Book reviews
Religion is it all Double Dutch?
Religion and Coping in Mental Health CareJoseph Pieper & Marinus van Uden
Amsterdam: Editions Rodopi; 2005; Pb £26.00 (ISBN 9 0 4201997 2)
Reviewed by Diana Barker
WHEN I did my MSc in social psychology 10 years ago, I noted there
was more than a certain frisson between the psychological and religious
worlds in the UK. I was told in no uncertain terms that there was no
such thing as the ‘spiritual self’ and that such irrational concepts
could not be countenanced within the scientific paradigm that evidently
encapsulates modern-day psychology.
Since those dark days, more and more psychologists in the clinical and
health-related fields have come to realise that, if we are to help
people improve their lives and surmount their difficulties, we must
take account of their most deeply held religious beliefs, even if we do
not agree with them ourselves. We often lament, however, the lack of UK
research in this area, and most of us have had to rely almost
exclusively on American sources for our inspiration.
Therefore, I am pleased to announce the arrival of this new book which
collates a set of previously published Dutch papers on the subject of
the relationship between religion and mental health. Dr van Uden is a
professor of clinical psychology and Dr Pieper is an assistant
professor of religion and pastoral psychology. Between them they have
gathered a set of information which would interest all those involved
in clinical, health, or counselling psychology and anyone wishing to do
innovative research in this highly interesting and still largely
uncharted territory (yes, student readers, the field is wide open for
you).
Although some of the translation of Dutch into English is a little
suspect, this book provides a valuable assortment of data, explanatory
material, and methodologies and conveys an exceptionally balanced
approach to the relationship between religion and mental health. There
is even a highly entertaining section at the end which provides a
method for teaching the clinical psychology of religion. I, for one,
would have loved to have had this to hand when I was struggling with
the closed minds of my social psychology lecturers all those years ago…
Ex-psychology lecturer Diana Barker now works for the Business School in Pau, South West France.
COMIC TALE OF LIFE ON THE WARD
Poppy Shakespeare
Clare Allan
London: Bloomsbury; 2006; Hb £12.99 (ISBN 0 7475 8046 4)
Reviewed by Rachael Allen
CLARE Allan’s debut novel is at once poignant, absurd and gut-bustingly
funny. Set in a mental institution, the story is told from the
perspective of N, a day patient of 13 years. Like all the day patients
in the Dorothy Fish, her days are filled with chain-smoking, swapping
medications and ensuring that she is never discharged.That is until the
arrival of Poppy Shakespeare, who claims she isn’t mentally ill and is
set on proving this to anyone who will listen. Although confused by
this endeavour, N agrees to assist by ironically helping Poppy to fake
mental illness.
Sharing the stage with N and Poppy are 24 other day patients, one for
every letter of the alphabet. Each is described in a comically
larger-than-life fashion, without relying on the sentimentality often
reserved for the mentally ill, to brilliant effect.
Clare Allan was a psychiatric patient for more than 10 years, although
she claims that Poppy Shakespeare is in no way a memoir. Rather, she
uses her experiences of the mental health system to gently introduce
the uncomfortable question of how society distinguishes between the
sane and insane.
Rachael Allen is a public relations officer at the British Psychological Society.
COMPULSIVE READING
Man, Interrupted. Welcome to the Bizarre World of OCD, Where Once More is Never Enough
James Bailey
Edinburgh: Mainstream; 2006; Hb £12.99 (ISBN: 1 84596 006 8)
Reviewed by Sophie Langford
JAMES Bailey presents an intriguing personal account into his
experience of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). He describes his
fear of drugs and their effects: that he might become high through
people placing drugs in his food, coming into contact with people who
have used drugs or even through simply touching a picture of drugs. He
tells his story of time spent at an American clinic engaged in their
treatment programme using exposure and response prevention. He gives an
honest account into the battles and triumphs he encounters whilst
trying to overcome his OCD. This book reminded me of Ken Kesey’s One
Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest in the sense that Bailey invites the reader
into the world of the staff and other patients in the hospital. As with
other personal accounts I found this book more informative than many
textbook approaches to discussing OCD. It gives allows the reader to
gain a greater understanding into the individual experiences someone
who has OCD may encounter. I enjoyed this book, it was easy to read,
and at times difficult to put down.
Sophie Langford is a trainee clinical psychologist at the University of Surrey.
TRUE AND INTERESTING IN PARTS
Applying Psychology to Everyday Life: A Beginner’s Guide
Kenneth T. Strongman
Chichester: Wiley; 2006; Pb £19.99 (ISBN 0 470 86989 5)
Reviewed by Tom Stafford
MUCH of psychology suffers from what I think of as the ‘true and
obvious verses interesting but uncertain’ dilemma. Many of the things
we are most certain about in psychology are relatively uninteresting,
or at least unsurprising, while some of the most interesting,
tantalising or seductive ideas are either uncertain or downright false.
Strongman’s book aims to balance this dilemma and to also meet a third
target – to be both true and interesting, and useful. At points the
book succeeds, but the dominant impression is unsatisfying.Partly this
is because of a mistaken approach. Strongman believes that ‘However
scientifically respectable and methodologically sound research in
psychology becomes, it must stay grounded in everyday life and,
therefore, return to it at every opportunity’. What this appears to
mean here is that psychology must address topics of common concern, in
common language. What justification is there for believing that
psychological science should produce explanations which are based at
the same descriptive level as the thing they explain? What
justification that it could do this any better than the five thousand
years of cultural output by poets, artists and philosophers? Applying
Psychology to Everyday Life demonstrates that such explanations in the
‘folk psychological’ mode often appear either weary or limited (and
dangerous if anyone took them seriously in the wrong context).
Strongman notes that psychology students are often disappointed to find
out how removed from everyday life psychology is. But the correction
would be to write a book showing why it is useful to look for
explanations which are couched at lower levels of descriptions; about
why the pedantry of scientific rigour is necessary (if you think this
would be boring, consider the glittering array of illustrations that
could be selected from the previous errors of famous psychologists);
and about the dangerous hubris of assuming that psychology will provide
anything more than small clues in answer to the riddle of the human
condition.
Aside from the problem of approach – which I am sure not all readers
would feel the same about – the book has other weaknesses. A serious
one is the lack of research weight. 281 pages are supported by a mere
34 references. Some of these are classic (Freud, Bowlby, Piaget,
Skinner, etc) but are now known to be subject to major qualification.
The only excuse for this might be that the book covers so many topics
that there is little room for nuance – but this in itself is a separate
flaw, not a strength. In a number of places sloppy editing has left
sections of text which repeat each other.
The strengths of the book are a light and engaging tone, and a wide
range of topics, illustrated with compelling vignettes from ‘real-life’
situations, but these cannot compensate for the basic lack of
convincing material. There are many interesting findings in psychology,
and some of them might even be useful in everyday life, but this is not
the first book to turn to in order to discover them.
Tom Stafford is at the University of Sheffield.
PYSCHO-BABBLING FOR BEGINNERS
The Bluffer’s Guide to PsychologyWarren Mansell
London: Oval Books; 2005; Pb £3.99
(ISBN 1 903096 63 4)
Reviewed by Nigel Sherriff
FOR anyone with an interest in psychology at whatever level, this book
is a must read. It steers the reader on a thoroughly enjoyable and
irreverently humorous whistle-stop tour of psychology. The author
covers topics ranging from psychology’s early classical beginnings with
references to Plato and Aristotle, to more recent quirky and
attention-grabbing questions such as ‘why can’t people tickle
themselves’.Being a former psychology lecturer, I was familiar with
much of the material presented by the author. However, I was unprepared
for the numerous one-liners that elicited spontaneous and immense
expulsions of mirth from yours truly as I sat on the train attempting
to look studious on my way to the recent BPS conference in Cardiff.
Fitting in the enormous wealth and diverse of knowledge-base that
constitutes psychology in 63 pages is no mean feat, yet Warren Mansell
manages this extremely well. The author even finds space to comment on
the psychology bluffer’s essential repertoire of skills such as a
finely tuned air of aloofness, impressive curios, and the ability to
fend off tricky questions such as reading minds and explaining why you
decided to become a psychologist in the first place. This book is a
recommended read for (non)-psychologists, students, and academics
alike.
Dr Nigel Sherriff is a research officer at the Trust for the Study of Adolescence.
A comprehensive critique
Attachment and Sexual Offending
Phil Rich
Chichester: Wiley; 2005; Pb £31.99 (ISBN 0 470 09106 1)
Reviewed by Olive Travers
WHILE the title suggests a specialist readership, the greater part of
this substantial text consists of the most detailed comprehensive
overview and critique of attachment theory I have come across. A major
strength is the coherence and consolidation of the theory that comes
from single authorship rather than contributed chapters, helped by the
clear organisational and flow charts throughout.
The generic practitioner in clinical and forensic psychology, who
wishes to integrate such a cornerstone concept as attachment into a
more sophisticated and theoretically informed way into their practice,
will find everything they need in this book. Indeed the author gives a
timely warning of the dangers of the often inadequate and ill -informed
use of this complex and abstract psychological construct.
The exploration of how attachment continues to shape cognition, affect,
and social relationship in adolescents is particularly valuable in
closing the gap in our understanding of the transformation of
attachment from its childhood origins to its adult equivalent. The
succinct summary of the neuro biology of attachment is also a bonus for
the busy clinician.
In relation to sexual offending Rich concludes that while attachment
deficits are a contributing factor, rather than a primary cause of
sexual offending, the role of attachment is significant enough to place
its assessment and treatment at the heart of sex offender treatment,
particularly with adolescence. This makes a significant contribution to
the more general movement at present away from a confrontational
approach in all fields involving change of harmful behaviour – not just
sexual offending.
Olive Travers is a senior clinical psychologist and head of COSC Service with Health Service Executive N.W. Ireland.
(Please note that some pictures may have been removed for copyright reasons)
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