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The term is often derogatory, used to describe psychological concepts that are oversimplified, out of date, unproven, misunderstood or misinterpreted; however, the term may also be used to describe professionally-produced psychological knowledge, regarded by most experts as valid and effective, that is intended for use by the general public.''APA Dictionary of Psychology'', 1st ed., Gary R. VandenBos, ed., Washington: American Psychological Association, 2007. TYPES OF POPULAR PSYCHOLOGY Popular psychology commonly takes the form of:
POPULAR PSYCHOLOGY AND SELF-HELP Popular psychology is an essential ingredient of the gigantic Self Help industry. Cushman, P. (1990) "Why the self is empty: Toward a historically situated psychology. ''American Psychologist'', 45, 599-611. Cited in Fried, Stephen. (1998) "An Undergraduate Course in American Popular Psychology." ''Teaching of Psychology'' Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 38-39. According to Fried and Shultis, criteria for a good self-help book include "claims made by the author as to the book's efficacy, the presentation of problem-solving strategies based on scientific evidence and professional experience, the clarity of the writing, the author's credentials and professional experience, and the inclusion of a bibliography." Fried, S.B., and Shultis, G.A. (1995) "The best self-help and self-awareness books: A topic-by-topic guide to quality information." Chicago: American Library Association Editions. Cited in Fried, Stephen. (1998) "An Undergraduate Course in American Popular Psychology." ''Teaching of Psychology'' Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 38-39. Three potential dangers of self-help books are: Craighead, L., McNamara, K., and Horan, J. (1984) "Perspectives on self-help and bibliotherapy: You are what you read." In S. Brown and R. Lent (eds.), ''Handbook of counselling psychology.'' New York: Wiley. Pp 878 – 929. Cited in Fried, Stephen. (1998) "An Undergraduate Course in American Popular Psychology." ''Teaching of Psychology'' Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 38-39.
POP PSYCHOLOGISTS Some figures/movements characterized at varying times as exponents of pop psychology include:
SEE ALSO FOR FURTHER READING
Stewart argues that influential self-help gurus misuse the rhetoric of civil rights and 1960s dissent in preaching liberation from guilt, "artificial distinctions," and virtually everything else in the pursuit of self-realization. The goal is "to try to counteract the tide of misleading information about the field of psychology with a concise guide to some things that the well-informed student of psychology and the interested general public ought to know." REFERENCES |
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