Hubert J.M. Hermans – författare

Instead of considering society as a social environment, Society in the Self begins from the assumption that society works in the deepest regions of self and identity, as expressed in phenomena like self-sabotage, self-radicalization, self-cure, self-government, self-nationalization, and self-internationalization. This leads to the central thesis that a democratic society can only function properly if it is populated by participants with a democratically organized self. In this book, an integrative model is presented that is inspired by three versions of democracy: cosmopolitan, deliberative, and agonistic democracy, with the latter focusing on the role of social power and emotions.Drawing on these democratic views, three levels of inclusiveness are distinguished in the self: personal (I as an individual), social (I as a member of a group), and global (I as a human being). A democratic self requires the flexibility of moving up and down across these levels of inclusiveness and has to find its way in fields of tension between the self and the other, and between dialogue and social power. As author Hubert Hermans explains, this theory has far reaching consequences for such divergent topics as leadership in the self, cultural diversity in the self, the relationship between reason and emotion, self-empathy, cooperation and competition between self-parts, and the role of social power in prejudice, enemy image construction, and scapegoating.The central message of this book is reflected in Mahatma Gandhi's dictum: "Be the change you want to see in the world."

The Pursuit of Happiness: Between Prosperity and Adversity looks at activities, practices, and experiences that are instrumental in changing one’s level of well-being. This book focuses on the situations in which well-being is challenged, or even decreased, and explores, guided by Dialogical Self Theory, pathways that lead to its elevation. Research has suggested that there are three main determinants of well-being: genetic factors, one’s individual’s history, and happiness-relevant activities. The third and most promising means of altering one’s happiness level are activities and practices that require some degree of effort. A surprising finding is that these personal efforts may have a happiness-boosting potential that is almost as large as the probable role of genetics, and apparently larger than the influence of one’s individual history. Efforts are invested in fields of tension between prosperity and adversity. The Pursuit of Happiness covers a variety of topics, such as finding happiness and well-being in the face of extreme adversity, the role of honesty in genuine happiness, the promise of minimalistic life orientations, the value of inner silence, evaluating our lives from a future perspective, and the relationship between happiness, career development, counselling, and psychotherapy. This book was originally published as a special issue of the British Journal of Guidance & Counselling.

The core message of this educational book is that democracy is, more than ever before, in need of the personal contribution of engaged citizens. Democracy is viable only if it is rooted in the hearts and minds of citizens who feel responsible not only for their own well-being, but also for the quality of social relationships in a society with marked differences in race, religion, culture, and gender. Three basic features define personalized democracy: A critical attitude not only towards others but also towards oneself; learning not only from others but also from oneself; and participation in society with attention to the contradictive nature of one’s own mind. The authors emphasize that the development of personalized democracy and global citizenship requires participation at different identity levels: I as individual, we as members of social groups, we as part of humanity, and we as part of the earth. Written for future teachers at secondary level, the book contains dialogical self theory, research and a wide range of exercises.

The core message of this educational book is that democracy is, more than ever before, in need of the personal contribution of engaged citizens. Democracy is viable only if it is rooted in the hearts and minds of citizens who feel responsible not only for their own well-being, but also for the quality of social relationships in a society with marked differences in race, religion, culture, and gender. Three basic features define personalized democracy: A critical attitude not only towards others but also towards oneself; learning not only from others but also from oneself; and participation in society with attention to the contradictive nature of one’s own mind. The authors emphasize that the development of personalized democracy and global citizenship requires participation at different identity levels: I as individual, we as members of social groups, we as part of humanity, and we as part of the earth. Written for future teachers at secondary level, the book contains dialogical self theory, research and a wide range of exercises.

This book illustrates the process of mediated dialogue in a digital age. It shows that culture and self-like society and identity-are conceived as mutually inclusive and shows how technology is able to create a new form of dialogue that is very personal and very public at the same time.

The Pursuit of Happiness: Between Prosperity and Adversity looks at activities, practices, and experiences that are instrumental in changing one’s level of well-being. This book focuses on the situations in which well-being is challenged, or even decreased, and explores, guided by Dialogical Self Theory, pathways that lead to its elevation. Research has suggested that there are three main determinants of well-being: genetic factors, one’s individual’s history, and happiness-relevant activities. The third and most promising means of altering one’s happiness level are activities and practices that require some degree of effort. A surprising finding is that these personal efforts may have a happiness-boosting potential that is almost as large as the probable role of genetics, and apparently larger than the influence of one’s individual history. Efforts are invested in fields of tension between prosperity and adversity. The Pursuit of Happiness covers a variety of topics, such as finding happiness and well-being in the face of extreme adversity, the role of honesty in genuine happiness, the promise of minimalistic life orientations, the value of inner silence, evaluating our lives from a future perspective, and the relationship between happiness, career development, counselling, and psychotherapy. This book was originally published as a special issue of the British Journal of Guidance & Counselling.

How can a theory of the self be used to understand the psychotherapeutic process? The basic assumption of the 'dialogical self' is that there is no centralised 'headquarter' in the mind, but that the internal self is made up of a number of different 'characters'. Interpersonal relationships, from infancy onwards, become internalised - these internalised relationships then influence relationships during life. The Dialogical Self in Psychotherapy is divided into four clear and accessible sections, which explore: * theoretical and historical assumptions of the dialogical self from different angles: psychological, developmental and neurobiological* the relationships between Dialogical Self Therapy and the authors' own theoretical perspectives* treatment of clients suffering from severe disorders* method and research. The Dialogical Self in Psychotherapy gathers together psychotherapists from divergent origins to explore current thinking in the field: cognitive, constructivist, process-experiential, narrative, psychodynamic, psychodramatic, humanistic, and cognitive analytic. This innovative book brings together inter- and intra-subjective dialogue and clearly demonstrates how they are incorporated into the therapeutic process.

How can a theory of the self be used to understand the psychotherapeutic process? The basic assumption of the 'dialogical self' is that there is no centralised 'headquarter' in the mind, but that the internal self is made up of a number of different 'characters'. Interpersonal relationships, from infancy onwards, become internalised - these internalised relationships then influence relationships during life. The Dialogical Self in Psychotherapy is divided into four clear and accessible sections, which explore: * theoretical and historical assumptions of the dialogical self from different angles: psychological, developmental and neurobiological* the relationships between Dialogical Self Therapy and the authors' own theoretical perspectives* treatment of clients suffering from severe disorders* method and research. The Dialogical Self in Psychotherapy gathers together psychotherapists from divergent origins to explore current thinking in the field: cognitive, constructivist, process-experiential, narrative, psychodynamic, psychodramatic, humanistic, and cognitive analytic. This innovative book brings together inter- and intra-subjective dialogue and clearly demonstrates how they are incorporated into the therapeutic process.

This book explores how living in accordance with the main ideals (wealth, fame, social power) of our individualistic meritocratic society comes at the expense of our psychological richness. To protect or restore this richness, the mainstream conception of success has to be extended beyond the standard definition. The experience of success is too precious to keep it restricted within the imprisoning walls of the individualistic self. There are more ways to be successful. We have arrived in an era where success in life needs the inclusion of three main components: the “success of the other person,” the “diversity of our value system beyond economic values,” and “the survival success of nature". The book is distinctive in that it gives a profound treatment of the reasons why many people feel discontented about the restrictive emphasis on individual success and excellence. It deals not only with the limitations of meritocracy but also offers pathways to deal with them.