Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-01-30
THE LIBRARY TABLE
BY The BOOSiOrer.

III human nature! or IN II pseudo
science whose aim In to ensnare the
suilible? Almost any popular maya
zine advertises correspondence courses
in psychology" in which dazzling
promises are made that with just a
few lessons there will he more pay in
your envelope. you Will he more
convincing talker. a successful sales
man. that you will make people love
yon and invite you socially. that Won
will develop your will power" and
become a domino ting personality" in
short. that you will break the sub
conscious bonds which have held you
hack, so that you will soon arrive
One advertiser offers daily dozen"
for the soul. Another's pie is d
course in memory training that will
do wonders in improving the memory
provided one could only remember
the lessons. Business men are offered
courses by these mercantile psychol-
ogisis in personnel management and
the psychology of leadership. One Of
these actually succeeds in inducing
employers TO pay him handsomely for
advice in employment and promotion
problems when his Judgments are
based on the color of the hair and the
increased sales based on the psyche
logical study OF the angle al whic h
the prospective buyer wears his hat
different line OF talk for every tilt.
third conducts mail order business
in psychology psychoa ma lying photo
graphs. Still other half-educa ted
people. perhaps sincere. but all ION the
make go about giving lectures and
orga niZing classes in psychology"
dealing much in such cant phrases as
" higher life, T." auto-suggestion, "
~ o n
thoughts" the supremacy OF mind
over matter" harmony with tn. In
finite" etc. This certainly is moi
science: il In not even respectable AND
il does harm. After thus expressing
himself concerning the various ideas
that masquerade as psychology.
Everett Dean Martin sets forth what
psychology really Is snd he useful
purpose II may serve in our lives ve"'
hriehe. very eDtsrtaininsiv and Hery
convincinalv in booklet OF less 'hsn
80 pssee. entitled Psychology and Its
Uses" recently published BY the Amer.
lean Library Association. az one of its
"Hea ding With Purpose courses.
Mr.. Martin ia director % the
Peoples institute Of New York and
lecturer in social psychology r
Cooper Union. where he attracted
large audiences when ne gave his
course on Psychology: What II Has
~ Teach You About Yourself an6
Your World which has later been
published in book form. Alr Ma
lin recognizes that all of rs are. after
ashton. common-sense psNcho'o
Sists: that is. We each possess TO =
create or less degree he gift q:
ehrewd observation. But this good
81 L
ample he rrIates how we'll known
publisher. visiting the editorial of
ces Of newspaper which he had 70
Gently purchas ed suddenly pointed 10
= reporter and ordered that he be
discharged The managing editor
protested that he was one OF the
ablest writer's on political fairs in
America. What do | care who he
:? Fire him al once: ne is to fat.
Per contra, the author calls atten-
lion to the fact that Julius Caesar,
who was also Judge OF human
ma turS did not like people who had
II lean and hungry look" Brief as
IS his booklet. nearly every point i
vitatized with an Illuminating Mos
ration like those quoted.
The author comedies that there is
Doubt whether as vet there is suf-
ficienf agreement TO justify us in
So wing that psychology is now true
science" He admits as worthy OF
the ma me only the body of psychology
resulting from the application OF the
modern scientific method. exemplifed
in this country by 6. Stanley Han
and William James. and concludes
that scientific Psychology is therefore
scarcely more than genera ton old
md thai ii is sim in its early stages
NJ development. Notwithstandins the
pseudo psychology already alluded TO.
he states thst the applies tons of the
science when carefully and honestly
made have already had excellent re-
suits and promise more. These re
Sul;s have been in the fields Of edu-
cation. industry. mental measure
mentS or Intelligence testing. legal
procedure religion. war proDaga nda
and politics. Mr.. Martin recognizes
three schools of psychologists: The
old school psychology. known as In
trospectionism. the science of mind
Or consciousness, behaViorism, oriGi-
mating in animal psychology-the OBJ
jective school: and psychoanalNsis.
with it's emphasis on the 'uncon-
scious. which is primar concerned
with abnormal OF pa Theological states
OF mind. Mr.. Martin gives brief
each school and states a. his BELIEF
mat the coming psychology will draw
ireeiy upon the findings OF all three
schools.
Brief as Is this booklet. II leads up.
as do all others In the series of
Reading With a Purpose" courses. 10
The seven books which the author
recon,men for reading as an intro
duction 10 the study. The first book
recommended in Psychology. Briefer
great American classic Of William
James. The Principles Of Psychol-
ogy.' The author speaks in the
highest terms OF the contribution Of
William James to the development
of psychology and Of his book as an
ema ncipatOr to one who reads ii
carefully. The other recomme nded
books are: Psychology: Study of
Mentsl life" by Robert ). Wood
worth: "Beha riorism." by John r.
Watson; General Introduction to
Psychoa nalSsis." by Sigmnnd freud;
Psychology" by Everett Dean Mar
lin: Psychology and the DAYS
Work" by Edgar James Swift; and
Social Psychology" by Floyd Henry
Airport.
Booth TafkingtOn's Women hard-
ly pretends to rank with his former
well organized tales. 1t is composed
Of nine episodes in the lives Of vari-
Gus persons, chiefly women. The
central characters are Mrs. Cromwell
and Mrs. Dodge. Both are what is
popularity termed hard boiled" that
is. cynics. Mrs. Cromwells daughter
asks: Are men all just idiots, mann.
ma" and Mrs. Cromwell replies:
Yes, dear; they are AIR. Tarkine-