New Scientist “[Kirsch’s] case that the drugs’ benefits are due to placebo and enhanced placebo effect is fascinating and demands urgent research…Clearly, it's time for a big rethink of what constitutes mental illness and about how to treat it.”Literary Review (UK) “[B]rilliantly subversive… a fascinating and disturbing book.”Kelly Lambert, PhD, Professor of Psychology, Randolph-Macon College; President, International Behavioral Neuroscience Society; Author of Lifting Depression “Considering the crude and nonspecific therapies that have been historically available for depression, the thought of a pill acting as an effective agent against the tumultuous symptoms of this disease was appealing to everyone in the mental health industry. But, as Irving Kirsch points out in this provocative and informative treatise, The Emperor’s New Drugs , this dream ultimately turned out to be a fairy tale. There was no prince of healing to provide the promised relief for patients. Kudos to Dr. Kirsch for his impressive scientific investigative reporting described in this book, forcing our attention away from the fairy tale and toward the reality of more effective treatment strategies for depression.”David D. Burns, author of Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy “A beautifully written, profoundly important book.”Druin Burch, author of Taking the Medicine “A terrific account of how optimism, greed and scientific incompetence have misled us about the nature of depression and the drugs we throw at it.”Psychology Today “[The Emperor’s New Drugs ] absolutely dismantles the case for antidepressants as a pharmacologically effective treatment.”Publishers Weekly “Writing with a broad audience in mind, Kirsch expands on this important topic in a lively style with clear, cogent explanations of the science involved, and many examples of the differences between solid and flawed research. The result is a fascinating book with broad implications for science policy.” St. Petersburg Times “Measured and laserlike in focus…The Emperor's New Drugs dismantles the case for antidepressants as a pharmacologically effective treatment.”Charlotte Observer “Kirsch…uses clear no-nonsense prose to marshal the extraordinary and convincing evidence needed to support his position.”
The Emperor’s New Drugs absolutely dismantles the case for antidepressants as a pharmacologically effective treatment.”
[Irving Kirsch’s] published articles—and now this book—are having a profound impact on the field, and deservedly so. His research is careful, his logic is easy to follow, and his writing is clear, all of which make The Emperor’s New Drugs an engaging—and important—read. Americans typically turn to the drug cabinet for help with depression, and Kirsch’s book makes a convincing argument that psychotherapy would be a better choice.”
American Journal of Psychology
[Kirsch’s] case that the drugs’ benefits are due to placebo and enhanced placebo effect is fascinating and demands urgent research…Clearly, it’s time for a big rethink of what constitutes mental illness and about how to treat it.”
We can only hope that Kirsch’s call will be heard.”
Kirsch raises important questions about how drugs are tested and whether complicated human conditions such as depression can be reduced to chemical mechanics.”
[A] spare, remarkably engrossing book…Kirsch is a faithful proponent of the scientific method, and his voice therefore brings a welcome objectivity to a subject often swayed by anecdotes, emotions, or…self-interest.”
Brilliantly subversive…A fascinating and disturbing book.”
A beautifully written, profoundly important book.”
author of Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy David D. Burns
A terrific account of how optimism, greed, and scientific incompetence have misled us about the nature of depression and the drugs we throw at it.”
author of Taking the Medicine Druin Burch
Kirsch…uses clear no-nonsense prose to marshal the extraordinary and convincing evidence needed to support his position.”
Considering the crude and nonspecific therapies that have been historically available for depression, the thought of a pill acting as an effective agent against the tumultuous symptoms of this disease was appealing to everyone in the mental health industry. But, as Irving Kirsch points out in this provocative and informative treatise, The Emperor’s New Drugs , this dream ultimately turned out to be a fairy tale. There was no prince of healing to provide the promised relief for patients. Kudos to Dr. Kirsch for his impressive scientific investigative reporting described in this book, forcing our attention away from the fairy tale and toward the reality of more effective treatment strategies for depression.”
In measured prose, Kirsch leads the reader through the labyrinth of more than twenty years of trials, studies, and meta-analyses and shows that these pills are no better than placebos.”
Times Literary Supplement (London)
[A] damning exposé of pharmaceutical industry greed…An overdue wake-up call to the psychological professions to begin treating depression with more compassionate methods than expensive pill-popping.”