Psychology As Religion: The Cult of Self-Worship (Paperback)

by Paul C. Vitz (Author) "I shall begin by documenting the strong religious nature of much of today's psychology..." (more)
Key Phrases: values clarification theorists, humanistic selfism, existential self, New York, New Age, Carl Rogers (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
This is a virtually rewritten second edition of New York University Professor Paul Vitz's profoundly important analysis of modern psychology. Vitz maintains that psychology in our day has become a religion, a secular cult of self, and has become part of the problem of modern life rather than part of its resolution.

Product Details

• Paperback: 173 pages
• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; 2 Sub edition (May 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802807259
• ISBN-13: 978-0802807250
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #437,543 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

102 of 125 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A brave new direction for both eduction and psychology., June 10, 1999

By A Customer

Secularism has evolved to become the "state religion" in North America largely due to the work of the five key figures: Carl Jung, Erich Fromm, Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow, and Rollo May. Judeo-Christian leaders who accepted this teaching must now concentrate on the result and accept the responsibility to alter the wrong direction society has taken because of these teachings.

The separation of state and religion was a concept that was nullified by secularism as it has become interwoven into the fabric of North American society. Millions of tax dollars are used to perpetuate this state religion. For example, schools of education in colleges and universities nation-wide have trained teachers, counselors, school administrators and those who train them in the "cult" of secular humanism. Secular humanism is devotion to self-expression as an end in itself. It " emphasized the human capacity for change to the point of almost totally ignoring the idea that life has limits and that knowledge of those limits is the basis of wisdom. For selfist there seem to be no acceptable duties, denials, inhibitions, or restraints. Instead there are only rights and opportunities for change." (page 33) When a child is taught that he or she is the most important person in the world, in the guise of building self-esteem that child's response to authority is often since-I-am-the-most-important-person-in-the-world-why should-I-listen-to-you?!! With every news broadcast and every paper across both Canada and the U.S. we daily see the result of this wrong thinking/teaching.

There is much more to this book. I hope you will chose to read it for yourself. I also hope it will inspire other authors to explore, challenge and dethrone the state religion of secularism.

51 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Light is On. . ., September 27, 2000

By A Customer

Have you ever looked around at American culture and wondered what went wrong. . .what is wrong? Paul Vitz gives us a goldmine of insight into the origin of modern angst. The 'selfism' described in this book will be recognizable, both in us and those around us. Truth seekers will find Vitz's exposure of the frauds of modern 'psychology' to be a milestone in their long search for answers to modern confusion. Then the real work begins. . . I recommend this book highly. You will not be disappointed.

41 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What religion will we teach in public schools?, January 1, 2004

By	Johnny W. Kicklighter (Belleville, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Paul Vitz attempts to expose psychology for what it really is, i.e., religion. He begins by giving the reader a brief biography on the fathers of the modern psychology movement along with some of their theories. The opening chapter was dry reading but I suppose necessary as a historical backdrop. My interest peaked when I immediately recognized Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow since I was forced to study them for 26 years while in the military. Vitz also discusses Carl Jung, Erich Fromn, and Rollo May as being significant contributors to the movement.
Vitz quickly transitions into explaining the concept of self-esteem which he promotes as the center of the entire selfism movement. This became important to me as it seems no matter where you turn, a lack of or poor self-esteem appears to be the cause of every ill known to mankind. For a movement to be so widespread to the point where psychology has been woven into the gospel message, Vitz says that the self-esteem concept has "no clear intellectual origins." That's a surprising claim considering the impact selfism has had on academia and the practice of counseling.
Vitz states that self-esteem should be understood as an emotional response and not a cause. He says it is a reaction to what we have done and what others have done to us. High self-esteem is a desirable feeling to have (like happiness), but the feeling itself isn't the cause of anything. In trying to obtain a feeling of self-esteem, the only successful way is to do good to others or accomplish something. In so doing, you'll get all the self-esteem you want. However, the downside is people begin to pursue happiness as a far greater goal than the goal of obtaining personal holiness.
Not only is selfism a self-defeating goal for the Christian, Vitz goes on to make the case that it is also simply bad science and a warped philosophy. The little clinical evidence that does exist is mostly based on empirical observations and doesn't stand the test of solid scientific problem solving. He exposes flaws in each step of the process, from stating the problem, forming and testing the hypothesis, to testing the conclusion. He also identifies several philosophical contradictions and in some cases, actual misrepresentations. The spread of this bad science and faulty philosophy is believed by the author to have contributed to the destruction of families. Additionally, the entire recovery group mentality convinces the person with "low self-esteem" that their ills are due to trauma inflicted on them in the past. Recovery group therapy strokes the patient with self-pity thereby convincing the clients are victims. Once labeled, the "victim" now assumes the attitude of victimhood.
Values clarification has become the model taught in schools and begins with the assumption that man is naturally good. Since the developers of values clarification reject moral teachings, Vitz claims that if responsible adults, i.e., teachers, don't promote good values then someone else will. Providing a permissive environment supposedly nourishes the child by granting satisfaction for the child's desires and interests. However, this philosophy is bankrupt because kids will assume the values of irresponsible sources in lieu of responsible ones. This combined with the aforementioned teachings has produced a society of victims where everyone is pointing to blame someone else for their misfortunes.
Vitz takes three chapters to present a Christian analysis and criticism of humanistic self-theories. He gives the credit to our educational system for the transformation of our society into a culture of pure selfism. He notes that the New Age movement has many founders, but Abraham Maslow's theories have been the most influential. Vitz argues his Christian critique within a historical framework and the impact it has had on the evolution of our society. Unfortunately he gives scant attention to biblical references for his position, but does show how the selfism heresy affects teachings on depression, idolatry, and suffering. He closes his work with the observation, "never have so many people been so self-conscious, so aware of the self as something to be expressed...., the self has become an object to itself." (I think this may make the case that self-esteem has become a new barometric indicator to the question everyone asks, "How are you doing today?")
Overall, Vitz's book uses a cerebral approach in attempting to prove that self-worship is simply a religion. Biblical counselors looking for material to help their counselees break free of a selfish worldview of life will be disappointed. Then again, Vitz didn't write his book for that purpose. Moreover, he provides a wealth of information and a refreshing argument against those who say, "You can't teach religion in public schools." This leaves the reader with an irony: it's not a question of should we or should we not teach religion in public schools, but instead, what religion will we teach; selfism or Christianity?