Critical Thinking
The goal of any psychology – or any course in the sciences – is to help you become a more critical thinker. Don’t be gullible! Learn how to think more carefully about what others tell you. That’s what these episodes are designed to do.
Episodes
- Episode 113: Interview with Scott Lilienfeld on the 50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology
In this interview Dr. Scott Lilienfeld, author of 50 Myths of Popular Psychology and we talk about, a) does the polygraph actually work?, b) do women talk more than men?, c) does handwriting analysis reveal your personality? and d) when you’re taking a multiple choice test should you change your first answer or leave it alone? Along the way we also talk about whether the full moon really does make people act strangely (and cause more dog bites). Finally, Dr. Lilienfeld provides his opinion on whether psychotherapists need to be more up-to-date on the scientific research behind the various types of psychotherapy.
- Episode 99: Animal Emotions – Does Your Pet Really Have Feelings?
Does your dog have thoughts and feelings? How about your cat? In this episode we find out what scientists have to say about how we should study this question. I also review a fascinating new study by Dr. Alexandra Horowitz of Barnard College who studied whether or not dogs who have that guilty look actually do feel guilty.
- Episode 75: Science Proves Subliminal Tapes Work! Well….not really
Do subliminal messages in self-help tapes really work? There actually is some evidence that people can be influenced by subliminal messages. Can your self-esteem be raised with subliminal tapes? These questions answered once and for all at The Psych Files podcast.
- Episode 71: Horse Sense or Nonsense? Clever Hans is Alive and Well
Can horses be used for corporate training or is this nonsense? If you listened to the NPR piece called, “Horse Sense: New Breed Of Executive Training” you might have had the same reaction I did: sounds a little “fishy”.
- Episode 70: Coincidence or Synchronicity? You Be The Judge
In this episode of The Psych Files we explore strange coincidences like this one and we also examine Carl Jung's concept of Synchronicity. Does it mean that everything happens for a reason – or is the idea more complex than that?
- Episode 41: EMDR – A Critical Perspective
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing – what is it about this type of psychotherapy that draws such criticism? In this episode I interview Dr. Scott Lilienfeld of Emory University. Dr. Lilienfeld has been a critic of EMDR and in this episode he explains his reasons why.
- Episode 31: Lemon Slices and a New Face on Mars! Gestalt Principles at Work
The gestalt principles of perception – how do they explain how we not only sometimes perceive strange things, but also how we can appreciate works of art? We’ll see images on lemon slices, on Mars, and on building tops. Why do we perceive these things?
- Episode 26: Why do Statistics Make Us So Queasy?
Why are we often anxious about or even suspicious of statistics? Let’s take a look at this topic. Along with some interesting examples I’ve got some statistics-oriented jokes I hope you’ll find funny.
- Episode 18: Critical Thinking and the Overflowing Cup
Everyone thinks critical thinking is a great thing. I don’t disagree, but how about a little open mindedness?
- Episode #3: Predictions, Predictions
Clairvoyants make predictions and sometimes it seems they’re right. How could this be? Is it possible to make a prediction that could almost never come out false. You better believe it.
