How does a boy from a financially and intellectually impoverished background grow up to become a Harvard researcher, win international acclaim for his groundbreaking work, and catch fire as a pioneering psychologist? As the only person in the history of the American Psychological Association to have won all three of its highest honors -- for distinguished research, teaching, and writing -- Elliot Aronson is living proof that humans are capable of capturing the power of the situation and conquering the prison of personality.

A personal and compelling look into Aronson's profound contributions to the field of social psychology, Not by Chance Alone is a lifelong story of human potential and the power of social change.

Elliot Aronson was chosen by his peers as one of the 100 most eminent psychologists of the twentieth century. He has written or edited twenty-two books, including The Handbook of Social Psychology and The Social Animal, now in its eleventh edition. He lives in Santa Cruz, California.