Modern neuroscience has provided us with a foundation for understanding mental disorders in terms of brain dysfunction. Imaging techniques, such as PET and fMRI, have demonstrated graphically the correspondence between patterns of brain activity and patterns of mental activity.

This book draws on evidence from neuroimaging studies, together with evidence from the fields of neuropsychology, cognitive psychology, electrophysiology, neurochemistry and pharmacology, to generate a coherent and plausible account of cerebral processes by which mental symptoms are generated.

It is intended for psychiatrists and psychologists with an interest in the origins of the symptoms they observe and treat, as well as for neuroscience students and researchers interested in the relationship between findings from the laboratory and the mental disorders that occur in clinical practice. Indeed it is intended for anyone with a serious interest in how the mind works, and in how mental disorders arise.