The integration of psychiatry into the mainstream of American society following World War II involved rethinking and revision of psychiatric theories. While in the past, theories of personality had been concerned with the single individual, this volume argues that such theories are of little use.

Jurgen Ruesch, Gregory Bateson, Eve C. Pinsker, Gene Combs

Preface to the 1968 edition, 1. VALUES, COMMUNICATION, AND CULTURE: An Introduction, 2. COMMUNICATION AND HUMAN RELATIONS: An Interdisciplinary Approach, 3. COMMUNICATION AND MENTAL ILLNESS; A Psychiatric Approach, 4. COMMUNICATION AND AMERICAN VALUES: A Psychological Approach, 5. AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES: An Integrative Approach, 6. COMMUNICATION AND THE SYSTEM OF CHECKS AND BALANCES: An Anthropological Approach, 7. INFORMATION AND CODIFICATION: A Philosophical Approach, 8. CONVENTIONS OF COMMUNICATION: Where Validity Depends upon Belief, 9. PSYCHIATRIC THINKING: An Epistemological Approach, 10. THE CONVERGENCE OF SCIENCE AND PSYCHIATRY, 11. INDIVIDUAL, GROUP, AND CULTURE: A Review of the Theory of Human Communication, REFERENCES, INDEX