Psychology

This highly original new book addresses the mobility of diplomats, an important facet of migration flows in the modern world. Diplomatic mobility has had a profound effect on family arrangements, working lives, and future plans. But despite being one of the earliest forms of expatriation, very little is known about the experiences of wives of diplomats who decided to embark on this journey alongside their husbands. This book gives them a voice by exploring their experiences as “Wives of Diplomats” across diplomatic assignments. Data is collected from eight participants using semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). In light of the rapid growth in globalization, mobility and expatriation, researchers have advocated for the re-examination of personal identity. The concept of frequent relocation has raised many basic questions over the management of identity: Who am I? Which dimensions of my identity do I want to preserve, and which parts can I let go or change? Where do I belong? How do I experience my identity in foreign countries? How can I manage this sense of self and help those whom I love manage their own identities? Real Housewives of Diplomacy sheds new and original light on these issues by focusing on the experiences, feelings, and meanings of women who decided to accompany their spouses on diplomatic assignments. Its main focus is on the implications of multiple relocations for the identities of Wives of Diplomats and their relevance to counseling psychology. It demonstrates that their experiences are a novel but relevant phenomenon that has never before received proper psychological investigation. The book’s inquiry will adopt a phenomenological philosophical standpoint that puts human experiences and meaning at the center of understanding, both for psychology and for diplomacy.

This highly original new book addresses the mobility of diplomats, an important facet of migration flows in the modern world. Diplomatic mobility has had a profound effect on family arrangements, working lives, and future plans. But despite being one of the earliest forms of expatriation, very little is known about the experiences of wives of diplomats who decided to embark on this journey alongside their husbands. This book gives them a voice by exploring their experiences as “Wives of Diplomats” across diplomatic assignments. Data is collected from eight participants using semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). In light of the rapid growth in globalization, mobility and expatriation, researchers have advocated for the re-examination of personal identity. The concept of frequent relocation has raised many basic questions over the management of identity: Who am I? Which dimensions of my identity do I want to preserve, and which parts can I let go or change? Where do I belong? How do I experience my identity in foreign countries? How can I manage this sense of self and help those whom I love manage their own identities? Real Housewives of Diplomacy sheds new and original light on these issues by focusing on the experiences, feelings, and meanings of women who decided to accompany their spouses on diplomatic assignments. Its main focus is on the implications of multiple relocations for the identities of Wives of Diplomats and their relevance to counseling psychology. It demonstrates that their experiences are a novel but relevant phenomenon that has never before received proper psychological investigation. The book’s inquiry will adopt a phenomenological philosophical standpoint that puts human experiences and meaning at the center of understanding, both for psychology and for diplomacy.

Gerald Alper is the author of eleven books including Portrait of the Artist as a Young Patient: Psychodynamic Studies of the Creative Personality, The Puppeteers: Studies of Obsessive Control, Narcissistic Giving: A Study of People Who Cheat in Relationships, and Control Games: Avoiding Intimacy on the Singles Scene. He is a psychotherapist who has been in private practice in Manhattan the past twenty years. He is a reviewer for the Journal of Contemporary Psychology and a Fellow of The American Institute for Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis. “ New York City based psychotherapist Gerald Alper adeptly filters materials glean from clinical vignettes through a discerning screen of psychoanalysis. In this manner ,Alper's sharp blade of psychoanalytic acumen cuts deeply into the core of a self help ethos which strives futilely to force the square of complexity into a circle of simplicity. The self help industry's flawed attempt to “dumb down” human complexity is examined in the context of the medium of film and with a regard to a multitude of power transactions. Cinema is only one of a number of media that Alper uses as he adroitly discuses contemporary psycho dynamics. Practitioners,students and general readers will be fascinated and informed by this psychologically insightful and thought provoking book” Leo Uzych,JD,MPH

In his latest work Professor Alper explores how his innovative concept of narcissistic giving—that is, the dysfunctional art in which one gives without actually giving & shy;--manifests itself all too often in the social transactions and interactions that compose everyay existence. This sense of grandiosely promising a world of happiness and satisfaction while giving so very little makes narcissistic giving not only an apt description for a pervasive, implicit philosophy of our culture but elevates it to a dynamic theory of dysfunctional psychic energy. This is the first book that shows how evolutionary psychology...the ethos of the selfish gene...gets unconsciously played out in the emotional lives of ordinary people. 'The Selfish Gene Philosophy' examines how narcissistic giving intersects with and illuminates the current conflicts surrounding science and society, psychology and personal fulfillment, and the desire for simplicity in a complex world. Based on decades of clinical experience, this culminating work uses fascinating case studies and classic archetypical films, from Open Water to The King of Comedy, to reveal the inner workings and impact of narcissistic giving on our inner lives and outer world. Alper's prior books have been acclaimed. Jerome David Levin,Ph.D,author of 'The Clinton Syndrome', acknowledges that “Alper never writes dull books...He has one of the most creative analytic minds of his generation.” Publishers Weekly has praised his books as “brillant,deft...” while Booklist calls them “convincing”.

It would be ironic if psychoanalysis disappeared during the 21st century ,overtaken by smart newer drugs or so-called evidence based methods of psychological help. After all ,there ha been no shortage of experts wishing for its demise. Who needs psychoanalysis with its complex theory of the person? With the increasing objectification of life and people, the critical perspective that psychoanalysis can employ is now more than ever. However,the author argues,analysis must engage with its critics,with other disciplines, and above all, with the ethical demands coming from the Other. Weatherill draws not only on the work of key analytic figures like Freud, Klein and Lacan but also on serious critics of psychoanalysis such as Levinas, Baudrillard, Lyotard and Vladimir Nabokov. This study proposes a serious challenge to the theory and practice of psychoanalysis which has been uncritically dominated by a few key figures. What is unique is that this criticism of the discipline comes from WITHIN its own ranks and is not hostile to psychoanalysis per se,but on the contrary seeks to ground it in real ethical encounter .

In Mirrored Sublimation: Essays on the Early Work of Knut Hamsun, Lisa Yamasaki examines a small selection of the Norwegian dramatist Knut Hamsun’s early work that reveals the theme of sublimation from a psychoanalytic perspective. Although Hamsun wrote many short stories, plays, and novels in the late nineteenth century, Yamasaki focuses on those that comprise Hamsun’s portrayal of sublimation as a culmination of erotic love for humans in nature and art. She also contrasts Hamsun’s representation of sublimation with a play by Henrik Ibsen and a novel by Sigbjørn Obstfelder to solidify Hamsun’s unique portrayals. While other scholars have been drawn to the more controversial aspects of Hamsun’s work, Yamasaki suggests that an examination of how he represented the relationship between women, nature, and art shows his vulnerability, usually more evident in the representation of his male protagonists. Furthermore, to reveal the interconnection between literature and life, Yamasaki includes academic braided essays and her illustrations of Hamsun’s works to demonstrate how the investigation itself comments on the topic of sublimation, thus mirroring the phenomenon. Through the combination of the literary analytical essays, academic braided essays, and the illustrations, she portrays how the three approaches to this topic contribute to a more enriched understanding of the topic and could further enhance the relationship between literature, art, and analysis.