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Selection theory has revolutionized our understanding of biology, but its implications for psychology have barely been tapped. In this book, a behavioural scientist reveals the radical implications of this powerful concept for students of human behaviour.

Tabla de contenidos provista por Syndetics

• Preface(p. xi)
• Introduction Selection versus Instruction(p. 1)
• Chapter 1 A Lesson from Biology: Modern Immunology(p. 8)
• Chapter 2 The Plastic Brain and Selection Theory(p. 30)
• Chapter 3 The Developing Mind: the Interaction of Genes and Environment(p. 55)
• Chapter 4 Language and Selection Theory(p. 72)
• Chapter 5 Specialized Brain Circuits: Selecting for Intelligence(p. 95)
• Chapter 6 Selecting for Mind(p. 112)
• Chapter 7 Addictions, Compulsions, and Selection Theory(p. 138)
• Chapter 8 Selection Theory and the Death of Psychoanalysis(p. 159)
• Chapter 9 Health Care, Aging, and Selection Theory(p. 178)
• Epilogue: Selection Theory and Clues to the Nature of Conscious Experience(p. 199)
• Suggested Readings(p. 205)
• Index(p. 215)

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Publishers Weekly Review

Gazzaniga believes that circuits for language and problem-solving were built into the human brain as the result of millions of years of evolution. Selection theory, which this Dartmouth professor of psychiatry espouses, goes even further: it maintains that we are born with all the world's complexity built inside us; what, to the outsider, seems like learning, is merely a matching process, as the organism searches through its library of circuits to select the most suitable strategy for a given external challenge. In an accessible treatise that takes the nature vs. nurture controversy to a new extreme, Gazzaniga ( The Social Brain ), using selection theory, dismantles psychoanalysis, chides doctors for not heeding the body's innate wisdom, and offers explanations for drug addiction, alcoholism, dieting, hypersexed behavior and compulsions. He advises parents to ``set a context for opportunity'' and to let the child do the rest. Emphasizing ``feeling-in-control'' as a key to well-being, he suggests that ``disempowering'' institutions such as welfare and homes for the elderly can be detrimental. Photos. Library of Science alternate. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

CHOICE Review

New evidence and arguments for a broader application of Darwin's theory of selection as a determinant of contemporary human behavior. The immune system, sparrow song, cross-cultural comparisons of grammar, and addiction all provide examples of selection-determined abilities and tendencies. Readers of Gazzaniga's earlier work on brain lateralization (with J.E. LeDoux, The Integrated Mind, 1978) will find new data and new interpretations. Although the evidence provided is diverse and involving, thoughts are not always followed to their logical conclusions and the discussion is often too brief to clarify the issues presented. Photos of individuals contributing key ideas are a nice addition, but the quality is poor and the photos are often dark and blurry. An extensive list of readings does not compensate for the lack of sources for studies mentioned in the text. Research is frequently cited with no indication of author or date, making further exploration difficult. The generally readable text is highly recommended for a variety of levels of readers as it brings up issues that must be considered in the attempt to determine the causes of human behavior. S. Shapiro; Indiana University East

Notas de autor provistas por Syndetics

Michael S. Gazzaniga, one of the premiere doctors of neuroscience, was born on December 12, 1939 in Los Angeles. Educated at Dartmouth College and California Institute of Technology, he has been on the faculty of the Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis.

His early research examined the subject of epileptics who had undergone surgery to control seizures. He has also studied Alzheimer's and Parkinson's patients and reveals important findings in books such as Cognitive Neuroscience: The Biology of the Mind.

While many of his writings are technical, he also educates and stimulates readers with discussions about the fascinating and mysterious workings of the brain. Books such as The Social Brain and The Mind's Past bring forth new information and theories regarding how the brain functions, interacts, and responds with the body and the environment.

(Bowker Author Biography)