Psychology Today: Behavioral Studies for Laymen

Do you like to read about behavioral sciences and learn why people think and act the way they do? If so, then you might enjoy Psychology Today, a magazine about the social science that attempts to study human behavior and looks for relationships among different variables. This publication is issued once every two months and is considered the premiere magazine for this specific subject.

Features of This Magazine:

Psychology Today is a shorter magazine than most with each issue containing about 100 pages with the following departments:

Editor’s Note- This is the one- page opener to each issue, written by Editor in Chief, Kaja Perina.

Letters- About two or three pages in length, this section includes comments from the magazine’s readers.

The Mind’s Eye- This department is comprised of a picture and a short summary of what you see in the photo, usually accompanied by a short interview. The picture and topic have something to do with psychology.

Unconventional Wisdom- Two pages in length, this section includes a question and answer session with Hara Estroff Marano, Psychology Today’s resident therapist.

Final Analysis- This is found on the last page of each issue. It features a short interview with a celebrity, with a special emphasis on behavioral concerns.

The remaining pages of each issue can be counted on to provide between five and ten longer featured stories. These can sometimes focus on entertainers and others who are well- known. Or, most of the time, they are focused on problems and controversies surrounding human psychology that are generic in nature and can apply to anyone.

Cost to Subscribe:

The base subscription price for this magazine is $15.97 for six bi- monthly issues. This equals 2.66 per issue, which represents a savings of 33 percent from the $3.99 cover price. Looking through the internet, I was not able to find any better deals on this publication. They were all selling this magazine for roughly the same $15.97 price.

Customer Service:

Inquiries to this magazine can be made via the web site, psychologytoday.com. In the site, you can lookup articles relating to the current month’s issue, take self- tests, and find information on therapy. You can also send an e-mail message to the editors and start a subscription on- line. If you would rather phone- in a subscription, the number is 800-234-8361.

Final Thoughts:

Psychology Today is the most popular magazine of its genre on the market. A common adornment on the tables at health facilities, social work centers, and other related professional businesses, this magazine is geared toward individuals who want to know more about people and what makes them tick.

The subject of psychology is usually broken down into several different approaches and with this magazine, the editors have chosen to combine several different approaches in the various articles. From my reading experience with Psychology Today, it seems like behavioralism is the most common psychological school of thought that is utilized in this magazine. There are occasional references to Freud, Jung, and other pioneering names in the history of psychology, but behavioralism seems to get the most plugs in this publication.

Many different topics surface in Psychology Today, but certain ones seem to get more coverage than others. There is quite a bit of space devoted to problems with children; relationships; sex; self- esteem; etc. These topics probably get the most coverage because they are among the most prevalent in the real world. Every now and then, Psychology Today will surprise me with an article about something I didn’t see coming. But more often than not, the topics stay focused on the issues that matter to the most people.

I like reading most of this magazine, and I have found much of what I read to be common sense, with an occasional surprise or two. The question and answer session titled “Unconventional Wisdom” is usually pretty good, even if the answers are often very brief. I like many of the longer articles, too, and many of them are very thought- provoking. I don’t always agree with the conclusions of some of them, but they at least get me thinking and debating with myself over the topic at hand and its many implications.

Advertisements cover about 40 percent of the pages of each issue, which isn’t too bad. The ads found here are for the types of products you would expect, like books, drugs, herbal remedies, and other similar products. Also, there seem to be a good number of ads for cleaners, toilet paper, and other household goods. This surprised me a little bit since these types of ads have nothing to do with the magazine’s main focus. It makes me suspect that the magazine’s primary readership is female since these same products are often found in publications with primarily a female audience.

One thing I wish was different about this magazine is the frequency of publication. Six issues per year isn’t very much for a magazine and it can get very frustrating having to wait two months for the next copy to arrive. Worse, there are no periodicals available on the market that can be substituted for this magazine. Thus, if you like to read about the subject of psychology in an easy to read format in a publication that is relatively easy to find, then Psychology Today is your only choice. Also, this magazine is a little too short (especially for one that is only published every two months!) and I don’t like the cheap, staple- type binding. It makes it flimsy and easy to fall apart.

Overall, this is a good magazine about the topic of psychology with some good, thoughtful articles that get your brain chemicals flowing freely as you think and ponder over different possibilities. Professionals will likely find a publication like this too simplistic and not in- depth enough. But for the rest of us, Psychology Today presents a solid magazine with some very good articles about the science of behavior.