Cognitive Therapy of An Avoidant Personality

by Aaron T. Beck

`More that ten years have passed since publication of the now classic COGNITIVE THERAPY OF DE~PRESSION by Aaron T. Beck and his colleagues. During that time, cognitive therapy has been effectively used to treat a broad array of com~monly encountered clinical problems. As the skills of cognitive therapists and the model's clinical techniques have matured in sophistication, the field has turned toward a more challenging problem--personality disorders. Well known to be a difficult population to engage, patients suffering from personality disorders do respond to cognitive therapy techniques. This volume, which emanates from the research and practical experience of Beck and his group, is the first to focus specifically on this diverse and clinically demanding population.

The volume is divided into two major sections. The material in Part I, developed by Aaron T. Beck, Arthur Freeman, and James Pretzer, introduces research and practice through a careful review of the literature. General problems of referral, diagnosis, and treatment are discussed. The concept of schema formation and its effect on behavior, a key issue expanded upon in later chapters, is analyzed. Topics covered include:
* How schemas contribute to the formation of personality
disorders
* The specific beliefs and attitudes that characterize
each of the disorders
* The nature of the patient-therapist relationship
* Reasons for therapeutic noncompliance
* Schematic reconstruction, modification, and
reinterpretation

The clinical material in Part II details the individualized treatment of each of the personality disorders. A collaborative effort of distinguished clinicians, who write on their own areas of expertise, these chapters are arranged according to the three clusters described in DSM-III-R. The first includes the Paranoid, Schizoid, and Schizotypal Personality Disorders, the second Antisocial, Borderline, Histrionic, and Narcissistic Personality Disorders, and the third Avoidant, Dependent, Obsessive-Compulsive, and Passive-Aggressive Personality Disorders. Illustrative case vignettes are used throughout.

This groundbreaking work effectively brings cognitive therapy to bear on a most difficult clinical problem. Regardless of primary orientation, all clinicians who work with personality disordered individuals will be well served by this volume. Researchers will find much of interest and graduate-level courses in counseling, psychotherapy, clinical psychology, and psychopathology will be enhanced by its use as a text or ancillary reading.

Genres: Psychology

Audio Cassette

Published August 1, 1990

About the author

Aaron Temkin Beck was an American psychiatrist who was a professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania. He is regarded as the father of cognitive therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). His pioneering methods are widely used in the treatment of clinical depression and various anxiety disorders. Beck also developed self-report measures for depression and anxiety, notably the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), which became one of the most widely used instruments for measuring the severity of depression. In 1994 he and his daughter, psychologist Judith S. Beck, founded the nonprofit Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy, which provides CBT treatment and training, as well as research. Beck served as President Emeritus of the organization up until his death.
Beck was noted for his writings on psychotherapy, psychopathology, suicide, and psychometrics. He published more than 600 professional journal articles, and authored or co-authored 25 books. He was named one of the "Americans in history who shaped the face of American psychiatry", and one of the "five most influential psychotherapists of all time" by The American Psychologist in July 1989. His work at the University of Pennsylvania inspired Martin E.P. Seligman to refine his own cognitive techniques and later work on learned helplessness.