A professor of psychology examines the divergent ways in which eastern and western cultures view the world, offering suggestions about how today's interdependent global cultures may be bridged.

1. The syllogism and the Tao : philosophy, science, and society in ancient Greece and China -- 2. The social origins of mind : economics, social practices, and thought -- 3. Living together vs. going it alone : social life and sense of self in the modern East and West -- 4. "Eyes in back of your head" or "Keep your eye on the ball"? : envisioning the world -- 5. "The bad seed" or "The other boys made him do it"? : causal attribution and causal modeling East and West -- 6. Is the world made up of nouns or verbs? : categories and rules vs. relationships and similarities -- 7. "Ce n'est pas logique" or "You've got a point there"? : logic and the law of noncontradiction vs. dialectic and the middle way -- 8. And if the nature of thought is not everywhere the same? : implications for psychology, philosophy, education, and everyday life -- Epilogue. The end of psychology or the clash of mentalities? : the longevity of differences.