First published in 1964, Psychology and Social Problems looks at a changing society and research into problems of the time. Many of the themes in the book, such as delinquency, mental health and racial conflict, are still familiar and current topics of discussion today. Social scientists had carried out extensive research into problems of urgent public concern, yet their findings were not widely known or understood and they had often been diffident in advocating policies based on their conclusions. Michael Argyle discussed the recent psychological and social research bearing on the origins of aggression, delinquency, mental disorder, racial and international prejudice, and industrial discontent; he went on to consider the implications of these studies for prevention and control and for the guidance of social change. This sophisticated and well-documented critique is presented with such lucidity and verve that it will appeal equally to laymen and to students and professional workers and can now be enjoyed in its historical context.

The efficiency of an organization and the well-being of those working within it are often dependent to a large extent on the social skills deployed by certain key personnel. The analysis of these skills and the training of people in their use had reached a stage of considerable sophistication. Originally published in 1981, this volume, edited by the foremost authority in the field, presents a wealth of ideas and information on how best to employ social skills training in health and welfare agencies that are still relevant today. The introduction describes the processes of social interaction in which social skills consist, introduces the social-skill model and shows how social competence is assessed and how the most effective social skills are discovered. Subsequent chapters deal with the social skills required of nurses, doctors, psychotherapists, social workers and those charged with child-rearing. There is a chapter which gives an account of the social skill problems of mental patients and the extent to which social inadequacy is responsible for their other problems. The final chapter discusses the main techniques of social skills training, and reviews their success in the light of follow-up studies. The book will be of historical value to all those concerned with the training and performance of personnel within the health related professions and to those with an academic interest in the psychology of human relations.

Psychology has influence in almost every walk of life. Originally published in 1997, A Century of Psychology is a review of where the discipline came from, where it had reached and where the editors anticipated it may go. Ray Fuller, Patricia Noonan Walsh and Patrick McGinley assembled an internationally recognised team of mainly European experts from the major applications and research areas of psychology. They begin with a critical review of methodology and its limitations and plot the course of gender and developmental psychology. They go on to include discussion of learning, intellectual disability, clinical psychology and the emergence of psychotherapy, educational psychology, organizational psychology, cognitive psychology, neuropsychology and many other topics, in particular community psychology, perception and alternative medicine. Enlightening, reflective and sometimes provocative, A Century of Psychology is required reading for anyone involved in psychology as a practitioner, researcher or teacher. It is also a lively introduction for those new to the discipline.

Born in Vienna in 1864, Bernard Hollander was a London-based psychiatrist. He is best known for being one of the main proponents of phrenology. This title originally published in 1931 looks at the different regions of the brain and their various functions in relation to intelligence. From the preface: "The records of cases collected by the author, including some of his own, point to there being at least three main regions of totally different functions.... Of these three regions, the frontal is by far the largest in man and the most important, being the region for the manifestation of the highest intellectual abilities." Back in print this is a chance to read all about the study of the brain, mind and external signs of intelligence from the early twentieth century.

Originally published in 1995 Positive Practice is for newcomers to the field of family therapy and systemic consultation including professionals from a variety of disciplines, such as psychology, psychiatry, social work, nursing, child care and protection, occupational therapy, paediatrics and general medical practice. Positive Practice is a step-by-step approach to family therapy written both as a treatment manual and as a training resource. It describes in detail a unique approach to consulting to families with youngsters who have psychological or social problems. It covers the difficulties associated with planning the first consultation, strategies for family assessment and problem formulation, methods for developing a therapeutic contract and goal setting, plans for conducting therapy and troubleshooting resistance, and ways of concluding therapy. It includes many diagrams and checklists and is essentially jargon-free. Practical exercises are given at the end of each chapter, making it an ideal training resource for any introductory course. Special issues discussed include adjunctive individual sessions, convening network meetings, jointly managing statutory and therapeutic responsibilities, ethical decision making, clinical audit and professional development. An integrative formulation model provides a focus for both guiding assessment and planning therapy. The approach to practice described in this book offers clinicians a way to integrate new ideas from the burgeoning literature on family therapy, theory and research into their clinical work.

To mark his retirement in 1966 from the Professorship of Psychiatry at the University of London, and the directorship of the Institute of Psychiatry, the Maudsley Hospital, Professor Lewis’s students edited and prepared an edition of his collected papers, in two volumes. Originally published in 1967 this volume reviews the psychiatric past, surveys the transitional stage psychiatry had reached, and looks forward to the attainable future. The author pays much attention to disputed areas of psychiatric practice and inquiry, how psychiatrists should be chosen and educated, what concepts and methods are required for the furtherance of the subject, what part should social treatment and psychological treatment play. Today it can be read and enjoyed in its historical context.