The Psych Files Podcast » Video

Episode 127 (video): Phrenology: Maybe They Were On To Something

Michael — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 12:35:31 +0000

Everyone can picture one of those phrenology heads with personality traits drawn into different sections of the cranium. Was there anything to that? Well, not exactly. However, with the use of MRI scans researchers today may have located where certain personality traits lie in your brain. Travel with me into a 3D brain and let’s find out where your personality may lie.

Openness – dorsolateral PFC, anterior PFC, anterior parietal cortex (research was inconclusive on this personality factor)
Conscientiousness – Lateral Profrontal Cortex
Extraversion – Orbitofrontal Cortex, Nucleus Accumbens, Amygdala
Agreeableness – superior temporal sulcus, posterior cingulate cortex
Neuroticism – Medial prefrontal cortex, Amygdala, Hippocampus

Resources

DeYoung, C. G., Hirsh, J. B., Shane, M. S., Papademetris, X., Rajeevan, N., & Gray, J. R. (2010). Testing predictions from personality neuroscience: Brain structure and the Big Five. Psychological Science, 21, 820–828.
DeYoung, C.G., & Gray, J.R. (2009). Personality neuroscience: Explaining individual differences in affect, behavior, and cognition. In P.J. Corr & G. Matthews (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of personality psychology (pp. 323–346). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Here’s the website of the lead researcher, Colin DeYoung
Check out the wonderful 3D brain program called Brain Tutor by Brain Voyager
Here’s the concept map on Personality Neuroscience I used during this episode.
A summary and brief interview with Dr. Deyoung can be found in this article, Shape of Brain Tied to Personality, Says Scientist.

Episode 126 (video): SuperNormal Stimuli: Is This Why We’re Overweight?

Michael — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 00:07:12 +0000

There are many reasons why it is difficult to lose weight, but have you considered how supernormal stimuli might be one of them? In this episode I discuss some of the ideas in the books Waistland and Supernormal Stimuli by Dierdre Barrett. Is it possible that the old saying Everything in Moderation might just be wrong? And will Small Changes really help you to get in shape or are radical changes really the way to go?

Episode 123 (video): What Does Your Dog Know About You?

Michael — Thu, 06 May 2010 01:21:24 +0000

What do your dog and Shakespeare have in common? Well, they both use a Theory of Mind. Join me for this video episode in which I look at this fascinating idea of theory of mind and the unique and fun research that has been done around it. And yes, you might pick up an idea of how to test your dog to see if your dog can actually read your mind.

Theory of Mind

Zunshine, L. (2008). Theory of Mind and Fictions of Embodied Transparency. Narrative, 16 (1). The Ohio State University.

Zunshine, L. Why We Read Fiction

Alexandra Horowitze, author of Inside of a Dog, also has an interesting site called Candid Cognition: In The Mind of a Dog

From the New York Times books section: Next Big Thing in English: Knowing They Know That You Know

Episode 121: Top 10 Psychology Apps for the iPad, iPhone, & iPod

Michael — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 18:05:09 +0000

In this video episode I show you 10 of what I consider to be the best psychology apps in the app store. There are a lot of apps out there and many are not so good, but in this episode I pick out what I consider to be credible therapy apps, excellent mobile mind mapping tools, relaxation apps, games based on Gestalt principles of psychology, and some of the best 3 dimensional ways to look at the brain.

Psychology Apps

Graphic Organizer: Popplet

Graphic Organizer: SimpleMind

Anxiety: iCounselor for Anxiety

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: iCounselor for OCD

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: CBT Referee

Relaxation: Koi Pond

Relaxation: White Noise

Relaxation: Relax Waterfall

Gestalt Principles Game: Shift

3 Dimensional Brain: 3DBrain

Learn the parts of the brain: BrainTutor

Goal Setting Tool: TraxItAll

Optical Illusions: Eye Tricks!

Color Vision and other Eye Tests: EyeXam

Mnemonics for memorizing the parts of the brain (my app): BrainNmonX

Episode 115 (Video): Violent Video Games – What Does the Research Say?

Michael — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 02:41:55 +0000

Recent research on violent video games is pretty conclusive and you’re not going to like it: there’s good evidence that people if you play violent video games you might be less likely to a) notice aggressive events, b) perceive fewer or less severe injuries, c) feel less sympathy for violence victims, and d) have less negative attitudes towards violence. In this video I take a close look at this research as well as one study which claims the complete opposite: that violent video games are perceived by players as merely “rough and tumble play” and that violence actually enhances performance. Who should you believe? The video is about 28 minutes long.

Resources on Video Game Violence

Feel free to download the presentation I used in this video episode. You can download them in Apple Keynote format: Violent Video Games, in PowerPoint format: Violent Video Games, and in PDF: Violent Video Games.

You’ll find links to lots of resources on violence video games at Craig Anderson‘s web site.

Center for the Study of Violence

The effect of video game violence on physiological desensitization to real-life violence

Here is Dr. Wolfgang Bösche‘s homepage, author of Violent content enhances video game performance. The site is in German, but you can download the pdf of the article from this site.

Carnagey, N.L., Anderson, C.A., & Bushman, B.J. (2006). The Effects of Video Game Violence on Physiological Desensitization to Real-Life Violence. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.

Anderson, C.A., & Dill, K.E. (2000). Video games and aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behavior in the laboratory and in life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78, 772-790.

Violent video games and desensitization from the Cognitive Daily web site.

Safer Children in a Digital World: the report of the Byron Review

Violent video games linked to child aggression

Episode 114 (video): Finding Little Albert

Michael — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 14:03:03 +0000

Little Albert – one of the most famous subjects in the history of psychology has finally been identified. Researchers spent 7 years tracking down every possible lead in order to discover who John Watson’s "Albert B" really was. In this video episode I take you through each step of the extensive detective work to uncover his identity. It’s a fascinating, creative, and in the end touching journey. Some never seen before pictures are included. Join me in this episode of The Psych Files.

As much as Pavlov’s dogs, Skinner’s pigeons, and Milgram’s obedience experiments, the conditioning of Albert is the face of psychology. To many, Little Albert embodies the promise and, to some, the dangers inherent in the scientific study of behavior” – Beck, et al, p. 613

Resources for this Episode

Beck, H. P., Levinson, S., & Irons, G. (2009). Finding Little Albert: A Journey to John B. Watson’s Infant Laboratory. American Psychologist, 64, 605-614.

Many thanks to Hall Beck for his support, background information and photos that appear at the end of this episode. Professor Hall Beck‘s homepage at Appalachian State University.

More information on the myths and truths of the famous Little Albert Study can be found here in episode 47.

I am happy to share the slides I used in the video. The slides were created in Apple Keynote, which you can download by clicking here: Finding Little Albert. A PowerPoint version can be downloaded by clicking here: Finding Little Albert, and a pdf version is available by clicking here: Finding Little Albert.

Episode 109: Correlation and Causation

Michael — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:09:10 +0000

Looking for examples of correlation and causation? You’ve heard it a million times: correlation doesn’t mean causation. Still need help? Well, here’s a humorous look at this topic that I think drives home the point. The Psych Files "Breaking News" explores whether satisfied workers are more productive and whether living together causes divorce. I hope you enjoy this unique video episode of The Psych Files.

Episode 105: Smart Birds are More Successful with the Ladies

Michael — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 20:36:35 +0000

A popular piece of animal research indicates that intelligent male Browerbirds appear to have greater "mating success" (researcher lingo for sex). The more sensitive birds may also be more preferred by the opposite sex as well. So much for the jocks. Find out about this fascinating research on animals in this video episode of The Psych Files.

Resources On Animal Intelligence

Many thanks to Jason Keagy for his communication regarding this research.

Here is a link to Dr. Gerald Borgia‘s website where you can learn more about the activities of his research group (including info on applying to become a research assistant).

Thanks to professor Emeritus Stephen Black from Bishop’s University for alerting the Teaching in Psychology discussion list about this neat study on browerbirds

More on problem solving animals: If you haven’t seen these crows do some neat problem solving then you’re in for a treat.

Episode 102: How to Create an Online Experiment on Eyewitness Testimony Accuracy

Michael — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:06:06 +0000

Want to create an online experiment? Here’s how to do it. I’ll show you how you can create an online experiment using two tools: Sproutbuilder and Google Forms. Using these two tools, you’ll be able to get creative and put together an experiment online that others all over the world can take. Perfect also for an online class or any type of elearning. You’ll even be able to collect and analyze the data. In this episode of The Psych Files I’ll use a classic experiment on the unreliability of eyewitness testimony as the subject for my online experiment. Both students and faculty might be interested to see how this works.

Click this image to participate in this experiment on eyewitness testimony:

(keep in mind that the results of this example are not reliable since anyone can take this study multiple times)

Resources for this Episode

To learn more about the tool for building online experiment that I showed in this episode, go to the Sprout homepage.

If you sign up at Sprout you get 3 free Sprouts. If you want to pay for a subscription and you are an educator or student, use the promo code: education50

You can find a nice summary on the unreliability of eyewitness testimony in Roger Hock’s well know book "Forty Studies that Changed Psychology" which you can find in The Psych Files bookstore.

Kebbel, M., & Giles, C. (2000). Some experimental influence of lawyers’ complicated questions on eyewitness confidence and accuracy. Journal of Psychology, 134(2), 129-139.

Smith, V. & Ellsworth, P. (1987). The social psycholgy of eyewitness accuracy: Leading questions and communicator expertise. Journal of Applied Psychology, 72, 294-300.

Bradfield, S.L., Wells, G.L., & Olson, E.A. (2002). The damaging effect of confirming feedback on the relation between eyewitness testimony and identification accuracy. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 112-120-.

Episode 83: New Year’s Resolutions to Lose Weight: Why So Hard To Keep?

Michael — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 23:43:36 +0000

Why is it so hard to keep our new year’s resolutions to lose weight? I explore this question in this episode in which I also take a tour through the various schools of psychology and show how each one would explain why you have trouble keeping your promise to yourself to lose weight (or stay out of debt, or stop smoking).

Concept Map – In t his video I refer to the concept mapping program as “MeadMap”. Well, the company “CoMapping” purchased MeadMap. However, the program still looks and runs the same. You’ll see the map below, but you can see it full size by clicking here: Losing Weight and the Schools of Psychology. In addition, feel free to contact me (click on the Contact Michael page to the left) if you would like me to send you a copy of the map which you can import into a MeadMap account and alter it any way you wish.

If you’re old, don’t try to change yourself, change your environment – B.F. Skinner

If you can’t change something, then change the way you think about it – Maya Angelou’s mother