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| Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health | 
 enlarge | Author: L. Ron Hubbard
Publisher: Bridge Publications, Inc.
Category: Book
List Price: $7.99
Buy New: $0.01
You Save: $7.98 (100%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (304 reviews)
Sales Rank: 289248
Languages: English (Unknown), English (Original Language), English (Published)
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 702
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 6.9 x 4.2 x 1.5
ISBN: 088404632X
Dewey Decimal Number: 158.9
EAN: 9780884046325
ASIN: 088404632X
Publication Date: September 1, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Dianetics March 10, 2008
69 out of 72 found this review helpful
Let me give Hubbard some credit: if this book was being marketed and sold as a work of fiction, I'd have to give him a constructive 2.5 out of a possible total of 5. His prose is decent -comparable to serial novelists like John Grisham- and reading it as fiction provides the type of humor that's been recently re-popularized in books like Max Brooks' "Zombie Survival Guide". In other words, writing on a completely ridiculous subject in a very serious way.
[...]
So let's do some constructive criticism on this hefty little paper-weight:
made up words, made up aliens, made up problems, made up psychology... I digress. Read the book; learn about "auditors" and "engrams" and "ulcers". If you can hold back the laughter, it's actually a pretty easy read. His structure and style are mildly commendable, and he accomplishes what many great authors could never quite do consistently: Getting the message to the audience.
Of course, the message differs depending upon your mental capacity. For the sake of brevity, I've broken this down into two distinct categories: Nietzsche lets live, and Nietzsche lets die. (Nietzsche was all about survival of the fittest and selective breeding to remove the morons from the human genome. He just didn't put it so eloquently)
Who does Nietzsche let live? Anyone who laughed their way through this ridiculous piece of literature.
Who does Nietzsche let die? Anyone who doesn't fall into the category above.
Granted, that has nothing to do with the underlying message of Hubbard's opus, it just gives a good starting point for some healthy self examination.
[...]
Poorly Researched and Poorly Executed March 7, 2008
90 out of 91 found this review helpful
I did not like this book at all. First, it was poorly written, secondly it had no sources cited regarding any claims that were made, and finally the psychological theories that underpins the author's entire set-up are not only destructive and dangerous, but would seem to border on the mental conditioning related to cult type organizations.
First, his writing. Not only does the author actually make up new meanings for words, but his style of writing can be nicely construed as confused. His explanations for things do not fit with modern understandings of various psychological theories, and when he dismisses modern psychology he gives no definitive reasons why.
This brings me to the second and probably the largest problem with this book, Hubbard's lack of source citation. He is constantly claiming, "In my studies," or, "in my research," and then failing to actually cite what research or studies his is referring to. How can we trust what he has 'discovered' if he offers no evidence to support his claims?. He does this not only in his presentation of new ideas, but also in his refutation of modern psychological principles. Without evidence to support any of his claims his book and his principles falls as flat as such books as, "The Secret," by Rhonda Byrne.
Finally, his usage of 'new' principles and ideas and his re-defining of various other words makes Hubbard's "Modern Science of Mental Health" appear more akin to modern mental condition techniques that are employed by various cult groups. If you would read the book, "Combating Cult Mind Control," by Steven Hassan then you might understand that his techniques are very similar to those described in Hassan's book. I want to make it clear that I am not trying to claim to know what Hubbard's intentions were when he wrote this book. I am just claiming that after a thorough reading and close examination of this book that Hubbard's "New Science" smacks of clumsy mental conditioning techniques.
In conclusion, Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health is far removed from any real Modern Science and any Mental Health that it may attempt to promote is undone by the scientifically unsound principles that could do more harm than good for the serious seeker of psychological understanding.
Wow March 2, 2008
84 out of 85 found this review helpful
I'm really surprised there are so many positive reviews for this book. I found this at a thrift store and decided to give it a go, but I couldn't even get through the first one hundred pages. It was all just a bunch of pseudo-scientific sludge! There are a lot of things I could call L. Ron Hubbard after reading this, but "capable writer" isn't one of them. I'm even more surprised that people are actually using the ideas in this book as a substitute for proper mental health care. He certainly wasn't a doctor, or even slightly knowledgeable about the human brain. The more I read about this guy, the more I'm convinced that he was either criminally insane or a total fraud. Save your money.
 It makes everything clear! February 29, 2008
12 out of 79 found this review helpful
It's Because one is tangible and the other intangible, the physical and metaphysical are generally treated separately. But this dichotomy is illogical; at the very least it is inconsistent with reality, for the two are inseparable. A basic introduction to the principle issues in quantum physics is provided to stress two points: (1) our physical reality consists mostly of empty space, electromagnetic energy, and information; and (2) the metaphysical implications of nonlocality as evidenced by studies in entanglement, quantum teleportation, and zero-point energy. Then the impossibility of three critical events is addressed: the spontaneous ex nihilo appearance of an exploding mass via its own nonexistent energy, the spontaneous generation of organic life from inorganic nonlife, and the spontaneous generation of a complex metaphysical reality from physical matter. This leads to an apology for the necessity of a creator. See?.....
Self-help for slow-minded folks. February 29, 2008
52 out of 53 found this review helpful
I read Dianetics when I was a teenager. I found my old copy in an old suitcase of science fiction I had in storage. I read it again. Wow. I'm amazed I was able to actually finish it. If you feel that you need someone else's "Plan for Living" to guide your life, then by all means, be a Scientologist. However, almost any other self-help book should give you better results and allow you to keep more of your money. [...] Not very well written, like the rest of Hubbard's books.
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