dmturner's review against another edition
4.0
A diverting read, with many anecdotes and historical notes about the way that psychology has come to deal with various types of apparently obsessive behaviors. My main take-away is the distinction between addiction, impulsive behavior, and compulsion.
Addiction starts with pleasure seeking, develops habituation, and produces withdrawal symptoms.
Impulsive behaviors involve acting without planning, driven by pleasure seeking and the need for immediate gratification. Compulsions are about avoiding unpleasant outcomes, are driven by anxiety, and produce temporary relief from the anxiety.
She argues that Internet addiction is not a diagnosis; it's more of a compulsion, rather than a true addiction, because it's triggered by anxiety rather than the search for pleasure, and is merely a symptom of a wide variety of things, including response to the deliberate cultivation of compulsion, fear of missing out, and anxiety about being alone with oneself. She says that Internet addiction really doesn't qualify as mental illness, either; it's a reasonable response.
Favorite passage:
Without an a priori hypothesis about the brain activity behind a behavior, neuroimaging becomes a fishing expedition where you can't tell if the catch is a prized marlin or an old boot." (266)
Addiction starts with pleasure seeking, develops habituation, and produces withdrawal symptoms.
Impulsive behaviors involve acting without planning, driven by pleasure seeking and the need for immediate gratification. Compulsions are about avoiding unpleasant outcomes, are driven by anxiety, and produce temporary relief from the anxiety.
She argues that Internet addiction is not a diagnosis; it's more of a compulsion, rather than a true addiction, because it's triggered by anxiety rather than the search for pleasure, and is merely a symptom of a wide variety of things, including response to the deliberate cultivation of compulsion, fear of missing out, and anxiety about being alone with oneself. She says that Internet addiction really doesn't qualify as mental illness, either; it's a reasonable response.
Favorite passage:
Without an a priori hypothesis about the brain activity behind a behavior, neuroimaging becomes a fishing expedition where you can't tell if the catch is a prized marlin or an old boot." (266)
smemmott's review against another edition
3.0
I came away with a clearer understanding of some topics: the differences between compulsions and addictions, OCD, how that differs from Obsessive-Compulsive Personality disorder, and more. But I sometimes felt like I had to work to understand the distinctions the author was making, and I just wasn't that excited by the book, even though some of the examples were interesting.
lizmart88's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting exploration of compulsion! If you've ever wondered what happens in the brain and how that affects people with OCD or hoarding or any other compulsion, this is a great read.
It doesn't get too technical but also explains some of the neuroscience with anecdotes of people. I liked its critique of the DSM and exploration of how psychology has evolved in the past two centuries.
It doesn't get too technical but also explains some of the neuroscience with anecdotes of people. I liked its critique of the DSM and exploration of how psychology has evolved in the past two centuries.
skyroxy's review against another edition
3.0
This book was up and down. I went from being totally immersed in one chapter, and bored to death in the next. Ms. Begley combines interesting case studies along with her insights into compulsions.
remie's review against another edition
informative
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness