The Seven Sins of Memory

Author: Daniel L. Schacter
Publisher: HMH
ISBN: 0547347456
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
A New York Times Notable Book: A psychologist’s “gripping and thought-provoking” look at how and why our brains sometimes fail us (Steven Pinker, author of How the Mind Works). In this intriguing study, Harvard psychologist Daniel L. Schacter explores the memory miscues that occur in everyday life, placing them into seven categories: absent-mindedness, transience, blocking, misattribution, suggestibility, bias, and persistence. Illustrating these concepts with vivid examples—case studies, literary excerpts, experimental evidence, and accounts of highly visible news events such as the O. J. Simpson verdict, Bill Clinton’s grand jury testimony, and the search for the Oklahoma City bomber—he also delves into striking new scientific research, giving us a glimpse of the fascinating neurology of memory and offering “insight into common malfunctions of the mind” (USA Today). “Though memory failure can amount to little more than a mild annoyance, the consequences of misattribution in eyewitness testimony can be devastating, as can the consequences of suggestibility among pre-school children and among adults with ‘false memory syndrome’ . . . Drawing upon recent neuroimaging research that allows a glimpse of the brain as it learns and remembers, Schacter guides his readers on a fascinating journey of the human mind.” —Library Journal “Clear, entertaining and provocative . . . Encourages a new appreciation of the complexity and fragility of memory.” —The Seattle Times “Should be required reading for police, lawyers, psychologists, and anyone else who wants to understand how memory can go terribly wrong.” —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution “A fascinating journey through paths of memory, its open avenues and blind alleys . . . Lucid, engaging, and enjoyable.” —Jerome Groopman, MD “Compelling in its science and its probing examination of everyday life, The Seven Sins of Memory is also a delightful book, lively and clear.” —Chicago Tribune Winner of the William James Book Award

The Memory Illusion

Author: Dr Julia Shaw
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 1473535174
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 304

Book Description
THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER 'Truly fascinating.' Steve Wright, BBC Radio 2 - Have you ever forgotten the name of someone you’ve met dozens of times? - Or discovered that your memory of an important event was completely different from everyone else’s? - Or vividly recalled being in a particular place at a particular time, only to discover later that you couldn’t possibly have been? We rely on our memories every day of our lives. They make us who we are. And yet the truth is, they are far from being the accurate record of the past we like to think they are. In The Memory Illusion, forensic psychologist and memory expert Dr Julia Shaw draws on the latest research to show why our memories so often play tricks on us – and how, if we understand their fallibility, we can actually improve their accuracy. The result is an exploration of our minds that both fascinating and unnerving, and that will make you question how much you can ever truly know about yourself. Think you have a good memory? Think again. 'A spryly paced, fun, sometimes frightening exploration of how we remember – and why everyone remembers things that never truly happened.' Pacific Standard

Making Monsters

Author: Richard Ofshe
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 9780520205833
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 382

Book Description
In the last decade, reports of incest have exploded into the national consciousness. Magazines, talk shows, and mass market paperbacks have taken on the subject as many Americans, primarily women, have come forward with graphic memories of childhood abuse. Making Monsters examines the methods of therapists who treat patients for depression by working to draw out memories or, with the use of hypnosis, to encourage fantasies of childhood abuse the patients are told they have repressed. Since this therapy may leave the patient more depressed and alienated than before, questions are appropriately raised here about the ethics and efficacy of such treatment. In the last decade, reports of incest have exploded into the national consciousness. Magazines, talk shows, and mass market paperbacks have taken on the subject as many Americans, primarily women, have come forward with graphic memories of childhood abuse. Making Monsters examines the methods of therapists who treat patients for depression by working to draw out memories or, with the use of hypnosis, to encourage fantasies of childhood abuse the patients are told they have repressed. Since this therapy may leave the patient more depressed and alienated than before, questions are appropriately raised here about the ethics and efficacy of such treatment.

Searching For Memory

Author: Daniel L Schacter
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 0786724293
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 419

Book Description
Memory. There may be nothing more important to human beings than our ability to enshrine experience and recall it. While philosophers and poets have elevated memory to an almost mystical level, psychologists have struggled to demystify it. Now, according to Daniel Schacter, one of the most distinguished memory researchers, the mysteries of memory are finally yielding to dramatic, even revolutionary, scientific breakthroughs. Schacter explains how and why it may change our understanding of everything from false memory to Alzheimer's disease, from recovered memory to amnesia with fascinating firsthand accounts of patients with striking -- and sometimes bizarre -- amnesias resulting from brain injury or psychological trauma.

Memory

Author: Alan Baddeley
Publisher: Psychology Press
ISBN: 1317610431
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 547

Book Description
This best-selling textbook presents a comprehensive and accessible overview of the study of memory. Written by three of the world’s leading researchers in the field, it contains everything the student needs to know about the scientific approach to memory and its applications. Each chapter of the book is written by one of the three authors, an approach which takes full advantage of their individual expertise and style, creating a more personal and accessible text. This enhances students’ enjoyment of the book, allowing them to share the authors’ own fascination with human memory. The book also draws on a wealth of real-world examples throughout, showing students exactly how they can relate science to their everyday experiences of memory. Key features of this edition: Thoroughly revised throughout to include the latest research and updated coverage of key ideas and models A brand new chapter on Memory and the Brain, designed to give students a solid understanding of methods being used to study the relationship between memory and the brain, as well as the neurobiological basis of memory Additional pedagogical features to help students engage with the material, including many ‘try this’ demonstrations, points for discussion, and bullet-pointed chapter summaries The book is supported by a companion website featuring extensive online resources for students and lecturers.

The Seven Sins of Memory Revised Edition

Author: Daniel L. Schacter
Publisher: Mariner Books
ISBN: 9780358325680
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Book Description
By one of the world's foremost psychologists, a groundbreaking and award-winning study updated for the 20th anniversary with new research that delves into the complex behavior of memory

Having Everything

Author: John L'Heureux
Publisher: Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
ISBN: 1555846793
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 259

Book Description
A Harvard Dean with a perfect life discovers a dark side he never knew he had—or wanted—in this “sharp, moving, poignant” novel (The Washington Post Book World). Philip Tate is a man who has everything—youthful looks, a beautiful wife and loving family, and a distinguished deanship at Harvard. But a night-time drive will lead Philip to jeopardize everything in a moment’s flirtation with the forbidden. For on that drive he will meet the Kizers: beautiful, troubled Dixie and brilliant, kinky Hal. And by stepping into the Kizers’ house and into the midst of their sad marriage, Philip sets in motion the near ruin—and perhaps the salvation—of his entire world . . . In a “heavily ironic chronicle of professional success, inward misery, and middle-aged sexual guilt,” John L’ Heureux reminds us that sometimes—in both marriage and life—having everything is not enough (Publishers Weekly).

Seven Sins for a Life Worth Living

Author: Roger Housden
Publisher: Harmony
ISBN: 0307346021
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 210

Book Description
“Conventional wisdom,” says Roger Housden, “tells us that nobody goes to heaven for having a good time.” Seven Sins for a Life Worth Living, then, is a refreshing, liberating, and decidedly welcome dose of unconventional wisdom that awakens us to the simple delights and transformative joys of the world around us. With elegance, gentle humor, and remarkable openness, Housden takes us along as he recalls his personal journey toward an appreciation of what he calls the Seven Pleasures: The Pleasure of All Five Senses, The Pleasure of Being Foolish,The Pleasure of Not Knowing, The Pleasure of Not Being Perfect, The Pleasure of Doing Nothing Useful, The Pleasure of Being Ordinary, and The Pleasure of Coming Home. Housden writes, for instance, of submitting to the ultimate folly of falling in love, of celebrating our imperfections, of coming to understand the virtues of the Slow Food movement while enjoying an all-afternoon lunch in a small French village, and of discovering in a Saharan cave that, however extraordinary our surroundings, “we are human, a glorious nothing much to speak of”—and learning to be at peace with the notion. Such pleasures may be suspect in today’s achievement-driven, tightly scheduled, relent-lessly self-improving, conspicuously consumptive culture, but surely the greater sin lies in letting them slip away moment by precious moment. “The purpose of this book,” says Housden, “is to inspire you to lighten up and fall in love with the world and all that is in it.” Reading it is a pleasure indeed. “When you die,God and the angels will hold you accountablefor all the pleasures you were allowed in life that you denied yourself.” Roger Housden, author of the bestselling Ten Poems series, presents a joyously affirmative, warmly personal, and spiritually illuminating meditation on the virtues of opening ourselves up to pleasures like being foolish, not being perfect, and doing nothing useful, the pleasure of not knowing, and even (would you believe it?) the pleasure of being ordinary.

Cognitive Psychology

Author: Sandie Taylor
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000429717
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 307

Book Description
Cognitive Psychology: The Basics provides a compact introduction to the core topics in the field, discussing the science behind the everyday cognitive phenomena experienced by us all. The book considers laboratory and applied theory and research alongside technological developments to demonstrate how our understanding of the brain’s role in cognition is improving all the time. Alongside coverage of traditional topics in the field, including attention and perception; learning and memory; thinking, problem-solving and decision-making; and language, the book also discusses developments in interrelated areas, such as neuroscience and computational cognitive science. New perspectives, including the contribution of evolutionary psychology to our understanding of cognition are also considered before a thoughtful discussion of future research directions. Using real-world examples throughout, the authors explain in an accessible and student-friendly manner the role our human cognition plays in all aspects of our lives. It is an essential introductory text suitable for all students of Cognitive Psychology and related disciplines. It will also be an ideal read for any reader interested in the role of the brain in human behavior.

The Seven Deadly Sins of Psychology

Author: Chris Chambers
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691192278
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 296

Book Description
Why psychology is in peril as a scientific discipline—and how to save it Psychological science has made extraordinary discoveries about the human mind, but can we trust everything its practitioners are telling us? In recent years, it has become increasingly apparent that a lot of research in psychology is based on weak evidence, questionable practices, and sometimes even fraud. The Seven Deadly Sins of Psychology diagnoses the ills besetting the discipline today and proposes sensible, practical solutions to ensure that it remains a legitimate and reliable science in the years ahead. In this unflinchingly candid manifesto, Chris Chambers shows how practitioners are vulnerable to powerful biases that undercut the scientific method, how they routinely torture data until it produces outcomes that can be published in prestigious journals, and how studies are much less reliable than advertised. Left unchecked, these and other problems threaten the very future of psychology as a science—but help is here.