Darwinian Psychiatry

Rating:
Summary: Exceptional Scholarly Work
Review: It is an exceptional, and very rare scholarly work of incredible science that tries to avoid human biases that can easily creep into
the evaluation of psychoanalysis, psychotherapy, and other therapies. As other good reviewers have said this book is very
comprehensive and written for the advanced reader but it is a MUST for ALL and should be mandatory reading for any
progressive school or person. The book discusses several human brain conditions from anxiety all to way to schizophrenia, and
discusses their definition, diagnosis, origins, prevalence, reasons for existing, etc.... What I specifically noted about this book,
apart from all the good that has been written, is its attempt to remove, as much as possible, human biases in the science of
psychology, and psychiatry and to just state "Just the facts mam". They even admit to the pitfalls of the traditional fields of
psychology, and psychiatry (e.g. psychoanalysis). A MUST for those wanting to move on beyond the traditional psychobable
and self-help; towards real science.

An extremely interesting book detailing evolutionary human behavior. Covers a very wide range from the history of evolutionary
thinking to the latest views. Includes: kin selection, friendship, family, group, and tribal behavioral dynamics as viewed from an
evolutionary point of view.

For further reading:
The Moral Animal : The New Science of Evolutionary Psychology by Robert Wright
Charles Darwin by John Bowlby
Evolutionary Psychiatry : A New Beginning by Anthony Stevens, John Price
Darwinian Psychiatry by Michael T. McGuire, Alfonso Troisi

Rating:
Summary: A state-of-the art review of the biology/psychiatry link
Review: The authors are accomplished psychiatrists who here bring together the wealth of information from contemporary biology, studies of animal behavior, and evolutionary theory, to consider their impact on the practice of psychiatry. Darwinian Psychiatry is an amazing book for its scholarship, erudition, and comprehensiveness. It shows decisively how the mind/body and nature/culture dichotomies are not only pointlessly wrong but scientifically and medically dangerous. It is by no means a simple book to read because of the density of technical information. But it is relatively jargon-free and designed to be helpful to medics interested in treating sick people as well as scientists pursuing fundamental studies. It is a work of quite bewilderingly impressive skill.