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Four decades of contributions to personality theory and family practice have earned Luciano L'Abate a worldwide reputation for therapeutic insights. Now he expands on his pathbreaking relational theory of personality to apply it to the twenty-first-century family in all its configurations. Personality in Intimate Relationships showcases L'Abate's trademark elegant style and provocative ideas in his most accessible work to date.
Based on Axes I and II of the DSM-IV, the book describes relationships along a readily identifiable continuum ranging from optimal functionality to severe pathology, linking the author's conceptual framework to specific diagnostic strategies, therapeutic interventions, and prevention programs. L'Abate's theory not only integrates individual and family theories and seemingly disparate schools of thought, but is also inclusive of nontraditional relationships-grandparent/grandchild dyads, adoptive families, same-sex couples, and others-that are often left out of the family literature.
Among the key areas explored in the book:
- Selfhood and self-differentiation
- Confrontation and sharing of hurt feelings
- Negotiating, bargaining, and problem-solving
- Dealing with distance and closeness
- Intimacy and the ability to love
In addition, the reader is referred to complementary online appendices that supply helpful questionnaires, workbooks, and ideas for further applications.
Personality in Intimate Relationships offers fresh perspective to all frontline practitioners as well as investigators in this area. It is also ideal for graduate courses in abnormal psychology and personal development.
List of contents
Background for a Theory of Personality Socialization in Intimate Relationships and Psychopathology.- Background for a Theory of Personality Socialization in Intimate Relationships and Psychopathology.- Requirements for the Theory.- Reducibility to Known Psychological Constructs.- Verifiability and Accountability.- Metatheoretical Assumptions.- The Horizontality of Relationships.- The Verticality of Relationships.- Settings as Contexts for Intimate Relationships.- Assumptions of the Theory.- Space and the Ability to Love.- Time and the Ability to Negotiate.- Modalities of Exchange.- Models of the Theory.- Developmental Identity-Differentiation.- Styles in Intimate Relationships.- Selfhood: The Attribution of Importance.- Priorities: What Is Really Important?.- Applications of the Theory.- Distance Regulation.- The Drama Triangle.- Intimacy: Sharing Hurts and Fears of Being Hurt.- Negotiating How to Solve Problems.- A Concluding Model16 and a Comparative Model17.- Conclusion.- Testing the Theory in the Laboratory and Prevention Settings.- The Future of the Theory.
About the author
Luciano L'Abate is Professor Emeritus in Psychology at Georgia State University.
Summary
Four decades of contributions to personality theory and family practice have earned Luciano L’Abate a worldwide reputation for therapeutic insights. Now he expands on his pathbreaking relational theory of personality to apply it to the twenty-first-century family in all its configurations. Personality in Intimate Relationships showcases L’Abate’s trademark elegant style and provocative ideas in his most accessible work to date.
Based on Axes I and II of the DSM-IV, the book describes relationships along a readily identifiable continuum ranging from optimal functionality to severe pathology, linking the author’s conceptual framework to specific diagnostic strategies, therapeutic interventions, and prevention programs. L’Abate’s theory not only integrates individual and family theories and seemingly disparate schools of thought, but is also inclusive of nontraditional relationships—grandparent/grandchild dyads, adoptive families, same-sex couples, and others—that are often left out of the family literature.
Among the key areas explored in the book:
• Selfhood and self-differentiation
• Confrontation and sharing of hurt feelings
• Negotiating, bargaining, and problem-solving
• Dealing with distance and closeness
• Intimacy and the ability to love
In addition, the reader is referred to complementary online appendices that supply helpful questionnaires, workbooks, and ideas for further applications.
Personality in Intimate Relationships offers fresh perspective to all frontline practitioners as well as investigators in this area. It is also ideal for graduate courses in abnormal psychology and personal development.
