Description: Consider the titles of the two articles listed immediately below in the Sources section of this post. They both appeared on the same day in the same online media source and were illustrated by the same photo (see either article). Before going to look at either article think for a minute about how you… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Abnormal Psychology
When is Forgetting a Good Thing?
Description: This may seem like an odd question but what comes to mind when you think about forgetting? I suspect that most of what comes to mind as you ponder on forgetting is negative: things or events you forgot, concerns over loss of memory with age or loss of memory due to accident or illness… Read more »
Psychosomatic: Considering the Socio-Cultural in Biopsychsocial Models
Description: A group of high school students in the same class all start to show similar symptoms or anxiety and nausea. The school they attend is temporarily closed and a search is undertaken for pollutants or contaminants that could have caused the reported symptoms. None are found though over the week the school is closed… Read more »
Block Trauma with Tetris?
Description: What is trauma, do you have a working definition? It is a possible consequence of having experienced a traumatic event which could be almost anything from a car crash to being in a military conflict zone. It can lead to symptoms of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). So, yes, I bet you have a… Read more »
Psychologists and Prescribing Authority: Yes, No, or Maybe?
Description: Can Psychologists prescribe drugs? Mainly no, only in a few jurisdictions. Should Psychologists be given limited prescribing privileges? Now that is a rather hotly debated question. There ARE examples of situations where non-doctors have been granted limited prescription authority. Dentists, for example, can prescribe pain medications (good thing too!). So, what about psychologists? What… Read more »
Horror and Anxiety: Therapeutic?
Description: Evaluate the usefulness of the following two statements. People who are worried about what is going on with the Covid pandemic shous watch movies like Contagion (about a run-away pandemic). OR, people who are trying to deal with anxiety and nightmares should watch Zombie films or televisions shows (e.g., The Walking Dead) before bed…. Read more »
How Might Instagram be Toxic for Emerging Adults?
Description: Does Instagram present its users with a valid perspective on the world – on their world? Well, the answer to that question according to a lot of peer reviewed research and, apparently also according to internal research by Facebook, the owners of Instagram, is a clear NO. If you have not heard about or… Read more »
Spider Phobic? Wait! Don’t Run!
Description: If you have a serious (phobic) fear of spiders you are probably NOT reading this because the title or the picture has caused you to move along quickly. If you have such a fear and have taken an introductory psychology course you have likely heard about systematic desensitization which is the standard, classical conditioning-based… Read more »
Smartphone Addition: Should it be in the DSM?
Description: Do you know anyone (including yourself) who you think might be addicted to their smartphone? They cannot put it down or they cannot bear to be separated from it and they must return home and get it immediately if they forget it. There are some suggestions that smartphone addiction should be considered for addition… Read more »
Smartphones, Social Media and Loneliness: Time to Act?
Description: What comes to mind when you read or hear a statement that starts with the words “young people these days….”? There has been a lot of press over the research finding that young people (born around or since 1995) are expressing and experiencing significantly higher levels of stress, anxiety and loneliness even when compared… Read more »
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