Part of Oxford University Press's highly successful series of concise introductions, this book breaks down the evolving field of psychology into straightforward components, illustrated with both clinical and real-world examples.

What makes us who we are? The study of psychology is the science of mental life, seeking to investigate how our minds develop and function, and how that influences human behavior.

In this installment of the Very Short Introduction series from Oxford University Press, clinical psychologists Freda McManus and Gillian Butler outline the strands that make up the discipline of psychology.

Each chapter poses a simple question, which is answered through a series of examples of clinical studies and experiments.

Providing a historical overview, this book covers some of the most famous studies informing our understanding of the human brain, underlining the evolving nature of this knowledge as new discoveries are made.