Battling the inner dummy: the craziness of apparently normal people
(Book)

Book Cover
Your Rating: 0 stars
Star rating for

Contributors:
Published:
Amherst, N.Y. : Prometheus Books, 1999.
Format:
Book
Physical Desc:
466 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
Status:

Description

From the sexcapades of Bill Clinton to the unbelievable story of Hugh Grant and the prostitute; from the 15-year-old who weighs only 82 pounds but believes she's obese, to the professor who screams profanities at other drivers in snarled traffic-we wonder out loud, "What are they thinking?!" What drives so many apparently normal, intelligent people to act irrationally, harming themselves and others? According to Sigmund Freud, such behavior may be caused by the "id," our built-in mental invitation to everything from dangerous fun to horrendous acts of irrationality. For popular psychology writer David Weiner, "id" stands for "Inner Dummy," the part of the brain that we must come to understand if we are ever to know why we do foolish, irrational, and compulsive things. Drawing on the groundbreaking theories of evolutionary psychology, "Battling the Inner Dummy" localizes the source of our irrationality in the limbic id-the most primitive part of our brain that endlessly thirsts for status, sex, territory, nurturance, and survival. "We become captured by these drives," Weiner says. "By understanding our Inner Dummy, we can avoid disasters in our own lives." Along with sound advice from clinical psychiatrist Dr. Gilbert Hefter on how to handle our own Inner Dummies with built-in rewards and punishments, Weiner brilliantly interweaves delightful, imagined conversations with Freud and staffers at a mythical advertising agency, who have been given the assignment of communicating the nature of the id's irrationalities to the general public ( t-shirts that say, "Would someone please fix my Inner Dummy before I fall in love with another idiot?" and a bathroom scale that allows you to weigh eight pounds less each time you use it). This inviting, humorous romp with "Inner Dummies" who have made the news illustrates how we can apply "ID prevention" in our daily lives and includes all the major strategies science and medicine have developed over the years to counter Inner Dummies that threaten our well-being.

Also in This Series

Copies

Location
Call Number
Status
East Lyme Public Adult Non-Fiction
154.22 WEINER
On Shelf

More Like This

Other Editions and Formats

More Details

Language:
English
ISBN:
1573927473

Notes

Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (p. 443-454) and index.

Reviews from GoodReads

Loading GoodReads Reviews.

Citations

APA Citation (style guide)

Weiner, D. L., & Hefter, G. M. (1999). Battling the inner dummy: the craziness of apparently normal people. Prometheus Books.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)

Weiner, David L and Gilbert M. Hefter. 1999. Battling the Inner Dummy: The Craziness of Apparently Normal People. Prometheus Books.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)

Weiner, David L and Gilbert M. Hefter, Battling the Inner Dummy: The Craziness of Apparently Normal People. Prometheus Books, 1999.

MLA Citation (style guide)

Weiner, David L. and Gilbert M Hefter. Battling the Inner Dummy: The Craziness of Apparently Normal People. Prometheus Books, 1999.

Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.

Staff View

Grouped Work ID:
2394fdf6-4ff1-c0d2-35b7-b0314886cc68
Go To Grouped Work

Record Information

Last Sierra Extract TimeJun 28, 2025 07:54:02 PM
Last File Modification TimeJun 28, 2025 07:54:41 PM
Last Grouped Work Modification TimeJun 28, 2025 07:54:07 PM

MARC Record

LEADER01213pam a22003134a 4500
003LION
00520250210215249.0
008990526s1999    nyua     b    001 0 eng  
010 |a  99034893
020 |a 1573927473 |q (pbk. : alk. paper)
040 |a DLC |c DLC |d DLC
042 |a pcc
05000 |a BF175.5.I4 |b W45 1999
08200 |a 154.2/2 |2 21
1001 |a Weiner, David L. |0 http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n93029233
24510 |a Battling the inner dummy : |b the craziness of apparently normal people / |c David L. Weiner with Gilbert M. Hefter.
2641 |a Amherst, N.Y. : |b Prometheus Books, |c 1999.
300 |a 466 pages : |b illustrations ; |c 23 cm
336 |a text |b txt |2 rdacontent
337 |a unmediated |b n |2 rdamedia
338 |a volume |b nc |2 rdacarrier
504 |a Includes bibliographical references (p. 443-454) and index.
6500 |a Id (Psychology) |0 http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85064104
7001 |a Hefter, Gilbert M. |0 http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n99040761
907 |a .b14045990
939 |a 1480957
945 |y .i20389425 |i 20601762691 |l elan |s - |h  |u 19 |x 0 |w 0 |v 5 |t 16 |z 08-02-06 |r - |o - |a 154.22 WEINER
990 |a DYNIX_LION_1480957
998 |e - |d a  |f eng |a el