[.ca] Personality Traits (ISBN 0521497590)

Comprehensive, balanced, & insightful: a winner!:
This book by two of the UK's most respected individual differences researchers really hits its target. Experts will find little to complain about in terms of its detailed and comprehensive coverage, while students will find its layout and presentation a great aid in introducing some of the most exciting and broad ranging modern research. A special bonus is the book's global perspective. It is not limited to research from one country or paradigm but rather incorporates good research from the UK, USA, Europe (both east and west), as well as southern hemisphere contributions. You can trust Matthews and Deary to give a balanced presentation. Neither foolishly optimistic nor simple-mindedly dismissive, they capture the excitement and power of modern trait research and its applications in forensics, psychiatry, industry, education etc. In particular, they leave the reader with an unified perspective, making clear the common framework integrating personality, temperament, mood, psychopathology, and situational interactions. Refreshingly, they do feel the need to fill most of the book covering turn-of-the-century "theorist's" arm-chair anecdotes which so often mar presentations personality. I fully recommend this as a text for undergraduate and post-graduate personality courses. As a reference, it would sit usefully on most psychologist's book shelves if they are interested in individuality, its bases, and applications. Dr Timothy Bates Senior Lecturer Dept Psychology Macquarie University Sydney NSW 2109 Australia