Our Inner Conflicts: A Constructive Theory of Neurosis - Paperback

by Karen Horney (Author)

Unlike Freud, Horney does not regard neurosis as rooted in instinct. In her words, her theory is constructive because it allows us for the first time to tackle and resolve neurotic hopelessness. . . . Neurotic conflicts cannot be resolved by rational decision. . . . But [they] can be resolved by changing the conditions within the personality that brought them into being.

Back Jacket

One of the most original psychoanalysts after Freud, Karen Horney pioneered such now-familiar concepts as alienation, self-realization, and the idealized image, and she brought to psychoanalysis a new understanding of the importance of culture and environment.