Smith: Cogn Psych _c1

This has been a good book. Well, the looks of it anyway. The pages were very nice, not a mark on the pages. The bad boy who owned this book smokes and the book had a stale smoke smell. The smell left after awhile so no problem. All is good for me as long as you buy it back. Catherine Soto

Eighteen leading scientists, led by Smith and Kosslyn, have reconstructed the foundations of cognitive psychology in an innovative, current, readable, important, factually accurate textbook. First and foremost, they weave recent neuroscientific discoveries into the discussion, without abandoning a primary focus on cognitive psychology. Their sophisticated framework integrates mental and neural levels of analysis, without confusing mind and brain, or structure and function. Until now, most cognitive psychology texts have tended to follow the organizational format of Broadbent's (1958) classic, Perception and Communication. Broadbent (1984) wrote, "Since those innocent days, the world has become more complex, so that it is difficult to point to a single summary of the same entire area... One widespread view, which I support, is that the framework of the 1958 book now requires shifting to a different kind of simplistic conceptual framework." In the current text, the authors' framework for discussing memory is unorthodox. They include two chapters on long-term memory followed (not preceded!) by a chapter on working memory. Several unusual chapters include Executive Processes (Chapter 7), Emotions and Cognition (Chapter 8), and Motor Cognition and Mental Simulation (Chapter 11). One great strength of this text is that it is well written. Kosslyn and others have a tendency to be very interesting in their other publications, so this may not be surprising. Moreover, this book seems to have benefited from aggressive editing for style and clarity. I'm betting that motivated undergraduate students will enjoy this book. Another great strength of this text is in the selection of the authors who wrote it. They are experts in their respective fields, able to present the material simply and clearly without the loss of accuracy that can attend scientific writing for a general audience. Many of these authors are what you might call Rennaissance scholars, with a wide range of professional interests. Here are the chapter contents, along with primary authors: (1) How the Brain Gives Rise to the Mind (Kosslyn), (2) Perception (Seiffert, Wolfe & Tong), (3) Attention (Behrmann & Geng), (4) Representation and Knowledge in Long-Term Memory (Barsalou), (5) Encoding and Retrieval from Long-Term Memory (Wagner), (6) Working Memory (Braver), (7) Executive Processes (Smith), (8) Emotion and Cognition (Phelps), (9) Decision Making (Hastie & Sanfey), (10) Problem Solving and Reasoning (Dunbar & Fugelsang), (11) Motor Cognition and Mental Simulation (Decety & Sommerville), and (12) Language (MacDonald). The first chapter (Kosslyn) provides a little history (remarkably little), and then sets the tone for the rest of the book with sections on "Understanding the Mind: The Form Theories of Cognition", "The Cognitive Brain", and "Studying Cognition." Moreover, it presents a classic debate on (surprise, surprise) the nature of mental imagery. I supp