Noted neuropsychiatrist Daniel J. Siegel, MD, is clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine, and executive director of the Mindsight Institute in LA. He is founding editor of the Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology. The PDP Group includes Laura Baker, PhD, Professor of Psychology at University of Southern California, David Daniels, MD, late psychiatrist and clinical professor at Stanford, Denise Daniels, PhD, psychologist and author, and Jack Killen, MD, a research physician.
Daniel Siegel and his colleagues have created a brand-new dimension of theoretical and clinical understanding by combining science and the enneagram. There is much to learn here.--Jack Kornfield, PhD, author of A Path With Heart Daniel Siegel and the PDP Group have done something extraordinary. For many years, people in the Enneagram field have sought to find a neurological basis for the Enneagram types as we have come to understand them, and those within the healing professions have looked for ways to meaningfully integrate the Enneagram's powerful insights into their work. This wonderful book accomplishes both goals. It opens a new conversation about the nature of personality and looks at how we can best work with it as professionals. The authors do a marvelous job of bringing many powerful new perspectives to the field of Enneagram studies while maintaining a respect for the integrity of its core teachings. This is no small feat. I suspect this book is destined to be a classic in the field of personality studies, and highly recommend it for serious Enneagram students and professionals in psychology alike.--Russ Hudson, coauthor of The Wisdom of the Enneagram This weave of neurobiology, contemporary psychology, and deep wisdom offers the most fascinating and helpful framework for understanding personality that I've encountered! Professionals and lay people alike will find a fresh perspective on how humans develop, and the compassion that allows us to relate to ourselves and others in a truly healing way.--Tara Brach, author of Radical Compassion At the heart of the fascinating approach presented in this book is what the authors call patterns of developmental pathways. They root these pathways in an ancient model of individual differences called the Enneagram, which suggested nine dimensions for personality. Dr. Siegel and the PDP Group collapse these into three domains of agency, bonding, and certainty, linking them to evolved motivational systems and neurobiological infrastructures. These three domains are subject to various genetic and social-contextual influences, giving rise to nine different patterns of personality and, importantly, different ways of helping people. As with so much of Siegel's writing, here we are provided with scholarly and fascinating new insights, as well as wisdoms to consider when empathically engaging with clients and seeking to help them. Much to savor and learn from.--Paul Gilbert, PhD, author of The Compassionate Mind and Living Like Crazy