What is Affluenza? Is It Real? When Privilege Affects Mental Health by Taylor Bennett | Oct 18, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology Affluenza may sound like a cold or similar sickness, but it is actually a term used to describe a more “metaphorical” illness, whereas privileged kids who grow up emotionally and developmentally isolated from their mother and father feel an intense pressure to be successful. These individuals feel this weight at…
Women with More Facial Contrast Perceived as Younger by Taylor Bennett | Oct 13, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology, Research As we get older, we try to forget about and deny our age. We take off a few years on forms at the doctor’s office and when a friend asks which birthday this one is we definitely don’t tell the truth (despite their suspicious looks). But words can only go…
5 Intriguing Studies About the Psychology of Coffee by Nathan Davidson | Sep 29, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology Today is National Coffee Day, and out of all of the ridiculous “national days,” this is one of the few new national holidays that deserves our respect. Coffee is one of the most essential things to the current “operation flow” of human existence. Red Bull and Monster Energy Drink have…
Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) and the Psychology Behind It by Taylor Bennett | Aug 29, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology Whenever my friends are, say, getting lunch or making beach plans or even chatting without me, I can’t help but wonder what I’m missing out on. When my family is getting together without me, I can’t help but wish I was there and picture all the good times I’m not…
Thrive Five: 5 Netflix Movies About Psychology and Mental Health by Nathan Davidson | Aug 15, 2017 | Media Use, Mental Health Topics, Psychology Oh Netflix, what would we do without you and your magical entertainment superpowers. Netflix has a seemingly endless supply of movies, TV shows, documentaries about any subject matter you could possibly imagine, but it’s also precisely why we spend half of our time on Netflix trying to pick out something…
5 Psychological Causes of Laziness by Nathan Davidson | Aug 10, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology Let me guess, you’re currently lying in bed reading this and waiting for your Domino’s pizza to arrive, aren’t you? Don’t worry, I’m not judging, you’ve probably earned it… and you know what, even if you haven’t, good for you. Today is “National Lazy Day” and it’s the one day…
The Centrifuge Brain Project by Nathan Davidson | Aug 2, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology, Research The Centrifuge Brain Project is a German short mockumentary fantasy film written and directed by Till Nowak. The film uses incredibly bizarre computer-generated imagery to create seven fictional amusement park rides used in a faux documentary film about the construction of physics-defying rides intended for use in research efforts to…
5 Ways Fantasy Football is Actually Good For Your Mental Health by Nathan Davidson | Jul 31, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology NFL training camps officially kicked off last week and even though the official start of the 2017-18 NFL season is five weeks away, most fantasy football fanatics have already started their “mental training camp” as they gear up for another fantasy football season. There is no such thing as too…
Erik Erickson’s psychological stages: An overview by Lenora KM | Jun 15, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology Erik Erikson was a German psychoanalyst who was influenced by Sigmund Freud. He explored three parts of identity—the ego (self), personal (the personal idiosyncrasies that differentiate one individual from another) and social/cultural (the different social roles of a person). Erikson is known for his psychosocial theory of development, which recognizes…
Nature Versus Nurture: Which is in Control? by Lenora KM | Jun 12, 2017 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology It’s one of the oldest debates of psychology—nature versus nurture. One side of the argument is that an individual’s development is predisposed in the DNA. Biological psychology stresses that genetics and biological influences are responsible for making us who we are. Behaviorism centers on the impact that environment has on…
Nintendo is Using Psychology to Sell the Switch by Lenora KM | Jun 5, 2017 | Media Use, Mental Health Topics, Psychology Nintendo’s Switch is the latest craze in the gaming world, and it just surpassed the Wii in popularity. It made its appearance in March, quickly disappearing from store shelves. People who wanted the Switch waited in anticipation, only to find out they sold out a couple of days after they…
Who’s in Control of Your Actions? You, or Your Brain? by Anthony Centore, PhD | Aug 6, 2012 | Mental Health Topics, Psychology Are we in Control? Or do our brains run the show? The question is a matter of hot debate, as research suggests that our choices may be subject to our own biology. For instance, the brain’s frontal lobes, which are crucial for emotional regulation and self-control, are not well developed…