Must read Psychology books

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The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. Fiction, yes, but so realistic
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PsyTiger said:
Does anyone have an opinion on any of John Gottman's books (The Marriage Clinic, 7 Principles for making marriage work,...)? I know many are considered pop psych, but some of his ideas have been recommended to me and I was wondering what your thoughts were on their usefulness in therapy, school or your own experience.
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I love Gottman's work. I've used it with clients and in my own marriage.

I also want to recommend:

Wally Lamb: She's Come Undone, I Know This Much is True

Marsha Linehan: Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder
 
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Don't know if anyone recommended these two:

Phantoms in the Brain : Probing the Mysteries of the Human Mind by Dr. Ramachandran - Great book on the theories behind phantom limbs.

Too Scared to Cry: Psychic Trauma in Childhood by Lenore Terr
It's a book filled with case studies on how to identify PTSD in children, starting with a particular focus on a case in which a school bus of students from one town was kidnapped.
 
Hope4Ever said:
Don't know if anyone recommended these two:


Too Scared to Cry: Psychic Trauma in Childhood by Lenore Terr
It's a book filled with case studies on how to identify PTSD in children, starting with a particular focus on a case in which a school bus of students from one town was kidnapped.
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I read this. The case that's highlighted is, I believe, the Chowchilla, CA school bus incident from many years ago. Interesting book.
 
my two favorite and essential books by Freud so far:
The Interpretation of Dreams
Totem and Taboo

also, Skinner - Beyond Freedom & Dignity
 
Someone different (not entirely psychology but with a psychological slant) is the The Progress Paradox: How Life Gets Better While People Feel Worse by Gregg Easterbrook

Farewell Darkness: A Veteran's Triumph Over Combat Trauma by Ron Zaczek

The Psychology of Harry Potter: An Unauthorized Examination of the Boy Who Lived (Psychology of Popular Culture series) by Neil Mulholland

And I can't believe no one has said anything about Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls by Mary Pipher (I noticed someone did say something about letters to a young therapsit)

The Outsider: A Journey Into My Father's Struggle With Madness by Nathaniel Lachenmeyer
 
My freshman year: what a professor learned by becoming a student

just checking-->great book about a person with OCD
 
DUDE there's a book about the psychology of Harry Potter characters? Awesome!
 
cara susanna said:
DUDE there's a book about the psychology of Harry Potter characters? Awesome!
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Heck ya! It even cites two of my advisors! My husband also has, but it makes me cringe, the Philosophy of Family Guy which basically is really a discussion on the material on the show from a philosophical perspective.
 
Power in the helping professions - geared at psychologists but also totally valid for MDs. Incorporates many Jungian theories ... very interesting read.

The Mismeasure of Man by Gould - super interesting read and definitely thought provoking regarding the history and view of intelligence testing.
 
I've started reading some of these suggestions and really enjoying them!

One of my favorite books is One Flew Over the ****oo's Nest by Ken Kesey. It's an excellent work of fiction about the experiences of patients on an inpatient psych ward.

Keep the suggestions coming!
 
These suggestions are wonderful - some I'd read, others that are joining the long library list.

To add my own ideas: a textboook-like tome that I found very useful and interesting is "Multisystemic Therapy for Antisocial Behavior in Children and Adolescents" by Henggeler et al

Interesting for those working with families specifically. Engaging case studies and ideas for structuring sessions and homework.

Not sure if this one was already posted: "Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant" by Daniel Tammet (said extraordinary mind).

A wonderful read, full of fascinating insights into the experience of autism, for those interested in that topic.

Thanks again for a very fun thread!
 
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"A Secret Life"- Michael Ryan
" Psychoanalytic Diagnosis: Understanding Personality Structure in Clinical Process" - Nancy McWilliams

 
In Search of Memory - Eric Kandel
 
Chimed said:
How Psychotherapy Really Works
by Wilard Gaylin

Has anyone read this book? Is it worth the read?

Thanks!
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I have this book. I really liked it. Well-written and a fast read.
 
Any good recommendations for books on philosophy? I really have no background in it, so an intro type book would be perfect.
 
Check out works by David Chalmers, Daniel Dennett, and John Searle.
 
Ooohh...some great recs here. My hold list at the library is growing too fast for me to keep up now. :laugh:

Any recs for literature that pertains to cultural psychology, especially within the Asian-American community?
 
For other philosophers check out Peter Singer

For book recommendations:

Blaming the Brain: The Truth About Drugs and Mental Illness by Elliot Valenstein (amazing book so far....not quite done)

The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins (puts natural selection into a gene centered view and really opens a whole new way of viewing behavior)
 
Someone has probably written this one down before but I couldnt read through the entire list without going nuts trying to pick which (dozen) books to read out of the library.....:D
An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison
Oh my, what a book... the author is a psychologist who is diagnosed with bipolar disorder. its her story and how she dealt with it. Such an eye-opening account and its so personal, as well as from the professional point of view... one of a kind!
 
every psych student should read:
An Unquiet Mind
The Suicidal Mind
Prozac Nation
Madness
:)
 
amoniax said:
I am also looking for great books on neuropsychology, but preferably recent ones.

Any suggestions?
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Fuster's "Cortex and Mind" is great; might end up being the semi-equivalent of this generation's "Higher Cortical Functions in Man" (Luria); it also reads great in concordance with the latter as almost an updated version.
 
During a recent lecture given by Bill Faustman on the genetics of schizophrenia and evolution of schizophrenia research, he recommended Julian Jaynes's The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind (1976). I'm reading it now. Pretty interesting......
 
Someone already recommended When Rabbit Howls, so instead I'm recommending John Colapinto - As Nature Made Him: The Boy who was Raised as a Girl.
 
Currently reading The Optimistic Child by Martin Seligman. I'd recommend it - its aimed at parents so its an easy read but a lot of the background is quite dumbed down as well.
 
I saw this one recommended:
In Surviving Graduate School in Psychology: A Pocket Mentor

Any others you would like to share?
 
Just ordered it off amazon, thanks for the suggestion!
 
hamsterpants said:
I saw this one recommended:
In Surviving Graduate School in Psychology: A Pocket Mentor

Any others you would like to share?
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Has anyone actually read it?

I saw it mentioned in a thread from last year, but at that point it was just being released - so no one had read it. It had no reviews on amazon last time I looked... And I think I asked about it recently in another thread and no one confirmed whether they had read it/found it helpful.

Anyone?
 
I ordered the book on Amazon and got it about a week later. I'm only about 100 pages in, and it is informative, but a little dry. Some of the stuff in there is common sense, and some things are repetitive, but I'm going to continue reading it, because its the only thing I can really get my hands on psychology-wise. I did get the book, "The Smart Way to Your Ph.D.: 200 secrets from 100 graduates" by Dora Farkas, and I like this book a lot! It is more general, with all of the degrees in it, but it gives some great advice especially when it comes to procrastination and motivation!

Hope this helps! :)
 
hamsterpants said:
did you read this one? I am thinking of ordering but its a tad pricy and from 2002.
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No I didn't read it. I simply saw it in the "what others ended up buying section" from one of the books above.

FYI-- Half.com has one for about 23 bucks.
 
:bow:
StacyTXLPC said:
Wally Lamb: She's Come Undone, I Know This Much is True
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I would also recommend I Know This Much is True, Wally Lamb is a gift gifted writer. I'm in the middle of Lamb's "The Hour I First Believe." So engaging and intense, I know it's a cliche, but I literally can't put it down. If you are interesed in the profound ramifications of school violence, PTSD, and mental illness more generally, and how it impacts couples, families, and communities, this will not disappoint! A whopping 750 pager, but trust me, with the twists and turns, it will feel like a short story. Be prepared for a ride :bow:
 
so has anyone read surviving graduate school in psychology yet? i don't wanna buy something that isn't informative...

thanks!
 
Not like any of us need any more reading than what is assigned, but I thought I would throw my hat into the ring on some of the books I have enjoyed.
Some basic books on technique that have been helpful are- Irving Yalom's group practice book and Shaw Shea's Psychiatric Interviewing- The art of understanding. Shea's book basically breaks the initial interview/assessing into very clear pieces and he has a lot of clinical vignettes which I like a lot!

Theory- I have become a big fan of relational theory over the past number of years- specifically within the realm of self psychology.
A great book which covers many of the most well known relational theorists is The Meeting of Minds by Lewis Aron.
Also Relational Psychotherapy: A Primer by Patricia DeYoung is really great and very reader friendly!
My favorite writers these days are Stolorow and Atwood- they are the primary authors of Intersubjectivity theory which I find really fascinating. Context in Being: Foundations of Psychological Life is a very interesting book. One of the things I enjoy about their writing is that they incorporate research, theory and philosophy (Heidegger/Hegel mostly) into one discussion!
 
nicu4leo said:
My favorite writers these days are Stolorow and Atwood- they are the primary authors of Intersubjectivity theory which I find really fascinating. Context in Being: Foundations of Psychological Life is a very interesting book. One of the things I enjoy about their writing is that they incorporate research, theory and philosophy (Heidegger/Hegel mostly) into one discussion!
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George? He was my personality psych professor and I absolutely loved his class! I recommend Faces in a Cloud, very interesting read.
 
Hey!
Yes George Atwood.. Did you have him at UCLA? I could of swore the last bio on him I read stated he was teaching there.... I have not read Faces in the Clouds yet! I am actually working my way through Intersubjective Perspective.
 
PhDToBe said:
so has anyone read surviving graduate school in psychology yet? i don't wanna buy something that isn't informative...

thanks!
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I would advise against purchasing this book if you are looking for novel advice about excelling in grad school. For example, the author makes the point that unlike undergrads, successful grad students need to have both book smarts AND street smarts. Well, duh. I found that most of the information is either obvious or it could've been found through a free resource (e.g., this forum!).

Without completely condemning it, I will say that I got really excited about grad school while reading this book. It really galvanizes this notion that grad students are in this unique position where they are supported financially, socially, and professionally to explore their passions and develop their craft. As mentioned above, it outlines important distinctions between your undergad education and grad school, and how you need to approach it in fundamentally different ways (i.e., in undergrad, students can often get away with being a passive recipient and simply regurgitating info on exams, while students in grad school are expected to be active seekers of knowledge).

So, I would encourage you to save your time, energy, and money; this book recycles the same-old hackneyed material. But, if you are feeling a little apathetic about graduate school and looking for a quick pick-me-up, give it a shot.
 
PhDToBe said:
so has anyone read surviving graduate school in psychology yet? i don't wanna buy something that isn't informative...

thanks!
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I finally have some time and just started reading this... I'm finding myself skipping quite a lot of the sections. So far I've found that it highlights a lot of important things that occur in graduate school or things that students should be aware of, but doesn't address the issues themselves. Most of what it includes are things most students know they will encounter in grad school, such as a mentorship relationship, comps, dissertation etc...

I'll post again when I find something important.
 
nicu4leo said:
Hey!
Yes George Atwood.. Did you have him at UCLA? I could of swore the last bio on him I read stated he was teaching there.... I have not read Faces in the Clouds yet! I am actually working my way through Intersubjective Perspective.
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At Rutgers. I really enjoyed his class and he was so nice... He actually didn't mind talking to students :)
 
school psych said:
At Rutgers. I really enjoyed his class and he was so nice... He actually didn't mind talking to students :)
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Rutgers! Thats right! Man there are sooo many brilliant folks in the Rutgers system these days!



Happy reading
 
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thank you both, childpsych and mcclinas!

are there any other similar books you would recommend for someone starting this fall?

if not, i might end up reading it just because i am a bit nervous!
 
Cure Unknown by Pamela Weintraub

A well written doctor recommended account on Lyme Disease. I'm a 18 year untreated Lyme patient. I was diagnosed with ADHD in high school, when in fact the Lyme was causing the inattention symptoms. Very good read and extremely informative.
 
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