#29 - Video Games, Madness, and Our Society: A Dialogue with Christopher Ferguson

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Christopher Ferguson about violence in mass media such as video games, madness with historical and political figures, and the implications for our society. They discuss the standard view of violent mass media and the idea that they influence behaviors in society. They talk about how reward-based video games are less common and do not translate to behavior within society. They discuss the current literature on violence in mass media and social behavior. They also mention some practical elements of kids playing video games.

The second half of the conversation centered around Chris' new book and some of the motivations for writing the book. They talk about the importance of understanding the psychological profiles of historical and political leaders and why that matters. They parse out the differences between insanity, madness, and mental illness. They dialogue about some of the history of institutionalization and de-institutionalization. They also discuss challenges with diagnostic criteria, delineations between psychopathy and sociopathy, and the progressive changes within society. 

Christopher Ferguson is a clinical psychologist, professor, and writer. He teaches psychology at Stetson University and continues to conduct research on mass media violence. He is the author of two non-fiction books. His first book, Moral Combat: Why the War on Violent Video Games is Wrong and his most recent book, How Madness Shaped History: An Eccentric Array of Maniacal Rulers, Raving Narcissists, and psychotic Visionaries are both available here. You can find many links to his various publications and articles at his website.          Twitter: @cjferguson1111

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