Psychology at the Movies

by Skip Dine Young

Psychology at the Movies explores the insights to be gained by applying various psychological lenses to popular films including cinematic depictions of human behavior, the psychology of filmmakers, and the impact of viewing movies. Uses the widest range of psychological approaches to explore movies, the people who make them, and the people who watch them Written in an accessible style with vivid examples from a diverse group of popular films, such as The Silence of the Lambs, The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars, Taxi Driver, Good Will Hunting, and A Beautiful Mind Brings together psychology, film studies, mass communication, and cultural studies to provide an interdisciplinary perspective Features an extensive bibliography for further exploration of various research fields

383 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 14, 2012

About the author

As an undergraduate, Dr. Dine Young majored in psychology and minored in film studies, combining his interests in the human mind with his love of movies. In graduate school, he explored interdisciplinary interests in symbolism, narrative and identity development at the same time he was trained in clinical psychology. He has since pursued a research program on "movies as equipment for living"--how movies (as well as other art and narrative forms) become a part of people's autobiographical memories and personal identities. Recently, he has written a book, Psychology at the Movies, that summarizes the many ways psychologists have studied movies. He is also a licensed clinical psychologist.

Reviews

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining read depicting the way movies influence our emotional and psychological states. I was particularly fond of the emotional assessment appendix at the end of the book that linked specific movies and scenes to specific emotional states. I also enjoyed the author's personal interpretation of the current research material, and there were compelling arguments throughout regarding using cinema as both as a therapeutic and teaching tool.

[Sunday · Rating 4 out of 5]

liked
190 pages
- read this for my psych class, enjoyed it. don't have much to say as my assignment was writing my thoughts on the book and i don't feel like transcribing all that rn