Many people stroll through life feeling like they don’t deserve the good life that they have. They feel like an imposter and may expressly label themselves as such. When they receive compliments or praise, they reflexively deflect them by explaining that they were just lucky or that they have good helpers. Some explain that this was only due to their religion or family. Unfortunately, these statements tend to minimize one’s own appreciation of the talent…
Bipolar disorder (previously termed manic-depression) is a serious mental illness and requires medication and often counseling to treat. This mood disorder increases the likelihood of suicidal outcomes. Though relatively common, many patients find coping with the illness difficult. First, the patient must come to terms with his/her own frailty. Then, the patient must find appropriate help for the ailment. Finally, she/he must educate a support structure to handle future difficulties with the illness. Fortunately, this…
This book was written in 2010 and covers how individual psychology affects society concerning race, gender, mental illness, age, and other differences. Its intended audience seems to consist primarily of Americans. However, it seems like the United States has travelled a long journey since 2010, since the beginning of the Obama era. That journey seems to have spanned places both on and off the beaten path towards social equality. After finishing this book, I’m left…
I come at this book as a parent and a mentor of talented youth. I am interested in honing my skills to be more effective in serving these students. This book is written especially towards those working in gifted education, whether at a K-12 level or higher. Rinn gathers all of the research and presents it in a careful manner. She also exposes where research consensus is currently lacking and requires more study. All in…
The American mental health system is one without much hope, without much money, and without much publicity. In this academic exploration, Myers seeks to bring a clear lens of careful observation to the situation. Often, exposure to the system makes observers disillusioned and hopeless. To that narrative, she provides a counter-narrative based on first-hand experience and research. All in all, she succeeds in her attempt. She spends an extended period of time investigating mental health…
I picked up this book because a group at work was discussing their strengths, and I wanted to take the survey to devote some thought to how I might work with them better. Don Clifton, a workplace psychologist, identified these 34 atomized strengths and developed a questionnaire to help individuals find their personal preferred strengths. Among the 34 are themes like Belief, Communication, Significance, Responsibility, Woo, and Context. First, some important financial advice. If you…
Seemingly, everybody has their own version of secrets of success. Angela Duckworth shares that and more in her psychological theory of achievement; only hers is backed by research study. She terms the common factor in success as “grit.” In this work, she shares a way of quantifying grit (called the Grit Scale) methods to develop it in people. At the outset, she seeks to overthrow the idea that some people are just naturally more talented…
Colin Ware directs a Data Visualization Research Lab at the University of New Hampshire. His education is broad and interesting: He holds degrees both in computer science and the psychology of perception. He is a (the?) leading expert on integrating neuroscience and psychology with computer graphics. Most computer graphics books teach how to make things that look cool. This book takes a different tact and discusses why things look cool in terms of the brain’s…
My wife came home from church one day and said, “I want to take that Sunday School class on the Enneagram.” I’d heard of it, but I knew nothing about it. Over the next few weeks, she kept calling people numbers. “You’re a five.” or “I’m a six.” Intrigued, I decided to read this book to learn more about it. I was – and still am – very cynical that human personality can be broken…
Successfully resolving conflict is one of the most important tasks in management and leadership. Schwarz, a Harvard-educated organizational psychologist, teaches us how to do just this in this well-received book. Its success can be demonstrated by the fact that it now resides in its third edition. (This review only applies to the second edition.) Schwarz tells us how to be not just a facilitator but a skilled facilitator of discussion within organization. He consults with…