I need some books that help me understand why are the way we are, universal emotions and problems people face, human nature, thinking, emotional inteligence , how our brain works etc. mostly psychology books from writers that dedicated their life to studying topics like these. Please don’t reccomend books that are instagrammable or ‘how to’ motivational books. I need some reliable books from scientists and doctors in the field of psychology of human behavior because I’m having a hard time understanding myself and people around me. I think books can help me, I just don’t know where to start. I was thinking maybe Sapiens: A brief history of humankind? I read that it is unreliable and untrue and this is what scares me the most with books. I don’t know where to start and what to believe.
by Sike1997
4 Comments
[Behave](https://amp.theguardian.com/books/2017/jun/09/behave-by-robert-sapolsky-review) by Robert Sapolsky might be of interest to you.
Behaviorism by John B. Watson, the man who invented this theory and school.
I think you need to allow yourself to read and learn and question and form your own opinions over time.
Sapiens is interesting and at least somewhat true.
Recommendations:
1. Basic university-level psychology textbook — any book for an intro level course is fine
2. Behavioral Neuroscience textbook — Breedlove & Watson is well-known, but really any text is probably okay
3. Learning and Memory — probably Gluck
4. Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl — Austrian psychiatrist survived the Holocaust and developed a version of existential psychotherapy based on this experience (content warning: Holocaust)
5. Ishmael by Daniel Quinn – philosophical, about cultural myths (meant to be anthropological)
The Body Keeps The Score might be one to check out