Paul Diel (1893-1972) was a French psychologist of Austrian
origins. Building on the work of Freud, Adler, and Jung, he
developed an original technique of introspection and analysis
designed to expose the secret inner motivations that influence
behavior. His contemporaries, notably Albert Einstein, recognized
him for his penetrating moral vision as well as his scientific
rigor. In France, a group of physicians, psychologists, and
educators-called the Association de la Psychologie de la
Motivation-is devoted to the study and transmission of Diel's
work.
Other books by Paul Diel in English translation are The Psychology
of Motivation, Symbolism in Greek Mythology, and The God-Symbol.
For this Austrian-born French psychologist, warped motivations shaped by an individual's striving for status, money and power are at the heart of neurosis. Mentally unhealthy people, according to Diel (1893-1972), thinly conceal a tangle of resentments that surface in grudges, self-pity, triumphant stances, obsessions, daydreams, excessive hates. The road to cure lies in seeing through society's false values and understanding the source of one's low self-esteem. The diary reproduced here was kept by a 40-year-old patient of Diel. This man came to see his conflicts with co-workers, failure in business and sexual adventures as the result of his feelings of worthlessness. Diel's commentary illuminates the journal entries. A psychologist who insisted that adjusting to a sick society does not make one well, Diel is a relevant thinker for our time. (December)
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