American mania : when more is not enough

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Title:

Author:

Whybrow, Peter C.

ISBN:

9780393059946

Personal Author:

Whybrow, Peter C.

Edition:

1st ed.

Publication Information:

W.W. Norton & Co. : New York, N.Y., c2005.

Physical Description:

xii, 338 p. ; 25 cm.

Contents:

Introduction : the manic society -- Ch. 1. Adams Smith's American dream : of desire and debt -- Ch. 2. Curiosity and the promised land : of origins and opportunism -- Ch. 3. The freedom to strive : of risk and reward -- Ch. 4. America bubbles over : of globalization and greed -- Ch. 5. A growing burden : of appetite and abundance -- Ch. 6. The time trade : of clocks and competition -- Ch. 7. Dreams for sale : of culture and commerce -- Ch. 8. The roots of happiness : of compassion and community -- Ch. 9. Finding balance in the age of the merchant : of self and society.

Abstract:

"In this book, Whybrow's analysis combines careful reflection on the roots of American culture as a laissez-faire, competitive, free-market economy with an exploration of the nation's migrant temperament and its role in the creation of our ambitious, restless society. He sheds critical light on the dangerous misfit emerging between our consumer-driven culture and the brain systems that evolved to deal with privation 200,000 years ago. Absent any controls - cultural or economic constraints - we are easily hooked on our acquisitive pleasure-seeking behaviors. Whybrow shows how human biology is ill equipped to cope with the demands of the 24/7, global, information-saturated, rapid fire culture we not only have created but also have come to crave.".

"Drawing on scientific case studies and colorful portraits, American Mania presents a novel vantage point from which to understand the most pressing social and medical issues of our time, and it offers readers an informed approach to addressing these problems in their individual lives."--BOOK JACKET.

Subject Term:

Social values -- United States.

Wealth -- Social aspects -- United States.

Consumption (Economics) -- Health aspects -- United States.

Self-interest -- United States.

Social ethics -- United States.

Happiness.

National characteristics, American -- History.

Copies:

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Item Barcode	Shelf Number	Copy	Status
Searching... 1:IIEMSA	1:GEN-BOOK	33168020389660	301.0973 W629A 2005	1	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

Despite an astonishing appetite for life, more and more Americans are feeling overworked and dissatisfied. In the world's most affluent nation, epidemic rates of stress, anxiety, depression, obesity, and time urgency are now grudgingly accepted as part of everyday existence--they signal the American Dream gone awry.Peter C. Whybrow, director of the Neuropsychiatric Institute at UCLA, grounds the extraordinary achievements and excessive consumption of the American nation in an understanding of the biology of the brain's reward system--offering for the first time a comprehensive and physical explanation for the addictive mania of consumerism.nbsp;American Manianbsp;presents a clear and novel vantage point from which to understand the most pressing social issues of our time, while offering an informed approach to refocusing our pursuit of happiness.