Abstract
Introductory psychology textbook authors and psychology editors representing the publishers of these texts were surveyed on their perceptions of the introductory psychology text market. Three major findings emerged from their responses. First, the market seems roughly divided into three segments: upper, middle, and lower level texts. Second, like professors, authors and editors are not familiar with most of the texts in this market. Third, the growth of used book companies and the escalation of supplementary packages have greatly diminished the profit margin for introductory texts, leading to higher prices and a decreasing number of competing texts. The nature of this decrease is analyzed by examining directories of introductory psychology texts in print during the last 12 years. The role of the professor in these market problems is discussed.
