Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You

by Sam Gosling
Profile Books, 264 pages

Have you ever judged a colleague by the state of their desk? Or had second thoughts about a relationship with someone after seeing inside that person's living area?

We are always making judgments about people based on their appearance and possessions, but we might not always be right. What does other's people stuff really tell us? And just what are we revealing about ourselves by our own stuff?

Psychologist Sam Gosling has made a career out of "the science of snooping" or "snoopology". He has now gathered his research into this enjoyable and interesting book, claiming to "show how we can capture something about a person's character and personality, values and habits, hopes and dreams just from looking closely at their rooms and offices".

Like most pop psychology books, Snoop is carried by amusing anecdotes and quirky characters, as it lays out the psychological principles. In an accessible manner, Gosling introduces and explains the "Big Five" personality traits - Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness and Neuroticism - with examples of how they apply. This is important reading because understanding the rest of the book depends on grasping this basic concept.

Once the theory is down, the fun begins. Gosling takes us through different methods of deciphering personality from such things as ornaments, clothing, email addresses, political symbols, clutter and posters. Applying theory to practical examples, he shows how to decipher clues (they're not always what you think), how to tell if someone's faking it and how character can be in the eye of the beholder.

Although this book won't turn you into a mind reader or give you a full insight into the secret lives of those around you, it does give a new perspective on the impressions we leave without even knowing it. - JP