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Principles of Interpretation

Mastering Clear and Concise Interventions in Psychotherapy

Steven T Levy author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Jason Aronson Publishers

Published:1st Mar '96

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

Principles of Interpretation cover

A systematic introduction to interpretation as a technical therapeutic skill.

The writing is clear, concise, and confident. The book's tone and content effectively make the author's point that psychotherapy is a powerful instrument which requires self-discipline, knowledge, no mean intellectual effort, and considerable technical skill, in addition to the therapist's sympathetic and considerate attitude. Beginning therapists will feel constructively challenged by this message and by the author's criticism of experiential and humanistic approaches for their antitechnical and antitheoretical biases. The book's organization broadly follows the phases of therapy with systematic discussions of the data to be understood, transference, resistance, countertransference, the therapeutic alliance, and special problems. A concluding chapter discusses general principles of interpretation, working through, and timing. A valuable feature is the author's annotated list of suggested readings at the end of each chapter. -- John Pareja * The Psychoanalytic Quarterly *
The book's greatest strength is the author's concept of the role of interpretation in the therapeutic process. He demonstrates his thinking at the level of clinical theory, both in providing generalizations and in supporting them with unusually apt clinical vignettes. Most impressive is the author's empathy and sensitivity, both to patients and to beginning therapists, conveyed repeatedly in matters of tone and style, humane without being weak or watered down. -- Sanford Weisblatt * Contemporary Psychiatry *
[A] small gem. . . . It is accessible, short, well-written, and entirely relevant for someone who wants to learn what to say, and how to say it, in psychoanalytic psychotherapy. -- Jeremy Holmes * The British Journal of Psychiatry *

ISBN: 9781568217987

Dimensions: 229mm x 163mm x 13mm

Weight: 331g

240 pages