'gripping book'

An ambitious and well-written study (The Guardian )

Throughout history, humans have attempted to influence and control the thoughts of others. Since the word 'brainwashing' was coined in the aftermath of the Korean War, it has become part of the popular culture, served as a topic for jokes, and been exploited to create sensational headlines. It has also been the subject of learned discussion from many disciplines: including history, sociology, psychology, and psychotherapy. But until now, a crucial part of the debate has been missing: that of any serious reference to the science of the human brain. Descriptions of how opinions can be changed, whether by persuasion, deceit, or force, have been almost entirely psychological. In Brainwashing, Kathleen Taylor brings the worlds of neuroscience and social psychology together for the first time. In elegant and accessible prose, and with abundant use of anecdotes and case-studies, she examines the ethical problems involved in carrying out the required experiments on humans, the limitations of animal models, and the frightening implications of such research. She also explores the history of thought-control and shows how it still exists all around us, from marketing and television, to politics and education.

Throughout history, humans have attempted to influence and control the thoughts of others. Since the word 'brainwashing' was coined in the aftermath of the Korean War, it has become part of the popular culture, served as a topic for jokes, and been exploited to create sensational headlines. It has also been the subject of learned discussion from many disciplines: including history, sociology, psychology, and psychotherapy. But until now, a crucial part of the debate has been missing: that of any serious reference to the science of the human brain. Descriptions of how opinions can be changed, whether by persuasion, deceit, or force, have been almost entirely psychological. In "Brainwashing", Kathleen Taylor brings the worlds of neuroscience and social psychology together for the first time. In elegant and accessible prose, and with abundant use of anecdotes and case-studies, she examines the ethical problems involved in carrying out the required experiments on humans, the limitations of animal models, and the frightening implications of such research.

She also explores the history of thought-control and shows how it still exists all around us, from marketing and television, to politics and education.

Kathleen Taylor is a research scientist in the Department of Physiology at the University of Oxford.
She has been long-listed for the 2005 Aventis Science Book Prize, and short-listed for the MIND Book of the Year Award, and in 2003 she won first prize in both the THES/OUP Science Essay competition and the THES Humanities and Social Sciences Writing Prize.

2008-07-25 deeply illuminating

This is a wildly profound book written with intelligence and humour.

It's as much about how we think and learn as about brain washing.

Whenever I found myself limiting my thoughts to rigid templated thinking Taylor would throw in a mental curve to derail my own unconscious beliefs.

Simply a wonderful book, an understanding of this subject is as important now as it has ever been. Quite frankly KT's FACET approach to thinking should be lesson 101 for school children and adults alike.

You won't be disappointed by this book. I can't wait to see what she does next with her current research into belief.