Gerda Siann – författare

For some time sex has been defined as the biological difference between men and women, and gender as the manner in which culture defines and constrains these differences. Feminine/masculine, male/female, women/men, boy/girl - terms of sexual and gender division like these permeate the way we think and talk about ourselves and each other. On most occasions we find their use non-problematic and people employ them easily, at other times, however, particularly if we are interested in psychology, we may wonder whether this ease is illusory.; One may speculate whether being a woman necessarily implies being "feminine". One may question why young women are often referred to as girls, while men are seldom referred to as boys. Is dressing in a stereotypically feminine manner a reliable indication that a woman is heterosexual? What about cross dressing? Why do these topics hold so much fascination for the media?; "Gender, Sex and Sexuality" examines the effects that the inequalities experienced between men and women have had on the psychologies of both sexes, and the battle to remove them. It aims to introduce the reader to current research and theories, drawing on novels, theatre, soap operas, as well as research for case histories.

For some time sex has been defined as the biological difference between men and women, and gender as the manner in which culture defines and constrains these differences. Feminine/masculine, male/female, women/men, boy/girl - terms of sexual and gender division like these permeate the way we think and talk about ourselves and each other. On most occasions we find their use non-problematic and people employ them easily, at other times, however, particularly if we are interested in psychology, we may wonder whether this ease is illusory.; One may speculate whether being a woman necessarily implies being "feminine". One may question why young women are often referred to as girls, while men are seldom referred to as boys. Is dressing in a stereotypically feminine manner a reliable indication that a woman is heterosexual? What about cross dressing? Why do these topics hold so much fascination for the media?; "Gender, Sex and Sexuality" examines the effects that the inequalities experienced between men and women have had on the psychologies of both sexes, and the battle to remove them. It aims to introduce the reader to current research and theories, drawing on novels, theatre, soap operas, as well as research for case histories.

The despair and incomprehension that often seem to be the only possible response to acts of aggression and violence have led to attempts by academics and writers from a wide variety of backgrounds to understand and explain such behaviour. The concern and anxiety that is felt by many people about this subject is such that some of their accounts – notably by Konrad Lorenz, Desmond Morris, Robert Ardrey, and Anthony Storr – have become popular and even best-selling books.Originally published in 1985, Accounting for Aggression provides a comprehensive synthesis and assessment of these writings and other contemporary theory and research on aggression and violence at the time. The author presents a variety of accounts of aggression, drawing on original work in the areas of biology, sociobiology, ethology, psychology and sociology. Each account is evaluated according both to the criteria of scientific methodology and to the extent to which it illuminates our understanding and appears to have a lasting explanatory value. In the last chapter the author presents an integrative approach to the subject area which synthesizes those findings for which there appears to be substantial empirical support, within a framework of the meaning that aggressive and violent behaviour offers to those who carry it out.Accounting for Aggression will be of great value to students and practitioners in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, social work and education. Furthermore, it will be welcomed by interested members of the general public who are concerned with issues such as whether or not violence is inherent in human nature, the extent to which interpersonal violence is related to group violence, and the extent to which violence in the media affects violent behaviour.

The despair and incomprehension that often seem to be the only possible response to acts of aggression and violence have led to attempts by academics and writers from a wide variety of backgrounds to understand and explain such behaviour. The concern and anxiety that is felt by many people about this subject is such that some of their accounts – notably by Konrad Lorenz, Desmond Morris, Robert Ardrey, and Anthony Storr – have become popular and even best-selling books.Originally published in 1985, Accounting for Aggression provides a comprehensive synthesis and assessment of these writings and other contemporary theory and research on aggression and violence at the time. The author presents a variety of accounts of aggression, drawing on original work in the areas of biology, sociobiology, ethology, psychology and sociology. Each account is evaluated according both to the criteria of scientific methodology and to the extent to which it illuminates our understanding and appears to have a lasting explanatory value. In the last chapter the author presents an integrative approach to the subject area which synthesizes those findings for which there appears to be substantial empirical support, within a framework of the meaning that aggressive and violent behaviour offers to those who carry it out.Accounting for Aggression will be of great value to students and practitioners in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, social work and education. Furthermore, it will be welcomed by interested members of the general public who are concerned with issues such as whether or not violence is inherent in human nature, the extent to which interpersonal violence is related to group violence, and the extent to which violence in the media affects violent behaviour.

Originally published in 1988, this is a fully revised second edition of the successful introductory textbook on developmental and educational psychology. With its cross-cultural framework, the book was aimed at students of education and psychology in multi-cultural communities as well as at those studying in the developing world.The authors present an overview of developmental and educational psychology that does not rest on any single model of home environment. Instead, by drawing critically on a wide survey of cross-cultural data, they look at the ways in which different home environments in nuclear and extended families and differing social values can affect children’s emotional, social and intellectual development. They focus particularly on the ways in which home background can influence the child’s ability to cope with a formal education system.The book relates theory to practical aspects of child care and development and leads the reader through the world of childhood, the primary school years, adolescence and youth and school and society. This second edition takes full account of new cross-cultural research, and particularly work which had been undertaken by researchers in developing countries at the time. The sections on learning and instruction incorporate recent advances in cognitive research and new sections have been added particularly in the fields of social cognition and social development