The Evolution of the Emotion-Processing Mind

In attempting to unify psychoanalytic and evolutionary theories, Langs offers a concise account of the most current versions of Darwinian and neo-Darwinian theory. He then develops the arguement that the emotion processing mind is an organ of adaptation that has evolved by natural selection.

Robert Langs, M.D., is well known as the author of many books on the subject of psychoanalytic psychotherapy, including 'The Technique of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy' (2 volumes), 'Psychotherapy: A Basic Text' , 'A Primer of Psychotherapy ' and 'Decoding Your Dreams'. He is currently Executive Director at the Program for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy at the Beth Israel Medical Center, New York; Clinical Professor with the Department of Psychiatry, Mt. Sinai Hospital and School of Medicine, New York; and Visiting Clinical Investigator at the Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, New York.

"FOREWORD, INTRODUCTION, PART I, Darwin and Freud, Psychoanalysis and evolution, Darwin and Freud, A communicative framework for evaluating Freud, Freud's evolutionary thinking, PART II, Some biological principles for psychoanalysis, Hierarchies in psychoanalysis, The principles of evolution, The unit of selection, The architecture of the emotion-processing mind, PART III, Evolutionary scenarios for the emotion-processing mind, Setting the stage for an adaptationist programme, An evolutionary scenario: the early hominids, Another scenario: Homo sapiens sapiens, Solving the problems of death and violence, The evolution of frames, rules, and boundaries, Assessing the accomplishments of evolution, PART IV, The emotion-processing mind as a Darwin machine, Mental Darwinism, Selectionism and the therapeutic process, REFERENCES, INDEX "