Harwood Fisher Books

The book introduces a structural approach to understanding personality psychology, drawing inspiration from Kenneth Colby's PARRY simulation of a paranoid state. Harwood Fisher analyzes the linguistic patterns of Donald Trump and his supporters, referred to as "The Trio," demonstrating how their communication reflects similar logical structures. By comparing these patterns to Colby's computer-generated responses, Fisher aims to illuminate how truth is presented and judged in rhetoric. This work is intended for students and scholars across various fields, including psychology and computer science.

Exploring the interplay between Freud and Pavlov, the book delves into their shared psychological theories despite their apparent differences. It highlights their concepts of mind and psychopathology, proposing a systems approach that synthesizes their views. By employing semiotic analysis, the text reveals how both theorists utilize logical sequences and negation in understanding mental processes. This comprehensive framework connects neurological and psychological elements, offering valuable insights for researchers and practitioners in psychology, cognitive science, and AI.

This volume expands the concept and role of the schema, with three goals in mind: 1) to outline the continuing issues in the schema concept as the legacy of Kant’s concept and analysis, 2) to show that Kant’s challenges resulted in successful but truncated views of the schema and its functions, 3) to reconstruct Otto Selz’s schema concept by proposing an alternative. The basis and scope of Selz’s schema were intended to yield a more complete follow-up to Kant’s challenges. These had emerged out of his unresolved view of the schema as knowledge, on one hand, and thought, on the other. Sel’z concepts—‘anticipatory schema,’ ‘coordinate relations,’ and ‘knowledge complex’—are more inclusive and psychologically dynamic than those of the influential but reductionist theorists: Piaget, Bartlett, and Craik. Harwood Fisher explores Sel’z ideas in past, present, and future temporal contexts. His predecessors’ and his contemporaries’ ideas influenced him. Present-day needs and future prospects round out a Selzian conception of the schema that would enrich a psychology of thought and knowledge.