Explaining Abnormal Behavior

"This remarkable book offers a broadly synthetic account of brain-behavior relationships by blending perspectives from the neurodevelopmental disorders, neurology, and psychiatry. Erudite, lucid, and engagingly written, the text brims with sparkling insights derived from Pennington's vast experience as a clinician and researcher. Rarely indeed can one find such breadth of knowledge combined with such clarity of exposition. I recommend this book to anyone interested in how neuroscience can reveal the workings of the human mind." -- Christopher M. Filley, MD, Director, Behavioral Neurology Section, University of Colorado School of Medicine

"Pennington provides a highly original account of the study of abnormal behavior, putting the field in historical context and covering development, adult neuropsychology, and psychiatry in an integrated fashion. He not only explains current cognitive neuroscience models of abnormal behavior, but also makes us think deeply about the nature and explanatory adequacy of such models."--Dorothy Bishop, DPhil, Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, United Kingdom

"This critically important, timely volume shows how contemporary cognitive neuroscience has transformed our understanding of brain/n-/behavior relationships and has led to new insights into the neural basis of functional impairments. Pennington emphasizes the explanatory power of connectionist or neural network models and demonstrates the ways in which the mechanisms underlying normal behavior and development help explain abnormal behavior. This book will inform a wide range of readers, from practicing scientists and practitioners to students. Ample references to related literatures and the learning exercises at the end of the chapters enhance its educational value."--H. Gerry Taylor, PhD, ABPP-CN, Center for Biobehavioral Health, Nationwide Children's Hospital Research Institute; Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University

"I highly recommend this book, which examines cognitive neuroscience models for abnormal behavior. The book is novel in that it applies the same set of models to a range of neurological, psychiatric, and neurodevelopmental disorders. Pennington is an internationally recognized expert in pediatric neuropsychology and neuroscience who displays an exquisite appreciation for the interplay between normal and abnormal development. This is an extremely valuable text for graduate-level courses on abnormal behavior."--Keith Owen Yeates, PhD, ABPP-CN, Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada


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