On its first publication in 1908 this pioneer book received immediate acclaim and was thought to have probably done more than any other single publication to stimulate study of the foundations of social behaviour. Professor McDougall was the most powerful advocate of an idealistic outlook on human life and activity, and his ideas continued to attract attention even when published in paperback form in 1960.
1. Introduction Section 1: The Mental Characters of Man of Primary Importance for his Life in Society 2. The Nature of Instincts and their Place in the Constitution of the Human Mind 3. The Principal Instincts and the Primary Emotions of Man 4. Some General or Non-Specific Innate Tendencies 5. The Nature of the Sentiments and the Constitution of Some of the Complex Emotions 6. The Development of the Sentiments 7. The Growth of Self-Consciousness and of the Self-Regarding Sentiment 8. The Advance to the Higher Plane of Social Conduct 9. Volition Section 2: The Operation of the Primary Tendencies of the Human Mind in the Life of Societies 10. The Reproductive and the Parental Instincts 11. The Instinct of Pugnacity 12. The Gregarious Instinct 13. The Instincts through which Religious Conceptions Affect Social Life 14. The Instincts of Acquisition and Construction 15. Imitation, Play, and Habit. Supplementary Chapters 1. Theories of Action 2. The Sex Instinct 3. The Derived Emotions 4. Notes on Chapters 3-9 5. Instincts of Man in the Light of Recent Discussion 6. The Structure of Character 7. The Hormic Psychology 8. A Rectification, a Difficulty, and an Addition. Index.
