How Do We Know Ourselves?

August 22, 2022
In this edifying volume, Myers (Psychology Through the Eyes of Faith), a psychology professor at Hope College, helps readers “think smarter about their lives, and... savor the wonders within and around us.” Adapted largely from Myers’s Talk Pysch blog, these 40 short essays provide “glimpses of psychology’s wisdom” on the self, relationships, and society. Readers of pop psychology will be familiar with much of Myers’s material, which covers such psych 101 topics as hindsight bias, confirmation bias, and inattentional blindness. Myers’s accessible explanations read as if he’s describing the concepts to a friend over lunch, as when he outlines the availability heuristic, which refers to the tendency to “estimate the commonality of events based on their mental availability,” by noting that more people fear flying than driving despite flying’s superior safety record because of the prominence of stories about airplane crashes in the media. More advanced students of psychology will appreciate the final chapter’s evaluation of psychological theories that have been absorbed into the mainstream, but have since been called into question. Myers’s bite-size treatment of the current state of social psychology research makes for a quick and illuminating overview of the human mind. Novices would do well to pick up this breezy primer.

Starred review from September 1, 2022

Renowned as a researcher, professor, and textbook author of psychological science, Myers (Exploring Psychology) has written this book of 40 essays that provides his thoughts, insights, and psychological observations on how people come to know themselves. He covers many topics with notable ones about self-knowledge, attention, fear, confidence, trauma, friendships, and happiness. Each essay is a smaller bite-sized serving on the topic; however, this seems to be the perfect extent to provide understanding and contemplation for readers. He easily combines research and science into his essays without being too technical. One fascinating essay delves into the topic of why some think everyone else appears to be enjoying themselves more than them. He discusses the problems with constant comparisons and how social media has affected self-perceptions. The book's format makes for a comfortable, nearly conversational read, while also engaging readers in a deep dive of pondering their lives. VERDICT This book is highly recommended for those interested in psychology, self-help, reflections, and the desire to understand society.--Bridgette Whitt

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October 15, 2022
The occasionally odd and sometimes surprising phenomena revealed by psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral economics are sampled and explained in this easy-to-understand collection of brief essays by social psychologist Myers. The book is arranged into three parts. addressing self, relationships, and a psychological perspective on the world at large. Language, habits, intuition, perception, the impact of both genetics and the environment on behavior, and failure are a few of the intriguing topics addressed. The questionable effect of birth-order, memories of near-death experience and other harrowing episodes, narcissism, polarization and dissent, the benefits of synchronized activities (walking, singing, dancing) are all discussed. While some psychological concepts--belief perseverance, hindsight bias, emotional contagion--seem self-evident or intuitive, other notions presented here can be more complicated. But even those denser ideas (e.g., availability heuristic) are simplified. Readers learn about implicit egotism (favoring things we associate with ourselves) and social facilitation phenomenon (the invigorating force of other people's company). While some may find Myers' penchant for proverbs is a wee bit wearisome, the complexity of human behavior never gets tiring.

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Starred review from July 1, 2022
Thinking about our own thinking is difficult, but this book offers useful advice in an entertaining package. In his latest book, Myers, a respected figure in the field of psychology, aims to link academic findings with the everyday lives of ordinary people via essays grouped into themes of the self, relationships, and interactions with society. He readily admits that even after 50 years of study, he is still impressed, and often perplexed, by the human mind. Nevertheless, research can provide useful perspectives, helping us to look below the surface of our thinking. We all have a tendency to overestimate our abilities, even when the objective evidence is against us, and we have a strong need to be part of a group of people like ourselves. This can set up a dangerous pattern of polarization, especially in the digital era. "When like minds discuss, their attitudes often become more extreme," writes the author. "Like hot coals, like minds strengthen one another." The author cites data showing that many Americans, especially, don't interact with those who hold different political views--and don't want to. The urge to be part of an in-group is balanced by our need to be different at a personal level. Other people think about us much less than we might believe, which can be liberating. "A bad hair day hardly matters," Myers writes. "And if we wear yesterday's clothes again today, few will notice. Fewer will care. Of those, fewer still will remember." The author has some fun looking at the phenomenon of being "phubbed"--i.e., "phone snubbed," when someone stops talking to you to check their phone. Though Myers is unquestionably an authority, he sometimes trades depth for breadth; some essays are just getting interesting when he moves on to another topic. The author does include a comprehensive reference section for those who want to further investigate a particular area. A witty, enjoyable book with plenty of food for thought.

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