An Introduction to Psychology

A ticking metronome gives Wilhelm Max Wundt a practical starting point for examining consciousness. By asking how listeners group regular beats, he connects attention and rhythm with the wider activity of body and mind. This introductory study develops those observations into an account of sensations, feelings, memory, association and thought. Rudolf Pintner's English translation presents the material as a shorter, simpler approach to Wundt's psychology, suited to readers preparing for more detailed study.

The discussion of perception is especially concrete. Wundt considers how familiar letters and remembered impressions help people make sense of incomplete words, sounds and images. These examples show how memory contributes to experiences that seem immediate. Readers interested in the history of experimental psychology can follow an early explanation of mental processes through everyday observations and selected experiments, with technical ideas introduced through listening, reading and recognition.