Treating the New Anxiety: A Cognitive-Theological Approach

by Kirk A. Bingaman

Overview

A new form of anxiety has emerged, stemming in part from our post-9/11 reality, but even more stemming from the influence of supermodernity. Whereas postmodernism theorizes an anxiety that results from the collapse or loss of meaning, through the lens of supermodernity it appears that the new anxiety is evoked more by an excess of meaning generated by the rapid acceleration of human life and the media's daily bombardment with serious global, national, and local concerns. This book explores the nature of the anxiety our supermodern condition provokes, and proposes that with the void left by the diminishment of religious involvement and practice the therapy session becomes the definitive place for meaning-making. Building on a cognitive therapy approach that emphasizes the client's belief system, Bingaman demonstrates that to treat this new anxiety most effectively, practitioners must help clients identify and explore their core theological beliefs and spiritual values.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780765704634
Publisher:	Aronson, Jason Inc.
Publication date:	09/16/2007
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	6.04(w) x 8.95(h) x 0.53(d)

About the Author

Kirk A. Bingaman, Ph.D. is assistant professor of pastoral counseling and director of the Pastoral Counseling Program in the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education at Fordham University. He is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in New York and a Fellow with the American Association of Pastoral Counselors. His previous book, Freud and Faith: Living in the Tension, was published in 2003.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments     ix
What Is Prompting the New Anxiety?     1
The Nature of Supermodernity     17
Diagnosing the New Anxiety     35
The Importance of Assessing Core Theological Beliefs     63
Maintaining a Balanced Approach     101
A More Comprehensive Form of Care     123
References     137
Index     139
About the Author     143

Editorial Reviews

[Bingaman] paints a clear and recognizable portrait of the non-places we inhabit and our intense need to make meaning of the events that flood our lives. His argument and case studies are compelling....Bingaman builds a strong case.

Fall 2007 Journal of Pastoral Theology

This is one of the few works on cognitive therapy that focuses on our deepest core belief—the cognitive foundation of our hopes and fears that provides purpose and meaning to our lives. Dr. Bingaman enters this realm where mental health practitioners have traditionally feared to tread. Therapists will gain important insight by reading this book.

Rian E. McMullin

In the tradition of Erich Fromm and Rollo May, Kirk Bingaman addresses the psychological and social implications of anxiety. But Bingaman adds a new twist, namely the relevance of theology to address the "new anxiety" of our post-9/11 era. This important book demonstrates that a formative and fruitful integration is possible between theology and therapy, and underscores the necessity, in a "supermodern," post-9/11 world, for such an integration in treating anxiety.

Rev. Kevin Gillespie

Kirk Bingaman provides compelling evidence that we confront a "new anxiety"—one in which many of our worries, anxieties, and fears are not disproportionate to the threats that confront us. He draws on cognitive behavioral therapy to address this new anxiety, but rather than the traditional emphasis on the client's irrational beliefs, he advocates an emphasis on the client's core beliefs—beliefs that heretofore have provided inadequate, even unsettling, answers to the fundamental question: Where is God? For those who seek expert guidance on how to assist clients in developing core beliefs that effectively address the new anxiety, this book is a godsend. It could not have come at a more opportune moment.

Donald Capps

[Bingaman] paints a clear and recognizable portrait of the non-places we inhabit and our intense need to make meaning of the events that flood our lives. His argument and case studies are compelling....Bingaman builds a strong case.

Fall 2007 Journal Of Pastoral Theology

[Bingaman] paints a clear and recognizable portrait of the non-places we inhabit and our intense need to make meaning of the events that flood our lives. His argument and case studies are compelling....Bingaman builds a strong case.

Journal of Pastoral Theology