Customer Reviews

Hope in the Age of Anxiety

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To be honest, I thought this book started out a little slow, but I was soon pleased by a series of nice surprises. Focusing on hope and its correlates (including faith, spirituality, and values), the authors tap a very wide variety of resources (including literature, films, philosophy, music, anthropology, psychology, sociology, and religion). Fundamentals of a variety of belief systems are artfully woven throughout the book, including but not limited to Christianity, Buddhism, African, Australian aboriginal tribes, Aztec, and Native American beliefs. Their definition of hope includes a four-channel emotional network of mastery, attachment, survival, and spiritual subsystems. Fairly heavy reading at times, this book is not a simplistic self-help book, although self-help recommendations are among the pleasant surprises that keep appearing. There is a prolonged and interesting discussion of the development of a sense of hope, faith and spirituality, as well as a chapter dealing with promoting hope in children. The authors discuss "eight centers of value" (Higher Power, nature, social customs, economics, diversity and equality, science, the self, and others). There is also a discussion of "spiritual types" (follower, collaborator, independent, mystic, reformer, and sufferer), and there is a brief assessment (18 items) of the types. This is one of few books I've encountered that speaks directly to the importance of "time mastery" (optimal use of the time available to me). The book concludes with two chapters related to the links between hope and medicine/health. As I noted above, fairly heavy reading at times, but well worth it for a balanced and positive multivariate perspective concerning hope.

From Library Journal - (Listed among Best Consumer Health Books of 2009)

Clinical psychologists Scioli and Biller take an interdisciplinary approach to hope, addressing its cultural, spiritual, social, and psychological components. Also presented are meditation exercises and self-assessment tools that allow readers to take control of their spiritual well-being. Much more than a self-help book.

This book is saved from being another one-dimensional self-help book by its multidisciplinary approach and basis in scientific research. Neither overly scientific nor overly general, this is an excellent choice for readers looking to take control of their spiritual well-being... this book will inspire, educate, and encourage those suffering from chronic illness, a troubled past, or general anxiety and hopelessness.--Melissa Mallon, Univ. of Pittsburgh Johnstown, Johnstown, PA

Choice Review, Editor's Pick for January 2010

The 2008 US presidential race focused on the issue of hope in a way not seen before. Given the dangers and threats in the news, one should not be surprised that an interest in finding, developing, and sustaining hope might arise. Hope implies a belief in things unseen, and although unseen things by definition remain unseen, belief in such things can be studied. Scioli (Keene State College) and Biller (Univ. of Rhode Island) have blended scientific discoveries with insights from art, literature, and classic wisdom to provide a book about understanding and using hope. Early chapters explore the biological, psychological, philosophical, medical, and cultural perspectives of how one experiences hope and how motives for mastery, attachment, and survival can be combined in different ways to create various conceptualizations of hope. Explorations of the evolution of religious understandings of hope and the life-span development of spiritual understanding and faith illustrate the multidimensional nature of hope. In the second part of the book, the authors look at practical benefits of adopting a hope-centered way of life. They examine the skills necessary to cultivate a hope-centered life in order to show how the individual can become, and can assist others in becoming, more empowered, connected, and secure. Summing Up: Highly recommended for all readers. -- R. B. Stewart Jr., Oakland University

It perhaps is an understatement to say that our lives are suffused with hope. We hope our next interview will land us a job; we hope our children will do well in school; we hope the lump we discover isn't what we fear it may be. It's hard to go through a single day in which we don't hope for one thing or another.

But what is hope? Is it merely a convenient way of describing an optimistic outlook on life or perhaps a spiritual inclination shared by the world's religions? Is it just a word publishers use to promote self-help books? Perhaps hope is nothing more than a poetic metaphor or, in the words of Emily Dickinson, "the thing with feathers....that perches in the soul."

Scioli and Biller set out to explore the deeper meaning of hope by delving into its philosophic, spiritual and developmental roots. It is an ambitious undertaking but they are up to the task and have produced a masterful work that illuminates the various ways hope operates in our day-to-day lives. As a child psychologist I was particularly drawn to the concept of childhood "hope providers" and the role parents play in providing children with a life stratagem in which hope plays a prominent role. The chapters on Help and Healing and Hope and Wellness are in themselves worth the price of the book and more insightful than any stack of self-help tracts one comes across in book stores. If you wish(hope?)to discover the part that hope plays in your life, I can think of no better guide to point the way than Scioli and Biller's book.

Sheldon Cashdan, Ph.D.

Hope in an Age of Anxiety is a major scholarly achievement. Scioli and Biller have carefully examined an immense range of literature on the nature of hope and hoping, from traditional philosophical, religious and psychological sources to the most contemporary psychological theories and studies, and have pulled it all together into a powerful, comprehensive theory, from which they also draw down-to-earth practical implications and suggestions. Especially illuminating for me were their tripartate theory of human motivation, which serves as a foundation for the book, and the astute discussions of the relation of hope to both fear and despair, though many other topics are also covered with similar insight and authority. Initially, I found portions of the book tough going, somewhat pedestrian, and even simple-minded (though this was a misjudgment); I had to read it twice to fully grasp and appreciate its depth, unity, and overall accomplishment. But it was well worth the effort, and I would highly recommend it to anyone with a serious interest in this important topic. Hope in an Age of Anxiety should shape thinking about hope, one way or another, for many years. It deserves a wide and careful reading. Rodney Hunter, Professor Emeritus of Pastoral Theology, Emory University.