Psychology Science of Mind & Behavior

This textbook reflects its authors' experiences both as faculty members who have taught the introductory psychology course several dozen times, and, earlier, as students whose own interest in psychology was sparked by instructors who brought the introductory course to life. The text's flexible organizing framework ("Levels of Analysis"), depth of research, emphasis on critical thinking, and engaging writing help instructors convey the expanse and excitement of the field of psychology, while maintaining scientific rigor. The new third edition features a separate chapter on intelligence, chapter reorganizations, and updated research throughout.Revised table of contents. The text now features 16 chapters, including separate chapters on "Language and Thinking" (Chapter 8) and "Intelligence" (Chapter 9). Expanded coverage of these crucial topics includes new sections on understanding and producing language, mental imagery, metacognition, and assessing intelligence in Non-Western cultures. New coverage of statistics. A simple, non-intimidating discussion of statistics ("Analyzing and Interpreting Data") has been added to the chapter on research methods (Chapter 2), including subsections on being a critical consumer of statistics, basic descriptive statistics, and the logic behind inferential statistics. Reorganized "Personality" chapter. Chapter 12 now conforms to most instructorsĹź preferred sequence, with psychodynamic and phenomenological-humanistic theories now preceding trait, biological, and social-cognitive perspectives. Better balance in the development chapter. Coverage of adolescence and adulthood has been expanded slightly and brought into better balance with coverage of infancy and childhood. Students can now read about new topics relevant to their current lives, such as the psychological transition to adulthood. Focus on scientific psychology: The text offers an accurate, jargon-free portrayal of psychology as a contemporary behavioral science, with thorough coverage and an up-to-date empirical base. Levels of analysis: Narration within the text and "Understanding Behavior" graphics illustrate how topics can be understood at the biological, psychological, and environmental levels of analysis; Chapter 1 offers an introduction to this feature. "Research Close-Ups": This feature provides an inside look at research studies in a scientific journal format and engages students in a process of critical thinking about key research questions. Topics include drinking and driving, avoidance learning in psychopaths, and obedience to authority. Emphasis on critical thinking: "What Do You Think?" questions throughout the narrative and a "Beneath the Surface" discussion in each chapter challenge students to think critically in evaluating popular truisms and promote appreciation of the role of science in counteracting common misconceptions. For example, a new "Beneath the Surface" section discusses increasing concerns about the effectiveness and side-effects of antidepressant medications (Chapter 15). Focus on personal and societal applications and links between basic science and application: Everyday examples in the narrative, along with ?Applying Psychological Science? features, illustrate psychological principles and personalize studentsĹź learning experience. The text emphasizes the two-way link between basic science and application. Focus questions: In each chapter, marginal questions promote concept mastery, serve as retrieval clues during review, and act as a performance feedback measure for students. Full multimedia integration within the text and the instructional materials: Icons within the text direct students to complementary video clips and other visual assets from the companion multimedia supplements (such as the In-Psych CD-ROM packaged free with each new copy of the text), as well as related lecture and assessment material for instructors.