The social animal brooks book from wikipedia the free encyclopedia the social animal the hidden sources of love character and achievement is a non fiction book by american journalist david brooks who is otherwise best known for his career with the new york times the book discusses what drives individual behavior and decision making. Columnist david brooks unpacks new insights into human nature from the cognitive sciences insights with massive implications for economics and politics as well as our own self knowledge in a talk full of humor he shows how you cant hope to understand humans as separate individuals making choices based on their conscious awareness. The social animal is an apa medal winning book about social psychology by elliot aronson originally published in 1972 the social animal is currently in its twelfth edition in a style written for the general audience the book covers what modern psychology knows about the reasons for some of the most important aspects of human behavior