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Psychology and Our Curious World
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Psychology and Our Curious World

First Edition
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August 2024 | 696 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
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Your students are curious. Here is a text that shows them how psychology answers the questions they are asking.

In this introduction to psychology, Wind Goodfriend, Gary Lewandowski, Charity Brown Griffin, and Tom Heinzen investigate our everyday curiosities through psychological science – approaching the discipline's core tenets with candor, humor, and wonder. Psychology and Our Curious World invites students to ask questions, think critically, and make evidence-informed decisions to better understand their unique world and that of others.

Amplifying the impact of their work, all the authors are donating a portion of their royalties to charities close to their hearts, including: The Trevor Project, Thurgood Marshall College Fund, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Wounded Warrior Project, and GlassRoots.

Watch this video walkthrough and see how it works:


                              

 
Chapter 1 Introduction to Psychology
Starting Your Psychology Journey

 
A Brief History of Psychology in Europe and the United States

 
The Beauty of Diversity

 
How to Use This Book

 
 
Chapter 2 The Science of Psychology: Research Methods and Statistics
Elements of the Scientific Method

 
Types of Research

 
Correlational Analyses

 
Experimental Analyses

 
Analyzing the Quality of Research

 
The Open Science Movement

 
Ethical Considerations

 
 
Chapter 3 Biology and Your Brain
Your Unique Brain: The Nervous System and Neurons

 
Your Electrochemical Brain: Neurotransmitters and Drugs

 
Your Organized Brain: Major Parts and Functions

 
Your Beautiful Brain: Neuroimaging Techniques

 
Your Complicated Brain: The Endocrine System

 
 
Chapter 4 Identity, Sex, and Gender
Forming an Identity

 
Sex and Gender

 
Sexual Orientation

 
Sexuality, Culture, and Technology

 
Intersectionality

 
 
Chapter 5 Stress, Health, and Happiness
Stress: The Bad and the Good

 
The Consequences of Stress

 
Coping With Stress

 
Promoting Health

 
Pursuing Happiness

 
 
Chapter 6 Sensation and Perception
The Building Blocks of Sensation and Perception

 
Processing Visual Information

 
Processing Auditory Information

 
Processing Smell, Taste, Touch, and Body Movement

 
Perceptual Mistakes, Curiosities, and Controversies

 
 
Chapter 7 Consciousness
Consciousness

 
How Attention Works

 
Sleep

 
Dreams

 
Altered Consciousness

 
Drugs and Consciousness

 
 
Chapter 8 Human Development
Theoretical Approaches to Human Development

 
Prenatal, Infancy, and Early Childhood

 
Middle Childhood and Adolescence

 
Early and Middle Adulthood

 
Late Adulthood

 
 
Chapter 9 Learning
Classical Conditioning: Stimulus and Response

 
Operant Conditioning: Rewards and Punishments

 
Cognitive and Observational Learning

 
 
Chapter 10 Memory
The Nature of Memory

 
Making Memories: Encoding

 
Keeping Memories: Storage

 
Using Memories: Retrieval

 
Forgetting

 
Memorys' Imperfections

 
Serious and Intentional Memory Loss

 
 
Chapter 11 Motivation and Emotion
Theories of Motivation

 
Examples and Applications of Motivation

 
Theories of Emotion

 
Everyday Emotion: Culture, Expression, and Benefits

 
 
Chapter 12 Cognition and Intelligence
Cognition

 
Reasoning and Decision-Making

 
Problem-Solving Strategies

 
Language and Cognition

 
Intelligence

 
Measuring Intelligence

 
 
Chapter 13 Personality
Historical Approaches to Personality: Psychodynamic Theories

 
The Biological Approach

 
The Trait Approach

 
The Humanistic and Social Cognitive Approaches

 
Personality Controversies

 
 
Chapter 14 Social Psychology
Attitudes and Persuasion

 
How Groups Affect Our Behavior

 
Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination

 
Altruism and Aggression

 
Conformity and Obedience

 
 
Chapter 15 Psychological Disorders
Defining Mental Illness and Understanding Stigma

 
Anxiety, Worry, and Fear

 
Mood, Personality, and Substance Abuse

 
Schizophrenia and Dissociative Disorders

 
 
Chapter 16 Mental Health: Therapy and Treatment
Modern Approaches to Mental Health

 
Biomedical Therapy

 
Major Approaches to Psychotherapy

 
Group Therapy

 

Supplements

Instructor Site
LMS cartridge included with this title for use in Blackboard, Canvas, Brightspace by Desire2Learn (D2L), and Moodle

The LMS cartridge makes it easy to import this title’s instructor resources into your learning management system (LMS). These resources include:
  • Course management system integration makes it easy for student test results and graded assignments to seamlessly flow into the instructor's gradebook.
  • Test banks, aligned to Bloom's Taxonomy, provide a diverse range of 150 test items per chapter, including multiple choice, true/false, and essay.
  • Respondus® test generator is an alternate solution for delivering digital or printed tests built from the standard test bank.
  • Instructor's manual, authored by Dr. Natalie Dove at Eastern Michigan University, offers a wide range of customizable teaching and learning content for all chapters, including:
    • Correlation grids that align assessment questions to each learning objective
    • Discussion topics, activities, and questions
    • Critical thinking activities
    • Essay and research paper topics
    • Career activities
    • APA IPI learning activities that allow instructors to easily assess and report out on the APA IPI outcomes
    • Concept highlights
    • Suggested grading rubrics
    • QR codes that allow students to share questions they are curious about with the book's authors.
  • Lecture notes provide instructors an outline and the key concepts in each chapter to aid in lecture preparation
  • PowerPoint® slides offer a flexible, accessible, and customizable solution for creating multimedia lectures
  • Curious Conversations PowerPoint® slides provide in-class and online discussion topics aligned to the textbook's "Have You Ever Wondered" questions and learning objectives, piquing students' curiosity and increasing their engagement
  • Figures and tables from the book are available to support lecture preparation and class discussions
  • Sample course syllabi include suggested models for structuring your course
Don't use an LMS platform?

You can still access the online resources for this title via the password-protected Instructor Resource Site.

I love the use of relatable and contemporary examples. Consistent with Goodfriend's other works, there is excellent emphasis on diversity, evident not only in the examples but also in the range of researchers whose work is referenced.

Christina Pedram
Arizona State University

This text is rich in examples that show psychology in the everyday world. Students will be able to see how all their behaviors have a psychological origin. There is deep coverage and analysis of all the essential topics. There are thoughtful applications of tables, charts, and graphs that summarize key points. A story-telling and conversational tone is used to grab the reader's interest. Students will like this book!

Pam Bradley
Sandhills Community College

I really, really like the style. The narrative is well-written and a compelling read.

Frank R. George
Kent State University

I very much like the readability and inclusivity of this text.

Cindy Lahar
University of South Carolina Beaufort

I like that the book was written by professors who understand the struggle of engaging today's college students.

Eric Stephens
University of Cumberlands

I like the tone! I think it's friendly and quippy but not too informal. Relevant daily life applications throughout. Section topics anticipate my curiosity […]. The authors deliver on their goal to provide an accessible and curiosity-inspiring text.

Roger Young
University of South Florida

Humor and wonder are important elements in my own teaching and I love the idea that they are reflected in a text. […] very balanced and moves from concept to concept in a way that promotes understanding without bogging the reader down with a lot of detail.

Benjamin White
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Key features
  • This text is available in Sage Vantage, an intuitive learning platform that integrates quality Sage textbook content with assignable multimedia activities and auto-graded assessments to drive student engagement and ensure accountability. Unparalleled in its ease of use and built for dynamic teaching and learning, Vantage offers customizable LMS integration and best-in-class support. Select the Vantage tab on this page to learn more.  
    • Flashcards and note-taking tools help students better prepare for class. 
    • NEW! Audiobook Player allows students to listen to text content, boosting comprehension and retention. It offers flexible, on-the-go access, engaging both reluctant readers and auditory learners, improving the overall reading experience.
    • The Offline Reading option in the Student Dashboard offers greater accessibility to Vantage’s reading content, regardless of where students are or how strong their internet connection may be.
  • An award-winning, diverse author team of dynamic teacher-scholars offers a rich and fresh perspective rooted in inclusion and belonging.
  • The theme of curiosity – also a core outcome of the psychology major according to the APA – is supported by absorbing stories and Have you Ever Wondered? pedagogy in each chapter to engage students with the common queries they have, ensuring that the content is relatable and relevant.
  • Unique coverage of intersectionality and neurodiversity, which are absent from other introductory texts; these are topics that students are curious about.
  • Student-focused throughout, with fascinating and relevant applications of psychology that incorporate the aspirations, behaviors, trends and events affecting Gen Z.
  • A Guide to Student Success chapter outlines a plan for achieving academic goals with helpful tips, resources, and best practices tailored to students.
  • Spotlight on Research Methods sections offer detailed insight into the methods and statistics utilized in significant studies.
  • What's My Score? activities provide self-report scales on relevant topics, fostering self-discovery.
  • Real-life application of psychology principles through Psychology and Our Curious World features, connect theory to popular culture.
  • Career Corner features in each chapter, introducing a variety of psychology-related careers suitable for bachelor's degree holders, helping students explore their options post-graduation.
  • And fully supported by a suite of flexible, curated, cohesive teaching resources authored by expert instructors of intro psychology. Select the Resources tab on this page to learn more.
Vantage Reference: 
Psychology and Our Curious World - Vantage Learning Platform

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