The Handy Psychology Answer Book

March 1, 2011

As part of the "Handy Answer Book" series, this title intends to provide a rigorous scientific look at psychology that is practical, accessible, and engaging to general readers. Editor Cohen (clinical psychiatry, Beth Israel Medical Ctr./Albert Einstein Coll. of Medicine) is a prolific author in the field. After an introduction, the book continues with background information on basic terms and topics in the field. The next chapter presents major movements in psychology; subsequent coverage is devoted to the brain and behavior, psychology across the lifespan, the psychology of everyday life, group dynamics, abnormal psychology, the psychology of trauma, and forensic psychology. The book concludes with a glossary, bibliography, and index. As with all books in the series, chapters are made up of paragraphs answering over 1000 general questions about basic concepts, terms, people, and events in an easy-to-understand and entertaining manner. Questions range from "Who was Abraham Maslow?" to "Why do battered women stay?" The book aims to bridge the gap between academic and popular psychology and does a good job overall, although its Q&A format could be strengthened with suggestions for further readings within the chapters. BOTTOM LINE A solid, affordable supplement to introductory psychology texts for readers with a general interest in psychology.--Samantha Schmehl Hines, Univ. of Montana Lib., Missoula

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2016

It boggles most boomers' minds, but a typical teen may send 1,000 text messages a day from their mobile device. Cohen (psychiatry, Mt. Sinai Beth Israel) addresses the impact of immersive technology on adolescents, the latest revisions to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, and more in this update to her 2011 inaugural edition, which was praised by LJ as a "solid, affordable supplement to introductory psychology texts." This second edition sticks to the same formula of offering answers, generally a few paragraphs each, to a host of questions ("What did Freud mean by the oral stage?") set within topical chapters, with Cohen's discussion of the brain now extended into two chapters. An expanded group of black-and-white photos and a further reading list (still for the entire guide only, not for each chapter) are also included. VERDICT This well-named reference offers pithy peeks into the many facets of the human psyche.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.