Author: Michael X. Cohen
Publisher: Frontiers E-books
ISBN: 2889190153
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 160
Book Description
The human brain is arguably the most complex system we know of. Over the past few decades, scientists have developed several methods and theories for studying the functional organization of the brain, and how cognitive/perceptual/emotional processes might arise from the brain's electro-chemical-computational dynamics. These methods facilitated and inspired large literatures on brain-behavior links, and yet there remains a seemingly endless chasm between our simple impoverished models and the unfathomable complexity of the human brain. The purpose of this Research Topic is to ask the question: Are we thinking about thinking about the brain in the right way? In most scientific publications, researchers describe a broad and established theoretical framework and briefly describe new experimental results consistent with that framework. Here, we encourage authors to express ideas that might be radical, controversial, or different from established theories or methodological approaches. Supportive data are highly encouraged. The aim is to spark discussions about the validity and usefulness of current methodological/theoretical approaches in human cognitive neuroscience, with the goal of inspiring new approaches and ways of thinking. Neuroscience is a massive field with myriad methodological and theoretical approaches; we focus this Research Topic on approaches most commonly used in human neuroscience.
Approaches and Assumptions in Human Neuroscience
Author: Michael X. Cohen
Publisher: Frontiers E-books
ISBN: 2889190153
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 160
Book Description
The human brain is arguably the most complex system we know of. Over the past few decades, scientists have developed several methods and theories for studying the functional organization of the brain, and how cognitive/perceptual/emotional processes might arise from the brain's electro-chemical-computational dynamics. These methods facilitated and inspired large literatures on brain-behavior links, and yet there remains a seemingly endless chasm between our simple impoverished models and the unfathomable complexity of the human brain. The purpose of this Research Topic is to ask the question: Are we thinking about thinking about the brain in the right way? In most scientific publications, researchers describe a broad and established theoretical framework and briefly describe new experimental results consistent with that framework. Here, we encourage authors to express ideas that might be radical, controversial, or different from established theories or methodological approaches. Supportive data are highly encouraged. The aim is to spark discussions about the validity and usefulness of current methodological/theoretical approaches in human cognitive neuroscience, with the goal of inspiring new approaches and ways of thinking. Neuroscience is a massive field with myriad methodological and theoretical approaches; we focus this Research Topic on approaches most commonly used in human neuroscience.
Publisher: Frontiers E-books
ISBN: 2889190153
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 160
Book Description
The human brain is arguably the most complex system we know of. Over the past few decades, scientists have developed several methods and theories for studying the functional organization of the brain, and how cognitive/perceptual/emotional processes might arise from the brain's electro-chemical-computational dynamics. These methods facilitated and inspired large literatures on brain-behavior links, and yet there remains a seemingly endless chasm between our simple impoverished models and the unfathomable complexity of the human brain. The purpose of this Research Topic is to ask the question: Are we thinking about thinking about the brain in the right way? In most scientific publications, researchers describe a broad and established theoretical framework and briefly describe new experimental results consistent with that framework. Here, we encourage authors to express ideas that might be radical, controversial, or different from established theories or methodological approaches. Supportive data are highly encouraged. The aim is to spark discussions about the validity and usefulness of current methodological/theoretical approaches in human cognitive neuroscience, with the goal of inspiring new approaches and ways of thinking. Neuroscience is a massive field with myriad methodological and theoretical approaches; we focus this Research Topic on approaches most commonly used in human neuroscience.
Computational Models of Brain and Behavior
Author: Ahmed A. Moustafa
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119159075
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 588
Book Description
A comprehensive Introduction to the world of brain and behavior computational models This book provides a broad collection of articles covering different aspects of computational modeling efforts in psychology and neuroscience. Specifically, it discusses models that span different brain regions (hippocampus, amygdala, basal ganglia, visual cortex), different species (humans, rats, fruit flies), and different modeling methods (neural network, Bayesian, reinforcement learning, data fitting, and Hodgkin-Huxley models, among others). Computational Models of Brain and Behavior is divided into four sections: (a) Models of brain disorders; (b) Neural models of behavioral processes; (c) Models of neural processes, brain regions and neurotransmitters, and (d) Neural modeling approaches. It provides in-depth coverage of models of psychiatric disorders, including depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia, and dyslexia; models of neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and epilepsy; early sensory and perceptual processes; models of olfaction; higher/systems level models and low-level models; Pavlovian and instrumental conditioning; linking information theory to neurobiology; and more. Covers computational approximations to intellectual disability in down syndrome Discusses computational models of pharmacological and immunological treatment in Alzheimer's disease Examines neural circuit models of serotonergic system (from microcircuits to cognition) Educates on information theory, memory, prediction, and timing in associative learning Computational Models of Brain and Behavior is written for advanced undergraduate, Master's and PhD-level students—as well as researchers involved in computational neuroscience modeling research.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119159075
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 588
Book Description
A comprehensive Introduction to the world of brain and behavior computational models This book provides a broad collection of articles covering different aspects of computational modeling efforts in psychology and neuroscience. Specifically, it discusses models that span different brain regions (hippocampus, amygdala, basal ganglia, visual cortex), different species (humans, rats, fruit flies), and different modeling methods (neural network, Bayesian, reinforcement learning, data fitting, and Hodgkin-Huxley models, among others). Computational Models of Brain and Behavior is divided into four sections: (a) Models of brain disorders; (b) Neural models of behavioral processes; (c) Models of neural processes, brain regions and neurotransmitters, and (d) Neural modeling approaches. It provides in-depth coverage of models of psychiatric disorders, including depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia, and dyslexia; models of neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and epilepsy; early sensory and perceptual processes; models of olfaction; higher/systems level models and low-level models; Pavlovian and instrumental conditioning; linking information theory to neurobiology; and more. Covers computational approximations to intellectual disability in down syndrome Discusses computational models of pharmacological and immunological treatment in Alzheimer's disease Examines neural circuit models of serotonergic system (from microcircuits to cognition) Educates on information theory, memory, prediction, and timing in associative learning Computational Models of Brain and Behavior is written for advanced undergraduate, Master's and PhD-level students—as well as researchers involved in computational neuroscience modeling research.
Active Inference
Author: Thomas Parr
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262362287
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 313
Book Description
The first comprehensive treatment of active inference, an integrative perspective on brain, cognition, and behavior used across multiple disciplines. Active inference is a way of understanding sentient behavior—a theory that characterizes perception, planning, and action in terms of probabilistic inference. Developed by theoretical neuroscientist Karl Friston over years of groundbreaking research, active inference provides an integrated perspective on brain, cognition, and behavior that is increasingly used across multiple disciplines including neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy. Active inference puts the action into perception. This book offers the first comprehensive treatment of active inference, covering theory, applications, and cognitive domains. Active inference is a “first principles” approach to understanding behavior and the brain, framed in terms of a single imperative to minimize free energy. The book emphasizes the implications of the free energy principle for understanding how the brain works. It first introduces active inference both conceptually and formally, contextualizing it within current theories of cognition. It then provides specific examples of computational models that use active inference to explain such cognitive phenomena as perception, attention, memory, and planning.
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262362287
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 313
Book Description
The first comprehensive treatment of active inference, an integrative perspective on brain, cognition, and behavior used across multiple disciplines. Active inference is a way of understanding sentient behavior—a theory that characterizes perception, planning, and action in terms of probabilistic inference. Developed by theoretical neuroscientist Karl Friston over years of groundbreaking research, active inference provides an integrated perspective on brain, cognition, and behavior that is increasingly used across multiple disciplines including neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy. Active inference puts the action into perception. This book offers the first comprehensive treatment of active inference, covering theory, applications, and cognitive domains. Active inference is a “first principles” approach to understanding behavior and the brain, framed in terms of a single imperative to minimize free energy. The book emphasizes the implications of the free energy principle for understanding how the brain works. It first introduces active inference both conceptually and formally, contextualizing it within current theories of cognition. It then provides specific examples of computational models that use active inference to explain such cognitive phenomena as perception, attention, memory, and planning.
Cultural Neuroscience: Cultural Influences on Brain Function
Author: Juan Y. Chiao
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 0080952216
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 328
Book Description
This volume presents recent empirical advances using neuroscience techniques to investigate how culture influences neural processes underlying a wide range of human abilities, from perception and scene processing to memory and social cognition. It also highlights the theoretical and methodological issues with conducting cultural neuroscience research. Section I provides diverse theoretical perspectives on how culture and biology interact are represented. Sections II –VI is to demonstrate how cultural values, beliefs, practices and experience affect neural systems underlying a wide range of human behavior from perception and cognition to emotion, social cognition and decision-making. The final section presents arguments for integrating the study of culture and the human brain by providing an explicit articulation of how the study of culture can inform the study of the brain and vice versa.
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 0080952216
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 328
Book Description
This volume presents recent empirical advances using neuroscience techniques to investigate how culture influences neural processes underlying a wide range of human abilities, from perception and scene processing to memory and social cognition. It also highlights the theoretical and methodological issues with conducting cultural neuroscience research. Section I provides diverse theoretical perspectives on how culture and biology interact are represented. Sections II –VI is to demonstrate how cultural values, beliefs, practices and experience affect neural systems underlying a wide range of human behavior from perception and cognition to emotion, social cognition and decision-making. The final section presents arguments for integrating the study of culture and the human brain by providing an explicit articulation of how the study of culture can inform the study of the brain and vice versa.
Towards a neuroscience of social interaction
Author: Ulrich Pfeiffer
Publisher: Frontiers E-books
ISBN: 2889191044
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 587
Book Description
The burgeoning field of social neuroscience has begun to illuminate the complex biological bases of human social cognitive abilities. However, in spite of being based on the premise of investigating the neural bases of interacting minds, the majority of studies have focused on studying brains in isolation using paradigms that investigate offline social cognition, i.e. social cognition from a detached observer's point of view, asking study participants to read out the mental states of others without being engaged in interaction with them. Consequently, the neural correlates of real-time social interaction have remained elusive and may —paradoxically— represent the 'dark matter' of social neuroscience. More recently, a growing number of researchers have begun to study online social cognition, i.e. social cognition from a participant's point of view, based on the assumption that there is something fundamentally different when we are actively engaged with others in real-time social interaction as compared to when we merely observe them. Whereas, for offline social cognition, interaction and feedback are merely a way of gathering data about the other person that feeds into processing algorithms 'inside’ the agent, it has been proposed that in online social cognition the knowledge of the other —at least in part— resides in the interaction dynamics ‘between’ the agents. Furthermore being a participant in an ongoing interaction may entail a commitment toward being responsive created by important differences in the motivational foundations of online and offline social cognition. In order to promote the development of the neuroscientific investigation of online social cognition, this Frontiers Research Topic aims at bringing together contributions from researchers in social neuroscience and related fields, whose work involves the study of at least two individuals and sometimes two brains, rather than single individuals and brains responding to a social context. Specifically, this Research Topic will adopt an interdisciplinary perspective on what it is that separates online from offline social cognition and the putative differences in the recruitment of underlying processes and mechanisms. Here, an important focal point will be to address the various roles of social interaction in contributing to and —at times— constituting our awareness of other minds. For this Research Topic, we, therefore, solicit reviews, original research articles, opinion and method papers, which address the investigation of social interaction and go beyond traditional concepts and ways of experimentation in doing so. While focusing on work in the neurosciences, this Research Topic also welcomes contributions in the form of behavioral studies, psychophysiological investigations, methodological innovations, computational approaches, developmental and patient studies. By focusing on cutting-edge research in social neuroscience and related fields, this Frontiers Research Topic will create new insights concerning the neurobiology of social interaction and holds the promise of helping social neuroscience to really go social.
Publisher: Frontiers E-books
ISBN: 2889191044
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 587
Book Description
The burgeoning field of social neuroscience has begun to illuminate the complex biological bases of human social cognitive abilities. However, in spite of being based on the premise of investigating the neural bases of interacting minds, the majority of studies have focused on studying brains in isolation using paradigms that investigate offline social cognition, i.e. social cognition from a detached observer's point of view, asking study participants to read out the mental states of others without being engaged in interaction with them. Consequently, the neural correlates of real-time social interaction have remained elusive and may —paradoxically— represent the 'dark matter' of social neuroscience. More recently, a growing number of researchers have begun to study online social cognition, i.e. social cognition from a participant's point of view, based on the assumption that there is something fundamentally different when we are actively engaged with others in real-time social interaction as compared to when we merely observe them. Whereas, for offline social cognition, interaction and feedback are merely a way of gathering data about the other person that feeds into processing algorithms 'inside’ the agent, it has been proposed that in online social cognition the knowledge of the other —at least in part— resides in the interaction dynamics ‘between’ the agents. Furthermore being a participant in an ongoing interaction may entail a commitment toward being responsive created by important differences in the motivational foundations of online and offline social cognition. In order to promote the development of the neuroscientific investigation of online social cognition, this Frontiers Research Topic aims at bringing together contributions from researchers in social neuroscience and related fields, whose work involves the study of at least two individuals and sometimes two brains, rather than single individuals and brains responding to a social context. Specifically, this Research Topic will adopt an interdisciplinary perspective on what it is that separates online from offline social cognition and the putative differences in the recruitment of underlying processes and mechanisms. Here, an important focal point will be to address the various roles of social interaction in contributing to and —at times— constituting our awareness of other minds. For this Research Topic, we, therefore, solicit reviews, original research articles, opinion and method papers, which address the investigation of social interaction and go beyond traditional concepts and ways of experimentation in doing so. While focusing on work in the neurosciences, this Research Topic also welcomes contributions in the form of behavioral studies, psychophysiological investigations, methodological innovations, computational approaches, developmental and patient studies. By focusing on cutting-edge research in social neuroscience and related fields, this Frontiers Research Topic will create new insights concerning the neurobiology of social interaction and holds the promise of helping social neuroscience to really go social.
Manipulative approaches to human brain dynamics
Author: Keiichi Kitajo
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
ISBN: 2889194795
Category : Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
In this EBook, we highlight how newly emerging techniques for non-invasive manipulation of the human brain, combined with simultaneous recordings of neural activity, contribute to the understanding of brain functions and neural dynamics in humans. A growing body of evidence indicates that the neural dynamics (e.g., oscillations, synchrony) are important in mediating information processing and networking for various functions in the human brain. Most of previous studies on human brain dynamics, however, show correlative relationships between brain functions and patterns of neural dynamics measured by imaging methods such as electroencephalography (EEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In contrast, manipulative approaches by non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) have been developed and extensively used. These approaches include transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial electric stimulation (tES) such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), alternating current stimulation (tACS), and random noise stimulation (tRNS), which can directly manipulate neural dynamics in the intact human brain. Although the neural-correlate approach is a strong tool, we think that manipulative approaches have far greater potential to show causal roles of neural dynamics in human brain functions. There have been technical challenges with using manipulative methods together with imaging methods. However, thanks to recent technical developments, it has become possible to use combined methods such as TMS–EEG coregistration. We can now directly measure and manipulate neural dynamics and analyze functional consequences to show causal roles of neural dynamics in various brain functions. Moreover, these combined methods can probe brain excitability, plasticity and cortical networking associated with information processing in the intact human brain. The contributors to this EBook have succeeded in showcasing cutting-edge studies and demonstrate the huge impact of their approaches on many areas in human neuroscience and clinical applications.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
ISBN: 2889194795
Category : Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
In this EBook, we highlight how newly emerging techniques for non-invasive manipulation of the human brain, combined with simultaneous recordings of neural activity, contribute to the understanding of brain functions and neural dynamics in humans. A growing body of evidence indicates that the neural dynamics (e.g., oscillations, synchrony) are important in mediating information processing and networking for various functions in the human brain. Most of previous studies on human brain dynamics, however, show correlative relationships between brain functions and patterns of neural dynamics measured by imaging methods such as electroencephalography (EEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In contrast, manipulative approaches by non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) have been developed and extensively used. These approaches include transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial electric stimulation (tES) such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), alternating current stimulation (tACS), and random noise stimulation (tRNS), which can directly manipulate neural dynamics in the intact human brain. Although the neural-correlate approach is a strong tool, we think that manipulative approaches have far greater potential to show causal roles of neural dynamics in human brain functions. There have been technical challenges with using manipulative methods together with imaging methods. However, thanks to recent technical developments, it has become possible to use combined methods such as TMS–EEG coregistration. We can now directly measure and manipulate neural dynamics and analyze functional consequences to show causal roles of neural dynamics in various brain functions. Moreover, these combined methods can probe brain excitability, plasticity and cortical networking associated with information processing in the intact human brain. The contributors to this EBook have succeeded in showcasing cutting-edge studies and demonstrate the huge impact of their approaches on many areas in human neuroscience and clinical applications.
Critical Neuroscience
Author: Suparna Choudhury
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119237890
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 429
Book Description
Critical Neuroscience: A Handbook of the Social and Cultural Contexts of Neuroscience brings together multi-disciplinary scholars from around the world to explore key social, historical and philosophical studies of neuroscience, and to analyze the socio-cultural implications of recent advances in the field. This text’s original, interdisciplinary approach explores the creative potential for engaging experimental neuroscience with social studies of neuroscience while furthering the dialogue between neuroscience and the disciplines of the social sciences and humanities. Critical Neuroscience transcends traditional skepticism, introducing novel ideas about ‘how to be critical’ in and about science.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119237890
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 429
Book Description
Critical Neuroscience: A Handbook of the Social and Cultural Contexts of Neuroscience brings together multi-disciplinary scholars from around the world to explore key social, historical and philosophical studies of neuroscience, and to analyze the socio-cultural implications of recent advances in the field. This text’s original, interdisciplinary approach explores the creative potential for engaging experimental neuroscience with social studies of neuroscience while furthering the dialogue between neuroscience and the disciplines of the social sciences and humanities. Critical Neuroscience transcends traditional skepticism, introducing novel ideas about ‘how to be critical’ in and about science.
The SAGE Encyclopedia of Marriage, Family, and Couples Counseling
Author: Jon Carlson
Publisher: SAGE Publications
ISBN: 1483369544
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 1927
Book Description
The SAGE Encyclopedia of Marriage, Family and Couples Counseling is a new, all-encompassing, landmark work for researchers seeking to broaden their knowledge of this vast and diffuse field. Marriage and family counseling programs are established at institutions worldwide, yet there is no current work focused specifically on family therapy. While other works have discussed various methodologies, cases, niche aspects of the field and some broader views of counseling in general, this authoritative Encyclopedia provides readers with a fully comprehensive and accessible reference to aid in understanding the full scope and diversity of theories, approaches, and techniques and how they address various life events within the unique dynamics of families, couples, and related interpersonal relationships. Key topics include: Assessment Communication Coping Diversity Interventions and Techniques Life Events/Transitions Sexuality Work/Life Issues, and more Key features include: More than 500 signed articles written by key figures in the field span four comprehensive volumes Front matter includes a Reader’s Guide that groups related entries thematically Back matter includes a history of the development of the field, a Resource Guide to key associations, websites, and journals, a selected Bibliography of classic publications, and a detailed Index All entries conclude with Further Readings and Cross References to related entries to aid the reader in their research journey
Publisher: SAGE Publications
ISBN: 1483369544
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 1927
Book Description
The SAGE Encyclopedia of Marriage, Family and Couples Counseling is a new, all-encompassing, landmark work for researchers seeking to broaden their knowledge of this vast and diffuse field. Marriage and family counseling programs are established at institutions worldwide, yet there is no current work focused specifically on family therapy. While other works have discussed various methodologies, cases, niche aspects of the field and some broader views of counseling in general, this authoritative Encyclopedia provides readers with a fully comprehensive and accessible reference to aid in understanding the full scope and diversity of theories, approaches, and techniques and how they address various life events within the unique dynamics of families, couples, and related interpersonal relationships. Key topics include: Assessment Communication Coping Diversity Interventions and Techniques Life Events/Transitions Sexuality Work/Life Issues, and more Key features include: More than 500 signed articles written by key figures in the field span four comprehensive volumes Front matter includes a Reader’s Guide that groups related entries thematically Back matter includes a history of the development of the field, a Resource Guide to key associations, websites, and journals, a selected Bibliography of classic publications, and a detailed Index All entries conclude with Further Readings and Cross References to related entries to aid the reader in their research journey
Methods for Researching Professional Learning and Development
Author: Michael Goller
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3031085183
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 625
Book Description
This volume provides alternatives for tackling existing empirical, methodological, and analytical challenges. It does so by providing a broad overview of less established, as well as emerging methods, which are of great relevance for current research on professional learning and development. As such, it offers a comprehensive collection of state-of-the-art methodologies and future directions within the workplace learning and professional development research. By describing these novel approaches and providing empirical illustrations, the book promotes innovative methodologies for investigating professional learning and development. It also supports scholars to understand upcoming empirical research and methods and encourages novice as well as established researchers to adopt new empirical strategies beyond traditional ones that have the potential to enrich a better understanding of professional learning and development.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3031085183
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 625
Book Description
This volume provides alternatives for tackling existing empirical, methodological, and analytical challenges. It does so by providing a broad overview of less established, as well as emerging methods, which are of great relevance for current research on professional learning and development. As such, it offers a comprehensive collection of state-of-the-art methodologies and future directions within the workplace learning and professional development research. By describing these novel approaches and providing empirical illustrations, the book promotes innovative methodologies for investigating professional learning and development. It also supports scholars to understand upcoming empirical research and methods and encourages novice as well as established researchers to adopt new empirical strategies beyond traditional ones that have the potential to enrich a better understanding of professional learning and development.
An Introduction to Social Psychology
Author: Miles Hewstone
Publisher: Wiley Global Education
ISBN: 1118959841
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 673
Book Description
For over 25 years An Introduction to Social Psychology has been combining traditional academic rigor with a contemporary level of cohesion, accessibility, pedagogy and instructor support to provide a definitive guide to the engaging and ever-evolving field of social psychology. This sixth edition, completely revised and updated to reflect current issues and underlying theory in the field, has been specially designed to meet the needs of students at all levels, with contributions written by leading psychologists, each an acknowledged expert in the topics covered in a given chapter. The text benefits hugely from an updated range of innovative pedagogical features intended to catch the imagination, combined with a rigorous editorial approach, which results in a cohesive and uniform style accessible to all. Each chapter addresses both major themes and key studies, showing how the relevant field of research has developed over time and linking classic and contemporary perspectives.
Publisher: Wiley Global Education
ISBN: 1118959841
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 673
Book Description
For over 25 years An Introduction to Social Psychology has been combining traditional academic rigor with a contemporary level of cohesion, accessibility, pedagogy and instructor support to provide a definitive guide to the engaging and ever-evolving field of social psychology. This sixth edition, completely revised and updated to reflect current issues and underlying theory in the field, has been specially designed to meet the needs of students at all levels, with contributions written by leading psychologists, each an acknowledged expert in the topics covered in a given chapter. The text benefits hugely from an updated range of innovative pedagogical features intended to catch the imagination, combined with a rigorous editorial approach, which results in a cohesive and uniform style accessible to all. Each chapter addresses both major themes and key studies, showing how the relevant field of research has developed over time and linking classic and contemporary perspectives.