The central argument is this book is that mainstream psychology has failed to address the relational nature of human beings and their activity in the world. The authors make the case for the adoption of an alternative, relational orientation in the discipline of psychology and in its applications. A relational orientation draws our attention to all aspects of our bodily embeddedness in a multi-layered, complex environment.

The authors elaborate on the extent of our interdependence with others, with other living creatures, with nature and with the ‘made' world, and explore the significance of a relational perspective for our ideas about personhood, selfhood and the treatment of ‘mental illness’. Relationality is situated within a dynamic systems theoretical framework, reminding us that all is in flux and that the future is inherently unpredictable.

The book is written in an accessible style, with work referenced from psychology and beyond in order to provide evidence, as well as arguments, for the authors’ position. The text is aimed at a wide readership: those who are interested in psychology, as well as undergraduate and postgraduate psychology students, professional psychologists and people working in cognate disciplines.

Sheila Greene is a Professor and Fellow Emerita at the School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland.

Bernadette O’ Sullivan, Ph.D., is a psychologist and psychotherapist, a co-founder of VICO Consultation (a systemic-constructivist practice), and a former teacher in the Clanwilliam Family Therapy Training Institute, Dublin, Ireland.