There’s no question that we find ourselves in uncertain times. Looking at current events and wondering about what the future may hold can leave us feeling overwhelmed, anxious, and stressed, to say the least.
But uncertain times aren’t always the ominous force we make them out to be. In fact, research suggests that they can create unique opportunities for growth and transformation that we wouldn’t otherwise encounter.
This episode, Ella Rhodes chats with Maggie Jackson — author of Uncertain and expert on uncertainty — unpacking how uncertainty shapes our lives. Together, they explore how embracing the unknown can open doors to unexpected possibilities, and can lead us to greener pastures.
This is Episode 39 of PsychCrunch, the podcast of the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.
Episode Credits:
Hosted by Ella Rhodes.
Audio wizardry by Jeff Knowler.
Edited by Emma Barratt.
Missed previous episodes? Get up to date via our PsychCrunch collection page.
Want to learn more?
Read more about how we can embrace uncertainty in therapeutic settings with The wisdom of therapist uncertainty, over at The Psychologist.
Or check out Resilience to uncertainty by Eleanore Batteux for a practical exploration of what we can do to become resilient to future uncertainties, explored through the lens of the pandemic.
PsychCrunch is sponsored by Routledge Psychology
Routledge Psychology is part of the Taylor & Francis Group, and publishing partner for the BPS Core Textbooks Series. Browse over 5 million articles, and related books. BPS members are entitled to a 25% discount on all books published by Routledge – find your discount code here and visit the dedicated BPS Member page at Routledge here.
In years gone by, the norm for psychological research was to design studies from the outside looking in. Acting as observers of particular populations, there was generally an expected separation between the researcher and the researched.
More recently, however, there’s been a shift.
For decades, the rallying cry “nothing about us without us” has been used by the disability rights movement to communicate the idea that no policy should come to pass without their full and direct participation. This important approach has made its way to psychological research, and as it gathers momentum, we’re seeing more and more lived experiences and expert insights from studied populations enrich our scientific landscape.
This episode, Emma Palmer-Cooper meets James Cusak (Chief Executive, Autistica) and Dr Amy Pearson to look at the benefit of involving studied populations in research design — specifically, in autism research.
This is Episode 38 of PsychCrunch, the podcast of the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.
Episode Credits:
Hosted by Emma Palmer-Cooper.
Audio wizardry by Jeff Knowler.
Edited by Emma Barratt.
Missed previous episodes? Get up to date via our PsychCrunch collection page.
Want to learn more?
See the value of consulting with studied communities in this article investigating differences between academic and community research priorities in Scotland.
Or take a look at The Psychologist’s recent issue on Neurodiversity.
PsychCrunch is sponsored by Routledge Psychology
Routledge Psychology is part of the Taylor & Francis Group, and publishing partner for the BPS Core Textbooks Series. Browse over 5 million articles, and related books. BPS members are entitled to a 25% discount on all books published by Routledge – find your discount code here and visit the dedicated BPS Member page at Routledge here.
This is Episode 36 of PsychCrunch, the podcast of the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.
Why do we dream? And what business does a good dream have turning into a nightmare?
In this episode, Ella Rhodes embarks on an exploration of our non-waking life.
In it, she speaks with Director of the Swansea University Sleep Laboratory, Professor Mark Blagrove, about his research and latest theories about the origins of dreams.
Research Clinical Psychologist Dr Bryony Sheaves of Oxford University also shares her expert insights into why we have nightmares, and the innovative research revealing how treating them can improve our mental health.
Episode Credits:
Written and hosted by Ella Rhodes.
Mixed and edited by Jeff Knowler.
Edited by Emma Barratt.
Missed previous episodes? Get up to date via our PsychCrunch collection page.
Not done dreaming?
Check out The Psychologist’s most recent interview with Mark Blagrove for much more on the function of dreams.
Or explore some of Bryony’s latest research on nightmares in this Research Digest piece by Emily Reynolds.
PsychCrunch is sponsored by Routledge Psychology
Routledge Psychology is part of the Taylor & Francis Group, and publishing partner for the BPS Core Textbooks Series. Browse over 5 million articles, and related books. BPS members are entitled to a 25% discount on all books published by Routledge – find your discount code here and visit the dedicated BPS Member page at Routledge here.
This is Episode 35 of PsychCrunch, the podcast of the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.
From haunted houses to scary movies, many of us find a thrill in a good scare. But… isn’t that a bit counter-intuitive?
In this episode, we ask why so many of us are drawn to things that should make us run a mile, and whether we can use fear to help us better cope with day-to-day anxiety. Host Ella Rhodes speaks with Director of The Recreational Fear Lab, Dr Mathias Clasen, and Cambridge University PhD student Lucie Daniel-Watanabe to discover why fear isn’t always to be feared.
Episode credits:
Written and hosted by Ella Rhodes.
Audio mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler.
Edited by Emma Barratt.
Not done learning about fear?
Get into Dr Ciaran O’Keeffe’s look at the psychology of fear, fright-nights and exploring the unknown.
Or if coping with fear piques your interest, why not explore what children know about managing fear with this piece by Christian Jarrett.
Still curious? Dive deeper into our guest Dr Matthias Clasen’s work right here.
PsychCrunch is sponsored by Routledge Psychology
Routledge Psychology is part of the Taylor & Francis Group, and publishing partner for the BPS Core Textbooks Series.
Browse over 5 million articles at www.tandfonline.com, and related books at www.routledge.com.
We’ve lived side-by-side with domestic cats for thousands of years, yet they maintain an aura of mystery and a reputation for aloofness and even outright disdain for humans. But are cats really so enigmatic – or are we only just beginning to understand them?
In this episode, Ella Rhodes, journalist for The Psychologist, speaks to two experts who are working to help us to understand cats. They discuss research on cat cognition and intelligence, chat about what we can do how to make our cats’ lives happier, and even share some tips on how to train them. Our guests are Dr Kristyn Vitale, assistant professor of animal health and behaviour at Unity College, and Dr Zazie Todd, author of the Companion Animal Psychology blog and recent book Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy.
Episode credits:
Presented and produced by Ella Rhodes. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Artwork by Tim Grimshaw.
Relevant research and writing from our guests includes:
Companion Animal Psychology: a blog written by Zazie Todd
Several articles by Kristyn Vitale and colleagues:
On October 1, 2015 Dr Christian Jarrett (Editor, BPS Research Digest) met with Dr Jon Sutton (Editor, The Psychologist magazine) to debate Michael Jackson's legacy. This is their full argument!
Excerpts from their debate about MJ appear in Episode Three of PsychCrunch, which explored whether psychology can help you to win an argument.