Overview

This volume takes a multi-level approach to understanding and treating personality disorder, identifying core symptoms and problems that many patients share and providing a comprehensive framework for clinical intervention. Drawing on etiological knowledge as well as outcome research, the book identifies effective strategies for addressing key areas of the patient's psychosocial and biological functioning. The clinician learns how to conceptualize the phases of treatment and use the stages-of-change model as a guide for sequencing and selecting appropriate interventions. Pragmatic and flexible, the research-based strategies presented here are applicable in diverse settings, in therapies ranging from crisis intervention to long-term treatment.

Full Product Details

9781572308893

Table of Contents

Reviews

Livesley takes the challenging task of working with personality disordered patients and makes it seem less daunting....A useful resource for many disciplines. It provides a framework for dealing with patients that clinicians can adapt to their own setting and style....As a resource book for teaching about psychotherapy of personality disorders, this book is terrific. Its practical and flexible strategies will be of use to both the novice and the experienced clinician. -- The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease <br> This is a major work of reference for mental health clinicians of all disciplines...genuinely indispensable to those who are faced with the complex and challenging task of providing treatment, in whatever setting, to people with disordered personalities. -- Metapsychology <br>.,. a serious and scholarly synthesis of contemporary theory and science merged together into a single text that may be the best resource currently available for clinicians who work in settings in which persons with personality disorders are treated--and don't we all. The extensive clinical and academic experience of author W. John Livesley in this arena is well represented in Practical Management of Personality Disorder,. ..Seasoned clinicians would find this text useful as an update on contemporary evidence and as a refresher in providing intellectual insight into aspects of working with a challenging group of patients....for a clinician working in an isolated setting, the book may serve as validation and support for the challenges associated with day-to-day treatment. Early-career therapists would be particularly likely to benefit from the later chapters, which focus on practical treatmentapplications....this text would be very useful in training settings to round out traditional theoretical and didactic presentations with this practical approach. -- Psychiatric Services <br> This well-written book is full of clinical wisdom and is a superb contribution to the literature. What distinguishes Livesley's approach is that it is either directly evidence-based or consistent with existing empirical evidence. The price is reasonable, considering the book's quality. I strongly recommend this book to psychotherapists working with patients who have personality disorders....Reviewer Rating: Excellent -- The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry <br> a remarkable contribution to a growing literature on personality disorders....Dr. Livesley's research and clinical experience is highlighted in this compelling, comprehensive, and constructive overview of personality disorder management. I strongly recommend this volume to clinicians and students as a wonderful introduction to self-state understanding, schemata description, and a practical approach to treatment planning in personality disorders. -- Psychological Medicine <br> The author provides a comprehensive review of personality disorder with an eclectic method of treament framed in a well organized structure....The author has been one of the foremost theoreticians and practitioners in this field for several decades. The clarity and style of the book is well suited to his targeted audience of practitioners and trainees in the field of mental health....stands above other books on the subject. The author's vast knowledge allows him to present a brilliant synthesis with great clarity. The skill with which he organizes material makes it easyto retain and integrate into practice. 4 Stars! -- Doody's Electronic Journal <br>

Dr. Livesley is one of the world's leading experts on the assessment and treatment of personality disorders. His latest book is a must for all clinicians who seek an empirical, evidence-based and conceptual account of the essential developmental and structural features of the various personality disorders encountered in clinical practice. While drawing on the most significant theoretical and clinical literature within the psychoanalytic and cognitive-behavioral traditions. Dr. Livesley's strength lies in his capacity to provide a systematic integration and synthesis of the core issues that underlie the disorders and which in turn inform his multi-pronged treatment approach. --Leo Goldberger, PhD, Behavioral Science Book Service Advisory Board Member <br> Livesley offers a systematic schema and sequence for treating personality disorders, which he conceptualizes as failures in adaptive functioning. He presents an integrative treatment model that can be tailored to contain the individual's symptoms, regulate affects and impulses, and remediate interpersonal problems and maladaptive traits. This clearly written book will prove highly useful as a guide for professionals, residents, and graduate students alike, pointing out new avenues for managing not only the classical personality disorders, but also psychopathology in general. --Theodore Millon, PhD, DSc, Institute for Advanced Studies in Personology and Psychopathology <br> This is a wonderful book, a breath of fresh air in a fast-growing, important literature. Written with clarity and broad perspective, this book successfully integrates an astonishing range of material. A systematic portrait of human personality, both normal and abnormal, is presented, from which is derived a logical, coherent, individualized plan of treatment for those who need it. The comprehensive nature of this book makes it ideal for use in the classroom in a wide range of educational settings, from psychology to psychiatry. --John M.r

Author Information

W. John Livesley, MD, PhD, is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of British Columbia, Canada. His research focuses on the structure, classification, and origins of personality disorder, and on constructing an integrated framework for describing and conceptualizing personality pathology. His clinical interests are directed toward developing a unified approach to treatment. Dr. Livesley is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. He is a past editor of the Journal of Personality Disorders.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available