Involuntary Hospitalization Around the World
Overview of involuntary commitment (US) and sectioning (UK) as well as misuses of hospitalization in totalitarian states.
View ArticleCreating Riveting Romances: The Anima/Animus Archetype
Exploration of the Anima/Animus archetype, which is most often seen in romantic relationships. What the anima/animus is, why people fall in love, how to make sure there really is a happily ever after...
View ArticleBlog Entry: "Torture Porn" Horror Films - Cause or Effect?
Modern horror movies and classic psychology.
View ArticleBlog Entry: "Virginia Tech"
Some thoughts on the psychological aftermath of the Virginia Tech shootings.
View ArticleThe Writer's Inner Critic Part I: Know Your Enemy
All of us have an inner Critic; unfortunately, its voice tends to be particularly strident when we sit down to write. But psychotherapists know just how to deal with the inner Critic; in fact, even the...
View ArticleWhat Causes an Anxiety Disorder?
New to the Real Psychology section: Biological and psychological causes of anxiety disorders
View ArticleNew Q and A: Catatonic Schizophrenia and Dismal Institutions
Q - I am writing a novel about a man suffering from catatonic schizophrenia. I believe this is not as common as it used to be. What time frame should I use as a setting? (I would prefer the sanitarium...
View ArticleThe Magnetic Brain Stimulator Will See You Now
Psychiatrists are optimistic about the potential of a new therapy for treating tough cases of depression. Transcranial magnetic stimulation delivers a pulse to the gray matter and it could come to...
View ArticleBrain 'Pacemaker' Tickles Your Happy Nerve
SAN DIEGO -- A novel medical technique that smuggles an electrical charge into the brain through the vagus nerve is proving at least as effective as medication in controlling severe depression,...
View ArticleNew Q and A: A Villain's Atonement
Q - What would the process be like for a villain whose conscience has gotten to him, making him decide he wants to atone for his sins?
View ArticleThe Writer's Inner Critic Part II: A Cognitive-Behavioral Approach to Dealing...
Cognitive-behavioral exercises to defeat the inner critic. This is the approach psychotherapists take to treat clinical depression and anxiety, adapted for writers.
View ArticleIraq vet: My brain won't let go (first-person account of PTSD)
A year after coming home from Iraq, AJ Jefferson is still fighting the war in eerie nightmares about the bomb that left him and two comrades seriously wounded. The 21-year-old soldier was diagnosed...
View ArticleParis Goes to Jail & Has a Breakdown
Why the "medical condition/s" that briefly got Paris out of jail were normal.
View ArticleThe Truth About Forensic Psychology
Fictional portrayals of forensic psychologists, including James Patterson's character Alex Cross, and what they really do.
View ArticleWriter Beware: Common Misconceptions about Psychotherapy
Some ideas about therapy show up so often in fiction I find myself wondering how many writers are using them deliberately and how many just don't realize they're inaccurate. Here are six of the most...
View ArticleWhy People Believe Shrinks Analyze Everything
A recent US magazine article "played shrink" with dubious results.
View ArticleScience Daily article: Suicide Attempts Decline After Depression Treatment,...
In a study of more than 100,000 patients treated for depression, suicide attempts declined during the first month of treatment -- whether that treatment consisted of medication, psychotherapy, or both....
View ArticleThe Psychology of Terrorism
Do we really need a big sign telling us how much danger we're in on the way to the plane?
View ArticleWho Would Kill for a Father Figure?
After a life-time of abuse by father, a young woman seeks a replacement 'daddy' figure. Would she resort to murder of her target's wife to further her conditioned need of an older man?
View ArticleWhat Exactly Makes Someone Decide to Commit Suicide?
What would it take to push a character into suicide? Would there necessarily be a final "straw that broke the camel's back," or would a person be likely to ruminate on his life and eventually decide...
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