I just started reading Omega Minor by Paul Verhaeghen last night and came across this great entry about cognitive psychology:Cognitive psychology is a beautiful, never-ending enterprise. To lose yourself in the details of the mind, in phenomena that lasts for only a few milliseconds and then dissolve into the great melting pot of consciousness without leaving a trace, it's like trying to guess the number and function of the cogs of a tiny machine encased in a steel box that has been welded shut, just by shaking it. There's a warning sticker on the outside of the mind: Warranty void if opened. No user-serviceable parts inside. Yes, this is the life! This is the real deal; it's like getting a chemistry set for Christmas , but someone forgot to include the instructions.Fantastic!Tags:* entertainment * pop culture * Omega Minor * Paul Verhaeghen * Verhaeghen * books * book review * cognitive psychology * psychology
Belief: 1. The mental act, condition, or habit of placing trust or confidence in a person or thing; faith. 2. Mental acceptance or conviction in the truth or actuality of something. 3. Something believed or accepted as true; especially, a particular tenet, or a body of tenets, accepted by a group of [...]
The study of Psychology can really help marketers understand customers. I recommend two tremendous courses available for free on iTunesU, which offers many free lectures. I have been listening to Psychology 156- Human Emotion and Psychology 160- Social Psychology at UC Berkeley, two very relevant courses to marketing. Both lectures are by Dacher Keltner , who is one of the best lecturers I have listened to. The lectures are also available at the course website. Psych 156. Psych 160.
My son Elliot was 8-years-old yesterday and today we had a big party for 26 of his friends. It was a Harry Potter theme party with a wizard magician who kept all of the kids "spellbound" for an hour...! So what has all this to do with Internet Psychology?Well, this blog has been written every single day for almost 18 months. But in that time I've written while on holiday, while travelling and when my son was celebrating his birthday....! Plus, in the past 18 months, I've added even more web sites to my little "empire" and am writing more for other "outlets". So, the time has come to make a change to this web site and my daily articles.The future of this web site is that I will now only update it during weekdays - at weekends I'll get a little more time with Elliot and my wife Cathy. However, I won't neglect you. Instead of updating my web site once a day, it will get two updates every weekday. So, far from cutting back the output - I'm actually increasing it, but taking the pressure o
The study of UFO claims over the years has led to valuable discoveries about atmospheric phenomena and psychology. In psychology, the study of UFO sightings has revealed information on misinterpretation, perceptual illusions, hallucination and fantasy-prone personality, which may explain why some people are willing to believe hoaxers such as George Adamski. Many have questioned the reliability of hypnosis in UFO abduction cases.Famous psychologist Carl Gustav Jung compared the UFO's "saucer" shape with mandala symbolism and speculated with the idea of UFO sightings being linked to his theory of Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious, suggesting UFOs are projection carriers of the archetype of "psychic wholeness" (also known in Jungian terms as The Self). Such projections endow the carrier with numinous and mythical powers giving it a highly suggestive effect and rapidly turning it into a saviour myth.
The study of UFO claims over the years has led to valuable discoveries about atmospheric phenomena and psychology. In psychology, the study of UFO sightings has revealed information on misinterpretation, perceptual illusions, hallucination and fantasy-prone personality, which may explain why some people are willing to believe hoaxers such as George Adamski. Many have questioned the reliability of hypnosis in UFO abduction cases.Famous psychologist Carl Gustav Jung compared the UFO's "saucer" shape with mandala symbolism and speculated with the idea of UFO sightings being linked to his theory of Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious, suggesting UFOs are projection carriers of the archetype of "psychic wholeness" (also known in Jungian terms as The Self). Such projections endow the carrier with numinous and mythical powers giving it a highly suggestive effect and rapidly turning it into a saviour myth.
ISBN: 0471494348Evolutionary psychology and behavioural genetics are two successful and important fields in the study of human behaviour, but practitioners in these subjects have different conceptions of the nature of human intelligence. Evolutionary psychologists dispute the existence of general intelligence and emphasise the differences among species. They argue that natural and sexual selection would be expected to produce intelligences that are specialised for particular domains, as encountered by particular species. Behavioural geneticists consider general intelligence to be the most fundamental aspect of intelligence and concentrate on the differences between individuals of the same species.This exciting book features papers and discussion contributions from leading behavioural geneticists, evolutionary psychologists and experts on intelligence that explore the differences and the tensions between these two approaches. The nature of 'g' or general intelligence is discussed in det
ISBN: 047002626XEmpathy is the process that allows us to share the feelings and emotions of others, in the absence of any direct emotional stimulation to the self.Humans can feel empathy for other people in a wide array of contexts: for basic emotions and sensation such as anger, fear, sadness, joy, pain and lust as well as for more complex emotions such as guilt, embarrassment and love.It has been proposed that, for most people, empathy is the process that prevents us doing harm to others.Although empathy seems to be an automatic response of the brain to others’ emotional reactions,there are circumstances under which we do not share the same feeling as others.Imagine, for example, that someone who does the same job as you is paid twice as much.In this case, that person might be very satisfied with their extra salary, but you would not share this satisfaction.This case illustrates the ubiquitous feeling of fairness and justice.Our sense of fairness has also become the focus of
[Update 1 9/4/07: I re-combobulated the wording of the first couple of paragraphs to better reflect what I’m trying to say. I re-read the original and realized it made no sense. So I hope this helps]
Head’s up, this is much less a political or social rant so much as it’s a lesson in psychology and [...]
Author: David GilesPaperback: 352 pagesPublisher: Lawrence Erlbaum; 1 edition (February 2003)Language: EnglishISBN: 0805840486(R)Media Psychology examines the impact that 21st century media use has on human behavior, from teenage crushes on pop stars to soap fandom in adulthood. It brings together North American communication research with European media research in a variety of disciplines--psychology, sociology, communication and media studies--and in doing so, maps out the territory for media psychology. David Giles argues that psychologists have been guilty of ignoring the influence of the media over the last century, seeing it at best as a minor nuisance that will eventually go away. However, with the increasing prevalence of new electronic forms of mass communication, the media seem to have a greater influence than ever over our daily lives. In this book, Dr. Giles tackles the traditional topics of media psychology--sex, violence, advertising--along with sec
Author: Raymond S. NickersonPaperback: 472 pagesPublisher: Lawrence Erlbaum; 1 edition (April 2004)Language: EnglishISBN: 0805848983(R)Lack of ability to think probabilistically makes one prone to a variety of irrational fears and vulnerable to scams designed to exploit probabilistic naiveté, impairs decision making under uncertainty, facilitates the misinterpretation of statistical information, and precludes critical evaluation of likelihood claims. Cognition and Chance presents an overview of the information needed to avoid such pitfalls and to assess and respond to probabilistic situations in a rational way. Dr. Nickerson investigates such questions as how good individuals are at thinking probabilistically and how consistent their reasoning under uncertainty is with principles of mathematical statistics and probability theory. He reviews evidence that has been produced in researchers' attempts to investigate these and similar types of questions. Seven conceptual chapters addre
Author: Matthew RatcliffePaperback: 256 pagesPublisher: Palgrave Macmillan (February 6, 2007)Language: EnglishISBN: 0230007104(R)This book proposes a series of interconnected arguments against the view that interpersonal understanding involves the use of a 'folk' or 'commonsense' psychology. Ratcliffe suggests that folk psychology, construed as the attribution of internal mental states in order to predict and explain behaviour, is a theoretically motivated and misleading abstraction from social life. He draws on phenomenology, neuroscience and developmental psychology to offer an alternative account that emphasizes patterned interactions between people in shared social situations. Zip Password: T0sT@rN@
Author: Yolanda (Yo) K. (Kaye) Jackson Paperback: 536Publisher: Sage Publications, Inc (August 18, 2006) Language: EnglishISBN: 1412909481 We live in a multicultural world, and professionals from a variety of fields are faced with challenges brought by differences that are in some cases only recently recognized or accommodated. The Encyclopedia of Multicultural Psychology is a welcome addition to the literature that attempts to define these differences. According to its introduction, this volume, the work of almost 200 academic contributors, is intended for "laypersons, students, and professionals new to the field with an interest in the role of culture in psychology." Zip Password: T0sT@rN@
Author: Luis A. CordonPaperback: 296Publisher: Greenwood Press (January 30, 2005) Language: EnglishISBN: 0313324573 The 120 or so entries in this volume cover a wide range of topics, including, for example, Alien abduction, Birth order, Insanity defense, Mad cow disease, Multiple personality disorder, Parenting styles, and Satanic ritual abuse. Also represented are individuals such as Carl Jung and Dr. Phil. The goal is "to try to counteract the tide of misleading information about the field of psychology with a concise guide to some things that the well-informed student of psychology and the interested general public ought to know." The length of each entry varies from just a few lines to nine or more pages (for Memory) and there are a few black-and-white illustrations scattered throughout. Nearly all entries include a limited "Further Reading" list, generally offering both supporting and critical sources. Following the A-Z entries is an annotated bibliography that includes Web
Author: Thomas TeoPaperback: 239Publisher: Springer; 1 edition (September 23, 2005) Language: EnglishISBN: 0387253556 Closely paralleling the history of psychology is the history of its critics, their theories, and their contributions. The Critique of Psychology is the first book to trace this alternate history, from a unique perspective that complements the many existing empirical, theoretical, and social histories of the field.Thomas Teo cogently synthesizes major historical and theoretical narratives to describe two centuries of challenges to—and the reactions of—the mainstream. Some of these critiques of content, methodology, relevance, and philosophical worldview haveactually influenced and become integrated into the canon; others pose moral questions still under debate. All are accessibly presented so that readers may judge their value for themselves:- Kant’s critique of rational and empirical psychology at the end of the 18th century- The natural-scientific critique
Social Computing magazine reviews What makes Facebook such an attraction? Some theories… via Citizen Media: A Progress Report By Dan Gillmor Firefox Now Serious Threat to IE in Europe By CmdrTaco on our-logs-show-nobody-using-ie-anyway Tookis writes "Mozilla's Firefox web browser has made dramatic gains on Microsoft's Internet Explorer throughout Europe in the past year with a marked upturn in FF use compared to IE over the past four months, according to French web monitoring service XiTiMonitor.... the Telegraph: Mobile phones 'dumbing down brain power'An over reliance on technology is leading to a dumbing down of the nation’s brain power, according a study published today. In a society flooded with mobile phones, Blackberry devices and computers of various shapes and sizes, a quarter of all Britons do not know their own landline number while as little as a third can recall more than three birthdays of their immediate family.....
Author: Steve M. JexPaperback: 540 pagesPublisher: Wiley; 1st edition (January 15, 2002)Language: EnglishISBN: 0471374202A comprehensive treatment of the science and practice of organizational psychology Following a scientist-practitioner model, Organizational Psychology explores the practical implications of the current research in the field, expertly integrating multicultural and international issues. Beginning with a foundation of research methodology, author Steve Jex examines the behavior of individuals in organizational settings. Drawing on his experiences as a consultant and educator, he uses actual cases to illustrate workplace issues, offering balanced coverage of such key topics as occupational stress, motivation, and corporate culture. Also presented is unique information on research methods and the use of statistics in understanding organizations. With an emphasis on applying theory and research in practice, Jex explores the mechanisms that organizations use to influenc
Author: Charles SpielbergerPaperback: 3200 pagesPublisher: Academic Press (August 2004)Language: EnglishISBN: 0126574103The Encyclopedia of Applied Psychology encompasses applications of psychological knowledge and procedures in all areas of psychology. This compendium is a major source of information for professional practitioners, researchers in psychology, and for anyone interested in applied psychology. The topics included are, but are not limited to, aging (geropsychology), assessment, clinical, cognitive, community, counseling, educational, environmental, family, industrial/organizational, health, school, sports, and transportation psychology. The entries drawn from the above-referenced areas provide a clear definition of topic, a brief review of theoretical basis relevant to the topic, and emphasize major areas of application. Zip Password: T0sT@rN@
Link for this Post: Psychology Today: Ten Politically Incorrect Truths About Human Nature.
I lived in politically correct Santa Cruz for much of my life so I have learned to tread lightly on the feelings and notions of correct people.
However I am also a fan of evolutionary psychology and sociobiology which provide some important insights into human nature.
As I have said before, humans are really just smart monkeys who pretend that they know a lot more than they really know. One of most important things which we know little about is human nature (which I have written about in the context of MDMA and psychedelic drugs).The 10 "truths" in this article might better be termed 10 theories. However they make some sense in our currently crazy world and that is why this article has become popular and is linked to here.
Interesting read for those thinking of going against the flow.... :)======================================By Jeff NealWith the Dow and the Standards and Poor's 500 doing quite well, it is important for the investor to take a close look on just how to start playing some defense. More often than not, when the market is experiencing a period of extreme optimism or pessimism, it is time to play contrarian and look to move against the crowd.The current optimism has the average U.S. equity currently selling for around 19 times trailing earnings, which is higher than the average. However, high P/E ratios do not necessarily indicate a bear market is ahead. In fact, with interest rates and inflation relatively low, a higher than average earnings ratio is exactly what should be anticipated.It is essential to note though that the current bull market was started around early October 2002 when the Standards and Poor's 500 was around the 780 mark. Since then, the market has been a robust bull mark
More pseudo-psychology with the same old pseudo "findings"Newsweek has just given a big plug to a book called "The Political Brain" (by Drew Westen of Emory University) that purports to tell Democrats how to win elections. The writer of the review does not know the difference between "discreet" and "discrete" so the intellectual level to be expected is not high -- and so it turns out. Note the paragraph below . It combines very old news with a bald-faced assertion:"When voters are hooked up to brain-imaging devices while watching candidates, it is emotion circuits and not the rational frontal lobes that are most engaged. When voters assess who won a campaign debate, they almost always choose the candidate they liked better beforehand. The rationality circuit "isn't typically open for business when partisans are thinking about things that matter to them," Westen notes. Yet "this is the part of the brain to which Democrats typically target their appeals."So emotions matter in pol
I've just come across a potentially useful (I say potentially because I'venot had time to read all the articles yet) source of articles - PositivePsychology News Daily at http://pos-psych.com/."Positive Psychology News Daily is authored by graduates of the Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) program at the University of Pennsylvania and by guest authors.Positive Psychology News Daily provides the latest news about happiness, the “science of happiness,” and Positive Psychology. Our goal is to be your fun, collaborative place for a research-based daily boost of happiness."
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