Psychoanalytical Psychology, Neuroscience, Dreams - Psychology, Neurology, Physiology - Nervous System, Neuropsychology & Neuropsychiatry, Dreams & Dream Interpretation, Neurophysiology
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Overview
Dreaming and involuntary waking mentation are discrete phenomena reflecting principles of automatic activity at both mental and neuronal levels. Such principles include the obligatory connectivity of the associative process and the more recent concepts of neuronal networks, their formation, excitability and hierarchical organization. Principles of (1) associative activity forming networks and of (2) neuronal excitability underlying network dominance, can be applied to dreaming and forced waking ideation. Such an application permits congruence between mental and neural levels, helping explain such phenomena as recurrent dreams, enduring memories secondary to catastrophic trauma and life-long fixations as encountered in fetishism, phobias and obsessive-compulsive states. Dreaming and Other Involuntary Mentation is a very readable book whose value lies in its offering acceptable explanations of mental function, providing psychiatrist, neurologist and psychotherapist with the glimmerings of a basic science of the mind. The clinical examples provide new vistas for the cognitive scientist; clinical data and their analysis can only enlarge the comprehensiveness of cognitive science.The book contains black-and-white illustrations.
Editorials
From The Critics
Reviewer: Ruzica K. Ristanovic, MD(Rush University Medical Center)Description: This book is based on the author's extensive personal clinical experience. In order to comprehend mental phenomena, such as dreams, imperative thoughts and obsessive compulsive disorder, the author uses a concept of neural "networks" and their excitability.
Purpose: The purpose is to introduce and convey the author's view of "involuntary" mentations (dreams, imperative ideas, obsessive compulsive disorder) to the readers, in the context of neural connectivity and plasticity. It is organized into 15 chapters covering different categories of mentation.
Audience: It is targeted primarily for psychiatrists, neurologists, psychologists, and neuroscientists with special interest in highest cortical functions. The author is credible in the subject matter.
Features: This book includes adequate illustrations, appropriate for the content. References are pertinent, although not as current as desirable.
Assessment: This is an unusual book. The author is applying concepts of neural "networks" (functional units formed by the connective capacity of neurons) and variations of their excitability, as derived from clinical epilepsy and aphasia research, to understanding of "involuntary mentations," such as dreams, imperative ideas, and obsessive compulsive disorder. These views are likely to be attractive to psychiatrists, neurologists, psychologists, and neuroscientists.
Ruzica K. Ristanovic
This book is based on the author's extensive personal clinical experience. In order to comprehend mental phenomena, such as dreams, imperative thoughts and obsessive compulsive disorder, the author uses a concept of neural networks and their excitability. The purpose is to introduce and convey the author's view of involuntary mentations (dreams, imperative ideas, obsessive compulsive disorder) to the readers, in the context of neural connectivity and plasticity. It is organized into 15 chapters covering different categories of mentation. It is targeted primarily for psychiatrists, neurologists, psychologists, and neuroscientists with special interest in highest cortical functions. The author is credible in the subject matter. This book includes adequate illustrations, appropriate for the content. References are pertinent, although not as current as desirable. This is an unusual book. The author is applying concepts of neural networks (functional units formed by the connective capacity of neurons) and variations of their excitability, as derived from clinical epilepsy and aphasia research, to understanding of involuntary mentations, such as dreams, imperative ideas, and obsessive compulsive disorder. These views are likely to be attractive to psychiatrists, neurologists, psychologists, and neuroscientists.Booknews
Cites cases from the author's experience and from the literature of clinical neurology and psychiatry demonstrating the unity of the two fields in fostering an understanding of phenomena such as recurrent dreams, enduring memories secondary to catastrophic trauma, and life- long fixations as encountered in fetishism, phobias, and obsessive- compulsive states. Of interest to psychiatrists, neurologists, and psychotherapists, and those in cognitive science. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)3 Stars from Doody
Book Details
Published
December 31, 1996
Publisher
Madison, Conn. : International Universities Press, c1995.
Pages
179
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9780823614370