Can people make themselves smarter? Research in psychology suggests that they can – that the brain functions in much the way muscles do. The more you exercise it, the better it functions. Moreover, the better you understand it, the more you are in a position to make optimal use of it.

This book seeks simultaneously to accomplish two goals. It teaches students about the mind and how it functions, and at the same time, it helps them improve that functioning.

The book is written primarily for college students but can also be used by advanced high school students working at a college level. It is relevant in any course on thinking, reasoning, problem solving, decision making, critical thinking, creative thinking, or study skills that seeks simultaneously to help students understand better how they think and to improve their thinking skills. The book is appropriate either as a main text or a supplementary one.

A numer of features make this book unusual, if not unique, among programs for developing intellectual skills. First, the program is based on a contemporary psychological theory (the theory of successful intelligence) that has extensive data to support it (going back 35 years). Second, the book conceptualizes intelligence in a broad way; the range of cognitive skills addressed is much greater than in the typical program of this kind. Third, the book is written to motivate students as well as to teach them.