Mindchangers

Summary

Our understanding of the human mind has been shaped by 200 years of accidents, inquiries, tests and observations. Here are the stories behind 33 of psychology's most famous and influential experiments, and their creators.

Award-winning broadcaster and psychology lecturer Claudia Hammond uncovers the often surprising and sometimes dark histories behind landmark studies such as The Stanford Prison Experiment, Harlow's Monkeys, Little Albert, and the Marshmallow Test. Can their lessons be applied to us today, were they even correct in the first place, and - in some cases - should these experiments have happened at all? In addition to covering topics like memory, parenting, gender, dreams, superstition and phobias, Mindchangers recounts how Abraham Maslow defined humans' hierarchy of needs, Anna Freud revealed the importance of child observation, Solomon Asch proved how we conform to what's expected of us, and Carl Rogers' patient-centred approach changed psychotherapy forever.

Why do we hear our name immediately when it's whispered in a crowded room? What really happened when people were asked to administer life-threatening electric shocks, and what can it tell us about the rise of Nazism? What does Chinese Whispers tell us about memory? How did an experiment with a doll alert us to the dangers of imitative behaviour? Can eyewitness testimony be trusted? And what can we learn about language from a boy raised by wolves? Mindchangers provides the fascinating answers to all of these questions, and many more.