Description
Book SynopsisA Democratic Mind: Psychology and Psychiatry with Fewer Meds and More Soul focuses on how an individual lives her life, and on the extent of harm that an individual can inflict on herself or others. In this book, I.W. Charny provides a new lens for understanding regular people rather than treatments that alleviate symptoms.
Trade ReviewThe argument for freedom of thought in our work and in our lives is emblazoned in this groundbreaking book for our times. A Democratic Mind marshals cogent arguments against the social and psychotherapeutic trends toward the surrender of imposed constraints on thought and action and toward the suggestion that rule-bound ideas of mental health and illness will suffice. If you long for a unifying call for freedom of thought, read this book! -- David E. Scharff, M.D., International Psychotherapy Institute and the IPA Committee on Family and Couple Psychoanalysis
This compelling book held my interest throughout. It is written by a man who loves life and speaks with candor, clarity, and courage. A Democratic Mind is a critical exploration of the limits of contemporary psychotherapy, and a passionate plea to expand its agenda to not only treat the individual, but also the impact that he/she has on his/her family, community, and world. Israel Charny stresses the necessity of cultivating open, compassionate, and engaged people who embrace life. Charny’s writing is lucid and interesting; his work is passionate and lively. -- Michael Berenbaum, American Jewish University; former director, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum Research Institute
The release of A Democratic Mind could not be at a better time, as the world contends with polarizing forces that pit tribal populism against global democratic principles. Israel W. Charny offers a metaphor of the ‘Fascist versus Democratic Mind’ as a new framework with which to understand symptoms and direct treatment. Like Albert Bandura’s Moral Disengagement, Charny offers readers an approach to assessment and psychotherapy that is firmly grounded in democratic, life-affirming values, and that emphasizes the choice between good and evil. He expands assessment of the rigid, fascist mind—how we humans hurt ourselves—to how we also hurt others. The addition of these relational considerations is critical for a full understanding of the human condition. To be mentally healthy in the twenty-first century is to cultivate calm in the midst of uncertainty, to embrace and learn from diversity, and to hold our own and others’ behaviors accountable as life-affirming. Charny offers an empowering and integrative psychotherapy to achieve these goals. We need this approach now more than ever. -- Susan McDaniel, University of Rochester Medical Center
Table of ContentsForeword, by Allen Frances, M.D. Preface and Acknowledgments Introduction: Coming Back Home from the Study of Genocide to Everyday Psychopathology and PsychotherapyPart I: Applying the Concept of Democratic Mind to Treating Emotional Disorders, Breakdowns of Relationships and Disorders of Evil Chapter 1: Democratic Mind: A Different Lens for Understanding and Treating for Psychological Health Chapter 2: Understanding Totalitarian Meanings in Relationship Disorders and Psychopathology Part II: Psychological Health, the Woes of DSM, and Multiple Schools of Therapy Chapter 3: Psychological Health: Protecting and Improving the Quality of Life: My Own Life and the Lives of Others Chapter 4: A Basic Question for Psychiatry and Psychology: How Much Can We Try to Cure the Mind through the Body? Chapter 5: DSM-Thinking is Oblivious to the Human Condition: Returning Psychiatry to the Unconscious, Human Relationships, and Value Choices Chapter 6: The Wisdom and Tools of Multiple Schools of Psychotherapy Afterword Appendix: Prescriptions for a Free and Democratic Mind Bibliography
