Speaking Of Psychology

Is there anything more agonizing than being in limbo? Time may seem to slow to a crawl when you’re waiting for high-stakes news like a hiring decision, a biopsy result – or the end of a pandemic. Kate Sweeny, PhD, of the University of California, Riverside, discusses what makes waiting so stressful, how the stress of waiting differs from other types of stress, the relationship between waiting and worrying, and strategies people can use to lessen anxiety and make waiting easier. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

It used to be that if you wanted to gamble, you had to go to a casino or a racetrack to do it. But the expansion of online gambling and newly loosened laws around sports betting mean that people can now place bets from just about anywhere. Shane Kraus, PhD, of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and Lia Nower, PhD, JD, of the Rutgers University Center for Gambling Studies, talk about whether that increased access could lead to an increase in gambling addiction, who is at risk, stigma around gambling, what treatments are available, and the increased exposure kids now have to gambling via ads and video games. This episode was supported by Babbel, get 55% off at babbel.com/apa. And, Rocket Money, learn more at rocketmoney.com/apa. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage. 

From Ponzi schemes to e-mail phishing identity thieves, the world can seem full of people who want to deceive us. Daniel Simons, PhD, and Christopher Chabris, PhD, co-authors of the “Nobody’s Fool: Why We Get Taken In and What We Can Do About It,” talk about the cognitive habits that put us at risk of believing lies; famous frauds and cons from the worlds of business, science and competitive chess; and what you can do to protect yourself, and your wallet, by spotting scammers before it’s too late. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

When someone hurts you, it can feel justifiable or even satisfying to nurse a grudge. But psychologists have found that forgiveness, when done right, can lead to better mental, emotional and even physical health for the forgiver. Robert Enright, PhD, of the International Forgiveness Institute and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, discusses how you know if you’re ready to forgive, the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation, whether any harms are truly unforgivable, and how to forgive someone who isn’t sorry for what they’ve done. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

From ChatGPT to self-driving cars, AI is everywhere these days – but its rollout hasn’t always been entirely smooth. Tom Griffiths, PhD, a professor of psychology and computer science at Princeton University, talks about how artificial intelligence works, how AI differs from human cognition, how it’s changing the way science is done, and how studying human cognition can help researchers improve AI systems. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Religion and spirituality can be a source of comfort and strength but can also cause stress and conflict in people’s lives, when for example they wonder why God has allowed something terrible to happen or feel rejected by their religious community. Julie Exline, PhD, of Case Western Reserve University, talks about how spirituality and spiritual struggle affect mental health and well-being; what spiritual struggle looks like for religious believers, atheists and agnostics; how should psychologists and other mental health professionals can address spirituality and religion with their patients; and the causes and consequences of people’s belief in messages from God, after-death communication, and other supernatural attributions. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Whether your idea of the perfect vacation involves the beach, exploring a city or just relaxing at home, you probably look forward to your time off all year. Sarah Pressman, PhD, of the University of California Irvine, and Jessica de Bloom, PhD, of Groningen University in the Netherlands, talk about why taking a break from work is important for physical and mental health, what you can do to make the most of your vacation time, and differences in work and vacation culture around the world. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Everyone gets stuck sometimes: in a creative pursuit that stalls, in a job or a relationship that isn’t working out, or even just at an exercise plateau. NYU psychologist Adam Alter, PhD, author of “Anatomy of a Breakthrough: How to Get Unstuck When It Matters Most,” talks about why getting stuck is such a universal experience, what you can do to get stuck less often, how you know when it’s time to quit versus push ahead, and the practical steps you can take to get past the mental or emotional hurdles that are keeping you stuck. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

As the U.S. struggles with a shortage of mental health providers, advocates say that digital therapeutics – evidence-based mental health treatments delivered via app -- could provide an important tool to expand access to mental health care. Vaile Wright, PhD, a clinical psychologist and senior director of healthcare innovation at the American Psychological Association, talks about how digital therapeutics work, how they’re regulated, how they differ from other mental health and wellness apps, the kinds of mental and behavioral health conditions they can treat, and the role they might play in mental health treatment in the future. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

What happens when people gather in crowds – whether for political rallies, protests, football games or religious pilgrimages? Stephen Reicher, PhD, of St. Andrew’s University in Scotland, discusses why “mob mentality” is a myth; other misconceptions about crowd behavior; the role of leaders in groups and what can we learn from re-examining some classic psychology studies on obedience to authority; and what we’ve learned about leaders, followers, group identity and collective behavior from the COVID-19 pandemic. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Factitious disorder, more commonly known as Munchausen syndrome, is a mental health disorder in which people fake serious illness to gain sympathy, attention and support. A related disorder, Munchausen by proxy, or factitious disorder imposed on another, is a form of abuse in which caregivers make up or induce illness in their children. Psychiatrist Marc Feldman, MD, and psychologist Janet Cahill, PhD, discuss researchers’ evolving understanding of these disorders, how common they are, the phenomenon of “Munchausen by internet” where people lie to strangers online, and whether there are any effective therapies for these disorders. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

The lives of young adults look far different than they did a generation ago: The average age at which people marry and have children is higher than ever, and rising housing costs mean more young adults are living with parents. Laurence Steinberg, PhD, of Temple University, talks about how these changes are affecting the relationship between parents and their grown children, what young adults wish their parents understood about their lives, and how parents and adult children can resolve conflicts and build a strong relationship together. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Congress and state legislators are considering laws to restrict teen social media use, and school districts are suing social media companies for harming kids’ mental health. Are parents and policy makers right to be so concerned? Jacqueline Nesi, PhD, of Brown University, talks about the research on social media and teens’ mental health, whether it’s possible to be addicted to social media, what teens themselves think about social media, and what parents can do to help their kids use social media in a healthy way. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Researchers who study eating disorders sometimes call them the silent epidemic. Despite the stereotype that these disorders afflict only young white women, the truth is that they occur among people of all ages, genders, ethnicities, races, shapes and sizes. Cheri Levinson, PhD, of the University of Louisville, discusses myths about eating disorders, how our toxic diet culture combined with genetic vulnerability can spur eating disorders, what treatments are available, and how researchers are using new technologies to come up with more effective personalized treatments and expand access to care. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has been a treatment option for people with major depression since it was approved by the FDA in 2008. Today, it is also used to treat obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety and for smoking cessation. Sarah “Holly” Lisanby, MD, director of the Noninvasive Neuromodulation Unit at the National Institute of Mental Health, talks about how TMS works and recent advances in TMS treatment, as well as other brain stimulation treatments such as electroconvulsive therapy. Writer Diana Daniele also offers her perspective on how TMS helped her overcome treatment-resistant depression. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Very few people do their jobs entirely on their own. For most of us, doing our job well means being part of a well-functioning team. Eduardo Salas, PhD, of Rice University, talks about the key ingredients of highly effective teams, the difference between team training and team building, what to consider when working on a remote team, the role of team leaders, and how industries such as aviation and medicine – where breakdowns in teamwork can have dire consequences – have evolved in their approach to teamwork. Please help us know more about you and what you would like to hear more of from Speaking of Psychology by filling out our 2023 Audience Survey. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

While ageism may be one of the last socially acceptable biases, research shows that aging often comes with positive changes. And by believing in and propagating negative myths about aging, we can do ourselves real harm. Dr. Manfred Diehl, a lifespan developmental psychologist at Colorado State University, dispels the myth that growing older involves primarily loss and decline and explains how much control we have over how well we age. Please help us know more about you and what you would like to hear more of from Speaking of Psychology by filling out our 2023 Audience Survey. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

About one in 36 children in the U.S. has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Geraldine Dawson, PhD, of Duke University, discusses why the number of diagnoses has risen so steeply in recent years, why it’s more common in boys than girls, and how research using artificial intelligence and brain biomarkers is making it possible to detect autism risk at younger ages than before – even in infancy. Please help us know more about you and what you would like to hear more of from Speaking of Psychology by filling out our 2023 Audience Survey. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Forget the stereotype of a good-bye party in the break room followed by endless days on the golf course. Today, workers are staying on the job longer and taking on more “bridge employment,” or post-retirement jobs. Mo Wang, PhD, of the University of Florida, talks about what these shifts mean for modern retirement, how retirement can affect people’s mental and physical health, and what workers – even those who still have many years left in the workforce – can do now to help set themselves up for a happy retirement in the future. Please help us know more about you and what you would like to hear more of from Speaking of Psychology by filling out our 2023 Audience Survey. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.

Recently released CDC data found that teen girls are experiencing startling levels of sadness and violence -- nearly 1 in 3 had seriously considered suicide and 57 percent felt persistently sad or hopeless. The report also found high levels of distress among LGBQ+ teens. Dr. Kathleen Ethier, director of the CDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health, discusses what’s behind this crisis in teen mental health, why girls seem to be suffering more than boys, and what parents, peers, schools and communities do to help teens cope. Please help us know more about you and what you would like to hear more of from Speaking of Psychology by filling out our 2023 Audience Survey. For transcripts, links and more information, please visit the Speaking of Psychology Homepage.