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House of Cards Paperback – September 1, 1996

by Robyn Dawes (Author)
4.1 out of 5 stars 20 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Free Press; 1 edition (September 1, 1996)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0684830914
  • ISBN-13: 978-0684830919
  • Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.9 x 8.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,057,047 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 starsAn excellent book, and a must for therapists.
By Michael Kaan on November 23, 1998
Format: Paperback
I am a therapist myself, so I naturally began reading this book with trepidation. But instead of the blanket attack I expected, I found instead a very carefully written book that exposes that deeply flawed foundations to much of current psychotherapy, pop psychology, and professional reputation. I read this book at a time in my own career when a respect for science and the need for verifiable information were re-emerging, and House of Cards has provided me with a number of insights and tools that have helped me to provide therapy that is more effective and that avoids pie-in-the-sky promises or beliefs. Dawes is right: although therapy is not a science itself, it should be founded on scientific knowledge.
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4.0 out of 5 starsA Step in the Correct Direction
By Richard Brzostek on August 8, 2002
Format: Paperback
House of Cards: Psychology and Psychotherapy Built on Myth by Robyn M. Dawes, critically examines Clinical Psychology and exposes facts that many psychologists would rather have hidden. The author is an Experimental Psychologist and the 1990 winner of the APA William James Award. He is very bold in trying to uphold the truth and convincingly demonstrates what the title suggests.
Perhaps the most striking issue covered in this book is the discussion on studies that evaluate the efficacy of psychotherapy. In 1977, Mary Smith and Gene Glass published an article in American Psychologist which found that on a statistical level, psychotherapy works. Not that everyone improved, or no one got worse from treatment, but on a statistical level people were better off on the measure examined than someone chosen at random. Smith and Glass also found that the therapists' credentials (Ph.D., M.D., or no advanced degree), the therapists' experience, the type of therapy given (with the possible exception of behavioral techniques for well circumscribed behavioral problems), and the length of therapy were unrelated to the effectiveness/success of the therapy.
As Dawes states:
"In the years after the Smith and Glass article was published, many attempts were made to disprove their finding that the training, credentials, and experience of therapists are irrelevant. These attempts failed. (p.55)"
Very few books written by psychologists try to realistically look at psychology's flaws. Although psychology pays lip service to the concept of critically examining its tenants, it is seldom done. Mainstream psychology often dismisses books such as this one in passing as "harsh criticism" and ignores the message they offer.
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5.0 out of 5 starsA must read for consumers and practitioners of mental health
By Jason Sikorski on February 5, 2003
Format: Paperback
Robyn Dawes, in the House of Cards, takes great pains to carefully document the most common and dangerous myths that underlie the fields of mental health treatment. The author's writings are firmly grounded in research, and the conceptual integrations are presented in a manner that is easy to understand for both the students of mental health related disciplines, consumers of mental health, and the seasoned mental health professional. In this book, Dawes models one of the central goals of college education; the value of critical analysis. Further, she sets the stage for mental health professionals to behave in a manner that is consistent with the research, and thus finally hold themselves accountable for the work they do with clients. A magnificent book with wide ranging implications for mental health professionals and their consumers. Pay attention, this book is the real truth about the approaches used to alleviate the suffering of clients of mental health professionals. Be accountable!!!
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5.0 out of 5 starsA House of Cards meets a breath of fresh air
By A Customer on April 24, 2000
Format: Paperback
In this very important book, Dawes affirms the power and effectiveness of psychotherapy, and the fact that your wise aunt is probably better at it than any certificate encrusted psychotherapist. But since your wise aunt doesn't charge you any fees, and has a vested interest in seeing that you get your psychological act together, it makes the psychotherapy industry a veritable house of cards. Dawes assembles an impressive amount of empirical evidence demonstrating that minimally trained paraprofessionals can generally make better psychotherapists than their over credentialed peers. His findings are important in more ways than one, since if psychotherapists are no more effective than an empathetic paraprofessional, then the counseling techniques they use don't actually give a great vote of confidence to the humanistic 'New Age' blather that mandates happiness at whatever cost to our ability to realisticallly perceive the world. But again, in this whiny, self indulgent world, why shouldn't psychologists have a lot in common with another group of much beloved professionals who specialize in making common sense hard: namely lawyers!
Overall, Dawes doesn't offer much as an antidote to the rampant silliness that is modern psychology except for an appeal to common sense. A shame then that it took a book like this to reaffirm that common sense and a healthy skepticism are pretty good things to have, in spite of all those talking heads on TV who tell us otherwise!
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5.0 out of 5 starsLike other writers in this genre of expose
By Dr Max H on August 11, 2016
Format: Hardcover
Robyn Dawes wrote House of Cards in the same period as Ralph Underwager's Return of the Furies and Richard Ofshe's Making Monsters, before Tana Dineen exploded the practice of psychology with Manufacturing Victims: What the Psychology Industry Does to People. Like other writers in this genre of expose, the discussion is unfortunately restricted to the errors in theory, clinical training, cognitive biases, and the under-pining oxymoron "professional judgment."

To date, no one has addressed the political co-option of the psychology profession by Marxist-feminist-anarchists of the reversely named "progressive" party which infiltrated key professions such as psychology (as well as law, psychiatry, journalism and the educational faculties which train and indoctrinate new graduates of these ranks) to be used to attained the goal of political insurrection through the destruction of the social compact and all of the values, morals, and accumulated wisdom and knowledge of western civilization.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Excellent volume. Quite informative. Thought-provoking.

Published 4 months ago by Paul B.
2.0 out of 5 starsOh, Robyn.

How does Dawes expect "incompetent" practitioners to read this vicious indictment and "see the light? Read more

Published on September 28, 2014 by Paul T
2.0 out of 5 starsTypos!

There are numerous typos in the text. Inexplicably I keep finding a dollar sign ($) between words. While Dawes book is well worth reading (I read the hard copy when it came out in... Read more

Published on July 6, 2013 by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsVery good and useful

Very good and clever thinking about pseudopsychology and self help industry madness today. Recommended! Esspecialy for people looking for real help.

Published on June 13, 2013 by Darko Tadic
2.0 out of 5 starshouse of cards

I cannot help comparing it with the British version, which was excellent. This does not come anywhere near that version

Published on February 27, 2013 by Albert Low
5.0 out of 5 starsexcellent book

Robyn Dawe's book is an insightful piece of work that should be in a psychotherapist's library. The book covers a number of important topics. While I did not agree with all of Dr. Read more

Published on February 14, 2011 by Ralph Fretz
2.0 out of 5 starsFlattens out the debate

Dawes clearly has an ax to grind with clinical psychology. Ego and status are what motivate this book. Read more

Published on September 26, 2010 by AGreenSF
5.0 out of 5 starsWell researched

The book was very well researched and enlightening. It helps people to realize that psychology is not science, but actually nothing more than a lose collection of fads. Read more

Published on February 10, 2010 by Trousers
4.0 out of 5 starsPsychologists can't be "expert" witnesses

Robyn Dawes excellent book "House of Cards". He's a clinical psychologist, head of the department of social and decision sciences at Carnegie Mellon University and was motivated to... Read more

Published on January 10, 2010 by Baraniecki Mark Stuart
5.0 out of 5 starsBehavior Analyst

Dawes does a wonderful job of critically analyzing psychology. Even in the field of behavior analysis where research support and data are emphatically emphasized during the design... Read more

Published on October 25, 2008 by J. Grosser

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