Your Own Worst Enemy: Understanding The Paradox Of Self-defeating Behavior

by Steven Berglas, Roy F. Baumeister

Describes the underlying causes of self-defeating behavior and provides strategies for overcoming them

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction

Hardcover

First published April 1, 1993

Reviews

[The Angry Lawn Gnome · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found it endlessly fascinating that "self-defeating" behavior comes in so many flavors...in fact to the point that I was at first skeptical. But when I reflected upon my own life and that of those I've come across, I was forced to conclude that their claims were in line with my own personal experience. And it is as a descriptive work where this one succeeds. The categories makes sense, the behaviors of each type as well.

As a prescriptive work? There I'm not so sure, but am unable to either confirm or disprove what they suggest. It simply seemed counter-intuitive somehow.

I do wish they'd added a couple of paragraphs in support of their claim that self-defeating and suicidal behavior spring from different causes, rather than one sentence and an endnote reference to another work. I'd always assumed exactly the opposite, that they were different manifestations of the same underlying problem. But since that was hardly the books topic, I can't criticize in depth.

[Wendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the stories of different types of self-destructive behavior interesting and somewhat enlightening. This book offers various reasons for why people sabotage their own successes, but did little to offer hope for changing these behaviors.