Through a Hedge Backwards Volume 1: Rats and Stats: Discovering Psychology in the Swinging Sixties

Book excerpt: The life of a 1960s psychology student. This first volume of the "Through a Hedge Backwards" memoir series captures the life of a student of psychology at Queensland University in ultra-conservative Brisbane in the swinging sixties. The author has an intimate knowledge of psychology in Australia and provides an insider's view of the development of the profession through its adolescent years. The book delivers a critical examination of the behind-the-scenes manoeuvrings to resolve the serious issues facing the profession, told against the backdrop of the social history of the times. This critique of the history and politics of Australian psychology is leavened with controversial theories, anecdotes of student life, street marches, wild parties and the life of a singer-songwriter. And Ian has a secret problem. He is uncoordinated, half-blind, dyslexic and can't hold his drink. His struggle to overcome these hidden weaknesses is woven through his story with a light but thoughtful touch.