In Search of Mind: Essays in Autobiography

by Jerome Bruner

The eminent psychologist reflects on the course of his work, examines the development of the study of psychology and his substantial contributions to its growth, and provides a glimpse of himself as thinker, teacher, and student of the mind

Genres: Psychology, Biography, Nonfiction, Science

306 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1983

About the author

Jerome Seymour Bruner is an American psychologist predominately in the fields of developmental, educational, and legal psychology, and is one of the pioneers of the cognitive psychology movement in the United States. He is a senior research fellow at the New York University School of Law. He received his B.A. in 1937 from Duke University and his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1941. During World War II, Bruner served on the Psychological Warfare Division of the Supreme Headquarters of the Allied Expeditionary Force Europe committee under Eisenhower, researching social psychological phenomena.

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’d been wanting to read something by Bruner, and since my library system isn’t doing transfers at this time, this career autobiography is all that was available. (I actually thought these would be essays *about* autobiography.)
It wasn’t a great place to start. Though this was apparently part a larger project to make the sciences—including the social sciences—more accessible, I don’t think it achieved that end. It’s too impersonal to be engaging as a bio and there isn’t room to to explore the actual work in depth: Bruner’s own work and that which it was built upon. We’re left with a lot of references to people and places that don’t mean much of anything to me. So I can’t say this is the book to bring psychology to the masses. Possibly worthwhile for those already familiar with that history/context.

[Sam Schulman · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I was an undergraduate in the late 60s, Jerome Bruner was the biggest star in academic psychology, which perhaps wasn't saying much - it was already a gut major. One knew about him because of a certain attitude of seriousness, and a tone of reverence when he was mentioned, than for any idea he was associated with, at least in my mind. He was the doyen of the Soc Rel department at Harvard, which was one of the atoms into which the old Psychology Department of William James was split in the late 50s/early 60s, and was the gut major among gut majors at the gut Ivy which was Harvard at that time.
I read this to accompany in reading my aged neurologist father, which I seldom have the chance to do with any pleasure, since he'd generaly rather reread the Critique of Pure Reason than any book published since.,,
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[Chris M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh. What a pain this was to read...his first few chapters are quite interesting, as are several more interspersed throughout the book, but his writing is so high flown. Moreover, all he does is name drop as if he is trying to impress the reader. In the end, he lost me. Sadly, it grew tiring. Although Bruner was clearly a part of the Cognitive Revolution, he dearly wants you to know it.