in efforts to enhance scientific understanding of the practice of psychotherapy. Her dream is to use the concepts described in this book to guide development of a high-quality, low-cost research and training center that emphasizes efficacy in psychosocial treatment of major mental disorders.
Table of Contents
I. Basic Concepts1. Introduction and Overview
2. History and Assumptions of the Approach
3. The Harmonics of Therapy
4. The Interviewing and Treatment Methods
II. DSM Cluster B, the Dramatic, Erratic Group
5. Borderline Personality Disorder
6. Narcissistic Personality Disorder
7. Histrionic Personality Disorder
8. Antisocial Personality Disorder
III. DSM Cluster C, the Anxious, Fearful Group
9. Dependent Personality Disorder
10. Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder
11. Negativistic Personality (Disorder): Personality Disorder, NOS
12. Avoidant Personality Disorder
IV. DSM Cluster A, the Odd, Eccentric Group
13. Paranoid Personality Disorder
14. Schizoid and Schizotypal Personality Disorders
V. Divergences
15. Category Overlap, Residual Categories, and Other Issues
Appendix: Summary of Diagnostic and Differential
Indicators