The Power of Metaphor

This book explores the possibility that people understand abstract social concepts using metaphor, which is not simply a matter of words. Rather, it is a cognitive tool for understanding abstract concepts (such as morality) in terms of superficially dissimilar concepts that are relatively easier to comprehend (such as cleanliness).

In the past decade, the development of a formal theoretical framework, labeled conceptual metaphor theory, has stimulated systematic empirical study on metaphor's role in social psychological phenomena.

This book summarizes current knowledge and integrates recent developments in the topic of metaphor and in the cognitive underpinnings of social life.

Mark J. Landau, PhD, is an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Kansas. He received his doctorate from the University of Arizona in 2 7.
 
Dr. Landau has published many articles and chapters focused on metaphor's influence on social cognition and behavior and the role of existential motives in diverse aspects of human behavior.
 
He has received funding from the National Science Foundation and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.
 
Michael D. Robinson, PhD, is a professor of psychology at North Dakota State University. He received his doctorate in social psychology from the University of California, Davis, in 99 . Subsequently, he was trained in emotion in a 3-year national National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) postdoc (advisors Richard Davidson and Gerald Clore).
 
He has received funding from both the National Science Foundation and NIMH and has extensive editorial experience. Specifically, he has been an associate editor of the Journal of Personality and Cognition amp amp Emotion and is now an associate editor of Emotion, the motivation/emotion section of Social and Personality Psychology Compass, and the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
 
He publishes frequently in the areas of personality, cognition, and emotion.
 
Brian P. Meier, PhD, is an associate professor of psychology at Gettysburg College, where he teaches courses on general psychology, social psychology, and statistics. He received his doctorate in social psychology from North Dakota State University in 2 5.
 
His research is focused on social and personality psychology topics including embodiment, emotion, aggression, prosocial behavior, self-regulation, and mindfulness.
 
Dr. Meier is a consulting editor for multiple journals and his research has been funded by multiple agencies.
 

This book explores the possibility that people understand abstract social concepts using metaphor, which from this perspective is not simply a matter of words. Rather, it is a cognitive tool that people routinely use to understand abstract concepts (such as morality) in terms of superficially dissimilar concepts that are relatively easier to comprehend (such as cleanliness). Although observations on metaphor's cognitive significance date back to Aristotle, the development of a formal theoretical framework, labelled conceptual metaphor theory, has stimulated systematic empirical study on metaphor's role in social psychological phenomena primarily over the past decade. This book summarises current knowledge and integrates recent developments for readers interested in the topic of metaphor and, more broadly, in the cognitive underpinnings of social life. Some topics covered include overcoming many of the empirical limitations confronting linguistic analyses of conceptual metaphor how metaphoric influences guide perceptions of other people and the self and judgments of right and wrong relying on metaphor when constructing memories of social stimuli the role of metaphor in judgment and decision making how exposure to metaphor in mass political communication influences observers' attitudes toward social and political issues

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