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This book is offered ‘to provide perspective and insight into the origins of contemporary abuse, treatment and theory’, and the papers selected were chosen in the belief or assumption that the ideas expressed or implied have either significantly changed or will change the fields of addiction theory, research and practice.
The book is divided into six sections, and the subjects range from a historical perception to the research issues related to the addictions. One of the sections deals with the psycho-dynamics of dependence, with papers written by Rado, Chein, Vaillant, Wurmser, Khamzzian, Krystal, Raskim, Zimberg and Gendreau.
On the whole, analysts of all creeds and denominations have shown what can only be termed increasing lack of interest in the field of addiction and their writings have always been based on very limited clinical material. Without denying that some of the ideas put forward have made an important contribution to the field of addiction, the sad fact remains that most of the written work is too vague and general to be of great value. To give but one example, it is sufficient to quote Rado's paper, which although describing brilliantly drug abuse as an attempt to cope with difficult emotional states, and in that sense postulating an idea capable of changing treatment views, does not provide a great help to the practitioner who is dealing with particular patients suffering from such a problem. The chapter on psychodynamics is in itself a good reflection of the lack of interest and concern that analysts have always shown in this difficult and interesting area. The important work of Knight and Menninger has not been included in this section.
The rest of the book represents a curious mixture of papers of doubtful value, such as the one by Maxwell Jones on the importance of the therapeutic community in the treatment of addicts and that by Marshall Cherkas about the Synanon Foundation.
This is, in my view, a disappointing book which only offers the very doub