Brainwashing - A Book about Thought Control [Recommendation]
I enjoy reading books that are off the radar. And by that I mean of books that are not on popular best-seller lists or books praised by celebrities and people with big followership. This doesn't mean these books don't rise to the level of 'quality', if I can put it that way, that I expect from reading a book.
In fact, the opposite may be true, as I seem to kindof validate that with every book I read. One of these is Brainwashing, a book written by Kathleen Taylor, who is a Research Scientist at the University of Oxford, in the department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics.
She published this book in 2004, so, by some means, it's an oldie. The title should be self-explanatory in terms of the contents of the book.
There are many aspects of thought control and brainwashing that are indepthly elaborated, such as:
- hard brainwashing by torture, with many historical examples
- more soft brainwashing through persuasion, often implemented with marketing purposes
- brainwashing by culture, religion, and politics
- the neuroscience of thought control and the brain changes that accompany different relevant tactics
- most importantly: how to counteract the different forms of brainwashing.
One of such important countermeasures for brainwashing (at large) is the ability to stop-and-think. In other words, it deals with invoking awareness in situations that appear to be persuasive. This is one theme or strategy that I've encountered in different books that deal with the subject of mind change. And I kindof dislike the fact that it's being packed and sold as mindfulness 'non-sense' meditation, which, in my view, takes a lot from its power.
I'll probably deal with self-awareness in another post, but until then, if this book, sounds or looks appealing to you, grab yourself a copy.
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Cristi Vlad, Self-Experimenter and Author
Good lecture, conpadre!
thanks!
Cognitiv Biases can be dealth with partly by "the ability to stop-and-think". However, if you do not have enough knowledge about the questioned subject, you are only reinforcing your beliefs.
Let me give you an example :
Someone is selling a book about how drinking Lemon and carrots can help you lose 10 Pounds in 2 weeks.
If you do not know "enough" about nutrition and bodycomposition, you will sink into his idea.
I like your post, if i read the book (which will take a long time due to my long list) i will notify you about my thoughts on it. ;)
Have a good day.
that's an interesting theory. In part I agree, the ability to stop and think is not enough, but it's more than necessary...
Very interesting book, thank you very much for your recommendation.
I can find myself a little in the paragraph you highlighted in your image, especially about dogs. When I was little, around 7 years old, I visited an aunt that at that time had a pretty big dog, can't remember what kind.
However, what I do remember, is that when she got it closer to me, and I tried to pet it, he pretty much saw me as his meal, and went all in to bite my face off. I was lucky my aunt was paying attention and she got the dog in time, if not, my face would be destroyed right now.
Since that moment I feel a big amount of fear whenever I see a dog, no matter how small, and the "kill or be killed" instinct kicks in. Multiple times I had to walk pass a few dogs and I was thinking about ways I could kill them if they made any move while I pass by.
Sounds interesting and could help me with what happened when I was younger, if I'll have the chance, I'll definitely read it.
Thank you for your recommendation and have a nice day :)
many of us have similar memories from childhood. it's good if they have not developed into traumas or phobias. if that's the case, one of the mostly implemented therapies is cognitive behavioral, which seems to be effective for that purpose.
hardcover 117.30, paperback 6.64$, hmm which version to choose. Is the defense against
the dark artsbrainwashing aspect worth it? Can't see why else to read this book. Looks at you weirdlyI see there's a new edition of the book, but I suspect it's mostly the same thing as the one I've read. however, you can get the digital one for about $5 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000WN265M/
thanks - i have an ongoing series on steemit called 'SLAVE NO MORE' regarding breaking free of the programs that are all around, you might injoy it. this is the latest post (#5) https://steemit.com/money/@ura-soul/5-empirical-scientific-evidence-most-debt-is-void-and-can-be-cancelled-since-the-financial-systems-are-criminal-or-slave-no-more
followed btw ;)
i am a avid book follower . I too came across the same kind of book about how our thoughts can change the way we see and the name of the book is THE SECRET by Rhonda bryne