180 BOOK REVIEWS

obsessive-compulsive disorder; couple and sexual problems; family problems; and schizophrenia. The chapters are Ruent, well-organized, and authoritative. Each chapter gives a brief list of recommended readings, in addition to the references.

While this book clearly succeeds in its intended aim of providing an introduction to the field covered, it is also useful reading for more advanced students and practitioners. Those in psychology, medicine, counselling, social work, nursing and psychiatry will al1 benefit from this. Its attempt to present basic facts along with relevant theory is laudable, and it succeeds well in this attempt. In this sense it is a more ambitious book than a traditional introduction.

The strongest part of the book, in the opinion of the reviewer, is the introductory chapter. It gives a dear and fair overview of psychological theories and models that apply to abnormal behaviour. Psychoanalysis, behavioural psychology, and cognitive psychology are explained, discussed and compared. This is a difficult task by any standards, and the authors of this chapter accomplish much in these pages. This excellent introduction paves the way for the chapters on specific problems, which clearly benefit from the framework it provides.

In sum, this is a very good book. It is somewhat overpriced in its hardback edition, but the paperback is a bargain at the asking price.

E. K. RODRIGO

KEITH HAWTON and PHILIP COWEN (Eds): Practical Prabferns in Clinical Psychiafry, Oxford University Press, Oxford (I 992). x t 258 pp. E17.50,

This book will be of interest not only to dinica1 psychiatrists, but to psychiatric nurses, clinical psychologists, social workers and general practitioners. It is a companion volume to Dilemmas and D@kzdties in the Management o~psyeh~atric Patienrs, and covers some of the controversial or unclear areas within psychiatry-eg. issues in the relapse of schizophrenia, psychological treatment for personality disorders, mentally ill mothers and their babies, serotonin reuptake inhibitors in ob~ssive-compulsive disorder, and doctors with emotional prob1ems. A particular strength of the contributions is a section on clinical guidelines included at the end of each chapter. The chapters themselves are reasonably short, and it is a tribute to the contributors that complex and uncertain areas are presented so clearly. From the point of view of readers of this journal, the chapters on sex therapy and on survivors of disasters may be of particular interest. My own attention was engaged by such oddities as “The life chart: historical curiosity or modern tool?” and “Factitious disorders: what can the psychiatrist do?“. In all there are twenty contributions, which necessarily only samples the many diagnostic, treatment and ethical issues which abound in psychiatry; the way lies open for a series of similar coliections in the future. M~nwhile, this book can be well recommended to any practitioner in the field, and indeed to any interested reader.

ANNEWARD

M. GALANTER (Ed.): Recent Dmefopmenra in Aleohofism, Vof. ii2 Alcohol and Cocaine -4imiiarfties and Differences, Plenum Press, New York (1992). xviii + 399 pp. $75.00.

This book is one in a series concerning aspects of alcohol misuse. In &his text, the Iink between alcohol and cocaine is described, in detail. Early chapters deline the extent of the problem of this particular dual dependency. One study reveals that 57% of cocaine-dependent subjects also met criteria for alcohol dependence. Later chapters describe clinical presentation of these patients, the descriptions being both comprehensive and interesting.

In the main, however, this book is a reference text. Some of the chapters pertaining to psychopharmacology and ~eur~ndocrinology are particularly complicated and make for arduous reading. Certain other chapters are teeming with tables and graphs which are not immed~ateIy helpful to the reader!

Although this book will probably be placed on fhe shelf assigned to “Psychiatry”, it may be particularly helpful to physicians with an interest in the treatment of cocaine and alcohol abuse, as it contains chapters assigned to the purely physical complications of cocaine abuse. Readers of Behauiour Research and Therapy, however, may find the chapter on drug conditioning and craving to be particularly relevant.

In summary, this is not a book to be digested at one sitting! ft can be used as an excellent point of reference where readers have specific &tailed points which require clarification.

SUJATA UNNITHAN

M. HOGHUGHI: Assessing Chifd and Adofescenf Disorder.+-A Practice Mamaf. Sage, London (1992). x + 374 pp. f14.95.

This is an introductory book the practice of psychological assessment in the area of Child and Adolescent Disorders. As such, it covers a large range of issues and is written in a clear, simple and accessible language. In addition, each chapter is followed by an up-date and reference list.

The book is divided into two distinctive sections. The first part consists of seven short chapters, dealing with basic and genera1 issues (e.g. the nature of assessment, the Problem Profile Approach, special considerations in assessing chidren). Most of these topics can be found in any recent handbook of psychological assessment. However, in these chapters the author succeeds in integrating difficult theoretical, conceptual and technical issues and presenting them in a practical and attractive way.

The second part consists of six chapters covering a wide range of common clinical conditions: Physical Problems, Intellectual and Educational Problems, Home and Family Problems, Social Skills Problems, Anti-social Behaviour, and Psychological Problems. For all of them, information is given on their main characteristics, prevalence, onset, evalution, associated features and prompts for interviews and intervention. An Appendix, at the end of the book, shows a good example of a psychological report written according to the lines of the Problem Profile Approach here proposed by the author.

BOOK REVIEWS 181

The most remarkable aspect of this book is that the author presents in the same volume two things that belong together but are often treated separately: the principles and techniques of assessment, and the description of the main characteristics of different psychopathological conditions. This is a very ambitious project, perhaps too ambitious for a volume of this dimension. The result is that some issues (e.g. the relation between assessment and intervention) are dealt with in a very schematic, almost telegraphic way and others (e.g. which techniques for each disorder) are just omitted.

Limitations notwithstanding, this well written book provides a general view of the process of human assessment and diagnosis, and will certainly prove a worthwhile addition to the libraries of clinical psychologists and other professionals working in the area of child and adolescent mental health.

AN~ON~O FONSECA

D. J. KAVANAGH (Ed.): Schizophrenia-An Overview and Practical Handbook, Chapman and Hall, London (1992). xv + 464 pp. f29.95.

The aims of this book are to condense into 464 pages the current state of academic research in schizophrenia and then to provide a comprehensive coverage of available assessment and treatment approaches for schizophrenic patients. There are a total of 26 chapters, approximately equally divided between each of these three areas, written by 41 different authors. Unusually for an edited book with so broad a scope, it holds together as a coherent work rather than as a confusion of unconnected chapters. Its limitation is that, with so many topics to cover, the space given to each author does not permit them to do much more than provide summaries of their areas of interest.

Some years ago it was widely felt that schizophrenia was an interesting topic for psychological research but that little of any real consequence was to be gained from specifically psychological interventions with such patients. The chapters on assessment and treatment demonstrate conclusively that this is not the case, rather that interventions which are successful in optimizing functioning of schizophrenic patients are multimodal-ombining psychological, pharmacological and sociological approaches.

Overall, this book achieves its aims with respect to breadth of coverage although the reader would have to look elsewhere for indepth reviews of any one topic. As such it is likely to be useful for most post-graduate students wishing to develop an interest in schizophrenia, who are often understandably daunted by the mountain of apparently unconnected research generated in the area.

STEVE JON=

S. M. TURNER, K. S. CALHOUN and H. E. ADAMS (Eds): Handbook of Clinical Behaviour Therapy, 2nd Edn, Wiley, New York (1992). xiv + 481 pp. E52.00.

This well produced, large volume is the second edition of a book which was favourably received when it first appeared in 1991 and which has been in much use. Due to the major developments in the last few years, including the refinement of techniques and the increasing scope of the applications of behaviour therapy, an updated version was needed. The editors and the publishers have responded to this need extremely well.

This new edition has completely re-written chapters. In addition, there are several entirely new contributions. The chapters are grouped under: Adult Disorders, Childhood Disorders, Behavioural Medicine, and Special Populations. These last two sections are relatively small, with only three and two chapters, respectively, in them. But the chapters included are important. One of the chapters under ‘Special Populations’ is on family violence, a topic rarely covered in behaviour therapy books.

Perhaps it will be useful, for the benefit of the prospective reader, to note some of the topics that are new to this edition. These include: post-traumatic stress disorder, prevention of disease, behavioural marital therapy, chronic pain, and childhood depression.

The chapters, on the whole, give succinct, up-to-date accounts of the disorders and treatment techniques. A major feature is the highlighting of issues, both practical and theoretical. In many, there are also illustrative case examples. It is a remarkable achievement that all this is done within the space of a few pages. This reflects both good editing and a good relationship between the editors and the contributing authors.

At a time when there are numerous handbooks on behaviour therapy (and cognitive behaviour therapy) available in the market, how would this volume fare against its competitors? Pretty well, I should think. While the cost is likely to make it more attractive to libraries than to individual users, it is still not beyond the reach of the latter. Given its many strong features, those who acquire this volume will not be disappointed with their investment,

J. CO~RAUX, P. LEGRON and E. MULLARD (Eds): Which Psychotherapies in lhe Year 2000?, Swets and Zeitlinger, Amsterdam (1992). 216 pp. Dfl 58.00.

This volume comes from the Twenrierh European Congress on Behaviour Therapy which was held in Paris in 1990. These European Conferences have been a major forum for behaviour therapists to present their findings, postulate theories, and debate issues. It is now customary for a volume of related proceedings to be published.

The papers published in the present volume are grouped under: Cognitive Therapy; Behavioural Medicine; Schizophrenic Patients, Rehabilitation; Behaviour Therapy in Eastern Countries; Behaviour Therapy Applications in Developing Countries; Present and Future of Behaviour Therapy; and finally, which Psychotherapies in the Year 2000?

The papers are, on the whole, too brief to make a substantial contribution, but this was perhaps inevitable in a conference format. Some of the papers, however, are valuable pieces. Beck’s retrospection on cognitive therapy and Hersen’s comment on psychiatric diagnosis and behavioural assessment are examples. Marks’s vision on the future of behavioural