Almost everybody has an obsession or feels a compulsion to do something a certain way. Magic numbers, intrusive thoughts, unusual fears and superstitions happen to about four people out of five, but where do these obsessive-compulsive (OC) traits come from? This book explores what they are, why we have them and what we can do about them, through fascinating and highly original insights.

Are you a perfectionist, or can you be fussy? Do you like to have control in certain situations? Or are you overly anxious in others? These are all OC traits, and this book looks at their recent increase in human behaviour, and how they are formed in the brain. Showing that these traits are more common in highly educated, intelligent and successful people, it highlights the positive sides of what have previously been seen as negative quirks.

Weaving together sections that are anecdotal and humorous, with technical and up-to-date scientific information, this groundbreaking book gives a fascinating introduction into an under-discussed personality type.

C. Thomas Gualtieri is a neuropsychiatrist and founding director of the North Carolina Neuropsychiatry Clinics. He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.