Originally published in 1974, this volume examines the behavioural similarities of obese humans and animals whose so-called feeding centre (the ventro-medial hypothalamic nuclei) has been lesioned. Both the obese human and the VMH-lesioned animal seem to share a hyposensitivity to the internal (physiological) cues to eating and hypersensitivity to external cues associated with food. Beginning with a review, these obese animals and the human obese are compared point by point on experimental results reported in the literature. Then, new findings are presented that specifically tested humans for relationships that are well-established for lesioned animals. Next, a theoretical framework integrates the human and animal data to postulate that the relationship of cue prominence and probability of response is stronger for the obese than for normal. The causes for this, and the extension of the basis for the obese’s eating behaviour to other areas, are discussed in light of further experiments that will make this invaluable reading for all concerned with the history of obesity and the issues of regulatory behaviour.
The study reported in this volume grew out of some theoretical work, one phase of which bore specifically on the behavior of individuals in social movements that made specific (and unfulfilled) prophecies. We had been forced to depend chiefly on historical records to judge the adequacy of our theoretical ideas until we by chance discovered the social movement that we report in this book. At the time we learned of it, the movement was in mid-career but the prophecy about which it was centered had not yet been disconfirmed. We were understandably eager to undertake a study that could test our theoretical ideas under natural conditions. That we were able to do this study was in great measure due to the support obtained through the Laboratory for Research in Social Relations of the University of Minnesota. This study is a project of the Laboratory and was carried out while we were all members of its staff. We should also like to acknowledge the help we received through a grant-in-aid from the Ford Foundation to one of the authors, a grant that made preliminary exploration of the field situation possible.
Leon Festinger's forty-year scrutiny of that "curious animal, the modern human being" fundamentally transformed psychological thinking and shaped an entire scientific field, that of social psychology. The twenty-four papers brought together for the first time in Extending Psychological Frontiers encompass the classic contributions and critical turning points of Festinger's long career. Spanning the post-war decades, this unprecedented volume reveals the full scope, diversity, and import of Festinger's work. Its thematic arrangement clarifies the complex network of problems that preoccupied Festinger and the unique imaginative style that characterized his intellect. Whether examining the voting behavior of Catholics and Jews, the meaning of minute eye movements, the decisions of maze-running rats, or the proselytizing behavior of cultists, Festinger consistently transcended the traditional bounds of the discipline. His theory of cognitive dissonance, which describes how people attempt to resolve the tensions that result when they hold simultaneously two inconsistent beliefs, challenged preexisting psychological theories and produced more important ideas and experimentation than any other development in social psychology. Major writings on group dynamics, decision making, and perceptual processes further underscore the impact of Festinger's research not only on psychology, but also on a wide range of intellectual fronts, from literary theory to ethnology and from historical studies to contemporary political analysis. Extending Psychological Frontiers is an invaluable resource, providing a comprehensive and coherent picture of an extraordinary body of work.
Originally published in 1974, this volume examines the behavioural similarities of obese humans and animals whose so-called feeding centre (the ventro-medial hypothalamic nuclei) has been lesioned. Both the obese human and the VMH-lesioned animal seem to share a hyposensitivity to the internal (physiological) cues to eating and hypersensitivity to external cues associated with food. Beginning with a review, these obese animals and the human obese are compared point by point on experimental results reported in the literature. Then, new findings are presented that specifically tested humans for relationships that are well-established for lesioned animals. Next, a theoretical framework integrates the human and animal data to postulate that the relationship of cue prominence and probability of response is stronger for the obese than for normal. The causes for this, and the extension of the basis for the obese’s eating behaviour to other areas, are discussed in light of further experiments that will make this invaluable reading for all concerned with the history of obesity and the issues of regulatory behaviour.
This book initially was conceived in 1986 by Weary and Harvey as a revi sion and update of their 1981 Perspectives on Attributional Processes (pub lished by Wm. C. Brown," Dubuque, Iowa). However: toe extensive nature of recent work on attributional processes and the opportunity to collabo rate with Melinda Stanley as a coauthor led to a plan to develop a more comprehensive work than the 1981 book. It definitely is an amalgam of our interests in social and clinical psychology. It represents our commitment to basic theoretical and empirical inquiry blended with the applications of ideas and methods to understanding attribution in more naturalistic set tings, and as it unfolds in the lives of different kinds of people coping with diverse problems of living. The book represents a commitment also to the breadth of approach to attribution questions epitomized by Fritz Heider's uniquely creative mind and work in pioneering the area. To us, the attribu tional approach is not a sacrosanct school of thought on the human condi tion. It is, rather, a body of ideas and findings that we find to be highly useful in our work as social (JH and GW) and clinical (GW and MS) psychology scholars. It is an inviting approach that, as we shall describe in the book, brings together ideas and work from different fields in psychology-all concerned with the pervasive and inestimab1e importance of interpretive activity in human experience and behavior.
In 1954 Leon Festinger, a brilliant young experimental social psychologist in the process of outlining a new theory of human behavior - the theory of cognitive dissonance - and his colleagues infiltrated a cult who believed the end of the world was only months away. How would these people feel when their prophecy remained unfulfilled? Would they admit the error of their prediction, or would they readjust their reality to make sense of the new circumstances?
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