Attachment in Adults: Clinical and Developmental Perspectives [Hardcover]

Michael B. Sperling (Author), William H. Berman (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0898625475 | ISBN-13: 978-0898625479 | Publication Date: April 29, 1994 | Edition: 1

Reflecting the emerging understanding of the significance of attachment in adult life, contributions in this volume cover recent research on the fundamentals of human life, including courtship and marriage; the determinants of resilience and of depression; and the vulnerability of some to suicidal ideation and action. Together, these chapters illuminate the contribution of early and current attachment to psychopathology in adults, the application of research findings to therapeutic interventions, and the physiological substructure of attachment in adults and children. This book will be of value to psychologists, psychotherapists, psychotherapy researchers, and other mental health practitioners working with adult attachment issues.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Attachment theory is a very hot topic now, with application to developmental psychology, social/personality psychology, clinical psychology, and relationships research. The editors have collected some of the best thinkers and researchers on the topic and they present an outstanding group of examples of the range and application of the attachment approach. This is a book that, because of its life-span approach, will have something for everyone interested in the social side of human experience." --Steve Duck, Ph.D., University of Iowa

"The editors have done an impressive job. This book is a wide-ranging and provocative volume that extends various facets of attachment theory and research to adult relationships and psychotherapy. Especially valuable is the integration of Bowlby's theorizing on loss into a deeper understanding of insecure attachment and therapeutic change." --Inge Bretherton, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison

"This is a wonderfully diverse and substantive set of papers on a topic of tremendous interest to clinicians and developmentalists alike. The range, quality and depth of the papers is exceptional; this text will be required reading for anyone interested in understanding both normal and pathological patterns of adult attachment. A broad, sophisticated examination of questions intrinsic to adult attachment theory has been much needed and will be much welcomed." --Arietta Slade, Ph.D., City College and Graduate Center of the City University of New York

"This book is on the cutting-edge of information about attachment. Although the book's aim is to explicate aspects of adult attachment many papers, and especially the first comprehensive summary chapter, details aspects of infant and child attachment as well. It is a thoroughgoing presentation of data available on the attachment system from infancy through adulthood....Like attachment research itself, the editors undertake an ambitious assignment to extend this research to adolescence, adulthood, aging, as well as to investigate the relationship between attachment classifications and psychopathology. This book admirably achieves its goal....This book is interesting to read, highly informative, and essential for those interested in a developmental perspective." --Doris K. Silverman, PhD, New York University

About the Author

Michael B. Sperling, PhD, is Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychology at Fairleigh Dickinson University. Dr. Sperling has published and presented extensively in the areas of adult attachment, mental representation, and love relationships. He maintains a private practice in clinical psychology.
William H. Berman, PhD, is a licensed psychologist and Associate Professor of Psychology at Fordham University. An active researcher, clinician, and teacher, Dr. Berman has studied adult attachment, personality, and psychotherapy outcomes. He is coauthor of Psychotherapy in Managed Health Care and Therapeutic Change: An Object Relations Perspective.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 360 pages
• Publisher: Guilford Press; 1 edition (April 29, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898625475
• ISBN-13: 978-0898625479
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,584,311 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)