This exciting new text from Comer, Gould and Furnham, helps students to understand that psychology is around them every day and that its principles are relevant to a whole host of life questions. In addition to showing the relevance of psychology outside of the classroom, the text also allows students to see the big picture by stressing the interconnected nature of psychological science. Recurring sections throughout the chapters on human development, brain function, individual differences andabnormal psychology will help students see a more complete picture of psychology. These `Tying it Together’themes highlight how the different fields of psychology are connected to each other and how they relate to everyday life. A strong focus on neuroscience is integrated throughout in an exciting and accessible way, including features that demonstrate what happens in the brain when people are performing common behaviours such as eating pizza, learning a second language and getting a good night’s sleep. Chapter summaries review the main concepts presented and provide students with the opportunity to review what they have learned and how the key topics fit together.

Table of Contents:
About the Authors List of Contributors To the Instructor To the Student CHAPTER 1 Psychology: Yesterday and Today What Is Psychology? Psychology as the Science of Mind or Behaviour, or Both? Psychology’s Roots in Philosophy The Scientific Revolution The Founding of Psychology Wundt and Introspection (1) Psychoanalysis: Psychology of the Unconscious (2) Functionalism: The Practical Application of Psychology (3) Psychometrics: Measuring the Mind (4) Gestalt Psychology: More than Putting Together the Building Blocks (5) Behaviourism: Psychology of Adaptation (6) Humanistic Psychology: A New Direction (7) Psychology in the 21st Century: Cognitive Psychology, Neuroscience and Evolution Psychobiology/Neuroscience: Exploring the Origins of the Mind The Diversity of Psychology and Psychological Literacy Psychology as a Profession Current Trends in Psychology Summary Key Terms CHAPTER 2 Psychology as a Science What Is a Science? Scientific Principles The Scientific Method Is Psychology a Science? Goals of Psychology Values and the Application of Psychology Misrepresentation of Psychology How Do Psychologists Conduct Research? State a Hypothesis Choose Participant Pick a Research Method How Do Psychologists Make Sense of Research Results? Correlations: Measures of Relationships Experimental Analyses: Establishing Cause and Effect Th e Qualitative World Using Statistics to Evaluate and Plan Research What Ethical Research Guidelines Do Psychologists Follow? Summary Key Terms CHAPTER 3 Biological and Cognitive Development What is developmental psychology? Understanding How We Develop What Drives Change? Nature versus Nurture Qualitative versus Quantitative Shifts in Development Do Early Experiences Matter? Critical Periods and Sensitive Periods How Is Developmental Psychology Investigated? Before We Are Born In the Beginning: Genetics Infancy Physical Development Cognitive Development Early and Middle Childhood Physical Development Adolescence Physical Development Cognitive Development Alternative Accounts of Cognitive Development Adulthood Physical and Cognitive Development Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 4 Social and Emotional Development Before We Are Born Infancy Attachment theory Parenting Styles Friendship and Peer Relations Childhood Moral Development Theories of Moral Development Eisenberg’s Theory of Prosocial Moral Judgement Gilligan’s Theory of Moral Development Current Directions in Moral Development Adolescence Adulthood and Old Age Social and Emotional Development in Adulthood Social and Emotional Features of Early and Middle Adulthood Social and Emotional Features of Old Age The Third Age/Fourth Age Distinction Atypical Development Autistic Spectrum Disorders Two Useful Concepts for Atypical Development: Equifinality and Multifinality Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 5 Behavioural Neuroscience How Do Scientists Study the Nervous System and the Brain? How Does the Nervous System Work? Neurons and Glial Cells or `Those Who Act and Those Who Serve’ The Action Potential Seven `Lock-and-Key’ Principles of Receptors and Neurotransmitters Communication across the Synapse Neural Networks The Brain’s Structural and Functional Organization The Brainstem The Pons The Cerebellum The Midbrain The Thalamus The Hypothalamus The Pituitary Gland and the Endocrine System The Amygdala The Hippocampus The Striatum and Basal Ganglia The Nucleus Accumbens The Neocortex The Corpus Callosum Neurons and the Communication Systems of the Brain, Nervous System and Body The Integrated Brain Spinal Cord Injuries The Peripheral Nervous System Building the Brain Brain Development Before We Are Born Brain Development across the Lifespan Brain Side and Brain Size Differences in Brain Lateralization Gender Differences Neurological Diseases Transplanting Stem Cells to Treat Neurological Disorders Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 6 Genes, Environment and Evolution The History of Evolutionary Approaches to Psychology Charles Darwin and On the Origin of Species The Modern Synthesis Tinbergen, the Birth of Ethology and the Four `Whys’ of Behaviour Inclusive Fitness Adaptations, and the Demise of Group Selection The 1970s: Robert Trivers, E. O. Wilson and the Dawn of Sociobiology Evolutionary Psychology The Principles Behind Evolutionary Psychology Human Evolution The Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness (EEA) Genetics Main Areas of Research in Evolutionary Psychology Sexual Selection Kin Selection Cooperation and Altruism The Evolution of Cognition The Evolution of Language Cultural Evolution Criticisms and Misunderstandings of Evolutionary Approaches to Human Behaviour Criticism 1: Evolutionary psychology too often believes a behaviour is an adaptation (panadaptationism) Criticism 2: Evolutionary psychology is guilty of biological determinism Criticism 3: Evolutionary psychology tries to explain things too simply (reductionism) Criticism 4: Evolutionary psychology justifies immoral behaviours The Future of Evolutionary Psychology Further Understanding of Genetics Hormones Individual Differences Neuroscience Applied Evolutionary Psychology: Darwinian Medicine and Evolutionary Psychopathology Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 7 Perception and the Senses Introducing Perception: Common Features of the Senses Translating Stimuli: Sensory Transduction The Limits of the Senses: Thresholds Surrounded by Stimuli: Sensory Adaptation Processing Sensory Information The Chemical Senses: Smell and Taste Smell and Taste Smell and Taste: How They Work Smell and Taste as We Grow Sensitivity to Smell and Taste Smell and Taste Disorders The Tactile Senses: Touch, Pressure, Pain, Vibration Tactile Senses Development of the Tactile Senses Pain Thresholds Difficulties with Tactile Senses The Auditory Sense: Hearing From Sound Waves to Sounds Drowning Out the Noise Sounds in Space Hearing and the Brain Hearing and Learning Identifying Pitch Difficulties with Hearing The Visual Sense: Sight Seeing the Light Seeing in Colour How Sight Works Visual Perception from the Top Down Developing Sight Difficulties with Sight Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 8 Consciousness PART 1: THE PHILOSOPHY OF CONSCIOUSNESS Defining Consciousness Is Consciousness `Mysterious’? What’s in the World? Part 1: Material Stuff or Mental Stuff Identity Theory Eliminativism Objections to Identity Theory and Eliminativism The Rise of Functionalism Criticisms of Functionalism Assessing the Materialist Approach What’s in the World? Part 2: Material Stuff and Mental Stuff Dualism Summary of Part 1 PART 2: STUDYING CONSCIOUS STATES When We Are Awake: Conscious Awareness When We Are Awake Alert Consciousness Preconscious and Unconscious States Cognitive Views of the Unconscious Hypnosis Hypnotic Procedures and Effects Why Does Hypnosis Work? Hypnosis in the Brain When We Are Asleep Why Do We Sleep? Rhythms of Sleep When We Sleep Sleep at Different Ages Sleep Deprivation and Sleep Disorders Psychoactive Drugs Depressants Stimulants Hallucinogens Psychoactive Drugs Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 9 Learning What Is Learning? Non-Associative Learning Non-Associative Learning Associative Learning Classical Conditioning How Does Classical Conditioning Work? Examples of Classical Conditioning Classical Conditioning Classical Conditioning and Fears Phobias Classical Conditioning and Taste Aversions Operant Conditioning How Does Operant Conditioning Work? Using Operant Conditioning to Teach New Behaviours Learnt Helplessness Learning and Thinking Observational Learning Observation and Modelling Observational Learning and Violence Factors that Facilitate Learning Timing Context Awareness and Attention Sleep When We Learn Prenatal and Postnatal Learning Learning and Gender Learning Difficulties Dyslexia Dyscalculia Attention Deficit Disorders Issues in Treatment Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 10 Memory What Is Memory? How Do We Encode Information into Memory? Using Automatic and Effortful Processing to Encode Encoding Information into Working Memory: Transferring from Sensory Memory into Working Memory Encoding Information into Long-Term Memory: Transferring Working Memory into Long-Term Memory In What Form Is Information Encoded? How Do We Store Memories? Storage in Working Memory Storage in Long-Term Memory How Do We Retrieve Memories? Priming and Retrieval Context and Retrieval Emotion: A Special Retrieval Cue Why Do We Forget and Misremember? Theories of Forgetting Distorted or Manufactured Memories Memory and the Brain What Is the Anatomy of Memory? What Is the Biochemistry of Memory? Memories in the Young and Old Disorders of Memory Organic Memory Disorders Dissociative Disorders Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 11 Language and Thought Language Language Structure Language Learning How Language Works Language Variation Language and Thought Thinking without Words: Mental Imagery and Spatial Navigation The Influence of Language on Thought Thought Thinking and Effort: Controlled and Automatic Processing Thinking to Solve Problems Thinking to Make Decisions Metacognition Disordered Thought Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 12 Intelligence What Do We Mean by Intelligence? Is Intelligence General or Specific? Current Multifactor Theories of Intelligence Self-Estimated Intelligence Where Are We Today? Additional Types of Intelligence Emotional Intelligence Social Intelligence Wisdom Creativity Personality Characteristics How Do We Measure Intelligence? Intelligence Test Construction and Interpretation History of Intelligence Testing How Well Do Intelligence Tests Predict Performance? Intelligence and Longevity Cultural Bias and Stereotypes in Intelligence Testing Is Human Intelligence Increasing? Is Intelligence Governed by Genetic or Environmental Factors? What Are the Social Implications of the Nature/Nurture Debate? The Bell Curve Controversy Genetic Influences on Intelligence Environmental Influences on Intelligence Group Differences in IQ Scores Men and Women Are Different (Cognitive Differences between the Sexes) Does Environmental Enrichment Make a Difference? The Brain and Intelligence Brain Size, Number of Neurons and Intelligence Brain Speed and Intelligence Brain Activity and Intelligence Cortical Thickness and Intelligence Extremes in Intelligence Intellectual Disability Giftedness Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 13 Motivation Theories of Motivation Instinct Theory Drive-Reduction Theory Arousal Theory Incentive Theory Multiple Motivations: Hierarchy of Needs Biological Motivations: Hunger Hunger Signals Eating Behaviour Eating Issues Biological Motivations: Sex Sex: Psychological and Social Factors Sex: What Happens in the Body and Brain Gender Identity Difficulties with Sex Psychological Motivations: Affiliation and Achievement Affiliation Achievement Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 14 Emotion What Is Emotion? Components of Emotion Measurement of Emotions Functions of Emotions Where Do Emotions Come From? Theories of Emotion Emotional Development Emotion in the Brain The Range of Emotional Experiences Experiencing Emotion Disorders of Emotion What About Positive Emotions? Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 15 Personality The Psychodynamic Perspective The Structure of Personality Freud’s Psychosexual Stages Anxiety and Defence Mechanisms Evaluating Freud’s Theories Other Psychodynamic Theories The Humanistic Perspective Abraham Maslow Carl Rogers Evaluating Humanistic Theories The Trait Perspective Gordon Allport Hans Eysenck and Factor Analysis The Five-Factor Model Evaluating Trait Theories The Situationist and Interactionist Perspectives The Situationist View The Interactionist Perspective Biological Foundations of Personality How Much Do Genetic Factors Contribute to Personality? Personality and Biological Systems Personality and Group Differences Gender Differences Differences among Cultural Groups Culture, Socioeconomic Environment and Personality Personality Disorders Personality Assessment Personality Inventories Projective Tests Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 16 Social Cognition, Social Relations and Social Functioning Social Cognition: Attitudes Attitudes How Do Attitudes Change? Do Attitudes Influence Behaviour? Are People Honest about Their Attitudes? Stereotypes and Prejudice Attitudes and the Power of Persuasion Social Cognition: Attributions Dispositional and Situational Attributions The Actor-Observer Effect Exceptions to the Rule Social Relations Helping Behaviour Aggression Interpersonal Attraction Social Functioning Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 17 Social Forces, Group Processes and Language Social Forces Norms and Social Roles Obedience Intragroup Processes Group Dynamics Majority Influence in Groups Minority Influence in Groups Intergroup Relations Realistic Group Conflict Theory Social Identity Theory Social Identities in Action Crowds Language and Social Groups Social Representations Theory Discursive Psychology Social Psychology around Us Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 18 Stress, Coping and Health What Is Stress? Stress and Stressors Ways of Experiencing Stress Kinds of Stressors Responding to and Coping with Stress Physiological Responses to Stress Emotional Responses to Stress Cognitive Responses to Stress Individual Responses to Stress Coping with Stress Stress and Health Coronary Heart Disease Life Change and Illness Stress and the Immune System The Benefits of Stress Well-Being and Happiness: The Opposite of Stress Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 19 Psychological Disorders Defining, Classifying and Diagnosing Psychological Disorders Defining Psychological Disorders Classifying and Diagnosing Psychological Disorders Assessing Individuals for Psychological Disorders Models of Psychological Disorder The Neuroscience Model The Cognitive-Behavioural Model The Humanistic and Existential Models The Sociocultural Model The Developmental Psychopathology Model The Psychodynamic Model Mood Disorders Major Depressive Disorder Bipolar Disorders Anxiety Disorders Generalized Anxiety Disorder Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia) Phobias Panic Disorder Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Schizophrenia Positive Symptoms of Schizophrenia Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia Psychomotor Symptoms How Do Neuroscientists Explain Schizophrenia? Other Psychological Disorders Somatoform Disorders Dissociative Disorders Personality Disorders Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms CHAPTER 20 Treatment of Psychological Disorders Treatment in the Modern Context Entering and Receiving Treatment Conducting Treatment Biological Treatments Drug Therapy Electroconvulsive Therapy Psychosurgery Biological Treatments in Perspective Behavioural Therapies Classical Conditioning Techniques Operant Conditioning Techniques Modelling Techniques Behavioural Therapies in Perspective Cognitive-Behavioural Therapies Ellis’s Rational-Emotive Behavioural Therapy Beck’s Cognitive Therapy Second-Wave Cognitive-Behavioural Therapies Cognitive-Behavioural Therapies in Perspective Non-Empirical Therapies Humanistic and Existential Therapies Psychodynamic Approaches Techniques of Psychodynamic Analysis Short-Term Psychoanalysis Relational Psychoanalysis Psychodynamic Approaches in Perspective Formats of Therapy Group Therapy Family Therapy Couple Therapy Community Treatment Does Therapy Work? Some Final Thoughts about the Field of Psychology Summary TYING IT TOGETHER Key Terms Glossary References Name Index Subject Index