Social Psychological Foundations of Clinical Psychology

Many years ago, social and clinical psychology moved apart; happily, they are back together now, and this volume is a testament to their increasing integration. The book demonstrates how social psychological concepts can help us better understand emotional and behavioral disorders and improve the design of interventions. The authors are impressive and their chapters are well written, brief, and accessible. This volume will inform seasoned professionals and is a great text for graduate classes in clinical, personality, and social psychology. Health psychologists will find it a valuable reference because of the relevance of social-clinical topics for physical health and well-being.--Jerry M. Suls, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Iowa

Maddux and Tangney have assembled a blue-ribbon team in this welcome resource for the clinical practitioner. Social psychological theory provides valuable insights into both problem development and mechanisms of sustainable change. This book has strong applicability for many applied disciplines beyond clinical psychology, including social work, counseling, marriage and family therapy, and pastoral care.--Paula S. Nurius, MSW, PhD, School of Social Work, University of Washington

There is a rich interplay between social and clinical psychology, and this volume mines it to great depths. The volume is sufficiently comprehensive to stand alone as a timely, high-quality survey of either social or clinical psychology. But it does even more, providing a convincing synthesis of these two vibrant fields. Maddux and Tangney have assembled the leading lights of the social-clinical interface, and the result is a lively and scholarly book.--Thomas Joiner, PhD, Distinguished Research Professor and Bright-Burton Professor of Psychology, Florida State University

What a remarkable book! Maddux and Tangney have worked an act of magic to bring together leading social and clinical psychologists in the same volume. The result is a cutting-edge presentation of theory, research, and practice that demonstrates the mutual benefit of integrating the most innovative work from both disciplines. Scientific advances in understanding self-regulation, attachment, emotion, judgment processes, and behavior change flow seamlessly between the laboratory and clinic. I consider this book a necessity for any clinical graduate student who aspires to the mantle of a scientist-practitioner. At the same time, social psychologists and their students will find much to treasure in these chapters.--Jefferson A. Singer, PhD, Department of Psychology, Connecticut College

Clinical and social psychology have long gone their separate ways. This book, derived from a research literature about which I knew too little, opened up new perspectives for me as a clinician. Psychotherapy is an interpersonal and social enterprise that can be informed by an understanding of social context. This is an original book, with finely written chapters, that can enrich practice.--Joel Paris, MD, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Canada
- The most comprehensive of the works that have probed this interface....The editors have managed to assemble a stellar group of thoughtful commentaries and reviews of multiple domains in which there is considerable overlap between the fields....Point[s] to a new and important direction for the future advance of human psychological understanding. The areas of focus are well chosen...there has never been a volume devoted to this interface that has been as thoroughgoing as this one. --PsycCRITIQUES, 8/5/2010