The Unconscious

“This impressive review of the history of the concept of the unconscious synthesizes current research from multiple fields. The authors propose a metatheory of unconscious processing as the basis for any clinical theory of psychotherapy….Not only has the concept of the unconscious returned, but the revitalized form it takes in this book will challenge the field anew as we continue to grapple with this paradigm shift: accepting the role of unconscious determinism in conscious life.”

—Psychiatry


“A 'must read' for anyone who wants to know how our minds and brains really work when we’re not looking. No one other than Weinberger could have pulled together this important work—no one else has spent the last 35 years working with unconscious processes both in the laboratory and the clinic, without overvaluing or devaluing either setting. Weinberger and Stoycheva synthesize the best scientific and clinical thinking about the range of unconscious processes that control our thoughts, feelings, motivation, and behavior. The authors glide effortlessly from philosophical thought on the nature of consciousness, to complex experiments in cognitive neuroscience, to provocative ideas from contemporary psychoanalysis.”

—Drew Westen, PhD, Department of Psychology and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University


“What an accomplishment! Just as the scientific community approaches consensus about the ubiquity and power of unconscious processes, Weinberger and Stoycheva provide a brilliant, generous, guided tour of that landscape. The authors explore and integrate knowledge about implicit mental processes that has emerged from different intellectual traditions. This readable book belongs not only in undergraduate and graduate courses in psychology and psychiatry, but also in the curricula of all postgraduate clinical training programs.”

—Nancy McWilliams, PhD, ABPP, Visiting Professor Emerita, Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey


“This impressive, authoritative book beautifully integrates the profound insights of Freudian psychology with cutting-edge research. If you have wondered about the powers and pitfalls of the human mind that lie outside of conscious, deliberate thinking, or if you are merely curious about the deep processes that produce the remarkable capacity of human thinking, this book is the place to start. It offers a thorough overview of scholarly work on the unconscious, but it goes beyond that to offer a new synthesis. This is a terrific resource for researchers, practitioners, students, and anyone else interested in the mysterious depths of the human mind.”

—Roy F. Baumeister, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Queensland, Australia


“Weinberger is one of the world's leading experts on the unconscious mind. He has teamed with Stoycheva to produce a contemporary review that manages to be both sweeping in its scope and illuminating in its depth. Especially valuable is their integration of psychodynamic theory and other clinical models of unconscious thought and motivation with modern cognitive psychology research on implicit memory and implicit learning. This makes the book an ideal text for cognitive science courses on conscious and unconscious human information processing, providing a more complete and historical treatment than do most contemporary texts. Advanced clinical psychology courses, as well, would profit from the coverage of therapeutic approaches and the authors' appreciation that much can be learned about the human mind and human nature from the therapy setting, in addition to rigorous laboratory research. Because the authors worked hard to describe and cover the most recent research and theoretical developments, the coverage is fresh and up to date, ensuring this book will be a trusted and useful text and resource for decades to come.”

—John A. Bargh, PhD, James Rowland Angell Professor of Psychology, Yale University


“Weinberger and Stoycheva offer a remarkably thorough and scholarly review of the evidence on unconscious processes. Courses in academic research on affect and cognition are now a required element for PhD programs in clinical psychology, but many such courses are only peripherally relevant to clinical work. This book masterfully integrates the academic and the clinical in a way that suits the needs of both beginning graduate students and sophisticated clinicians and researchers. It is a major achievement—I learned a great deal from reading it.”

—Paul L. Wachtel, PhD, Distinguished Professor, Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, City College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York