Psyche And Society: Explorations In Psychoanalytic Sociology. Robert Endleman. New York:  Columbia University Press, 1981.  465 pp.

As both a psychoanalyst and a professor of sociology, Robert Endleman is in a unique position to avoid the major pitfalls of trying to integrate psychoanalysis and social science. He never stereotypes the content, methods, or concepts of anthropology, sociology, or psychoanalysis. Nor does he exaggerate the degree of consensus in either field; rather he skillfully guides us through complex issues and technical controversies without ever losing our interest.

In his penetrating discussion of the difficulties in developing a truly integrated social science which is based on sociology, anthropology, and psychoanalysis, Endleman points out that there are three possible ways in which the relationship can be conceptualized: the separatist, the imperialist, and the integrationist. The separatist sees each discipline as having its own separate and distinctive methods and problems; the imperialist holds the view that the disciplines are intrinsically connected, but one's own discipline is the overarching one that subsumes the others, and the integrationist views psychoanalysis and social science as intrinsically connected and somewhat equal in importance. Professor Endleman is an integrationist, of course, and his book carefully weaves back and forth between physical anthropology, sociology, and psychoanalysis.