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Books > Social sciences > Psychology > Experimental psychology
Over the past two decades, a new picture of the cognitive
unconscious has emerged from a variety of disciplines that are
broadly part of cognitive science. According to this picture,
unconscious processes seem to be capable of doing many things that
were thought to require intention, deliberation, and conscious
awareness. Moreover, they accomplish these things without the
conflict and drama of the psychoanalytic unconscious. These
processes range from complex information processing, through goal
pursuit and emotions, to cognitive control and self-regulation.
Economics has paid little attention to the psychology of economic behaviour, leading to somewhat simplistic assumptions about human nature. The psychological aspects have typically been reduced to standard utility theory, based on a narrow conception of rationality and self-interest maximization. The contributions in this volume, some focused on analytical models and methodology, others on laboratory and field experiments, challenge these assumptions, and provide novel and complex understandings of human motivation and economic decision-making. With a pioneering introduction by the book's two editors, this volume brings together exciting contributions to a field that is rapidly growing in influence and reach.
Music is a powerful means of communication. It provides a means by
which people can share emotions, intentions, and meanings even
though their spoken languages may be mutually incomprehensible. It
can also provide a vital lifeline to human interaction for those
whose special needs make other means of communication difficult.
Music can exert powerful physical effects, can produce deep and
profound emotions within us, and can be used to generate infinitely
subtle variations of expressiveness by skilled composers and
performers.
'If' is one of the most important and interesting words in the English language. It is used to express hypothetical thought - an essential part of human reasoning and decision making. This type of thought occurs wherever there is uncertainty, and uncertainty is everywhere in our lives. The use of conditional terms such as 'if' also distinguishes human intelligence from that of all other animals, permitting a higher level of rationality in human reasoning and decision making. Until now, such conditionals have been the subject of independent study by psychologists and philosophers. In this volume, Jonathan Evans and David Over present a new theoretical approach to understanding hypothetical thought. The book draws on studies from the psychology of judgement and decision making, as well as philosophical logic. A new volume in the acclaimed Oxford Cognitive Science series, 'If' will be an important book for both psychologists and philosophers interested in human reasoning. Advance praise for If: "This book brings together a wealth of work in cognitive psychology and will be valuable to both psychologists and philosophers. There is not, as far as I know, another book which covers this ground." Professor Dorothy Edgington, Dept of Philosophy, University of Oxford "This is a wonderful book. It is excellently written and provides convincing arguments for a new perspective on conditionals." Dr Klaus Oberauer, Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Germany
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) has established itself as one of the most effective therapies for treating a wide range of psychological disorders. However, research and treatment in this field typically adopts a DSM driven 'disorder-focused' approach - researchers and clinicians target a specific disorder, try to understand its aetiology and maintenance, and try to develop more effective strategies to treat the disorder. This book proposes an insightful and original approach to understanding these disorders, one that focuses on what they have in common. Instead of examining in isolation, for example, obsessive compulsive disorders, insomnia, schizophrenia, it asks - what do patients with these disorders have in common? It takes each cognitive and behavioural process - attention, memory, reasoning, thought, behaviour, and examines whether it is a transdiagnostic process - i.e., serves to maintain a broad range of psychological disorders. Having shown how these disorders share several important processes, it then describes the practical implications of such an approach to diagnosis and treatment. Importantly it explores why the different psychological disorders can present so differently, despite being maintained by the same cognitive and behavioural processes. It also provides an account of the high rates of comorbidity observed among the different disorders. This book provides a novel review and integration of the empirical literature and gives clinicians and researchers a valuable new theoretical base for assessing and treating psychological disorders.
One of the most dramatic areas of development in early human life is that of vision. Whereas vision plays a relatively minor role in the world of the newborn infant, by 6 months it has assumed the position as a dominant sense and forms the basis of later perceptual, cognitive, and social development. From a world leader in the study of visual development in human infants comes a major new work, condensing a lifetime of work in this area - The developing visual brain. Drawing on over 20 years of cutting edge research in the Visual Develoment Units in Cambridge and University College London, the book provides the definitive account of what we know about the developing visual system, and the problems that can occur during development. The book reviews, evaluates, and sets in context the exciting progress being made in this area, and additionally suggests new areas for research. Written to be accessible for advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and researchers in psychology, the neurosciences, optometry, and visual science, The developing visual brain represents an important new addition to the literature on vision.
QUANTUM JUMPS presents a radical new paradigm--that we exist in an interconnected holographic multiverse in which we literally jump from one parallel universe to another. Experience a new science of instant transformation. In a moment you can become smarter... more confident... happier... more outgoing... more effective... in better relationships... with more willpower. Gain practical tools to achieve real change in your life, regardless of past history. Leap forward to become happier and more successful, living the life of your dreams. Supported by distinguished sources from the fields of psychology, biology, sociology and physics, QUANTUM JUMPS is an inspirational book packed with practical tools for living a happier, healthier, more prosperous life. ""The 'Quantum Age' has finally arrived. Cynthia Sue Larson understands its implications for our everyday lives--for how we can make wiser decisions, relate better to other people, manage our careers more effectively, use our dreams to provide insights, and even how we can use 'quantum jumping' for self-healing."" -- Stanley Krippner ""The twenty-first century will be remembered as the era in which quantum physics, biology, and consciousness started shaking hands. We now know that 'quantum' is no longer limited to the invisible, subatomic realm, but involves our everyday world and our own mind. Cynthia Sue Larson's QUANTUM JUMPS is a daring, adventuresome, delightful romp in this territory."" -- Dr. Larry Dossey ""Cynthia Larson's new book QUANTUM JUMPS offers her latest insights into using the quantum metaphor to explain a number of human experiences that go beyond what we would normally call "normal." She writes with clarity, vision, and offers hope and encouragement to those who often fear such experiences that go beyond accepted norms of existence."" -- Fred Alan Wolf ""In QUANTUM JUMPS, Cynthia Sue Larson illustrates how 'quantum jumping' can greatly transform our everyday lives, bringing fresh new perspectives and clarity through one of our most natural gifts--the imagination."" -- Annamaria Hemingway ""Multiverse, alternate realities and quantum physics have taken root in American consciousness. We know that the universe is bigger and more mysterious than we can imagine. Cynthia Sue Larson is the first writer to provide a manual to allow us to experience the truth of the new physics. Better yet, Cynthia shows us how to manifest new positive realities that are surrounding us. She shows us what to do to make our Quantum Jump to these higher orders of reality. Her work is an amazing achievement and a stellar addition to the field of mind-body research."" -- Dr. Donald "Rock" Schnell ""I highly recommend QUANTUM JUMPS to all who desire to move out of 'stuckness' and jump into a state of well-being "" -- Jennifer Reich ""A brilliant blend of science and spirituality, possible and probable, QUANTUM JUMPS will catapult the reader into a whole new view of potential and remind us that we've always occupied this fantastic world of quantum reality, but it is now that we must act upon it I highly recommend this delightful book to anyone needing a verifiable record of the miraculous, mystical and magnificent. You will not want to put this book down "" -- Alexis Brooks
Donald Broadbent made a major and lasting contribution to the field of applied psychology during his long career. This book brings together many other leaders in the field, who describe the impact of Broadbent's work on their own research, and the new developments which resulted. It is a collection of authoritative reviews as well as a tribute to one of the most important researchers in experimental psychology.
This book succinctly demonstrates how the brain's frontal lobe is specialized for directing voluntary action. Using data from monkeys, neurological patients, and normal subjects, the author presents a flow diagram of frontal lobe operations at the systems level. Topics include the various definitions of the term "voluntary" in a neuropsychological context, how the motor cortex provides a mechanism for the execution of voluntary behavioral actions, and how the premotor areas play a role in the selection of the movements to be performed. The text also shows how the prefrontal cortex is engaged when the subject has to make new voluntary decisions, and how the basal ganglia play a critical role in response learning. The author considers how, in humans, the prefrontal cortex has been refined to allow for trial-and-error decision making, and how the premotor and prefrontal areas select between verbal responses. Psychologists, neuropsychologists, and neurophysiologists will all want to read this pathbreaking book.
RESEARCH METHODS LABORATORY MANUAL FOR PSYCHOLOGY, International Edition is a one-of-a-kind solution for research methods classes. Experiments found within the text and on the CD-ROM cover such topics as the Stroop Effect, gender pronouns, and mood and perception, allowing you to experience research methods hands-on while focusing you on the asking and answering of interesting questions, rather than on the actual tracking down of materials.
Sacred Knowledge is the first well-documented, sophisticated account of the effect of psychedelics on biological processes, human consciousness, and revelatory religious experiences. Based on nearly three decades of legal research with volunteers, William A. Richards argues that, if used responsibly and legally, psychedelics have the potential to assuage suffering and constructively affect the quality of human life. Richards's analysis contributes to social and political debates over the responsible integration of psychedelic substances into modern society. His book serves as an invaluable resource for readers who, whether spontaneously or with the facilitation of psychedelics, have encountered meaningful, inspiring, or even disturbing states of consciousness and seek clarity about their experiences. Testing the limits of language and conceptual frameworks, Richards makes the most of experiential phenomena that stretch our understanding of reality, advancing new frontiers in the study of belief, spiritual awakening, psychiatric treatment, and social well-being. His findings enrich humanities and scientific scholarship, expanding work in philosophy, anthropology, theology, and religious studies and bringing depth to research in mental health, psychotherapy, and psychopharmacology.
Discovered little more than a decade ago, optogenetics - a revolutionary technique combining genetic and optical methods to observe and control the function of neurons - is now a widely used research tool. Optogenetics-driven research has led to insights into Parkinson's disease and other neurological and psychiatric disorders. With contributions from leaders and innovators from both academia and industry, this volume explores the discovery and application of optogenetics, from the basic science to its potential clinical use. Chapters cover a range of optogenetics applications, including for brain circuits, plasticity, memory, learning, sleep, vision and neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases. Providing authoritative coverage of the huge potential that optogenetics research carries, this is an ideal resource for researchers and graduate students, as well as for those working in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries and in a clinical setting.
Professional Development, Training, and Supervision in Human Services Organizations provides the latest research on Human Service Organizations (HSO) groups, both public and private, and their use of the Organizational Behavior Management (OBM) model for effective designing, implementing and maintaining services within HSOs. Each volume in this series highlights key concepts and applications pertinent to each division of HSOs, with this release providing program directors and supervisors with the tools they need to develop an efficient and effective training program for onboarding, performance evaluation and professional development for their staff.
What are the mental processes involved in listening to, performing, and composing music? What is involved in 'understanding' a piece of music? How are such skills acquired? Questions such as these form the basis of the cognitive psychology of music. The author addresses these questions by surveying the growing experimental literature on the subject. The topics covered will be of interest to psychologists, as windows onto a human cognitive skill of some complexity that is only now beginning to receive the attention devoted to such skills as language. They are also relevant to musicians who are seeking to understand the psychological bases of their skills. The author does not simply review existing research, but takes a critical look at what has been achieved in the subject, introducing such topics as composition and musical skill in non-literate cultures. He draws freely on his own knowledge and experience as a practising musician, as well as a psychologist, to provide an overview that is scholarly and also accessible to the general reader.
Creativity is at the heart of successful research, yet researchers are rarely taught how to manage their creative process, and modern academic life is not structured to optimize creativity. Creativity in Research provides concrete guidance on developing creativity for anyone doing or mentoring research. Based on a curriculum developed at Stanford University's Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, this book presents key abilities that underlie creative research practice through a combination of scientific literature on creative confidence, experiential exercises, and guided reflection. By focusing attention on how research happens as well as its outputs, researchers increase their ability to address research challenges and produce the outputs they care about. Simultaneously, they may also transform their emotional relationship with their work, replacing stress and a harsh inner critic with a more open and emotionally empowered attitude.
Coming to work sick may do more harm than staying home - for the employee, the team, and the firm. Whilst the cost of absenteeism in organizations has been widely acknowledged and extensively examined, the counter-issue of 'presenteeism' has only recently attracted scholarly attention as a phenomenon that harms employee wellbeing, disrupts team dynamism, and damages productivity. This volume brings together leading international scholars from diverse scientific backgrounds, including occupational psychology, health, and medicine, to provide a pioneering review of the subject. International in scope, the collection incorporates both Western and East Asian perspectives, making it an informative resource for multinational companies seeking to formulate human resource strategies and better manage their culturally diverse workforce. It will also appeal to scholars and graduate students researching human resource management, organization studies, organizational health, and organizational psychology.
Brief and acute psychotic disorders with a short duration and a generally good prognosis have long intrigued psychiatrists. Although they are included in internationally accepted diagnostic systems, understanding of these disorders remains minimal. This book is the first comprehensive overview of the clinical features, biology, course and long-term outcome of brief and acute psychoses. The authors review the world literature on the topic and they also present data from their own longitudinal study - the most complete investigation of this group of disorders so far conducted. The book concludes with considerations of the nosological status of brief and acute psychoses and their impact on our understanding of the continuum of psychotic and affective disorders.
This book combines the salient features of the methodology of experiments in psychology, the concepts of general experimental psychology, and the advantages of laboratory manual.
Executive functions are a set of cognitive processes we use to act on information, manage resources, and plan and monitor our own behaviour, all with the aim of achieving an end goal. These are skills that develop from infancy. While 'reading' has been extensively studied in psychology literature, 'writing' has been somewhat neglected, despite a lack of capability in this area being linked to poverty and social exclusion. This book is the first comprehensive and state-of-the-art review of the relationship between executive function skills and writing. It explores its role across the lifespan, addressing all groups of writers, from children and those with learning and language difficulties, to adults and elders. It considers theoretical viewpoints, assessment and methodological issues, and developmental disorders, and closes with insightful commentary chapters that draw future directions for investigating executive functions. Written by internationally recognized scholars in the field, this is a new and innovative contribution which will provide essential reading among researchers, educators, and graduate students interested in understanding the cognitive underpinnings of writing throughout the lifespan
Memory is typically thought of as a set of neural representations - 'memory traces' - that must be found and reactivated in order to be experienced. It is often suggested that 'memory traces' are represented by a hierarchically organized system of analyzers, modified, sharpened and differentiated by encounters with successive events. Remembering: An activity of mind and brain is the magnum opus of one of the leading figures in the psychology of memory. It sets out Fergus Craik's current view of human memory as a dynamic activity of mind and brain. The author argues that remembering should be understood as a system of active cognitive processes, similar to (perhaps identical to) the processes underlying attending, perceiving and thinking. Thus, encoding processes are essentially viewed as the mental activities involved in perceiving and understanding, and retrieval is described as the partial reactivation of these same processes. This account proposes that episodic and semantic memory should be thought of as levels in a continuum of specificity rather than as separate systems of memory. In addition, the book presents Craik's views on working memory and on age-related memory impairments. In the latter case the losses are attributed largely to a difficulty with the self-initiation of appropriate encoding and retrieval operations compensated, when needed, by support from the external environment. The development of these ideas is discussed throughout the book and illustrated substantially by experiments from the author's lab, but also by empirical and theoretical contributions from other researchers. A broad account of current ideas and findings in contemporary memory research, but viewed from the author's personal theoretical standpoint, Remembering: An activity of mind and brain will be essential for researchers, graduate and postdoctoral students working in the field of human memory.
Working memory refers to how we keep track of what we are doing moment to moment throughout our waking lives. It allows us to remember what we have just done, focus on what we are doing now, to solve problems, be creative, think about what we will be doing in the next few seconds, and continually to update in our mind changes around us throughout the day. This book brings together in one volume, state-of-the-science chapters written by the most productive and well known working memory researchers worldwide. Chapters cover different approaches to understanding how working memory works, using behavioural experimental techniques, neuroimaging, computational modelling, how it changes from childhood through to healthy old age, how it is affected by dementia and brain damage, and how it is used in everyday life. A unique feature of the book is that each chapter starts with answers to a set of common questions for all authors. This allows readers very rapidly to compare key differences in theoretical assumptions and approaches to working memory across chapters, and to understand the theoretical context before going on to read each chapter in detail. Uniquely, all authors consider evidence that is not consistent with their theoretical assumptions, whereas it is common for authors to ignore contradictory evidence. This approach leads to new interpretations and new hypotheses to test in future research and greatly enhances our understanding of this crucial human ability. Written and edited by the leading researchers in the field, the book will be an important and influential addition to the memory literature.
A defining scholarly publication on the past and current state of research with psychedelic plant substances for medicine, therapeutics, and spiritual uses. Certain plants have long been known to contain healing properties and used to treat everything from depression and addiction, to aiding in on one's own spiritual well-being for hundreds of years. Can Western medicine find new cures for human ailments by tapping into indigenous plant wisdom? And why the particular interest in the plants with psychoactive properties? These two conference volume proceedings provide an abundance of answers. The first international gathering of researchers held on this subject was in 1967, sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and U.S. Public Health Service. It was an interdisciplinary group of specialists - from ethnobotanists to neuroscientists - gathered in one place to share their findings on a topic that was gaining widespread interest: The use of psychoactive plants in indigenous societies. The WAR ON DRUGS which intervened slowed advances in this field. Research, however, has continued, and in the fifty years since that first conference, new and significant discoveries have been made. A new generation of researchers, many inspired by the giants present at that first conference, has continued to investigate the outer limits of ethno-psychopharmacology. At the same time, there has been a sea change in public and medical perceptions of psychedelics. There is now a renaissance in research, and some of these agents are actively being investigated for their therapeutic potential. They are no longer as stigmatized as they have been in the past, although they remain controversial. There still remains much work to do in this field, and many significant discoveries remain to be made. So, in June of 2017, once again specialists from around the world in fields of ethnopharmacology, chemistry, botany, and anthropology gathered to discuss their research and findings in a setting that encouraged the free and frank exchange of information and ideas on the last 50 years of research, and assess the current and possible futures for research in ethnopsychopharmacology. The papers given at the 2017 Symposium, organized by Dr. Dennis McKenna, in a handsome two volume boxed collectors set represents perhaps the most significant body of knowledge in this interdisciplinary field available. About Dennis McKenna: He is an icon amongst psychedelic explorers, working to inspire the next generation of ethnobotanists in the search for new medicines for the benefit of humanity and the preservation of the biosphere that produces what is apparent from reading these papers - a rich pharmacopeia of medicines. Essential for academic libraries, pharmaceutical and ethnobotanical collections.
The topic of autobiographical memory has held a prominent role in memory research for the past 30 years, as it has proven indispensable to the understanding of human memory and cognition. An important focus of autobiographical memory research is uncovering the basic structure, nature, and organization of the autobiographical memory system. This book explores the organization and structure of autobiographical memory. Based on over thirty years of research, and the latest empirical findings, it presents the major theories and problems in the science of autobiographical memory organization. At its core are two influential global views on the organization, structure, and function of autobiographical memory (chapters 2 and 3). In addition, the volume examines the organization of autobiographical memory from a developmental perspective (chapter 4). It includes a chapter examining the neuroscience of autobiographical memory organization (chapter 7), and a chapter examining organization from a functional perspective (chapter 6). Also covered is the role of culture in forming autobiographical memory (chapter 5), the role of the self in organizing autobiographical memory (chapter 8), insights from the reminiscence bump on organization (chapter 9), and a chapter on the organization of episodic autobiographical memories (chapter 10). For students and researcher with an interest in memory, the volume is a timely and important addition to their literature.
Interest in machine learning is exploding worldwide, both in research and for industrial applications. Machine learning is fast becoming a fundamental part of everyday life. This book is a brief introduction to this area - exploring its importance in a range of many disciplines, from science to engineering, and even its broader impact on our society. The book is written in a style that strikes a balance between brevity of explanation, rigorous mathematical argument, and outlines principle ideas. At the same time, it provides a comprehensive overview of a variety of methods and their application within this field. This includes an introduction to Bayesian approaches to modeling, as well as deep learning. Writing small programs to apply machine learning techniques is made easy by high level programming systems, and this book shows examples in Python with the machine learning libraries 'sklearn' and 'Keras'. The first four chapters concentrate on the practical side of applying machine learning techniques. The following four chapters discuss more fundamental concepts that includes their formulation in a probabilistic context. This is followed by two more chapters on advanced models, that of recurrent neural networks and that of reinforcement learning. The book closes with a brief discussion on the impact of machine learning and AI on our society. Fundamentals of Machine Learning provides a brief and accessible introduction to this rapidly growing field, one that will appeal to students and researchers across computer science and computational neuroscience, as well as the broader cognitive sciences.
Music educators and practicing musicians have failed to benefit as much as they could from the past two decades of music psychology research. In this volume, Parncutt and McPherson propose to improve the situation by describing new approaches, informed by recent psychological research, to teaching music, learning music, and making music at all educational levels. Each chapter represents the collaboration between a music psychologist and a music educator. The articles begin by outlining music-psychological issues that are probably unfamiliar to musicians and music educators. Then, they propose teaching strategies and materials inspired by the psychologists' findings. The volume's twenty-one articles cover the broad issues of "the developing musician", "subskills of musical performance", and "instruments and ensembles". |
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