Weiner introduces -- and offers his own motivation for producing - - this most impressive work with the following: There are two distinct approaches to the study of motivation. One stratagem is a product of academic, experimental procedures, while the second is an outgrowth of clinical, non-experimental methods. Each of the approaches has unique advantages and disadvantages. But all investigators in this field are guided by a single basic question, namely, "Why do organisms think and behave as they do?" To help answer that basic question, Human Motivation presents an entire range of motivation studies -- from psychoanalytic, social learning and humanistic theory; to social facilitation, arousal, emotions, personal responsibility, and the irrationality of attributions; through chapterand verse of Hullian and Lewinian theory.

Written by Dr Paul Seager, a social psychology specialist who teaches at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston, Social Psychology: A Complete Introduction is designed to give you everything you need to succeed, all in one place. It covers key areas that students are expected to be confident in, outlining the basics in clear jargon-free English, and then provides added-value features like summaries of key studies, lists of questions to test your understanding of the concepts covered, and a 'Food for thought' section at the end of each chapter which challenges you to put the academic theories to practical use. The book uses a structure that mirrors many university courses on social psychology - starting off by explaining what social psychology is and how it is researched, before exploring a wide variety of the fascinating areas social psychologists have looked at in both classic and lesser-known studies. Areas covered include: the self; attributions; social cognition; interpersonal attraction; social influence; attitudes and persuasion; prosocial behaviour; aggression; groups; leadership; group decision making; intergroup behaviour; and prejudice. A final chapter looks at how social psychology can, and has been, applied in the real world to make a difference. 'Teach Yourself' titles employ the 'Breakthrough method', which is designed specifically to overcome problems that students face. - Problem: "I find it difficult to remember what I've read."; Solution: this book includes end-of-chapter summaries and questions to test your understanding. - Problem: "Most books mention important other sources, but I can never find them in time."; Solution: this book includes fully referenced quotes ready to use in your essay or exam, and each chapter lists further suggested readings for each topic. - Problem: "Lots of introductory books turn out to cover totally different topics than my course."; Solution: this book is written by a current university lecturer who understands what students are expected to know.

On Consensus: A Framework for Adaptive Action is a tool in the toolbox of anyone looking to improve decision-making processes in general and to build consensus in particular. The book provides not only a step-by-step approach to building consensus but it also provides a framework for thinking about how to think about consensus. All institutions are built and sustained through some sort of consensus. The degree to which the consensus that underwrites institutions is conscious determines the future viability of collective choices and actions. Democracy is in need of better tools and thinking on consensus. The book provides a leverage for those involved in high stakes decision-making, especially where there is a convergence of governance, development and stewardship. It explores what is required to arrive at a conscious consensus and to build a path towards more adaptive action. Decision-framing... a profound meeting of minds.

These proceedings are organized into six parts, covering conceptual and methodological issues; consequences of acculturation; cognitive processes; values; social psychology; and personality, developmental psychology and health psychology.

Many of our thoughts and decisions occur without us being conscious of them taking place; connectionism attempts to reveal the internal hidden dynamics that drive the thoughts and actions of both individuals and groups. Connectionist modeling is a radically innovative approach to theorising in psychology, and more recently in the field of social psychology. The connectionist perspective interprets human cognition as a dynamic and adaptive system that learns from its own direct experiences or through indirect communication from others. Social Connectionism offers an overview of the most recent theoretical developments of connectionist models in social psychology. The volume is divided into four sections, beginning with an introduction and overview of social connectionism. This is followed by chapters on causal attribution, person and group impression formation, and attitudes. Each chapter is followed by simulation exercises that can be carried out using the FIT simulation program; these guided exercises allow the reader to reproduce published results. Social Connectionism will be invaluable to graduate students and researchers primarily in the field of social psychology, but also in cognitive psychology and connectionist modeling.

Why are first impressions so powerful? How do we “know” what others are like when we cannot read their minds? How can scientists measure biases that people do not want to admit--or do not know they have? This engaging text delves into social cognition by exploring major questions in the field through an everyday lens. Students are introduced to core concepts and processes pertaining to how people come to know themselves and understand the behavior of others. Classic and contemporary findings and experimental methods are explained. The text connects the research to pressing contemporary problems--the roots of political polarization, why even rational people fall prey to misinformation, and the best ways to reduce prejudice. Boxed definitions of key terms are included throughout.

Containing cutting-edge research the Handbook of Research on Creativity will strongly appeal to academics and advanced students in cultural studies, creative industries, art history and theory, experimental music and performance studies, digital and ne

Leading scholars in the fields of philosophy and the sciences of the mind have contributed to this newest volume in the prestigious Pittsburgh-Konstanz series. Among the problem areas discussed are folk psychology, meanings as conceptual structures, functional and qualitative properties of colors, the role of conscious mental states, representation and mental content, the impact of connectionism on the philosophy of the mind, and supervenience, emergence, and realization. Most of the essays are followed by commentaries that reflect ongoing debates in the philosophy of the mind and often develop a counterpoint to the claims of the essayists.

Although neural network models have had a dramatic impact on the cognitive and brain sciences, social psychology has remained largely unaffected by this intellectual explosion. The first to apply neural network models to social phenomena, this book includes chapters by nearly all of the individuals currently working in this area. Bringing these various approaches together in one place, it allows readers to appreciate the breadth of these approaches, as well as the theoretical commonality of many of these models. The contributors address a number of central issues in social psychology and show how these kinds of models provide insight into many classic issues. Many chapters hint that this approach provides the seeds of a theoretical integration that the field has lacked. Each chapter discusses an explicit connectionist model of a central problem in social psychology. Since many of the contributors either use a standard architecture or provide a computer program, interested readers, with a little work, should be able to implement their own variations of models. Chapters are devoted to the following topics and models: * the learning and application of social categories and stereotypes; * causal reasoning, social explanation, and person perception; * personality and social behavior; * classic dissonance phenomena; and * belief change and the coherence of large scale belief systems.