Product Description
Keeping pace with the ever-changing world of self-help, the revised and expanded edition of this indispensable reference helps consumers and professionals distinguish high-quality self-help resources from those that are misleading, inaccurate, or even harmful. The number of resources reviewed has increased by more than 60%, to over 1,000 self-help books, autobiographies, and popular films. Ratings now embody the collective wisdom of more than 3,000 mental health professionals. Supplementing their eight national studies, the authors also describe and evaluate hundreds of Internet sites and provide valuable listings of self-help and support groups. The volume is organized around 36 frequently encountered clinical problems and life challenges, with entirely new chapters covering posttraumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, youth violence, borderline personality disorder, bipolar disorder, and suicide. The concluding chapter delineates 11 key strategies for selecting an effective self-help resource.
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Product Description
Never has the need for a compendium of self-help workbooks been so great!

From the founder of the world’s first PhD program in Family Psychology comes an extensive guide to nearly all of the mental health workbooks published through 2002. Placed together in one volume for the first time, A Guide to Self-Help Workbooks for Mental Health Clinicians and Researchers includes reviews and evaluates the complexity of each workbook in regards to its form, content, and usability by the client. From abuse to women’s issues, this annotated bibliography is alphabetized by author, but can also be researched by subject.

While self-help workbooks are currently not as popular or as mainstream as self-help books and video, that could soon change. Self-help workbooks are versatile, cost-effective, and can be mass-produced. The workbook user is active rather than passive, and the mental healthcare worker can analyze a more personal response from the user, whether in the office or via the Internet. A Guide to Self-Help Workbooks for Mental Health Clinicians and Researchers brings these workbooks together into one sourcebook to suit anyone’s needs.

Each self-help workbook is reviewed according to specific criteria:

contents
structure
specificity
goal
level of abstraction
a subjective evaluation usually concludes the review of the workbook

A Guide to Self-Help Workbooks for Mental Health Clinicians and Researchers also includes:

an in-depth introduction discussing the need for workbooks in mental health practices
indices for subject as well as author
an address list of the publishing houses for the workbooks annotated in the bibliography
an Informed Consent Form to verify compliance with ethical and professional regulations before administering a workbook to a client

A Guide to Self-Help Workbooks for Mental Health Clinicians and Researchers offers you a complete resource to self-help workbooks for all mental health subjects. Dr. L’Abate’s highly selective review process helps you find exactly what you need. This unique sourcebook is vital for mental health clinicians, counselors, schoolteachers, and college and graduate students. ... Read more

Product Description
Self-help materials have become a prime source of psychological advice for millions of Americans. While many self-help resources provide high-quality information, others may be misleading, inaccurate, or even harmful. This indispensable volume reveals which are the good ones, which are the bad ones, and why. Based on the results of 5 acclaimed national studies involving over 2,500 mental health professionals, the book reviews and rates 600+ self-help books, autobiographies, and popular films. In addition, hundreds of Internet sites are described and evaluated by a clinical psychologist, and valuable listings are provided of national and online support groups. The concluding chapter presents practical guidelines for selecting an effective self-help resource. Addressing 28 of the most prevalent clinical disorders and life challenges-- from ADHD, Alzheimer's, and anxiety disorders, to marital problems and mood disorders, to weight management and women's issues/m-/this timely book will be tremendously useful to consumers and professionals alike.
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Customer Reviews (4)

Self-help is big business
Self-help is big business. According to Gerald Rosen (1993) as many as 2000 self-help books are published each year. However, only a very few have been evaluated empirically. This sad state of affairs is a poor response to the appeal made by Rosen (1987) that self-help books should first be evaluated empirically before being sold to the general public. Additionally, the little research that has been done on do-it-yourself treatment books sometimes demonstrates major limitations in their usefulness. Yet psychologists continue to develop and market new programs with increasingly exaggerated claims. This is potentially a problem. Especially as psychologists often use self-help books as adjuncts to their clinical practice (Starker, 1988). The good news from research (e.g. Gould & Clum, 1993) is that certain self-help programs can be quite effective. Fairburn's Binge Eating Disorder treatment(Carter & Fairburn, 1998) and the Albany protocol for Panic Disorder (Barlow & Craske, 1994) are two good examples. In Gould and Clum's (1993) meta-analysis, fears, depression, headaches, and sleep disturbances were especially amenable to self-help approaches. Sometimes with effect sizes as large as for therapist assisted treatments.

How can busy clinicians keep up with the flood of new self-help books, and know which to recommend? Guilford Press offers a solution. In an attempt to help the clinicians a guide to self-help resources in mental health has been published. It includes ratings and reviews of more than 600 self-help books, autobiographies and popular films. It also includes hundreds of Internet sites, and listings of online support groups. The book addresses 28 prevalent clinical disorders and life challenges - fromSchizophrenia, Anxiety and Mood Disorders to Career Development, Stress Management and Relaxation.

To determine the usefulness of the self-help resources a series of national studies have been conducted over the past 7 years. The methodology consisted of a lengthy survey mailed to clinical and counselling psychologists residing throughout the USA. A total of 2,500 psychologists contributed with their expertise and judgement in evaluating the books, movies, and Internet sites. The self-help resources were rated on a 5-point scale (-2 to +2). These data were converted into a one to five star rating (negative ratings were given a dagger). On this basis, 19% of the self-help books were rated as "very helpful" and fortunately only 1% as "very harmful" [e.g. the assertiveness training book Winning Through Intimidation by Ringer (1973) and the weight management book the Beverly Hills Diet by Mazel (1981). Interestingly, many of the books by Scientologist guru L Ron Hubbard are categorized as extremely bad].

When looking more closely at a specific disorder, let us say for example panic disorder, there are some good books that I feel are missing. This is probably because of the rating criteria. In order for a book to be included in this self-help guide the psychologists used as referees had to know about the book beforehand. It was their rating of previously read books that mattered. Hence, if there were good books out there that had not been read by many referees [like the Australian panic disorder workbook by Franklin (1996)], they would automatically receive a lower rating. Thus, a low rating does not necessarily mean that a book is less helpful than a higher rated book - only that it has not reached a wide audience. For example, an excellent book, An End to Panic (Zuercher-White, 1998), previously recommended in a review article (Carlbring, Westling, & Andersson, 2000) was described as "highly regarded by the psychologists in our national studies but not well known, leading to a 3-star rating." (p. 79). Another thing that disturbed me was that this particular author's name was misspelled. Instead of Zuercher the surname appeared as Luerchen. No wonder the book was "not well known"! One wonders how many other errors this survey included.

In a perfect world all self-help books would be scrutinized in the same manner as other treatments. However, as a majority of the published books still have not been evaluated, this new guide to self-help is a step in the right direction. Despite questionable inclusion criteria and a few errors I thoroughly recommend this excellent guide to self-help.

Per Carlbring

References:

Barlow, D. H., & Craske, M. G. (1994). Mastery of your anxiety and panic II. San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation.

Carlbring, P., Westling, B. E., & Andersson, G. (2000). A review of published self-help books for panic disorder. Scandinavian Journal of Behaviour Therapy, 29, 5-13.

Carter, J. C., & Fairburn, C. G. (1998). Cognitive-behavioral self-help for binge eating disorder: A controlled effectiveness study. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66, 616-623.

Franklin, J. A. (1996). Overcoming panic: A complete nine week home based treatment program for panic disorder. Carlton, VIC, Australia: Australian Psychological Society Ltd.

Gould, R. A., & Clum, G. A. (1993). A meta-analysis of self-help treatment approaches. Clinical Psychology Review, 13, 169-186.

Mazel, J. (1981). The Beverly Hills Diet. New York: Macmillan.

Ringer, R. (1973). Winning through Intimidation. Berverly Hills, CA: Los Angeles Book Company.

Rosen, G. M. (1987). Self help treatment books and the commercialization of psychotherapy. American Psychologist, 42, 46-51.

Rosen, G. M. (1993). Self-Help or Hype? Comments on Psychology's Failure to Advance Self-Care. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 24, 340-345.

Starker, S. (1988). Psychologists and self help books: Attitudes and prescriptive practices of clinicians. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 42, 448-455.

Zuercher-White, E. (1998). An end to panic: Breakthrough techniques for overcoming panic disorder (2 ed.). Oakland, CA, USA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.

Self-help is big business
Self-help is big business. According to Gerald Rosen (1993) as many as 2000 self-help books are published each year. However, only a very few have been evaluated empirically. This sad state of affairs is a poor response to the appeal made by Rosen (1987) that self-help books should first be evaluated empirically before being sold to the general public. Additionally, the little research that has been done on do-it-yourself treatment books sometimes demonstrates major limitations in their usefulness. Yet psychologists continue to develop and market new programs with increasingly exaggerated claims. This is potentially a problem. Especially as psychologists often use self-help books as adjuncts to their clinical practice (Starker, 1988). The good news from research (e.g. Gould & Clum, 1993) is that certain self-help programs can be quite effective. Fairburn’s Binge Eating Disorder treatment(Carter & Fairburn, 1998) and the Albany protocol for Panic Disorder (Barlow & Craske, 1994) are two good examples. In Gould and Clum’s (1993) meta-analysis, fears, depression, headaches, and sleep disturbances were especially amenable to self-help approaches. Sometimes with effect sizes as large as for therapist assisted treatments.

How can busy clinicians keep up with the flood of new self-help books, and know which to recommend? Guilford Press offers a solution. In an attempt to help the clinicians a guide to self-help resources in mental health has been published. It includes ratings and reviews of more than 600 self-help books, autobiographies and popular films. It also includes hundreds of Internet sites, and listings of online support groups. The book addresses 28 prevalent clinical disorders and life challenges – fromSchizophrenia, Anxiety and Mood Disorders to Career Development, Stress Management and Relaxation.

To determine the usefulness of the self-help resources a series of national studies have been conducted over the past 7 years. The methodology consisted of a lengthy survey mailed to clinical and counselling psychologists residing throughout the USA. A total of 2,500 psychologists contributed with their expertise and judgement in evaluating the books, movies, and Internet sites. The self-help resources were rated on a 5-point scale (-2 to +2). These data were converted into a one to five star rating (negative ratings were given a dagger). On this basis, 19% of the self-help books were rated as “very helpful” and fortunately only 1% as “very harmful” [e.g. the assertiveness training book Winning Through Intimidation by Ringer (1973) and the weight management book the Beverly Hills Diet by Mazel (1981). Interestingly, many of the books by Scientologist guru L Ron Hubbard are categorized as extremely bad].

When looking more closely at a specific disorder, let us say for example panic disorder, there are some good books that I feel are missing. This is probably because of the rating criteria. In order for a book to be included in this self-help guide the psychologists used as referees had to know about the book beforehand. It was their rating of previously read books that mattered. Hence, if there were good books out there that had not been read by many referees [like the Australian panic disorder workbook by Franklin (1996)], they would automatically receive a lower rating. Thus, a low rating does not necessarily mean that a book is less helpful than a higher rated book – only that it has not reached a wide audience. For example, an excellent book, An End to Panic (Zuercher-White, 1998), previously recommended in a review article (Carlbring, Westling, & Andersson, 2000) was described as “highly regarded by the psychologists in our national studies but not well known, leading to a 3-star rating.” (p. 79). Another thing that disturbed me was that this particular author’s name was misspelled. Instead of Zuercher the surname appeared as Luerchen. No wonder the book was “not well known”! One wonders how many other errors this survey included.

In a perfect world all self-help books would be scrutinized in the same manner as other treatments. However, as a majority of the published books still have not been evaluated, this new guide to self-help is a step in the right direction. Despite questionable inclusion criteria and a few errors I thoroughly recommend this excellent guide to self-help

Reveals the good ones, bad ones, how to tell the difference
From books and movies to the Internet, Authoritative Guide to Self-Help Resources in Mental Health provides a strong survey of self-help resources in mental health which reveals the good ones, bad ones, and how general consumers can tell the difference. Five national studies involving over 2,500 mental health professionals lends to a rating of over six hundred titles and films, along with Internet sites evaluated by a clinical psychologist.

A must have for anyone interested in self-help.
This book contains reviews / lists of the best (and worst) of self-help books / movies and internet resources. It has been compiled using surveys of 1000's of mental health professionals and gives essential guidance on which resources are helpful, and which are best left alone.

The book is clearly-written and well laid out - each chapter relates to a specific problem area eg mood disorders, men's issues, abuse, anxiety etc.

I found the recommendations on books particularly helpful - one can immediately determine which are the best books to read on their own specific problem. Clearly, the input of mental health professionals gives a "scientific" basis on recommendations which in turn leads to a systematic process of choosing which resources should be given credence.

Essential reading if you want to build up a collection of serious (i.e. most useful) self-help resources. ... Read more

Product Description
This book provides an invaluable tool in approaching this central strand in the research and practice of psychiatry. ... Read more

Product Description
This bibliography contains 1,340 annotated citations covering the period January to December 1982. It is designed for researchers, practitioners, policy makers, and graduate students interested in social networks and mental health. Approximately half of the citations resulted from a computerized literature search of four major data bases. The remaining citations were developed through a painstaking examination of the bibliographies of books, chapters, and special issues of journals, two unpublished bibliographies, and the senior author's personal collection of material. ... Read more

Product Description
Presents the detailed alphabetical index in three sections: Section I lists all the terms classifiable to Chapters I-XIX and Chapter XXI, except drugs and other chemicals Section II relates to external causes of morbidity and mortality. This section contains all the terms classifiable to Chapter XX, except drugs and other chemicals. Section III, the Table of Drugs and Chemicals, lists for each substance the codes for poisonings and adverse effects of drugs classifiable to Chapter XIX, as well as the Chapter XX codes that indicate whether the poisoning was accidental, deliberate (self-harm), undetermined, or an adverse effect of a correct substance properly administered. Expanded introductory material is complemented by practical advice on how to make the best use of the index. To facilitate efficient coding, the index includes numerous diagnostic terms commonly used as synonyms for the terms officially accepted for use in the classification. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

excellent but not yet needed
This book is excellent but won't be needed for a while in many healthcare settings. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is a journal article from Social Science & Medicine, published by Elsevier in . The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Description:
This paper discusses the development and application of a socio-economic status (SES) index, created to explore the relationship between socio-economic variables and psychiatric service use. The study was conducted in a community-based mental health service (CMHS) in Verona, Northern Italy, utilising service use data from 1996. An ecological SES index was constructed through a factor analysis from 1991 Census data, at census block level. Three factors reflected the following domains: the educational-employment sector (with four components), the relational network (with three components) and the material conditions (with three components). All service users were assigned a SES value, according to their place of residence in 1996. When these data were explored spatially, using ArcView 8.3, an association was observed between socio-economic deprivation and psychiatric service use. The SES index was then successfully validated using occupational status at the individual level. This study confirms the usefulness of developing and validating an ecological census-based SES index, for service planning and resource allocation in an area with a community-based system of mental health care. ... Read more

Product Description
This resource provides clinicians and trainees with easy access to research evidence and current thinking in child and adolescent mental health. Experts from each area have assisted in compiling this resource, which is updated on an annual basis. The authors have searched for robust secondary research, key reports and clinical practice guidelines on a wide range of topic areas as well as including cutting edge and classic papers, reviews and books. A section that addresses various approaches to searching for information, search strategies and critical appraisal tools is also included. This first edition concentrates on diagnostic categories and therapeutic approaches. Future editions should be wider ranging, including areas such as child development and developmental psychopathology. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Evidence? What evidence?
I only glanced through this book, yet my first impression is that it is a hodge podge of unrelated research without any attempt to analyze or comment on the results or even the quality of the research conducted or of the tools applied.

I can, however, write about one of the editors, Mike Shaw, who made no attempt whatsoever to 'find the evidence' when assessing us as parents.

He works as a Consultant Child Psychiatrist in London, England and seems to specialise in offering his services as an 'expert witness' and trainer in the legal aspects of applying medical recommendations under the Mental Health Act.

We had our children taken away on the grounds that they were "at risk of neglect". Mike Shaw was called in as an expert witness to interview us and make recommendations. Yet the reports that he submitted to court were unbelievably sloppy and ill researched. Under cross examination, he was vague and inarticulate and could provide no concrete evidence to support his assertions and recommendations.

Luckily for us, he was so glaringly incompetent that we were allowed to repeat the process with another expert psychiatrist.

I don't know about his co-editors, but if his work is anything to go by, the material that he collated in this book can only be equally sloppy and prejudiced.

Here are some extracts from the psychiatric report that he submitted to court.Judge for yourself whether you can take anything this man does or says seriously.

Evidence-gathering.
"On 9.8.02, I interviewed Mr & Mrs Orman [2 hours]
"On 21.8.02, I met the family at Trent Park where I spoke to Mrs Orman alone [40 mins], witnessed contact [1 hour] and spoke to the children without their parents [20 mins] [and] I interviewed the foster carer [2 hours].

Observations.
"Mr & Mrs Orman were friendly and co-operative throughout.[...] Mr Orman showed insight [... but] wasn't concerned that his actions may have disadvantaged the children. The couple were very robust in refuting the [welfare's] account, which they claimed was full of misunderstandings and misinformation.

"Contact took place in the park[...]The parents and children seemed happy to see each other; they chatted in animated style. [...] I wasn't aware of either parent criticising the authorities in the children's presence

"[Interviewing the children] The children seemed attentive [...] but answered "don't know", fell silent and looked at each other when I asked them questions [...] Erin related [a Simpsons episode where] Homer [...] had lumps coming out of his head because he kept his anger inside. I found myself wondering whether this was an oblique reference to concern about Mr Orman's temper but guessed that such an interpretation would be dismissed. [Note. This is submitted in court as an evidence-based legal document!]

Conclusions & Recommendations
"[...] I observed Mrs Orman as shy and anxious while Mr Orman was very pleasant but forceful. [...]

"Mr and Mrs Orman say they have an easy affectionate bond with the children. So it is surprising that the foster carer finds the children uncomfortable with physical contact. [...] I think there is some insecurity in the children's attachment to their parents. [Note how this directly contradicts his own observations in the park.]

"Were Mr Orman to be caring for the children on his own, I would be concerned about his sensitivity to their needs. [...] Asked whether he had any regrets, Mr Orman didn't take any responsibility for the deprivation and disruption suffered by his children going into care. [...] Erin [who was 8 at the time] needs a parent who can stand up to her without losing their temper, and support and advise socially. I suspect Mr Orman would find this difficult.

"My concern about Mrs Orman managing the children on her own would be a recurrence of her illness. [...] I wonder whether Mrs Orman has the strength and patience to handle these very challenging [sic] children.

"[...]The children seemed very happy and natural with their parents during the contact I observed [sic] and the contact records make reference to the children wanting to go home.

"[...] returning home is likely to further retard the children's social and emotional development. [...]

"These children have very little capacity to protect themselves from what is essentially emotional deprivation and possibly abuse. [...] it is most unlikely that either parent can protect the children from any harm that the other parent might cause. I also find very plausible Ms [Charlotte] Curran's suggestion (... [in] her [written] statement) that Mr Orman dominates his wife.

"The children did not express a wish to return home when they spoke to me, but it seems safest to assume they would prefer to be at home and would be alarmed if that was not possible. [..] I believe the children need a long-term placement away from home with experienced foster carers. [...] contact should be gradually reduced."

Mike Shaw's answers under cross-examination painted a dire picture of our mental competence and subsequent parenting abilities, but he was unable to point to any specific evidence that he had acquired in his 6-hour investigation. Yet he remained adamant in his conclusion that the children should be removed from the family indefinitely and contact gradually reduced until no further contact be allowed, so that the children could lead a normal and happy life. He could not comment on government statistics that show that 70% of all children placed in long-term foster care end up as delinquents.

Our children were eventually returned to us after we underwent a convoluted process to prove our competence as parents beyond a reasonable doubt; and the case was eventually closed.

So much for the scientific and critical appraisal of our family by a man who regularly provides expert legal evidence and trains psychiatrists in making competent medical recommendations that supposedly satisfy basic human rights conventions! ... Read more

Product Description
The first comprehensive resource covering the field of behavioral health, with critical information for both the layman and mental health professional.For the layman, this directory offers understandable descriptions of over 100 Mental Health disorders, as well as detailed information on Associations, Media, Support Groups and Mental Health Facilities.For the professional, The Complete Mental Health Directory offers critical and comprehensive information on Managed Care Organizations, Information Systems, Government Agencies and Provider Organizations.For immediate access to information, The Complete Mental Health Directory contains an Organization Index and a Geographic Index.This comprehensive volume of needed and useful information will be a welcome addition to any reference collection. ... Read more