The textbook is:
Michael
W. Passer & Ronald E. Smith
Psychology: The Science
of Mind and Behavior.
4th Edition
(Copyright is 2009 for the hardcover version, 2008 for the softcover version)
THERE ARE 3 VERSIONS OF THE 4th EDITION: ANY ONE OF THEM IS FINE.
USED COPIES OF THE 4TH EDITION ARE ALSO FINE.
1) Hardcover:
This is the 4th edition (2009).
ISBN: 978-0-07-338276-0
It looks like this:
2) Custom Softcover Edition:
This is the 4th edition
(2008)
Except for the paperback cover, it is the same as the hardcover edition. Same chapters; same content.
ISBN: 978-007-725-841-2
I do not have a separate photo: The cover looks the same as
the hardback edition, except for a thin white border that
surrounds the vertical photos and the Title/Author information.
3) E-text version , available at Course Smart. This is considerably cheaper than the new hardcover or softcover
versions, if you're willing to deal with an e-book. Used
hardcover/paperback books may or may not be cheaper still,
depending on what you're able to find.
http://www.coursesmart.com/0077252934
QUESTION: IS IT OK TO USE AN EARLIER EDITION OF THE BOOK?
ANSWER: I STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU DO NOT USE AN EARLIER
EDITION. WHY?
First, as you know, we are using the 4th (newest) edition of a textbook of which I am one of the authors. Therefore, I want you to be aware that the following advice is what I have always given my Psych 101 students, even for the many years before I co-wrote this book and therefore was using books by other authors. This is also the same advice that I give to my Psych 209 students, a course in which I am not an author of the textbook.
For any course, I always recommend that the new (latest) edition of the textbook be purchased -- either as a new copy or more cheaply as a used copy if used copies are available. Although most of the core content may remain the same, new content is always added to the latest edition, other content is deleted so that the book doesn't keep getting longer and longer, and there may be both major and minor changes in the number of chapters or the organization of information within chapters. Graphs or diagrams to illustrate some concepts may change. In our case, all of these changes can be found in the 4th edition versus the 3rd edition (or earlier editions). Finally, page numbers (such as may occur in the list of reading assignments, where in some chapters you would skip some pages) won't match up to the syllabus.
Thus, I cannot tell you that it's OK to use the older edition. For any new edition in any course you take, even if most of the content is the same, I'd hate to see a student miss items on an exam because the items focus on concepts, research findings, or examples covered only in the new edition (and not in older editions, nor even in lecture). In my own Psych 101 course, I typically base a good portion of exam questions (about 30% to 40%) on information that is covered in the textbook but that is not covered in lecture. In other words, I expect my students to read the book independently and carefully, and I do not use lecture to "try to cover everything" in the book, which would be impossible anyway. Rather, some class time is used for demonstrations, other exercises, and videos to illustrate important concepts or findings. Obviously, given the cost of textbooks and your particular financial situation, you will reach your own decision about which edition to buy, but I have to recommend against using an older edition. Several copies of the current edition of the textbook will be placed on reserve at OUGL (Odegaard Undergraduate Library, Reserve Desk).
Copyright © 2005 The University of Washington. All rights reserved.