10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Targeted Undergraduate Cognitive Psychology Text, September 2, 2009
I have used Margaret Matlin's cognitive psychology textbook several times to teach an undergraduate cognition course. The book is reasonably organized and up-to-date. I am satisfied with it as an instructor because it covers the field well, incorporates instructional design features that promote learning, is instructor-friendly, and is readable for undergraduate students.
The text is organized into thirteen chapters that cover the familiar landscape of cognition. I suggest using Amazon's "Search inside this book" link to verify coverage of key topics in the detailed Table of Contents. By the author's report, the 7th edition includes "2,064 references; 806 are new to the seventh edition." I didn't look them all up, of course, but my experience with the text attests to her good judgment in the mix of current and classic studies, both referenced and discussed in the text.
The book's instructional design features are better than average. A large glossary aids study and reinforces consistency in terminology across chapters. The demonstrations throughout the book are well-crafted, allowing students to experiment with new concepts quickly as they read. Placing summaries at the end of each chapter section (rather than only at chapter end) is an excellent idea, encouraging more frequent review of smaller amounts of related material. The remaining end-of-chapter material--review questions, keywords and recommended readings--is standard, but well executed.
Instructor friendly features count with me too, since they make my life easier. Matlin has been largely successful in making each chapter self-contained, allowing the instructor to shuffle the order with minimal pain for students. Her use of primary research sources enables motivated students to dive into the field's research literature for term papers or extra reading, even if their searching skills are not yet well developed. The test bank is helpful addition and is well integrated with the text itself.
Maitlin is both praised and criticized for her writing style, seen as either accessible or excessively chatty. I personally don't enjoy such a chatty style in a professional book. But I still think she gets it right--because I am not her target audience. My students find her style engaging and her personal examples helpful and interesting. They are the audience that matters and I am glad this book connects well with most of them. This, too, makes my job easier.
This text is recommended for use in an undergraduate cognition class.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very good book on cognition, April 22, 2010
A Kid's Review
This review is from: Cognition (Hardcover)
This book covers most aspects of the subject and is easy to read. I liked the way important phrases, titles etc were emphasized and highlighted in the text, almost like notes.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a keeper, June 12, 2009
This review is from: Cognition (Hardcover)
a little dry and lacking colorful diagrams and graphics, but very informative and thorough. i have referenced this book many times since the class i bought it for has ended... a keeper.
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