Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration

by Sal Mendaglio

Kazimierz Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration (TPD), which includes the widely known "overexcitabilities," is one of the most influential theories in gifted education. This groundbreaking book, edited by Dr. Sal Mendaglio, brings together leading professionals, many of whom knew Dr. Dabrowski himself, and provides readers with a diversity of perspectives on TPD. It summarizes the research and application of TPD, as well as compares it to other theories of personality and psychological development. Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration is a thought-provoking book that provides powerful insights and information not previously published about Dabrowski's theory.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Science

332 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2007

About the author

Sal Mendaglio, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Division of Teacher Preparation, Graduate Division of Educational Research and Research Associate, Centre for Gifted Education, University of Calgary. He is the current Chair of the Counselling and Guidance Division, National Association for Gifted Children. Sal’s interest in perfectionism is part of his interest in clarifying what the field of gifted education identifies as the social and emotional issues of gifted individuals. He also has a keen interest in Dabrowski’s theory of positive disintegration. - See more at: http://sengifted.org/archives/article...

Reviews

[Shelley Diamond · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought the entire book was written by Mendaglio but he only wrote Chapter Two, which is an excellent clear explanation of Dabrowski's theory. The rest of the book are academic chapters by others, recapitulating the theory and interpreting it in the context of specific areas of education, giftedness, sociology, philosophy, etc.

In my opinion, most of the book is unnecessary filler. But definitely read Chapter Two to get a much better understanding of Dabrowski. I really didn't quite grasp what his theory meant until reading that chapter.

[Barbara R. Saunders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very provocative collection of papers about Dabrowski's theory. I read this as a follow-up to Karen Horney's "The Neurotic Personality of Our Time" and highly recommend reading them together

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally, a book providing a solid framework to place words like "high-potential", "high-sensitivity", and "giftedness", that doesn't read as if the author is talking to children. Furthermore, I'm quite satisfied that the theory doesn't "require god", in order to make sense of all this.

The different chapters of the book are compiled essays from different authors, so there is a lot of repetition the basic concepts of the theory. That is highly beneficial, since the theory is quite complex, and this helps to create references and put the different ideas into place.

Although it doesn't provide many concrete methods on how to develop the personality ideal that the theory refers to as Level V (my understanding is this is the content of the book Personality Shaping Through Positive Disintegration Processes), the framework presented here provide solid ground for understanding a number of behaviors and alleviating feelings of "there's something wrong with me". Which is invaluable.

I'm sure I've missed a number of things, and I'd have to re-read it slower and more meticulously, however, this has been the best book I've read on the subject of "Giftedness" so far.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to Dr. Dabrowski's theory of personality and its growth, especially as it relates to "gifted" individuals - the highly intelligent, sensitive, curious, and intense. Typos in the book annoyed me, but I feel that Dabrowski's work deserves wider recognition in the psychological field in general, outside of the field of gifted education, where it is most commonly encountered.

[Joanne McKenzie-Hicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good summary compiled and written by Mendaglio. The comparison of Dabrowski's TPD to both Plato's and Kierkegaard's theories was particularly useful. I would highly recommend this book to anyone raising a gifted child.

[Kevin Reniers · Rating 5 out of 5]

A properly intruiging book for anyone wanting a more satisfying explanation towards personal distress and development of oneself. This book serves as a good start into the world of Dabrowski and has motivated me to go discover more of the man and his theory. I highly recommend this book to anyone who craves both a new and creative (although ironically the theory is relatively old) understanding of personal growth and of psychology as a whole.

[Simeon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dabrowski’s theory of personality development which essentially revolves around pursuing an inner personality ideal. He believes that personality is not something that’s emergent as we may traditionally conceive it to be, but an ideal to be striven towards and constructed. The term positive disintegration comes from an essential and intentional disintegration of a life dictated by basic primitive drives and casual social norms and reconstruction into something approximating authentic, altruistic, and deeply-moving values. The 5 levels are as follows: Primary Integration, Unilevel Disintegration, Spontaneous Multilevel Disintegration, Organized Multilevel Disintegration, and Secondary Integration. There are several points in this book that break these levels down into more tangible characteristics, so it is interesting to assess yourself on where you stand.

There are also a few chapters discussing gifted children: how they can be identified, how their talents can be nurtured, and how that manifests itself in society. There are also chapters on how this relates to mysticism, education, morality, emotion, and more. One of my favorite chapters was the last one (Chapter 13) which compares this personality theory to those of Freud and Rogers. I liked it because it was very digestible and informative, especially of the other two theories.

[Rob Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic overview of a little-known theory of personality. Mendaglio's chapter 2 is especially good, giving a great overview of the theory. I also found Mika's chapter on mental health to be especially eye opening.

[Larry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book for anyone interested in Psychology.

This book includes elements of Western and Eastern Thought.

[Amber Y · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. not only applicable on the talented or sensitive ones, but also average people.
2. good to raise up awareness on authenticity. I think many people learn so-called "maturity" at the expense of sensitivity.
3. a great theoretical framework but one hardly find any celebrity for Level 4 or 5, as also stated in this book. High level in Dabrowski's framework doesn't necessarily lead to happiness in social life, which is not addressed in his theory.
4. Grey-zones of personality development are not much concerned in his theory. I do believe there's certain grey areas between any two levels, and possible loops in development.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this stuff, fascinating...

[Herşeye Muhalefet]

It is very good book to understand gifted.