Language pervades everything we do as social beings. It is, in fact, difficult to disentangle language from social life, and hence its importance is often missed. The emergence of new communication technologies makes this even more striking. People come to "know" one another through these interactions without ever having met face-to-face. How? Through the words they use and the way they use them.
The Oxford Handbook of Language and Social Psychology is a unique and innovative compilation of research that lies at the intersection of language and social psychology. Language is viewed as a social activity, and to understand this complex human activity requires a consideration of its social psychological underpinnings. Moreover, as a social activity, the use and in fact the existence of language has implications for a host of traditional social psychological processes. Hence, there is a reciprocal relationship between language and social psychology, and it is this reciprocal relationship that defines the essence of this handbook.
The handbook is divided into six sections. The first two sections focus on the social underpinnings of language, that is, the social coordination required to use language, as well as the manner in which language and broad social dimensions such as culture mutually constitute one another. The next two sections consider the implications of language for a host of traditional social psychological topics, including both intraindividual (e.g., attribution) and interindividual (e.g., intergroup relations) processes. The fifth section examines the role of language in the creation of meaning, and the final section includes chapters documenting the importance of the language-social psychology interface for a number of applied areas.

Sound Sentiments seeks to open a new path in the philosophy of emotion. The focus of most recent work on the philosophy of emotion has been on the nature of emotion, with some attention also to the relation of emotion to ethics. This book explores the idea that emotions admit of valuation, of degrees of adequacy. We cannot just decide what to think, or to desire, or to feel, as we can decide to act, and these attitudes are integral to emotions. Nonetheless, emotions can have normative characteristics that resemble virtues. Philosophers are familiar with the notion that emotions are valuational. But how well they serve that function determines the value they themselves have. The book opens with an account of the theory of emotion, reflecting recent work on that, and considers the way in which emotions are valuational (with reference to the contributions of writers such as de Sousa, Gibbard, and McDowell). The worth of an emotional experience depends on the quality of the valuation it itself achieves. Most of the book is then devoted to a set of interconnected themes. Some of these concern properties that emotions can have which can variously enhance or detract from them: profundity, social leverage, narcissism, and sentimentality. Others are attitudes with characteristic emotional loadings, and sometimes motivations, that raise similar questions: cynicism, ambivalence, and sophistication. David Pugmire's general approach is indirect and negative: to analyse emotional foibles, which tend to elude us as we succumb to them, and thereby to point to what soundness in emotion would be. He also elicits connections amongst these aspects of the emotional life. The most pervasive is the dimension of profundity, which opens the discussion: each of the subsequent problems amounts to a way in which emotion can be shallow and slight and so amount to less than it seems; and accordingly, each identifies a form of integrity in the emotions.

This book explores a range of theories used to explain the phenomenon of innovation and learning in individual thought, organizations, industries, and economies. The author draws on insights and perspectives from management and organization studies, economics, and cognitive science, bringing these together in a unifying framework for an analysis of innovation systems and the management of learning.

Dynamic Thinking: A Primer on Dynamic Field Theory introduces the reader to a new approach to understanding cognitive and neural dynamics using the concepts of Dynamic Field Theory (DFT). Dynamic Neural Fields are formalizations of how neural populations represent the continuous dimensions of perceptual features, movements, and cognitive decisions. The concepts of DFT establish links between brain and behavior, revealing ways in which models of brain function can be tested with both neural and behavioral measures. Thus, DFT bridges the gap between brain and behavior, between neuroscience and the behavioral sciences. The book provides systematic tutorials on the central concepts of DFT and their grounding in both dynamical systems theory and neurophysiology. The concrete mathematical implementation of these concepts is laid out, supported by hands-on exercises that make use of interactive simulators in MATLAB. The book also contains a large set of exemplary case studies in which the concepts and associated models are used to understand how elementary forms of embodied cognition emerge and develop.

Cognitive Approaches to Early Modern Spanish Literature is the first anthology exploring human cognition and literature in the context of early modern Spanish culture. It includes the leading voices in the field, along with the main themes and directions that this important area of study has been producing. The book begins with an overview of the cognitive literary studies research that has been taking place within early modern Spanish studies over the last fifteen years. Next, it traces the creation of self in the context of the novel, focusing on Cervantes's Don Quixote in relation to the notions of embodiment and autopoiesis as well as the faculties of memory and imagination as understood in early modernity. It continues to explore the concept of embodiment, showing its relevance to delve into the mechanics of the interaction between actors and audience both in the jongleuresque and the comedia traditions. It then centers on cognitive theories of perception, the psychology of immersion in fictional worlds, and early modern and modern-day notions of intentionality to discuss the role of perceiving and understanding others in performance, Don Quixote, and courtly conduct manuals. The last section focuses on the affective dimension of audience-performer interactions in the theatrical space of the Spanish corrales and how emotion and empathy can inform new approaches to presenting Las Casas's work in the literature classroom. The volume closes with an afterword offering strategies to design a course on mind and literature in early modernity.

A distinctively human aspect of the mind is its ability to handle both factual and counter factual scenarios. This brings enormous advantages, but we are far from infallible in monitoring the boundaries between the real, the imaginary and the pathological. In the early modern period, particularly, explorations of the mind's ability to roam beyond the factual became mainstream. It was an age of perspective art, anamorphism and optical illusions; of prophecy, apocalyptic dreams, and visions; and of fascination with the supernatural. This volume takes a fresh look at early modern understandings of how to distinguish reality from dream, or delusion from belief. Opening with cognitivist and philosophical perspectives, Cognitive Confusions then examines test cases from across European literature, providing an original documentation of the mind in its most creative and pathological states.

How are causal judgements such as 'The ice on the road caused the traffic accident' connected with counterfactual judgements such as 'If there had not been any ice on the road, the traffic accident would not have happened'? This volume throws new light on this question by uniting, for the first time, psychological and philosophical approaches to causation and counterfactuals. Traditionally, philosophers have primarily been interested in connections between causal and counterfactual claims on the level of meaning or truth-conditions. More recently, however, they have also increasingly turned their attention to psychological connections between causal and counterfactual understanding or reasoning. At the same time, there has been a surge in interest in empirical work on causal and counterfactual cognition amongst developmental, cognitive, and social psychologists--much of it inspired by work in philosophy. In this volume, twelve original contributions from leading philosophers and psychologists explore in detail what bearing empirical findings might have on philosophical concerns about counterfactuals and causation, and how, in turn, work in philosophy might help clarify the issues at stake in empirical work on the cognitive underpinnings of, and relationships between, causal and counterfactual thought.

People are captivated by observations of skilled human behavior in arenas such as sports, arts, and dance. Methods to advance the skills of novices have been created since the earliest days of humankind. Recent scientific progress in understanding learning processes have led Tomporowski to conclude that skilled behavior reflects a dynamic interaction among physiological structures of the body, cognitive processes of the mind, and the motivational processes of the human spirit. This multidisciplinary approach describes how skills are learned and performed, as well as why skills are critical to the survival of individuals and the cultures in which they live.

Skill learning is evaluated in the context of theories of life-span psychology and the notion that humans are confronted with a series of tasks as they develop, mature, and age. People's ability to meet and overcome challenges presented by these developmental tasks depends on requisite skills that are acquired over years of training. Success or failure can profoundly affect an individual's life path trajectory. The skills we learn at various periods across the life span play a role in how we view ourselves and our society in general.

On the Edge and Keeping on the Edge contains the first ten lectures in a series sponsored by the University of Georgia's Torrance Center for Creative Studies. Annually, the Lecture Committee tried to identify someone who was on the cutting edge of creativity research. When a decision was made to publish the first ten lectures, the editor asked each lecturer to describe what he/she had done "to keep on the edge." In the first lecture, E. Paul Torrance spoke of his experiences in using his networks to stimulate and keep the creative process flowing. The other areas were creative problem solving (Sidney J. Parnes), the psychology of thinking (Donald J. Treffinger), intergenerational influences (Robert D. Strom), visioning (Joe Khatena), questioning (Garnet Millar), philosophy and ethics (Joseph P. Hester), the Beyonders (Kobus Neethling), and motivation (Dorothy A. Sisk). Volume II will be entitled Going Beyond the Edge. The first ten lectures were by scholars who had taken us to the edge, and kept us on the edge, but scholars have not been very successful in taking us beyond the edge. It takes people who are free to use their imaginations, like novelists, humorists, actors and actresses, inventors, artists, dancers, and those in other creative areas.

Writing is one of humankind's greatest inventions, and modern societies could not function if their citizens could not read and write. How do skilled readers pick up meaning from markings on a page so quickly, and how do children learn to do so? The chapters in the Oxford Handbook of Reading synthesize research on these topics from fields ranging from vision science to cognitive psychology and education, focusing on how studies using a cognitive approach can shed light on how the reading process works. To set the stage, the opening chapters present information about writing systems and methods of studying reading, including those that examine speeded responses to individual words as well as those that use eye movement technology to determine how sentences and short passages of text are processed. The following section discusses the identification of single words by skilled readers, as well as insights from studies of adults with reading disabilities due to brain damage. Another section considers how skilled readers read a text silently, addressing such issues as the role of sound in silent reading and how readers' eyes move through texts. Detailed quantitative models of the reading process are proposed throughout. The final sections deal with how children learn to read and spell, and how they should be taught to do so. These chapters review research with learners of different languages and those who speak different dialects of a language; discuss children who develop typically as well as those who exhibit specific disabilities in reading; and address questions about how reading should be taught with populations ranging from preschoolers to adolescents, and how research findings have influenced education. The Oxford Handbook of Reading will benefit researchers and graduate students in the fields of cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, education, and related fields (e.g., speech and language pathology) who are interested in reading, reading instruction, or reading disorders.

Since wisdom is the ultimate human virtue, its application is important for humans and civilization. Cognitive Informatics and Wisdom Development: Interdisciplinary Approaches argues that wise civilization cannot function without wise people and vice versa, that wise people cannot function without positive conditions for the development of wise civilization. Using the cognitive informatics approach as a basis for the investigation of wisdom, this book offers solutions on how to study and evaluate the state of wisdom in 21st century society and the requirements for wise civilization and its monitoring systems.

Applying the Constructivist Approach to Cognitive Therapy goes beyond the traditional objectivist approach of uncovering the what of a client's dysfunctional thinking by helping client and therapist understand why the client thinks in a dysfunctional manner. This unique work demonstrates how this thinking can be uncovered through dreamwork, analytic hypnotherapy, ecstatic trance, and other spontaneous trance experiences such as the use of imagination, free association, and guided imagery. Utilizing hypnotherapeutic techniques, the author shows how clients can reframe these thoughts to achieve a healthier, more functional way of thinking. Replete with case studies and practical guidance, this text will help therapists take clients beyond a simple resolution of their problems and offer an avenue to greater personal growth, maturity, and creativity.

Over the last decade there has been a spate of research on the empirical phenomenon known as "attentional capture". Interest in capture can be attributed not only to its applied significance, but also to the implications of the phenomenon for theories of selective attention, as well as cognitive control in general. This growing interest, however, has also spawned a wide variety of experimental paradigms, empirical results, and theoretical perspectives. In June of 2000, 40 experimental psychologists converged on Villanova University for a conference and workshop on attentional capture. The intent was to provide an intimate forum for scientists from diverse perspectives and backgrounds, and using diverse methodologies to present their research on attentional capture and also engage in small group discussions on such key issues as the definition, measurement, and theoretical treatment of attention capture. This book presents a collection of chapters based on those presentations and discussions. Chapters are organized around areas such as neuroscience, visual cognition, developmental, individual differences and dynamical systems. The volume provides: a summary of the latest cutting edge research; an important compass for future research in this area; a useful survey of the field; contributions from internationally recognized experts in attention. Due to its exclusive focus on the topic of attentional capture the volume should make an excellent supplemental text or reference book for advanced undergraduate or graduate seminars in cognitive psychology and attention.

Jerry Fodor presents a new development of his famous Language of Thought hypothesis, which has since the 1970s been at the centre of interdisciplinary debate about how the mind works. Fodor defends and extends the groundbreaking idea that thinking is couched in a symbolic system realized in the brain. This idea is central to the representational theory of mind which Fodor has established as a key reference point in modern philosophy, psychology, and cognitive science. The foundation stone of our present cognitive science is Turing's suggestion that cognitive processes are not associations but computations; and computation requires a language of thought.
So the latest on the Language of Thought hypothesis, from its progenitor, promises to be a landmark in the study of the mind. LOT 2 offers a more cogent presentation and a fuller explication of Fodor's distinctive account of the mind, with various intriguing new features. The central role of compositionality in the representational theory of mind is revealed: most of what we know about concepts follows from the compositionality of thoughts. Fodor shows the necessity of a referentialist account of the content of intentional states, and of an atomistic account of the individuation of concepts. Not least among the new developments is Fodor's identification and persecution of pragmatism as the leading source of error in the study of the mind today.
LOT 2 sees Fodor advance undaunted towards the ultimate goal of a theory of the cognitive mind, and in particular a theory of the intentionality of cognition. No one who works on the mind can ignore Fodor's views, expressed in the coruscating and provocative style which has delighted and disconcerted countless readers over the years.

Setting forth the state of the art, leading researchers present a survey on the fast-developing field of Connectionist Psycholinguistics: using connectionist or "neural" networks, which are inspired by brain architecture, to model empirical data on human language processing. Connectionist psycholinguistics has already had a substantial impact on the study of a wide range of aspects of language processing, ranging from inflectional morphology, to word recognition, to parsing and language production. Christiansen and Chater begin with an extended tutorial overview of Connectionist Psycholinguistics which is followed by the latest research by leading figures in each area of research. The book also focuses on the implications and prospects for connectionist models of language, not just for psycholinguistics, but also for computational and linguistic perspectives on natural language. The interdisciplinary approach will be relevant for, and accessible to psychologists, cognitive scientists, linguists, philosophers, and researchers in artificial intelligence.

The aim of this volume is to integrate the current literature about the psychological dimensions of bilingualism: that is, to analyze psychological, subjective, and internal perspectives on bilingualism. What is the internal world of bilinguals like? How do they perceive the world and how do they think? What are the advantages and disadvantages of being bilingual? How does bilingualism interact with personality? In what way does being bilingual impact the aging mind? Renowned and emerging scholars alike explore these questions in the collected chapters. The organization of the book features four main component parts: (1) the inner cognitive world of the bilingual mind (2) bilingual language representation, and (3) bilingualism across the lifespan, and 4) bilingual cognitive and personality dimensions. Taken collectively, the included chapters provide a multidimensional and up-to-date perspective on bilingual studies, specifically concentrating on the cognitive and emotional dimensions of the individual. Chapter topics include: Conceptual Metaphor Theory Bilingual Figurative Language Processing Aging in Bilinguals Psychopathology in Bilinguals Personality Traits in Bilinguals Addressing the growing demand for bilingual research, this collection provides a timely and much needed perspective on the bilingual as an individual, exploring his/her internal world and a range of phenomena, including emotional word processing, personality traits, language effects on the mind, and cognitive effects of bilingualism. As such, it will appeal to a wide range of readers across various intellectual and professional arenas, including cognitive psychologists, personality psychologists, psycholinguists, educational psychologists and second language teachers, among others.