The Moulding of Modern Man A Psychologist's View of Information, Persuasion and Mental Coercion Today

First published in 1961, The Moulding of Modern Man discusses views of the nature and boundaries of the Self, its relation to the physical world and to human beings, real and imagined, with reference to procedures training ‘space men’ to travel alone or in company, deprived of the assurances of sight, sound, even weight. It discusses methods of publicity and advertising, of overtly or covertly influencing motives, subception or subliminal persuasion and techniques of ‘thought reform’ often vaguely termed character training, and, more confusingly, ‘brain-washing’. Other topical subjects are conflicting loyalties, with special reference to the moral problems of scientists; the social significance in different countries of intellectuals and anti-intellectuals; the effects of mass culture upon the individual’s beliefs, tastes and opinions; the role of the Organization Man in Britain; the concepts of ‘face’ and ‘prestige’ in groups and nations; and conflicting ideas of progress maintained by contemporary thinkers in ‘two cultures’. This book will be of interest to students of philosophy and psychology.