Originally published in 1989, this book offers a comprehensive overview of the work of scholars in several different disciplines contributing to the development of the psychology of science: the systematic elaboration and application of psychological concepts and methods to clarify the nature of the scientific enterprise. The psychology of science of course overlaps in important ways with the philosophy, history, and sociology of science, but its predominant and distinctive focus is on individuals and small groups employing concepts elucidated via experimental methods.

"The ambitious goal Gholson, Shadish, Niemeyer, and Houts set for themselves is no less than designing a new discipline (psychology of science), describing its past, exemplifying its achievements, setting its agenda, and generally staking its claim to be part of a new science of science. By and large, they succeed." Contemporary Psychology

"...a very ambitious volume...organized clearly and logically...a rich, dense volume, not to be digested at one sitting but rather sampled and savord leisurely and thoughtfully..."' Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences