The Dependent Personality [Hardcover]

Bornstein. (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0898629918 | ISBN-13: 978-0898629910 | Publication Date: April 30, 1993 | Edition: 1

This volume fills a significant gap in the literature by presenting a comprehensive and detailed review of what is known about the antecedents, correlates, and consequences of dependency.

The volume opens with a review of theoretical frameworks that have influenced previous research on dependency. An overview and critique of commonly used assessment techniques contrasts the strengths and weaknesses of objective, projective, behavioral and interview-based dependency scales. Chapters covering etiology deal with the development of dependency at various stages of the life cycle and allow for comparison of the predictive validities of two important theoretical frameworks: the psychoanalytic and social learning models. Social and interpersonal consequences are considered, with attention to both the person's behavior and its effect on others. The chapter on psychopathological dependency thoroughly covers the enormous amount of research on this subject. Dependent personality disorder is next addressed, as well as the relationship of dependency to risk for physical disorders, followed by a discussion of dependent individuals as psychiatric and medical patients. In the concluding chapter, Bornstein presents a new theoretical model, expanding on the traditional view of dependency as a deficit to encompass the positive, adaptive qualities of dependent individuals as well.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An admirably comprehensive, probing, and clear review of the research literature on individual differences in dependency. Besides demonstrating that the literature is surprisingly coherent and that it converges on important insights into human social behavior, Bornstein's thoughtful review of more than 700 sources proves that behavioral science research can, in the right hands, be made to yield conclusions of deep and lasting significance. The book will be of great interest and value to personality theorists, researchers, methodologists, and clinicians." --Phillip R. Shaver, Ph.D., University of California, Davis

"Wonderfully clear, integrative and critical research review from diverse fields of psychology. Integrates findings with theory. Should be valuable to anyone interested in this important dimension of personality. I gained renewed appreciation of the dependent personality, and I'm sure other researchers and clinicians, as well as their graduate students, will find this book of value." --Harold Cook, Ph.D., Teachers College, Columbia University; President of the Psychoanalytic Research Society

"A landmark integration of extensive theoretical, clinical and research literature on the etiology and development, as well as the clinical, social, and interpersonal consequences of dependency. A major contribution demonstrating how the concept of personality or character style offers an integrative theoretical structure for linking normal and pathological psychological development." --Sidney J. Blatt, Ph.D., Yale University

About the Author

Robert F. Bornstein received his doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1986. He is currently Associate Professor of Psychology at Gettysburg College. Dr. Bornstein has published numerous articles on perception without awareness, as well as on the antecedents, dynamics, and correlates of dependent personality traits. He is the author of The Dependent Personality, a comprehensive review of the empirical literature on dependency, which will be published by Guilford Press in 1993.**

Product Details

• Hardcover: 241 pages
• Publisher: Guilford Press; 1 edition (April 30, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898629918
• ISBN-13: 978-0898629910
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,173,902 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert F. Bornstein received his PhD in Clinical Psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1986, completed an internship at the Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse, NY, and is Professor of Psychology at Adelphi University. Dr. Bornstein has published more than 150 articles and book chapters on personality dynamics, diagnosis, and treatment. His research has been funded by grants from the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Science Foundation, and he received the American Psychological Association's 2005 Theodore Millon Award for Excellence in Personality Research.

Mary A. Languirand received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1987, and completed an internship in clinical geropsychology at the R. H. Hutchings Psychiatric Center in Syracuse, NY. Dr. Languirand is coauthor of The Thinking Skills Workbook (Charles C. Thomas, 1980, 1984, 2000), a treatment manual for cognitive remediation in older adults. She now practices full-time in Long Island, NY, providing clinical services to individuals and families, and consulting to multidisciplinary professional teams in skilled nursing facilities.

The authors are married and live in Westbury, NY. They are also the authors of Healthy Dependency: Leaning on Others Without Losing Yourself (Newmarket Press, 2003).