Customer Reviews

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Psychology

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Psychology is a broad and complex subject and I was afraid any sort of overview meant for "the masses" would fall into one of two categories: too complex and dry to be considered appropriate for a Complete Idiot's Guide (CIG), or too superficial to be considered a decent overview. I was amazed to find that this book was neither. Instead of dumbing down or over-simplifying her topic, Dr. Johnston instead chose to make it interesting by writing with personality, wit, and style, illuminating her points with anecdotes and illustrative examples, and making her points relevant to everyday life. This book strikes a surprising balance between covering the theories and history of psychology and applying it to things everybody cares about.

Make no mistake--this isn't an afternoon's beach reading. It took me some time to get through this book because it's fat with information on everything from language development to schizophrenia. For anyone with an interest in studying psychology this book would make a fantastic introduction; I find it much easier to remember information about such figures as Jung and Freud when it's made relevant to modern and everyday affairs than when it's simply written as history. This book would also make a perfect resource for parents, as it delves quite a bit into how we develop as people, and how parents and childhood both do and don't influence us--including plenty of practical tips.

This book is also wonderful for pretty much anyone who could use some help coping with stress or figuring out how to deal with their troubles, or who wants to better understand a mental illness they suffer from. In particular it would be handy for folks who might not need the full help of a therapist but who could use some tips for healthier living, or people who want to know how to cope with a loved one's illness.

Whether you want an overview on the nature vs. nurture debate, the brain vs. mind delineation, issues of memory, emotions, motivation, stress, self-concepts, personality, or the difference between "normal" and "abnormal" behavior, it's covered in here--and it's covered in a fascinating and detailed manner.

I am interested in psychology but I am only in 10th grade so I have had no formal training in psychology. I really liked this book because it gave me a quick overview of psychology without getting too technical. It was easy to read even for someone who does not know a lot about the subject. It gives an overview of every aspect of psychology and is a great book for anyone who is interested in psychology and just wants an overview.

I took the Introduction to Psychology CLEP exam on Saturday, December 4th. This was the only book I used to study. Yes, the only book. The book is an excellent introduction to Psychology and provide a really good foundation. I would recommend reading it before taking Psychology 101.

My opinion of this book was that it was pretty good in comparision to some of the other books in the idiots series. It gave a decent look into the practice and purpose of psychology but it didn't go as in depth as I would have hoped. My opinion is if your intrested in psychology then this is a great book for you but if your thinking of really studing psychololgy or are studing psychology you would be better off with a different book.

This was a required book for my AP Psychology course and I would have drowned in the course without it. It's well worth the $15.00!

This is very good for its intended purpose - a basic overview of introductory psychology.

It covers a wide range of topics including the following: The physical structure of the brain, the effect of genetics on the brain, human development, reinforcement/extinction, the senses, memory, motivation, normal/abnormal psychology basics, and psychotropic drugs.

Within the parameters stated above, I would recommend this book.

I was looking for an introduction to psychology without the indepth confusion of advanced study and I found what I was looking for in this book. It gives information with easy to understand explaination of the terms and on the lessons being given. The author uses good analogies to help explain what she is trying to say and keeps it light to hold your interest. Definitely a good book for beginners and the curious.

This is the best book of Psychology I have ever read. It covers everything from adapting to changes to discovering what your moods mean. This is a must read for any Psychologist, or future Psychologist. It's well worth the cheap price.

First, don't get mixed up; this is the Complete Idiot's Guide to Psychology, not the Complete Guide to the Psychology of Idiots. So no help on your annoying boss, but much help for basic psych classes and just those curious about the way the brain works.

There is a section on memory, how it works, how you can improve or take advantage of how your memory really captures information. That was interesting. And a good section on how someone like a worrywart or a pessimist can adjust their attitude to be less anxious (hint, don't try to be all Polly-Sunshine, in fact,figure out the worst thing that can happen and have a plan in place.) There is a very fine section on substance abuse and how to tell if you might be heading in that direction.

There are discussions (basic) about Freud, the MMPI-2 (psych exam) and other textbook items, so as a study guide, this could be helpful. If you aren't familiar with the science of psychology, this is a great place to start.

I am studying for the Praxis II Social Studies Test for my teaching certification which includes a section on psychology, a subject I intentionally avoided in college. I got the idea to look at Idiot's Guides from another high school teacher who uses the Idiot's Guide to U.S. History as the text for his class because he says it "includes everything they are required to know and the school authorized text is poorly written and condescending." This teacher is a highly rated and effective teacher so I felt compelled to check it out and I did use the Idiot's U.S. History guide to brush up for the PRAXIS II (and it was excellent!) I was very skeptical that an idiot's guide would be the right study tool for psychology, but the customer reviews on this were so good I decided to give it a try, and it turned out to be really great! I was truly surprised at how comprehensive (and up to date) this book is and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants a good overview of psychology or who needs a comprehensive review.