AP Psychology optional summer reading list

This reading list was developed by Mr. Grady and Ms. Redshaw. 

You will also see names of students from the classes of 2020-24. If you would like to suggest material for this list, contact Mr. Grady at rgrady@asparis.fr. 

The titles in bold dark green are the most highly recommended for summer reading. Some books are recommended by current or past students. Their names appear with the books they recommended.  

All reading is optional.

You are encouraged to read about the AP Psychology course by going to its new Course and Exam Description [link]. The new course has many of the old favorites, like the biological approach, developmental psychology, and clinical psychology. But the new exam has fewer multiple choices and more emphasis on writing. 

books

Geoff Rolls, Classic Case Studies in Psychology. The cases are all written about as a combination of story and scientific theory, and the writing is clear and engaging. The author considers that argument that case studies cannot be generalized because they are so often about unusual lives. But in many chapters he explains how these cases contributed to scientific knowledge. The most familiar examples might be those of HM and Phineas Gage. But nearly all of the cases relate to the theories we cover in class. (Beatrix Furr, class of 2024, recommends this book.) 

Oliver Sacks, The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat. Sacks is one of the most respected scientists and writers in modern Psychology.  This is usually considered one of his finest works. In the introduction, he explains why right hemisphere disorders are rarely covered in psychological literature. 

Bessel Van Der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma (published in 2015). This book has influenced psychology as well as literature and art since its first publication. Its main idea is that early life trauma alters the nervous system and various other biological systems in the body in ways that last even if the memory of trauma fades. 

Ethan Watters, Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Psyche. A good book if you are interested in how culture shapes psychological disorders, the extent to which disorders can be treated with medication. The rise of anorexia in Hong Kong, and of depression in Japan, are both discussed as the result of increased contact with the United States. In the chapter on “megamarketing of depression in Japan,” the author explains how American pharmaceutical companies studied Japanese culture in order to “frame” the disorder of depression in a way that would make Japanese people more open to diagnosis. The phrase they settled on was “a cold of the soul.” Eunsol So (class of 2021) wrote an article about this book in the ASP Library newsletter. 

More challenging books

Psychocinematics: Exploring Cognition at the Movies. As you are well aware after the “faux snow day” on May 17, ASP is full of talent and creativity when it comes to film. This book by Arthur Shimamura proposes psychological explanations about why some films are exceptional. There is an entire chapter on the importance of schema, which we study in Unit 2, cognition. You can find it at our library, or else try getting your own copy. But the book is rare and expensive - currently 96€ on Kindle and 135 for a hardcopy on Amazon France.

Eric Kandel, The Disordered Mind: What Unusual Brains Tell us about Ourselves (2018) 

Eric Kandel, The Age of Insight. Kandel won a Nobel prize in neuroscience, specifically for his discovery of processes related to neuroplasticity. This book is a mix of history, art, literature, and science. His argument is that developments in psychology were related to the blending of multiple disciplines in 1900 Vienna. He also says that recent developments in neuroscience support claims of psychodynamic psychologists from 1900, Freud in particular. So while we often say to stay away from anything psychodynamic or Freudian, Kandel has a Nobel prize in neuroscience. The evidence base for this book is surprising - it's not every day you see works of avant-garde art and brain scans on facing pages! 

Antonio Damasio, The Strange Order of Things: Life, Feeling, and the Making of Cultures. This is new to the list. The book was published in 2018. Damasio already became famous in the 1990s for his book Descartes’ Error, which argued that the brain is really not divided into logical and creative/ emotional sides, and also that if we removed emotion from our thoughts, we would be poor thinkers. While emotions remain a challenge to define and study scientifically, Damasio and other researchers of “the emotional brain” have inspired researchers in various branches of psychology.

Oliver Sacks, Musicophilia. The first case in the book is a person who is struck by lightening, survives, and develops outstanding musical sensitivity and ability afterwards.

Textbooks

These are university level books for areas that we touch upon in the class. Many appear challenging at first but are actually pretty accessible for strong students. You can borrow these from the school library or the social studies office. Rather thand read them cover to cover, try reading just a section that interests you. 

Richard Gross, Key Studies in Psychology. Gross is a leading authority in Psychology. The 6th edition of this book looks at recent replications of classic studies, such as Zimbardo or Asch. The 7th edition goes into depth on the classic studies themselves, seen in the light of recent research. What I really appreciate about these books is the use of three approaches of critical thinking for each study: Methodological considerations, ethical issues, and subsequent research. 

Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the Mind.  by Michael Gazzaniga et al., 2018.  

This book has inspired and supported several interesting IB Extended Essay. It frequently links cognitive constructs to biological aspects of those constructs. It often gives clear and authoritative explanations of topics that we look at in class, especially flashbulb memory theory and the various forms of neuroplasticity. It can also help you to understand which, if any, complex behaviours are clearly localized in the brain. 

David Sue, Derald Wing Sue, Diane Sue, and Stanley Sue, Understanding Abnormal Behaviour, 11th edition (2016), or 12th edition, published in 2021. Yes, all four authors have the surname “Sue.” To me this text is the best introduction to abnormal behaviour. It is written in an engaging and academic style. This book has been published 11 times, and this edition is adapted to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 5th edition, published by the American Psychiatric Association in 2013. The book looks at the causes (etiology) disorders based on four dimensions: biological, psychological, social and sociocultural. It also uses the same four dimensions to explain resilience.  The format of the book includes images of celebrities that have suffered different disorders and have decided to share their experiences as ways of providing hope for others. Ben Stiller and Catherine Zeta Jones, for example, appear at the end of the chapter on depression and bi-polar disorders. 

Alan Baddeley, Michael Eysenck and Michael Anderson, Memory (2nd edition), 2009. Baddeley is one of the creators of the working memory model, and he has published widely on memory since the 1970s. This book was published in 2009 and includes research up to that time. 

Science and/or Fiction

Sometimes reading science fiction can help you think about material we are studying in new ways. For those of you interested in linking psychology and creative writing, this might be worthwhile. 

Ted Chang, Stories of Your Life and Others; Exhalation

I have read parts of both of these collections of short stories. In both, the author pushes the boundaries related to what is known in neuroscience and what might become possible in the near future. Recommended by Eunsol So, class of 2021.

Alix Nathan, The Warlow Experiment. An “experiment in isolation” that took place in 1790. Historical fiction, but meant to ask psychological questions that endure.  Suggested by Poetica Wang, class of 2020