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This book developed out of the work of the Harvard Affect Study Group and is dedicated to the memory of two of the authors, Sarah Haley and Jerome Sashin, who died during preparation of the volume.
The usual approach to reviewing an edited volume would be to comment on the cohesiveness of the volume and the quality of the individual chapters. To undertake such a straightforward approach would fail to apprise the potential reader of what is in store in this sometimes wild and always exuberant volume, which ranges from Daniel Brown's thoughtful review of affect theory to John E. Mack's praises of Grof Holotropic Breathwork and other techniques leading to “nonordinary states of consciousness [through which] we can be brought into connection with cycles of birth, death and rebirth…” (p. 369). This book can be recommended, but the reader should be aware that this is not a traditional book on affect theory. Instead, the reader should expect a basic review of affect theory and development, some fine clinical vignettes, a masterful article on the biology of trauma, a few unusual mathematical models(Behavior3 = Drive - Behavior x Defense) and a wild-and-woolly exploration of nonordinary states of consciousness.
Steven L. Ablon introduces the volume with a warm description of the sense of safety and mutual support that developed within the Harvard Affect Study Group. He probably goes too far, however, when he suggests “consideration of feeling…has encouraged men to integrate their feminine sensibility into their sense of self” (p. xv). What is feminine sensibility? Careful and meticulous attention should be given to possible gender differences in the experience and expression of emotion. Fortunately, Leslie R. Brody skillfully initiates the task of exploring gender differences in the chapter