Psychology

Our Psychology Collection features a diverse group of study guides, from pioneering texts by Sigmund Freud and B.F. Skinner to self-help books and contemporary nonfiction about human nature, the mind, and social psychology. If you’re an educator looking to round out a college-level syllabus, or a book club organizer with a penchant for curiosity and dynamic discussion, this collection could help you find just what you're looking for.

Publication year 2001

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Society: Community, Identity: Mental Health, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt

Tags Education, Education, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy, Mental Illness, Health / Medicine, Psychology, Self Help


Publication year 2010

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Identity: Mental Health, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Joy

Tags Self Help, Inspirational, Psychology, Religion / Spirituality, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy, Mental Illness, Health / Medicine

The Gifts of Imperfection: Your Guide to Wholehearted Living (2022) by Brené Brown (originally published as The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are in 2010) introduces the key concepts that have become a signature of Brown’s research, such as reclaiming the importance of vulnerability and defining shame as an obstacle to self-development and connection. The original book spent 75 weeks on The New... Read The Gifts of Imperfection Summary


Publication year 2006

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Religion / Spirituality, Science / Nature, Philosophy, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy

The God Delusion, written by Richard Dawkins, was first published in 2006 by Bantam Press. In the book, Dawkins, a British evolutionary biologist and ethologist, uses his background in science and rational thought to explore and critique the concepts of God and religion. This non-fiction work falls under the subgenre of atheist literature and tackles concepts such as the question of the existence of God, the psychological and social reasons for religious belief, the impact... Read The God Delusion Summary


Publication year 1968

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality

Tags Inspirational, Philosophy, Self Help, Business / Economics, Religion / Spirituality, Finance / Money / Wealth, Christian literature, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Classic Fiction


Publication year 1949

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Identity: Language

Tags Psychology, Anthropology, Anthropology, Philosophy, Philosophy, History: World, Psychology, Fantasy, Classic Fiction, Religion / Spirituality

Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces is a nonfiction work about world mythology published in 1949. Campbell, a mythology scholar and professor of literature, presents his theory of the “monomyth,” or the narrative tropes common to all storytelling traditions. The first half of the book covers the monomyth of the hero’s journey. The second half deals with similarities among a wide range of creation myths.In his Prologue, Campbell considers why people from all... Read The Hero with a Thousand Faces Summary


Publication year 1976

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Identity: Sexuality, Identity: Mental Health, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Society: Community

Tags Sociology, Philosophy, Love / Sexuality, Psychology, LGBTQ, Post Modernism, Education, Education, French Literature, History: World, Psychology, Philosophy

Michel Foucault was a French philosopher and theorist whose most significant works were first published in the 1960s and 1970s. Throughout his career, he examined the mechanisms of power and challenged accepted historical narratives, working to show how institutional power shapes the field of possible knowledge to its own advantage. The History of Sexuality, published in three volumes between 1976 and 1984—with a fourth volume published posthumously, in draft form, in 2018—examines the development of... Read The History of Sexuality Summary


Publication year 2007

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Identity: Mental Health, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Self Discovery

Tags Psychology, Self Help, Science / Nature, Philosophy, Health / Medicine, Psychology, Philosophy, Mental Illness, Religion / Spirituality


Publication year 1958

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Life/Time: Birth, Natural World: Appearance & Reality

Tags Philosophy, Politics / Government, Education, Education, Sociology, History: World, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Classic Fiction

The Human Condition, written by Hannah Arendt and originally published in 1958, is a work of political and philosophical nonfiction. Arendt, a German-American philosopher and political theorist, divides the central theme of the book, vita activa, into three distinct functions: labor, work, and action. Her analyses of these three concepts form the philosophical core of the book. The rest of the book is historical in approach.Part 1 serves as an introduction to Arendt’s argument. She... Read The Human Condition Summary


Publication year 2016

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Teams, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt

Tags Business / Economics, Leadership/Organization/Management, Psychology

The Ideal Team Player is a 2016 book by leadership development expert Patrick Lencioni. The book provides an extension of the work Lencioni performed for his 2011 book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. Lencioni employs a two-part structure for the book, as it begins with a third-person fictional narrative before shifting to a first-person, instructional point of view. In both sections, Lencioni examines the significance of being able to identify three essential characteristics of... Read The Ideal Team Player Summary


Publication year 2018

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Society: Community, Self Discovery, Relationships: Teams, Emotions/Behavior: Courage

Tags Business / Economics, Leadership/Organization/Management, Self Help, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy


Publication year 1973

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Society: Colonialism, Society: Nation, Society: Community, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict

Tags Anthropology, Sociology, Philosophy, Science / Nature, Psychology, Politics / Government, Education, Education, Anthropology, Social Science, History: World, Philosophy, Arts / Culture


Publication year 1899

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Relationships: Family, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Coming of Age

Tags Psychology, Science / Nature, Philosophy, History: World, Psychology, Philosophy, Self Help, Classic Fiction

Sigmund Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams is a landmark work in the field of psychoanalysis. First published in 1899, it is one of Freud's most famous and influential books. At its core, the book explores the significance of dreams in revealing the unconscious desires, fears, and conflicts of the individual. Freud argues that dreams are not just random collections of images and sensations, as was commonly held in his day. Neither are they inspirations from... Read The Interpretation of Dreams Summary


Publication year 1934

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Natural World: Objects

Tags Philosophy, Science / Nature, Education, Education, Sociology, History: World, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Classic Fiction


Publication year 1997

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Coming of Age

Tags Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Psychology, Psychology, Biography

The Lost Boy is the sequel to Dave Pelzer’s first memoir, A Child Called “It,” which tells the story of how he was severely abused by his mother as a young child. In The Lost Boy, Pelzer recounts how he is finally removed from his parents’ custody and placed in foster care. After years of neglect and abuse, David struggles to adjust to his new living situations and the uncertainty that comes with the life... Read The Lost Boy Summary


Publication year 2022

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage

Tags Relationships, Self Help, Psychology, Love / Sexuality, Parenting, Religion / Spirituality, Psychology


Publication year 2007

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Good & Evil

Tags Science / Nature, Social Science, Sociology, History: World, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy, Self Help, Politics / Government

The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil, published in 2007, is a nonfiction book written by Philip Zimbardo, an American psychologist and a professor emeritus at Stanford University. He rose to prominence for his Stanford Prison Experiment and is founder and president of the Heroic Imagination Project. In The Lucifer Effect, Zimbardo argues that humans are neither good nor evil. Instead, systemic and situational forces shape individuals’ actions, and every individual has the... Read The Lucifer Effect Summary


Publication year 1959

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Self Discovery

Tags Business / Economics, Self Help, Leadership/Organization/Management, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy


Publication year 2020

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Values/Ideas: Win & Lose, Relationships: Teams

Tags Psychology, Biography, Sports, Psychology, Self Help, African American Literature


Publication year 1983

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Joy, Identity: Mental Health, Society: Class, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Society: Education, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Education, Education, Anthropology, Anthropology, Gender / Feminism, Social Science, Business / Economics, Sociology, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy


Publication year 1902

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Society: Class, Society: War, Society: Colonialism

Tags Poetry: Dramatic Poem, Victorian Period, Military / War, Class, History: African , History: European, Psychology, Grief / Death, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Classic Fiction, British Literature