Oliver Sack The Man Who Mistook His Hat

Neurologist and author Oliver Sack’s, 1985 publication of “The man who mistook his wife for his hat” is a collection of case studies, regarding patients with neurological disorders. Sack’s (1985) book comprises of four thematic sections, ‘Losses’, ‘Excesses’, ‘Transports’, and ‘The World of the Simple’. This review will concentrate on the final part of the book “The world of the simple”, which centres upon people with learning difficulties (L.D) who process unique talents. An overview of this passage will be presented including, the client’s neurological diagnosis in coexistence with their specialised ingenuity. The conclusion will assess the effectiveness of the methodology used as well as critiquing the book in general.

The author coveys

He claims I.Q tests and formal testing offer a limited portrayal of his client’s abilities, he suggests case studies are the only method which portray his client’s abilities holistically. Sack (1985) raises a valid point, case studies can offer in-depth, holistic, and valid ecological qualitative data but are often expensive, difficult to replicate, and lack generalizability to the population. Although Sack (1985) evaluations seen conceivable his biases towards his case studies should be considered, are his views subjective enough? It is also possible that his client’s memory recall is distorted. No cause and effective can be scientifically concluded from these studies. (Yin,KR, 2009).

This book should be considered essential reading for psychology undergraduates, it covers a wide range of intriguing and interesting neurological disorders, and it promotes further reading. His writing style is empathic, comprehensive and insightful, although at times convoluted and elaborate. Sacks sentiments towards his clients are empathic but the medical terminologies, language and his sometimes stereotypical views contradict this. Students must acknowledge the offensive and out- dated