I received a great question from one of my US Government students today. He wanted to know if I could give him a list of books (top 5) in psych to give him a good overview of the field. He mentioned Freud (and to be honest, I internally cringed). While I have my personal favorites, I would love to hear from you all.
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What recommendations do you have? What are the best books about psych for a non-psych person to get acquainted with our field? You can post in the comments or email me at schallhornpsych @ gmail.com
I look forward to hearing from many of you. I will compile the list and publish in a few weeks.
Thanks in advance,
Chuck Schallhorn
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10 comments:
I would recommend Opening Skinner's Box by Lauren Slater. Would love to see the list once you hear from others!
I've got personality on the brain since that is where we are at in class, so I would recommend Quiet by Susan Cain. An excellent overview of extroversion vs. introversion as well as other personality aspects.
Just to have "handy", for the total Psychology novice, The Handy Psychology Answer Book is an easy to read, general reference book.
For Neuroscience, Sam Kean's The Tale of the Dueling Neurosurgeons. And to appreciate the two-track mind, David Eagleman's Incognito.
Since he wants to get an overview of the field, a few general books are necessary. Unfortunately, these are rarely as interesting or fun to read as books on a specific topic...
So, here's my 5:
Psych 101: Psychology Facts, Basics, Statistics, Tests, and More!
-Paul Kleinman
(Fairly engaging general overview)
Situations Matter
-Sam Sommers
(Engaging overview of Social Psychology)
You are not so Smart
-David McRaney
(Entertaining read, great intro to cognitive biases)
Thinking, Fast and Slow
-Daniel Kahneman
(will change the way you think about thinking)
The Compass of Pleasure
-David Linden
(I think it's important to have at least one book from the biological perspective)
BONUS: Unbroken. Laura Hillenbrand
It's not Psychology, per se, but it's just so damn good. Read it.
Love at Goon Park about Harlowe's work and gives insight as to the time period and development of psychology through testing. Cult of Personality Testing by Annie Murphy Paul that starts with Phrenology and looks how so many of these tests are developed.
I love "The natural history of the senses" by Diane Ackerman. An awesome poetic exploration of our senses and their cultural impact through out history. I always use excerpts for my sense and perception unit.
http://www.amazon.com/Natural-History-Senses-Diane-Ackerman/dp/0679735666
Story of psychology
Morton Hunt
This was my most useful reference when I began teaching psychology.
Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior Leonard Mlodinow
Suspicious Minds: How Culture Shapes Madness by Gold, Joel, Gold, Ian
An interesting read on how delusions are merely an exaggerated form of how we all think.
Though these books were already mentioned I would like to emphasize the greatness of the following three books.
Thinking fast and slow
Daniel Kahneman
Situations Matter
Sam Sommers
The Compass of Pleasure
David Linden
50 Myths of Popular Psychology by Lilienfeld, Lynn, Ruscio & Beyerstein. Provides a nice introduction to the scope of the field as well as research methods used to answer questions about human behavior.
Here are a few: The Invisible Gorilla, by Daniel Simons and Christopher Chabris; Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to be Persuasive, by Robert Cialdini (et al.); An Anthropologist on Mars by Oliver Sacks.
Also, I second Sue's recommendation of Sam Kean's book!
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