Classic Experiments in Psychology

by Douglas G. Mook

The typical survey course in psychology has time for only limited presentation of the research on which our knowledge is based. This book presents, in more depth than textbook treatment permits, the background, conduct, and implications of a selection of classic experiments in psychology. The selection is designed to be diverse, showing that even for research in vastly different areas of study, the logic of research remains the same--as do its traps and pitfalls.

The typical survey course in psychology has time for only limited presentation of the research on which our knowledge is based. As a result, many students come away with a limited understanding of the role of experiments in psychological science. Where do experiments come from and how are they conducted? What are the pitfalls and how can we avoid them? What advantages do they have over intuition, authority, and common sense as guides to knowing and acting? What distinguishes research-based psychology from psychobabble? What have we learned from experimentation in psychology?

This book presents, in more depth than textbook treatment permits, the background, conduct, and implications of a selection of classic experiments in psychology. The selection is designed to be diverse, showing that even for research in vastly different areas of study, the logic of research remains the same--as do its traps and pitfalls. This book will broaden and deepen the understanding of experimental methods in psychological research, examining where the research questions come from, how questions can be turned into experiments, and how researchers have faced the problems presented by research in psychology.

Genres: Psychology

362 pages, Hardcover

First published December 30, 2004

Reviews

[Marius · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I picked up this book, I expected something quite different. I might have been misled by my own interests in psychology so I was basically waiting for the stories behind Milgram, the Stanford Prison Experiment and maybe Asch and Pavlov. Instead, this book describes no less than 60 classical experiments from all different fields within psychology. The sheer number of studies as well as the apparent aim to report on the studies so that readers entirely unfamiliar with psychology can also understand them leaves little space for anything else but the procedure and main results. Also, the book is quite heavy on physiology, perception and cognition while neglecting social psychology a bit. I am therefore not sure how well-suited this book is for non-psychologists as an introduction into the field (and special caution is required when the Rorschach test is mentioned without critical contextualization). However, it was a nice way to remember long-ago lectures at the old university and to refresh their contents, while being surprised at the realization that the lecturers seemed to have done a good job introducing me to the extensiveness of the field.

[GoniKa Bhatia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is really amazing for the psychology students.