The Quest to Feel Good

Emotions, rather than simply being the result of random or disordered biochemical processes, are adaptive mechanisms that are often overly relied upon as a function of basic learning processes. The Quest to Feel Good helps the reader understand that negative emotions serve a critical adaptive purpose that functions in relation to one’s ultimate desire for a felt-positive state. Paul Rasmussen addresses the role of emotions as adaptive components, in combination with cognitive and behavioral processes, to our overall orchestration of life. To this end, the therapist is directed to use a client’s negative affect as a means of guiding critical therapeutic conclusions and decisions. Rasmussen emphasizes an integration of the basic premises of Adlerian psychology with the evolutionary-imperative model presented by Theodore Millon (1990, 1999). This integration is used to explain the primacy of emotions in the manifestation of most clinical conditions. This critical integration and focus makes the volume important, necessary, and unique to mental health professionals. Case examples and illustrations are also offered throughout the text.

Paul R. Rasmussen, PhD, is Professor in the Department of Psychology at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. He is the author of Personality Guided Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and coeditor of Competition: A Multidisciplinary Analysis. He has numerous other publications and is a Clinical Strategies and Contributing Review Editor for the Journal of Individual Psychology. In addition to his academic activities, he also maintains a private practice where he treats families and individuals.

Part I: Introduction. Introduction. The Z-Factor. Part II: Theoretical Foundations. The Evolutionary Imperatives. Individual Psychology: The Perspective of Alfred Adler. Physiological Foundations. Part III: Emotional Basics. Emotions, Feelings, and Motivation. Part IV: Validating Emotions. The Validating Emotions. Part V: The Compelling Emotions. Threat Emotions. The Protest and Fighting Emotions. Psychological Distancing Emotions. The Affiliation Emotions. The Withdrawing Emotions. Part VI: Treatment Uses. Emotional Reorientation: A Clinical Strategy. Appendix A: The Adaptive Purpose of Emotional Expression. Appendix B: Emotional Self-Control (Instructions). Appendix C: Emotional Self-Control (Worksheet). Appendix D: The Three Purposes of Emotion.