The Art of Psychotherapy

The Art of Psychotherapy, Second Edition

Anthony Storr

New York, NY: Routledge, 208 pp, 1990

In the first edition of The Art of Psychotherapy, published in 1980, the renowned psychiatrist, psychotherapist and author Dr. Anthony Storr tackled the monumental task of writing a truly introductory book about dynamic psychotherapy that is both accessible and understandable. He succeeded at that task admirably and ten years later has published a second edition which is just as effective an introduction. The second edition has an updated section on the obsessional patient and an added chapter outlining some of the ideas that he explored in Solitude, published in 1988. As always, Dr. Storr’s writing is readable, easy to understand and thoughtful.

Most writing in the field of dynamic psychotherapy can be inaccessible to those struggling to come to grips with the field because of language and terminology that is highly technical and often largely theory-bound. Although this type of writing allows for precision, it can also frustrate the new psychotherapist, who is already facing the anxiety of learning a very new and different way of working with patients.

Dr. Storr is able, in his book, to strip away almost all the theory-bound concepts and terminology that create confusion and still preserve the core ideas that underlie the work and art of dynamic psychotherapy. His ideas are clearly formulated and presented, divorced as much as possible from theory without losing their strength.

Other writers, in attempting introductions to this field, have used the approach of sticking to one theoretical model in an attempt to simplify the issues. However, this can create dogmatism as a defence against the anxiety of not knowing “the answers.” Storr’s approach instead is to introduce the core ideas and introduce the idea that there is uncertainty in any attempt to understand people, encouraging an openness to question that parallels the therapeutic stance in psychotherapy. Indeed, in this book he attacks the rigid adherence to one psychotherapeutic school several times, a practice he predicted would fade even in his first edition, which was written over ten years ago.

Unfortunately, the one weakness of the book as an introductory text is closely if not inextricably bound to its very strength. His avoidance of technical terminology, particularly as it pertains to diagnostic systems in vogue, will create some barriers in the task of introducing psychotherapy to people who are new to the field. With no attempt to integrate the ideas expressed in the DSM or ICD diagnostic systems, which new therapists will already know, the book may reinforce the apparent artificial dichotomy between these areas of psychotherapy and biological psychiatry. It can be useful to move away from these diagnostic systems at times in psychotherapy to enhance the understanding of individuals, but may also create resistance and misunderstanding in some readers new to this area. In part because of this lack of integration, references to the pharma-cotherapy of depressed patients infer that such treatment is generally incomplete and may be harmful in the long run, not allowing for complete resolution of the underlying depressive ideas. This may create unnecessary resistance to his other ideas and may reinforce the apparent dichotomy between biological and dynamic psychiatry.

This book is nonetheless excellent and one of the best books to introduce mental health professionals to the field of dynamic psychotherapy. It could well form the core of an introductory text in this area. Its tendency to avoid overreliance on theory, and Dr. Storr’s brilliant distillation of the core concepts of psychotherapy are quite unmatched now as they were unique ten years ago.