Multimind: A New Way of Looking at Human Behavior

Robert Ornstein's classic, Multimind, presents a startling new concept of how the human mind works. In a readable and accessible way, he introduces a new science of the mind, explaining why our emotions and attitudes are so easily swayed, and the difficulty of ever really knowing oneself or another person. Ornstein faults the narrowness of IQ tests, stressing the many varied abilities that make up intelligence. Citing studies of hypnosis and multiple personality, he explains how multiple minds coexist in each of us – how each of us has many "small minds" that simultaneously, but independently, process feelings, fantasies, ideas, fixed routines, interpersonal responses and bodily skills. As we go through our daily lives, different parts of our mind – different “minds” – come to the fore to handle different situations. This means that "you" are not the same person from moment to moment, but have different memories and abilities in different situations. Reading this groundbreaking book will help you take a step towards understanding who you really are.

Considered one of the foremost experts on the brain, Robert Ornstein was an internationally renowned psychologist and author of more than 20 books on the nature of the human mind and brain and their relationship to thought, health, and individual and social consciousness. Perhaps best known for his pioneering research on the bilateral specialization of the brain, Ornstein continually emphasized the necessity of "conscious evolution" and the potential role of the right hemisphere in expanding our horizons to meet the challenges of the 21st century. He taught at Stanford University, Harvard University and the University of California, San Francisco. His books have sold over six million copies worldwide, have been translated into dozens of languages and used in more than 20,000 university classes. He founded the Institute for the Study of Human Knowledge (ISHK) in 1969 and served as its president until his death in December of 2018.