The Englishman: Memoirs of a Psychobiologist

Although I have been basically an academic for most of my life, the way I got there has taken some surprising turns.

An unsuspected ancestry, playing in WW2 London, comical schooldays, and a spell in colonial Africa are just a few of the childhood moments described in John Staddon’s memoir The Englishman.

This is not just another transatlantic autobiography from a British working-class kid who made his name in the USA. It’s a witty and entertaining romp through the subject he has made his own. By way of his wide-ranging interests in biology, artificial intelligence, economics, philosophy and behavioural neuroscience, John Staddon introduces and explores his most important work on how animals learn.

He discusses the exciting field of behavioural psychobiology, explains theoretical research on choice and interval timing and debates so-called superstition in the learned behaviour of pigeons, rats, fish - and people.

The Englishman is an entertaining life story interwoven with expansive thoughts on the fascinating field of behavioural psychology.