Human Psychology

Most people, including many policy makers, activists, scientists, and philosophers, have encouraged us to be more empathetic - to feel the pain and pleasure of others. Yale researcher and author Paul Bloom argues that this is a mistake. Far from leading us to improve the lives of others, empathy is a capricious and irrational emotion that appeals to our narrow prejudices. It muddles our judgment and often leads to cruelty. We are at our best when we are smart enough not to rely on it and draw upon a more distanced compassion.

Everyone knows that timing is everything. But we don't know much about timing itself. Our lives are a never-ending stream of "when" decisions: when to start a business, schedule a class, get serious about a person. Yet we make those decisions based on intuition and guesswork. Timing, it's often assumed, is an art. In When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, Pink shows that timing is really a science.

Fulfilling sex nourishes love, rejuvenates the body, and boosts mental health. Unfortunately, prevailing attitudes in the West work against the natural capacity of women to realize their sexual potential and experience deep orgasmic states. Tantric Orgasm for Women offers women a fresh look at the ecstatic bliss possible within their bodies, using knowledge and approaches from the sensually cultivated traditions of the East.

We are in the midst of a mental health crisis. An estimated one in five American adults suffer from some form of mental illness. Despite the billions of dollars spent in pharmaceutical research and the rising popularity of antidepressant drugs, we are more depressed and anxious than ever before. What if we’re looking for solutions in the wrong places? What if instead of treating mental illness with prescriptions and medication, we changed what we eat and how we feed our brains?

What do influence people’s behavior? Why people think what they think, say what they say, do what they do? And what if you could analyze what’s behind their words and their actions? You could read them like an open book. You could influence them, even manipulate them. Don't worry, you're going to learn it. In this 3-books-in-1 guide, you’ll find all the answers you're looking for about people’s behavior and manipulation.

Based on the popular research project Whores of Yore, and written with her distinctive humor and wit, A Curious History of Sex draws upon Dr. Kate Lister's extensive knowledge of sex history. From medieval impotence tests to 20th-century testicle thefts, from the erotic frescoes of Pompeii, to modern-day sex-doll brothels, Kate unashamedly roots around in the pants of history, debunking myths, challenging stereotypes, and generally getting her hands dirty.

From Dr. Mariel Buqué, a leading trauma psychologist, comes this groundbreaking guide to transforming intergenerational pain into intergenerational abundance. With Break the Cycle, she delivers the definitive guide to healing inherited trauma. Weaving together scientific research with practical exercises and stories from the therapy room, Dr. Buqué teaches readers how trauma is transmitted from one generation to the next and how they can break the cycle through tangible therapeutic practices, learning to pass down strength instead of pain to future generations.

We've all seen the happiness on the face of a child while playing in the school yard. Or the blissful abandon of a golden retriever racing across a lawn. This is the joy of play. By definition, play is purposeless, all-consuming, and fun. But as Dr. Stuart Brown illustrates, play is anything but trivial. It is a biological drive as integral to our health as sleep or nutrition. We are designed by nature to flourish through play.

Pioneering research psychologist Roy F. Baumeister collaborates with New York Times science writer John Tierney to revolutionize our understanding of the most coveted human virtue: self-control. Drawing on cutting-edge research and the wisdom of real-life experts, Willpower shares lessons on how to focus our strength, resist temptation, and redirect our lives. It shows listeners how to be realistic when setting goals, monitor their progress, and how to keep faith when they falter.

It goes by many names: bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and more. In Jay Wiseman's SM 101, the long-taboo subject of consensual sadomasochism is accurately, insightfully presented in the context of adult human sexuality, experience, and tradition for the interested non-specialist general listener.

This classic work on the rules of sex - updated for a new generation - is still as provocative as the day it was published, providing simple explanations for any and all questions about what happens in the bedroom.

"What is wrong with men today?" That is the question the 27 million single, separated, and divorced women in this country ask themselves again and again. Married women sometimes wonder too. This is the book they’ve all been waiting for. The Love Crisis is a field guide to the contemporary male. Women define the Love Crisis through complaints about skittish men who play destructive games with them or who are unable to make commitments.

Dr. John Gottman, the country's preeminent researcher on marriage, is famous for his Love Lab at the University of Washington in Seattle where he deciphers the mysteries of human relationships through scientific research. His 35 years of exploration have earned him numerous awards, including from the National Institute of Mental Health, the American Psychological Association, and the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Now, Dr. Gottman offers surprising findings and advice on the characteristic that is at the heart of all relationships: trust.

The global financial crisis has made it painfully clear that powerful psychological forces are imperiling the wealth of nations today. From blind faith in ever-rising housing prices to plummeting confidence in capital markets, "animal spirits" are driving financial events worldwide.

Alexandra Horowitz’s brilliant On Looking: Eleven Walks with Expert Eyes shows us how to see the spectacle of the ordinary - to practice, as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle put it, "the observation of trifles". On Looking is structured around a series of eleven walks the author takes, mostly in her Manhattan neighborhood, with experts on a diverse range of subjects, including an urban sociologist, the well-known artist Maira Kalman, a geologist, a physician, and a sound designer. She also walks with a child and a dog to see the world as they perceive it.

Men are right. The "relationship talk" does not help. Dr. Patricia Love’s and Dr. Steven Stosny’s How to Improve Your Marriage Without Talking About It reveals the stunning truth about marital happiness: Love is not about better communication. It's about connection.

Wild Feminine offers a unique, holistic approach to reclaiming the power, spirit, and joy of the female body and to understanding its connection to creative energy flow. By restoring physical and energetic balance in the pelvic bowl, women can learn to care for themselves in a nourishing and respectful manner, heal spiritual fractures, and renew their relationship with the sacred feminine.

Gravity affects every aspect of our physical being, but there’s a psychological force just as powerful - yet almost nobody has heard of it. It’s responsible for bringing groups of people together and pulling them apart, making certain goals attractive to some and not to others, and fueling cycles of anxiety and conflict. In Wanting, Luke Burgis draws on the work of French polymath René Girard to bring this hidden force to light and reveals how it shapes our lives and societies.

Is There Sex After Marriage? is the answer for the millions of Americans trapped in the cycle of low- or no-sex marriages. Contrary to the widespread cultural acceptance, from TV shows to standup comedy, sex doesn't have to end once the honeymoon does. Seasoned sex-pert Carol Botwin brings her decades of relationship experience to bear and teaches couples with no-nonsense candor and plenty of humor how to rekindle the fire they had in their courtship, and how to keep it burning forever.

For all men and women who thirst to love and be loved by a woman, these words and stories of guidance from Clarissa Pinkola Estes are aqua vitea, the water for life and soul. Dr. Estes teaches that in love relationships, each partner challenges, nourishes and transforms the other. To achieve this lifelong love requires an understanding of the mysterious internal cycles that fuel relationships.