The movie A Beautiful Mind, directed by Ron Howard and staring Russell Crowe, tells the story of John Nash who received a Nobel Prize in Economics. While the film does not reflect all of the events in Nash’s life, it is interesting to note that his schizophrenia began while in college but did not stop him from becoming a Nobel Laureate. The most fascinating point to note about the film is that professor Nash is known for developing the Game Theory. As UCLA Economics professor, David Levine states in his article, What is GameTheory?, “what economist call game theory, psychologists call the theory of social situations, which is an accurate description of what game theory is all about.” We want teachers to be “up on their game”, the “teaching game.” The reality is this, students play games. If you have ever been in a classroom for any length of time, you have been victim of the “bathroom game.” The first student comes to the teacher’s desk and asks if he or she can go to the bathroom, if the teacher says yes, the teacher must continue to allow students to go to the bathroom. The teacher will be seen as being unfair if the teacher says no at any point in the game. Most of the class gets a break because the teacher doesn’t know how to stop the game. Another game is the pencil game, sometimes called the “I don’t have anything to write with” game. You can guess how that game is played.

Most young people today are “masters of the game.” (Leigh,2003) For teachers who don’t know that there is a game, this book is for you. We live in an age in which science and technology have revolutionized the way we view the world, yet many teachers fail to realize that scientific methods can also be applied to the study of human behavior. The major goals for this textbook are to demonstrate to students how the science of psychology has evolved and how it continues to develop. We wanted to create a textbook that engages students in the scientific process by asking stimulating questions and demonstrates how scientific research proceeds in order to answer them. In addition, we wanted to introduce students to several contemporary and influential psychologists in order to show them how researchers think about important issues as well as to illustrate how controversy still surrounds much of this important discipline.

Special Features

What makes this text different from others that are also well grounded in current research is the way in which research is presented. We attempt to demonstrate how research evolves from simple questions about behavior, often by asking readers to think about how answers to questions might be found. We then show how research, using a variety of methods, answers these questions and how theories of psychology develop from research. In many cases we discuss how both the questions and the research are influenced by individual personalities and the political climate of the time. Psychology, like any other science, is a dynamic, social process within which our knowledge continually changes. Throughout each chapter there are numerous questions that students are asked to consider and attempt to answer. Immediately following many of these questions are descriptions of research designed to answer them. Students are thus led through the research process so that they become accustomed to how questions lead to research and how research provides answers. In many cases research does not lead to clear answers and we discuss how to evaluate both sides of an issue critically.

Ingrad Smith, Ph.D. is the Associate Dean of the College of Education and Human Development and Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi. She has served as an Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership at Mississippi State University’s Meridian Campus in Meridian, Mississippi; Director of Partners in Progress in the Division of Undergraduate Studies at Florida International University in Miami, Florida; Assistant Superintendent in the Yazoo City Municipal School District in Yazoo City, Mississippi; Principal of Northwest Jackson Middle School, Assistant Principal at Peeples Middle School in the Jackson Public School District, in Jackson, Mississippi. She presently serves as Executive Director of the Association for Rural Education Policy and Practice. She was one of the coordinators of the Mississippi Education Policy Fellowship Program. Dr. Smith has been a consultant for the Mississippi Department of Education and served as a consultant for several school districts. Dr. Smith holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English and a Master of Science Degree in Adult Education from Florida International University in Miami, Florida, and a Ph.D. in Educational Administration with emphasis in school violence from Jackson State University. She is the author of several books including her recently published book:The Female Factor: An Anthology of Issues Facing Women. (University Press) Dr. Smith may be contacted at: ingrad.c.smith@jsums.edu or call (601) 979-0490.

Audience

While all teachers may face discipline challenges in their classrooms each day, this book was designed for the following categories of teachers:

• Teachers who have lost control of their classes and use referrals as their primary discipline tool. When teachers send too many students to the office, the referral process loses its effectiveness. Administrators are challenged with: a) sending too many students to ISS, b) suspending too many students each day or c) sending students back to the teacher’s class.
• Teachers who work in In -School Suspension programs. They face all of the discipline problems in the building. Their job is exceptionally difficult, they have very little training to deal with the discipline challenges they face each day.
• Teachers who work in Alternative Schools. These teachers are charged with teaching students who are angry about so many issues in their world. These teachers need special training to be able to approach students in their classes without creating additional discipline problems.
• College students who plan to teach. Students need to be provided with realistic information about possible behavior problems and how to effectively use psychology to identify behavior problems so parents can seek help before their child is suspended from school.

This text does not have all the answers but it does provide a psychological approach to student behavior and poor school performance. The text should be used as a daily manual for practicing teachers as well as a college textbook.