The goal has been to design a text that students will enjoy reading as they learn what is so exciting and special about the many fields of psychology. The goal for every chapter, in every sentence, has been to ensure that students will want to go on reading. At the same time, I have focused on how the text will work within the syllabi of instructors who value a research-centered, applications-relevant approach to psychology.

This 20th edition of Psychology and Life has only a single author, but it retains the vision reflected in the collaboration between Richard Gerrig and Philip Zimbardo. That partnership was forged because of a shared commitment to teaching psychology as a science relevant to human welfare. Phil Zimbardo and I brought our teaching experience to bear on a text that balances scientific rigor with psychology’s relevance to contemporary life concerns. This latest edition continues the text’s tradition of bringing the most important psychological insights to bear on your students’ lives.