Customer Reviews

I Shop Therefore I Am: Compulsive Buying and the Search for Self

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is, at best, mediocre and I agree with the reviewer who said it costs too much. A well-written, well-chosen, well-edited series of essays on overshopping would have been worth the price. Not this relatively simplistic analysis.

For example, we hear (over and over and over) that people who shop compulsively do so to avoid emotional pain in their lives: they shop to manage feelings. I do believe I grasped that by about the 5th repetition. This obvious point is repeated again and again and again in different essays, which means that there was a mind-numbing sameness to many of them.

And a really good psychology book shouldn't do that. One essay, two at the most, to make the basic points - then on to something more substantive. For example, is childhood sexual assault an important variable in overshopping? What about physical abuse? What about child neglect, or present-day illness or disability? I didn't see any of that addressed.

Secondly, there is no consideration of what to do when overshoppers have other very serious mental health problems - even though it is stated that other problems, such as overeating, often coexist. It seems to me that the priorities in this case would be as follows:

1 - don't commit suicide; 2 - stay out of the hospital; 3 - avoid mania and depression and other extreme moods that cause immediate and serious crises; 4 - get enough sleep; 5 - avoid alcohol and other drugs; 6 - make sure you have a stable, violence free place to live; 7 - fill the day with structured activities, work if possible - the order I put things in might be questioned, but the fact that all of these things are more important than stopping overshopping is not.

The essay on clothes is particularly poor. It is stated too many times that "clothes reveal as much as they conceal." first of all, I got that after the 2nd time. secondly, in many parts of the world, this is demonstrably untrue. women wear the chador and it is designed to be as ugly and unrevealing as possible. I have heard that underneath it, women often dress up to impress each other, but in public they are to be concealed. similar points might be made about nun's habits and the head coverings that married European women wore in the Middle Ages.

so the treatment of clothes was very, very simple, and very much focused on current times and Western sensibilities, making me wonder why it was written. What is considered appropriate wear for women has changed dramatically over the past 200 years. Are women from religious families more or less likely to buy clothes compulsively, or does it not matter? How does the "obesity epidemic" affect clothes buying? (other than the obvious - that people need larger sizes. are overweight people more or less likely to buy clothes compulsively?

Finally, I did not care much for the conclusions, which involved praising simplicity circles and debtor's anonymous. it seems to me that compulsive shoppers probably tend to be people who need to get in touch with and manage their own feelings (see above), and so telling them what to do seems counterproductive. Of course basic financial information needs to be imparted, but TELLING clients how to find meaning in their lives seems the opposite of what a good therapist should be doing. Letting clients discover it for themselves, which may have nothing to do with a simplicity circle, seems a lot better.

I think this is recommended only for therapists who need basic information, because IMO you won't get much more than that here.

[...]

I Shop, Therefore I Am is a Shopping Bag filled with a veritable cornucopia of well-made and carefully placed articles. Exploring the contents of this book-bag takes the reader into its deepest depths, as if into the "fabric" of the bag itself wherein lies the previously taboo realm of compulsive buying, spending, and shopping. For this reason alone the book is singularly important and a "must read" for interested persons from a wide range of perspectives.

I Shop, Therefore I Am is at once thought provoking and behavior challenging. Being part introduction, part overview, and part anthology, the book nonetheless unpacks its material with purposeful movement and in clear and readable language. Indeed, the more one reads, the more one wants to read! Each chapter contains compelling insights, all of which are brilliantly woven together into a single piece in editor April Lane Benson's own concluding essay. Nuances of definition are revealed as writers from behavioral, biological, psychological, social and spiritual disciplines present their understandings of the scope and nature of problems related to money-use, as well as assessment and treatment options.

But Benson does not leave us consumed by the bag! Quite the contrary-in noting that the exchange of money for goods and services can be done as "conscious shopping" she suggests that shopping can be about the "process of search...about being" rather than having or buying. She thus leaves the reader searching for the next book-bag(s?) of goodies, in which one might hope to find essays attending to issues of culture, ethnicity, socio-economic status and downward mobility in relation to "shopping gone bad", as well as a fuller exposition of the reparative use of shopping, or "shopping gone good."

When all is said and done, however, I guarantee - after reading this book you will never shop the same way again!

This book is packed with more clinical information than any self help book. Not that it doesn't have a fair amount of personal stories to tell. The price is high but it is apparent that it is because of the research that went into the writing. If you really wish to use your brain to get a handle on shopping problems of any level ...read this book and think about its contents.............

this book is really long, and it is overpriced. I think you need to be a psycologist to understand a lot of the verbage used. Very boring. I am disappointed that I purchased it, that alone made me realize that I am a shopaholic.

I Shop Therefore I Am: Compulsive Buying and the Search For Self
By Dr. April Lane Benson, editor
Jason Aronson Inc. 2000
Book Review by Dr. Bonnie Kellen
Dr. Benson was a pioneer in the field of eating disorders, cofounding one of the first clinics and training centers. In this must read collection she again leads the way in tackling the burgeoning epidemic of compulsive shopping and money disorders in general. In fact anyone interested in the psychological issues of money will find this book fascinating.
We all have clients and acquaintances who have problems with shopping, buying and debting but many of us are ill equipped to address these problems because we are not educated in this area. Dr. Benson has gathered the leaders in the field and in her fastidious quest for quality has created an excellent and most readable reference book for all.
The first section gives an overview of the field with such topics as When money is the drug ( Bounty). She then focuses on shopping,buying and selfhood with such interesting topics as Are we what we own? (Belk), Collecting as reparation (Muensterberger) and Giving until it hurts (McGrath). Included is the diagnostic assessment of compulsive shopping with questionnaires and clinical interview techniques. Another section covers psychodynamic theory and technique and includes Compulsive shopping as an addiction (Goldman) and The use of money as an action symptom ( Krueger).
Detailed and instructive coverage of treatment plans and techniques include a detailed curricular for an 8 week Group cognitive behavioral therapy for buying disorders (Burgard and Mitchell) and a Psychoeducational group therapy for money disorders (Brazer). The scope of the collection is apparent from the inclusion of treatment adjuncts such as Debtors Anonymous and Psychotherapy (Levine & Kellen) and Financial Recovery Counseling (McCall.).
This is a truly multidisciplinary book which will illuminate and deepen therapeutic understanding of a growing problem area. Anyone who has struggled with one of the issues discussed in this book will find it helpful in their own personal lives. The book is a fascinating and enjoyable read for all.

What does it say about a culture where a throng of people so hellbent on shopping for bargains they not only trample a Walmart employee to death, but then become enraged because in the wake of that the store closes, depriving them of buying oportunites. If we take the title of Dr. Benson's, I Shop Therefore I Am literally, we really must ask ourselves, Who Are We?? What does it say about the collapse of our own economy and it's world wide ripple effect because it was tied into a Ponzi scheme of credit card debt, hoping Peter would not find out about Paul? From Wall Street to Main Street we are all "indebted" to Dr. April Benson for spending her capital so wisely. This book could not be more timely for today's bankrupt world. In a comprehensive assemblage of experts in the field, Dr. Benson takes us on a panoramic viewing of the psychological underpinnings of overspending and compulsive shopping. This would be one excellent investment for everyone in this over-leveraged world, from "patients" to bankers.

While this book is very informative, it is very clinically written (writen more for a counsellor/psychologist perspective in mind than the average lay-person). While its content is very interesting and thought provoking, it is a little dry to read. However, from a helpers perspective, a great resource.

This is not a self-help book and is directed at mental health professionals rather than the general public or sufferers from oniomania. There is a certain psychoanalytic bias, and nothing about neuro-imaging. I was surprised at first to see so little mention of the classical association, mentioned by Kraepelin, between outbursts of excessive spending and mania (maniacal excitement as Kraepelin called it) but the book convinced me that this only represents a small fraction of excessive spending, which is a widespread problem.
It is multi-authored and heavily referenced. It is not a book you can sit and read through (at least I couldn't) rather, as April Lane Benson recommends "shop this book as you would a store, feeling free to pick and choose, return or exchange. Gather information on anything you wish." Following her advice I found it informative and useful.

I greatly appreciate Dr. Benson's survey of essays on the topic of shopping and compuslive overshopping. This book is chock-full of interesting articles that have really opened my eyes about these issues that are far too often dismissed as silly. The trend toward increasing debt and overshopping is enormous and Dr. Benson appears to be at the forefront of sounding the alarm. This book is not a quick read. I received it almost a year ago and am still re-reading much of it. But I highly recommend it, especially for therapists like myself, and for anyone who thinks he or she might have a problem with shopping or spending. Thank you Dr. Benson for your knowledge, passion, and ability to bring many diverse articles and essays into one book.

As a psychotherapist and colleague of Dr. Benson's (and in the interest of full disclosure, a contributor to the book) I use many of the chapters as excellent resources for clients as well as therapists who I supervise and teach. I have been consistently impressed by the level of understanding and the clear, straightforward and non-jargon-y writing of my colleagues and co-contributors, and I feel both lucky and proud to have had my work included in this book.