New Books in Psychology

Ever since the first clinical account of autism was published by Dr. Leo Kanner in 1943, Western culture has tended to mythologise the disorder as impenetrable, non-verbal and characterised by silence. As such, in both medical literature and popular culture, autistic individuals are depicted as incomprehensible and Other, problems to be rectified or puzzles to be solved. In contrast to this view of autism as an inscrutable enigma, Autistic Disturbances: Theorizing Autism Poetics from the DSM to Robinson Crusoe (University of Michigan Press, 2018) by Julia Miele Rodas explores the expressive, creative potential of the autist by opening up a host of literary texts to the “possibilities of autism.” Autistic Disturbances is therefore a unique contribution to the growing field of disability studies as it does not simply explore autism from the standard clinical or biographical perspective. Instead, this insightful new study sets out to engage with autistic modes of expression from a literary, cultural and semiotic viewpoint. Undertaking a comprehensive analysis of a wide range of texts, from Charlotte Bronte’s Villette and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein to Andy Warhol’s autobiographical writings, Rodas unpacks the unique signifiers of autistic language and explores how autism can be articulated textually. In doing so, Autistic Disturbances seeks to uncover the autistic voice in familiar literary works, emphasising the often overlooked aesthetic and cultural value of autistic modes of communication. In this highly original analysis, Rodas maintains that the aesthetic qualities regularly praised by critics when they manifest in literary texts – repetition, cataloguing, highly-detailed description – are often found in autistic expression, where they are marginalised by clinicians and educators. Rodas, however, demonstrates that these features of autistic expression, these unique cognitive and communicative practices, have also played a major role in shaping some of Western culture’s most treasured literary artifacts. Over the course of a fascinating interview, Professor Rodas speaks to me about the history of autism, the unique qualities of autistic expression and the intriguing manner in which these expressive forms have manifested in numerous canonical literary texts. Prof. Rodas also discusses the impetus for this revolutionary project and explains how working on this book has shaped not only her research, but also impacted her teaching practice. Miranda Corcoran received her Ph.D. in 2016 from University College Cork, where she currently teaches American literature. Her research interests include Cold-War literature, genre fiction, literature and psychology, and popular culture. She has published articles on paranoia, literature, and Cold-War popular culture in The Boolean, Americana, and Transverse, and contributed a book chapter on transnational paranoia to the recently published book Atlantic Crossings: Archaeology, Literature, and Spatial Culture. She blogs about literature and popular culture HERE and can also be found on Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

While most children experience some fear and anxiety, some develop more extreme forms of anxiety that can impair their daily functioning. In this episode, cross-posted from the podcast Psychologists Off The Clock, Dr. Veronica Raggi, expert on childhood and adolescent anxiety disorders, discusses her book Exposure Therapy for Treating Anxiety in Children and Adolescents: A Comprehensive Guide (New Harbinger Publications, 2018). Dr. Raggi provides some information about anxiety in young people, and discusses the use of exposure therapy techniques in helping children and adolescents face their fears and overcome anxiety. Dr. Veronica L. Raggi is a licensed clinical psychologist who has specialized in treating children and adolescents for the past ten years in private practice, school, hospital, and outpatient medical settings, including New York University (NYU) Child Study Center, Children’s National Medical Center, and the University of Maryland, College Park. She presents, consults, and trains mental health professionals in utilizing cognitive behavioral therapy, and has published in numerous scholarly journals on evidence-based treatment approaches for mental health disorders in youth. She has developed CBT Tools for Kids, an iPhone application to help children and adolescents monitor their thoughts and feelings, and utilize CBT skills. Debbie Sorensen, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist practicing in Denver, Colorado and a co-host of the podcast Psychologists Off The Clock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

What makes you who you are? What makes you distinct from me? What is identity? In the book You and Me: The Neuroscience of Identity (Notting Hill Editions, 2016), Baroness Susan Greenfield scientifically dives into concepts of identity from, a biological perspective, that are usually reserved for philosophers. In this interview Dr. Greenfield discusses individual and cultural identity, what they mean, and how they are formed. She talks about why people believe irrational things that all evidence points to being incorrect, such as men are superior to women. She even talks about the effects of digital and social media on the brain. Listen to this interview and explore the neuroscience of identity. Jeremy Corr is the co-host of the hit Fixing Healthcare podcast along with industry thought leader Dr. Robert Pearl. A University of Iowa history alumnus, Jeremy is curious and passionate about all things healthcare, which means he’s always up for a good discussion! Reach him at jeremyccorr@gmail.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

In this episode, cross posted from the podcast Psychologists Off the Clock, Dr. Diana Hill interviews Dr. Michael Kearney, a palliative care physician who takes an interpersonal, integrative approach to healing. Dr. Kearney shares with us how he has had to learn to “breathe underwater” and allow pain to move through him and he discusses his new book: The Nest in the Stream: Lessons from Nature on Being with Pain (Parallax Press, 2018). Michael Kearney trained at St Christopher’s Hospice in London with Dame Cicely Saunders, pioneer of the modern hospice movement.  He later returned to his Ireland as medical director at Our Lady’s Hospice in Dublin.  In the early 2000’s he moved to North America, and now lives and works in Santa Barbara, California.  Throughout his career, Michael has been interested in whole person care and approaches that combine medical treatment with the innate healing potential of body, soul, and spirit.  He draws on depth psychology, mythology, Buddhist philosophy, indigenous wisdom and Earth-based spirituality. Diana Hill, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist practicing in Santa Barbara, California, and a co-host of the podcast Psychologists Off The Clock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

In this episode, cross-posted from the podcast Psychologists Off The Clock, Dr. Yael Schonbrun interviews Dr. Barry Schwartz, co-author (with Kenneth Sharpe) of the book Practical Wisdom: The Right Way to Do the Right Thing (Riverhead Books, 2011). Dr. Schwartz dives into a discussion of his writing on the ways that practical wisdom has been diminished in our modern society, and how to overcome these challenges and nurture your own internal wisdom. Dr. Schwartz received his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, and was a professor of psychology at Swarthmore College from 1971 until 2016; he is currently a visiting professor at UC Berkeley. Dr. Schwartz studies the intersection of psychology and economics, with a focus is on how we make decisions, develop wisdom, and why we work. His three TED talks have been viewed millions of times and he has published numerous scientific articles and popular press books. To download some of Dr. Schwartz’s scientific papers, click here. You can also link to his popular books, The Paradox of Choice (2004), Practical Wisdom (2010), and Why We Work (2015). Dr. Yael Schonbrun is a clinical psychologist in private practice, an assistant professor at Brown University, and a co-host of the podcast Psychologists Off The Clock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

In order to fully grasp the workings of racism, we cannot limit ourselves to examining it within majority cultures. Racism exists in minority cultures, such as the gay community, but the intersection of diverse minority identities can make the operation of racism difficult to see. This is the subject of Damien Riggs’ new anthology, The Psychic Life of Racism in Gay Men’s Communities (Lexington Books, 2018). The book brings together various authors who address topics such as islamophobia, orientalism, and the African diaspora within the gay community. And in our interview, Riggs and I discuss how heterogeneity within the gay community often gets overlooked; the unique ways racism manifests in the gay community compared to non-gay communities; and how desire among gay men becomes dangerously racialized. His book and this interview offer an opportunity for examining one’s unconscious and disavowed racist biases, even among those who claim other kinds of marginalized identities. Damien W. Riggs is Associate Professor in Social Work at Flinders University and an Australian Research Council Future Fellow. He is the author of over 150 publications in the fields of gender/sexuality studies and mental health. He also works in private practice as a Lacanian psychotherapist. Eugenio Duarte, Ph.D. is a psychologist and psychoanalyst practicing in New York City and Miami. He treats individuals and couples, with specialties in gender and sexuality, eating and body image problems, and relationship issues. He is a graduate of the psychoanalytic training program at William Alanson White Institute and former chair of their LGBTQ Study Group. He is also a contributing author to the book Introduction to Contemporary Psychoanalysis: Defining Terms and Building Bridges (Routledge, 2018).   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

In this this interview, cross-posted from the podcast Psychologists Off The Clock, Dr. Diana Hill interviews Dr. Russell Kolts, expert in Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) about his new workbook for therapists Experiencing Compassion-Focused Therapy from the Inside Out (The Guilford Press, 2018). In their discussion, Hill and Kolts explore the tricky human brain and compassion as “the only thing that makes sense” given the nature of our minds. Dr. Kolts describes the emotion regulation model of CFT and strategies to move from threat and drive to safeness. Russell L. Kolts, Ph.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at Eastern Washington University, where he has taught for the past eighteen years and has received numerous awards, including twice being named the Associated Student Body’s Faculty of the Year (in 2002 and 2014). An internationally-recognized trainer in Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), Kolts has authored or coauthored numerous books and scholarly articles on compassion and CFT, including CFT Made Simple, The Compassionate-Mind Guide to Managing Your Anger, and Experiencing Compassion-Focused Therapy from the Inside Out. See Dr. Kolts’ in action during his TEDx Talk, entitled “Anger, Compassion, and What it Means to be Strong.” Diana Hill, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist practicing in Santa Barbara, California, and a co-host of the podcast Psychologists Off The Clock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Treatment of addiction often focuses on abstinence or ‘harm reduction.’ While many people benefit greatly from such approaches, the underlying pain and heartache often go untreated, leaving individuals vulnerable to relapse. Focusing on the emotional undercurrents of addiction can help individuals address, once and for all, the deep-seated factors that drive them to substances in the first place. This approach is explained and elaborated by Dr. Edward Khantzian in his new book, Treating Addiction: Beyond the Pain (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018). In the book, he introduces his ‘self-medication hypothesis’ and explains what it adds to our understanding addiction relative to theories focused solely on pleasure-seeking or self-destruction. In our interview, we discuss how he arrived at this combined humanistic and psychoanalytic approach, and he offers compelling arguments to support its application. This interview will be relevant for anyone who suffers with, treats, or loves someone struggling with substance abuse and dependence. Dr. Edward Khantzian is professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and past president of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry. He is distinguished scholar, psychiatrist, and psychoanalyst, specializing in addictions for more than fifty years. Eugenio Duarte, Ph.D. is a psychologist and psychoanalyst practicing in New York City and Miami. He treats individuals and couples, with specialties in gender and sexuality, eating and body image problems, and relationship issues. He is a graduate of the psychoanalytic training program at William Alanson White Institute and former chair of their LGBTQ Study Group. He is also a contributing author to the book Introduction to Contemporary Psychoanalysis: Defining Terms and Building Bridges (2018, Routledge).   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

How do emotions affect participation in protests, and in politics more generally? In The Emotions of Protests (University of Chicago Press, 2018), James M. Jasper develops a solid critique to approaches that present political action as strictly rational and emotions as something outside the realm of strategy. Instead, Jasper speaks about feeling-thinking processes to highlight the interaction between strategic thinking and emotions, and the impact they have on participation in politics. Jasper divides emotions in five categories: reflex emotions (what we normally thinking of when we refer to emotions), urges, moods, affective commitments, and moral commitments. Through an extensive elaboration of these five concepts and the different emotions associated with each of them, Jasper builds a solid ground for the development of what he terms a ‘theory of action’. This book will stimulate sociologists and political scientists interested in social movements and protests, as well as anyone attracted by debates about rationality. Felipe G. Santos is a PhD candidate at the Central European University. His research is focused on how activists care for each other and how care practices within social movements mobilize and radicalize heavily aggrieved collectives.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

What is it really like to have a family member with serious mental illness? Sandra Allen’s unique book, A Kind of Mirraculas Paradise: A True Story about Schizophrenia (Scribner, 2018), addresses this question. In the book, a hybrid between memoir and third-person narrative, Sandra publishes excerpts from her schizophrenic uncle’s autobiography interlaced with her own narrative about her uncle and his life. This poignant combination offers readers a rare, real-life glimpse into the mind and heart of a person with schizophrenia and what it feels like to be the relative of such a person. In our interview, Sandra candidly talks about what it was like to publish her uncle’s memoir, how her conception of him evolved, and the significant lessons she learned about living with schizophrenia. This book and our interview will speak to those who deal with, or have a loved one with, serious mental illness, inspiring compassion and hope where in an area where it is often lacking. Sandra Allen is a nonfiction writer based in the Catskills and former BuzzFeed News features editor. Her essays and features stories have been published by BuzzFeed News, CNN Opinion, and Pop-Up Magazine. She also founded and ran the online-only literary quarterly Wag’s Revue. Her work focuses on the past, present, and future of mental healthcare in America and on constructs of normalcy, including psychiatric disability and gender. Eugenio Duarte, Ph.D. is a psychologist and psychoanalyst practicing in New York City and Miami. He treats individuals and couples, with specialties in gender and sexuality, eating and body image problems, and relationship issues. He is a graduate of the psychoanalytic training program at William Alanson White Institute, where he chairs their monthly LGBTQ Study Group. He is also a contributing author to the book Introduction to Contemporary Psychoanalysis: Defining Terms and Building Bridges (2018, Routledge).   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology