Everyday Mind Reading: Understanding What Other People Think and Feel [Hardcover]

William Ickes (Author), Elliot Aronson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2003

Are women really better than men at reading other people's minds? Are longer-married couples better than newlyweds at anticipating their partners' thoughts and feelings? Do we all possess a dormant "sixth sense" that, if fully utilized, could allow us to intuit with great accuracy what other people are thinking? Internationally recognized psychologist William Ickes answers these and many other questions in this fascinating examination of the mind's potential for "everyday mind reading."

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a readable analysis of how people empathize with the thoughts and feelings of others...recommended." -- Choice: Current Review for Academic Libraries, April 2004

"...students considering social psychology as a career could put it on their 'must read' list..." -- Science Books & Films, April 2004

"how, when, why and to what extent we are able to infer the content of other people's thoughts and feelings." -- SirReadALot.org, Nobember 26, 2003

From the Inside Flap

Are women really better than men at reading other people's minds? Do we all possess a dormant "sixth sense" that, if fully utilized, could allow us to intuit with great accuracy what other people are thinking? In EVERYDAY MIND READING, internationally recognized psychologist William Ickes answers these and many other questions, as he examines the mind's potential for reading other minds.

After developing an innovative video-based procedure for measuring the accuracy of people's empathic inferences, Ickes and his colleagues spent the next fifteen years using this procedure to study different aspects of everyday mind reading. Among the many issues they have explored are the validity of the belief in women's intuition, why twins tend to have similar thoughts and feelings, how people's frames of reference can both help and hinder their communication, and the neurological basis for our ability to empathize with others.

Ickes also extends his inquiry to broader social questions. For example, are there ways of detecting when someone has a hidden agenda? Are there circumstances in which accurately "reading" an intimate partner's thoughts and feelings actually harms, rather than helps, the relationship? How can the results of the research on everyday mind reading be applied to improve parenting skills, the effectiveness of counseling, or even sales and marketing?

This engaging narrative will appeal to anyone who would like to know how, when, why, and to what extent we are able to infer the specific content of other people's thoughts and feelings.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 349 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books; First Edition edition (November 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591021197
• ISBN-13: 978-1591021193
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #749,828 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

William Ickes is a Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Arlington. His 20-year program of research on empathic accuracy, which resulted in three international research awards, is summarized in his 2003 book Everyday Mind Reading. His 30-year program of research on personality influences on initial interactions is summarized in his 2009 book Strangers in a Strange Lab.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant book, December 11, 2003

By 

Jean Decety (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Everyday Mind Reading: Understanding What Other People Think and Feel (Hardcover)

Bill Ickes has written a brilliant book in such a way that ordinary mortals can immediately grasp its content and never be bored.

The book explores in rich and fascinating detail human empathy. The book is written in a way that successfully blend the subtlety of observation with the rigor of experimentation and excites the reader at almost every page. It is both an outstanding scientific and literary achievement.

This book is also full of surprises. There are several important aspects related to empathic understanding that the research done by Ickes and collaborators demonstrates against our conventional wisdom.

I learned a lot reading this book. And I strongly recommend everyone interested in social cognition, human relationships, whether you are involved in academic research or simply intrigued by how and why we come to understand others to do the same.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It's "Deep", May 9, 2010

By 

Phillip C. Browning "The Mind Reader" (Northampton, MA. United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Everyday Mind Reading: Understanding What Other People Think and Feel (Hardcover)

While informative this is not a book for the light-weight or casual student of psychology. I purchased this book with the hope that it would assist me in my work as a counselor, which is has done but SLOOOWLY... there is so much to absorb, mull over, experiment with and digest.

My view may be slightly biased in that I do have mental limitations due to health challenges, but I still see a value for anyone that would elect to invest the time and effort into studying this tome.

18 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Beware, May 30, 2006

By 

W. Henry (CA, USA.) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Everyday Mind Reading: Understanding What Other People Think and Feel (Hardcover)

2 stars for being misleading.
Do not buy this book if you are looking for practices and techniques for "Everyday Mind Reading." I saw the title and read the "look inside" option amazon gives you. It was extremely interesting(about the life of Richard Burton) but that's about it.
The book is good for reading about results of experiments and theories. But no everyday practice...
you have been warned.