Reviewed
Read Time
8 min read
Our age bandAdult
Reader rating
4.6 · 1,273 Amazon ratings, as of Nov 2026
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Our review
Why Do I Do That?: Psychological Defense Mechanisms
Why Do I Do That? by Joseph Burgo Ph.D. Review: A Clinically Grounded Self-Exploration Guide
by Joseph Burgo
Why Do I Do That? By Joseph Burgo Ph.D. Adapts the core strategies of psychodynamic psychotherapy into a structured self-help guide, using case studies and end-of-chapter exercises to help general readers recognize and work through the psychological defense mechanisms that shape their emotional lives and relationships — a substantive offering for anyone willing to engage honestly with the harder questions about their own behavior.
LuvemBooks Verdict
Best for
Psychologically curious readers who want a clinically grounded framework to understand their behavioral patterns, rather than a lightweight checklist.
Worth it if
Worth reading if you are prepared to actively engage with the journal exercises and confront the very psychological defenses the book asks you to examine.
Skip if
Skip it if you are seeking a cognitive-behavioral or neuroscience-based approach, as the book relies exclusively on a psychodynamic lens.
Where reviewers agree and split
Readers rate it 4.6 on Amazon. The reviews we read that discuss it in depth agree:
- Positive
Publishers Weekly · Press review: valuable resource with exercises for recognizing and defusing defensive patterns (from its headline)
- Positive
HCubed · Book blog: good starter for self-understanding though requires therapy for deep healing
What readers & critics say
Publishers Weekly praises the book as a valuable resource that cohesively presents ways to thwart negative behaviors through case studies, while hCubed notes its intellectual tone makes it particularly well-suited for business professionals seeking a structured starter for self-understanding.
“cohesively presents ways in which negative behaviors can be thwarted through direct confrontation with triggers”
— Publishers Weekly4.6from 1,273 Amazon ratings, as of Nov 2026— reader ratings, not a LuvemBooks score
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Why Do I Do That?: Psychological Defense Mechanisms and the Hidden Ways They Shape Our Lives by Joseph Burgo Ph.D. translates the core strategies of psychodynamic psychotherapy into a structured, exercise-driven self-help guide, using case studies and journal prompts to help general readers identify and confront the defenses that quietly distort their emotional lives and relationships. The book occupies a genuine middle ground between academic theory and lightweight self-help, offering clinical credibility without demanding a therapist's office. The key caveat: its exclusively psychodynamic lens means readers seeking cognitive-behavioral or neuroscience-based approaches will need to look elsewhere, and the format places heavy responsibility on the reader's own willingness to resist the very defenses the book addresses.
- Is it worth reading?
- Why Do I Do That? is a substantive and well-constructed entry in the self-help genre for readers who want more than a checklist-driven quick fix. Critics described it as a "valuable resource" that "cohesively presents ways in which negative behaviors can be thwarted through direct confrontation with triggers" — praise that reflects the book's careful use of case studies and structured exercises. The honest caveat is that the very defense mechanisms Burgo addresses are designed to resist self-scrutiny, so the format demands genuine engagement from the reader. For self-motivated readers willing to do that work, the clinical grounding and participatory structure make it a meaningfully different offering from standard self-help fare.
- Similar books
- Readers drawn to Why Do I Do That? will find natural companions in several titles curated below. Kristin Neff's Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself approaches self-understanding from a self-compassion and mindfulness angle, offering a gentler but equally practice-oriented counterpart. For a deeper look at the science of how emotions are constructed, Lisa Feldman Barrett's How Emotions Are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain provides a neuroscience-informed perspective that complements Burgo's psychodynamic lens. Charles Duhigg's The Power of Habit explores the mechanics of behavioral patterns from a social-science angle, while Robert Greene's The Laws of Human Nature takes a broader, more historical view of the hidden forces driving human behavior. Julius Spes' Liberation Psychology: 7 Steps To Self-Rejuvenation rounds out the list with another structured, step-based approach to psychological self-improvement.
- Who should read this?
- Why Do I Do That? is best suited to psychologically curious, self-motivated adults who have noticed patterns in their own behavior they cannot fully explain and want a framework more clinically substantial than standard self-help without committing to formal therapy. The case-study approach makes abstract concepts concrete, and the exercise-driven structure provides a method rather than just a narrative. Readers already versed in psychoanalytic theory at an academic level may find the explanations introductory; those in acute mental health crisis are better served by professional support. The sweet spot is the general reader genuinely drawn to the question the title poses.
- How does the psychodynamic approach compare to CBT?
- Burgo's book works exclusively within a psychodynamic framework, which focuses on the unconscious mind, deep-rooted defenses, and the emotional patterns formed through personal history. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), by contrast, tends to focus on identifying and restructuring conscious thought patterns in the present. The review notes this distinction as a real limitation: readers specifically seeking CBT, acceptance-based, or neuroscience-informed frameworks will find those approaches are not the book's focus, and will need to look elsewhere for that perspective.
- Can a book actually help you see your own defenses?
- This is the central structural tension the review highlights: defense mechanisms operate precisely to resist the kind of honest self-scrutiny the exercises require. The publisher synopsis itself flags that when defenses are "too deeply entrenched," they shape perception in ways that are difficult to see — meaning the very thing the book is trying to help readers overcome can interfere with their ability to engage with it honestly. Burgo's format acknowledges this challenge rather than dismissing it, but it does mean the book places significant responsibility on the reader's own willingness to push past that resistance.
- How does Burgo's personal history shape the book?
- Burgo began thirteen years of psychotherapy as a severely depressed college freshman — a personal history the review notes lends the book "a dimension of personal stakes that enriches its clinical perspective." The book's dedication, "To all my clients these many years," further signals that the material is drawn from decades of direct clinical work. Together, these elements give the book a credibility and groundedness that distinguish it from self-help written at more of a remove from the subject matter.
Summarize this book
Is it worth reading?
Who should read this?
How does the psychodynamic approach compare to CBT?
Can a book actually help you see your own defenses?
How does Burgo's personal history shape the book?
Summarize this book
Published by New Rise Press in October 2012, Why Do I Do That? is a guided self-help course in which psychotherapist Joseph Burgo adapts the foundational concepts of psychodynamic psychotherapy for general readers. Burgo defines psychological defense mechanisms as "lies we tell ourselves to ward off pain," arguing that while these defenses are a normal part of human experience, they become destructive when too entrenched — damaging relationships, distorting emotional life, and blocking genuine self-esteem. The book is divided into two parts: Part I builds a conceptual foundation around the unconscious mind, while the remainder examines specific defense mechanisms through case studies. End-of-chapter exercises, designed to be recorded in a journal, transform the reading experience into a participatory, structured course rather than a passive read.
Follow up
What psychological framework does it use?
What are the exercises like?
Does the book use real examples?
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Our Review
This review covers the book's content, design, and published reception; it does not reflect hands-on application of its exercises.
Why Do I Do That?: Psychological Defense Mechanisms and the Hidden Ways They Shape Our Lives by Joseph Burgo front cover
What the Book Actually Is and Does
Why Do I Do That?: Psychological Defense Mechanisms and the Hidden Ways They Shape Our Lives is a self-help and popular psychology book, published by New Rise Press in October 2012, in which psychotherapist and Ph.D. Joseph Burgo translates the foundational concepts of psychodynamic psychotherapy into a guided course accessible to non-clinical readers.
The book's premise is that psychological defense mechanisms — which Burgo defines in one passage as "lies we tell ourselves to ward off pain" — are an inevitable and necessary part of human experience. The problem, as Burgo frames it, is that when these defenses become too pervasive or too deeply entrenched, they damage personal relationships, restrict and distort emotional life, and prevent the development of lasting self-esteem.
The book is structured in two parts: Part I builds a conceptual foundation around the unconscious mind, while the remainder moves into the specific defense mechanisms themselves. Readers are encouraged to keep a journal and record their responses to exercises throughout.
Scope and Argument
Burgo draws on his background as a practicing psychotherapist — the book's dedication, "To all my clients these many years," signals the clinical well from which the material is drawn — to argue that change is possible for those willing to confront the ways they react and defend. Rather than offering a survey of abstract theory, the book grounds its argument in individual case studies that illustrate how specific defenses operate in recognizable, everyday situations.
The publisher synopsis characterizes the work as one that adapts psychodynamic strategies to a "guided course in self-exploration," a framing that sets it apart from both purely academic texts on the subject and from lighter, checklist-driven self-help. The book positions itself squarely in between: informed by clinical practice, but designed for readers who have never set foot in a therapist's office.
Genuine Strengths
Critics reviewed the book and noted that through individual case studies, Burgo "identifies and cohesively presents ways in which negative behaviors can be thwarted through direct confrontation with triggers," describing the exercises at the end of chapters as tools for "recognizing and defusing oppressive defenses in readers' own lives" and calling the result "a valuable resource for readers." That same review noted the end-of-chapter exercises bring the material down to a personal level — a structural choice that distinguishes the book from more passive reading experiences.
The text accompanying the book confirms that exercises are designed to be recorded in a journal, reinforcing that the book is engineered as a participatory course rather than a passive read. Burgo's own history — he began thirteen years of psychotherapy as a severely depressed college freshman — lends the book a dimension of personal stakes that enriches its clinical perspective.
Limitations Worth Knowing
The book's psychodynamic orientation is, by design, a lens rather than a complete map of the psychological landscape. Readers expecting coverage rooted in cognitive-behavioral, acceptance-based, or neuroscience-informed frameworks will find those approaches are not the book's focus.
The self-guided format also places meaningful responsibility on the reader: the exercises are written to prompt honest self-reflection, but the book itself acknowledges that defense mechanisms operate precisely to resist that kind of scrutiny — a real structural tension in any self-help approach to this material. The publisher synopsis itself flags this directly, noting that when defenses are "too deeply entrenched," they shape perception in ways that are difficult to see.
Readers in acute crisis or dealing with severe mental health conditions are better served by working with a professional rather than a self-guided text.
Who This Book Is For
Why Do I Do That? is well-suited to readers who are psychologically curious and self-motivated — people who have noticed patterns in their own behavior they cannot fully explain, and who want a framework more clinically substantial than standard self-help fare without committing to formal therapy. The book's case-study approach makes abstract concepts concrete, and its exercise-driven structure gives readers a method to apply what they encounter.
Those already familiar with psychoanalytic or psychodynamic theory at an academic level may find the explanations introductory, but for the general reader drawn to the question the title poses, the book offers a coherent, practice-oriented path into that inquiry. As the publisher synopsis puts it, "easy-to-understand explanations" are a stated design priority throughout.
Sources & Further Reading
The key facts and claims in this review are grounded in the retrieved, verified sources listed below.
- Cited in this review
- 1
- 2
- 3
- Further reading
- 4
afterpsychotherapy.com
- 5
josephburgo.com
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
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Adult
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