Since he published his first paper in 1940, Leopold Bellak has attempted to bridge the fields of experimental psychology, psychoanalysis, and psychiatry. In this important new book, Dr. Bellak makes a strong case for integrating the valuable insights of psychoanalytic practice with the theoretical and methodological discipline found in rigorous psychological research.
Dr. Bellak's career began with psychoanalytic training in pre-World War II Vienna and included personal friendships with many of the leading figures in the psychoanalytic field. At Harvard graduate school he worked with Henry Murray, Gordon Allport, E.G. Boring, and S.S. Stevens; later he pioneered the use of transcripts of psychoanalytic sessions in research. Drawing on this extensive experience, he provides personal insights into the cultural milieu, personal circumstances, and theoretical legacy behind major developments in the field.
Like the author's previous works, Psychoanalysis as a Science makes complex ideas clear, concrete, and interesting. Beginning with an analysis of Freud's most important contributions, the book translates sometimes arcane psychoanalytic propositions into concepts that academic and clinical psychologists, as well as informed lay people, can relate to.
Perhaps for the first time in a book of this type, Dr. Bellak succeeds in providing logical, coherent links between psychoanalytic interpretation and currently accepted psychological theory. "Psychoanalysts are simply not aware of many of the implicit assumptions they make," he points out in Chapter 2, adding that they are also not aware that many of these assumptions relate to long-established "laws" of academic psychology.
In separate chapters he then goes on to present psychoanalysis as a theory of learning, as a theory of motivation, as a theory of perception, and as developmental theory. He summarizes the long-running conflict between philosophy and psychoanalysis. And finally, he details some of the more interesting opportunities technology offers for enhancing psychoanalytic research.
Spanning over half a century of practice in psychoanalysis and involvement in psychological research, Dr. Bellak's distinguished career makes him uniquely qualified to write this book. With a foot in both "camps," he has succeeded in showing how today's research methodologies can be harnessed to advance the practice of psychoanalysis as a science.