Recovery Bookstore

~ Brené Brown, Ph.D., LMSW      ~ University of Houston, Research Faculty      ~ Shame Resilience Theory, Vulnerability, Social Work         Self Help, Self Esteem, Worthiness      ~ Research Professor      ~ Author      ~ Public Speaker

Brené Brown, Ph.D., LMSW is a research professor, author, and public speaker. 

Dr. Brown has spent more than twelve years studying vulnerability, shame, courage, and worthiness. Her research forms the basis for the development of Shame Resilience Theory ("SRT"), the first comprehensive model that looks at the "things that get in the way" of happiness and what Dr. Brown calls "wholeheartedness",  an individual's ability to have a strong sense of love and belonging. SRT integrates an understanding of the relationship between shame, vulnerability, and the importance of understanding and awareness of these issues that each of us experience, and how, through understanding, we can live fuller and happier lives. 

As a member of the research faculty at the University of Houston, Graduate College of Social Work, Dr. Brown has conducted over 1,000 formal research interviews, collecting, coding, and finding relationships between the key elements of each of her subject's stories. Utilizing a qualitative research methodology known as 'grounded theory research', one of the most in-depth and complex methods of analyzing qualitative data, Dr. Brown has developed a deep understanding of the interaction between shame, vulnerability, courage, authenticity, and their impact on joy, happiness and wholehearted living, and has published her findings in numerous articles, textbooks, scientific journals, as well as dozens of articles in the popular press. She has been the recipient of multiple grants, and won numerous teaching awards.

Yet one of the things that sets Dr. Brown apart from many other research scientists is the accessibility of her writing. Recognizing that, in her words, "maybe stories are just data with a soul" Dr. Brown has described herself as a "researcher-storyteller," and uses many illustrative stories, about herself, her family, and her research subjects, as a means of describing the key findings in her research in a way that is interesting, entertaining, and yet, packed with research-backed findings and information that we can directly apply to our daily lives.  She is an engaging speaker and writer, and  has appeared in countless national media outlets, including The New York Times, Psychology Today, the Washington Post, PBS, Elle, Self, and Oprah. 

Dr. Brown has appeared in three TED talks, and her TEDx Houston talk, The Power of Vulnerability, is one of the most viewed TED talks of all time, with well over 5 million views.  She is the author of three books, "I Thought It was Just Me (But It Isn't): Telling the Truth about Perfectionism, Inadequacy, and Power" (Gotham, 2007), "The Gifts of Imperfection: Letting Go of Who we Think we Should Be, and Embracing Who We Are" (Hazelden, 2010), and "Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead" (Gotham, 2012).  Her two-part audio CD series, "Men, Women and Worthiness" (Sounds True, 2012) will be released in the fall of 2012, and her six-part CD/Video series, "The Power of Vulnerability"(Sounds True, 2013) will be released in 2013. 

Dr. Brown has also developed several professional training materials, including the Connections Curriculum (Hazelden, 2009), a 12 session psychoeducational shame resilience curriculum intended for use by mental health professionals in group settings, and  professional continuing education courses "Practicing Empathy with Difficult Clients" and Wired for Connection: Helping Families Develop Authenticity & Resilience in Anxious Times" both from esummits.   She started a certification training program for the Connections Curriculum in 2012, providing detailed clinical instruction for mental health professionals, with the intent of creating a national registry of therapists and counselors proficient in SRT. She is currently developing an advanced curriculum based on Shame Resilience Theory for release in 2014.