The Perspectives of Psychiatry

by Paul R. McHugh, Phillip R. Slavney MD

Substantially revised to include a wealth of new material, the second edition of this highly acclaimed work provides a concise, coherent introduction that brings structure to an increasingly fragmented and amorphous discipline. Paul R. McHugh and Phillip R. Slavney offer an approach that emphasizes psychiatry's unifying concepts while accommodating its diversity. Recognizing that there may never be a single, all-encompassing theory, the book distills psychiatric practice into four explanatory methods: diseases, dimensions of personality, goal-directed behaviors, and life stories. These perspectives, argue the authors, underlie the principles and practice of all psychiatry. With an understanding of these fundamental methods, readers will be equipped to organize and evaluate psychiatric information and to develop a confident approach to practice and research.

Genres: Psychology, Psychiatry, Medicine, Nonfiction

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

Reviews

[Patrick O · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.49/5 Really quite excellent. Goes beyond the biopsychosocial model, which sometimes end up being just a buzzword. Figures 15-17 are particularly useful and summarize a lot of the work, making them good to re-reference in the future.

[Acpsm Aen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Existe versión en castellano editada por Prensas Universitarias de Zaragoza.

[Malek Almatroudi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for any psychiatrist wishing to practice psychiatry as a branch of medicine.

[Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The single greatest book about psychiatry I've ever read. For professionals only, probably. But amazing.

[Mere]

Well-written but dense book by the former (?) head of the Johns Hopkins psychiatric department. Taught a writing class, in which I died several times.

[Rajiv Devanagondi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably only of interest to people in the medical field.

[Marshal Folstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

The very best modern synthesis and a view of the future.