STATIONS OF THE MIND: New Directions for Reality Therapy

by ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 25, 1981

The originator of Reality Therapy (1965) here endeavors to explain our behavior in terms of control theory, following the lead of Dr. William Powers. The result is an extremely formalized model that stands in direct contrast to the stimulus-response of behaviorism: we start from our essential perceptions, ""control for"" certain behaviors that reinforce the perceptions, and if need be reorganize our ""feeling behaviors"" (e.g., from pure pain to more manageable depression) to preserve the intactness of our internal world. This psychological model--here called BCP ""where B stands for behavior, C for control, and P for perceptions""--essentially means, in terms of everyday behavior, that we make ourselves miserable by trying to change whatever we find unacceptable in others; we all do what our internal controls (set by the ""thermostat"" of the so-called new, or nonautomatic brain) tell us to do to match our perceptions, so behavior will not be changed until internal need has been modified. All this is as talky and convoluted as it sounds; few will need to know the intimate details of input-output theory to understand the basic human concept that we do what we have to do to keep our view of the world alive. For the Glasser following and others susceptible to abstract theorizing.

Pub Date: March 25, 1981

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Harper & Row

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1981

Categories: NONFICTION