Psychoanalytic Diagnosis: Understanding Personality Structure in the Clinical Process

I am not educated in psychology, but I found this professional-level book easy to read and very informative. McWilliams looks at various personalities like the sociopathic, paranoid, hysterical, etc. She explains the defense mechanisms that lead to the various personality types. Although this book is written from the standpoint of pathological personality types and is intended for use by professionals and psych students, after reading this book you will have a greater understanding of personality quirks of family, friends, and co-workers. Well-written and very informative, even for the "armchair" psychologist.

This book is without a doubt the finest psychoanalytic text I have come across. If you desire only one psychoanalytic work in your library, make it this one. Ms. McWilliam's book is beautifully and clearly written, intelligent, informative, and affords both a useful overview of most concepts that any practitioner (or interested layperson) might need, AND the history and development of whatever she discusses. She is smart, does not take herself or the field too seriously, and explains things better than nearly anyone else writing in the field. BUY THIS BOOK!

This book is clear, concise, and extremely well written. It gives an excellent overview of all of the psychoanalytic theories, development, and defenses which lays a solid foundation for the different types of personalities. Most importantly she gives a clear understanding of how an individuals personality structure should inform the therapist's focus and intervention. This is an excellent book!

Psychoanalytic Diagnosis is one of my favorite books. In a very thorough and systematic way, Nancy McWilliams provides the reader with insights on several forms of character pathology - and does so from each of the four major schools of analytic thought (classical drive, ego, object relational, and self psychological perspectives). Typical countertransferential pulls and helpful guidelines for the conduct of therapy with each of the character types is also included. This is a great book, and I return to it often in my own clinical work.

I've been in psychotherapeutic training for several years now and this is perhaps my favorite book. Dr. McWilliams has brought together both useful information and a sense of the humanity of patients in a book that provides an orientation for work as well as some quite practical do's and don't. I recognized myself in her descriptions, but benefitted from her compassion at the same time. It is a "primer" but it holds wisdom that I return to time and again.