Biology of Personality and Individual Differences

Questions about the biological basis of personality and the self are among the most important and least understood ones facing brain scientists and other biologists and psychologists. This volume provides an excellent, up-to-date survey of some of the key issues from a variety of perspectives. It will be a valuable resource for all who are interested in these topics.--Joseph LeDoux, PhD, Center for Neural Science, New York University

This is an outstanding book on biological processes underlying some of the major dimensions of personality and individual differences. It will be of interest to graduate students and researchers alike. Current findings from diverse fields such as cognition, psychiatry, behavioral neuroscience, and comparative psychology address personality traits and processes, showing how far we have come and how far yet there is to go.--Paul T. Costa, Jr., PhD

Individual differences have always been of fundamental concern to psychology, but until recently the neurological, biochemical, and genetic underpinnings of personality have been more a matter of speculation than research. Turhan Canli has gathered together as thoughtful a collection of scholars as one could imagine, and their research agenda will guide the field for decades. This is a fascinating read for personality and social psychologists who want to know more about the neurosciences, and for neuroscientists who want a better understanding of how their methods and paradigms can help us address that fundamental question in our field: What differentiates one person from another?--Peter Salovey, PhD
- A comprehensive and informative synthesis of the current state of research on the biology personality. The chapters reflect the multiple perspectives of their authors, representing contributions from behavioral and molecular genetics, cognitive science, psychology, psychiatry, psychopathology, neurophysiology, and neuropsychology. An array of investigative tools is employed....The volume provides an in-depth assessment of current research into the multiple linkages between biological processes and mental and personality functioning. For students of whatever professional level who are interested in deepening their understanding of the complex integrative relation between mind and body, this will be a welcome and enriching addition to the literature. --Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 1/25/2006ƒƒ Canli's edited book is for those who have both an interest in neuroscience and a passion for well-designed scientific inquiry....The material presented is both fascinating and exciting....Readers, be they psychologists or psychiatrists, involved in this field and interested in increasing their familiarity, awareness and understanding of current contributions from psychobiological neuroscience, will find this book both enlightening and gratifying. --Child and Family Behavior Therapy, 1/25/2006