This text introduces students to the field of psychopharmacology, with special emphasis on the relationships between drugs, their mechanisms of action in the nervous system, and human behavior. By examining human drug use from historical, societal, and biological perspectives, Grilly provides a rich foundation for understanding drugs affecting the brain and their usage. In addition to describing basic pharmacological principles, Grilly discusses the general factors behind drug tolerance, dependence, and abuse as well as approaches for dealing with these problems. Pharmacotherapy for the major mental disorders is described from both biochemical and clinical efficacy perspectives. By using the most up-to-date research and by presenting data in concise, jargon-free prose, the author has created one of the most comprehensive and accessible books on the subject. Information is organized from the general to the specific, beginning with a historical perspective and subsequently moving through coverage of basic pharmacological principles and processes, drug classifications, and approaches to drug tolerance, dependence and abuse. Grilly then describes the psychological and behavioral effects of specific psychotropic drugs used recreationally and therapeutically, with coverage of their pharmacokinetics, mechanisms of action, common side effects, and current issues regarding their uses.