Such Stuff as Dreams: The Psychology of Fiction explores how fiction works in the brains and imagination of both readers and writers.Demonstrates how reading fiction can contribute to a greater understanding of, and the ability to change, ourselvesInformed by the latest psychological research which focuses on, for example, how identification with fictional characters occurs, and how literature can improve social abilitiesExplores traditional aspec...

Emotional crises and breakdowns are not things going wrong in individuals’ minds: they are disturbances in their relations with themselves and others. In psychotherapy an attempt is made to resolve such crises through a therapeutic relationship with an individual or in a group. First published in 1984, this book introduces the theory of individual and group therapy, and explains some of its principles in practice.Although there had been a rapid development of ideas in the area of p...

Originally published in 1978, this study examines the shortcomings of some theoretical approaches to psychological and neurophysiological mechanisms at the time. Keith Oatley illustrates the extent of these shortcomings by showing how inefficient brain researchers – using their present approaches – would be in trying to understand a computer, which is considerably simpler than the human brain. He concludes that we need better theories than those usually espoused in psychology, and goes on ...

An original history of psychology told through the stories of its most important breakthroughs and the people who made themAdvances in psychology have revolutionized our understanding of the human mind. Imaging technology allows researchers to monitor brain activity, letting us see what happens when we perceive, think, and feel. But technology is only part of how ideas about the mind and brain have developed over the past century and a half. In Our Minds, Our S...

"Part diary, part scientific journal, part detective story, part love story: The Case of Emily V is thoroughly post-modern in its deliberate blurring of the distinction between fact and fiction, its cavalier blending of literary genres. But Oatley's first novel … also resembles old 19th-century literature. His characters are dynamic, his storylines complex and suspenseful, his soial commentary broad and integral to the plot." - Marie Campbell, Quill& Quire Quotables

Why is the brain divided? The difference between right and left hemispheres has been puzzled over for centuries. In a book of unprecedented scope, Iain McGilchrist draws on a vast body of recent brain research, illustrated with case histories, to reveal that the difference is profound—not just this or that function, but two whole, coherent, but incompatible ways of experiencing the world. The left hemisphere is detail oriented, prefers mechanisms to living things, and is inclined to self-i...

A renowned cognitive neuroscientist?s fascinating and highly informative account of how the brain acquires readingHow can a few black marks on a white page evoke an entire universe of sounds and meanings? In this riveting investigation, Stanislas Dehaene provides an accessible account of the brain circuitry of reading and explores what he calls the ?reading paradox?: Our cortex is the product of millions of years of evolution in a world without writing, so how did ...

The New York Times bestselling author examines how metaphors influence every aspect of our lives, from art to medicine, psychology to the stock market.Metaphor is much more than a mere literary device. Often hiding in plain sight, it is a critical aspect of how humans think and communicate. Metaphor is at work in all fields of human endeavor, including economics, business, science, and psychology.In I Is an Other, James Geary takes readers f...

Our understanding of how the human brain performs mathematical calculations is far from complete, but in recent years there have been many exciting breakthroughs by scientists all over the world. Now, in The Number Sense, Stanislas Dehaene offers a fascinating look at this recent research, in an enlightening exploration of the mathematical mind. Dehaene begins with the eye-opening discovery that animals--including rats, pigeons, raccoons, and chimpanzees--can perform simple mathem...

A compelling, radical, “richly explored” (The New York Times Book Review) and “insightful” (Vanity Fair) collection of essays on art, feminism, neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy from prizewinning novelist Siri Hustvedt, acclaimed author of The Blazing World and What I Loved.In this expansive volume, Hustvedt presents a trilogy of intellectually daring works that reveal the striking breadth of her knowledge across the human...

What goes on in our head when we have a thought? Why do the physical events that occur inside a fistful of gelatinous tissue give rise to the world of conscious experience? In The Universe of Consciousness , Gerald Edelman and Giulio Tononi present for the first time a full-scale theory of consciousness based on direct observation of the human brain in action. Their pioneering work, presented here in an elegant style, challenges much of the conventional wisdom about consciousness....

How is consciousness possible? What biological purpose does it serve? Why do we value it so highly? In Soul Dust the psychologist Nicholas Humphrey, a leading figure in consciousness research, returns to the front-line with a startling new theory. Consciousness, he argues, is nothing less than a magical-mystery show that we stage for ourselves inside our own heads. This self-made show lights up the world for us, making us feel special and transcendent.Tightly argued, intellectually...