The scientific method is rarely more fascinating than when it’s turned inward, to examine the very nature of human beings and the way we think. It makes for great reading, too, as books provide the necessary space to explore and debate these topics in-depth with the help of data, case studies, and culturally relevant examples.
From 21st-century bestsellers to foundational texts that changed the way we think about thinking, these books pertain to all aspects of human experience: economics and business, the social sphere, memory, and our conception of selfhood. So whether you’re studying psychology, or merely curious about the behaviour of that one colleague, these psychology books are the perfect reads for you.
Today, the existence of an “unconscious” is so widely accepted that it’s hard to imagine how groundbreaking this book was when, at the turn of the 20th Century, Sigmund Freud argued not just its existence, but that dreams were among its most significant manifestation. In this heady, fascinating text, Freud not only revolutionised the concept of dreams and what they could mean, but also shifted understanding of the human mind's makeup altogether. To understand how human beings think, there are few better places to begin than Freud.
Nearly a career’s worth of research went into this book, which irrevocably changed the way we think about... well, thinking. In Thinking, Fast and Slow , psychologist and Nobel Prize in Economics winner Daniel Kahneman uses field research in cognitive bias, happiness research, prospect theory, and more to support his thesis that human beings have just two distinct ways of thinking: fast (instinctual and emotional) and slow (conscious and logical). In the process, Kahneman shines new light on the rationality – and, of course, the irrationality – of the human mind.
You might have heard of the marshmallow test, in which a child is offered a marshmallow and must choose: eat it now, or wait and enjoy two later. It seems simple, but according to psychologist and author Walter Mischel, this test of self-control has a lifetime’s worth of implications, from higher marks in school to better social functioning, the kind of parenting style one might adopt, and approaches to planning for retirement. Whether you’re curious about human nature, or wondering whether you should just eat that marshmallow, The Marshmallow Test is a revealing and compelling read.
Human beings are innately social creatures, built to function in families, tribes, social groups, and workplace teams. In this practical and theoretical guide, three authors – all experts of business, psychology, or both – explain not just why we come together, but how to make groups function well, whether it’s related to factors like group size, task, roles, or cooperation. By showing how our social and biological impulses are intertwined, The Social Brain also demonstrates how to satisfy both.
Gender Explained Diane Ehrensaft and Michelle Jurkiewicz
In this fascinating international bestseller, Swedish behavioural expert Thomas Erikson reveals his theory that there are four personality types (red, green, yellow, and blue), each with their own communication style and way of thinking. By teaching readers how to assess who’s who – and more importantly, how to communicate successfully with them – Erikson reveals not just how to get the best out of our interactions with others, but how to better understand ourselves in the process.
No psychology book in the 21st Century has been more influential than Dutch psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk’s The Body Keeps the Score . Subtitled Brain, mind and body in the healing of trauma, this book traces the effects of trauma not just in individuals but across families and generations, using case histories to illustrate newfound, powerful bonds between the mind and physical body. The book became – and remains – an influential sensation, selling millions of copies.
In this groundbreaking 1960 book, psychiatrist R. D. Laing posits a new account of what it means to be “insane”. Pushing against the norms of a discipline that was treating so-called "insanity" with dangerous drugs and treatments at the time, Laing used case studies of patients he worked with, as well as elements of sociology and psychoanalysis, to argue that psychosis was not a medical condition but the result of a schism between authentic and false selves – a stance that proved influential in humanising the treatment of mental illness.
We tend to think of ourselves as rational and free-willed, but how is it that we – or others – are so susceptible to dogmatic, rigid thinking? In this fascinating book, Dr Leor Zmigrod, a pioneer in the field of political neuroscience, reveals the persistence of cognitive rigidity, showing not just the ways we sometimes struggle to adapt to new ways of thinking, but also how our political beliefs can change our brain cells. Whatever your current outlook on the world, The Ideological Brain will challenge you to rethink it and embrace shades of grey where black and white once reigned.
If it has felt to you like young people seem more anxious than ever before, psychologist Jonathan Haidt has an idea as to why. Subtitled How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness , this book lays out Haidt’s argument that the rise of smartphones and increased screentime has meant plummeting face-to-face interaction and, as a result, increased social anxiety. Bolstered by the latest research about child development, The Anxious Generation details the steps that brought us to this point, and what it means for the future of human interaction.
