Compulsive buying is a serious, often secretive affliction, with profound emotional, social, occupational, and financial consequences. As many as a quarter of us have problems with buying, and studies suggest that between one and six percent of the population are full-fledged compulsive buyers. I Shop,Therefore I Am: Compulsive Buying and the Search for Self brings together, for the first time, the most important thinking about this disorder. As more and more therapists encounter compulsive buying (whether as a presenting problem or revealed in the course of ongoing therapy), the need for an in-depth clinical understanding of the disorder has grown. Dr. Benson has responded admirably to that need with a practical, comprehensive, and wonderfully readable work. While the book focuses a wide-angled lens on the many aspects of compulsive buying, it emphasizes understanding the disorder as a desperate search for self in people whose identity is not securely established. It defines the syndrome of compulsive consumption, examines the range and variations within it, discusses assessment and associated disorders, and delineates successful treatment modalities. Offering insights from a broad spectrum of therapies-psychopharmacology, psychodynamic therapy, cognitive-behavioral treatment, couples and group therapy, self-help, and financial counseling-this book is an indispensable toolbox for the increasing number of therapists who see patients with shopping, buying, or debting problems. A Jason Aronson Book

Part 1 Part I: An Overview Chapter 2 When Money Is the Drug Chapter 3 A Systematic Investigation into Compulsive Buying Part 4 Shopping, Buying, and Selfhood Chapter 5 Shopaholics, Spendaholics, and the Question of Gender Chapter 6 Are We What We Own? Chapter 7 The Role of Self-Image in Excessive Buying Chapter 8 Clothes, Inside Out Part 9 Part III: Special Issues in Compulsive Buying Chapter 10 Collecting as Reparation Chapter 11 Giving until It Hurts Part 12 Part IV: Psychiatric Considerations Chapter 13 Assessment of Compulsive Buying Chapter 14 Diagnosis, Associated Disorders, and Drug Treatment Part 15 Part V: Psychodynamic Theory and Technique Chapter 16 Compulsive Buying as an Addiction Chapter 17 When Eating and Shopping Are Companion Disorders Chapter 18 The Use of Money as an Action Symptom Chapter 19 Clothes and the Couch Part 20 Part VI: Couples Treatment and Group Therapy Chapter 21 Overcoming Overspending in Couples Chapter 22 Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Buying Disorder Chapter 23 Psychoeducational Group Therapy for Money Disorders Part 24 Part VII: Treatment Adjuncts Chapter 25 Debtors Anonymous and Psychotherapy Chapter 26 Financial Recovery Counseling Chapter 27 Simplicity Circles and the Compulsive Shopper