Intelligence Books - Page 14

Developing Critical Thinkers - Challenging Adults to Explore Alternative Ways of Thinking & Acting (Cloth) (The Jossey-Bass higher education series)

Brookfield

List Price: $29.95 By: Jossey-Bass Inc.,U.S. Amazon Marketplace: 17 new & used starting at $5.09

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General AAS
Subjects -> Professional & Technical -> Professional Science -> Behavioral Sciences -> Cognitive Psychology

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 9 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

A good review of practice 4 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

This book takes the approach of viewing critical thinking as reflective thinking starting off with a recognition of the narrative elements considered axiomatic by the adult being taught to think critically. There is no first emphasis on thinking correctly, so it is to be assumed that logical skills are already something the adult student has learned. Since it has been my experience over 10 years teaching adults and late adolescents that our school systems in general do not prepare people to think correctly (that is Logic 101) this should be a first issue in a text meant to be used in a Logic and Reasoning course in college. As a result I would not recommend this text as a requirement for a Logic and Reasoning course or as an Introduction to Logic course but perhaps as a book for a course like Truth, Beauty, and Goodness where it might do well as the first book dealing with the nature of truth.

As a description of this approach B quotes Boyd and Fales as saying that reflective learning is "the process of internally examining and exploring an issue of concern, triggered by an experience, which creates and clarifies meaning in terms of self, and which results in a changed conceptual perspective". (p. 14) Part 1 of the book describes this process. In this section the book assumes the adults are already conceiving of reality as socially constructed (at least "to some extent"). (p. 17) Descriptions of examples do not fit metanarrative conflict but instead reevaluation of basic assumptions within the context of a narrative. The phases of critical thinking are described in much the typical pattern but there is a nice section on the role of "helpers" - "psychological demolition experts". (p. 30) Dewey gets credit here. Much of the book is a who's who is saying what on this subject so it is more for instructors than students.

In chapter 3 critical thinking of this sort is promoted as a way of escaping the confines of our uncritical points of view. I like this phrase "authentic frameworks of understanding". (p. 47) Chapter 4 is titled "How Critical Thinking Sustains a Healthy Democracy." I have a sneaking suspicion reading this that B would be most comfortable as a Unitarian Universalist.

Part 2 is titled "Practical Approaches for Developing Critical Thinkers". I like the role play section but found most of this fairly routine considering I use it every day. It reminds me of parts of Pascarella and Terenzini's "How College Affects Students" and it surprises me not to find them in the references. Part 3 applies these to different areas of adult life. Chapter 8 deals with the workplace. Chapter 9 is interesting in dealing with politics since it is more carefully done than I would have suspected. There is no side taking other than the encouragement to critical thinking about political issues.


Who does B read? Some interesting names that are in the bibliography: Howard Zinn (but not Ambrose), Dewey, Peter Berger, Bourdieu, Habermas, Kohlberg, Perry, Neil Postman though neither of the Blooms.

Editorial Review:

1989 Winner of the Cyril O. Houle World Award for Literature in Adult Education

"Developing Critical Thinkers is a book practitioners and others interested in applying critical thinking principles will find extremely useful. The writing is clear, the examples are many, and the ideas are well grounded in theory and research.''

--Adult Education Quarterly

The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense at Work

Suzette Haden Elgin

Amazon Price: $11.53 List Price: $16.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Prentice Hall Press Amazon Marketplace: 67 new & used starting at $5.00

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Business Life -> General
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Business Life -> General AAS
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Skills -> Communications

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 15 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Powerful techniques for combating verbal abuse on the job from the renowned author of the "Gentle Art" series -- with total sales surpassing one million copies. Obscenities, ethnic and sexist epithets, cutting jokes, subtle put-downs -- whether shouted, said with a smile, or sent via e-mail -- are all verbal abuse. For many, it is the everyday language of doing business. Suzette Haden Elgin, nationally recognized linguistics expert and author, applies her acclaimed techniques for combating verbal violence to common on-the-job situations. Forceful yet non-threatening, her proven strategies will empower workers of every level to recognize verbal abuse, gently defuse it, and replace it with courteous and effective communication.

Citing examples grabbed from the headlines, Dr. Elgin reveals the cost of demeaning and destructive language to any business. Step by step, she shows how to identify and conquer the verbal toxins at the root of workplace hostility and tension. Readers will learn how to avoid "malpractice of the mouth" and sexual harassment; communicate sensitively and clearly with non-native English speakers; come across as strong, straightforward, and truthful; and take complete control of any verbal confrontation--calmly. "Workout sections" throughout the book provide plenty of opportunities for practice.

With a look at communication skills crucial for e-mail, voice mail, and the Internet, as well as the special challenges facing home-based and virtual businesses, The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense At Work is the definitive guide to effective and humane communication on the job.

Developing Intuition: Practical Guidance for Daily Life

Shakti Gawain

List Price: $16.00 By: New World Library Amazon Marketplace: 46 new & used starting at $0.50

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A Great Little Book 5 out of 5 stars.
17 of 17 people found this review helpful.

This thin volume is a great little book if you want to understand more about intuition but don't want to spend a lot of time reading. Shakti Gawain gets straight to the point explaining what intuition is and how to become aware of it, trust it and use it in our daily lives. The explanations are succinct and there are simple exercises for the reader to help illustrate the points. If you are hooked and want to explore this topic further, I highly recommend both "Divine Intuition" by Lynn Robinson and "The Psychic Pathway" by Sonia Choquette.

Editorial Review:

Everyone has had moments when they simply "knew" something. Sometimes they follow these thoughts, and sometimes they ignore them. In her first new book in several years, Shakti Gawain guides readers in becoming more attentive to this inner voice and using it to determine their choice and life's directions. She also explores the role of intuition in health, creativity, career and work, and prosperity. Exercises based on Gawain's workshops and seminars help readers interpret their inner guide but also evaluate the worthiness of such knowledge in the context of the real world. Stories from her clients and her own life illustrate the practical advice she gives.

Suspensions of Perception: Attention, Spectacle, and Modern Culture (October Books)

Jonathan Crary

List Price: $55.00 By: The MIT Press Amazon Marketplace: 7 new & used starting at $21.80

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> General
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> General AAS
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Winner, 2000 Lionel Trilling Award given by Columbia College.

Suspensions of Perception is a major historical study of human attention and its volatile role in modern Western culture. It argues that the ways in which we intently look at or listen to anything result from crucial changes in the nature of perception that can be traced back to the second half of the nineteenth century.

Focusing on the period from about 1880 to 1905, Jonathan Crary examines the connections between the modernization of subjectivity and the dramatic expansion and industrialization of visual/auditory culture. At the core of his project is the paradoxical nature of modern attention, which was both a fundamental condition of individual freedom, creativity, and experience and a central element in the efficient functioning of economic and disciplinary institutions as well as the emerging spaces of mass consumption and spectacle.

Crary approaches these issues through multiple analyses of single works by three key modernist painters—Manet, Seurat, and Cezanne—who each engaged in a singular confrontation with the disruptions, vacancies, and rifts within a perceptual field. Each in his own way discovered that sustained attentiveness, rather than fixing or securing the world, led to perceptual disintegration and loss of presence, and each used this discovery as the basis for a reinvention of representational practices.

Suspensions of Perception decisively relocates the problem of aesthetic contemplation within a broader collective encounter with the unstable nature of perception—in psychology, philosophy, neurology, early cinema, and photography. In doing so, it provides a historical framework for understanding the current social crisis of attention amid the accelerating metamorphoses of our contemporary technological culture.

Nonverbal Behavior in Interpersonal Relations

Virginia P. Richmond

List Price: $18.95 By: Prentice Hall Amazon Marketplace: 9 new & used starting at $4.98

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

There are many better 3 out of 5 stars.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful.

This book provides a decent overview. It refuted some of the more prevalent myths about "body language". However, the bang was simply not worth the buck. The paperback edition is published with what can only be surmised to be photographs of the authors' home and students as illustrations and examples. This book is a little too home-grown.

Editorial Review:

B> This book offers a complete and precise explanation of the principles of nonverbal communication. The Fourth Edition continues to provide involving and interesting reading that explores how nonverbal behaviors can produce certain communication responses from others. This well-researched book offers conclusions about the research in an easy-to-read and friendly style. The authors draw from a wide variety of disciplines and upon their vast experience as instructors, consultants, and corporate trainers to offer a unique blend of social scientific and humanistic approaches to the study of nonverbal behavior. Each chapter includes exercises, activities, self tests, or questionnaires that help readers understand the actual and potential impact of nonverbal behaviors on communication. It also helps build the skills they will need to become competent nonverbal communicators in today's global community. For anyone interested in non-verbal communication.

Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: How Intelligence Increases When You Think Less

Guy Claxton

List Price: $25.95 By: Ecco Amazon Marketplace: 27 new & used starting at $4.63

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

An original approach to well-being, cognition, and problem solving that flies in the face of traditional, highly structured behavior and learning. Ours is an accelerated age, and thought has to keep up with the rush. Decisive and businesslike, our customary ways of thinking serve us well when confronted with the expected questions. But when faced with complexity, we become impatient. Our "hare brains" are utterly unprepared for ambiguity, paradox, and "sleeping on it." We usually assume that the "hare brain" will beat out the intuition of the "tortoise mind." However, new research in cognitive science is changing our understanding of thought. It suggests that patience and confusion, rather than rigor and certainty, are the vital precursors to wisdom. In Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind, psychologist Guy Claxton describes the mind's three processing speeds. The first speed is instinctive and faster-than-thought; this mode could be called our "wits." The middle speed is used for logical thought and involves weighing the pros and cons and solving problems; this mode could be called "intellect." The third mode of thinking is the undermind, the slowest, most contemplative-and the most undervalued. According to Claxton, whether we're considering the origin of the universe of marital mishaps, we must learn the patience not to force the issues, the readiness to mull things over, and the humility to allow our unconscious mind to do the thinking. The tortoise cannot fail to win when it has intuition and inspiration on its side.

Brain Building: Exercising Yourself Smarter

Marilyn Vos Savant

List Price: $18.95 By: Bantam Amazon Marketplace: 132 new & used starting at $0.01

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

AT LEAST CONFIDENCE BUILDING 5 out of 5 stars.
31 of 38 people found this review helpful.

There are two books that come to mind that, though they do not fall in the realm of religious inspiration, are so thought-provoking that they are life changing. They are: 1. Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin and 2. Brain Building: Exercising Yourself Smarter, the latter of which I will comment on.

I purchased this book about 4 years ago when I was working a full-time job and going to graduate school to earn a Master of Education degree in Mathematics. The math courses suited me for the most part, since they pertained to both my major and my interests in working with numbers. The education courses, on the other hand, were intimidating, because I grew up with an inferiority complex about my abilities to perform in courses that demanded both extensive amounts of reading and the ability to comprehend several themes and passages.

It was during this period that, because I was going to school and working full-time simultaneously, on many days the only opportunities I had to study were either during my lunch hour or right after I arrived home late at night with thoughts of having to be back at work the next morning. Fortunately, it was also then that I was already enthralled enough with Marilyn's books and Parade column to buy this publication.

Among the several helpful suggestions Marilyn pointed out in this book is that when reading, do not hesitate to write your thoughts and opinions in the margins alongside key paragraphs and sentences. This particular approach, in a manner of speaking, places you on a more equal footing with the professor or author, and it is a valuable reminder that your interpretations and viewpoints are just as important as, if not more important than, the material you are trying to focus upon.

Despite my limited time and resources, this piece of advice helped me to participate adequately in classroom discussions. Except for a couple of B's, which I received before I even bought this book, I ended up graduating with A's in every course.

Thank you, God! And thank you, Marilyn!

Editorial Review:

The "smartest person in the world" has written the ultimate illustrated how-to book, a program designed to improve our most powerful natural tool--the brain. Illustrated with drawings, charts, and graphs.

Communicating Effectively for Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

Marty Brounstein

Amazon Price: $14.95 List Price: $21.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: For Dummies Amazon Marketplace: 50 new & used starting at $6.89

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Reference -> General
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Reference -> General AAS
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Small Business & Entrepreneurship -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Communications Made Simple 5 out of 5 stars.
14 of 14 people found this review helpful.

With this book, Marty Brounstein breaks down communications into bite-size morsels that are easily digested. This book covers a broad range of territory from speaking clearly, using active listening techniques for better understanding, dealing with conflict, and appropriate uses for email, telephone and other forms of communication.

There's a tremendous amount of information, and I find myself going back to review the material often, especially when a meeting or conversation goes badly.

There is nothing here you can't find in other books, but it's all collected neatly under one cover, and the author presents the material in interesting ways that make it easier to absorb and put into practice.

Definitely a worthwhile read!

Editorial Review:

Communication is no longer considered an optional soft" skill for climbing the corporate ladder. More and more businesses are placing emphasis on being able to communicate effectively. Communicating Effectively For Dummies gives you the tools and insight you need to manage conflict, build teams and communicate persuasively at work."

The Zen of Listening: Mindful Communication in the Age of Distraction

Rebecca Shafir

List Price: $23.95 By: Quest Books Amazon Marketplace: 34 new & used starting at $3.69

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Personal Health -> Stress -> Memory Improvement
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

What do your family members, coworkers, and friends want most? Your undivided attention.

Poor listening is a factor in many tragedies-high suicide rates, family breakups, school violence, and substance abuse. Smaller tragedies can also be linked to poor listening such as the student who suffers from below-average school performance and low self-esteem and the businessperson who loses a promotion or an important client. Poor listening results in millions of dollars of lost revenue in business due to inefficient teamwork, impersonal customer service, and litigation. And how many medical malpractice suits can be traced to someone's lack of attention?

What don't we listen better to our spouses, kids, bosses, and clients? Rebecca Shafir says its because we live in the high-tech Age of Distraction. The bombarding media and today's "do-it-all" mentality alienate us from one another by reducing attention span and increasing anxiety. But even more than that it is the internal distractions-the mental noise and negative self-talk-that most inhibit our ability to truly listen.

Unlike other books on communication, The Zen of Listening lays the inner groundwork for effective listening. The Zen practice of mindfulness allows us to filter out both inner and outer distractions so that we get the WHOLE message. This fun and practical guide teaches how to focus under stress, concentrate in lectures and meetings, cope with information overload, increase memory and attention span, and enhance inner growth and creativity. Her no-nonsense methods can help you:

**Build trusting relationships
**Intensify your concentration
**Strengthen negotiating skills
**Create loyal clients
**Get the message others miss and get them to hear YOU

First Place Winner of ForeWord Magazine's Book of the Year Awards in the category of Psychology/Self-Help.

The Open Mind: Exploring the 6 Patterns of Natural Intelligence

Dawn Markova, Ph. D.

Amazon Price: $17.95 List Price: $19.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Red Wheel / Weiser Amazon Marketplace: 35 new & used starting at $9.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> By Topic -> Intelligence
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Beyond "Learning Styles" 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 3 people found this review helpful.

One of my favorite and most often returned to books. Goes beyond one's so-called "learning style" to include the strengths of the sensory modalities beyond the one preferred for conscious understanding. Fascinating. Very useful, and part of a growing trend which recognizes individual differences as strengths, not as problems to be fixed. Instead of forcing people apart, this kind of understanding can bring people closer together. Highly recommended.

Also by Dawna Markova and Anne Powell, "How Your Child Is Smart" is helpful for parents, or anyone who wants to give their children the gift of a self-validating start in life. This could make a world of difference in a child's experience of school, not to mention life in general. A must for any teacher.

Editorial Review:

This revolutionary book, by the author of The Art of the Possible, shows that there are six unique patterns of perception. Each one determines how an individual with that pattern absorbs, organizes, remembers and expresses information. Markova shows how understanding their own perceptual style can help readers increase their self-esteem and relate to others who never seem to understand them.