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This book holds forth great promise in its preface that it will give a clinical exposition of Sullivan's theories and then examine interpersonal theory and practice as they have emerged since Sullivan's death. As an exposition of Sullivan's theories, the book is a successful elucidation and thorough explanation of the essentials in Sullivanian psychology. The author demonstrates a thorough knowledge of his subject and also conveys his wisdom and experience in psychotherapy.
The book is divided into two parts, “Sullivanian Psychiatry” and “The Therapeutic Process of the Emergence of an Interpersonal Self,” followed by a complete bibliography of Sullivan and a short biographical sketch. However, the book disappointed this reader somewhat due to the diffusion and incompleteness of the second part which, though shorter, appears to be the real interest of the author. There really seem to be two separate short books here, one about Sullivan and the other about Chrzanowski, without either section fulfilling the need for an integrated theory and clinical approach which the book seems to promise. These shortcomings notwithstanding, the book still contains enough depth of theory and thoughtful discussion to deserve the attention of anyone interested in the synthesis and continuing development of psychoanalytic theory and method.
Chrzanowski gives us a detailed review of Harry Stack Sullivan's ideas and successfully explains and amplifies some of the more obscure aspects of Sullivan's statements. There are some moments when (he exposition reads all too much like the lecture notes from which this material was derived, but this is a minor criticism in view of the author's accomplishment in defining and explaining the body of theory. With Chrzanowski's aid, we see that Sullivan essentially dispensed with all of Freudian metapsychology and psychodynamic theory. Sullivan's emphasis on intrapersonal as opposed to intrapsychic processes led him to consider anxiety as the most powerful