Beyond human nature : how culture and experience shape the human mind
Prinz, Jesse J.2012
Book
In this era of genome projects and brain scans, it is easy to overestimate the role of biology in human psychology We hear that men and women think differently because their genes "hardwire" them to be a certain way, and the media go into a frenzy every time a scientist claims to have isolated the genes that cause alcoholism, obesity, or even bullying. Beyond Human Nature liberates us from this reductive, deterministic mode of thinking by shattering the myth that our identities are at the mercy of biological forces. In this passionate corrective to the idea that DNA is destiny, Jesse J. Prinz opens our eyes to the most extraordinary aspect of human nature: that nurture can supplement and supplant nature, allowing our minds to be profoundly influenced by experience and culture. Drawing on cutting-edge research in neuroscience, psychology, and anthropology, Prinz reveals how our differing cultures and life experiences shape every aspect of our behavior-including morality, love, sexuality, and success-thereby making each of us unique. To support his claims, he describes the latest studies on the nature of addiction, willpower, and intelligence as well as fascinating cultural phenomena-from a type of mental illness that only affects certain societies in Southeast Asia to the fact that American Southerners are twice as likely as Northerners to kill someone over an argument.
Main title:
Beyond human nature : how culture and experience shape the human mind / Jesse J. Prinz.
Author:
Edition:
1st American ed.
Imprint:
New York : W.W. Norton, 2012.
Collation:
xii, 401 p. : ill. ; 25 cm.
Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (p. 369-387) and index.
Contents:
Machine generated contents note: 1.The Nature-Nurture Debate -- 2.Putting the Genome Back in the Bottle -- 3.Get Smart -- 4.What Babies Know -- 5.Sensible Ideas -- 6.The Gift of the Gab -- 7.Words and Worlds -- 8.The Tao of Thought -- 9.Gender and Geometry -- 10.Fear and Loathing in Micronesia -- 11.Gladness and Madness -- 12.Coping with Cannibalism -- 13.In Bed with Darwin.
ISBN:
9780393061758 (hardcover)
Dewey class:
155.234
LC class:
BF161
Language:
English
Subject:
BRN:
147962
| Location | Collection | Call number | Status/Desc |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kathleen Syme Carlton | -Health | HEALTH 155.234 PRIN | Available |