Contributors from the Masterson Institute introduce the fundamental concepts, theories, and treatment approaches of James F. Masterson, synthesizing the material of his 14 books and many articles. The second part is a workbook in the form of a questionnaire to enable practitioners to apply the skill

There are two ways to pursue happiness. There is the 'Western' approach, known as 'optimizing, ' in which we try to bring about the satisfaction of our desires, and there is the 'Eastern' method, known as 'adapting, ' in which we transform our desires so that nothing can hurt us - we become invulnerable, even to such realities as death. In Invulnerability, Steven Luper analyzes the nature of happiness and compares the two strategies: optimizing and adapting. He investigates the claim made by some of the greatest thinkers (including Buddha, Socrates, Epicurus, and Epictetus) that the prospect of dying need not alarm us, and that we may be completely happy no matter what our circumstances. Professor Luper explains in detail how adaptation may be implemented, including the steps we must take if we are to adapt to death and every contingency which might undermine our happiness. He demonstrates that adapting, as a complete strategy, has shortcomings: if we did manage to alter our conception of happiness to guarantee ourselves the possibility of complete happiness despite premature death, our conception of happiness would be impoverished. And yet adapting can often be a useful alternative to optimizing.

Patients with personality disorders need targeted treatments which are able to deal with the specific aspects of the core pathology and to tackle the challenges they present to the treatment clinicians. Such patients, however, are often difficult to engage, are prone to ruptures in the therapeutic alliance, and have difficulty adhering to a manualized treatment. Giancarlo Dimaggio, Antonella Montano, Raffaele Popolo and Giampaolo Salvatore aim to change this, and have developed a practical and systematic manual for the clinician, using Metacognitive Interpersonal Therapy (MIT), and including detailed procedures for dealing with a range of personality disorders. The book is divided into two parts, Pathology, and Treatment, and provides precise instructions on how to move from the basic steps of forming an alliance, drafting a therapy contract and promoting self-reflections, to the more advanced steps of promoting change and helping the patient move toward health and adaptation. With clinical examples, summaries of therapies, and excerpts of session transcripts, Metacognitive Interpersonal Therapy for Personality Disorders will be welcomed by psychotherapists, clinical psychologists and other mental health professionals involved in the treatment of personality disorders.

It is increasingly recognized that a significant number of individuals with personality disorders can benefit from therapy. In this new edition - based on the treatment of over a hundred patients with antisocial and borderline personality disorders - Kate Davidson demonstrates that clinicians using cognitive therapy can reduce a patient's tendency to deliberately self-harm and to harm others; it also improves their psychological well-being. Case studies and therapeutic techniques are described as well as current evidence from research trials for this group of patients. Cognitive Therapy for Personality Disorders provides a thorough description of how to apply cognitive behavioural therapy to patients who are traditionally regarded as being difficult to treat: those with borderline personality disorders and those with antisocial personality disorders. The book contains detailed descriptions and strategies of how to: formulate a case within the cognitive model of personality disorders overcome problems encountered when treating personality disordered patients understand how therapy may develop over a course of treatment. This clinician's guide to cognitive behavioural therapy in the treatment of borderline and antisocial personality disorder will be essential reading for psychiatrists, clinical and counselling psychologists, therapists, mental health nurses, and students on associated training courses.

The Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Workbook for Personality Disorders helps readers learn and practice eight core skills based in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to overcome the symptoms of a variety of personality disorders, including paranoid personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder, and borderline personality disorder.

This landmark work was the first to present a cognitive framework for understanding and treating personality disorders. Part I lays out the conceptual, empirical, and clinical foundations of effective work with this highly challenging population, reviews cognitive aspects of Axis II disorders, and delineates general treatment principles. In Part II, chapters detail the process of cognitive-behavioral therapy for each of the specific disorders, review the clinical literature, guide the therapist through diagnosis and case conceptualization, and demonstrate the nuts and bolts of cognitive intervention.

This comprehensive reference, edited by one of the leading experts in the field, assimilates the newest and most effective treatment techniques for the personality disorders. Each chapter is written by leading scholars in the Cognitive-Behavior, Humanistic and Integrative theoretical models. In addition to a detailed case example in each chapter, additional case studies are integrated and used throughout.