5 Psychology Books You Must Check Out
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“Reading is a means of thinking with another’s mind. It forces you to stretch your own.” - Charles Scribner Jr.
I believe that reading a book, regardless of the genre, can transport and transform the reader. As a reader, I am constantly looking for books to add to my reading list that can broaden my knowledge of psychology. I routinely add new books to this reading list that I plan to read in the near future.
This time around I wanted to share with you 5 psychology books I have read and appreciated. I am also including 5 books that I have found interesting that are currently on my list. Within each category, the books are listed in no particular order.
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Psychology Books I Have Read
a. The Grieving Brain: The Surprising Science of How We Learn from Love and Loss
Author: Mary-Frances O'Connor, PhD
We place a great deal of importance on relationships and connections. Losing them can therefore have a significant effect on our brains. Dr O’Connor, a neuroscientist, specializes in grief research. In this book, she outlines the extensive research that has been conducted on loss, love and learning.
Dr O’ Connor delves deeply into the feeling we experience after losing someone (namely anger, guilt sadness and yearning); as well as the phases of grief; ruminating thoughts and feeling like you lost a piece of yourself among other things.
I was drawn to this book because I wanted to learn more about how people cope with grief and its repercussions. The volume of research on the subject intrigued me, and I frequently found myself reading the original study in addition to the book. It taught me that grieving is a process of learning to live in the world without a loved one. If you too are interested in learning about topics related to grief, bereavement and loss, you should definitely check this book out.
b. Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces that Shape Our Decisions
Author: Dan Ariely
Do you believe you are a rational person? Before reading this book, I did too. Ariely explores the realm of cognitive biases among other factors that impact our decision-making.
As a psychologist and behaviour economist, he has great insight into consumer behaviour. With the help of this book, he provides several provides examples of several everyday instances where our decision-making is quite irrational. By irrationality, he does not imply random behaviour, instead, he suggests it is quite predictable. Predictable enough for someone (marketers) to profit out of it.
Ariely dives deep into topics including why we overvalue things we own, how subscription packages are priced and how freebies are not actually free. As someone who is interested in consumer behaviour, I was really surprised to see that, in the end, our buying habits are all fairly similar. The book is an incredible read and you won’t want to put it down. When you're done, I have a good feeling that you'll start to doubt your sense of reason, just like I did.
c. The Man Who Couldn’t Stop: OCD and the True Story of a Life Lost In Thought
Author: David Adam
As a part of a university assignment, I came across this book, and I have to say that it was a fantastic read. The term OCD short for obsessive-compulsive disorder is frequently used in popular culture without a full grasp of the condition, like many other mental health illnesses.
Adam, a journalist by profession, provides a window into his life, his intrusive thoughts and what it is like to live with OCD for twenty years in his memoir. He also shares anecdotes of other individuals who have been diagnosed with OCD along with several research findings on the subject.
Adam's experiences are extremely moving, and they have given me a completely new understanding of the disorder. What I learned from this book is that while some of us are able to ignore most of our intrusive thoughts, for those of us who can't, it may make life difficult. I am certain that after reading the book, you won’t minimise the term OCD.
d. The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry
Author: Jon Ronson
Although it may be challenging, I will attempt to summarise this book. Ronson guides us through his examination of the mental health industry. Through the book, he interacts with individuals who are diagnosed with psychopathy along with therapists who make similar diagnoses.
Ronson asserts that there is a lot of room for interpretation when it comes to mental health diagnosis especially when it comes to psychopathy. He goes one step further and says that we witness psychopaths all around us, in all facets of society.
I did not think this book was very informative. Additionally, this book is criticised for being clickbaity and for lacking evidence to support the author's claims. However, Ronson does bring up some significant points regarding the prevention of blunders, such as locking up non-threatening individuals while letting the hazardous ones go free. My only takeaway from this book is the need for empirical research in that area. If any of the aforementioned topics interest you, give this book a try.
e. The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil
Author: Philip Zimbardo
Saving the best for last! The Lucifer effect is a detailed account of the infamous Stanford Prison Experiment conducted in the year 1971. For those who are unaware, the underlying hypothesis of this research was to observe whether people who believe themselves to be upstanding and honourable members of society could transform into monsters in response to situational and environmental changes. I have been unable to put this one down since I started reading it, and I am currently halfway through.
If you are under the belief that you would be the same person regardless of the situation, Zimbardo is determined to change your mind. In reality, the study that this book is based on had to be shut down owing to the inhumane behaviour exhibited by some participants. The book chronicles this and every minute of the 6-day experiment in great detail. I am going to stop gushing right here.
In my opinion, the Lucifer Effect is a reflection of how we might transform into somebody we don't recognize if certain environmental conditions are modified. If you want to learn more about our nature and our inherent abilities, this book is for you.
Psychology Books on My Reading List
Now let us have a look at the books that are on my reading list.
a. Thinking Fast and Slow
Author: Daniel Kahneman
In the past few years, I have encountered Kahneman's work several times, and I have been attempting to persuade myself to read his book this time.
Its central premise is that every decision we make involves the usage of two different systems. One does it impulsively and automatically while the other does it slowly and consciously. But these systems don't operate synchronously; at any given time, only one of them is in command. As a result, we are more prone to make mistakes and poor decisions. The book also discusses what to do in these circumstances.
Furthermore, Kahneman received the Nobel Prize in Economics for his research on judgement and decision-making, which also adds to the book's allure.
b. The Invisible Gorilla: And Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us
Authors: Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simon
I was aware of the authors' research on selective attention, but it wasn’t until recently that I learned they had also written a book on the subject. Therefore, adding it to my list made sense.
According to the authors, reading this book will cause us to doubt our abilities. Through the use of research findings, they show how we tend to overlook a lot of information that is immediately around us. They also look at how inaccurate our gut feelings and intuitions are. I recommend you to watch the video given below if you are interested in their work.
c. The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat: And Other Clinical Tales
Author: Dr Oliver Sacks
This book was added to my list because of its title. It is pretty captivating, and I find myself wanting to know what it is all about.
The book presents four case studies based on Dr Sacks's patients. Each case revolves around an individual who has been diagnosed with a neurological disorder. I made an effort to avoid spoiling the case studies for myself but based on the reviews I came across, Dr Sacks adopts a sympathetic viewpoint to describe the client’s struggle against enormous difficulties.
d. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Author: Robert Cialdini, PhD
Dr Cialdini is well known for his research on influence and persuasion. This book is the outcome of his extensive empirical research in this area over the years. According to the reviews I examined, this book investigates the reasons why we say "yes."
Dr Cialdini identifies six ways in which we are influenced or can persuade others. Depending on the user's goal, they may be utilised positively or negatively. But he wants the readers to be aware of the different persuasive techniques that salespeople and marketers use on us so that we won't fall for them in the future. I can't wait to get my hands on it because it seems so fascinating.
e. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
Author: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced as Me high? Cheeks send me high!)
Csikszentmihalyi is a renowned psychologist and is especially known for his work on the concept of flow. When it comes to doing a task, you must have used or heard the expression “in the zone”, this is how we commonly refer to the state of flow. In this book, he introduces flow as the moments when you are working on a task that is difficult yet doable. This book is on my list since it extensively discusses both that and the idea of happiness and pleasure.
Did you like our picks? Let us know in the comments section. Also, don’t forget to mention any books that you think we should check out below.
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