Abnormal Psychology: Neuroscience Perspectives on Human Behavior and Experience

The South Asian edition of this highly acclaimed textbook introduces readers to the rapidly evolving science of abnormal psychology through integrative approach, cutting-edge research data, and reference to DSM-5.

Abnormal Psychology offers up-to-date coverage of topics through a multilevel perspective ranging from culture to genetics. This approach helps students to move beyond simple nature/nurture standpoints to new ways of considering psychological disorders. 

The text’s first-person narratives and case studies help readers understand better the experiences of a person with a psychological disorder while demonstrating the individual’s ability to live a full and productive life. The adaptation includes recent research data and case studies from India and South Asia to make the text more relatable to the students. It also touches upon recent works from India on epidemiology, etiology, and genetics.

Key Features: 

· Thorough integration of the critical evaluation of DSM-5

· Text based on traditional psychological literature as well as underlying brain-based processes

· Integrated coverage of neuroscience and evidence-based, cutting-edge research

· A global LENS feature in every chapter that raises important societal and cultural issues

· Concept checks throughout each chapter, end-of-chapter review questions, and key terms to help master important concepts

William J. Ray is an Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Pennsylvania State University. He received his PhD from Vanderbilt University and was a Fellow in Medical Psychology at the University of California Medical Center in San Francisco. He received his undergraduate degree from Eckerd College, where he learned about the value of primary sources and the need to integrate information from a number of perspectives. As part of his clinical training, he has worked in a number of mental hospitals and clinics across the country, where he developed an appreciation of the experiences of those with mental disorders. In his career, he has served as a visiting professor and researcher at the University of Hawaii, Münster University, University of Rome, Tübingen University, and Konstanz University. At Penn State, he was the Director of the SCAN (Specialization in Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience) program and was previously the Director of the Clinical Psychology Program. His research has focused on approaching clinical questions from a neuroscience perspective. He has used psychophysiological and brain imaging techniques such as EEG, MEG, DTI, and fMRI to study emotionality, psychopathology, and individual differences. These studies can be found in his numerous articles, book chapters, and books. His work has been published in such journals as Science, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Journal of Neuroscience, Psychophysiology, Physiological Reviews, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Cognitive Brain Research, Biological Psychology, NeuroImage, and Clinical Neurophysiology. This work has been funded by both national and international agencies including NIH, NIMH, NASA, NATO, and the DAAD. In addition to research, teaching has been an important part of his career. His textbooks include Abnormal Psychology, Methods Toward a Psychology of Behavior and Experience, Psychophysiological Methods (with Robert Stern & Karen Quigley), and Evolutionary Psychology: Neuroscience Perspectives Concerning Human Behavior and Experience.

Anuradha Sovani is a full Professor of psychology and heads the Department of Psychology at SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai. Prior to this appointment, she has headed the Department of Applied Psychology at the University of Mumbai.

She has been a UGC Research Fellow during her MPhil as well as doctoral work at the University of Mumbai, an NCERT scholar through college life, and a Chancellor’s Gold Medalist. Teaching is her passion, as is writing; she has written several books, chapters, newspaper columns, and articles in both English and Marathi (the local language of Maharashtra), for both professional and lay readers, and has been sought after as a speaker at national and international meetings.

Having worked as a psychologist in general hospital settings, served on committees for the care of long-stay chronic psychiatric patients, women in distress, and children who come from disadvantaged backgrounds, she has learned to respect hidden sources of resilience and to trust the spirit of human endeavor. Much of this belief as well as her training in cognitive behavioral and rational emotive psychotherapy approaches translates into her teaching, mentoring, and therapeutic work.

Dr Sovani is a trustee and consultant at the Institute for Psychological Health (IPH), and over the 27 years of her work with the institute, many of her research publications draw upon the community mental health and prevention focus espoused by IPH. Her research collaborations, both funded and others, extend beyond India; she has worked with colleagues in the fields of mental health and education from countries including the United States of America, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Twelve doctoral students have completed their work under her guidance in diverse areas ranging from psychosocial aspects of schizophrenia, epilepsy, and mild cognitive impairment on the one hand to speech difficulties, infertility, and parenting issues on the other. Both her own research and that of some of her doctoral and postdoctoral scholars have been funded by the UGC and ICMR.

Integration of the understanding of human behavior from a variety of different perspectives has been a central theme in her approach to psychology and psychopathology, leading to her working closely with psychiatrists, social workers, pediatricians, neuropsychologists, forensic psychologists, and human resource professionals in the corporate world; experts in the field of occupational therapy and speech and language pathology, general medicine, and surgery to deal with anxiety and pain management; and educationists and special educators. Working in the areas of awareness building and de-stigmatization has given her an opportunity to work with all strata of society and different age groups, using live, social, and print media and film-based discussions to ensure that apparently complex concepts are made simple and easy to comprehend.