Home > Bookstore & Bibliography

Bookstore & Bibliography

In this bookstore section, you will find a list of writings and publications important to the self psychology community. You will also find links to the sites where you can purchase the books of your interest.

A thematically orgaized bibliography created by Jill R. Gardner is available here.

*Get the Details on IAPSP Member Discounts:
Routledge
Mental Health Resources
Journal Bloc Subscriptions

Forms of Intersubjectivity in Infant Research and Adult Treatment
by Beatrice Beebe, Steven Knoblauch, Judith Rustin and Dorienne Sorter
With new discussions by Theodore Jacobs and Regina Pally
Purchase from Other Press, publisher

Adult psychoanalysis has approached the study of intersubjectivity by concentrating primarily on the verbal dialogue, an explicit mode of communication. Infant research, on the other hand, focuses on nonverbal communication and implicit modes of action sequences, operating largely out of awareness, such as interactions of gaze, facial expression, and body rhythms. This book proposes that an integration of these two approcahes is essential to a deeper understanding of the theraputic action.

The authors use a dyadic systems model of self- and interactive regulation as a lens for compariing diverse theories of intersubjectivity, both in adults and infants. Building on the definition of intersubjectivity in infancy as correspondence and matching of expressions, the authors offer an expanded view of the presymbolic origins of intersubjectivity. They address the place of interactive regulation, problems with the concept of matching, the roles of self-regulation and of difference, and the balance of self- and interactive regulation. An adult treatment of early trauma is described through detailed clinical case material illustrating both the verbal narrative and the implicit "action dialogue" ooperating largely outside of awareness.

This book inlucdes new discussions by Theodore Jacobs, arguing that nonverbal communication is vitally important to psychanalysis, and by Regina Pally, arguing that aspects of this book have parallels in neuroscience.

Making Sense Together: The Intersubjective Approach to Psychotherapy
by Peter Buirski and Pamela Haglund
Purchase from Jason Aronson, Publisher
or Purchase from Amazon.com.

As in raising children, in which each unique parent and child pair emerges from the ongoing, mutually influencing relationship, so it is with therapists and patients. Peter Buirski and Pamela Haglund argue that intersubjectivity is founded on two assumptions: First, our moment-by-moment experience of ourselves and the world emerges within a dynamic, fluid context of others; and, second, that we can never observe things as they exist in isolation.

It follows, then, that therapy is not a search for some objective truth, but what is most helpful is the quality of the relationship constructed in therapy, the personal engagement of patient and therapist. Practicing intersubjectively produces an understanding and appreciation of process. Time pressures or goal-directedness do not promote unfolding and illuminating.

Patients are striving for health, attempting to correct disappointing, destructive, or traumatizing experiences with their original caregivers, and long for an antidote to ward off such painful affects as shame or self-loathing. From the intersubjective perspective, resistance, or attempts to thwart the therapist's efforts, may be seen as healthy striving for self-protection. Demonstrating these points with vivid clinical examples, Buirski and Haglund discuss the key aspects of the relational model and offer clear and practical guidelines for therapists.

Practicing Intersubjectively
by Peter Buirski
Purchase from Jason Aronson, Publisher
or Purchase from Amazon.com.

Practicing Intersubjectively describes how the intersubjective systems perspective informs, shapes and guides the psychotherapeutic process. Using extensive clinical case material, Buirski illustrates the way an intersubjective systems sensibility informs and enriches clinical practice. The intersubjective systems perspective views each treatment as exquisitely context sensitive. This means that the person who comes for therapy would present differently to different therapists and the two of them would construct different processes. Therapists themselves are not interchangeable, and the intersubjective field that the two participants create together would be quite different from the field created by any other pair. Practicing Intersubjectively, with the focus on attuning and articulating to the contextual construction of personal worlds of experience enables a different therapy process to unfold than occurs in traditional 1-person, authority based treatment approaches and is uniquely suited to working with people from diverse cultural backgrounds and those suffering from such challenging concerns as trauma and prejudice.

Misunderstanding Freud
by Arnold Goldberg, MD
Purchase from Other Press, Publisher.

This book is a self psychologist's view of the disparate schools of psychoanalysis. It makes a claim for the centrality of interpretation as a vehicle for transforming our ubiquitous misunderstandings of each other into psychoanalytic understanding. The chapters range from a discussion of neurobiology to a comparison of Heinz Kohut and Martin Heidigger. In its effort to undo the dualisms that infect psychoanalysis such as man vs. brain, subject vs. object, etc., it makes a claim for a postmodern freedom for the field of analysis.

Please note: the following book is in Italian
Heinz Kohut, Introspezione ed empatia. Raccolta di scritti (1959-1981)
A cura di Anna Carusi
(Heinz Kohut, Introspection and Empathy. Collected writings 1959-1981
edited by Anna Carusi)
Purchase from Bollati Boringhieri, Publisher.

This book is a collection of the most important writings on empathy by Heinz Kohut. It is a very valuable guide to better understand Kohut's view on empathy and his progressive clarification of its methodological importance and of its clinical use.

The editor, who has verified the importance of empathy in her own personal analytic experience, has written an extensive introduction that shows how Kohut has developed a discussion on empathy that took place in Europe since the beginning of the Twentieth Century. The editor illutrates Kohut's role in the mainstream of psychoanalysis in the U.S., and underlines the most relevant aspects of Kohut's empathy.

An English unpublished copy of this book is available under request. For further information about the English version, please email Anna Carusi.

Transforming Aggression: Psychotherapy of the Difficult-to-Treat Patient
by Frank Lachmann, PhD
Purchase from Rowman Littlefield.

Dr. Lachmann distinguishes between reactive and eruptive aggression. Reactive aggression, such as outrage, antagonistic outbursts, and cold withdrawal, refers to a range of responses to frustration, deprivation, or injured self esteem. However, aggression may erupt blatantly and apparently spontaneously as illustrated at the extreme in the actions of murderers and serial killers. On a more modest scale, the transformation of eruptive aggression is considered as to its transformation in the course of psychotherapy, as well as in life. Through detailed illustrations drawn from clinical work these transformations are discussed.

How To Bounce Back When You Think You Can't: The P.R.I.D.E. Factor - For Adults, Parents, Teachers and All Those Who Care for Children (or For The Child Within Themselves)
by Carol Ann Munschauer, Ph.D. and Dave Hood
Purchase from Authorhouse.com.

"In this deeply moving book Carol Munschauer and Dave Hood nudge contemporary psychoanalytic research out of the consulting room and gently transform it into a parental sensibility that not only fosters children's unique growth and development, but also infuses us with innovative ways to revitalize our lives in the face of obstacles, tragedy, and the bumps and bruises of everyday life. Far from being another pop psychology book, the authors introduce novel and elegant metaphors that allow us to see, hear, and experience our children's and our own actions and thoughts through new and expanding lenses - creatively, empathetically, and humanely. Munschauer and Hood write eloquently and their everyday case histories, as well as their own histories, resonate with our deepest life concerns. It is the only book of its kind that imbues life with optimism, hope and renewal while being solidly rooted in sound clinical theory."
-Richard Geist, Ed. D., Faculty, Massachusetts Institute for Psychoanalysis and Harvard Medical School

My Mother's Eyes: Holocaust Memories of a Young Girl
by Anna Ornstein, with art by Stewart Goldman
Purchase from Emmis Books.

Auschwitz survivor Anna Ornstein recalls the tragedies of the Holocaust - and the small moments of grace that gave her the strength to endure - in My Mother's Eyes, a triumphant testament to the human spirit.

After immigrating to the U.S. as a young woman, Anna seldom spoke of the horrors she had experienced during the war. In time, as her family blossomed and grandchildren filled her home for the holidays, her daughter asked her to share some of her painful Holocaust memories as part of a Seder gathering. Over the course of the next 25 years, Anna added to this annual Passover tradition with another deeply personal recollection each year. The result, My Mother's Eyes, is the moving account of how one woman survived - against all odds - with the fullness of her love, dreams and ambitions intact.

Award-winning artist Stewart Goldman paired his powerful images with Anna's moving words to create a limited-edition gallery work, From Slavery to Deliverance. Available now for the first time as a book, My Mother's Eyes bears witness to the faith, courage and tenacity of the human spirit.

Dr. Anna Ornstein is an Auschwitz survivor, professor of child psychiatriatry at Harvard University, and professor emeritus of child psychology at the University of Cincinnati. She lives in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Stewart Goldman is an award-winning artist and teacher of international renown. His work has been exhibited throughout the United States, the Ukraine and Germany for over four decades. He retired from the Art Academy of Cincinnati in 2001, where he was a professor of painting. Born and educated in Philadelphia, Stewart has lived in Cincinnati since 1968.

The Dancing Self: Creativity, Modern Dance, Self Psychology and Transformative Education
by Carol M. Press, Ed.D.
Purchase from Carol Press's website.
Published by Hampton Press, 2002.

"In The Dancing Self Dr. Press eloquently describes how the choreographer/dancer engages the physical world (time, space, substance) to intertwine subjectivity and objectivity in a mutually transformative process. Her insights into the self-restorative function of art are profound and she illustrates her thesis with a vivid analysis of the life of one of our finest choreographers, Paul Taylor. The Dancing Self is one of the best analytic works on creativity which I have read in recent years. Dancers will learn much about the psychology of their craft. Therapists will gain an appreciation of the power of the body and spirit in the life of the self."
-George Hagman, LCSW. Faculty of the National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis and the Training and Research Institute for Self Psychology, New York City

Heinz Kohut and the Psychology of the Self
by Allen Siegel
Purchase from Amazon.com.
Published by Routledge, 1996.

Heinz Kohut's work represents an important departure from the Freudian tradition of psychoanalysis. As one of the founders of the 'self psychology' movement in America, he had an instrumental role in one of the most important developments in psychoanalysis since Freud. Based his practice on the belief that narcissistic vulnerabilities play a significant part in the suffering that brings people for treatment, Kohut evolved an understanding of the theraputic setting, applicable to both psychotherapy and psychoanalysis. However, as Kohut's works were written predominantly for a psychoanalytic audience, they are often difficult to interpret. Proposing that in order to grasp fully the evolution of Kohut's ideas, one must know something about the man and the milieu in which he lived, Dr. Allen Siegel incorporates biographical detail from Kohut's life to aid in the understanding his works. Also included are examples from Siegel's own practice, illustrating ways in which Kohut's innovative theories can be applied to other forms of treatment.

The Narcissism of Empire: Loss Rage and Revenge in Thomas De Quincey, Robert Louis Stevenson, Arthur Conan Doyle, Rudyard Kipling and Isak Dinesen
by Diane Simmons
Purchase from Sussex Academic Press.
Published by Sussex Academic Press, 2006.

Widely read in the age of British imperialism and still popular today, the five writers studied here have allowed millions to participate vicariously in the imperial project. Yet all of these writers, so instrumental in popularizing the imperial agenda of power and dominance, bore deep emotional scars and as adults bolstered their fragile psychic states through fantasies of empire. While soldiers and politicians may know to bury or at least camouflage their fears and desires, inner fantasy is the necessary ingredient of literature, and popular fiction often offers the opportunity to probe the mind of an age.

The connection between childhood loss and the desire for imperial escape, power and dominance is illuminated by De Quincey's mad screeds against the Chinese as both terrifyingly powerful and laughably weak, while Stevenson's romances, though written from an invalid's bed, are credited with "selling" the idea of empire as manly adventure. Conan Doyle's tales of a Britain menaced at home by imperial blowback are models of Great Power paranoia that resonate today, and Kipling's stories of imperial Britain grow increasingly grandiose as childhood's psychic wounds are re-opened. Finally, Dinesen portrays plantation life in British East Africa as a gentle romance in which displaced African "squatters" serve as loyal and adoring retainers, providing the aristocratic aura for which the author yearns. It is sometimes said that, "Love's loss is empire's gain," and for these writers, Simmons shows, empire presented a magnificent opportunity to compensate for childhood calamity.

Trauma and Human Existence: Autobiographical, Psychoanalytic, and Philosophical Reflections
by Robert D. Stolorow
Purchase from Amazon.Com.

Trauma and Human Existence interweaves two themes central to emotional trauma: The first pertains to the contextuality of emotional life in general and of the experience of emotional trauma in particular. The second pertains to the recognition that the possibility of emotional trauma is built into the basic constitution of human existence. This volume traces how the two themes interconnect. Whether or not this constitutive possibility will be brought lastingly into the foreground of our experiential world depends on the relational contexts in which we live. Taken as a whole, the book exhibits the unity of the deeply personal, the theoretical, and the philosophical in the understanding of emotional trauma and the place it occupies in human existence.

"In his new book, Trauma and Human Existence: Autobiographical, Psychoanalytic, and Philosophical Reflections, Robert Stolorow has accomplished a minor miracle, presenting for the reader a theoretically complex, philosophically strong, and yet almost unbearably sad and humane understanding of traumatic experience. The book is short, thoroughly engaging, and highly personal. It successfully portrays the overwhelming, all-encompassing, and ever-enduring effects of tragic loss, using the premature death of his young wife some sixteen years ago to illustrate how the event forever colors his own experience. The poignant nature of his deeply personal subject does not detract from the theoretical and philosophic basis of Stolorow's explanation, but, rather, renders it all the more powerful and comprehensible. Anyone reading this book must take away from it not only a heightened appreciation for the uses of philosophical-psychoanalytic investigation and integration, but as important, a greater understanding of one's own private life in which traumatic loss surely plays its central organizing role."
-Estelle Shane, Ph.D., President-Elect, International Association for Psychoanalytic Self Psychology

Worlds of Experience: Interweaving Philosophical and Clinical Dimensions in Psychoanalysis
by R. D. Stolorow, G. E. Atwood, & D. M. Orange
Purchase from Amazon.Com.

Building on their vision of interweaving worlds of experience, the authors decisively challenge the long-accepted Cartesian doctrine of the isolated mind and move toward a fully contextual psychoanalysis that recognizes the role of relatedness in the making of all experience. The profound theoretical and therapeutic implications of this philosophical shift are amply illuminated with respect to such important clinical phenomena as unconscious processes, psychological trauma, and experiences of personal annihilation.

"A remarkable achievement... WORLDS OF EXPERIENCE bridges the wide gap between creative developments in contemporary philosophy and psychoanalysis. But even more important for the practicing analyst is the way that this book raises our consciousness of the significance of affects, context, and perspective in the intersubjective systems in which patient and analyst - in fact, all of us - live."
-Joseph Lichtenberg, M.D., Editor-in-Chief, Psychoanalytic Inquiry

Heinz Kohut: The Making of a Psychoanalyst
by Charles B. Strozier
Purchase from Amazon.Com.
Published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2001, and a revised paperback edition from Other Press, 2003.

Charles B. Strozier was awarded The Goethe Award for Psychoanalytic Scholarship for his study, Heinz Kohut: The Making of a Psychoanalyst. The Goethe Award is given by the Section on Psychoanalysis of the Canadian Psychological Association for the best book in any disciplinary or interdisciplinary subject matter in theoretical, clinical, or applied psychoanalysis and is judged on the basis of providing an outstanding contribution to the field. The competition for the Goethe Award was open to national and international candidates and selected by a refereed committee.