Kindle Edition of Mark Driscoll’s Real Marriage Adds Dan Allender to Acknowledgments

In mid-December, I wrote about Mark Driscoll’s use of Dan Allender’s material in Driscoll’s book Death By Love. Others have written about the lack of citation of Dan Allender’s work in Mark and Grace Driscoll’s book Real Marriage.  In short, Allender refers to styles of relating often used by women who have suffered abuse — tough girl, party girl, good girl — in his book The Wounded Heart. The Driscoll’s use the same scheme to describe abuse victims in their book Real Marriage, but without attributing the terms or concepts to Allender. Wenatchee the Hatchet established that Grace Driscoll, at least, was familiar with Allender’s work prior to writing Real Marriage. However, in the print book, no reference to Allender can be found.
In contrast, the Kindle version being sold now does mention Allender. The Kindle edition adds Allender’s name and book title to the Acknowledgments section of the Kindle edition of the book:

We want to thank Dan Allender, whose book, The Wounded Heart, has helped shape our thinking about the effects of abuse.*

Here is an image of the print edition from Google books:

There is no mention of Allender on pages 221-222, and if you search the book, Allender does not turn up in the search results.
Now on the same page in the Acknowledgments section in the Kindle edition*, it looks like this:

Now Allender is mentioned between the Driscoll kids and the church planters.
I purchased Real Marriage on January 3, 2014, long after the lack of citation had been publicly discussed. Ebooks are very easy to change. However, making changes in the print edition is another matter. We may never know if this change was the result of conversations between NavPress and Mark Driscoll but the alteration does seem to be tacit acknowledgment that Allender’s work should have been cited. In any case, the gesture is nice, but insufficient. Allender’s book should be cited with a footnote where the material is used.
Given what I have found thus far, I suspect there will be more Kindle corrections.
*Driscoll, Mark; Driscoll, Grace (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 221). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
For all posts on Driscoll and Mars Hill, click here.

Another Publisher in Conversation With Mars Hill and Mark Driscoll

Now NavPress is getting involved.
This update was posted yesterday on Becky Garrison’s article published by Religion Dispatches:

We [NavPress] have chosen to respond to Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church directly and will keep the conversation private among both parties.

There is no indication what the conversation is about but I can guess that it involves the use of Dan Allender’s work from The Wounded Heart (published by NavPress)  in two of Driscoll’s books, Real Marriage and Death By Love.
Recently, Crossway indicated that they were investigating their books written by Driscoll to ensure proper citation and documentation.
Elsewhere, according to Seattle’s The Stranger Blog (SLOG), Driscoll put out a private statement to Mars Hill members about two weeks ago with what appears to be a vague reference to the plagiarism/ghostwriting controversy. However, there is no apology for any wrongdoing, rather the apology is for “concern” caused to congregation.  This statement to Mars Hill references the Tyndale press release where Driscoll said, “mistakes were made.”
For all posts on this topic, click here.

Mark Driscoll's Death By Love And Dan Allender's The Wounded Heart: Is This Plagiarism?

When Janet Mefferd first accused Mark Driscoll of plagiarism, she focused on Driscoll’s use of Peter Jones signature concepts of “oneism” and “twoism.” Houston Baptist University professor Collin Garbarino looked at the matter and said he would have been “concerned about the lack of citation” but may have regarded it as “ineptitude.”
Then Mefferd claimed plagiarism in three other books (one of which I have examined in depth here and here). Specifically, she claimed that Mark and Grace Driscoll’s recent book Real Marriage improperly used some work from Dan Allender’s 1990 book The Wounded Heart.  That material was gone from Mefferd’s site soon after she posted it but can still be viewed here (and here).
In Allender’s book, he identifies various “styles of relating” often used by abused women. The terms “good girl, tough girl, and party girl” are used by Allender to describe various compensations that some women make in response to psychological pain associated with being victims of abuse. The terms are fully described on pages 160-169 of his book and can be previewed at Amazon and seen here.
In addition to the Real Marriage book, the terms are also used in Driscoll’s 2008 book with Gerry Breshears, Death by Love. In this book on pages 150-152, Driscoll and Breshears describe “fig leafs” used by abused women to protect themselves.

Tragically, this pattern of sin-defilement-shame-hiding continues through four possible roles that defiled people can assume. These roles are the fig leaves they and their secret hide behind, according to some experts I know in the field of sexual abuse. As I explain these, Mary, I need you to be honest about which fig leaf you are wearing—the role you are playing, the person you are pretending to be—so that you can repent of not only your sin but, as Romans 1:18 says, your efforts to suppress the truth of what you have done and what has been done to you, which contribute to your ongoing additional sin.

In this letter to a woman he calls “Mary,” Driscoll refers to “experts I know in the field of sexual abuse.” Allender could be one of those experts but I can’t find his name in the book. Because they cite unnamed experts, it appears to me that they are not claiming these designations as their own exclusive work. Any discussion of plagiarism would need to move to “unintentional plagiarism” such as described here on the University of Washington website.
What follows are brief excerpts of the section from pages 150-152 of Death by Love. When compared with Allender’s book it is clear to me that Driscoll and Breshears are describing the same styles of relating.

The first fig leaf is worn by the good girl. The good girl is successful, pleasant, and dependable…The good girl is essentially dead, devoid of passion, and consumed with trying to smile, be good, and do the right thing, hoping to convince everyone that she is fine when she is really broken and devastated.
The second fig leaf is worn by the tough girl. The tough girl has been hurt, and she projects to the world her confidence, anger, and toughness so that no one has the courage to hurt her again. The tough girl is respected by many but known and loved by few.
The third fig leaf is worn by the party girl. The party girl is the life of the party, the center of attention, fun to be with, and prone to self-medicate with drugs, food, and alcohol.

Driscoll and Breshears add a fourth fig leaf — the church lady. She sounds a lot like the good girl but churchier.
In short, I believe the authors of Death by Love (and Real Marriage as well) should have included a simple footnote giving credit to Allender for the conceptualization of these styles of relating with reference to The Wounded Heart.
Some might point out that, in this book, Driscoll is writing a letter to a woman and it would be awkward to include footnotes. I agree that one might not include them in a personal letter, but it would have been proper to include a citation in the book. The book was not written to one person, but for sale to many. Thus, including a note in the book but not the letter would have properly discharged their duty as authors.
I should add that I reached out to Gerry Breshears, Mars Hill Church, and Dan Allender for comment with no reply as yet. I welcome any information relevant to fact checking this claim.
I am surprised that no comment has yet come from those involved. Others, when charged with such things, are quick to comment (e.g., Shia LeBeouf”s recent apology for his mistake of not citing the inspiration and source for a recent movie). Mars Hill has acknowledged some “citation errors” but appeared to lay the blame at the feet of research helpers. Even though Rev. Driscoll’s name is on the cover of the various books in question, he has yet to comment.
The deflection and silence makes me wonder if evangelicals will get around to important conversations about ghostwriting and Christian celebrities.
See also:
On The Allegations Of Plagiarism Against Mark Driscoll (12/2/13)
Zombies, Plagiarism And Mark Driscoll Helped Me Write This Blog Post (12/3/13)
Mark Driscoll And His Church On Plagiarism (12/4/13)
Janet Mefferd Removes Evidence Relating To Charges Of Plagiarism Against Mark Driscoll; Apologizes To Audience (12/4/13)
Ingrid Schlueter Resigns From Janet Mefferd Show Over Mark Driscoll Plagiarism Controversy (12/5/13)
Who’s Talking About The Mark Driscoll Plagiarism Controversy? (12/7/13)
IVP Says Bible Commentary Improperly Appeared In Book by Mark Driscoll; Mars Hill Church Responds, Blames Researcher Mistakes for Errors (12/9/13)
Mars Hill Church Alters Statement on Mark Driscoll Plagiarism Controversy (UPDATED) (12/10/13)
Mars Hill’s Sermon Series Battle Plan Reveals Background of Mark Driscoll’s Book on Peter (12/10/13)
Mars Hill’s Sermon Series Document Reveals Background of Mark Driscoll’s Book on Peter, Part Two (12/12/13)
Mars Hill Church, Mark Driscoll and the Case of the Disappearing Links (12/16/13)
See all posts on this topic here.