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A review by jordanlei
How Do We Know Ourselves?: Curiosities and Marvels of the Human Mind by David G. Myers
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
2.75
I found the book overall to be quite good. Myers writes in highly accessible language, using credible peer-reviewed sources to back up each of his essays. He also does a great job of pointing out wherever scholarly disagreement arises - and why. In 40 concise essays, he brings to light the wonderfully weird ways that the human brain works, and how that interfaces with our interpersonal lives. He also provides some guidance on how we can prevent some of the shortcomings that are so often overlooked in our own interactions. I found the last chapter especially to be a beautiful way to summarize why even though psychological sciences (like many other subfields of science) are facing a replication crisis, it's still worth educating ourselves on the findings that have been replicated while also seeking more solid foundations for new findings.
While this book is a good introduction to the world of psychology, I personally left the book feeling a little underwhelmed by the book - perhaps partly because I happen to work in fields that are adjacent to this literature. This made some of the chapters in this book feel more like a review than novel ideas. Still, many of the findings described here were both surprising and even exciting to read. I also found that the short-essay format of this book felt a little haphazard; unlike some of the short essays I've read previously, How Do We Know Ourselves sometimes comes across as a bit scattered, and I was partially expecting the pieces to build on each other in some way. Lastly, I felt that some of the solutions presented in this book felt a little simplistic - in part, it's a tall order, because changing the way people behave is a very difficult thing to do; all the same, I thought that if anyone could do it, it would be someone like Myers. That said, the collection as a whole is still a good overview of some of the most exciting recent findings in psych and behavioral sciences.
While this book is a good introduction to the world of psychology, I personally left the book feeling a little underwhelmed by the book - perhaps partly because I happen to work in fields that are adjacent to this literature. This made some of the chapters in this book feel more like a review than novel ideas. Still, many of the findings described here were both surprising and even exciting to read. I also found that the short-essay format of this book felt a little haphazard; unlike some of the short essays I've read previously, How Do We Know Ourselves sometimes comes across as a bit scattered, and I was partially expecting the pieces to build on each other in some way. Lastly, I felt that some of the solutions presented in this book felt a little simplistic - in part, it's a tall order, because changing the way people behave is a very difficult thing to do; all the same, I thought that if anyone could do it, it would be someone like Myers. That said, the collection as a whole is still a good overview of some of the most exciting recent findings in psych and behavioral sciences.