Human Traits and their Social Significance

Instinct, habit and reflection provide the starting points for Irwin Edman's account of human behavior. Written for an introductory course at Columbia College, this textbook connects the study of individual traits with the workings of social life. Its first part considers emotion, the development of the self, differences between people, and the role of language and education in carrying culture forward. Edman then turns to religion, art, science and morals as activities shaped by human needs and thoughtful responses to them.

Literary examples help bring the psychological discussion into familiar situations. In the section on language, slang, newspaper usage and the spread of new expressions lead into an examination of how words communicate ideas and stir feelings. Readers interested in the history of psychology or the foundations of social thought can use the book to see how an early twentieth-century teacher linked everyday behavior with larger questions about civilization.