Self-criticism is a personality trait that has been implicated in a wide range of psychopathologies and developmental arrests. Defined as the tendency to set unrealistically high standards for one's self and to adopt a punitive stance towards the self once these standards are not met, self-criticism is both active and cyclical. Self-critics actively create the social-interpersonal conditions that generate their distress, and their distress itself exacerbates self-criticism. Erosion offers a comprehensive treatment of self-criticism based in philosophy, developmental science, personality and clinical psychology, social theories, and cognitive-affective neuroscience. Professor Golan Shahar expertly summarizes the most recent research on the topic and synthesizes theory, empirical research, and clinical practice guidelines for assessment, prevention, and treatment. The book rests upon three elements that, as Shahar argues, are central to the maintenance of self-critical vulnerability: the importance of a concept of an authentic self or the need to "feel real"; the importance of intentionality and goal-directedness; and the power of interpersonal relationships and cultural context. Shahar argues that exploring these elements requires an integrated clinical approach that incorporates multidimensional assessment and interventions which reconcile science, practice, and policy. The result is a broad and scholarly volume that is useful to practitioners, researchers, and theorists interested in self-criticism.

About the Author
Golan Shahar, PhD, is Professor of Clinical-Health and Developmental-Health Psychology at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel, where he directs the Stress, Self, and Health Lab. Dr. Shahar is the founding director of the Ben-Gurion University Center for the Advancement of Research on Stress (BGU-CARES). He also serves as Visiting Professor of Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine. He is the author of over 130 publications/book chapters in the fields of personality, stress, psychopathology, psychosomatics, and psychotherapy and currently serves as the Chief Editor of the Journal of Psychotherapy Integration.

Reviews
It is not very often that a clinical psychology treatise manages to negotiate the lab, the library, and the clinic with great skill, humility, and sparkling wit. Golan Shahar has achieved this. . . and the readers of his book will be well rewarded for their investment of time and scholarly energy. * Dr. Spyros Orfanos, PhD, ABPP, Clinic Director of the New York University Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis; PsycCRITIQUES, Vol. 61, No. 14 *



Book Information
ISBN 9780199929368
Author Golan Shahar
Format Hardback
Page Count 240
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 476g
Dimensions(mm) 157mm * 236mm * 25mm