Behaviour (Psychology Revivals)
Title | Behaviour (Psychology Revivals) PDF eBook |
Author | D. E. Broadbent |
Publisher | Psychology Press |
Total Pages | 216 |
Release | 2014-03-18 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 131775347X |
Original blurb from 1961: For most laymen the science of behaviour hardly exists. Few people have any clear idea of its methods, its history or, above all, its significance. Beside the popular interest aroused, for example, by the achievements of Freud, the work of the behaviourists is almost unknown. Yet this is a science which is of the highest importance, has practical applications of immediate use, and offers the hope of profound insights into the human mind. What distinguishes the behaviourists is their insistence on exact scientific verification. Introspection may suggest a theory but only objective experiments will be admitted as evidence in its favour. The observation of how a rat behaves in a maze may seem a far cry from the study of mankind but it has the supreme advantage that what is observed can be exactly recorded and analysed. Progress by such methods is slow but what is discovered is much less likely to be upset by future discoveries than is work based on subjective judgments. Some of the results already obtained are fruitful and suggestive. Mr Broadbent’s treatment of rewards and punishments is most striking, both for the importance of the results and for the precision of the methods by which they are obtained. To reward a child for doing something or to punish him for abstaining might seem to be equally effective methods, to be distinguished only on ethical grounds. Mr Broadbent, however, sets out modern evidence and opinion about the means by which each method operates and so demonstrates that there exist sharp and general rules governing the situations in which each is likely to be effective. He describes the state of ‘neurotic’ conflict produced when a reward and a punishment are both associated with the same object and again a series of simple, controlled experiments throws light on a basic human problem. The science of behaviour is closely linked with other branches of research such as the theory of information and the development of electronic and mechanical ‘brains’, and this common field of research promises exciting results. Mr Broadbent shows how behaviourism has grown towards such sophisticated developments from the beginnings of such men as Watson and Pavlov. To any intelligent reader this book will give not only the pleasure of watching a series of brilliantly devised experiments gradually giving birth to a new and important science, but also the insight which comes from examining such basic concepts as memory and learning, of discovering how much of what we think we know is merely an unexamined assumption, and of being forced to think again in precise terms. For anyone willing to make this effort Behaviour is an exceptionally rewarding book.
Social Behavior and Personality (Psychology Revivals)
Title | Social Behavior and Personality (Psychology Revivals) PDF eBook |
Author | Arnold H. Buss |
Publisher | Routledge |
Total Pages | 224 |
Release | 2014-10-14 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1317574109 |
The fields of social behaviour and personality had for the most part been studied separately, originally published in 1986, this title was one of the first to consider them together. Social behaviours and contexts are analysed and distinctions are suggested. Social behaviours not previously seen as similar are linked. This a great opportunity to rediscover the work of Arnold Buss one of the greats in Social Psychology.
Instinct
Title | Instinct PDF eBook |
Author | |
Publisher | |
Total Pages | 163 |
Release | 1984 |
Genre | |
ISBN | 9781317531678 |
The Scientific Study of Social Behaviour
Title | The Scientific Study of Social Behaviour PDF eBook |
Author | Michael Argyle |
Publisher | Routledge |
Total Pages | 258 |
Release | 2013-11-26 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1135039917 |
Originally published in 1957, this book presented an up-to-date account of psychological research into human social behaviour of the time. There are chapters on interaction between pairs of people, behaviour in small social groups, and human relations in industry. The author avoided the adoption of any particular theoretical position, and concentrated on the established empirical findings of the time. The results of several hundred investigations are summarised and compared, so that the principal generalisations which emerge can be seen. Stress is placed on rigorous methods of research, and a critical account is given of current techniques of social research, showing the importance of experimental and statistical methods. Careful consideration is given to the danger of the investigator disturbing what is being investigated. Use is made of recent ideas about theory and explanation, and the different kinds of theory used in experimental psychology were considered for the first time as possible ways of accounting for group behaviour. This book was intended not only for students of psychology and of the other social sciences, but also for industrialists, administrators and indeed all who were interested in the laws underlying social behaviour. Today it can be read and enjoyed in its historical context.
Social Behavior and Personality (Psychology Revivals)
Title | Social Behavior and Personality (Psychology Revivals) PDF eBook |
Author | Arnold H. Buss |
Publisher | Routledge |
Total Pages | 237 |
Release | 2014-10-14 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1317574095 |
The fields of social behaviour and personality had for the most part been studied separately, originally published in 1986, this title was one of the first to consider them together. Social behaviours and contexts are analysed and distinctions are suggested. Social behaviours not previously seen as similar are linked. This a great opportunity to rediscover the work of Arnold Buss one of the greats in Social Psychology.
Instinct, Environment and Behaviour (Psychology Revivals)
Title | Instinct, Environment and Behaviour (Psychology Revivals) PDF eBook |
Author | Stephen Lea |
Publisher | Psychology Press |
Total Pages | 163 |
Release | 2015-03-27 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1317531698 |
What can the evolution of animal behaviour tell us about human behaviour? More specifically, how good an account of animal behaviour can we give in terms of evolution, and how do humans fit in with or deviate from the pattern established for other animals? The biological approach to the study of animal behaviour has important implications for psychology, but it is distinctly different. Originally published in 1984, this book provides a basic introduction to biological theories about behaviour, from the classic ethological tradition of Lorenz and Tinbergen to the later sociobiological approach. The principles of experimentation and research involved are assessed critically, especially with regard to their implications for the study of human behaviour. Written specifically for those with little biological knowledge, this book will still be of interest to students of biology and introductory psychology alike.
Bizarre Behaviours (Psychology Revivals)
Title | Bizarre Behaviours (Psychology Revivals) PDF eBook |
Author | Herschel Prins |
Publisher | Routledge |
Total Pages | 128 |
Release | 2013-10-31 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 113409891X |
The most deviant forms of human behaviour can be disturbing, incomprehensible, and sometimes very frightening. Herschel Prins believes that even the most deviant-seeming behaviours have their counterparts in ‘normality’ and can often be seen as an extension of this. In Bizarre Behaviours he sets some extreme forms of behaviour, such as vampirism and amok, in their socio-cultural and psychological contexts. Originally published in 1990, this very accessible and readable book will interest not only all those who have to deal with bizarre behaviour in the course of their work, but also the general reader who is interested in the origins and the infinite variety of human behaviours.