Psychology, Science and History by Dean Keith Simonton

Psychology, Science and History by Dean Keith Simonton

Is there a scientific way to assess the validity of generalizations about historical events? Can we test psychological hypotheses about human behavior? In this book the author describes how the emerging field of historiometry provides such tests by applying quantitative analyses to historical data about representative people and events. The author presents an overview of historiometry, explaining how it is practised and how useful it can be to historians, psychologists, and other social scientists. He discusses the methodology of historiometry - formulating the basic questions of a study, deciding what information is necessary, and analyzing the information so as to assess the original hypothesis. He then shows how historiometry has expanded our scientific understanding of such key phenomena as genius, creativity, leadership, and aggression. By scrutinizing the personal papers, biographies, and creative output of historical figures ranging from composers, writers, and scientists to American presidents, European monarchs, and generals, practitioners of historiometry can illuminate many variables affecting human personality and achievement. Throughout the book, Simonton provides examples of the way that historiometry offers insights into such areas as the degree to which attitudes toward politicians are influenced by specific persuasion techniques, the effect of economic and political conditions on the authoritarian personality, and the impact of genetic endowment, birth order, family background, and formal education on personality development.

Dean Keith Simonton is Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Davis. His research concerns various aspects of genius, creativity, leadership, talent, and aesthetics. Simonton's numerous honors include the William James Book Award, the Sir Francis Galton Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Study of Creativity, the Rudolf Arnheim Award for Outstanding Achievement in Psychology and the Arts, the SPSP Theoretical Innovation Prize, the George A. Miller Outstanding Article Award, and three Mensa Awards for Excellence in Research. He has produced more than 460 publications, including more than a dozen books. His most recent books include The Social Science of Cinema (2014), Great Flicks: Scientific Studies of Cinematic Creativity and Aesthetics (2011), and Genius 101 (2009).

SKU	Nicht verfügbar
ISBN 13	9780300047714
ISBN 10	0300047711
Titel	Psychology, Science and History
Autor	Dean Keith Simonton
Buchzustand	Nicht verfügbar
Bindungsart	Hardback
Verlag	Yale University Press
Erscheinungsjahr	1990-11-28
Seitenanzahl	304
Hinweis auf dem Einband	Die Abbildung des Buches dient nur Illustrationszwecken, die tatsächliche Bindung, das Cover und die Auflage können sich davon unterscheiden.
Hinweis	Nicht verfügbar