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The Psychology of Self-Esteem A Revolutionary Approach to Self-Understanding That Launched a New Era in Modern Psychology Nathaniel Branden
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Copyright © 1969 by Nathaniel Branden, Preface to the 32nd Anniversary Edition and Epilogue copyright © 2001 by Nathaniel Branden. FIRST JOSSEY-BASS EDITION PUBLISHED IN 2001. THIS BOOK WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED BY NASH PUBLISHING. Jossey-Bass is a registered trademark of Jossey-Bass Inc., A Wiley Company. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 750-4744. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 101580012, (212) 850-6011, fax (212) 850-6008, e-mail:
[email protected] Jossey-Bass books and products are available through most bookstores. To contact Jossey-Bass directly, call (888) 378-2537, fax to (800) 605-2665, or visit our website at www.josseybass.com Substantial discounts on bulk quantities of Jossey-Bass books are available to corporations, professional associations, and other organizations. For details and discount information, contact the special sales department at Jossey-Bass. e-ISBN 0-7879-5868-9 This title is also available in print as ISBN 0-7879-4526-9 (pbk. alk. paper) For more information about Wiley products, visit our web site at www.Wiley.com FIRST EDITION
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CONTENTS Preface to the 32nd Anniversary Edition
vii
Introduction
xi
Part One: The Foundations
1
1. Psychology as a Science
3
2. Man: A Living Being
17
3. Man: A Rational Being
28
4. Man: A Being of Volitional Consciousness
36
5. Emotions
63
6. Mental Health
93
Part Two: The Psychology of Self-Esteem
107
7. The Nature and Source of Self-Esteem
109
8. Pseudo-Self-Esteem
139
9. Pathological Anxiety: A Crisis of Self-Esteem
153
10. Social Metaphysics
171
11. Self-Esteem and Romantic Love
194
12. Psychotherapy
218
Epilogue: Working with Self-Esteem in Psychotherapy
251
Notes
275
Index
281
About the Author
289
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PREFACE TO THE 32ND ANNIVERSARY EDITION I wrote this book during the 1960s and it was published in 1969. It is a source of immense satisfaction to have this opportunity to write a new Preface for the 32nd anniversary edition. Although I have written many books since this one, for a significant number of my readers it remains their favorite of my works. Certainly it laid the foundation for everything I wrote subsequently about self-esteem. Are there things that I would do differ