Social Neuroscience Integrating Biological and Psychological Explanations of Social Behavior

This compelling volume provides a broad and accessible overview of the emerging field of social neuroscience. Showcasing an array of cutting-edge research programs, leading investigators present new approaches to the study of how the brain influences social behavior, and vice versa. Each authoritative chapter clearly describes the methods used: lesion studies, neuroimaging techniques, hormonal methods, event-related brain potential methods, and others. The contributors discuss the theoretical advantages of taking a social neuroscience perspective and analyze what their findings reveal about core social psychological phenomena. Essential topics include emotion, motivation, attitudes, person perception, stereotyping and prejudice, and interpersonal relationships.

Eddie Harmon-Jones, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Texas A&M University. Dr. Harmon-Jones’s current research focuses on emotions and motivations, their implications for social processes and behaviors, and their underlying neural circuits. His research has been supported by the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Fetzer Institute. In 1999 he coedited Cognitive Dissonance: Progress on a Pivotal Theory in Social Psychology. In 2002 he received the Distinguished Award for an Early Career Contribution to Psychophysiology from the Society for Psychophysiological Research. In 2003 Dr. Harmon-Jones coedited a special issue devoted to social neuroscience for the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. He has also served as an associate editor of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and is on the editorial boards of four other journals.
 
Piotr Winkielman, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Winkielman’s current research focuses on the relation between emotion, cognition, body, and consciousness using psychological and psychophysiological approaches. His research has been supported by the National Science Foundation and the National Alliance for Autism Research. He has served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, and is currently Associate Editor of Emotion. In 2005 Dr. Winkielman coedited Emotion and Consciousness.