Psychological aspects of nuclear war / James Thompson.

Chichester ; New York : British Psychological Society and John Wiley & Sons Limited, [1985]

©1985.

ix, 127 pages ; 22 cm

First edition.

On title page: "Adopted as a statement by the Council of the British Psychological Society at its meeting on 13 October, 1984."

Copy 1. Donor: Medact.

Nature of the evidence -- Physical effects of nuclear weapons -- Nuclear weapon stockpiles -- Likely targets in Britain -- Immediate effects -- Delayed effects -- Conclusions -- Analysis of human reactions to disasters -- Reactions of special groups -- Long term effects -- Case examples of disasters -- The Black Death 1348-50 -- Nuclear disasters : Hiroshima and Nagasaki -- Summary and conclusions -- Protect and survive -- How will people react? -- The nature and timing of the warning -- Nuclear strike without warning -- Unofficial warning -- Official warning -- Reactions as warnings intensify -- Rural and urban reactions -- Will people stay at home? -- Effects of sheltering -- Summary and conclusions -- Approaches to risk assessment -- Decision-making and the prospects for rationality -- The psychology of accidents -- Accident case histories -- Terrorism -- The command and control of nuclear weapons -- The contribution of militarism to fallibility -- Fallibility in political decision-making -- Risks of accidental nuclear war -- Conclusions -- Psychology's contribution to international conflict resolution -- Psychological effects of crisis behavior -- Historical background -- Crisis prevention -- Theory into practice -- New approaches to nuclear negotiations -- Some practical suggestions : a reflection the research evidence -- Remaining difficulties -- Summary and conclusions.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 108-119) and index.