THE MASTERSON GROUP, P.C.

Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy
of the Personality Disorders

Descriptions of Books by James F. Masterson, M.D.

THE PSYCHIATRIC DILEMMA OF ADOLESCENCE, JAMES F. MASTERSON, M.D.

This volume focuses upon that ever-present diagnostic dilemma faced by all clinicians treating adolescents: Does the patient suffer from a genuine psychiatric illness that needs treatment, or is his problem "adolescent turmoil" that will subside, of itself, with future growth?

To resolve this dilemma, the author undertook a thorough longitudinal study of 101 outpatient adolescents and then compared them with a matched control group. The experience and findings are presented in six sections: the first defines the dilemma and the approaches used to resolve it; the second delineates the relationships of adolescent turmoil to psychiatric illness; the third details the specific problems in diagnosing schizophrenia, personality disorders, character neurosis, and the effects of epilepsy in adolescents; the fourth describes the clinical outcome on long-term follow-up in the outpatient group; the fifth compares the outpatients with the control group and with "relatively healthy" adolescents selected from the control group.

In the final synthesis, the author presents a new appraisal of the psychiatric significance of adolescent turmoil. Throughout, he includes numerous case histories to illustrate specific findings; a detailed appendix sets forth the systematic and clinical methods used in this study.

Masterson concludes, first, that the psychiatric effects of adolescent turmoil are far less significant than has been thought and, second, that the diagnostic problems in this age group lie not so much in the choice between turmoil and illness as in defining the exact clinical diagnosis of the illness.

Indeed, as he points out, "adolescent turmoil" is all too often used as a wastebasket category that impedes accurate diagnosis, timely intervention, and successful treatment.

Written for all clinicians treating adolescents, The Psychiatric Dilemma of Adolescence is a useful text not only for practicing psychiatrists, but also for residents in training, social workers, school psychologists, and all professionals concerned with practical problems in diagnosing and treating adolescents.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
James F. Masterson, M.D., is founder and director of the Masterson Group and Masterson Institute for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy in New York City. He is also the founding father of The Society of Adolescent Psychiatry and past president of its New York Chapter. He is the author of a dozen books, including The Search for the Real Self (1988), The Emerging Self (1991), and Disorders of the Self (1995). Several of his books are required reading in courses throughout the country, and many have been translated into other languages. He has also written numerous articles and papers for leading journals both here and abroad.

Dr. Masterson maintains a private practice and is Clinical Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the Joan and Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University.