The Psychology Book by DK books is fantastic as an introduction, really easy to read and goes into a bit about everything from the history of philosophy right up to modern day focuses of psychology. I read it before I started my undergrad and it really helped me to understand the basics :)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1405391243/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_idrLBbMQBWV8Z

u/swiffswiff · 2 points r/getdisciplined

-You can still be a smart person.

-Not many people have a lot of knowledge about anything except for specialists or those who enjoy hobbies and/or have specific interests in these topics.

-If you didn't read a lot then start now; start with easier to read classics - there are plenty of "books you should have read if you're into 'x' subject" lists if you google them.

-There are also plenty of audio books on YouTube. One that is relevant to where you are in your life now is called Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. It is narrated by the author and is about success and how people get there (>!it isn't all about doing well at school and your childhood!<).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAlgPnqgBs0 - Outliers by Malcom Gladwell audiobook

Audible UK | Free Audiobook with 30-Day Trial | Audible.co.uk - Audible also has other audio books however it's a fee paying service.

-Okay so you made a mistake by not doing well in school on purpose. But do you want to educate yourself and do well now? Below are links to ways you can learn for free (yes free) and some of the websites give you course certificates too. We are all lucky to live in a time where we can create a company or fix local or even global issue through learning online. You can do too.

You should know that coding and machine learning is the present and future by now. If you're dedicated enough you can learn a language like 'C' in 3-6 months.

https://the-more-u-know.tumblr.com/post/137720353403/24-invaluable-skills-to-learn-for-free-online-this - This tumblr post gives you a list of skills which you can learn for FREE. If any of the links have died then copy and paste the name of the website/company in google and it should come up.

Learn for free:

https://www.futurelearn.com/ - Courses written by universities ranging from Business Management to Public Health etc.

https://skillcrush.com/2016/03/15/64-online-resources-to-learn-to-code-for-free/ - Coding + more

https://www.coursera.org/ - A range of free courses on here too

https://www.khanacademy.org/ - Same again

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Psychology-Book-Nigel-Benson/dp/1405391243/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=psychology&qid=1557861646&s=gateway&sr=8-3 - If you're into reading these books cover a wide range of topics in an easily digestible way.

https://www.youtube.com/user/crashcourse - If you're bored or want to learn about pretty much any topic Crash Course is a good way to start as the videos are short and give you good references to explore further. You can learn anything from basic/high level statistics, coding, history etc.

-With regards to nihilism, let's say life is meaningless, why not make the most of it? You have a world to explore, there is beauty in the nature around you and there's so much you can learn. Even if life itself is meaningless it doesn't mean that you have to live like it is.

-I too am jealous of polymaths and incredible artists like Leonardo Da Vinci. I too wish I had the sheer dedication and obsession great minds like Nikola Tesla and Isaac Newton had to their dedicated fields. However, that doesn't mean I stop trying to to get there.

I am certain you have told yourself how much you can't do. But now it's time to explore what you can do. Put in the hours, time and effort and you will be great. Don't let anyone tell you you can't become anything, not even yourself.

"Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will" - Your dreams and goals are more likely to get destroyed by a lack of self belief than by failure itself. Believe in yourself!

"A year from now, you will have wish you started today" - So get some paper or make some notes on your laptop/phone (whatever you prefer) and make a list of things you want to do in life. Map out how you are going to get there (google is your friend) and give yourself specific and detailed targets with rigid dates.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZnsHxgKEIo&list=LLcv91TWa0e2eSSU9KSNJeqg&index=6&t=1s - Use this video to help make decisions. Chris is an educator, investor and former hedge fund manager. He worked for various very well known investment companies i.e. Goldman Sachs. He does a live call for a few hours usually every Thursday where he answers people's questions and sometimes is on there 3+ hours! He answers every single chat on his YouTube live stream so ask away, I'm certain he will be willing to help you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5SMyfbWYyE&list=LLcv91TWa0e2eSSU9KSNJeqg&index=126&t=0s - This last link is a very short inspirational speech from Steve Jobs so you can hear it from someone you know has been successful.

Even if you think you have wasted your childhood, don't waste your adulthood.

u/StWd · 2 points r/Psychonaut

Yeah so far I'm only reading a basic concepts and history text book. It's extremely basic and definitely for beginners but it's all super interesting and I know it's legit because my gf who did a psychology module as part of her current degree at university used this book for revision, reference and uni work :)

This is the book I'm reading atm.

I've made friends with some people at the local university I'm thinking of going next year to discuss whether I'll like serious study as opposed to just reading and learning like I do now and it seems like something I will enjoy and be good at.

I read about Jung archetypes in the book but I wasn't really convinced. My beliefs and experiences seem to be most in line with what I've read about Gesalt Psychology and from what I've read, I think my own experience with therapy was somewhat like Gesalt Therapy although it was called "Life-Coaching and Mindfulness training".

I understand what you mean about how modern psychology leans towards (cognitive) behaviorism however I do agree it makes sense. It's a lot more complex than classical conditioning and classical behaviourism. I'm not that far in my book however so I don't know enough to have a fully-fledged informed opinion about it.

Concerning the archetypes, since trying psychedelics I have been entertained the thought that ancient cultures were influenced by drugs because when I take them, and I know others have, I see languages that look ancient or symbolism that is similar to things I have seen of ancient civilisations- these are possibly archetypes which Jung spoke of. I think, if correct, these archetypes have effected and been moulding our world for so long they have formed religions from their misinterpretations and exaggerations.

Again, I don't want to say too much because I could be getting things wrong, there are only 5 or 6 pages about Jung and Archetypes in this book so I'm by no means an expert in these subjects but they do interest me!

u/decima205 · 2 points r/AcademicPsychology

The Psychology Book!

coughimighthaveapdftoshareifyoupmme

EDIT: fixed the link that I derped on

u/phrensouwa · 1 point r/explainlikeimfive

I didn't even know this could be possible. If it is, here something that might affect this.

> Polish-born psychologist Robert Zajonc (1923-2008) [...] conducted a study to find out whether the faces of spouses appear more similar after 25 years together. They compared photographs of couples taken during their first year of marriage with those taken 25 years later, and found that couples looked more alike after many years of being together. After ruling out several other potential explanations, the researchers decided that empathy was the most likely cause. Time had increased the couple's empathy for each other, and since human emotion is communicated through facial expressions, they may have begun to mimic each others' expressions in the process of empathizing, resulting in similar wrinkle patterns over time.

source: I remembered reading about this in The Psychology Book (Big Ideas)

better source: I could not find the actual study but wikipedia says that it involved 110 participants (55 couples) from the Midwestern US

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