Who am I? The 16 Basic Desires that Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities [Paperback]

Steven Reiss (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 5, 2002

What do we want? What makes us tick? From acceptance to vengeance to curiosity, this book explains the 16 basic and universal desires that shape our behavior—and shows how the ways we prioritize them determines our personalities. Grounded in up-to-date psychological research, this book can help

parents comprehend their children’s needs and behavior couples understand each other better employers motivate their employees employees become more effective in their work YOU achieve greater satisfaction and happiness in life

Editorial Reviews

Review

“In [this] ground-breaking book, Steven Reiss opens a window into what drives our emotions, how they affect our behavior toward those around us, and most significant, how we might use this information to improve our self-image and our relations with others.”—Gerald Schroeder, Ph.D., author of Genesis and the Big Bang and The Science of God

“Rather than consult astrological charts or take quizzes in magazines, read Who Am I? for an authoritative, research-based understanding of why we do the things we do.”—Ellen Langer, Ph.D., author of Mindfulness and The Power of Mindful Living

“Readers…will [better understand] their motivational styles—and have a lot of fun doing so.”—Edward Zigler, Sterling Professor of Psychology, Yale University

“Using a wealth of everyday examples, Steven Reiss offers…insight into such matters as why some interpersonal relationships are enduringly satisfying, and others are not. His theory of motivation illuminates the important questions in our lives.”—Richard J. McNally, Professor of Psychology, Harvard University

“Reiss shows us how to identify our own pattern of desires and how to compare and contrast the patterns in our relationships. The applications of this scientific extension of Maslow’s hierarchy extend beyond the personal: Reiss’ system can improve our working relationships and enhance our professional lives.”—Ruth Luckasson, J.D., Regents’ Professor and Professor of Special Education, University of New Mexico

“An ‘outside the box’ approach to understanding individual behavior. Reiss clearly explains the sixteen basic desires, and shows how to easily plot one’s own ‘desire profile.’ Readers of Who Am I? will gain valuable insight into their motivational styles—and have a lot of fun doing so.”—Edward Zigler, Sterling Professor of Psychology, Yale University

“Steven Reiss provides an exciting new way to think about ourselves.”—Ellen Langer, Ph.D., author of Mindfulness and The Power of Mindful Learning

“Well explained in lay readers’ terms.”—Library Journal

About the Author

Steven Reiss, Ph.D., is a professor of psychology and psychiatry at Ohio State University, as well as the director of the Nisonger Center for Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. His internationally acclaimed, influential research has been translated into more than a dozen languages and widely adopted by professionals and educators. Dr. Reiss lives in Columbus.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (March 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425183408
• ISBN-13: 978-0425183403
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #301,652 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading, but repetitive, May 3, 2004

By 

Alan Nicoll (real name) (Lake of the Woods, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Who am I? The 16 Basic Desires that Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities (Paperback)

I have read many books about self help, psychology, and human behavior, and I believe I learned more from this one than from any other book. Reiss's theory is that all human beings are motivated by sixteen basic desires, and your personal prescription for happiness depends on the relative strengths of these desires. He argues that these desires are genetically determined. I believe that the science behind the "Reiss Profile" is sound, unlike the many other similar books that claim to tell you about yourself. The theory of personality originated with William James; Reiss has extended this work and in this book makes his important findings available to the general reader.

My only complaint about this book is that it is very wordy, which is so absolutely typical of self-help books. He presents the theory concisely and clearly, then goes on to apply the theory to many different areas of human behavior. This seems excessively detailed and it makes for tiresome reading, so I skimmed much of the second half of the book. At times the book approaches a catalog in unreadability.

By all means get the book and answer the questions to determine your own desire profile. I believe you will learn more about yourself, more quickly, than you have ever done before.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not such a bad book., August 6, 2009

By 

J. Lyons "James L." (Davis, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Who am I? The 16 Basic Desires that Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities (Paperback)

For those of us unlucky enough to have read various MA Theses or Ph.D Dissertations, the construction of Reiss' book will appear eerily familiar. The book is long-winded and repetitive with little room spent on introspection or variety. The basis of the book is that we are genetically programed to prefer certain values over others,e.g., romance over conservation, status over honor, etc. Our individuality is made up of the combination of things we highly value as well as those we don't. While I enjoyed reading about the basic desires, I found it silly and sophomoric to deny how life's experience affect somebody's personality. After all, no matter how social somebody may "genetically" be, a long history of child abuse will no doubt curb many of the behaviors associated with social people.

Dr. Reiss presents an evolutionary psychological perspective that I found to be more distracting than illuminating. However, that being said, the concept that a person's life is judged by the satisfaction of values close to an individual was something that I enjoyed reading. The book functions well as a quick character study. These are the major flaws as I see it.

1. Repetitive with unimaginative writing.
2. Reiss subjects each "value" to his criticism. Some traits are given moral equivalency,e.g., a high desire for honor implies that somebody is moral (example given: soldier), somebody with a low desire for honor is immoral(example given: bank robber). Under Reiss' definition, a value of honor was defined by upholding ethnic, religious, and traditional duties. The concept of putting morality to the values is my greatest criticism.
3. One very important value: Family, is absolutely off limits to those without children. Family was defined as how important it is to you that you raise children. However for people without children there was no way to "record" our family rating as without children the Family value was moot.


Overall the book is a nice read but not worth a buy.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A useful exercise for understanding teammates., August 27, 2003

By 

Michael Chiodi "author, The Art of Building P... (St. Paul, MN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Who am I? The 16 Basic Desires that Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities (Paperback)

Give Dr. Reiss a chance, and he will tune you in to what really turns you on. We each have a distinctive motivational profile, but this book is really about relationships. Learning about what motivates others, and how they differ from us, goes a long way towards building better relationships -- regardless, of whether we're working as part a team or trying to understand our own family. I recommend this book to everyone I can. I also use it in my professional business coaching practice as a tool to help team members know each other better.