• Question: Are there any books for psychology that you recommend to a student who wants to study the subject at university?

    Asked by anon-180169 to Abby, Amy, Noel, Sam, Viren on 12 Jun 2018.
    • Photo: Abby Hunter

      Abby Hunter answered on 12 Jun 2018:


      Psychology by David Myers is a very good introductory text to psychology and one that I used when I was studying at University. I think it is now up to the 12th edition.

      If you wanted to read about a specific area of psychology then there are text books covering these topics, e.g. cognitive psychology; health psychology; social psychology; neuropsychology; developmental psychology, etc. It might be better waiting until you are at University and seeing what the course leader recommends for different topics.

    • Photo: Sam Burton

      Sam Burton answered on 12 Jun 2018:


      I read Psychology by Henry Gleitman, it’s probably similar to the one Abby suggested. If you’re after some for addiction Marc Lewis has two particularly good books ‘the biology of desire’ and ‘memories of an addicted brain’ are really good reads!

    • Photo: Noel Brick

      Noel Brick answered on 12 Jun 2018:


      Abby and Sam have suggested some really nice books on general psychology.
      For my area, sport and exercise psychology “Sport and Exercise Psychology: A Critical Introduction” by Aidan Moran is an excellent book for students reading about sport and exercise psychology for the first time.

    • Photo: Amy Warnock

      Amy Warnock answered on 13 Jun 2018:


      I’m actually a neuroscientist so afraid I don’t have many psychology book recommendations, but if you’re interested in neuroscience a book that I’m reading at the moment which I’m really enjoying is Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks which is all about music and the brain (my two favourite things!). Phantoms of the Brain is also fascinating – they’re not textbooks but are both a great read if neuroscience is something you’re interested in!

    • Photo: Viren Swami

      Viren Swami answered on 13 Jun 2018:


      I’d recommend 50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology by Scott Lilienfeld and colleagues. The book discusses some of the most widespread myths of popular psychology (a type of psychology that is not based on scientifically proven facts but is widely believed by the general public) and will give you an introduction to the sorts of studies that psychologists from different backgrounds conduct. It also gives you an idea of how scientists aim to think critically about issues that affect all of us.

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